I realize I've been using my crock pot a lot lately, so I'm going to do everything in my power to not use it next week, just to mix things up. By "everything in my power" I mean that I'm going to think about foods that don't require the crock pot. If, however, I get the craving for another crock pot meal, you'll all just have to wait one more week.
That all said, I felt like making chili this week, so the crock pot was in full use once again.
Chili took me forever to figure out. There's rarely a time when I try to make something and it comes out HORRIBLE, and in the off chance that that happens, my second attempt always comes out perfect. Chili did not work that way. In my cooking days, I have messed up more pots of chili than I can remember, and at once point I'd honestly given up on the dish. I figured there were some things a person will just never learn to do.
But about a year ago, my friend Felicia sat me down and told me a few of the secrets to a great chili concoction, and the one that really put everything together for me was the very first thing she said: cook the meat first!
This may seem simple to some of you, but for me this was like seeing a comet crash into the Earth. It all made sense! My chili attempts before had always come out so greasy that I couldn't stomach them, and I love greasy food! But if you cook all of the fat out of the meat, then drain it, and then make chili with that meat, you can do whatever you want to your chili!
After I got over my chili road block a year ago, I've made all sorts of chilis. White chicken chili, chorizo chili, spicy as hell chili, etc. Once that fundamental building block was put into place, I was back on my usual food experimentation track, and I've been playing around with chili ever since.
For this week's Heroes Monday, though, I decided to stick with my original chili. It's easy and tasty, and goes great by itself or on a hot dog. The only thing I did different was the length of time I cooked it. I usually make this chili, start to finish, in 6 to 8 hours. On Sunday, though, I was hanging out with a friend I haven't seen in a while, and I decided to drink a 5 hour energy shot before hand. By midnight she was gone and I couldn't fall asleep, so I figured I'd get started on the chili. With chili, the longer you can cook it the better.
Easy Crock Pot Chili
2 lbs of ground turkey
1 can of either pinto beans or butter beans
1 can of kidney beans
1 can of beef broth
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 small can of diced green chilis
1 small can of tomato sauce
Half of a yellow onion
Some sort of hot pepper (I use 3 habaneros, but I like it spicy)
Minced garlic
2 packets of taco seasoning
2 packets of chili seasoning
1 bottle of your favorite beer
Worcestire sauce
Liquid smoke
To get started, chop up your onion into tiny pieces. The easiest way is to strips length wise, then width wise. Throw them in your crock pot. Chop your peppers into tiny pieces as well, and place in the crock pot. If you don't want it too spicy, discard the seeds from whatever pepper you are using. Putting the vegetables on the bottom means they will get the most heat, which will allow their flavors to rise up, into the meat.
Put the ground turkey on top of the vegetables, and cover with the two packets of chili seasoning. Using a fork, lightly mix the seasoning into the meat. I like to use turkey because it's less fatty, has a great consistency for chili when it's cooked, and it does a fantastic job of soaking up all of the flavors of the chili.
Fill the crock pot with the beer until the meat is mostly covered. Any remaining beer must be drank by the cook. No beer left behind.
Set the crock pot to low and cook for 6-8 hours, or set it to high and cook for 3 hours.
Some time later....
Your chili meat is now cooked and ready to go. Pour the contents of the crock pot into a pasta strainer, and set aside. Put your now empty crock pot back (it's ok if there's still a little meat or vegetables in there) on the counter. Now it's time to make chili!
Add to the bottom of the crock pot the can of diced tomatoes and the can of green chili peppers. Add a few spoonfuls of garlic (don't be shy) too. Using a fork, mix in the two packets of taco seasoning into the vegetables. Seasoning the vegetables is one of the key things that will make this dish outstanding!
Once evenly mixed, add in the tomato sauce, beef broth, a few splashes of the worcestire sauce and liquid smoke. Stir together, and you have one killer chili sauce ready to go. If you want it spicier, feel free to throw in a few splashes of your favorite (or hottest) hot sauce.
Add the meat and vegetables back into the pot. If there are big clumps of meat, try to break them apart with a fork or spoon.
Open each of the cans of beans and drain the liquid out. Add the beans to the chili. Congrats! All of your chili ingrediants are in the pot.
