Quesabirria

Author: Isabel Orozco-Moore

Tag @isabeleats

Ingredients 

▢4 to 5 pounds chuck roast, cut into large 4-inch chunks

▢½ tablespoon kosher salt

▢½ tablespoon black pepper

▢1 ½ tablespoon olive oil

▢12 guajillo chiles, rinsed, stemmed, and seeded (about 2.5 oz)

▢5 ancho chiles, rinsed, stemmed, and seeded (about 2 oz)

▢5 árbol chiles, rinsed and stemmed (about 0.1 oz)

▢2 large Roma tomatoes

▢½ medium yellow onion

▢1 4-inch Mexican cinnamon stick*

▢3 bay leaves

▢½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns

▢water, as needed

▢2 cups beef broth

▢¼ cup distilled white vinegar

▢5 cloves garlic

▢1 teaspoon ground cumin

▢1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano*

▢½ teaspoon ground cloves

Generously season the meat with salt and pepper on all sides, and heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat.

Working in 2 batches, add the meat and sear on all sides until browned. Remove the pot from the heat, add the seared meat back into the pot, and set aside.

While the meat is searing, add the guajillo chiles, ancho chiles, arbol chiles, tomatoes, onion, cinnamon stick, bay leaves, and peppercorns to a medium pot. Cover completely with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 10 minutes.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the softened chiles and all the other ingredients to a large blender.

Add 1 cup of the chile-soaked cooking water, the beef broth, white vinegar, garlic, cumin, oregano, and cloves. Blend on high for a few minutes until completely smooth. (You may have to do this in 2 batches if your blender isn’t big enough.)

Strain the blended sauce through a fine mesh strainer into the pot with the seared meat. Discard any solids left behind.

Stir the meat and chile sauce together to combine and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 3 to 3 ½ hours until the meat is fall-apart tender.

Transfer the meat to a large bowl and shred it with 2 forks. Add the meat back into the consomé and serve as a stew in bowls with diced onion and chopped cilantro or as tacos in corn tortillas with shredded Oaxaca cheese, cilantro, and diced onions.

New Orleans Gumbo

Excerpt from Lauren Allen's Tastes better from scratch web page.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

For the Roux:

▢1 heaping cup all-purpose flour

▢2/3 cup oil (vegetable or canola oil)

For the Gumbo:

▢1 bunch celery , diced, leaves and all

▢1 green bell pepper , diced

▢1 large yellow onion , diced

▢1 bunch green onion , finely chopped

▢1 bunch fresh chopped parsley , finely chopped

▢2-3 cloves garlic

▢1-2 Tablespoons cajun seasoning *

▢6-8 cups Chicken broth *

▢12 ounce package andouille sausages , sliced into 'coins' (substitute Polska Kielbasa if you can't find a good Andouille)

▢Meat from 1 Rotisserie Chicken*

▢2 cups Shrimps , pre cooked

▢cooked white rice for serving

Instructions

 

Make the Roux*: In a large, heavy bottom stock pot combine flour and oil. Cook on medium-low heat, stirring constantly for 30-45 minutes. This part takes patience--when it's finished it should be as dark as chocolate and have a soft, "cookie dough" like consistency. Be careful not to let it burn! Feel free to add a little more flour or oil as needed to reach this consistency.

Brown the sausage. In a separate skillet on medium-high heat place the sausage slices in one layer in the pan. Brown them well on one side (2-3 minutes) and then use a fork to flip each over onto the other side to brown. Remove to a plate.

Cook the vegetables in broth. Add ½ cup of the chicken broth to the hot skillet that had the sausage to deglaze the pan. Pour the broth and drippings into your large soup pot. 

Add remaining 5 ½ cups of chicken broth. Add veggies, parsley, garlic and roux to the pot and stir well. 

Bring to a boil over medium heat and boil for 5-7 minutes, or until the vegetables are slightly tender. (Skim off any foam that may rise to the top of the pot.) Stir in cajun seasoning, to taste.

Add meat. Add chicken, sausage, and shrimp.

Taste and serve. At this point taste it and add more seasonings to your liking--salt, pepper, chicken bullion paste, garlic, more Joe's stuff or more chicken broth--until you reach the perfect flavor. Serve warm over rice. (Tastes even better the next day!)

