Pin It

Let’s get started:

(Serves 6)
Ingredients: [Print this Recipe]

• 1 large onion, thinly sliced
• 1 tbsp sweet paprika
• 1/2 tbsp hot paprika
• 1 tsp dried red chili flakes
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 whole chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
• 6 chicken thighs, boneless and skinless
• 6 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup of canola oil
• 2 1/2 cups of chicken stock
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 8 oz sour cream
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• Cooked Gnocchi or your favorite short noodle pasta
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter
• Fresh parsley, chopped

Begin by mixing the onions with the hot and regular paprika, chili flakes, and salt. Make sure everything is mixed, then add to the bottom of your slow cooker.

Next add the oil to a large skillet and bring it to a medium, to medium high heat.

Dredge the chicken in the flour, making sure to lightly coat all sides of the chicken. Shake off any excess flour. Add the chicken to the skillet, and brown the chicken on each side for about 5 minutes, per side, without touching. Your goal is to get a nice sear and lock in those juices.

Once browned, add the chicken pieces on top of the bed of onions.

Reduced the heat on the skillet to a medium to medium low heat. Add the two cups of chicken stock to the skillet and tomato paste, and begin scraping down the chicken bits that stuck to the bottom of the skillet, mixing in the and cooking down the tomato paste as well.

During this time, mix the source cream and two tablespoons of flour in a small bowl. Ladle in some of the warm chicken stock, and mix until you have a nice smooth mixture. Add the sour cream sauce into the skillet, and begin mixing, incorporating it with the rest of the stock.

Pour the sauce over the chicken, cover, and cook on low for about for five hours.

Before you are about to serve, cook your gnocchi, and when fully cooked, strain, and add to a pot of the melted butter, sprinkling with some of the chopped parsley.

When you are ready to plate, add the chicken paprikash to a serving plate, or bowl, making sure you get the onions and a good amount of the sauce, serving the cooked gnocchi along the edge of the chicken.

Smells, and more importantly the flavor is totally amazing. You are left with fall apart tender chicken, and the sauce with those cooked down onions. Well, it’s amazing. Paired with the tender gnocchi and moving that into the sauce, wow, I’m hungry just writing about it. If you are looking for comfort, this is definitely work making as it’s simple and extremely delicious. Enjoy!

Pin It

Let’s get started on this simple, and comforting recipe.

Ingredients: [Print this Recipe]

• 2 lbs of Chuck Beef, or a good stewing beef, cut into larger bite sized cubes
• 2 Russet potatoes, skinned, and cut into large bite size pieces
• 4 oz can of yellow curry paste (as seen here)
• 1 stick of cinnamon, approximately 4 inches long
• 1 star anise
• 4 cardamon pods, smashed
• 2 large shallots, quartered
• 1 large onion, cut into large bite size pieces
• 2 14 oz cans of coconut milk
• 1 cup of chicken stock
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/4 cup of roasted, unsalted peanuts
• Cooked Jasmine rice
• 2 tbsp canola oil

You are going to treat this entire dish like a stew. It will cook low and slow for a good couple of hours, but that is OK as you will be gifted with some wonderful and tantalizing aromas during that time.

Begin by adding your cubed beef a large mixing bowl. Add in the curry paste and beging mixing the meat around, making sure the paste adheres to all of the pieces. Once done, set aside, and wash your hands with warm water and soap.

Next, heat a dutch oven if you have one, if not a heavy pot on the stove, on medium heat. Add in the oil and let it come to temperature.

Toss in the cinnamon stick, star anise, and cardamon seeds and pods. Give a good stir.  This is probably your second great smell as the curry paste was probably the first inviting smell. Let this cook for about 3 minutes.

Toss in the shallots and the onions and give another good stir. Let this cook, stirring a few times along the way, for about 5 minutes.

Next, toss in the curried meat mixture, turning up the heat to a medium high. and give a good stir. Cook, untouched for about two minutes. Add in the chicken stock, and the coconut milk. Give another good stir.