Set the crock pot to low and cook for at least 4 hours. Remember, with chili, the longer the better. Low and slow! After it's been cooking a while, feel free to start eating it! It's delicious!
Another trick Felicia taught me about chili is corn bread. Chili by itself is great, but if you take a big square of corn bread, crumble it up and mix it into your chili, then it's freakin' fantastic! I'm also a big fan of topping my chili with cheese and sour cream, but feel free to add what you want.
So that's my chili recipe. There was a little too much wine involved with last night's Heroes, so I sort of forgot to take a picture. Sorry about that guys. But as always, if you make this, let me know how it goes! Have fun cooking guys!
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Screwing With Good Ideas - Thanksgiving Pizza
I was driving around on Monday, trying to think of some tips I'd like to share with my readers. I've covered chicken, I've covered sauces, and that's when I decided to cover one of my more creative tips when it comes to cooking. Today's tip is "screwing with good ideas." Taking foods you already like, and combining them with similar foods is a great way to flex the creative muscles and to try out new, fun food ideas.
The first step in screwing with good ideas is to take something you already know and think about what's similar to it. The only difference between Chicken Cordon Bleu and Chicken Parmesan is the ham in the former and the red sauce in the latter. Why not add ham to one, or red sauce to the other?
Another quick example is the relationship between sandwiches and salads. All a salad is is a lazy sandwich. Both have meat, cheese, veggies and sauce. The only difference is that instead of assembling these ingredients on bread, the salad connoisseur chooses to chop up these foods, place them in a bowl, and toss the whole thing. You could even argue that croutons (the best part of the salad) take the place of the bread, and then you really have the same thing!
So how could you play with that idea? What's your favorite sandwich? Would it work well as a salad? Or maybe your favorite salad would be great as a sandwich.
Maybe, instead, you have a favorite steak with a favorite sauce. Take a step back. Is there any way to turn that sauce into a broth? Then, what if you added the steak into your broth, and maybe those potatoes you were going to put on the side as well? The next thing you know, your favorite steak dinner is now a fantastic soup!
While driving around thinking of all this, my mind decided to think about the difference between pizza and sandwiches. Think about this one; what's really the difference between a pizza and a sandwich? Sure, one's open faced, but put a second slice on top and you have one delicious, funky shaped sandwich. Heck, if you did that with a chicken pizza, I'd argue that you wouldn't even be sure if you were eating two slices of chicken pizza or one delicious chicken parmesan sandwich. They're the same thing, so your favorite sandwich can EASILY be made into a pizza!
Of course, when I think of sandwiches, my mind goes to one of my all time favorite sandwiches, and that's the Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich. I became obsessed with these while working at Capriotti's Sandwich Shop when I was a teenager. They sell an amazing sandwich called The Bobbie, which is mayo, homemade turkey (shredded), cranberry sauce and stuffing. Ever since I ate one of these things at least once a week for three years, I've been hooked on the whole concept of Thanksgiving sandwiches. To this day, any time I see cranberry sauce, turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes or gravy I take some combination and turn it into a killer sandwich.
This is where my brain took a major turn into the creative world, so bare with me as I get into this next idea. I came up with the Thanksgiving Pizza! (you didn't think I was going to blog without giving you a recipe, did you?) I made this on Monday for the guys, and ten minutes later it was gone! I loved it, and so did they. Hopefully you will too.
Thanksgiving Pizza
Turkey (or chicken)
Mashed potatoes
Stuffing
Pizza dough or crust
Dried cranberries
Brown gravy
This is really meant to be a "leftovers" type of dish. I actually had some chicken breasts that I'd cooked and shredded, which is why I opted to use the chicken. As for mashed potatoes, anything from homemade to a microwavable one will do. Stuffing I used a microwavable mix that took literally 5 minutes to prepare.
But, if you feel so inclined, make everything from scratch. You won't regret it when you eat this thing!
If you're using pizza dough, prepare it in an oven before hand. If you are using a ready made crust, you're good to go.
Starting in the middle, spread the mashed potatoes throughout the entire crust, leaving just a little dry crust at the edges.
Cover the mashed potatoes with a decent sized layer of your shredded bird of choice. Top the meat with salt and pepper to taste (and garlic powder if you have it).
