Barbecue Chicken Stew with Puffy Tortillas

After a lengthy tussle with Verizon, I am finally hooked up with the power of the internets and ready to start blogging again (hold for applause).

In the last meal Thursday Club meal that I cooked, my barbecue chicken tacos were met to rave reviews. Recipe Time!

(4-5 servings)

You will need:

6 Large Chicken Drum Sticks (skin on, bone in)

1 Green Pepper - halved and rough chopped

1 Large Onion - halved and sliced thin

4 Cloves of Garlic - minced

2 Tsp. Tomato Paste

Barbecue Seasoning (mix of paprika, cumin, ground coriander, allspice, pepper flakes, etc.)

1/4 Cup Whisky (nothing too good, Johnny Red will do)

1/4 Apple Cider Vinegar

2/3 Cup Ketchup

1/3 Cup Dijon Mustard

Chicken Stock

Hot Sauce

Brown Sugar

Salt and Pepper

-Preheat large pot with light flavored oil (Veg or Canola)

-Season chicken with S & P and brown until skin is crisp on all sides. Remove and set aside.

-Drain most of the excess oil and fat leaving all the brown bits behind.

- Sweat onion, pepper, garlic until soft on low heat. About 10 minutes.

-Add tomato paste, barbecue seasoning. Coat veg and brown a few more minutes.

-Remove the pot from burner and deglaze pot with whisky-cider mixture. Make sure not to singe your kitchen/self in the process. Back to medium heat for a few minutes.

- Add ketchup, mustard, stock. Simmer and taste. Add hot sauce, brown sugar, S & P to your taste.

- Place chicken back in. Make sure the liquid almost covers the drumsticks.

- Cover allowing a little steam to escape and simmer for an hour, periodically moving the chicken around to make sure all of the little guys get attention from the sauce.

- After an hour, remove chicken again, shred meat off of the bone (it should be falling off).

- Place the bones back into the sauce, turn up the heat and reduce the sauce until thickened to your liking.

- Heat off, bones out (make sure they're devoid of all meat), and shredded chicken back in. Stir it up and taste again. Season accordingly.

Serve with toasted flour tortillas (puffed up in the over/toaster to create a nice crunchy shell), smoked cheddar, avocado slices, and sour cream......or whatever else you like.

Recipe: Split Pea Soup w/Ham Hocks

I've been cooking a lot recently, both in an effort to stay away from my local boozer & clear out my freezer, so here goes yet another recipe. I had this soup at my parent's house a few weeks ago & I was really eager to try it out for myself.

Ingredients:

2 Ham Hocks
1 lbs Split Peas
1 Medium Onion
4 Cloves Garlic
1 Pack Frozen Peas & Carrots
3 Cups Chicken Stock
Spices: Bay Leaves, Thyme, Oregano, Pepper Flakes, etc.

Add ham hocks to small pot & fill with water (about 6 cups) & boil for 1-1.5 hours (the more, the merrier). Be sure to test for tenderness of the meat & skim off any 'scum' from the surface of the water & reserve boiling liquid. Rinse & pick through your peas, removing any impurities.

While your pork is boiling, dice onion & add to large stockpot with olive oil. Sweat for 5 minutes. Add diced (or pressed) garlic & cook for 2-3 more minutes. Add majority of the pack of carrots & peas, reserving some.

Then add rinsed split peas. Incorporate ingredients & add chicken stock (in this case made from the strained remainder from my Warm Potato & Chicken Salad) & liquid from boiling your ham hocks. Add spices (be careful about the use of salt, the pork stock will be somewhat salty) & bring to a boil & simmer gently, covered, for 90 minutes or until peas are soft..

Remove bay leaves & using an immersion blender, blend the soup. Add remaining peas & carrots for texture & color. Debone & chop ham hocks into bite sized pieces (particularly the skin, which may become chewy). Add the meat to the soup & simmer for a further 15 minutes. Serve with warm, crusty bread.

