Tag: Stock

Hot Pot

Hot pot is a very popular dish all across Asia. It includes making a tasty, and sometimes spicy, broth and cooking prepared items in the boiling broth. Hot pot is eaten usually in a group, it does take a while to eat, and does take a good amount of prep time, but hot pot makes great food and a fun experience. First you need a good broth/stock. You can make your own by simmering bones for 4-6 hours, or you can used pre-made broth/stock, either way works. You’ll need some veggies, usually whatever you have. I highly recommend potatoes because they were very good. Mushrooms are a classic addition, and so is cabbage or bok choy. A thin sliced meat is a classic additions, and some bacon cut into thirds provided that. We also had hot pot the next night and was able to cook 1/2 inch strips of venison too! Frozen dumplings aren’t as common, but taste great in the hot pot, and to serve, having one or two varieties of dipping sauce was very nice. The spread above was enough food for 8 servings.

Advertisements

What You’ll Need

Broth

  • 1/4 Finely Diced Onion
  • 1/4 Cup Diced Pork Belly
  • 8 Cups Broth/Stock of Choice
    • I made 8 cups of pork stock, then added 2 chicken Bouillons and a sazon goya MSG Packet
  • 2 Garlic Cloves Finely Minced
  • 1/2 Tbsp Ginger Paste

Dipping Sauce

  • 2 Tbsp Soy Sauce
  • 2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
  • 1 tsp Sesame Oil
  • 1 tsp Fish Sauce

Other Ingredients

  • Peeled and Thin Sliced Potatoes
  • Spinach
  • Sliced Carrots
  • 1 Inch Celery Sticks
  • 1 Can Sliced Water Chestnuts, Strained
  • 1/2 Cup Diced Cabbage
  • 1/4 Cup Diced Bell Peppers
  • 8 Oz Sliced Mushrooms
  • 8 Frozen Dumplings
  • 1 lb Bacon Cut into Thirds
  • Packets of Ramen Noodles, For Just the Noodles

Equipment

  • Serving Plated and Bowls
  • Small Bowls for Dipping Sauce
  • A Bowl for Each Person
  • Fork/Chop Sticks and Slotted Spoon for Each Person
  • Hot Plate/ Rice Cooker
  • Dutch Oven/ Large Pot for Broth
  • Separate Utensils for Any Raw Meat

Directions

  1. First make a flavorful broth. I started by boiling 10 cups of water with 2 lbs of pork bones for 5 hours. I started the broth by sauteing the onions with the diced pork belly. Once the onions were soft and the pork belly mostly rendered, I strained the broth through a sieve into the pot with the onion. I then added the minced garlic and ginger, and brought that to a boil.

2. Next, mix together the ingredients for the sauce. The measurements above are for one portion, I made two for our meal, but one shared would suffice for 2 people. Place in a small bowl for dipping. Then prep and plate your ingredients. Presentation is important with this meal. Add a hotplate in the middle and add the pot of broth, heat until it is heated thoroughly.

3. Cooking with the hot pot is rather easy. First, always start with the veggies and dumplings. Raw Meat is cooked on their own after, and finally, noodles are eaten at the end. Soft greens like spinach only need 5 seconds before they can be removed. Otherwise, all veggies can be added to the pot and eaten as they are found. Potatoes may take 2-3 minutes to soften before they are soft enough, and same goes for carrots and celery. You can add frozen dumplings at any point, just wait for them to rise to show they are heated enough. Bacon cooks in about 1 minute, and sliced venison was done in 4 minutes. Noodles only take about 2 minutes to be ready. You can eat ingredients straight from the hot pot, or transfer them to your personal bowl before chowing down.