Cover the meat layer with a layer of stuffing. The stuffing is much easier to spread if it's warm, so either make it in the microwave or reheat it. At this point, take a sheet of tin foil and lightly press the entire thing downward, compressing the layers together.
Cover the whole concoction with a drizzle of brown gravy, or you're like me (not health conscious at all when it comes to food) a whole layer of brown gravy!
Place the whole thing in a preheated oven (325 degrees) or broiler (low), and heat for 5-10 minutes. Remember, you're not cooking the pizza; just reheating all of the ingredients.
As soon as it's out of the oven, top the whole thing with a few dried cranberries. You just want enough that each pizza slice comes with a few cranberries. Slice the whole thing into pizza slices, serve warm and enjoy!
The tips I mentioned today are some great ways to keep meals fun. Changing things up will definitely keep your interest going, and any of your friends who eat your food will almost always say "Wow dude, what a great idea!" Keep being creative, and I'll do the same. Enjoy guys, and let me know how it goes!
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Chicken Pasta with Brandy Sauce
Somehow whenever I cook on a weekend, the whole gang gets the word and my house gets packed. There was a girl coming over, so I figured I'd cook. Then there were two girls and my buddy coming over, so I figured I should cook more. Then there were four more people planning to come, and that's when it hit that I should probably get some serious food started.
I had no meal planned, and I was in the middle of a very important game of Modern Warfare 2, so there was no way I was going to the grocery store. I did, however, still have an entire family size package of frozen chicken breasts, and that's where I decided to start working. While they thawed under some cold running water, I went through the cabinet in search of inspiration. I managed to find two cans of tomato sauce, minced garlic (of course), a can of diced tomatoes, chicken broth and a bag of uncooked pasta. I was ready.
The crock pot was once again pulled out. I still had plenty of time to cook this food, and it makes my house smell great. It seemed like to optimum way to go when a girl's coming over.
So here's what I did...
Chicken Pasta with Brandy-Cream Sauce
Chicken breasts (I used 3)
2 cans of tomato sauce
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 can of chicken broth
Seasonings (whatever's in your cupboard)
Minced Garlic
Brandy (optional)
Pasta (any kind. I happened to have those noodles that looked twisty, but not completely twisty. We'll call them the lazy twisty noodles)
Throw the chicken breasts into the crock pot, along with the 2 cans of tomato sauce and 1 can of diced tomatoes, and as much garlic as you think applies. Add the chicken broth until the chicken's completely covered. Add in any seasoning you'd like. I used basil, onion powder, salt and pepper, but feel free to use the herbs and seasonings you like.
It was at this point that I thought something was missing, and feeling bold grabbed a bottle of Presidente Brandy that happened to be sitting on my counter. I eyeballed three or four shots into the pot, and set it on high. Make sure you set it to high to cook the alcohol out.
4 hours later....
The chicken/sauce was smelling great. Basically I'd just made a lazy version of a meat sauce, but instead of meat I used chicken. Turn off the crock pot. Using tongs or a fork, remove the chicken breasts from the pot, and place them in a large mixing bowl, and let them cool. You want extra room in the mixing bowl. It's ok if there are chunks of tomato still in your chicken.
While the chicken is cooling, boil water and cook your pasta, as shown on the directions. While that's cooking, take two forks and shred the chicken, until no big chunks are left.
Strain your pasta, and add the cooked pasta to the chicken. Mix the whole thing together lightly.
This is where you'll have two options...
One is to pour a large helping of the sauce from the crock pot into your pasta mixture. This will be absolutely delicious, and the flavor of the brandy in the sauce will be a great, sweet and spicy combo with the chicken and pasta.
The other option is the random moment of inspiration I had right as the chicken was ready. I added to the chicken and pasta mixture several spoonfuls of the sauce, mostly trying to get all of the diced tomatoes in. Then, I added several handfuls of shredded mozzarella cheese, and a jar of Alfredo sauce that I found in the back of the cupboard. Mixing the whole thing together, I ended up with a great smelling pink sauce.
I poured the pasta mixture into a large baking dish, and topped it with a little more mozzarella and a thin layer of bread crumbs. On top, I drizzled several more spoonfuls of the sauce from the crock pot onto the bread crumbs, which would add some flavor as it cooked.
I put the whole thing into the broiler, set to low, and let it do its thing.