Let this come to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and let it cook for about 1 1/2 hours.

Now, add in the fish sauce, brown sugar, peanuts, and the potatoes. Give a good stir, then cover again. Allow this to cook until the potatoes are fork tender. This will take about 30-40 minutes.

Give the broth a taste. Heavenly right?

Once the potatoes are cooked, the beef massaman curry is ready to serve.

To serve, add some cooked jasmine rice to a soup bowl. Using a ladle, ladle in some of the broth, potatoes, and beef over the top of the rice. Top with some more broth.

Not only the smell of this massaman curry is amazing, but I think you will agree that the flavor is also out of this world. Super tender beef, along with the chunky potatoes and onions. Well, what more do I have to say to get you make this one? Hope you enjoy.

Pin It

If you have never had, nor heard of pozole, it is basically a Mexican soup that has this wonderful corn, and is loaded with super tender pork, a simple stock (in this case a red stock), and is garnished with shredded cabbage, thinly sliced radish, and fresh cilantro. It is a soup to be reckoned with. In a nutshell, it is just plain awesome.

So lets get started on making this wonderful pozole rojo. Rojo by the way means red in Spanish.

Ingredients: [Print this Recipe]

• 2 lbs of pork shoulder, cut into 2 inch cubes
• 6 Guajillo chile peppers, stems and seeds removed
• 4 Chile de Arbol peppers, stems and seeds removed
• 2 cups of boiling water
• 2 large, white onions, diced
• 1 head of garlic, thinly sliced
• 12 cups of water
• 2 cups of chicken stock
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 1 tbsp Mexican oregano, crushed with your fingers
• 30 oz can of Hominy, or Mexican corn, drained
• 1 lime, quartered
• 10 radishes, thinly sliced
• 3 cups of green cabbage, thinly shredded
• Fresh cilantro
• Fresh Jalapeno peppers, seeds removed, sliced (optional)
• Tortilla chips or fresh corn tortillas (optional)

Begin by hydrating the peppers. Add the chile peppers to the two cups of boiling water, cover, and set aside for about 30 minutes.

Next, add the pork to your soup pot. Cover with the 12 cups of water, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium. During this time, start skimming the brown foam that comes to the top of your stock, and start discarding that. Continue this process until you no longer have those impurities. Continue cooking the pork for about 2 1/2 hours, until the meat is super tender. Once the meat is cooked, remove the meat with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl. Let the meat cool so that you can handle it with your fingers.

Once the chiles have rehydrated, add them to a blender with about 1 cup of the water that they were hydrating in. Add the two cups of chicken stock to the blender, along with the salt, pepper, and garlic.  Blend until you have a very smooth mixture.

If you have a mesh strainer, now is the time to use it. Your goal is to add the blended chile mixture through the strainer, just in case there are any portions of the flesh from the chile peppers. Strain that directly into the pork stock and give a good stir. You now have the beginnings of your red stock, the rojo in pozole rojo. Give yourself a pat on the back, and carry onward.

Once the meat is cooled, tear it up into manageable bite size pieces and add it to the stock. Toss in the diced onions, as well as the strained hominy. Give it a good stir, bring it to a simmer, cover and let it cook for an additional two hours.

Once the soup is cooked, give a couple of good ladles of the soup into your bowl, and top with the jalapeno slices, radishes, cabbage, cilantro, and lime. Not all of it, just generous serving of each.

To eat, well,  you can probably figure this one out. Get your spoon and tortilla chip ready. Mix the cabbage into the soup, along with some of the radishes and cilantro, and dig in. Every bite is amazing. Tender bites of delicious pork pairs ever so nicely with the subtle heat of the stock. Then you can the tender bites of hominy and the crunchiness of the cabbage and radish. Wow! Comfort in every bite. This batch of pozole can be eaten of the course of a few days, and gets better every day.

