Sunday morning experiment: Homemade hotdogs

Woke up this morning and thought it might be a good idea to try my hand at making some homemade hotdogs. I don’t know why but why not. My thought was to make a beef and pork mixed hotdog and try to construct them without using a casing. Steam them first and then when time to serve, we could either pan fry or grill. Here’s how I started:

  • 1 lb shoulder blade roast (it was super cheap and had good marbling)
  • 1 lb pork loin with fat cap
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 C milk
  • onion powder
  • garlic powder
  • fenugreek powder
  • ground mustard
  • small dash of nutmeg
  • Hungarian paprika
  • Smoked paprika

Grind the meat together using the smallest holed attachment. Transfer to a stand mixer and begin mixing. Add all the spices and mix until it looks uniform throughout. Add the eggs and milk and continue to mix until it has a puddingish texture. My next task was to figure out a way to get them into links. I set out a bunch of strips of plastic wrap and put the meat in a 1 gallon ziploc bag. Cut a corner off and piped out sausage looking tubes. Roll plastic wrap up and make sort of links out of it. Put in fridge for about an hour to firm up. Set up a steamer and steam hotdogs in batches for about 10-15 minutes. Once all the batches are cooked, put back in fridge until ready to use.

Since its winter, we decided to just pan fry them and serve them with some homemade french fries (we had the oil left over from last nights popcorn shrimp and fitters). Not a healthy weekend but every once in a while its worth it.

I am going to suggest that you don’t make this recipe. We just got done with dinner and if someone knows how to make a hot dog please contact me. There was just not enough fat or emulsion or something. These aren’t great. Sorry.

On the bright side, I tried a different way to make french fries. First, peel and cut up some russet potatoes in whatever “fry shape” you want. Then, boil the fries in salt water for about 15 minutes. Drain them in a colander and fry, in batches. Super crispy on the outside and tender in the middle. This is my new go to for fries.

Fried Weekend: Popcorn shrimp and corn fritters

We have been fairly healthy the last few weeks so we splurged today and had fried shrimp and fritters. My son got into the act and made individual sauces for everyone. Sriracha and ketchup for me, BBQ sauce and honey for him, and some ketchup concoction for my wife.

The shrimp are super easy:

  • 1 lb 16-20 Key West pink shrimp, shelled, deveined, and cut in half
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 tbsp Old Bay
  • Italian bread crumbs

Whisk up eggs and Old Bay and through in shrimp halves. Marinate in fridge fro about 30 minutes. Heat oil in dutch oven (about 2 inches) to about 350 degrees. Coat marinated shrimp in batches in bread crumbs and fry. Only takes 2-3 minutes and they are done and golden.

The corn fritters were a bit of an experiment. We had some leftover corn muffin mix so we mixed that with some other stuff to see what would happen.

  • 1 C. self rising corn muffin mix
  • 1 C. flour
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 C. milk
  • 1/4 C. Sugar
  • 1 lb frozen corn (we used fire roasted)
  • 1 jalapeno finely diced

Mix all but corn and jalapeno together until smooth. You might need a bit more milk. Add corn and jalapeno and mix to just incorporate. Let sit in fridge about 30 minutes. Heat oil to 350 degrees about 2 inches in a dutch oven. Add dough in groups of about four using a 1/4 C. measure to the oil. Flip after a few minutes, once it is golden on the bottom side. Cook a few more minutes and remove to a warm 200 degree oven with a rimmed baking sheet with wire racks on top while you cook the rest of the dough. We also made the fritters first so that they could sit in the oven.

More motivated Friday: Chicken Tacos

This Friday I was a bit more motivated and I had a conversation with one of my coworkers who is originally from New Mexico about salsa verde so had to make some. As I have said before, I don’t by flatbread from the store any more as it is so easy to make and doesn’t take that much time. This dish is easy enough to make and every time think we should make it more often. Three main components: tortilla, salsa verde, and peppers, onions and chicken.

For the tortillas, I found that the Serious Eats recipe for tortillas works every time. Just go there so we don’t have to worry about copyright infringement and the like.