0

Pork Ramen

Advertisements

Ramen is a classic Japanese dish that is flavorful and incredibly filling. Ramen has 3 main elements, the broth, the noodles, and the toppings. all three elements add flavor to the dish and make a bowl of ramen what it is. And though the broth and the noodles bring amazing flavor to the dish, the toppings are the real star of the show. For this bowl, I used red pepper flakes, sesame oil, and fish sauce. The red pepper flakes made this dish interesting. It started out tame in flavor, but the more that the flake got moved around the broth and dish, there was a surprise heat in some bites, while none in others. In the same way, the oils would be present in one bite, and absent in another. The rich savory toasty flavor of the sesame oil and the smooth slightly fishy flavor of the fish sauce, brought depth to the dish and great flavor. Other than that, my pork broth was a bit weak, so I added some beef bouillon and 1/2 a chicken ramen packet (as my MSG). I also used the leftover homemade noodles I had posted about yesterday. Since they were already cooked from then, i simply had to boil them for 3 minutes to heat up, then I strained them and plated. This recipe makes 3 large bowls of Ramen, and it heats up well the next day.

Pork Ramen Recipe CardDownload
Advertisements

What You Will Need

  • Pork stock (homemade or store bought)
    • Pork Bones
    • Water
  • Pork Chops
  • 2 Beef Bouillon
  • 1-2 tsp MSG
  • 1 Onion, Sliced
  • 1 Clove Garlic, Minced
  • 1 Can Sliced Mushrooms
  • 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
  • 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 Tbsp Ginger Paste
  • 12 Oz Pasta
  • Dried Red Pepper
  • Diced Chives
  • Dried Parsley
  • Sesame Oil
  • Fish Sauce

Directions

1. If using store bought stock, skip to step 2. To make pork stock, Add bones to a pot and cover bones with water bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes to remove impurities. Strain off the water and just cover the bones with water and simmer for 4 hours covered. Reserve the broth and discard the bones. Save any meat that may have stuck to the bones and add to the broth. Store in fridge covered or use immediately.

2. Begin by cooking the pork chops in a large skillet. Cook 3 minutes per side, remove from pan, and cut into strips to top the ramen. Fill a large sauce pan 3/4 with water. Place over medium high heat to boil. Add the broth to the hot skillet, and add in the onion, garlic, and optional beef bouillon and MSG. Once simmering, add mushrooms, soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, and ginger. Taste, then season as needed. Once the water is boiling, cook pasta as directed on package. Strain.

3. Plate the ramen by making a nest of noodles. Top with onions and mushrooms and place a cut pork chop over the top. Cover with broth. Finally, sprinkle each bowl with pepper flakes, chives, and parsley, then drizzle with sesame oil and fish sauce.

Advertisements

1

Slow-Cooker Bean Pasta

Advertisements

This bean pasta is just a slow cooker goulash with extra protein with black beans. This dish can easily be made vegetarian by omitting beef and beef broth, cooking the onion in the slow cooker. If you want, you can also cook the pasta separately, and rinse with cold water before adding it to the slow-cooker. Doing this will give you more control over how the noodles cook, and will prevent the noodles from taking on the flavor of the sauce. Finally, use whatever spices you like. I used the ones listed below, but you can add as much or as little of any spices you like. This recipe makes 8 adult sized servings.

Slow-Cooker Bean Pasta Recipe CardDownload
Advertisements

What You Will Need

  • 1 lb Ground Beef
  • 1 Medium Diced Onion
  • 1 Can Stewed Tomatoes
  • 1 Can Black Beans
  • 2 Tbsp Minced Garlic
  • 1 Can Tomato Sauce, 8 Oz
  • 1 Can Tomato Paste, 6 Oz
  • 2 Cup Beef Broth
  • 1 Tbsp of each: Oregano, Parsley, Basil, Marjoram, Red Pepper Flakes, and Italian Seasoning
  • 12 Oz Macaroni
  • Large Frying Pan
  • Slow-Cooker

Directions

1. Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Add Ground beef and onion, and cook until all beef is brown. Transfer to slow-cooker. Add stewed tomatoes, beans, garlic, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and beef broth. Cook for 4-6 hours on high, or 6-8 hours on low.

2. Add remaining ingredients. Cook pasta for 20-25 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes until done. Plate and serve.