Chili con carne (Beef): An American Southern dish from San Antonio, Texas

Excerpt from Holly Nilsson's Spend with pennies website 

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Serves 8

Ingredients:

▢2 pounds lean ground beef

▢1 onion diced

▢1 jalapeno seeded and finely diced

▢4 cloves garlic minced

▢2 ½ tablespoons chili powder divided (or to taste)

▢1 teaspoon cumin

▢1 green bell pepper seeded and diced

▢14 ½ ounces crushed tomatoes canned

▢19 ounces kidney beans canned, drained & rinsed

▢14 ½ ounces diced tomatoes with juice

▢1 ½ cups beef broth

▢1 cup beer

▢1 tablespoon tomato paste

▢1 tablespoon brown sugar optional

▢salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

 Combine ground beef and 1 ½ tablespoons chili powder.

In a large pot, brown ground beef, onion, jalapeno, and garlic. Drain any fat.

Add in remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered 45-60 minutes or until chili has reached desired thickness.

Top with cheddar cheese, green onions, cilantro or other favorite toppings

Ajitama (Ramen eggs)

Ingredients for Ramen Eggs

To make ramen eggs, you’ll need eggs, soy sauce (or tamari), mirin, sake (or cooking white wine), sugar and vinegar.

2 eggs

3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon soy sauce or tamari

3 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon mirin

3 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon sake

1 tablespoon sugar of your choice

1 tablespoon vinegar

How to Make Ramen Eggs, Step-by-Step

1. Boil the Eggs

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then carefully lower eggs into the pot in a single layer and boil for 7 minutes.

2. Prepare the Ice Bath

While the eggs boil, fill a large bowl with ice and cold water. Once the eggs have finished boiling, immediately transfer them to the prepared ice bath to stop the cooking process and cool the eggs.

3. Peel the Eggs

Once the eggs are cool enough to handle, peel the eggs.

4. Make the Marinade

In a resealable plastic bag, combine soy sauce (or tamari), mirin, sake (or cooking white wine), sugar and vinegar.

5. Marinate the Eggs

Place eggs in the bag and ensure that the eggs are immersed in the liquid mixture. Seal the bag, removing any extra air, and allow eggs to marinate in the liquid for at least 24 hours, or up to 2 days. During the marinating process, periodically change the eggs’ position to ensure that they are evenly marinated.

6. Serve the Eggs

Cut eggs cleanly in half lengthwise and serve with ramen or enjoy as a snack.

Tahini

Excerpt from Adam and Joanne, creators of Inspired Taste

You only need THREE ingredients to make tahini.

Sesame seeds — We use hulled seeds (pictured below on the left) and toast them in a dry skillet to bring out their natural nuttiness.

Oil — To help the tahini become a creamy smooth paste, we add a few tablespoons of neutral-flavored oil. Try avocado, extra-virgin, olive, vegetable, and grape seed oil. Sesame oil (not toasted sesame oil) also works.

Salt is optional, but I always use it. It just makes the tahini taste better.

Step 1: Toast the sesame seeds. I love toasting the sesame seeds before making tahini. It tastes better. I toast them in a dry skillet on the stovetop. Sesame seeds are tiny and can burn quickly. Toast them over medium-low heat, stirring often, until they take on a light golden color.

Step 2: Process the sesame seeds until crumbly. Throw the toasted sesame seeds into the bowl of a food processor, shut the lid, and then process until a crumbly paste begins to form. We have a 10-cup Magimix food processor. It is powerful, which helps when making tahini. Most food processors on the market today will do the trick. Blenders are hit and miss — read through our comment section for tips from other readers who used a blender to make this recipe.

Step 3: Add oil and process into a smooth cream. We add a few tablespoons of neutral-flavored oil to help the tahini turn into an extra smooth, drippy paste. You can eliminate some of the oil if you would like, but the tahini won’t be as smooth or pourable. We’ve found that 3 to 4 tablespoons of oil does the trick

Step 4: Store tahini in an airtight container for one month. It might separate over time like a natural peanut butter would. If this happens, give the tahini a good stir before using it.