One of my favorite sites is The Pioneer Woman. Ree Drummond is witty, clever, and likes her food real without going overboard on the home made wagon.
Two things, though... she likes hot peppers, and she's feeding a hungry family of 6, so everything is BIG.
But, her advice on cooking steaks was so good. Use seasoned salt, a little butter in the grill pan, and cook it. I do that with thin cut steaks.
This recipe was divine! Just cook it like she says! Adjust the amount of meat to fit your needs. I used 1/2 pound of petite sirloin. I only needed to cook it one batch since it was less meat and a big skillet.
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/01/steak-bites/
And it's easy to eat if you're sitting on the couch, no steak knife needed. So much easier to cut the meat with a big, honking knife on a cutting board before it's cooked.
You definitely need the exhaust fan going, and an open window is good, too.
Saturday, January 31, 2015
Buttermilk Fried Boneless Chicken
UPDATE AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST!
Frying is messy, stinky, and you never know when the chicken is done... but it's tasty. This chicken finishes its cooking in the oven at a low temperature, so you don't have to tend to it every minute, and you have a little leeway with cooking time.
This also frees up space on the stove to make a nice pilaf, or some hot veggies, or something else to go with it. Sure, my stove has four burners, but who wants to mess around there with hot, frying chicken on it, hot oil popping on your hands... besides, my stove is weird and only has one large burner. (Edit: now I have a stove with FIVE burners, talk about confusing... 😏)
You need an oven proof skillet for this. If you don't have one, you can transfer the chicken to a shallow baking dish. An 11 x 7 inch should work. Or even a cookie sheet if it has a rim.
You also need an exhaust fan and/or an open window.
The oven is set for TWO-HUNDRED FIFTY degrees, that's not a typo.
I always use thighs but you could probably use breasts, too. They might take a little longer to cook, but you'll have to try it yourself, I'm not gonna...****
BONELESS FRIED CHICKEN
4 boneless, skinless, chicken thighs
Salt
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 cup buttermilk*
Vegetable (NOT olive oil)
Heat oven to 250 F.
Rinse the chicken and pat dry with a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt.
Mix the flour and pepper together in a shallow bowl or on a plate.
Pour the buttermilk into a shallow bowl.
Dip the chicken pieces into flour, shake it off, dip in the buttermilk, and then back into the flour. Coat thoroughly.
Pour about 1/4 inch of oil into your skillet and heat over medium high heat.
Heat the oil until hot but not smoking.**
Brown the chicken on both sides, about 2 minutes each.
Remove chicken, drain the oil from the skillet, and return the chicken to the skillet.***
Place the skillet in the oven for about 20 minutes.
NOTES
* You can use soured milk instead of buttermilk. Use about 2 teaspoons of white vinegar in a half cup of milk and let it sit for 5 minutes. You could also use plain Greek yogurt thinned with a little milk. But buttermilk is best.
** Smoking things is bad. Especially oil on the stove. If it smokes, it's too hot, so turn it down before putting the chicken in or it'll burn.
DO NOT USE OLIVE OIL! It has a low smoke point.
*** If your skillet isn't oven proof, place the chicken in a shallow baking dish.
**** Tenderloins work well for this, too.
PS: I tried a recipe once that was similar... but it called for putting the skillet into a 475 degree oven, with all the oil still in the pan... let's just say that's it a good thing thing they were throwing that stove away when I moved out of that apartment... It was a mess, oil everywhere. I never did get that thing clean.
UPDATE: After making this a dozen or so times, I've given up on the oven proof skillet. I also don't dip the chicken in flour before the buttermilk. Just salt it, dip in the buttermilk, and dredge in the flour mixture.
Use MEDIUM-HIGH heat to brown the chicken. Place it on a rack on a cookie sheet to bake. Less mess, less oil, less oily mess.
The dredging process is a mess no matter what, but it's less messy this way and tastes the same!
ANOTHER UPDATE: This works well on chicken tenderloins. I'm not a white meat fan, but tenderloins are usually OK, and they stay moist and juicy when cooked this way.
This is before baking. They don't brown any more in the oven, so get them how you want before baking.
Here they are, bubbling along on the stove... these will have to be turned over again to get browner. It's better to not keep turning them over and over, the crust can crack and flake off.
Frying is messy, stinky, and you never know when the chicken is done... but it's tasty. This chicken finishes its cooking in the oven at a low temperature, so you don't have to tend to it every minute, and you have a little leeway with cooking time.
This also frees up space on the stove to make a nice pilaf, or some hot veggies, or something else to go with it. Sure, my stove has four burners, but who wants to mess around there with hot, frying chicken on it, hot oil popping on your hands... besides, my stove is weird and only has one large burner. (Edit: now I have a stove with FIVE burners, talk about confusing... 😏)
You need an oven proof skillet for this. If you don't have one, you can transfer the chicken to a shallow baking dish. An 11 x 7 inch should work. Or even a cookie sheet if it has a rim.