Ten minutes later, I ended up with a delicious pasta casserole with a very complex sauce. The ten or so people that were there ate through the entire thing, which is the best compliment I can receive on my food. As for the girl coming over, well, that'll be a different blog entry.
Let me know what you think!
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Fancy Quesadillas
I'll start off by saying I ran into a potato crisis, and had to bail on the Pulled Pork Potato Skins. My normal roasting pan wasn't clean in time for me to bake my potatoes quick enough. Yes, I put all of my pots and pans into the dishwasher. Some people say it's a big "no-no", but bottom line I'm still a single guy who cooks. Dishes are beyond me.
That said, I still had all of the food ready to go for the potato skins, and opted to make two different kinds of quesadillas instead of just one like I'd originally intended. Considering everything was eaten within five minutes of pulling them out of the oven, I'd say they were a success.
Also, we didn't get to watch Heroes this week. Someone hit erase on the DVR. Looks like a double feature next week! At least the UFC Fight Night was on, so we still had plenty of great television to watch.
If anyone makes these, let me know how it goes, ok?
Chicken Pesto Quesadillas
Chicken breasts
Chicken broth
Pesto sauce (jar)
Sun-dried tomatoes (I found thinly sliced ones in the salad area of the store)
Shredded Mozzarella cheese
Big flour tortillas
Butter
I cooked the chicken breasts the simplest way I know how, which is using the crock pot. This is the exact shredded chicken recipe I mentioned in the last post. Throw your chicken into the crock pot, add the chicken broth until the breasts are covered, set it on low and go to work.
10 hours later...
My house smelled amazing, as I'd planned. Drain the liquid from the chicken, leaving just a little bit in. Using two forks, shred the chicken. It should fall apart very easily.
Place a tortilla on a plate. Sprinkle a little cheese onto one half. Spoon some of the pesto sauce on top of that. Cover the pesto sauce with a few spoonfuls of the shredded chicken, just enough that it's covering the pesto. Add a few pieces of the sun-dried tomatoes, just enough that there's some color in the chicken. Cover this layer with a decent helping of cheese. Fold the clean half of the tortilla over, and press tightly. Move the quesadilla to a baking dish, and assemble any other quesadillas the same way.
Set your broiler on high. While it's heating up, put a few globs of butter on top of each quesadilla. Place the baking pan in the oven for 3-4 minutes, until the butter has melted and the tortilla is slightly brown. Remove from the oven, and using a spatula flip each quesadilla over. Add a little more butter to the new top side of each quesadilla, and put back into the broiler for another 3-4 minutes.
Remove from the heat. Cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges, and serve!
Pulled Pork Quesadillas
Pork shoulder
Bbq seasoning (dry rub)
Hot sauce
Liquid smoke
Minced garlic (I love garlic)
Beef broth
Gouda cheese, sliced
Bbq Sauce (your favorite kind...I like Sweet Baby Ray's)
Big flour tortillas
Butter
Before work, place the prok shoulder, bbq seasoning, liquid smoke, minced garlic and beef broth in the crock pot. Make sure the liquid covers the majority of the meat. Add a few drops of hot sauce, depending how hot you like food. Set on low and go to work.
10 hours later...
Remove the liquid from the crock pot, and shred the meat with two forks. It should fall apart very easily. Do your best not to eat all of it right now, because trust me, it's delicious.
On a plate, lay out a tortilla. On one half of the tortilla, place two slices of gouda cheese. Put a few spoonfuls of the pork on top of the cheese, and cover with a layer of bbq sauce. I like to draw zigzags with the sauce, which is as close to measuring as I'm going to be able to tell you. Don't overdo it on the sauce, because you can always add more as a dip later. Cover the sauce layer with 2-3 more slices of cheese. Fold the clean side of the tortilla over, and transfer the quesadilla to your baking dish.
Set your broiler on high. While it's heating up, put a few globs of butter on top of each quesadilla. Place the baking pan in the oven for 3-4 minutes, until the butter has melted and the tortilla is slightly brown. Remove from the oven, and using a spatula flip each quesadilla over. Add a little more butter to the new top side of each quesadilla, and put back into the broiler for another 3-4 minutes.
Remove from the heat. Cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges, and serve!
