Stout-braised beef short ribs

My mom has become famous for this recipe, and I wish I could say she created it out of thin air or from some old family recipe, but that’s not the case. Mom found the recipe in a newspaper, but because I don’t know what paper that was, and it was years ago, I give the credit to mom. Thanks mom.

This recipe is great for so many reasons. It doesn’t take too long to prepare, doesn’t need to be babysat, can be made in advance and be frozen. It’s also really freaking delicious. Don’t let the combination of spices scare or confuse you, it all really works well.

Because it’s a braised dish, it’s not a quick weeknight dish, but makes a great Saturday or Sunday dinner and can easily be adjusted to feed a large crowd. Be sure to serve with something that will help soak up the sauce, it’s great with polenta, short pasta, mashed potatoes and/or a hunk of yummy bread.

Stout-braised beef short ribs

Serves 6

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 Tbsp smoked paprika (not hot paprika)

1 Tbsp curry powder

2 tsp black pepper

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp salt

1 tsp dry mustard

4 to 4 1/2 pounds short ribs cut in 4-inch pieces

Approx. 3 Tbsp olive oil

4 medium leeks cleaned and chopped

4 medium carrots chopped

3 celery ribs chopped

2 bay leaves

1/4 cup chopped garlic

Approx 2 cups beef broth

2 12-oz bottles stout (Guinness)

1 14 oz cans diced tomatoes

-Combine the spices in a bowl.

-Dry off the ribs with a paper towel, then coat with the spice mix and chill for at least an hour.

-Put one rack of the oven to the lower third and pre-heat to 375 Celsius.

-Heat a large dutch oven over medium-high heat, add the oil and brown the meat on the three meat sides. Depending on the size of your dutch oven, you’ll likely need to do this in batches. Set the meat aside.

-Add the vegetables to the pan and cook for 3-5 minutes until softened, then add the garlic and cook for another 3-5 minutes.

-Add the liquid, stir to combine and then add the meat. Bring to a boil, uncovered.

-Cover the pan with tin foil AND a lid then place in the oven and cook for 2 to 2 1/2 hours until the meat is falling off the bone. Skim any excess fat and discard the bay leaves before serving. Season with salt/pepper if you need.

TIPS: This is sometimes too much liquid, so you may not need all the beer or stock…. If the pot is really full, put a sheet pan beneath it in the oven…. It’s really important to cover the pan with foil and the lid, keeping the heat in is what makes the meat really tender.

Beef and black pepper stirfry

Life has been a bit crazy (to say the least) lately, so this blog has suffered. But I’ve still been cooking and keeping track of recipes until I had a few moments to share them.

A lot of what I cook and create comes from a craving. I’d wanted some form of spicy, Asian noodles and figured it would be easier to create it than try to buy it somewhere.

This recipe creates a very peppery dish, so you can always dial back the amount of pepper if you want. And if you taste it near the end and it’s too spicy, you can add some water, stock or honey.

Beef, noodles and lots of black pepper. Yum.

Beef and black pepper stirfry

Marinade

1 package beef stir fry strips (approx 1 lb of steak thinly sliced)

1.5 inch piece of fresh ginger, finely chopped

1 large clove garlic finely chopped

1 Tbsp fresh ground black pepper

1Tbsp sriracha hot sauce

2 Tbsp honey

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tsp sesame oil

Sauce

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 Tbsp oyster sauce

1 tsp hoisin sauce

2 tsp black pepper

2 Tbsp (approx) chicken stock or water

Other

Approx 1.5 Tbsp corn starch

1 package medium thickness Chinese noodles (or whatever you like) cooked to package directions before stir fry stage

3 or 4 cups Swiss Chard (or Bok Choy)

4 cups mixed mushrooms

1/4 onion sliced

Oil for pan

In a bowl, combine the ingredients for the marinade and coat the meat. Let seat for 45 minutes or overnight.

Heat a large frying pan or wok on fairly high heat. Add onion and oil and fry for a few minutes until the onions get translucent and have some colour.

