Pork tostada anyone???

Braised pork tostadas

Here is another great opportunity you use the braising method I discussed in an earlier post. The best thing about using the technique is that once the prep is done it frees you to leave the kitchen and take care of the house, or in my case take Ellie and the pups for a walk.

Let's get the prep done.

Ingredients:

Pork:

• 6 boneless pork chops
• 1 onion
• 1/2 can of ancho chilies in adobo sauce
• 1 can crushed tomatoes
• Light beer (todays choice PBR)
• 2 cups chicken stock
• Salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin
• Corn tortillas
• Sour cream
• Cheese
• Ice-burg lettuce
• Roma tomatoes

Sides

• 1 1/2 cup long grain rice
• 1 can red beans
• 1 green pepper
• 1 onion

Getting started:

Leave the fat on keeps moisture in the pork

Cube the pork just larger then bite-size pieces. Use half the can of ancho chilies (the whole can for those who like it extra spicy). Rough chop the chiles and toss in a bowl to coat the pork. Allow pork at least 20 minutes to marinate.

Large-dice onions while heating pan. Now would also be a good time to preheat oven to 325. Once pan is hot, add oil, allow to heat, and pork sear on all sides. Add onions.

Everything is starting to look really good!

Once your onions have started sweating (looking more translucent), you can add the crushed tomatoes. Mix well and add a tbl spoon of cumin and tbl spoon of chili powder.

Add tomatoes and beer on high heat. Reduce the beer by half.

Once the beer has reduced you can add the chicken stock. Cover pot (lid or foil, both work fine) and place in oven for 2 1/2 hours. This is when I always try and get the kitchen cleaned; there is nothing worse then enjoying a great dinner but knowing the mess that is waiting for you in the kitchen. Plus by this point I am most likely already holding Ellie and the dogs are staring at the front door hoping a walk is in the near future. So once again, braising equals more time not spent in the kitchen.

 With two bowls, one perforated, pour everything out of pan. some of the pork may have fallen apart on its own. If not, no big deal: using two forks, pull in opposite directions to shred pork.

Pour the strained liquid back in to braising pan and reduce on medium heat. Once reduced by 1/3, add pork back and check seasoning and turn heat down to low. Remember that when you reduce a sauce your are intensifying it as well, sweet might get sweeter and salty will definitely get saltier. 

For your rice, its a 2:1 ratio of water to rice. Bring water to a boil, I like to add a tbl spoon of butter, add salt and rice, give one quick stir and cover. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes.

Small-dice onion and pepper and saute until translucent, season, and add red beans. Rinse beans first!!!

Call everyone in for dinner! This one is hands-on for everyone, like tacos, so you get to build your own.

Who Wants Asian Food???

Asian cooking is all about using fresh ingredients. This is the time to visit your local asian market (that you have always driven past, but never been to). The ingredients I find at Eang Hong (off Central Ave)  are cheaper here then they would be at a Harris Teeter. I still get my proteins at the other grocers.

Other than the fresh ingredients, another reason to cook Asian cuisine at home is how fast it is. Prepping the food is where all the time is, cooking is literally just minutes.

Tonight's Menu:

 Ginger Beef with carrots & broccoli

with steamed rice

So let's go shopping:

• Beef (something lean, the dish not going to cook long enough to melt the fat)
• Carrots
• Broccoli
• Onion
• Fresh ginger
• Scallions (green onion)
• Soy sauce
• Hosin
• White wine
• Jasmine rice

So you ventured out to the asian market:

How was it? Lots of things that you have never seen before?
You are going to be hooked; I go to the Asian market once a week usually.

Now on to cutting the vegetables...
 Julienne onions, cut broccoli off stem. Peel the ginger, using a paring knife or a spoon (I am not crazy: the spoon will work, and you won't lose too much ginger by cutting it with the knife), and julienne ginger. Peel and thinly slice carrots and blanch. Blanching vegetables is a common technique to make vegetable brighter and have a snap in their bite. 

Slice the beef 1/4 inch thick.

Steam rice. Rinse twice (to get it really clean and be sure there are no imperfections in the rice) and add to water (2/1 water to rice), cover and bring to a boil. Once at a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until water is absorbed and rice is soft, but not mushy. 

Mix soy sauce and hosin (2/1 soy to hosin), add a tablespoon of sugar, and simmer until sugar is dissolved.

Ok, that was the hard part. Have someone set the table...you are almost there.

If you have a wok, great. If not, no big deal- a nonstick pan will work.

 Heat pan and add oil. Just before it starts smoking, add ginger.

Add beef

Add onion once beef has started to brown

Add carrots and deglaze with white wine, half a cup

Once reduced, add soy mixture.

Add broccoli, taste with the soy sauce. It should be salty enough, but now is the the time to add
 if need be. Add black pepper.

Asian food to me is best enjoyed family style.

Enjoy!!!

No school, No work...what's for breakfast?

So the roads are all icy and the office is closed, and your kids are going a little stir crazy from being home the last two days...how about a fun breakfast that they can help you with? Ellie helped me with ours!

Reese's peanut butter cup pancakes

Gather your ingredients:
-3 eggs
-1/2 cup sugar
-2 tsp vanilla
-3 cups all purpose flour
-2 cups buttermilk ( whole milk works as well)
-1 pinch salt
-1 table spoon baking powder
-1/2 stick melted butter
-2 Reeses Cups crumbled up

Getting Started:
-Whisk together eggs sugar and salt.
-Add baking powder, flour and milk (alternating flour and milk 1/2 cup at a time)
-Using and sifter with help avoid clumps in your flour
-Add vanilla and melted butter ( should look like thick batter, adjust milk or flour to thin or thicken)
-Add Reeses crumbles

-On medium heat in a greased pan, ladle in 1/2 cup of batter.
-Cook until bubbles on pancake open, Flip cook for 30-45 seconds an place on cookie sheet in warm oven until finished with batter.
-Left over batter can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days

Pancake are great with scrambled eggs and a cute family!

Enjoy!

Chef/Dad

Ellie with me, her adoring Dad

Gone are the days of: "Honey, I'm home!" Husband walks in awaiting home-cooked meal and martini.

Times have changed.

It is not so uncommon now to walk into a kitchen and see a man standing over the stove awaiting his wife to come home from a long day's work, and in my case, there very well may be a beautiful little girl on my back helping with the finishing touches of that night's dinner.

I have been cooking now for over ten years. Started at the bottom as a line cook, attended The Art Institute, moved onward ho to Sous Chef, Executive Chef...you get the picture. My corporate experience has been in a very busy "burn and turn" environment and has evolved to the relaxing, self pace of my own catering company. But no matter how exciting or busy that days work might have been, nothing gives me more pleasure than cooking for friends and family.

Fast forward to real life:
It's 4:30am. Am I dreaming or is that Ellie I hear?...yep, it's Ellie-my beautiful 17 month old. The stars may still be in full shine and the birds haven't even thought of the song they may sing when morning finally arrives, but my little angel is ready for Daddy's famous scrambled eggs.
This is how my day starts.

Cooking is my passion. I love food and creating amazing dishes and sharing them with friends and family. In this blog, I plan to talk about how to cook for large parties and how to execute those dishes that will amaze your family, no matter how big or small. I know my wife and Ellie can't wait to see what's on the menu tonight.

Thanks for coming and enjoy the read!