The Food Thread

[easy cheesy]

Chicken Fried Steak with Spicy Gravy (this is the basic, country, old school, simple shit right here... no frills!)

Six- 8 ounce steaks, about 1/2 inch thick
1 1/2 teaspoons of salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
flour
milk
shortening

Spicy Gravy
pan drippings from the steak
3 cups milk
6 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon cayenne- (I add more "balls" to this than just a half of a teaspoon but that's just me)
1/4 teaspoon hot red pepper sauce (the aforementioned also applies here)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt (I cut back on salt and sub a hint of garlic as my extra addition of "heat" generally eradicates the need for additional sodium)
1/2 cup flour

Score the steaks crosswise on both sides with a sharp knife. Pound with mallet until they are about 1/4 inch thick.

Dust the steaks with the salt and pepper, then dredge each steak in the flour. Dip the coated steaks in the milk and then dredge again in the flour.

Melt the shrotening in a skillet over medium heat. Add the steaks and fry for 3 minutes (less for rarer meat) on each side, pressing down on the steaks in the skillet from time to time. Remove the steaks when done and keep warm.

To make the spicy gravy, heat the milk in a large saucepan over very low heat. Don't let the milk boil or form a skin.

Reduce the heat under the skillet with the steak drippings. Add the butter, cayenne, red pepper sauce and salt- (see comments above)

Stir for one minute. Slowly blend in the flour until the mixture is smooth. Slowly pour the mixture into the heated milk, stirring constantly so it blends evenly (whisking is the best).

Simmer (do not let it boil) until it thickens to taste. Serve in a gravy boat with the steaks...

[easy cheesy]

Beef Filet Grilled with Pink Peppercorns

1 or 2 tablespoons pink peppercorns (freeze dried)
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup Creme Fraiche
1/4 teaspoon cornstarch
salt to taste

4 beef filets- six to eight ounces
oil

Pink Peppercorn Sauce
Place the peppercorns and wine in a small saucepan. Cover and simmer slowly to rehydrate the peppercorns.

In a bowl, mix the Creme Fraiche with cornstarch and salt. When the pepper and wine have been reduced by a good half, stir in the cream, over heat. Cook for a few moments until the sauce is light but smooth. Keep warm

Steaks
Lightly oil both sides of the filets. Place them on a very hot grill. Cook a minute or two, according to taste and thickness. (I actually prefer a Rib Eye because of the marbling which provides extra flavor in my opinion)

Arrange on warm plate and pour peppercorn sauce over... serve... nom, nom, nom

[easy cheesy]

So simple and soooo frickin' good....

Scallops in Butter and Brandy Sauce

2 pounds sea scallops
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter- (oooohhhhh yeahhhhh)
4 tablespoons of brandy
1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Wash the scallps and put them into saucepan with the salt and enough water to cover. Bring to a simmer and gently cook the scallops for about three minutes. Drain well in strainer.

While scallops are draining, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add scallops and cook, stirring gently, until the butter turns light brown.

In a small saucepan, heat the brandy until it sizzles. Carefully ignite the brandy and pour it over the scallops. When the flame dies out, transfer the scallops to a serving bowl, garnish with parsely and serve.

[Freak Out]

Nice stuff....I make my own cheese btw...including creme fraiche.

[easy cheesy]

Nice stuff....I make my own cheese btw...including creme fraiche.

I'm swooning as we "speak"... I have made creme fraiche but the "cheesemaker" abilities in my DNA makeup stop there... I hope that you elaborate at some point and share some of your "artisan skills" with us!!!

[easy cheesy]

Beer and Horseradish Mustard

From Bon Appetit, October 2009

Ingredients

1 cup lager beer, divided
2/3 cup malt vinegar or red wine vinegar
1/3 cup whole brown mustard seeds
2 tablespoons dry mustard (such as Colman's)
1/4 cup prepared white horseradish
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon caraway seeds, finely ground in mortar with pestle or in spice mill
2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon water

Preparation

Whisk 1/2 cup beer, malt vinegar, mustard seeds, and dry mustard to blend in small bowl. Let mixture stand at room temperature 3 hours.
Transfer beer-and-mustard-seed mixture to blender; add remaining 1/2 cup beer, horseradish, 1 teaspoon coarse salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, honey, and ground caraway seeds; blend until coarse puree forms.

Transfer mixture to medium metal bowl. Set bowl over saucepan of simmering water and whisk often until mixture thickens slightly, about 15 minutes (mixture will be thinner and more sauce-like than store-bought mustard). Transfer mustard to small saucepan and add cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon water; whisk over medium-high heat until mustard thickens and boils, about 2 minutes. Transfer mustard to airtight container. Cover and chill until cold. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 week ahead. Keep chilled.