Recipe: Steamed Mussels w/Shallots & Chorizo

For some reason I really wanted to eat some mussels & I hate cooking/eating alone so I had invited a few friends over for an impromptu dinner party. In a bit of a rush, I braved the rain with a buddy & headed to Whole Foods on Houston where I picked up some chorizo & 7lbs of mussels (3 bags).

I washed & debearded the mussels as best I could as we chopped the chorizo, shallots (4), parsley & garlic (a full bulb). The chorizo went into the pans with a bit of butter & olive oil, leaving a delicious, red/yellow color in the pan. The parsley, shallots & garlic were added next, along with more butter. Once cooked through, I deglazed with a white wine that has been sitting on my wine rack for ages (I used the entire bottle).

Salt & pepper was put into the pots, the mixture was brought up to a boil & the mussels were added. I covered the pots & lowered to a simmer to let our delicious little bivalves steam away happily. Once they had fully opened, I served with warm bread & butter. Simple yet effective & really really good to eat. I particularly enjoying dunking my bread in the broth. One of these days I'll give making French Fries a shot.

I'm surprised that I don't cook mussels more often. They're dead easy to make & pretty darn inexpensive. I spent $30 on a meal for 6 (plus the bottle of plonk) & everyone left full. There were enough leftovers for me to make my Fried Beer Battered Mussels. I could have spent even less if I had gone to Chinatown for the mussels ($6 a bag at Wholefoods) & the chorizo was a bit overpriced, but I was pushed for time (read: Lazy). All in All, a good meal, I really enjoyed it.

Recipe: Warm Potato & Chicken Salad

Sort of like Teddy's Fridge With Cupboard Sauce situation, I was sitting around today hungry & not wanting to leave the house as it looked like it was going to rain. I looked through what I had lying around & with suggestions from my Dad, came up with this great salad.

Basically, I filled up a small pot with water, added 2 chicken thighs (skin on) & some crushed (just with the side of my knife) cloves of garlic. Then came the fun part; I didn't have much in the way of fresh herbs, so I just opened my pantry & let my hands fly along the spice shelf. Salt & Pepper (obviously), garlic powder, oregano, thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, plus some other stuff that's been gathering dust in there. I turned the heat up & let my two little babies simmer away (round about 40 minutes, give or take).

I had a smaller pot in which I boiled 4 red bliss potatoes cut mouth sized & skin on. When my potatoes were nearly done, I took the chicken out of the broth/stock & began work on the dressing; olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper, the juice of half a lemon & mustard (both regular & grain). I'm glad I only added half a lemon as it was a bit tart. I ended up putting in just a dollop of honey to smooth it out.

The chicken was shredded roughly & put into a mixing bowl with the potatoes & some parsley. On went the dressing & some coarsely ground pepper. Mix & plate! I really enjoyed the salad, but I have a few things I'd love to add/change. It really could have used some red onion & secondly, I wish I added more chicken. The meat to starch ratio was a bit lopsided. There are infinite variations for this basic salad. Such as adding slow roasted grape tomatoes which I have bottled.

There's also a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow! You're left with all of the liquid that you boiled the chicken in which by now is delicious & rich. I haven't strained it as yet because I don't know what I'll use it for.

Recipe: The Beast

Known lovingly as the "Bacon Explosion", we dubbed this mound of deliciousness 'The Beast'. Basically pork on top of pork on top of pork with a few of Ted's additions & smoked, this thing was amazing (pictured to the right with some smoked sausage).

Lem's new smoker made short work of this delicious little bundle of porky goodness.