Classic, comforting, and truly Mexican, this pozole rojo is worth making. Trust me.

I was already into my first batch of chili this season, when all of a sudden a family member posted a picture on Facebook of Cincinnati chili. My mouth was watering right away, probably because I am not only a food, but also, it just looked darn good. Now if you have never had Cincinnati chili, it probably is a must try. It is your classic chili con carne, but has the addition of some really great seasonings, and is cooked slightly different, well, a lot different from your standard chili.

A bit thinner in consistency, the great thing about this chili is that it not only tastes amazing, but you serve it completely different. Commonly referred to as 1-way all the way to a 5-way, the chili holds its own by itself, but when going one way, or how I like it, four-way, this chili will be sure to please.

Lets get started.

Ingredients: [Print this Recipe]

• 2 lbs ground beef
• Water, enough to cover the ground beef, approximately 4-6 cups
• 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
• 6 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 cups of onion, finely diced
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 5 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1/2 tbsp cayenne powder
• 1 /2 tbsp cumin powder
• 1 tbsp cider vinegar
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tsp cracked black pepper

To Serve:

• 1/2 lb of cooked spaghetti
• 1 cup of onion, finely diced
• Sharp cheddar cheese, grated
• oyster crackers
• Red kidney beans, cooked (optional)
• Hot sauce (optional)

Begin by getting a large pot on the stove. Add the ground beef and water, and bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, reduce the heat to medium, and begin stirring the beef, breaking it up as you stir. Continue this process for about 45 minutes. Skim off any of the crud that might float to the top and discard.

Next, add everything else, giving a good stir. Bring this mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and let it cook for approximately 3 1/2 hours, stirring from time to time.

Now if you are living on the edge and like that fatty flavor, you could go ahead and serve this right now, but instead, I recommend that you take it off of the stove, let it cool, then place in refrigerator overnight. The reason you will probably want to do this is that when you remove the chili the next day, the fat that was cooked off from boiling the ground beef will rise to the top, allowing you to remove all of that fat. So do just that, and remove that thin layer of fat from the chili.

Once you have removed the fat, take it back onto the stove, bringing it up to a boil, then get ready to serve.

Remember now, I went four-way, which means, spaghetti, chili, onions, and cheese:

To serve, add a layer of the cooked spaghetti on the bottom of your bowl. Ladle a generous amount of the chili on top of the spaghetti. Top with onions, and a lot of grated cheese. Place a small handful of oyster crackers on the side, and dig in!

You will be surprised not only on the awesome texture of this chili, but more importantly, the flavor. You get the richness from the cocoa powder, and the clove and cinnamon really stand out. But it is also the texture you get from the onion and cheese that make this chili just melt in your mouth.

Give it a shot, and hope you enjoy the recipe!

As I waited for the waitress to come by, I noticed one local ordering a dish from behing the glass wall. See the glass wall is where all of their daily specials are located, and the one I noticed this guy ferociously digging into with his tortillas was this plate full of rib tips and a pool of tomatillo sauce. I was hungry, and excited, just watching this guy. I had to order.

So the waitress came by and said “three tacos al pastor, si?”. I smiled politely and said, “No, I would like whatever that guy is eating”. I waited a few minutes and sure enough a plate came packed with rib tips smothered in salsa verde, along with rice, beans, and warm corn tortillas. To say the least, I was extremely excited, and a bit cautious, as it appeared a bit messy, and I knew I had to attack this dish with my hands and tortillas. I inspected every bite, and took in every flavor. Every bite was packed with flavor. The pork, rib tips at that, were super tender and packed with just the right amount of heat from the salsa verde. I could not stop. I loved it so much that I had to try to recreate that dish over the weekend. And that I did.