For the salsa verde:

  • 1 lb tomatillos, husk removed and rinsed
  • 1 onion, quartered
  • 2 jalapenos
  • olive oil
  • 1/2 bunch cilantro
  • lime juice
  • salt and pepper
  • squeeze of honey
  • Crushed Chipotle chili

Put the first 3 ingredients on a rimmed sheet pan, coast in olive oil, and roast for 15 minutes or so in a 450 degree oven. Once everything is nice and charred/golden, chop the stems off the jalapenos and dump everything else in a food processor. Add cilantro,lime juice and whiz until smooth. Taste and add salt, pepper, more lime juice, honey and chipotle to taste. For some reason our jalapenos weren’t very hot so we added the chipotle.

For the rest of the stuffing for the taco

  • 2 peppers whatever color you like (yellow and orange were on sale)
  • 1 onion
  • 1 lb chicken thighs

I like to just cut the peppers away from the core and have about 1/4 inch slices of onion. Either saute or grill all the ingredients and cook peppers and onions until cook but still have some crisp. Slice everything up and serve with:

  • More cilantro
  • Avocado (we had an extra from the Pozole)
  • Cheese
  • Limes

Herbie goes too Hollywood pork tenderloin with orecchiette, pancheta, and peas

The name of this dish stems from the fact that I kind of ever did it with the herbs on the pork tenderloin and my wife described it as Herbie goes too Hollywood which led to a whole discussion of the merits of talking VW bugs. Needless to say the pork tenderloin needs some work but the pasta was really good and easy. We needed to use the pancheta that we bought for a topping for the leftover lentils earlier in the week. Here’s how it went

For the herb coating on pork tenderloin

  • Fenugreek powder
  • dried oregano
  • dried basil
  • garlic powder
  • salt

Mix it all up and coat a 1 lb pork tenderloin and rest in fridge for about 30 minutes. I think the problem is that I put too thick a coating, maybe just dust it. Pan sear the tenderloin over medium-high heat and then put into a preheated oven at 425 for about 10 minutes or until it reaches 140-145.

For the pasta:

  • 1/4 lb super thinly sliced pancheta (we found it in the deli meats and we were able to get them to slice it super thin)
  • 1/2 bag frozen peas
  • 1/2 lb orecchiette
  • salt and pepper
  • bit of dried basil and oregano (if we had fresh I would have used it)

Boil the orecchiette to just under done (whatever that is to you, I won’t judge). Saute to pancheta to super crispy. Add frozen peas, pasta with a bit of the pasta water, and herbs and cook until the peas are warmed up.

We served the pasta with the tenderloin over top.

Pozole

My wife and I met in Arizona and before that I spent more than a decade in Colorado. We like our southwestern foods and we she randomly put a can of hominy on the cart last time we went shopping, pozole was on the menu.

Our take is really simple, make a tomato-chicken broth, add hominy and shredded chicken and top with avocado, cilantro and lime. Here’s the specifics:

  • 1 onion sliced super thin
  • 1 can whole peeled tomatoes
  • 6 C chick stock
  • 1 can hominy
  • salt and pepper
  • Some chicken thighs
  • Avocado
  • Cilantro
  • limes

Begin by sweating the onions so the are transparent but not brown (about 15 minutes). Add in the tomatoes and chop up with spoon to get into smaller pieces. Cook down for about 10 minutes to break up tomatoes and intensify flavor. Add chicken stock and simmer for 15-20 minutes. While the soup is simmering, place a steamer tray over top and steam the chicken thighs for about 10 minutes. Once the chicken is cooked, shred with a fork. Add the hominy and cook just to warm up. Add the shredded chicken. Salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls and serve with diced avocado, cilantro and a squeeze of lime.

Shepard’s Pie: Sunday prep for later in the week

To prepare for the week, we made a few dishes on Sunday to put in the fridge and break out when we are pressed for time with kid or family activities. This week we decided Shepard’s pie and posole would be the “heat up dinners.” Both of these do pretty well when the sit for a bit. The nice part about the Shepard’s pie is that it really does get a ton better after a night or so in the fridge and its pretty simple, just takes a bit of time to make a lamb stew and mash potatoes. We like to use lamb rather than ground beef and I like to mince my own lamb with a knife to give it some texture. Ingredients for the lamb stew:

  • 1 onion
  • 4 carrots
  • 4 sticks celery
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • Two handfuls of spinach chopped small
  • Bunch of thyme
  • 1/3 cup flour
  • 1.5 lbs hand minced boneless lamb
  • 1 quart beef stock

To make the lamb stew. Sweat out the vegetables with some olive oil in a dutch oven. Once the onions are translucent add lamb. Cook for 5-10 minutes to brown lamb. Add spinach and thyme and wilt down. Add flour and cook for a couple more minute. Add beef stock and simmer until desired consistency.