[easy cheesy]

Veal Scallps with Tarragon and Cream

4 veal scallops
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup dry white wine
4 sprigs fresh tarragon
3 tablespoons Creme Fraiche
salt and pepper to taste

Brown the veal in a skillet in the hot butter, 3-4 minutes on each side. Add the wine and stems from the fresh tarragon. (The leaves will be added later)

Cover and cook over low heat for about 10 minutes.

Place the cooked veal on a platter and keep warm. Leave the cooking juices in the skillet. Stir in one to two tablespoons of water. Boil one minute. Remove the tarragon stems. Add the Creme Fraiche and minced tarragon leaves. Salt and pepper to taste. Simmer one more minute and pour over meat.

Serve with peeled, unsweetened baked apples, or quartered apples rapidly sauteed in the skillet with a little a butter along with, or just before, the veal.

I prefer veal chops but to each his own.

[Partial]

Blackened chicken recipe. Making this now. Just made the rub in a 30x portion. I would recommend doing a 12-15x if making it in bulk, otherwise it fills two empty spice containers.

One of my favorite fat kid meals is this on a sesame kaiser hard roll with baked curly french fries. Soooo good! Since I'm dieting, I ditch the fries and roll. I eat this straight up. Sometimes I put sriracha on, but that gets to be a bit much with the heat.

I use ~1 lbs of chicken per one recipe of this rub. Typically this is 4 boneless skinless breasts instead of two.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/blacken...en/detail.aspx

1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Lightly grease a baking sheet. Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat for 5 minutes until it is smoking hot.
Mix together the paprika, salt, cayenne, cumin, thyme, white pepper, and onion powder. Oil the chicken breasts with cooking spray on both sides, then coat the chicken breasts evenly with the spice mixture.
Place the chicken in the hot pan, and cook for 1 minute. Turn, and cook 1 minute on other side. Place the breasts on the prepared baking sheet.
Bake in the preheated oven until no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, about 5 minutes.

[SkinBasket]

Oil the chicken breasts with cooking spray on both sides,

Thats disgusting.

[Partial]

Singha Thai and EE Sane... best thai restaurants in MKE. Possibly in the world.

[Freak Out]

Singha Thai and EE Sane... best thai restaurants in MKE. Possibly in the world.

There is no fucking way the best Thai restaurant is in Milwaukee. Believe me it's in Thailand. It may not be as pretty, and there may be rats all over the place, but the food is better.

[Freak Out]

Plus you could get a blowjob at the table. Kind of disgusting but possible.

[Partial]

My friends and I have a rotating chili party for Packer games. I'm going to try making a white turkey chili for the next time I'm up. Probably not this exact one, but the recipe looks interesting. I've never had a white chili before.

http://www.closetcooking.com/2007/12...ite-chili.html

[GrnBay007]

LOL @ freak! U been there?

[Freak Out]

LOL @ freak! U been there?

Many times. I love Thailand. The Thai people are the nicest...even more so than you Midwesterner s.

[easy cheesy]

Chicken Cordon Bleu

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 lemon
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 cup olive oil
6 thick slices of Swiss cheese
6 ham slices
12 tablespoons bechamel or any other damn white sauce of choice really
1 teaspoon paprika

Squeeze the lemon over the chicken and let stand for 10 minutes. Rub the parsley, salt and cayenne into the chicken.

Heat the oil in a skillet. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Brown the chicken in the oil and drain on paper towels. Place the chicken in a broiler pan with a rack and cover first with the cheese and then the ham. Spoon 2 tablespoons of the "white sauce of choice" over each. Sprinkle with paprika. Place in the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Easy as hell and tasty too! (without all the fancy, time consuming fileting, stuffing etc.)

[easy cheesy]

Shrimp Creole Recipe



2 lbs. Peeled and Deveined Shrimp, save shells to make Shrimp Stock
2 Tbsp Butter
1 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
1 Large Onion, finely chopped
2 Ribs Celery, finely chopped
1 small Green Pepper, finely Chopped
2 Tbsp Creole Seasoning
2 Tbsp Tomato Paste
2-1/2 Cups Very Ripe Fresh Tomatoes, Diced
1/2 Cup Dry White Wine
2 Cups Shrimp Stock- recipe below
2 Tbsp Garlic, minced
2 Bay leaves
Cayenne to taste
Kosher Salt to taste
1 tsp Black Pepper
1 tsp White Pepper
1 bunch Fresh Thyme
2 Tbsp Tabasco
1 Tbsp Worcestershire
1/2 Cup Green Onions, green tops thinly sliced, white part sliced into 1/4″ thickness
1/8 Cup Flat Leaf Parsley, minced
1 Recipe Creole Boiled Rices

Melt the butter in a large sauce pan with the vegetable oil over medium high heat. When the butter begins to froth add 1/2 cup of the onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are golden brown. Add the remaining onions, celery, and bell pepper, reduce the heat to medium and season with 1 Tbsp Creole Seasoning and a healthy pinch of salt. Sweat the vegetables until soft.