1. Weave 12 slices of thick cut bacon into a lattice. It should measure about a square foot.

2. Flatten out 1 lb of Italian sausage meat & lay flat out on the bacon.

3. Add 2-3 slices of cooked, chopped bacon. Dousing in BBQ sauce is optional.

4. Add cheese. Again, this was optional, but I thought it could have used more cheese.

5. Roll up the Italian Sausage.

6. Roll the Beast into a tight package.

7. Season lightly & add to your smoker with your favorite lump wood. Smoke for 2-3 hours, slice & enjoy!

Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of the finished, sliced product as it was devoured pretty damn quickly. I'm not sure what type of wood was used for the smoking, but the bacon had a really sweet flavor that I loved. Nice work Ted!

This was a nice change in both taste and texture to most of the other foods were were eating on this year's Man Camp (full culinary coverage to follow!)

Recipe: Cream of Mushroom Soup

I made this delicious soup a few weeks ago for my Mom who was feeling a bit under the weather. Serves 4. (From Wolfgang Puck)




Ingredients

* 1.5 lbs mushroom, coarsely chopped (I put the entire lot in the blender, but I recommend doing it in portions)
* 2 tablespoons lemon juice
* 1 tablespoon butter
* 2 teaspoons minced shallots
* 1/4 teaspoon thyme
* 1 small bay leaf
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon pepper
* 2 cups heavy cream
* 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
* 1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tbs water
* 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley

Directions

1. Sprinkle mushrooms with lemon juice.
2. Melt butter in large heavy saucepan and saute shallots.
3. Add mushrooms,thyme,and bay leaf, saute for 10 minutes.
4. Add salt, pepper, cream and chicken broth and bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
6. Add cornstarch and simmer another 10 minutes,stirring.

Recipe: Italian Sausage Soup

Ingredients:
1 pound Italian sausage, casings removed if present.
1 large chopped onion
3 medium carrots (shopped)
2 stalks celery (chopped)
8 cups chicken broth
1 14 oz can tomatoes diced
1 8 oz tomato sauce
3 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Fresh rosemary
Fresh thyme
1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup orzo pasta
Finely shredded Parmesan cheese
Salt & Pepper to taste

Method:

In a 4 qt. Dutch oven, cook the sausage, onion, carrot, garlic and celery over medium heat until the sausage is no longer pink. Drain well to remove fat.

Add chicken broth, tomatoes (w/liquid) ,tomato sauce, oregano, rosemary,basil, thyme, fennel seeds, bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for 1 hour.

Add pasta and return to boiling. Reduce heat and cook uncovered for 30 minutes.

Remove and discard bay leaf.

Serve with shredded Parmesan cheese.

Serves: 6

Smoked Salmon Rillettes

A nice little recipe for entertaining friends....or entertain yourself into a nice little food coma. You will need:

8 oz. Fresh Salmon
3 cups Water
8 oz. Smoked Salmon
4 Chopped Shallots
3 tbsp. Dijon Mustard
2 tbsp. Vodka
2 tbsp Lemon Zest
3 tbsp. Lemon Juice (fresh is preferred)
4 tbsp. Cubed Unsalted Butter (room temp)
1/3 cup Chopped Parsley
Ground Black Pepper to Taste

Bring the water to a boil in a pan, lower to a simmer and add fresh salmon. Cook 3-4 minutes on each side, or until cooked through.



Set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, add the other ingredients and mix. Don't worry too much about uniformity of the pieces of smoked salmon, butter and shallots because all of this going to be blended.

Once the cooked salmon is cooled, flake into pieces and add to the bowl. Toss all of this into the food processor and pulse until blended. Try not to over blend, as you'll want a bit of texture. Too smooth and you will have yourself a salmon mousse....which wouldn't be terrible, but it's not what we set out for. Make certain the butter is fully incorporated, as you don't want huge chunks of butter in some bites. When finished, taste to make sure everything is balanced, cover and refrigerate. Let it set for at least 3-4 hours before serving, but it would be fine to make the day before.



Serve with dark bread (pumpernickel or the like) and enjoy!

Picking Pickled Peppers.....and Carrots.

