Sorry I haven’t blogged in a while (since before the holidays) …but there was just too much going on. COOKING, COOKING, COOKING, BAKING, COOKING AND MORE BAKING AND COOKING. And, if you think I’m sick of it, you’re wrong. Nope… still love it all.
So, I’m now in the fourth (or is it the fifth?) week of the “thaw and cook” challenge and, my fear that my butcher would think I was sick–or worse–that I defected to another provider–was TRUE!. Two weeks ago, I walked in to the shop, wanting to place my order for the holiday and, as I expected, Dom, my beloved butcher (after only 1 full week of not placing an order), he approached me with real seriousness (and a bit of a stammer) and said ” are you okay?” I quickly replied (actually, I started babbling like an idiot)…”Yes, oh yes…I knew you would think something was wrong, oh, I’m fine, thanks for asking, –I’m doing this–this thing…this commitment to thaw out my freezer…I’m fine, we’re all fine, you’re still my wonderful butcher, don’t worry…NO ONE could EVER take your place!”
I swear, without words, Dom’s expression said “I don’t know whether to hug this woman or to call the paramedics.”
Anyway, at least ordering meat for the holiday helped him to feel less abandoned by me, a customer that’s, I’m sure, trusted to pay a big chunk of the monthly bill for refrigeration at The Larchmont Meateria.
As far as the “big thaw” is going–Well, it’s going….and going. (Meaning, I’m getting close to the end.) That’s not saying that my freezer is not still full, it is! I have SO MUCH stock! All kinds of stock: dark chicken, light chicken, veal, beef, lamb, shrimp, fish and fresh clam juice. I also have bones…beef knuckles and shank scraps and marrow bones, chicken necks, backs and wing-tips, lamb shank bones (extras from last year’s Passover Seder), bags of shrimp shells and, I even found a bag of GOAT BONES… Not sure where those came from. Must have been when my son, Ben, asked me to make him curried goat and I thought I should make stock (for the sauce) with goat bones. I obviously never got around to it and I’m not sure how long goat bones stay good. …Or, shrimp shells, for that matter.
So, because this is the first blog in a while…and because I just can’t give step by step commentaries on ALL the food I’ve made over the past few weeks…and since I would really like to feel “caught up” so I can get back on the “blogging band-wagon” –I thought I’d just stick to a few photos of some of the highlights that cover my on-going (and I think, finally, concluding) “thaw and cook challenge.” More in-depth “formal” recipes and step-by-step blogs will be coming for many of the dishes mentioned and some are already on the site. If so, I’ll link their mention to the appropriate page. And, if there’s one recipe in particular that you’d like more clarity on, just send me a comment using the link provided on this page or click here and send me an email.
So, as my freezer got emptier, the foods became simpler, albeit not necessarily less delicious (or exotic)!
Take these hot dogs, for instance. I found these Kobe Beef Hot Dogs, frozen….so I thawed them out (in the refrigerator overnight) and, because it was raining, I decided to just cook them on the stove, using a stove-top grill pan. I always slash my hot dogs several times, on two sides, which helps them to heat thoroughly without bursting (and, to me, the slashes make hot dogs a bit more luscious-looking, once cooked).
No, these aren't just "any" hot dogs....
They're Kobe Beef Hot Dogs, slashed, grilled and placed on buns that have first been basted on the inside with garlic butter and then broiled till golden.
I served the hot-dogs with a cucumber salad that I concocted from one of my two (unexpectedly found) bionic cucumbers that were “hanging out” just outside the perimeter of my garden.
Oh, you don’t believe how big they were? Just take a look at this!
Just to show you the scale…
These cucumbers were taller than this 36 ounce container of rice! And, they were much more delicious than expected...really crisp, too.
For this simple salad: I peeled the cucumbers, halved them lengthwise and scooped out the seeds. I cut the cucumbers into chunks and tossed them with some thinly sliced sweet yellow onion. Then, I put together a simple dressing with 1/3 cup white wine vinegar, 2 cloves pressed garlic, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, freshly ground black pepper to taste, about 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes and 1/2 cup olive oil (I mixed pure and extra-virgin). I whisked the dressing and tossed it with the cucumbers and onions, along with a good handful of chopped fresh cilantro (you could also use dill, instead). I let this macerate for a few hours in the fridge. It was totally delish and a nice contrast to the rich hot dogs.
Home-grown cucumber salad...
The next night was pork chops…(yes, frozen and thawed).
I always brine lean cuts of pork…it’s simple and always assures me that the cooked meat will be succulent.