Toss the marinated beef in the corn starch (this will help thicken the sauce and protect the beef as well as allow it to get a nice coating). Then add to the hot pan. Cooking for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, but letting it sit enough to get some colour. Remove and set aside.

Add the mushrooms and a splash of stock or water to the pan. Cook for a couple minutes until they get some colour, then add the chard. Stir frequently for about 3 minutes.

Add in the cooked noodles and the sauce, stirring to combine then add the beef. Cook for another three minutes or until the sauce has thickened up. If the sauce is too thick, add more stock or water.

NOTE: This makes great leftovers too. You can add a little water (a tablespoon or so) and then microwave. Your coworkers will be very jealous.

Mini chicken pot pies

A friend of mine has been very into cooking in muffin tins lately. She’s made meatloaf cupcakes, lasagna and enchiladas. Using muffin tins for other things is a great idea for a lot of reasons including monitoring portion size, but my favourite is you get more crispy edges.

When I was talking to this friend one day recently and she was making chicken pot pie I had the lightbulb moment of making chicken pot pie in muffin tins. Every pot pie recipe has a different take on if the crust should be on the top or the bottom or both. If you couldn’t tell, I want crust all around.

A muffin pan filled with mini pot pies. Yum.

Please note the filling has to cool before being put into the crust, so consider that in your timeline.

This recipe makes a lot of mini pies (24 to be exact), but they freeze really well and so are great for lunches (especially if your office has a toaster oven) or just something yummy in the freezer.

Mini chicken pot pies

Makes 24 muffin size pies

1.5 Tbsp butter

1/2 onion finely chopped

3 cloves of garlic finely chopped

3/4 cup celery chopped

1 cup carrots (about 3 carrots) chopped

1 Tbsp dried sage (or about 1/4 cup chopped fresh sage)

1 tsp dried thyme  (or about 2 Tbsp fresh thyme)

4 cups swiss chard finely chopped (spinach or kale would work)

1/4 cup flat leaf parsley chopped

2 cups mushrooms chopped (optional)

2 cups chicken (about 3 large breasts) chopped

2 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp (approx) flour plus a little more for dusting chicken

3 cups (approx) chicken stock*

Puff pastry – package with two sheets, defrosted

1 egg

-In a large saucepan, heat 1 Tbsp butter with garlic, onion, celery carrots and sage over medium heat and saute until veggies are starting to soften. Add in the mushrooms if using and cook for 2 minutes – season with salt/pepper.

-Add the chard, parsley and thyme and a splash of chicken stock. Cook until the chard has wilted to half its size. Put all the veggies in a bowl and set aside.

-Dust the chopped chicken in flour just to coat it. Put another 1/2 Tbsp butter in the saucepan, once melted increase to medium-high heat and add the chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until browned and mostly cooked. Then add to bowl with veggies.

-Reduce heat to medium (you may need to take the pot off the burner for a couple of minutes) and add 2 Tbsp of butter, once melted add in 2 Tbsp of flour while stirring to combine and prevent sticking. Cook butter and flour for about a minute.

-Slowly start adding the chicken stock. Stir or whisk while adding the liquid so everything is evenly combined. Start with about 1/4 cup, once first round of liquid is thick (it won’t take long) add about a 1/2 cup and do the same. Slowly add the stock as the gravy thickens. You may not need a full 3 cups of stock, or you may need more. You want it to be about the consistency of gravy. (If the gravy isn’t thickening combine equal parts flour and stock or water in a jar or bowl and mix to combine and add it into the gravy, bring to a boil and it should thicken after a few minutes)

-Once gravy is thickened add the chicken and veggies back in, simmer until chicken is cooked. Taste for seasoning, add more salt/pepper as needed. Let cool for at least 30 minutes, or overnight.

-Heat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spray muffin tins with cooking spray (unless you know they’re super non-stick).

-Roll out the puff pastry slightly, not so thin you can see the counter, but enough to get 12 squares/rectangles out of each sheet.

-Place the pieces of pastry into the muffin cup and gently press to the shape of the cup. There will be excess pastry, which will be folded over the filling to make the topping.

-Add in about a 1/3 a cup of filling to each cup. Fold over the excess pastry. The tops may not be perfectly covered and that’s OK.