A bunch of carrots and jalapenos staring me in the face. They've been sitting in the fridge, waiting to be called up for a soup, braise or saute....what to do with them? I thought I'd try something different this time. Being a complete rookie to the pickling game, I had to find a simple recipe that utilized the meager contents of my pantry. Lazy, yet resourceful. After scouring the Internets, I was able to combine a few different recipes to fit my needs.

Here is what I did...

1 lbs. carrots, peeled and cut into sticks
3 large whole jalapenos, sliced down the side to allow the pickling liquid in
4 shallots, peeled, but kept whole
3 cloves of garlic, lightly crushed



All of the veg was tossed snugly into the bottom of a container. I used a 4 cup, unbreakable plastic jug with a lock-down lid ($10 at Williams-Sonoma).

The pickling liquid contained:

1 1/2 cup of water
1 1/2 cup vinegar (I used regular white vinegar, but cider or red wine could be used to add a different flavor)
1/4 cup of sugar
1 1/2 tbsp salt
1 tbsp black peppercorns
1 tbsp allspice seeds
4 tiny bay leaves (or 2 large)



All of these ingredients were brought to a boil in a medium saucepan and then simmered for 3 minutes. Pour the liquid over the veg and let cool. Snap down the lid and set aside.



I've read that they should be ready to eat in 3-4 days, but i'm going to let these puppies sit for much longer. Most likely 2-3 weeks before prying open the lid and snacking away.......if I can hold out that long.

Cashew Tarragon Salad

Here's a recipe for a really tasty, yet simple salad that takes very little time to make. Feeds 4 (as appetizer or side)

Salad;

2 heads butter lettuce

14 oz. hearts of palm, sliced thin

1 avocado, diced

1 cup roasted cashews

Wash & tear lettuce & toss with avocado & hearts of palm.

Dressing;

2 tbsp fresh tarragon, minced

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

3/4 cup olive oil

Blend all ingredients in a food processor, then toss with salad.

Sweet Potato Soup w/Chipotle Cream

Yield: 15 cups
Work Time: 45 min
Total Time: 85 min

Ingredients;

Soup:

2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

3 lbs sweet potato, peeled & diced

2 carrots peeled & diced

1 tbsp tomato paste

8 cups chicken stock

3 tbsp maple syrup

1 tbsp lime juice

1 tsp cumin

3/4 tsp sage

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

2 bay leavessalt & pepper to taste

Chipotle Cream:

1 finely chopped chipotle chile

2 tsp adobo sauce

1/2 cup toasted pumkin seeds

1. In a large pot, heat oil over low heat. Add onion and cook until softened, about 8 minutes. Increase heat to medium; stir in potato, carrot and tomato paste. Cook until vegetables begin to caramelize, about 4 minutes. Add broth, syrup, juice, salt, cumin, sage, pepper, nutmeg and bay leaf. Cover and cook until vegetables are fork-tender, about 30 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Purée using an immersion blender or in batches using a standing blender.

2. For Chipotle Cream, in a small mixer bowl, beat cream on medium speed to firm peaks. Fold in chile and adobo sauce.

3. Ladle soup into bowls, top each with a dollop of Chipotle Cream and sprinkle with seeds.

Bastardization of Chinatown's Finest

Instead of sentencing them to a lifetime of freezer burn, I decided to use some leftover wonton wrappers to cook homemade pot stickers in hopes of duplicating the Chinatown Dumpling Shop-style treat. Although nothing compares to those Lower Manhattan classics (especially in the speed of preparation department), this recipe was close in my estimate. You'll need:

1 lbs Ground Pork
1/2 lbs Shiitake Mushrooms diced
3 Cloves of Garlic minced
3 Scallions chopped (both white and green bits)
1 bunch Cilantro
1 tbsp Chili Sauce
3 tbsp Hoisin Sauce
2 tbsp Soy Sauce
1 tbsp Ginger Paste
Dash of Sesame Oil
One package of defrosted Gyoza Wrappers (roughly 50)
1 Egg beaten
Water

Add a light oil (I used vegetable) to a heavy pan and saute mushrooms for a few minutes until they start to take on color, then add garlic. Make sure to keep at a medium to medium low temperature so the garlic does not burn and turn bitter. Add salt and pepper and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes.