Here’s what to do to brine pork: Take 6 cups cold water and whisk in 1/2 cup each Kosher salt and sugar (white granulated or light brown sugar) and add some freshly ground black pepper. You could also add some chopped onion, or simply season the brine with onion and garlic powder (not onion or garlic salt). When well mixed, pour over the pork chops which should be laying in a single layer in a large, nonreactive dish, that’s able to hold them and the brine comfortably. Here’s what the chops look like when brined….
These are in the simplest brine of just water, sugar, salt and pepper.
Now cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 1/2 hours (no longer or the meat becomes weird…) If brining a larger pork loin (a roast), then you can brine the meat for up to 2 1/2 hours, turning the meat a few times.
Then, drain the chops and dry them off (no need to rinse before patting them dry).
Now, all you do is apply your seasoning. I like to marinate pork…this time, I kept it simple. I just used extra-virgin olive oil, minced garlic, herbs and lots of black pepper (some crushed red pepper, too).
Like this...
You can add an acidic, like vinegar or lemon or lime juice. Or, you can just use a favorite vinagrette that’s already in the fridge.
Then, I just applied this to the chops…
And I kept the chops covered and chilled until about 30 minutes or so before I wanted to cook them.
Which I did, on the stove, on a stove-top grill pan.
To do this: Preheat your pan, over medium heat until nice and hot. Then, just before putting on the meat, raise the heat to high. Sear the chops for three minutes on each side (have your exhaust fan on high, or make sure to have a gorgeous, freshly baked pie ready to give the fire guy who will, undoubtedly, show up at your front door…FYI: Fire guys are very good cooks and they’re ALWAYS hungry.)
After searing the chops on both sides, turn the heat down low and, if using a large rectangular pan, like I am in the photo, place a large roasting pan over the pan and cook the chops gently, just until cooked through…155F is the internal temperature you’re after, though I never use a thermometer for this…) If using a smaller pan, with fewer chops, just use a round heatproof (stainless) bowl as the cover. What you’re doing is creating a moist “stove-top oven”…this is a great way to keep meats succulent after searing–especially those types that have a tendency to become dry after sitting in a conventional oven. The length of time you’ll cook the chops covered will depend on their thickness. The searing process is always the same…three minutes on each side. For chops that are 1 inch thick, I cook them (covered, on low) for about 4 minutes after searing, then turn off the stove and let them sit there for a minute or two…just to let them rest in a hot but non-aggressive environment.
Not bad for a "once frozen" pork chop!...
I served the chops with this…
Garlicky broccoli rabe over orecchiette pasta, white beans and chicken stock. (Yes, of course, my stock was from the freezer....) A separate blog and recipe is coming ...
Then there were the Mexican Fajitas! Oh boy…
First I marinated my skirt steak and boneless chicken breasts (each in separate dishes). The flavoring mixture was easy…Just extra-virgin olive oil, minced garlic and my fajitas seasoning (you can use my recipe or you can use any spicy taco seasoning.) Just sprinkle enough of the dry mix in to give it good flavor and color. Sometimes (as I did below) I’ll also add minced jalapeno peppers and cilantro. Coat the protein well and cover the dish(es).
Always marinate raw chicken and/or pork seperately --not with any other protein, even if using in the same flavoring mixture.
The chicken breasts were butterflied (opened up) so that their overall thickness would be more even.
Refrigerate up to 24 hours and, about 30 minutes before you want to cook, take the meat(s) out of the fridge.
After preparing the meat(s), then work on your vegetables.
Thinly sliced onion, Italian sweet peppers (or use sweet bell peppers), sliced garlic, minced garlic and seeded and thinly sliced jalapeno peppers. I also often will included sliced button mushrooms. You can do this a day ahead and keep all the vegetables refrigerated, well covered.
Don’t forget to keep a bowl of all your kitchen scraps to add to your compost bin (see…I am SO determined to have a great vegetable garden next summer!)
Now, up to two hours before you plan to cook the meat(s), you can cook your vegetables. Saute the onions in some extra-virgin olive oil, till softened and fragrant, over high heat. (If adding mushrooms, once the onions have softened, stir in the mushrooms and let them cook with the onions until tender and starting to turn golden.) Add some of the fajitas spice blend and the sliced garlic and continue to cook for a few minutes, then add the peppers. Cook just until the peppers are wilted but still retain texture, then stir in some chopped cilantro and season to taste with more of the spice blend and salt and pepper, to taste. Give the mixture a good squeeze of fresh lime juice.
Remove the vegetables to a bowl…
As mentioned, the vegetables can sit, like this, at a comfortable room temperature for up to two hours, loosely covered. Doing this makes the dish really easy to pull together, right before serving...
When getting ready to cook the meat(s), place a large fajitas pan into the oven (center shelf) and preheat the oven to 450F.