-In a small bowl mix up the egg with a splash of water. Use a pastry brush and lightly coat the pastry.

-Bake for 25-40 minutes until tops are lightly brown.

NOTE: You could replace the puff pastry with pie crust if you prefer…  You could also use the filling for a full-size pie, but it would be less fun.

Chicken and chick peas with chard

The biggest challenge with trying to eat healthier early in the new year is that it’s also damn cold. When the temperature drops, who wants to sit around with a light meal? Not me. I want something to warm me up from the inside. The problem is, many cozy, comfort foods aren’t the healthiest, many feature delicious things like cheese, pastry, pasta, cream …. sigh.

I created this recipe based on trying to fulfill a craving for something hearty, but make it healthy too. I picked a few healthy things I also enjoy and came up with this quasi-stew.

This quasi-stew is so comforting you’d almost thing it’s not good for you.

Chicken with chick peas and greens

Serves 4

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts – cubed

1 can chick peas – drained and rinsed

2 cups mushrooms roughly chopped

1 large bunch swiss chard – separate the stem and leaves, all chopped

Roughly 2 Tbsp flour (enough to dust chicken)

½ bunch kale – large middle vein removed – chopped

¼ fennel bulb – thinly sliced

½ onion roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic roughly chopped

3 Tbsp fresh tarragon – chopped (use a little less if using dried)

1 Tbsp fresh sage – chopped (use a little less if using dried)

1 lemon – zest and juice – separated

2-3 Tbsp Dijon mustard

2 cups chicken stock

Olive oil

Salt/pepper

-In a large skillet put between 1 and 2 Tbsp of olive oil, the onion, garlic and fennel and over medium-low heat sauté until lightly brown, add the sage and lemon zest. While this is cooking, toss the cubed chicken breast in flour, salt and pepper. (The flour helps keep the chicken from drying out and helps thicken the sauce.)

-Increase the heat to medium-high and add the chicken, cooking until browned, but not fully cooked. Remove and set aside.

-Combine the chicken stock, Dijon, tarragon and lemon juice in a bowl or measuring cup. Set aside.

-Add the mushrooms and cook for 3-4 minutes, season with salt/pepper and add in the stems of the chard. Cook for another 2 minutes until stems start to soften and add the chick peas.

-Add half the chard and once it wilts slightly – creating more room in the skillet – add the other half. Let that wilt slightly and add the kale. Season with salt/pepper.

-Add the liquid and the chicken, combining everything.

-Cook for another 5 or so minutes until the sauce has slightly thickened (it won’t be super thick)and the chicken is cooked.

(I served this with brown rice, but it would be good with toasted pita bread or on its on)

NOTES: You can use whatever greens you like or can find, you can combine them or use them solo…. This dish reheats well (and would work in the freezer), just add a little more liquid before reheating to help rebuild the sauce.

Two easy Asian-inspired ideas

Remember about five or 10 years ago when almost every chain restaurant had an “Asian Chicken Salad” of some sort on its menu?  I was always a sucker for those, but had almost put them out of my culinary mind until I came up with this salad and realized that’s what it tasted like, only better (of course).

I was also always a sucker for instant ramen noodles as a teenager (OK, I still sort of love them), but I know they’re really awful for you. This recipe isn’t authentic anything, but has a lot of flavour and is super easy to make.

I used cooked chicken in both recipes, but you could use another meat/protein… even leftover turkey.

Asian Noodle Salad

**Enough for two lunch-sized salads

Dressing (makes about 1/4 cup)

1 tsp peanut butter

1 tsp soya sauce

1/2 tsp finely chopped fresh ginger

pinch of dried red chili flakes (to taste)

splash of water (about 1 tsp)

1/2 tsp rice wine vinegar

1 tsp vegetable oil

1/2 tsp toasted sesame oil

-Put all ingredients in a bowl or jar. Mix together until most of the peanut butter has mixed in. Let sit about an hour to let the chili infuse.

Salad

2 cup mixed greens (whatever you like)

2 cup mixed veggies (peppers, carrots, cucumbers, etc.)