That said, I still had all of the food ready to go for the potato skins, and opted to make two different kinds of quesadillas instead of just one like I'd originally intended. Considering everything was eaten within five minutes of pulling them out of the oven, I'd say they were a success.
Also, we didn't get to watch Heroes this week. Someone hit erase on the DVR. Looks like a double feature next week! At least the UFC Fight Night was on, so we still had plenty of great television to watch.
If anyone makes these, let me know how it goes, ok?
Chicken Pesto Quesadillas
Chicken breasts
Chicken broth
Pesto sauce (jar)
Sun-dried tomatoes (I found thinly sliced ones in the salad area of the store)
Shredded Mozzarella cheese
Big flour tortillas
Butter
I cooked the chicken breasts the simplest way I know how, which is using the crock pot. This is the exact shredded chicken recipe I mentioned in the last post. Throw your chicken into the crock pot, add the chicken broth until the breasts are covered, set it on low and go to work.
10 hours later...
My house smelled amazing, as I'd planned. Drain the liquid from the chicken, leaving just a little bit in. Using two forks, shred the chicken. It should fall apart very easily.
Place a tortilla on a plate. Sprinkle a little cheese onto one half. Spoon some of the pesto sauce on top of that. Cover the pesto sauce with a few spoonfuls of the shredded chicken, just enough that it's covering the pesto. Add a few pieces of the sun-dried tomatoes, just enough that there's some color in the chicken. Cover this layer with a decent helping of cheese. Fold the clean half of the tortilla over, and press tightly. Move the quesadilla to a baking dish, and assemble any other quesadillas the same way.
Set your broiler on high. While it's heating up, put a few globs of butter on top of each quesadilla. Place the baking pan in the oven for 3-4 minutes, until the butter has melted and the tortilla is slightly brown. Remove from the oven, and using a spatula flip each quesadilla over. Add a little more butter to the new top side of each quesadilla, and put back into the broiler for another 3-4 minutes.
Remove from the heat. Cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges, and serve!
Pulled Pork Quesadillas
Pork shoulder
Bbq seasoning (dry rub)
Hot sauce
Liquid smoke
Minced garlic (I love garlic)
Beef broth
Gouda cheese, sliced
Bbq Sauce (your favorite kind...I like Sweet Baby Ray's)
Big flour tortillas
Butter
Before work, place the prok shoulder, bbq seasoning, liquid smoke, minced garlic and beef broth in the crock pot. Make sure the liquid covers the majority of the meat. Add a few drops of hot sauce, depending how hot you like food. Set on low and go to work.
10 hours later...
Remove the liquid from the crock pot, and shred the meat with two forks. It should fall apart very easily. Do your best not to eat all of it right now, because trust me, it's delicious.
On a plate, lay out a tortilla. On one half of the tortilla, place two slices of gouda cheese. Put a few spoonfuls of the pork on top of the cheese, and cover with a layer of bbq sauce. I like to draw zigzags with the sauce, which is as close to measuring as I'm going to be able to tell you. Don't overdo it on the sauce, because you can always add more as a dip later. Cover the sauce layer with 2-3 more slices of cheese. Fold the clean side of the tortilla over, and transfer the quesadilla to your baking dish.
Set your broiler on high. While it's heating up, put a few globs of butter on top of each quesadilla. Place the baking pan in the oven for 3-4 minutes, until the butter has melted and the tortilla is slightly brown. Remove from the oven, and using a spatula flip each quesadilla over. Add a little more butter to the new top side of each quesadilla, and put back into the broiler for another 3-4 minutes.
Remove from the heat. Cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges, and serve!
Monday, January 11, 2010
The Importance of Crock Pots
Today's going to be a busy day, and tonight is Heroes Monday, which means I'm making dinner. There's only one solution to being busy and still having to make dinner....the crock pot!
I'm a huge fan of crock pots. Aside from making food taste incredible, they are easy to use and work much better with a busy schedule than anything else I've ever cooked with. And they are cheap! These days you can pick up a small one at Walgreens for $10!
Tonight I'm making Pulled Pork Potato Skins and Pesto Chicken Quesadillas. I'll have the recipes tomorrow, but since today's busy I'm doing the hard parts of these recipes in a crock pot.