While mushrooms continue to soften, whisk together chili sauce, soy, hoisin, ginger paste and sesame oil in a separate bowl. Taste to check the levels of flavor and adjust to your preference. Then, double the sauce in volume with water and whisk to combine. Increase pan to high heat and add liquid to the mushroom mixture. Simmer and stir until the liquid has absorbed, leaving plump little shrooms and little excess sauce. Set aside to cool. In another bowl, combine the uncooked pork, scallions and cilantro. When mushrooms have cooled down, add to pork and incorporate all the ingredients along with more salt and pepper. Using your hands is the best way to make sure all of the ingredients will make it into every dumpling.



Add a small dollop of the pork mixture (careful not to over stuff, as you need room for a tight seal around the edge) to the center of the wonton wrappers. Line the outside of the filling with the beaten egg all the way to the edges. With your hands, gently not to rip the covering wonton wrapper, stretch the dough in a circular motion to create a slightly bigger wrapper to cover the filling. Place over the top. Create a seal with fingers around the entire dumping ensuring the two wrappers are pinched tightly at the edge and no excess air is left inside. This is a very important step so your finished product won't inflate and/or blow up in the cooking process.



In a non-stick pan, add oil and bring to medium high heat. Add dumplings flat side down making sure not to overcrowd. My pan held 7-9 comfortably. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until a brown crust has formed on the bottom. Feel free to shimmy them around to prevent them sticking to each other or the pan. Flip dumplings to the other side, add a 1/2 cup of water, and immediately cover with a tight fitting lid. Be quick with the lid and watch for splashing when you add the water to whatever hot oil might be left in the pan. The water will steam the dumplings and should completely cook out within 4 minutes (keep an eye on it, but try not to remove lid too often, as it slows down cooking). Don't be afraid to add more water and recover if the meat is not completely cooked through. When water is gone, cook with the top off at a low heat for an additional minute, or until the bottom (what started off as the top) is browned and crisp. Remove to a paper towel to drain excess oil.



A simple, but kick-ass dipping sauce for the dumplings uses the same sauce that went onto the mushroom mixture, minus the water, and add the juice of one lime. Whisk and serve in a side bowl.

Forks can be used to cut the finished product into manageable pieces, but I found the best way to inhale these bad boys was use chop sticks and shovel down the whole thing in one bite. Enjoy....

Big Ol' Pot of Sunshine

When weather changes for the cooler, as it stubbornly has here, it immediately makes me think of comfort food. So this past Sunday, I decided to kick off the fall cooking season by mixing up a vat of chili for some friends. I've been preparing chili with the same basic formula since the first time I rolled up my sleeves and decided to give it a go. It's not a Johnson family secret handed down by my Grandmother or anything, it's simply a three-step process that can be tweaked to fit my mood, the tastes of group of people I'm cooking for, or to accommodate what meager ingredients I have stowed away in my cupboards.

Step 1: Cook Ingredients That Need to be Cooked

In this case, 2 lbs. of ground beef, one medium/large onion, 2 stalks celery, and 2 cloves of garlic. Cook all of these together with salt and pepper until the beef is cooked through. Remove from heat and drain pretty much all of the excess oil. When using a less expensive ground beef (typically 80-20 meat to fat percentage), there will be plenty to drain. I find the leaner meats don't have as much taste, but utilizing alternatives (i.e.- turkey, chicken, mixed canned beans for the veggie lovers) won't compromise the overall taste too much and can give you a chance to experiment with complimentary flavor combinations.