Ingredients:

• 1 rack of baby back ribs, sliced down the middle (ask your butcher)
• 8 whole tomatillos, husks removed, and rinsed
• 3 whole jalapeno chilis
• 3 whole banana peppers
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1 cup of fresh cilantro
• 1 medium white onion, cut in half
• 1 cup of chicken stock
• 1/2 tbsp salt, 1 tsp additional
• 1/2 tbsp cracked black pepper
• 1 tbsp canola oil

Begin by heating a large cast iron skillet on medium heat. Once heated, add the tomatillos, jalapenos, banana peppers, garlic, and onion to the skillet. Cook for about 20 minutes, rotating every item in the skillet, until they build a nice char.

During this time, get a medium to large pot out. Heat it on medium heat, and add the oil.

On a cutting board, cut your rib tips into segments, about every third rip tip. Season the front and back of all rib tips with salt and pepper.

Add the ribs to the heated pot and begin browning them. If they all do not fit into the pot, do not worry, just work in batches. Let them cook for about 4 minutes, or longer, per side, then remove to a plate, and continue with the other batch, if necessary.

Your vegetables should be nice and charred by now. Carefully transfer everything, but the garlic to a blender. Remove the shell from the garlic, and place the roasted cloves into the blender. Add about one teaspoon of salt to the blender along with the stock. Place the cap on the blender, cover the top with a towel, and pulse into a nice green sauce.

Add the sauce to the large pot, bring to a medium heat, and begin scraping the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon as you continue to stir. Add all of the rib tips back to the pot, reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for one hour. Take a peek about mid way through and give another stir. If it begins to thicken a bit, add about 1/2 cup of water, then give a stir, if not, just give a nice stir, cover, and wait.

When you are ready to serve, taste the sauce and adjust any salt should you desire.

To plate, add some Mexican rice to a plate, along with a generous amount of pork and salsa verde, and then add some refried beans. Serve with warm corn tortillas.

If you are looking for a Mexican dish outside of your standard burrito, taco, or enchilada, this is a must. It is not the prettiest thing on a plate, but this one is amazing in itself. Not only that, but you get to eat with your hands, and get some really great assistance with warm, corn tortillas. Enjoy!

Growing up, I would watch my dad make his chili. He had it down to a science, and as my standard chili recipe probably does not steer to far from my dad’s recipe, there are just times you want to do something different to a chili, and that is what I love about it. So, as I often do, I think about what ingredients could offer the same comfort of a traditional chili, but make it different, and that is when I decided to make a green pork chili, or what others often refer to as chili verde.

The simple ingredients yield maximum flavors, and really make this chili comforting and extremely delicious.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs of pork loin
• 5 tomatillos, wrapper removed, cut in half
• 1 small onion, halved
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 2 jalapeno peppers, halved
• 3 poblano peppers
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 cups of chicken stock
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1/2 lime, zest only
• 1 cup of corn kernels
• 1 cup of pigeon peas, drained
• salt
• black pepper
• tortilla chips (optional)
• sour cream (optional)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Begin by taking one tablespoon of your olive oil and coat your pork tenderloin. Generously season your pork with salt and pepper. Place the pork onto a baking dish and place into the oven for about one hour and 45 minutes. Remove from the oven, and let it rest.

Now, increase your oven temperature to 450 degrees. Take your tomatillos, poblano, onion, and jalapeno peppers, and coat with the additional tablespoon of olive oil. Place on a lined baking sheet and put it into the preheated oven for about 12-15 minutes or until you have a nice char on the vegetables. Remove after you have charred the vegetables and let them cool.

Remove the outer skin from the poblanos, and slice open to remove all of the seeds. Remove the stems from both the jalapeno and poblano peppers.  If you want less heat, remove the seeds from the jalapeno peppers, otherwise leave them in.

Place the onion, peppers, tomatillos, honey, zest, and garlic into a blender or food processor. Add about 1 cup of the stock to the blender, then pulse everything down until you have a green sauce. You want to remove all of the chunks.