You also need an exhaust fan and/or an open window.
The oven is set for TWO-HUNDRED FIFTY degrees, that's not a typo.
I always use thighs but you could probably use breasts, too. They might take a little longer to cook, but you'll have to try it yourself, I'm not gonna...****
BONELESS FRIED CHICKEN
4 boneless, skinless, chicken thighs
Salt
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 cup buttermilk*
Vegetable (NOT olive oil)
Heat oven to 250 F.
Rinse the chicken and pat dry with a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt.
Mix the flour and pepper together in a shallow bowl or on a plate.
Pour the buttermilk into a shallow bowl.
Dip the chicken pieces into flour, shake it off, dip in the buttermilk, and then back into the flour. Coat thoroughly.
Pour about 1/4 inch of oil into your skillet and heat over medium high heat.
Heat the oil until hot but not smoking.**
Brown the chicken on both sides, about 2 minutes each.
Remove chicken, drain the oil from the skillet, and return the chicken to the skillet.***
Place the skillet in the oven for about 20 minutes.
NOTES
* You can use soured milk instead of buttermilk. Use about 2 teaspoons of white vinegar in a half cup of milk and let it sit for 5 minutes. You could also use plain Greek yogurt thinned with a little milk. But buttermilk is best.
** Smoking things is bad. Especially oil on the stove. If it smokes, it's too hot, so turn it down before putting the chicken in or it'll burn.
DO NOT USE OLIVE OIL! It has a low smoke point.
*** If your skillet isn't oven proof, place the chicken in a shallow baking dish.
**** Tenderloins work well for this, too.
PS: I tried a recipe once that was similar... but it called for putting the skillet into a 475 degree oven, with all the oil still in the pan... let's just say that's it a good thing thing they were throwing that stove away when I moved out of that apartment... It was a mess, oil everywhere. I never did get that thing clean.
UPDATE: After making this a dozen or so times, I've given up on the oven proof skillet. I also don't dip the chicken in flour before the buttermilk. Just salt it, dip in the buttermilk, and dredge in the flour mixture.
Use MEDIUM-HIGH heat to brown the chicken. Place it on a rack on a cookie sheet to bake. Less mess, less oil, less oily mess.
The dredging process is a mess no matter what, but it's less messy this way and tastes the same!
ANOTHER UPDATE: This works well on chicken tenderloins. I'm not a white meat fan, but tenderloins are usually OK, and they stay moist and juicy when cooked this way.
Here they are, bubbling along on the stove... these will have to be turned over again to get browner. It's better to not keep turning them over and over, the crust can crack and flake off.
Really, I meant 250...
Saturday, January 24, 2015
Blackberry Cornmeal Cake
OK, it sounds weird, but it's really good.
Blackberry Cornmeal Cake
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar, and ¼ cup for sprinkling
½ cup buttermilk*
2 eggs
½ cup butter (one stick) divided
12 ounces fresh blackberries
Heat oven to 375.
Melt 7 Tablespoons butter. (There's 8 in a stick, so just cut one off.)
n a large bowl, mix together the flour, corn meal, baking powder, salt, and 1 cup sugar.
In another bowl, lightly beat the eggs, then stir in buttermilk and melted butter.
Add this to the dry ingredients, and mix well. (You don't have to beat it as much as you would a regular cake.)
Put the other Tablespoon of butter in a 10" cast iron skillet, place in the oven for 5 minutes until butter is melted and skillet is hot. Remove from oven and swirl the butter to coat the bottom.
Toss the blackberries with 1-2 Tablespoons of flour.
Pour batter into skillet. Scatter blackberries over the surface, then sprinkle with the 1/4 cup sugar,
Bake for 45-50 minutes, until top is evenly browned. Let cool 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature (warm in my kitchen).
I don't see any reason you couldn't bake this in a cake pan, but the skillet was full when it puffed up, so a 9 inch pan might not work. The directions said to put a cookie sheet on the rack below to catch drips, but I didn't see any.
Store loosely covered...if you put it in an airtight container, it gets soggy.
* You can add 1.5 tsp vinegar to 1/2 cup milk instead.
This thing is HUGE! So, I experimented and cut it down to a reasonable size.
I cut the recipe in half and baked it in an 8 inch pan for 30 minutes. I also made sure the berries were dry, and didn't mix the batter up as much and the berries didn't sink all the way to the bottom.
This makes 6 smaller servings.
Blackberry Cornmeal Cake
½ Cup + 2 Tbls all purpose flour
¼ cup yellow cornmeal
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ cup sugar, plus 2 Tbls for sprinkling
¼ cup low fat buttermilk*
1 egg
4 Tbls butter, melted + 1 Tbls for skillet
5-6 ounces blackberries
Mix together flour, corn meal, baking powder, salt, and 1/2 cup sugar.