Step 2: Add Liquid Ingredients

True traditional chili is just meat and dry spices and water or stock. But since this isn't a Nationally sanctioned chili cook-off nor do I run a chuck wagon in Oklahoma, I like making a chunky, tomato-based chili. Canned diced tomatoes add all the flavor base and liquid content I need. I used one 22 oz. can of regular tomatoes and one 10 oz. can of tomatoes with chilies just to add a little heat. The next liquid ingredients are added in no particular order and in no particular amount. Hot sauce, chipotle Tabasco sauce (if you haven't tried this, I highly suggest it), Worcestershire sauce, and barbeque sauce (I had some leftover honey-garlic sauce in the back of the fridge). All I try to do is add the correct amount to balance the heat and sweet aspects of the sauces. Don't be afraid to taste early and often to make sure the balance is up to snuff.




Step 3: Add Dry Ingredients

With the exception of salt and pepper, I only use chili powder and brown sugar......again, the sweet and heat thing.

Once everything is in the pot, lower the flame and simmer away. If the chili looks too watery, cook at a higher temperature with the lid off to reduce the liquid and concentrate the flavor. All good one pot dishes take some time on the stove to complete. This gives ample opportunities to check seasoning levels. I always keep my spices and sauces at the ready in case something seems to be missing from the party. When all but the cooking time is completed, kick back with tasting spoon in hand and feel free to taste over and over again......you wouldn't want to serve up a poorly seasoned chili now would you? Watch out for the magma-like temperatures a covered, steaming pot of chili can create. If an accident does occur, immediately douse affected areas with ice cold beer.



For the finishing touch, garnishes can run the gamut from a cool dollop of sour cream and grated sharp cheddar (my favorites), to a more adventurous avocado mash or red onion relish. Heap it on and spoon it down.

Recipe: Lobster Bisque

Welcome to another exciting episode of Cooking with Uncle Boogie. This week, we're making Lobster Bisque. I haven't killed anything in a while, so I'll admit that I was excited about dispatching 2 helpless crustaceans (whom I lovingly named Bert & Ernie).

Here's what you'll need:

2 (1 1/2-pound) lobsters
1 cup tomato paste
1 cup coarsely chopped onion
1 cup coarsely chopped celery, including leaves
1 cup coarsely chopped carrot
1 sprig thyme
3 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, plus extra, for garnish
1/2 teaspoon tumeric
2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup cornstarch (try Wondra)

Fill large stockpot with water and bring to a boil. There should be enough water to cover lobsters completely when immersed. Place live lobsters in boiling water head first to minimize splashing. When water re-boils, turn down the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes. Do not overcook lobsters. Remove lobsters from the pot using tongs; save all the water in stockpot as this is now a flavorful stock to be re-used.

Place stock in a clean stockpot and put on low heat. Clean claws and tails of lobsters and reserve meat. After lobsters are cleaned, place shells in stockpot with 10 cups of stock.

Cut bodies in quarters and place in stockpot, making sure to include all roe and tomalley in pot. Add 1 cup tomato paste and simmer on low heat for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Be careful not to have heat so high as to burn stock.

Pour entire contents of pot through sieve into clean stockpot; this should now be 8 cups of glorious red stock.

Place onions, celery, carrots, thyme, parsley and tumeric in a large saute pan, add 4 cups stock from original stock pot and put on high heat for 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup tomato paste and black pepper.

Turn down heat and simmer 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Press entire contents of saute pan through sieve into stockpot of 8 cups previously made stock.
To finish Bisque, put pot on medium heat. Add heavy cream slowly, using whisk to blend. Add sherry. Simmer on low heat for 20 minutes; bisque will thicken slightly. Mix cornstarch with 1/4 cup water and slowly add to bisque with whisk. Simmer on low heat for another 20 minutes.

If you prefer your bisque to be thicker, you may add more cornstarch, or perhaps, flour, but have found the bisque thickens nicely over low heat, and additional cornstarch or flour takes away from the wonderful flavor.

Place pieces of previous cleaned lobster meat in bowl and add 1 cup of bisque. Garnish with Creme Fraiche & chives.