For anyone who doesn't know, the basic jist of the crock pot is that it boils and steams your food for you. Cooking things in liquid and/or steam will make food incredibly tender. The only problem is that for a better quality product, you need to cook it longer. The crock pot is never going to be used for a "quick meal." But if you have a busy day ahead of you, or just know what you want to eat that night, get your food in the crock pot before you go to work, and then you're all set! By the time you get home, your food will be completely cooked, your home will smell incredible, and you'll have a hot, delicious meal that won't even require much work!
One simple crock pot meal is a variation on the chicken recipes I talked about in the last post. Take a few of those frozen chicken breasts you have in your freezer and put them in your crock pot. Cover with chicken broth, and set your crock pot to "low". Let it cook for 6-8 hours (or however long you're at work). When you get home, remove the chicken from the cooking liquid. Shred it with a fork, and then add your sauce of choice. Add whatever sauce you'd like and even feel free to put this chicken over rice or pasta! Trust me, this chicken will be the most tender chicken you've ever had!
That exact recipe will work with any meat. Feel free to try it with a pork shoulder or any type of beef roast. These two examples will probably work better with a beef broth, but you can still get away with chicken broth or even water or beer (yup, I said beer). Most liquids will work just fine.
If you want to add vegetables, like chopped onions, minced garlic or diced carrots, I suggest putting them in the bottom of the crock pot, before the meats. This way they get a little more heat intially, which will release more flavors upward towards the meat.
Remember, you'll never overcook something in a crock pot. The longer your food is in there, the better it will taste! I always prefer cooking things on low, but if you have less time, cooking on "high" will still give you amazing food. And best of all, your home will smell incredible from over a block away!
If you're looking for a great meal that's ready to go when you get home, think about picking up one of these glorious cooking devices today!
I'm a huge fan of crock pots. Aside from making food taste incredible, they are easy to use and work much better with a busy schedule than anything else I've ever cooked with. And they are cheap! These days you can pick up a small one at Walgreens for $10!
Tonight I'm making Pulled Pork Potato Skins and Pesto Chicken Quesadillas. I'll have the recipes tomorrow, but since today's busy I'm doing the hard parts of these recipes in a crock pot.
For anyone who doesn't know, the basic jist of the crock pot is that it boils and steams your food for you. Cooking things in liquid and/or steam will make food incredibly tender. The only problem is that for a better quality product, you need to cook it longer. The crock pot is never going to be used for a "quick meal." But if you have a busy day ahead of you, or just know what you want to eat that night, get your food in the crock pot before you go to work, and then you're all set! By the time you get home, your food will be completely cooked, your home will smell incredible, and you'll have a hot, delicious meal that won't even require much work!
One simple crock pot meal is a variation on the chicken recipes I talked about in the last post. Take a few of those frozen chicken breasts you have in your freezer and put them in your crock pot. Cover with chicken broth, and set your crock pot to "low". Let it cook for 6-8 hours (or however long you're at work). When you get home, remove the chicken from the cooking liquid. Shred it with a fork, and then add your sauce of choice. Add whatever sauce you'd like and even feel free to put this chicken over rice or pasta! Trust me, this chicken will be the most tender chicken you've ever had!
That exact recipe will work with any meat. Feel free to try it with a pork shoulder or any type of beef roast. These two examples will probably work better with a beef broth, but you can still get away with chicken broth or even water or beer (yup, I said beer). Most liquids will work just fine.
If you want to add vegetables, like chopped onions, minced garlic or diced carrots, I suggest putting them in the bottom of the crock pot, before the meats. This way they get a little more heat intially, which will release more flavors upward towards the meat.
Remember, you'll never overcook something in a crock pot. The longer your food is in there, the better it will taste! I always prefer cooking things on low, but if you have less time, cooking on "high" will still give you amazing food. And best of all, your home will smell incredible from over a block away!
If you're looking for a great meal that's ready to go when you get home, think about picking up one of these glorious cooking devices today!
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Chicken and Sauce
The two things every guy needs in their fridge is a bag of frozen chicken breasts and 3 or 4 different sauces. (and minced garlic, but there should always be garlic. I love garlic) When you have these things, you have an entire world of things you can make!
Take a look at your local grocery store's condiment aisle. This is where you're going to find your sauces. Try to pick up some diverse things. The ones I personally recommend are...