In another bowl, stir together buttermilk, egg, and melted butter. (pour the butter in slowly so you don't get scrambled eggs) Pour this over the flour mixture, stir to combine
In an 8" ovenproof skillet, place 1 Tbls butter and put into the oven for 3-5 minutes to melt the butter and get the skillet hot. (or set it on the burner over medium heat, it gets plenty hot.)
Put the berries in a baggie with 1 Tablespoon flour and shake it up.
Pour batter into skillet, sprinkle berries over the top. Sprinkle the 2 Tbls sugar over the batter.
Bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Let cool 30 minutes.
*I never have buttermilk on hand, I use ¼ cup milk with a splash of white vinegar. (the usual ratio is 1 Tbls. per cup of milk. )
Blackberry Cornmeal Cake
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar, and ¼ cup for sprinkling
½ cup buttermilk*
2 eggs
½ cup butter (one stick) divided
12 ounces fresh blackberries
Heat oven to 375.
Melt 7 Tablespoons butter. (There's 8 in a stick, so just cut one off.)
n a large bowl, mix together the flour, corn meal, baking powder, salt, and 1 cup sugar.
In another bowl, lightly beat the eggs, then stir in buttermilk and melted butter.
Add this to the dry ingredients, and mix well. (You don't have to beat it as much as you would a regular cake.)
Put the other Tablespoon of butter in a 10" cast iron skillet, place in the oven for 5 minutes until butter is melted and skillet is hot. Remove from oven and swirl the butter to coat the bottom.
Toss the blackberries with 1-2 Tablespoons of flour.
Pour batter into skillet. Scatter blackberries over the surface, then sprinkle with the 1/4 cup sugar,
Bake for 45-50 minutes, until top is evenly browned. Let cool 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature (warm in my kitchen).
I don't see any reason you couldn't bake this in a cake pan, but the skillet was full when it puffed up, so a 9 inch pan might not work. The directions said to put a cookie sheet on the rack below to catch drips, but I didn't see any.
Store loosely covered...if you put it in an airtight container, it gets soggy.
* You can add 1.5 tsp vinegar to 1/2 cup milk instead.
This thing is HUGE! So, I experimented and cut it down to a reasonable size.
I cut the recipe in half and baked it in an 8 inch pan for 30 minutes. I also made sure the berries were dry, and didn't mix the batter up as much and the berries didn't sink all the way to the bottom.
This makes 6 smaller servings.
Blackberry Cornmeal Cake
½ Cup + 2 Tbls all purpose flour
¼ cup yellow cornmeal
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ cup sugar, plus 2 Tbls for sprinkling
¼ cup low fat buttermilk*
1 egg
4 Tbls butter, melted + 1 Tbls for skillet
5-6 ounces blackberries
Mix together flour, corn meal, baking powder, salt, and 1/2 cup sugar.
In another bowl, stir together buttermilk, egg, and melted butter. (pour the butter in slowly so you don't get scrambled eggs) Pour this over the flour mixture, stir to combine
In an 8" ovenproof skillet, place 1 Tbls butter and put into the oven for 3-5 minutes to melt the butter and get the skillet hot. (or set it on the burner over medium heat, it gets plenty hot.)
Put the berries in a baggie with 1 Tablespoon flour and shake it up.
Pour batter into skillet, sprinkle berries over the top. Sprinkle the 2 Tbls sugar over the batter.
Bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Let cool 30 minutes.
*I never have buttermilk on hand, I use ¼ cup milk with a splash of white vinegar. (the usual ratio is 1 Tbls. per cup of milk. )
Thursday, January 22, 2015
This Fad Can Be Dangerous!
There are recipes going around for baking cakes in canning jars.
Not that I would ever try this because I don't think it's easier than a cake pan, and the ones I've seen look gross.
And it just seems dangerous. Hot food in an exploding jar... not only would it be messy, but the last thing I need is another way to get injured in the kitchen!
And before you "pooh pooh" away the concern, read the warning from the manufacturers and other canning experts, and remember that almost every safety recommendation is the result of someone being seriously injured! (Mr. Giddy learned this in safety instructor training).
Jarden the manufacturer of Ball, Kerr, and Bernadin canning jars official position (800-240-3340) is oven canning, heating jars in the oven for canning, or using jars to bake is unsafe and not recommended.
The jars were not made for this purpose. The unsafe condition is what is call Thermal Shock Breakage. The heat from an oven is a different heat than what is produced in a water bath or pressure canner. The breakage can occur during the heat process inside the oven or outside on the counter as they cool.