Meanwhile, lets make some mash potatoes while that cooks down.

  • 3 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes
  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 1/4 C. milk
  • Salt and pepper

Peal and cube potatoes and boil until tender. In a mixer, add all the ingredients and whip up until smooth.

In a deep pie pan, ladle in the stew and top with mashed potatoes making sure not to add too much stew so that it overflows when you add the potatoes. Place on rimmed baking sheet (yes, I forgot this step and spent a Sunday afternoon cleaning an oven). Bake at 425 degrees for 20-30 minutes until golden brown.

Turkey sliders with plantain chips

Today was a snow day for everyone which meant working from home until the kid went stircrazy and we had to go sledding. Once we got home it was a quick dinner of sliders and chips. I have really been brought over to using the store brand King’s Hawaiian dinner rolls for slider buns. For the turkey sliders we use:

  • 1 lb ground dark meat turkey
  • 1 egg
  • panko to make the right texture
  • salt and pepper

Mix all the ingredients together and add enough panko so that it’s not soupy. Let sit in fridge for 30 minutes or so to moisten panko. Pan fry in a little olive oil. Done.

We like to top with lettuce, tomato, basil, and various sauces depending on the person (mayo for my wife, BBQ sauce for my son, and Sriracha and hoisin for me.

For the plantain chips, I like to cut them a little thicker so that taste a bit more like tostones.

  • 2 plantains cut into 1/4 inch slices
  • canola oil for frying
  • salt

Heat the oil in a deep pan to avoid splashing and dirtying your stove. Use about 1/2 inch of oil. Add plantains being sure not to overcrowd (do a couple batches). Turn once bottom is golden brown, about 3-5 minutes. Finish cooking on other side, another 2-3 minutes. Drain on paper towel and immediately salt. Done.

Sole, lentils, and Broccoli: Simple Sunday

After getting the rest of the week taken care of, in terms of dinners when we know we won’t have time. Tonight is just a simple meal of fish, lentils and broccoli. The lentils take the most time so start them first. Everything else is ready in 5 minutes once you have the lentils done. For the lentils:

  • 1 large shallot
  • 1 large carrot
  • glug of olive oil
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 C. French lentils
  • 3 C. chicken broth

Saute the shallot and carrot in the olive oil with salt and pepper until soft. Add lentils and broth and simmer for about 20-25 minutes. Done.

For fish:

  • 1/3 C flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 3 fillets of sole
  • Glug of olive oil

Mix together flour with salt and powder. Dredge fish in flour mixture. In a super hot pan, add olive oil then fish. Cook a couple minutes each side. Done.

For broccoli:

  • Couple heads of broccoli

Just steam it in a couple minutes.

Super easy and quick.

Pho: Family favorite on a cold Saturday

Our ice maker has been on the fritz lately so we decided that tomorrow, we are going to completely thaw it out to see if it was just a frozen water line. I have a unique habit of saving every single carcass that I butcher or roast to make my own broth. While looking to see what needed to be eaten rather than stuck in a cooler in the snow, there were about 5 carcasses just sitting there. Tonight, we are making Pho. The key is to cook it as long as you can. We only did about 6 hours but at Thanksgiving we go crazy and do it for about 24. To make our broth:

  • 5 or so carcass of poultry, rabbit, or whatever you have hanging in the freezer
  • Bunch of water
  • 2 inch chunk of ginger, washed and coarsely chopped
  • 4 gloves of garlic

Simmer for as long as you can stand it. Strain out bones, meat, ginger, and garlic. Put back on stove and put a steamer over the top. Since this was a poultry broth, we steam a couple chicken breasts to put in it. Boil some noodles. We found some fresh wheat noodles from the Asian market that we really like. Get some topping ready, we like

  • Basil
  • Cilantro
  • Jalapeno
  • Mung bean shoots
  • green onion
  • Thinly sliced carrot
  • Sriracha
  • Hoisin sauce

We were able to find some great bowls and spoons at the Asian market. Put some noodles in the bottom of each bowl. Slice the steamed chicken and divide between the bowls. Ladle on the broth and serve with all the toppings. My bowl is on the top and my wife’s is below. I tend to like Sriracha and she is a huge Jalapeno fan.

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