Now that you have your arsenal of ingredients, start cooking! For a simple meal, grill the chicken until it's fully cooked, cover with your sauce of choice and serve.
You can also put the chicken and sauce combo on a piece of bread for a pretty tasty sandwich. Maybe add some cheese too, depending on the sauce.
If you want to get a little more adventurous, there's two more ingredients I suggest keeping in your cupboard...
Cut your cooked chicken breast once or twice length wise, and then several times width wise, so you end up with roughly 1 inch sized pieces. Add the chicken to your cooked rice or ramen noodles, and pour on your sauce. Toss the whole thing together with your fork, and your chicken and sauce dish has taken a huge leap forward!
Play around and experiment, but with just a few ingredients handy in your fridge, an easy meal is never too far away. Enjoy guys!
Take a look at your local grocery store's condiment aisle. This is where you're going to find your sauces. Try to pick up some diverse things. The ones I personally recommend are...
- Teriyaki sauce
- Barbecue sauce
- Caribbean Jerk sauce
- Garlic marinade
- Marinara sauce
- Alfredo sauce
Now that you have your arsenal of ingredients, start cooking! For a simple meal, grill the chicken until it's fully cooked, cover with your sauce of choice and serve.
You can also put the chicken and sauce combo on a piece of bread for a pretty tasty sandwich. Maybe add some cheese too, depending on the sauce.
If you want to get a little more adventurous, there's two more ingredients I suggest keeping in your cupboard...
- Ramen (this is probably in there anyways)
- Microwavable rice
Cut your cooked chicken breast once or twice length wise, and then several times width wise, so you end up with roughly 1 inch sized pieces. Add the chicken to your cooked rice or ramen noodles, and pour on your sauce. Toss the whole thing together with your fork, and your chicken and sauce dish has taken a huge leap forward!
Play around and experiment, but with just a few ingredients handy in your fridge, an easy meal is never too far away. Enjoy guys!
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Getting Started and Matt's Monterey Chicken
After talking with friends, I thought that this blog might be a good idea. Maybe a few guys out there can get something out of this, and it'll give me a chance to keep track of some recipes and tips I've picked up over the years.
Please note, I'll never use measurements unless absolutely necessary. Measurements confuse me and confuse most guys, so use your instinct. If you think you'd like more sauce on something, go ahead and add more sauce. As far as how much food to have on hand, when it comes to cooking I say buy more ingredients. If you have extra after, that means you'll have extra things to keep in your fridge to experiment for the next time.
I am a huge fan of cooking, and try to experiment as often as possible. Every Monday I make dinner for a group of friends and we watch Heroes together. It's a great way for me to try out new food ideas, and I'll be detailing my successes and failures through this blog.
Last night was the Heroes season premiere, which meant I was back in full swing for cooking. I decided to make a variation on Monterey Chicken, a dish I love at Chili's, and made a simple roasted potato side dish as well.
Since the potatoes usually require more time than the chicken, start the potatoes first in the oven, and turn down the heat when you add the chicken.
Matt's Monterey Chicken
Chicken breasts
Bacon (uncooked)
Sliced Ham
Muenster Cheese (sliced)
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Barbecue Sauce (your favorite one)
Cut the chicken breasts into 1/2 inch thick pieces. You can make them as big as you want, but the 1/2 inch thickness will help them cook faster.
Drizzle the barbecue sauce into an oven safe baking dish and spread around with a spoon. You'll want a thin, even coating throughout the whole pan. Lay the chicken breasts down in the pan. Top each piece of chicken with bacon, about half to one slice per breast. Bake the chicken and bacon in the oven for 30 to 45 minutes at 375. If the bacon doesn't look cooked, transfer the baking dish to a broiler oven (or turn your broiler on depending on the oven) until the bacon is cooked.
Once the bacon looks cooked, leave the broiler on, and remove the dish from the oven. Top each chicken breast with a small "glob" of barbecue sauce, a slice of the muenster cheese and a slice of ham. Top the entire thing with a thin layer of the shredded cheddar cheese, and put the entire dish back into the broiler for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
Remove from the oven, serve and enjoy.
Roasted Potatoes
Russet potatoes, or any potato.