Advertisements

0

Christmas Dinner 2020

Christmas is one of my favorite holidays. I really enjoy getting gifts for others, and I enjoy Christmas dinner. Ham is one of my favorite foods and so I always make a ham for Christmas and Easter. My Easter dinner also looks identical to my Christmas dinner. Since it’s been a weird year, I will be celebrating Christmas with my husband’s nuclear family, and won’t be able to make my standard dinner on Christmas afternoon. So, I decided to make my Christmas dinner last night!

Advertisements

I always make the same things for holidays. For Christmas I always make a cooked ham, mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potato casserole, a canned veggie, crescent rolls, and the star of the meal is always deviled eggs. Many of these foods are standard. I enjoy my ham with a brown sugar glaze and some pineapple on top (even if it does nothing for the flavor). Mashed potatoes are standard, and my gravy I made from this year’s turkey stock, and just added 3 Tbsp corn starch to thicken. Sweet potato casserole is just opening a can and a bag of marshmallows at this point. And finally, the original part of the meal is deviled eggs. I find eggs to go so good with ham, and deviled eggs are a tasty treat anyway! Mayo, mustard, and egg make a tasty appetizer and side! To cook this dinner, it only took 1.5 hours. My ham was cooked, so I just had to reheat. I then peeled and diced the potatoes, and started them boiling 40 minutes before the ham was done. I heated the gravy on the stove and once thick, would pull it off the heat when it’d boil, and I also started boiling a can of sliced carrots about 20 minutes from serving. I placed my crescents on a baking sheet and started them 14 minutes from completion, and I baked the sweet potato casserole with 7 minutes left. With about 5 minutes left I strained the potatoes and finished them with just enough time for everything else to finish.

I hope this give you some ideas and instruction for your Christmas dinner! Merry Christmas!

Advertisements

To see recipes for what I make, you can click a link below!

Click here to see my recipe for Cooked Ham!

Click here to see my recipe for Mashed Potatoes and Gravy!

Click here to see my recipe for Sweet Potato Casserole and Honey Roasted Beets!

Click here to see my recipe for Deviled Eggs!

Advertisements
1

Seasoned Turkey Stock

Advertisements

To limit waste after Thanksgiving, I like to use what is left of the turkey to make stock. Last year was my first time, and the frozen stock lasted me a year. Last year I didn’t flavor my stock before it was frozen, and it was a huge shame. This year I seasoned my stock with onion, celery, and garlic. These flavors go well with turkey, and can be used in a variety of dishes throughout the year. I purposely left out herbs because I want a very versatile stock. I also didn’t add salt to this stock, though I would need it if I were to make a soup with it, I didn’t want any future dishes to be too salty as a result of a salty stock. Otherwise this stock is straight forward. Boil, strain, then store.

Seasoned Turkey Stock Recipe CardDownload

What You Will Need

  • 1 Cooked Turkey with Meat removed
  • 1/2 Onion, quartered
  • 2 Celery Stalks, cut into 1/3s
  • 2 Garlic cloves, peeled and halved
  • Large Stock Pot and Lid
  • Ladle, Large Wooden Spoon, Small Bowl
  • Strainer
  • Large Dutch Oven
  • Freezer Containers

Directions

1. Place the turkey bones into the stock pot. Soak in water for 10 minutes. Drain. Cover bones with water, leaving about 1-2 inches until the lip of the pot. Place on stove over medium heat. Add in your cut veggies and let simmer uncovered for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Every 10 minutes, skim off bubbles forming on surface and place in a small bowl on the side.

2. Once most bubbles have seemed to stopped settling on top, turn up the heat a little to bring the pot at a gently boil. Boil for 2 hours covered, then remove the lid and boil for another hour uncovered. Remove from heat and let cool for about 1 hour.

3. Once cooled, place your strainer on top of your dutch oven and place in your sink. Pour about 1/2 of the liquid and bones into the strainer. Shake your strainer, then discard what is in your strainer. Place the strainer back on top of the dutch oven, and pour the second half of the stock into the strainer. Shake and discard remaining bones. Use a ladle to transfer broth into freezer safe containers. Label then store.

Advertisements
1

Website Powered by WordPress.com.

Up ↑

Design a site like this with WordPress.com
Get started