Fajitas pans come in different sizes and shapes (oblong and round) and usually with their own trivet.
On this night, since I used my outdoor barbecue, after preheating the indoor oven (with the fajitas pan inside), I started my outdoor fire. You could, though, just as easily heat a large stove-top grill pan (again, with your exhaust fan on!)
But, since tonight, the open air was my exhaust fan….I just got my charcoal nice and hot in two chimney starters.
Then, when the flames were seen at the top and most of the coals were red hot, I poured them out into the grill, below the grill grates.
I lowered the grates down, over the coals and let the grill grates get good and hot. Then I added the meat(s) to the hot grill grate and applied a good squeeze of fresh lime to the top. I cook the meat(s) on both sides until done. (Chicken should be cooked through, being careful not to overcook and beef should be cooked to medium rare (or more, depending on your preference)
Here’s the finished platter of cooked meat…
Then…after the meat(s) are done, it’s time to finish the dish (this is also when the meat(s) get to rest, making them more succulent.
To finish the dish: Open the door to the preheated 450F oven and carefully pull the rack toward you. Empty the cooked vegetables onto the hot fajitas pan and push the rack back into the oven. Shut the door and let the vegetables cook for 10 minutes (till hot and sizzling). Meanwhile, slice the meats into strips. One or two minutes before the vegetables are finished, open the oven again and place the meats on top of the vegetables (make sure to pour any accumulated juices from the platter over the top). Shut the oven door and let cook for the last minute or two, then bring the sizzling platter to the table….
OK, I don’t have a picture of the finished dish (from this night) …The truth: I forgot, we were all so excited about eating –Another truth: I had two margaritas…)
So, here’s a picture of the finished dish from my cookbook (and in this version, I added shrimp…seasoned the same way as the chicken and steak, just skewered and quickly grilled on both sides.
Yes, those are homemade flour tortillas and pico de gallo (all coming…)
By this time in the challenge, Jon was thinking he might need to increase his daily intake of Lipitor….So, I decided to make fish…
Whole roasted Dorade...so, so, so delicious (especially after all that meat!)
To learn more about cooking whole fish, click here.
I served the fish with sauteed fresh spinach.
Fresh spinach wilted in some hot, garlic-scented extra-virgin olive oil.
Before adding the spinach to the hot olive oil, I browned some poached garlic. First, I poached halved (peeled) garlic cloves in boiling water for 2 minutes(which helps garlic to take on the consistency of a potato). I drained the garlic and then browned them in some extra-virgin olive oil (which makes them taste like a garlicky roast potato). Like this…
While browning, tilt the pan, so the poached garlic can brown more submerged in the oil. This will help prevent inadvertent burning.
Then, using a slotted utensil, you’ll remove the browned garlic, and you’ll saute the spinach in this same (now garlic-flavored) oil. And, once the leaves are lightly wilted (over high heat), reduce the heat to low, add the browned garlic and some salt and pepper, to taste, and cover the pot. Cook just until the leaves are perfectly tender but still bright green, about 2 minutes. (You can also add some freshly minced garlic and some crushed red pepper flakes, just before covering the pan).
And then, I finally finished my “thaw and cook” challenge with this…one of Jon’s favorites.
Sloppy Joe’s ….(and it was SO EASY!)
Here’s how I did it…
Since this sauce freezes SO perfectly, I always make a big batch, then divide it and stick it in the freezer.
So, because I already had the sauce, all I had to do was purchase some ground beef (or ground turkey). (No, I wasn’t cheating because I had to thaw a frozen container of my sloppy Joe sauce…
Then, all I did was brown the beef in a dry skillet, dump out any rendered fat and then add the sauce. And, in just 10 minutes…
I was ready to spoon the sloppy Joe mixture onto large burger buns that were (like with the hot dog buns in the beginning of this blog), basted on the inside with garlic butter and then broiled until the seasoned sides were golden. And, by the way, if feeding a vegetarian, you can also use reconstituted textured vegetable protein instead of meat! You would add the reconstituted protein to a skillet and skip the browning step. Just add the sauce and bring to a simmer…let cook a few minutes to fully flavor the protein and you’re good to go.
I served the sloppy Joe’s with poached and oven roasted potato wedges (Potatoes are my favorite vegetable on earth. A potato blog is coming…)
So, my family got to enjoy yet another delicious week, all stemming from my freezer.
And now, even though I’ve still got a lot of frozen stock, it’s finally time to put this challange to bed. My butcher, Dominic, I’m sure, will be very happy…
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Of course, Mango was thrilled as she lay splat on the floor of my kitchen, completely pooped after our day out in the fields… 