Add the tomato paste mixing well, and cook, stirring constantly, until the paste begins to brown, then add the fresh tomatoes and another healthy pinch of Kosher salt, this will help the tomatoes break down. Stir well.

When the tomatoes start to break down into liquid add the white wine, and turn the heat to high until most of the alcohol burns off. Add the Shrimp Stock, remaining Creole seasoning, garlic, bay leaves, black pepper, white pepper, cayenne (to taste), and Thyme. Bring to a boil then reduce to a low simmer. Simmer for 30-45 minutes.
(If necessary at this point thicken the sauce with 1 Tbsp Cornstarch/ 2Tbsp water. Bring to a boil to maximize the thickening power of the cornstarch.)

Add the hot sauce, Worcestershire, and season to taste with Kosher salt. Last chance to re-season your sauce, remember that good cooking is all about proper seasoning. Make your Boiled Rice, and season your shrimp with 1 Tbsp Kosher salt and a pinch of Cayenne.
Bring the sauce to a boil, reduce the heat to low and add the shrimp. The key is to not overcook your shrimp. Let them slowly simmer in the sauce until just cooked through.
Serve with boiled rice and garnish with the remaining green onions and parsley.

Serve immediately.
Serves 4.

Shrimp Stock Recipe
The Shells and tails from 2 lb. of Shrimp
1/2 Cup chopped Onion
1/4 Cup chopped Celery
2 Garlic Cloves
1 Lemon sliced
2 Fresh Bay Leaves
3 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
1 tsp. Black Peppercorns

Add all ingredients to a dutch oven or a moderate sized stock pot. Cover this with cold water, it should be about 6-8 Cups Cups. Bring almost to a boil, reduce the heat to a low simmer. Skim off any scum that rises to the surface. Simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour. Strain through a fine mesh strainer or chinois.
Stock freezes very well. I always break it up into one use batches by putting it into those plastic ziploc containers. Just remember to leave about 1 inch of headroom as it will expand when it freezes.

[easy cheesy]

Purdue Boilermaker Chili

Ingredients

• 2 pounds ground beef chuck
• 1 pound bulk Italian sausage
• 3 (15 ounce) cans chili beans, drained
• 1 (15 ounce) can chili beans in spicy sauce
• 2 (28 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with juice
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2 green chile peppers, seeded and chopped
• 1 tablespoon bacon bits
• 4 cubes beef bouillon
• 1/2 cup beer
• 1/4 cup chili powder
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce (e.g. Tabasco™)
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• 1 (10.5 ounce) bag corn chips such as Fritos®
• 1 (8 ounce) package shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Heat a large stock pot over medium-high heat. Crumble the ground chuck and sausage into the hot pan, and cook until evenly browned. Drain off excess grease.
2. Pour in the chili beans, spicy chili beans, diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Add the onion, celery, green and red bell peppers, chile peppers, bacon bits, bouillon, and beer. Season with chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, oregano, cumin, hot pepper sauce, basil, salt, pepper, cayenne, paprika, and sugar. Stir to blend, then cover and simmer over low heat for at least 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
3. After 2 hours, taste, and adjust salt, pepper, and chili powder if necessary. The longer the chili simmers, the better it will taste. Remove from heat and serve, or refrigerate, and serve the next day.
4. To serve, ladle into bowls, and top with corn chips and shredded Cheddar cheese.

Sounds pretty good except no chili is made in my house that does not include Habaneros and Jalapenos... PERIOD... and I would lose the Italian Sausage... I mean really.. WTF?

[MJZiggy]

I bought a crepe pan today. My favorite breakfast out is black cherry crepes. Hmmm....

[3irty1]

One of my culinary gigs involved cooking crepes to order in the dining room of a large hotel restaurant. I'd pipe the batter, saute some fruit of your choosing, flambe with some liquor for some showmanship, and serve with chocolate ganache and whipped cream. I hated that job but there is no denying that the skills I built making crepes that way have left me as the uncontested champion of Valentine's day.