Smoked and Seared Pork Belly Slices ToTry

Posted on by December 27, 2018

This is inspired by Jeff at https://www.smoking-meat.com/february-1-2018-smoked-pork-belly-slices.

What You’ll Need

  • 3-4 lbs pork belly slices (¼ thick is perfect)
  • Kosher salt (for the dry brine)
  • Jeff’s original rub recipe
  1. Dry brine both sides of the 1/4″ thick slices for 2 hours
  2. Apply rub
  3. Smoke at 240 until they are at 200-205
  4. Let cool for about an hour
  5. Sear in a medium heat CI pan

Christmas Lamb 2018

Posted on by December 24, 2018

We bought on 12/22/2018 two pieces of lamb ribs that weighted 2.76 lb. and 2.3 lb. at South Alabama Custom Meats. On Christmas eve, after they have thawed in the refer for two days, we salted the (dry brine) and an hour later rubbed with fresh toasted Corriender seeds (toasted whole in a cast iron skillet) and fennel (not toasted) that was all ground fine in the coffee grinder and shaken on the lamb.

Sauerkraut with Carrot

Posted on by July 7, 2020

12/23/2018 – Made this different than the first time I made it with carrot as there is far less carrot (~10:1) and included the caraway and dill like German kraut. The cabbage to carrot ratio is about 10:1. The salt level is much higher than the 1.4% I usually use as the last batch was at 1.6% and I liked it.

grams
Cabbage + carrot -
1856+192		2048
0.2% caraway seed =4.1
0.5% yellow mustard =10.2
1.8% salt37

1/12/2019 – The first sampling of this was enjoyed by me and Mary. Crunchy and not salty as feared. The carrots seemed to add a touch of sweetness but not in a sugar sort of way.

 

French Onion Chicken ToTry

Posted on by December 22, 2018
This recipe was inspired by one with the same name at Dixondalefarms.com.
Ingredients
3 tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
2 tsp. chopped thyme
Kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 3/4 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1″ pieces
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c. low-sodium beef broth
1 c. shredded Gruyère
Chopped parsley, for garnish (optional)
Directions
1. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat 2 tbsp olive oil. Add onions and season with salt, pepper, and thyme. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally until onions are caramelized and jammy, about 25 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Turn off heat and remove onion mixture. Wipe skillet clean.
2. In a large bowl, season chicken with salt, pepper and oregano, then toss with flour. Heat remaining oil in the same skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken and cook until golden on all sides and mostly cooked through, about 8 minutes.
3. Add beef broth and return cooked onions to skillet. Bring mixture to a boil, then then educe heat and simmer until chicken is cooked through and beef broth reduces slightly, about 10 more minutes.
4. Add Gruyère and cover skillet with a lid. Cook until cheese is melty, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and garnish with parsley. Serve warm.

Citrus Rosemary Cornish Hens

Posted on by December 20, 2018

Inspired by Jeff Phillips here.

What You’ll Need
  • 4-6 Cornish hens 18-20 oz. each
  • Citrus rosemary marinade (recipe below)
  • Jeff’s Texas-style rub
Instructions
  1. Make the marinade by adding 3 cups of olive oil to a medium sized mixing bowl. Zest about ? cup each of the oranges, lemons and limes. Squeeze the oranges, lemons and limes to get about 1 full cup of juice. Add the zest, juice, chopped rosemary, minced garlic, salt and pepper to the olive oil and stir well to combine.
  2. Halve the cornish hens by removing the backbone and the keel bone along the breast.. Add the half chickens to a lidded container and pour the marinade over the chicken to cover. Place the chicken in the fridge for 12 hours.
  3. Do not rinse when finished. Sprinkle a thin layer of Jeff’s Texas style rub onto the skin side of the chicken halves.
  4. Set up your smoker for cooking at about 275°F if possible using orange wood, or any citrus/fruit wood or even pecan, oak or hickory if that is all you have.
  5. Place the chicken on the smoker grates skin side up. Cook the cornish hens for about 1 hour and 15 minutes at 275 °F or until they reach 165 °F in the thickest part as measured by a meat thermometer.

Simple Etouffee ToTry

Posted on by December 17, 2018

From the Deep South Dish to serve over blackened catfish and her Cajun rice pilaf.

Prepare the etouffee first by melting the 1/2 stick of unsalted butter in a large skillet over medium heat and stir in the flour; cook and stir for about 4 minutes or until caramel colored.

Add the onion, bell pepper and celery; cook another 3-4 minutes or until tender, add the garlic and cook another minute. Slowly stir in the stock or broth until fully incorporated. I had a carton of Kitchen Bouquet vegetable stock in the fridge I needed to use up so that’s what I used here. Isn’t it beautiful and rich?

Add the pepper and Cajun/Creole seasoning. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat to a medium low simmer, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the crawfish tails, cook and stir until crawfish is heated through. Since I’m using this as a sauce, I’m only using about 1/4 pound of crawfish, which makes it a little more economical. When we have a crawfish boil or pick some up already boiled, I always peel and set aside some to freeze.

Stir in the parsley and green onion, reserving a bit for garnish. Hold over very low simmer.

  • 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) of unsalted butter
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup of diced onion
  • 1/2 cup of diced green bell pepper
  • 1/4 cup of diced celery
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 2 cups seafood or chicken stock/broth
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon Creole or Cajun seasoning
  • 1/4 pound crawfish tails
  • 1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
  • 1/8 cup sliced green onion

Instructions

  • Prepare the etouffee first by melting 1/2 stick of butter in a large skillet over medium heat and stir in the flour; cook and stir for about 4 minutes or until caramel colored.
  • Add the onion, bell pepper and celery; cook another 3-4 minutes or until tender,
  • add the garlic and cook another minute.
  • Slowly stir in the stock or broth until fully incorporated.
  • Add the pepper and Cajun seasoning. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat to a medium low simmer, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • Add the crawfish tails, cook and stir until crawfish is heated through; stir in the parsley and green onion, reserving a bit for garnish. Hold over a very low simmer and prepare the blackened fish.

Rosemary Lemon Chicken

Posted on by December 11, 2018

12/8-10/2018 – This was inspired by Ina Garten’s recipe for Tuscan Lemon Chicken in our copy of her Back to Basics book.  The recipe is online here. Used thighs rather than a whole bird and they turned out very good as they were moist with a good grilled taste and some crunchy skin. They would have been better done over charcoal. The lemon was noticeable but not the rosemary despite having added ground rosemary to Ina’s seasoning. This with warmed up pasta with tomatoes and basil was a great meal. Continue reading →