1 cup of cooked soba noodles (or other noodles)

1 cup cooked chicken

-Mix everything together. Toss with dressing right before serving.

**NOTE: If you can’t find soba (Japanese buckwheat noodles) you can use whatever you can find or like.

Asian Noodle Soup

**makes enough for 2 servings

**Time: About 15 minutes

2 garlic cloves finely chopped

2 tsp fresh ginger finely chopped

1 tsp dried red chili flakes

1/2 tsp toasted sesame oil

1 tsp vegetable oil

2 cups vegetable or chicken stock

1 Tbsp soya sauce

1 tsp rice wine vinegar

1 cup cooked udon noodles (or other noodles, rice noodles would be great)

2 cups veggies (mushrooms, zucchini, chopped bok choy, cooked eggplant, carrots, peppers)

1/2 cup cooked chicken

fresh pepper to taste

-Over medium to low heat saute garlic, ginger and chili with the oils. Once slightly brown add the mushrooms/veggies.

-Let cook together for a few minutes until veggies are 1/2 cooked. Add the stock, bring to a boil. Add the chicken and noodles, taste for seasoning and adjust as needed.

TIPS

-This soup is really good with an egg on it. Either poached, fried or soft boiled. The yolk adds yummy richness.

-It’s better to cook the noodles outside the soup, otherwise they’ll absorb all the stock.

-If you’re reheating soup, just add a bit of water before reheating. The flavour will still be there and you’ll have enough liquid.

Seriously fast spicy noodles

Food doesn’t get any faster than this recipe. The part that takes the longest is boiling water. Not only is it fast, it’s super easy and you probably have most of the ingredients in your fridge/pantry. I made it in just over 10 minutes, including boiling water time. Seriously.

I made this with linguine noodles, because I had them, but use whatever noodle you have around or like, the faster cooking the noodle the sooner you get to eat. I cooked up some shrimp, because I had some and they’re speedy to cook, but the protein here is your choice. Substitute the shrimp for a scrambled egg or two, some chicken or, heck, even leftover turkey.

This will make about 2 cups of sauce, or enough to coat 2 big servings of noodles.

Seriously fast spicy noodles.

2 Tbsp peanut butter

1 Tbsp soy sauce

2 tsp Sriracha (or other hot sauce) – adjust to your taste level

2 tsp honey

1/4 cup of warm water (this just loosens the sauce)

1/2 tsp fresh ginger

1 tsp rice wine vinegar (or lime juice)

1/2 tsp sesame oil

Fresh ground pepper

ADDITIONS: Fresh veggies (carrots, greens, peppers), protein (egg, chicken, seafood etc.)

Boil water. Cook noodles. While noodles cooking mix all the ingredients together. Taste for spice/sweetness level and adjust to your liking.

Mix with noodles. You can have this hot, cold, or at room temperature.

Mixed mushroom risotto

A lot of people are intimidated by risotto, because they think it’s really time consuming and/or complicated. Neither of this are the case. Yes, it’s not something you can whip up in 15 minutes, but it doesn’t take hours either. It just needs your mostly undivided attention for about 30-40 minutes.

Risotto is traditionally not a “main course,” but is typically served as a small “secondi” as an alternative to a pasta course in an Italian multi-course meal. This is a tradition I don’t follow. I often make it as a standalone dish or as a side dish, although in all honestly I could eat it right from the pan.

I like to make it for a dinner party because I can do most of the prep work ahead of time and it’s easy to stir while chatting with guests, and I still have one hand free to drink wine.

Risotto really isn’t that complicated, it just needs a little time and some attention.

1 cup arborio rice (see note at bottom)

Approximately 4 cups stock (chicken or veg)

1/4 cup of white wine (optional, or you can replace with juice from 1/2 a lemon)

1 medium onion, finely chopped and split into two portions

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped and split into two portions

Approximately 3 cups mushrooms (whatever you like and can find)

1 tsp dried basil

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesean cheese

roughly 3 tbsp of butter

salt/pepper to taste

-Put the stock on to heat up, then leave it at a simmer while you cook (cold stock will just shock the rice, and take longer to cook).