Add this to your soup pot and add in the additional chicken stock. Toss in the corn and pigeon peas. Bring to a boil. During this time, take your pork loin and cut it into bite sized pieces, placing those in the pot. Give a good stir, cover, and reduce the heat, cooking for about 10 minutes or until everything is cooked through.

When you are ready to serve, add a bit of tortilla chips to the bottom of a soup bowl, ladle in the chili verde, and top with a dollop of sour cream.

What you end up with is a delicious bowl of chili, packed with just the right amount of heat, and great texture from the corn and pigeon peas.

I had a few ideas on my mind, and my first reaction was a simple ‘surf and turf’ as that seems to be standard fair when it comes to lobster. But while at the store, I called my wife and gave her an opportunity to throw some ideas out there. She immediately said “I could really go for a bowl of soup, and a lobster tail”. My reaction in the middle of the dairy aisle, with plenty of people around me, was “Soup and lobster!?”. It just did not seem to be the right fitting, but after I put some quick thought into it, I realized I could use some leftover grilled steak that I had, and make that into a nice, savory soup, and get my surf and turf after all.

This soup is really simple to make, and is packed full of flavor, and goes perfect with a lobster tail.

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 cup of yellow onion, chopped
• 5 small russet potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
• 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into cubes
• 2 cups of leftover steak, diced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup of tomato sauce
• 4 cups of beef stock
• Ree Drummond’s “The Bread”, optional

Begin by heating a soup pot on medium heat.  Add the olive oil, and toss in the onion, and garlic. Sautee until the onion is nice and tender. Toss in the carrots and potatoes, mix, and cook for a few more minutes.  Toss in the steak, salt, pepper, tomato and worcestershire sauce, and mix well.  Cook for a few more minutes.

Add the stock, mix, bring to a boil, then cover, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for about one hour. Stir, and serve in your favorite soup bowls. I served this with a half loaf of Ree Drummond’s bread, as it was one of those days.

The simple splash of worcestershire sauce, and the tenderness of all of the vegetables really made this a perfect soup. I actually ended up saving my lobster tail for another day as the soup was just hitting the spot. Hope you enjoy.

Goulash is one of those one pot meals, and everything about it is comforting. This is not only a great dish to make during the work week, but is a great one to make on a Sunday, and to eat it for lunch, or a quick meal during the early part of the work week.

I asked my wife if she has ever had goulash, and she gave me this weird look, probably the look that I gave my mom as a child when I asked what was for dinner. After realizing that my wife has never had goulash, and the fact that she loves all of the ingredients involved in this dish, I knew it was a must make. It proved to be a real winner.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of lean ground beef
• 1 lb of ground pork
• 2 medium yellow onions, diced
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 28 oz of whole canned tomatoes (San Marzano), squeezed
• 28 oz of tomato sauce
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 cup of water
• 2 bay leaves
• 16 oz elbow macaroni, cooked al dente

Begin by browning your ground meat in a large pot. Once browned, drain any fat, and return to the stove. Next, add the onions and garlic, and cook for about another five minutes with the meat. Add salt and pepper and mix. Add in the whole tomatoes, squeezing them as you place them in the pot. Add in your tomato sauce, the oregano, basil, sugar, garlic powder, and worcestershire sauce and give a good stir. Add in the cup of water, cover, and reduce the heat to a medium, low heat.

Cook your noodles according to the box. When they are cooked, drain, and set aside. When you are ready to serve, locate and remove the bay leaves. Add the noodles into the meat sauce, making sure you incorporate all of the ingredients. Serve in a bowl, and top with grated parmesan cheese if you have it.

Trust me when I tell you this, but it is hard not to go back for seconds on this one. Goulash is now a word you will never forget. Enjoy.

I make beef stew throughout the year as it is something that is not only really easy to make, but it is pure comfort all around. But this time of year, a put a little twist on the standard beef stew, and that is by adding some awesome beer to it.