Olive oil
Garlic powder
Steak seasoning
Italian seasoning
Butter
Rinse the potatoes in cold water. Cut the potatoes into 1 inch sized pieces. The easiest way is to cut each potato in half length wise, then cutting each of those halves in half length wise, and cutting each newly formed wedge width wise several times. Set aside.
Line a baking dish with tin foil (this will help with cleanup). Pour a thin layer of olive oil over the tin foil, just enough that all of the tin foil has oil on it. Sprinkle the garlic powder, steak seasoning and Italian seasoning over the tin foil.
Place the potatoes in the baking dish, ensuring that they cover the entire bottom but do not overlap each other too much. Drizzle more olive oil over the potatoes, and add another layer of each of the three seasonings as well.
Put 6 to 10 spoonfuls of butter in different locations around the pan on top of the potatoes. Add more, depending on how much you like butter.
Put the entire thing in a 375 to 400 degree oven and bake for 1 hour. Check with a fork. If the potatoes have become soft, they are ready to go. If not, give them another 15 minutes.
Remove them from the oven and transfer them into a serving bowl. Toss them a few times in the bowl, so the butter and seasonings can move around a little.
Please note, I'll never use measurements unless absolutely necessary. Measurements confuse me and confuse most guys, so use your instinct. If you think you'd like more sauce on something, go ahead and add more sauce. As far as how much food to have on hand, when it comes to cooking I say buy more ingredients. If you have extra after, that means you'll have extra things to keep in your fridge to experiment for the next time.
I am a huge fan of cooking, and try to experiment as often as possible. Every Monday I make dinner for a group of friends and we watch Heroes together. It's a great way for me to try out new food ideas, and I'll be detailing my successes and failures through this blog.
Last night was the Heroes season premiere, which meant I was back in full swing for cooking. I decided to make a variation on Monterey Chicken, a dish I love at Chili's, and made a simple roasted potato side dish as well.
Since the potatoes usually require more time than the chicken, start the potatoes first in the oven, and turn down the heat when you add the chicken.
Matt's Monterey Chicken
Chicken breasts
Bacon (uncooked)
Sliced Ham
Muenster Cheese (sliced)
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Barbecue Sauce (your favorite one)
Cut the chicken breasts into 1/2 inch thick pieces. You can make them as big as you want, but the 1/2 inch thickness will help them cook faster.
Drizzle the barbecue sauce into an oven safe baking dish and spread around with a spoon. You'll want a thin, even coating throughout the whole pan. Lay the chicken breasts down in the pan. Top each piece of chicken with bacon, about half to one slice per breast. Bake the chicken and bacon in the oven for 30 to 45 minutes at 375. If the bacon doesn't look cooked, transfer the baking dish to a broiler oven (or turn your broiler on depending on the oven) until the bacon is cooked.
Once the bacon looks cooked, leave the broiler on, and remove the dish from the oven. Top each chicken breast with a small "glob" of barbecue sauce, a slice of the muenster cheese and a slice of ham. Top the entire thing with a thin layer of the shredded cheddar cheese, and put the entire dish back into the broiler for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
Remove from the oven, serve and enjoy.
Roasted Potatoes
Russet potatoes, or any potato.
Olive oil
Garlic powder
Steak seasoning
Italian seasoning
Butter
Rinse the potatoes in cold water. Cut the potatoes into 1 inch sized pieces. The easiest way is to cut each potato in half length wise, then cutting each of those halves in half length wise, and cutting each newly formed wedge width wise several times. Set aside.
Line a baking dish with tin foil (this will help with cleanup). Pour a thin layer of olive oil over the tin foil, just enough that all of the tin foil has oil on it. Sprinkle the garlic powder, steak seasoning and Italian seasoning over the tin foil.
Place the potatoes in the baking dish, ensuring that they cover the entire bottom but do not overlap each other too much. Drizzle more olive oil over the potatoes, and add another layer of each of the three seasonings as well.
Put 6 to 10 spoonfuls of butter in different locations around the pan on top of the potatoes. Add more, depending on how much you like butter.
Put the entire thing in a 375 to 400 degree oven and bake for 1 hour. Check with a fork. If the potatoes have become soft, they are ready to go. If not, give them another 15 minutes.
Remove them from the oven and transfer them into a serving bowl. Toss them a few times in the bowl, so the butter and seasonings can move around a little.
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