This breakage could be anything from a crack in the glass where shards may be deposited into the jar and not observed by the canner or baker and end up in your food, to a full break of the jars possibly happening during handling and filling with your recipe.
In addition the representative agreed that based on the contents that you are canning or baking there is no way to be sure that you are completely killing all the microorganisms and making the jars shelf stable. With baking you are running the risk of botulism as the ingredients that you are using such as eggs, flour, and other non-cannable products will grow bacteria fairly quickly in a jar. You are then giving these products to friends and family that you are putting at risk.
In addition the University of Georgia (UGa) and National Center for Home Preserving states clearly; (http://nchfp.uga.edu/questions/FAQ_canning.html#7) “No. This can be dangerous because the temperature will vary according to the accuracy of oven regulators and circulation of heat. Dry heat is very slow in penetrating into jars of food. Also, jars explode easily in the oven.”
So don't be trendy!
Not that I would ever try this because I don't think it's easier than a cake pan, and the ones I've seen look gross.
And it just seems dangerous. Hot food in an exploding jar... not only would it be messy, but the last thing I need is another way to get injured in the kitchen!
And before you "pooh pooh" away the concern, read the warning from the manufacturers and other canning experts, and remember that almost every safety recommendation is the result of someone being seriously injured! (Mr. Giddy learned this in safety instructor training).
Jarden the manufacturer of Ball, Kerr, and Bernadin canning jars official position (800-240-3340) is oven canning, heating jars in the oven for canning, or using jars to bake is unsafe and not recommended.
The jars were not made for this purpose. The unsafe condition is what is call Thermal Shock Breakage. The heat from an oven is a different heat than what is produced in a water bath or pressure canner. The breakage can occur during the heat process inside the oven or outside on the counter as they cool.
This breakage could be anything from a crack in the glass where shards may be deposited into the jar and not observed by the canner or baker and end up in your food, to a full break of the jars possibly happening during handling and filling with your recipe.
In addition the representative agreed that based on the contents that you are canning or baking there is no way to be sure that you are completely killing all the microorganisms and making the jars shelf stable. With baking you are running the risk of botulism as the ingredients that you are using such as eggs, flour, and other non-cannable products will grow bacteria fairly quickly in a jar. You are then giving these products to friends and family that you are putting at risk.
In addition the University of Georgia (UGa) and National Center for Home Preserving states clearly; (http://nchfp.uga.edu/questions/FAQ_canning.html#7) “No. This can be dangerous because the temperature will vary according to the accuracy of oven regulators and circulation of heat. Dry heat is very slow in penetrating into jars of food. Also, jars explode easily in the oven.”
So don't be trendy!
Saturday, January 17, 2015
Easy Pulled Pork (Crock Pot)
This is so freakin' easy... even I can do it.
1 lb pork loin roast**
12 ounces root beer or coke
1 bottle (or less) BBQ sauce
For sandwiches: 2 large hamburger buns
Put the pork and the root beer into the crock pot. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
Remove the meat from the pot, and discard the liquid. Wipe out the crock with a paper towel (don't burn your hand!).
Take two forks and pull the meat apart. Next time I'll take a picture. You don't CHOP it like some recipes say, that's just wrong. The meat should come apart in shreds. If it doesn't, it's not cooked enough, give it another hour.
Return the shredded meat to the pot and stir in some BBQ sauce, about 1/3 to 1/2 the bottle.*
Cover and cook on low for another hour.
Serve up on hamburger buns, open faced.
* Mr. Giddy likes a lot more sauce than I do, so I scoop up my serving, then stir in some more sauce for him. Just make sure the sauce isn't cold when you do this! I leave it out on the counter for that last hour. Don't worry, it won't spoil and kill you.
**You could use pork tenderloin instead, and it's really, really, good. It just costs a lot more.
1 lb pork loin roast**
12 ounces root beer or coke
1 bottle (or less) BBQ sauce
For sandwiches: 2 large hamburger buns
Put the pork and the root beer into the crock pot. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
Remove the meat from the pot, and discard the liquid. Wipe out the crock with a paper towel (don't burn your hand!).
Take two forks and pull the meat apart. Next time I'll take a picture. You don't CHOP it like some recipes say, that's just wrong. The meat should come apart in shreds. If it doesn't, it's not cooked enough, give it another hour.
Return the shredded meat to the pot and stir in some BBQ sauce, about 1/3 to 1/2 the bottle.*
Cover and cook on low for another hour.
Serve up on hamburger buns, open faced.
* Mr. Giddy likes a lot more sauce than I do, so I scoop up my serving, then stir in some more sauce for him. Just make sure the sauce isn't cold when you do this! I leave it out on the counter for that last hour. Don't worry, it won't spoil and kill you.
**You could use pork tenderloin instead, and it's really, really, good. It just costs a lot more.
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