-In a large saucepan (not a big frying pan) saute one portion of onions and garlic in about a tbsp of butter, soften the onions and then add the mushrooms with the dried basil and a little salt/pepper. Cook the mushrooms until they’ve reduced in size, have a little colour on them and are soft. Put aside.

-In the same pan, add another tablespoon of butter (roughly) and the other onions and garlic, slowly cook them until onions are translucent and soft. Add the rice. Combine the rice with the onions and garlic and cook for about a minute. Then add the wine and stir. Once the wine is absorbed, start adding the stock. Use about 1/3 of a cup at a time (I use a small ladle), waiting until it’s absorbed each time.

-Stir when the stock is added, you don’t have to stir constantly. Just don’t let it sit too long or it will stick.

-Once you can see the rice is getting close to being done, (the rice will change colour, get fatter and you’ll start to see the “sauce” that comes from starch), taste the rice to see how cooked it is so you know how much longer it should cook. This is also a good time to adjust for salt/pepper. You don’t want the rice to be crunchy or mushy, it should have a little texture. 

-Right before the rice is done add the mushrooms back in. I add it when there’s maybe two or three rounds of stock to go.

-Once it’s done, remove it from the heat and add in about a tablespoon of butter and most of the parmesean cheese (save some to sprinkle on top).

SOME TIPS

– Arborio rice goes bad (I just learned this), which is why it’s often vacuum packaged. So store it in an airtight container and DON’T buy it at the bulk food store. I’ve tried this (I love a bulk food store) and it really does make a difference.

– Use good stock. The liquid is absorbed into every bite, so this don’t use the cheapest stock you can find, use the best stock you can. Homemade stock is best, but there are good brands out there, just pick your favourite (I’m a fan of this one made by Knorr). If you think you’re running low on stock (the amount absorbed can change depending on the rice and the weather) add a little more wine, or even water down the stock a bit. 

-If you can, don’t use only one kind of mushroom. Fancy mushrooms (Oyster, shitake, chanterelle, lobster etc.) aren’t cheap, but you don’t need a large amount to get the flavour. Use a small amount of fancy mushrooms and stretch out the rest with cheaper varieties. You can also add the woody stalks of the mushrooms to the stock to increase the flavour bang for your buck.

Leftovers

Risotto isn’t the world’s greatest leftover, BUT it’s not a lost cause. I often make what I call a cheater’s arancini (rice ball) by heating a non-stick pan with a little oil or butter, adding a spoonfull of risotto and let it cook until crispy on one side, flip it and do the same on the other.

If you have to use the microwave, which most of us do at some point, heat it on a lower heat setting for a longer time and stir it occasionally with a little additional liquid.

 

Conquering a craving with leftovers

I’ve been craving Chinese food lately, I wanted saucey, salty, spicy and a little greasy noodles. But, ordering Chinese for one always seems overly gluttonous because I have a hard time ordering just one thing. I want chicken chow mein and beef in black bean sauce or whatever I’m craving. It doesn’t help that you need to order more than $20 (before taxes) to get it delivered.
As I pondered making such an order, I remembered that I had the ingredients to make something at home, I just needed some noodles.
I had leftover steak, mushrooms and kale from Sunday night, I added some broccoli to freshen it up a bit.

-Fry cooked Chinese noodles in a hot pan with vegetable oil and sesame oil until heated and a little crispy. Season with lots of black pepper
-add in a few tablespoons of black bean sauce, a tablespoon or so of soy sauce and some sriracha if you want. Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of chicken stock to loosen the sauce up.
-Add in cooked meat and veggies to heat them through
– since you’re just reheating, you’ll have dinner in about 20 minutes.

You could always substitute the black bean sauce for any other sauce (oyster, teriyaki, hoisin, etc.) this is what I was in the mood for and also had in my fridge.

I know this isn’t reinventing the wheel, but I figure it’s never a bad idea to have another way to use up leftovers so they don’t taste like leftovers. And all it cost me today was $1.20 for the noodles, which sure beats the $25 I was going to spend on take out.