The great thing about any stew, is that you can make it your own. Root vegetables, chunks of meat, and a great broth, cooked low and slow make any stew pretty delicious, plus the addition of herbs, and when you throw in wine, or beer, it just make things better.  Happy St. Patty’s and enjoy the Irish stew.

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs of sirloin, cut into large chunks (use lamb if you want)
• 4 tbsp of canola oil
• 1/2 cup of all purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 6 carrots, each cut into four chunks
• 1 tbsp dried rosemary
• 1 tbsp dried thyme
• 1 cup of beef stock
• 12 oz of your favorite stout (New Glarus Road Slush)

Heat a large cast iron skillet on medium heat and add the oil.  To a medium sized bowl, add the flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper, and mix well. Add in the large chunks of beef, and toss to coat each piece of the beef. Shake off any excess flour and set and place about five pieces in the skillet.

The goal is to brown the beef, each side, and this will take a couple of minutes per side, however the cast iron holds great heat and really assists you here. Once the pieces are browned, place on a plate, or directly in your slow cooker, which I prefer, otherwise, plate in a large pot on the stove. Repeat the process with the remaining uncooked beef.

Once all of the beef is browned, add in the onions and garlic, and stir in the skillet, keeping in mind that the skillet will be really hot. This will cook quickly. After a couple of minutes, add in about 3/4 of the stout, to deglaze the skillet. Use a wooden spoon and scrape any of the delicious bits from the bottom of the skillet and incorporate into the beer sauce. Add in your tomato puree, beef stock, and mix to smooth out the paste.

Add the sauce to your slow cooker, or pot on the stove, top with the carrots, and pour the remaining beer over the top.
Cook low and slow for approximately 4-5 hours, or until the beef falls apart when it encounters a fork.

Now you are ready to plate. I like to serve this on a large plate, with a serving of Irish colcannon. The flavors of the stout really do something wonderful to the stew. It is unlike a deep red wine on a traditional beef stew, and the subtle flavor really allows this to be a major hit during St Patty’s season. Enjoy.

After thinking about being Irish, I immediately thought of the upcoming Saint Patrick’s Day. The annual feast celebrating Saint Patrick. You know that is why you celebrate and belly up to a bar, drinking several pints of delicious beer, and consume generous portions of corn beef and cabbage, right?

So with this feast nearing, I thought that I did not want to wait any longer, and I really wanted to make some Irish dish, and this past weekend, my wife and I had a wonderful beef stew on a bed of Irish Champ.

What is Irish champ anyway? If you have never tried it, nor heard of it, it is basically delicious mashed potatoes, mixed with milk or cream, butter, and a bunch of thinly sliced green onions.  So the next time you are looking to make some mashed potatoes, give this recipe a try, and make an attempt to celebrate the patron saint of Ireland.

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs of potatoes (Russet, Yukon Gold, or Red), peeled, and quartered
• 1 cup of a heavier milk such as 2%, or a combination of skim and heavy cream
• 1 bunch of scallions (green onions), roots removed, and thinly sliced
• 6 tbsp of unsalted butter
• Salt to taste
• Pepper to taste

Begin by choosing your potato. I went with a simple russet as they were on sale this past week. If you want to keep the skin on, feel free, and trust me, I love a rustic mashed potato like that, however I went with removing the skin, quartering, and boiling them in a pot of water for about 25 minutes, or until they were fork tender.

About 15 minutes in, add the milk, scallions, and about four tablespoons of the butter to a saucepan, only to warm it up. No need for boiling.

Once the potatoes are cooked, drain, and place them back in the pot on the stove, on low heat, to remove any excess water.

Get your masher out, and start mashing your potatoes, adding in the milk mixture, and mash until you have your desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper. Add to your serving plate as a nice bed for a beef roast, or add to a small bowl and make a nice pool in the middle, adding a tablespoon of butter.

The creaminess and additions of the scallions really make these great Irish potatoes. Question is, what will you be cooking on Saint Patrick’s Day?