I saw this several years ago on the internet that if you have a cut of beef, you can stick it in a blender or food processor to turn it into ground beef. I used sliced venison to make this ground venison. My venison was also completely thawed. Many recipes tell you to use frozen meat for this because your meat will come out more grain-like and less mushy. I can say that it did come out a bit mushy for me, but thankfully I wasn’t using it for burgers or meatloaf, so the texture was really no problem since i was just browning it to put into a recipe. If you are using this meat for one of the above mentioned items, I would freeze the meat or half freeze it to get clean cuts, but if you use it in something else like me, it won’t make a big difference.
Turn out frozen or half frozen meat into a blender or food processor. Secure the lid.
Pulse until all large chunks are gone, and the meat has a consistent small chunk appearance.
You can then either re-freeze, or begin cooking your dish.
This was a delicious recipe that used what I had in the pantry. I used boxed mac & cheese because I don’t want to be using 2 cups of cheddar where I don’t have too. I also used Weis mac & cheese which used only 1/4 cup of milk and half a stick of butter, which made me feel like I was using less of my current provisions. I also didn’t have any burger, so I made my own burger from venison slices that I had. I’ll be posting that short post tomorrow morning. I was also considering adding diced tomatoes to the recipe, but I also saw a recipe that used ketchup and mustard instead, and though I was hesitant, it was very good, and I will be making this again in the future. Josh and I also opened a can of pears to go with the meal, and that was a nice treat.
In a large sauce pan, bring 4 cups of water and 2 beef bouillon cubes to a boil. Add macaroni and boil uncovered until al dente. Remove from heat.
On a side burner, heat up a frying pan and 2 Tbsp oil over medium high heat. Add ground beef and brown the beef and break into small chunks. Once cooked, add beef and fat to cooked macaroni.
Return macaroni and beef to medium heat. Continue by preparing macaroni and cheese as directed on package. Finally, Add 1 Tbsp Garlic powder, 4 Tbsp Ketchup, and 1 Tbsp Mustard. Stir and make sure thoroughly heated before serving.
One more thing before you go! I’ve created an Instagram for this blog where I’ll be posting little projects we are up to that don’t deserve a full post, or to give spoilers of upcoming posts! The link can be found in the bar at the top of this page, or on the blog’s home page. Thanks for your time!
I did a lot of research before starting this recipe. I was interested in how people usually make roux based soups at home. I use mushroom soup in my Tuna Noodle recipe and since everyone says it was easy, I thought I could make other classic bases for recipes, such as cream of chicken or cream of celery. I was looking through my freezer for what meat I could put in this casserole, and by far, I had many packets of Venison Minute steaks. This was steaks that were sliced on a meat slicer. You could easily use cubed up meat instead or even ground burger, but I liked the idea of a steak casserole. I was thinking of making a gravy base sauce, but I didn’t know what that would do to the potatoes, and dark stained potatoes didn’t seem very appealing to me. Thinking of soups, I thought of onions. Steak and onions go well together. So the roux base is done like any other cream soup. Instead of adding minced onion, I could have added sliced onions and onion powder, and 2 cups of milk to get a condensed onion soup (which is similar to cream of celery, chicken, and mushroom made at home). I wanted to reheat the meat a bit before baking, so I did that while the soup was getting up to temperature. I really enjoyed this dish. I served it without waiting and it wasn’t as good as it was a few minutes later, so let it rest a bit. The meat became super tender and just fell apart as you ate it, and the potatoes were done for me by the 50 minute mark.
Wash 6 medium potatoes (4 cups), dice and place in a 9×13 pan. Peel an onion, half and slice into ringlets. Separate and add to potatoes. Mix and set aside.
In a large skillet, begin heating it over medium high heat. If you have minute steaks, you have nothing to do. If you have a whole piece of meat, slice into thin slices only 1/4 inch thick or make 1/2 inch cubes. Add 2 Tbsp of oil to pan. Add meat to pan and cook each side for only 1-2 minutes, until browned. Once cooked, add to side plate for the time being.
Heat oven to 350F. Turn down heat to medium low. Melt 2 Tbsp of butter into the pan, but do not brown butter. Once just melted, add 3 Tbsp flour. Whisk flour into butter, and cook until butter and flour is bubbly. Add 2 Tbsp dried minced onion, and 1 packet of Onion soup mix. Add 4 cups of milk and stir.
Add meat back to skillet and coat. Mix in 2 tsp of garlic powder and 1 Tbsp Onion powder. Heat to a simmer and cook for another 2-3 minutes, then pour over potatoes and onion, even out meat distribution, and add to oven for 50 minutes.
After time, stab a potato with a fork to assure they are done. Let it rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Goulash is one of this dishes I had all the time growing up. My brother has always been a picky eater, and this was one of his favorites to make late at night. The recipe couldn’t be easier, and the chili powder adds a bit extra depth to the flavor than just standard macaroni and tomato sauce. You can also make this dish and keep it warm in a crock-pot on low for several hours, you’ll just have to make sure not to overcook the noodles, and to add more water if too much liquid escapes.
In a dutch oven, begin to brown a pound of ground beef. In a saucepan, bring water to a boil. Once boiling, add and cook 24 oz of macaroni until al dente, and strain.
Once the beef is browned, turn down heat to low. Add 1 diced onion (1 cup). Once soft, add 1 standard jar of tomato sauce, one can of diced tomatoes, and one can of stewed tomatoes. Once hot, add 2 Tbsp of garlic powder, and 2 Tbsp of chili powder. Stir until evenly distributed. Add macaroni, then heat for 5 minutes.
Shepherd’s pie is a large meal that is easy to make. I like making it when I have lots of leftovers I can use in it to clean out my fridge and to finish up some food. This time I used some of my leftover turkey stock from thanksgiving, but I recommend using beef or veggie stock. I also recommend stock or gravy, so you do not have to thicken it as much as broth.
Make your favorite mashed potatoes (find my recipe here). With a large dutch oven, begin browning 1 lb of ground beef or venison. Dice one small onion (1/2 cup) and add to browned meat. Cook your onions until translucent. Preheat oven to 450 F.
Add strained cans of sliced carrots, peas, and corn. (You can also use fresh or frozen. Add your fresh veggies with the onion, add frozen veggies with this step.) Add 2 cups of stock and 3 Tbsp flour, stir and simmer until everything is hot and bubbly.
Transfer into a 7×10 casserole dish, and bread pan if you have extra. Top with mashed potatoes, place in oven and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool for 10 minutes, then serve.
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