It’s That Time of Year…

October 28, 2017 in Occasionally I Cook

Yes, I’m ready for the ghosts and goblins—I’ve been quality control checking the candy for weeks. But October is not just about Halloween. Every year, before October gets away from us and we go straight into talking turkey and putting up the Christmas lights, I get in the mood for a Lowcountry Boil. Lowcountry Boil is not just a dish—it’s an event. And fall is the perfect time for one. Here’s my recipe…

First thing—invite everyone. It’s more fun with a crowd. Get out the tiki torches and string some lights in the backyard. Set up a few picnic tables and get a fire pit ready in case the evening gets chilly. Lots of folks spread newspaper on the picnic tables, and that’s fine. But if you’re a little bit finicky about such things like me, you might want to put tablecloths and butcher’s paper down, or get out the big, bright-colored bowls for serving.

You can buy a lobster pot if you want to, but we use the turkey fryer. In any case, you’ll need a 30-32 quart pot, and it’s best if it has a strainer basket insert. This recipe makes enough for 18-20 people. Adjust accordingly.

Ingredients

2 gallons water

12 12 ounce cans beer

4 sweet onions

15 cloves garlic

4 leeks

3 lemons, cut in half

4 tablespoons kosher salt

3/4 cup Old Bay Seasoning

5 lbs red potatoes

5 lbs smoked sausage, cut into 2-inch pieces

12 ears fresh corn, cut in half

6 pounds peeled, tail-on, medium-size shrimp*

* About the shrimp…if you have fresh shrimp, of course you’ll want to use that–ideally it was swimming this morning. Then you’ll need someone handy to do the peeling and deveining. Sugar is a pro at this. I do not particularly enjoy peeling and deveining, nor do I relish eating them un-deveined. But, to each his own. Traditionalists will likely want to use shrimp in the shell and let folks peel and eat.

If fresh shrimp is not in season or otherwise not available, we use Costco frozen tail-on, peeled, deveined, but I know some prefer Trader Joe’s. If you use frozen shrimp, make sure you prepare it for the pot by thawing it overnight in the refrigerator. About an hour before you’re going to cook it, dry brine the shrimp with a mixture of 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt to 1/4 teaspoon baking soda per pound of shrimp. This makes them plump up.

Now…I purely do not like over-cooked shrimp, and you can bet your mamma’s pearls there will be dissension over whether the shrimp is done or not. By the time everyone has finished squabbling, the shrimp will be over-cooked and therefore chewy if you’re not careful. Make sure you have a steady hand on the pot. The minute they turn pink, for Heaven’s sake, get them out.

Step One: Put the water and beer in the pot.

Step Two: Embellish the liquid

Add the onions, leeks, garlic, and lemons, and bring the mixture to a rolling boil.

Step Three: Spice it Up

Add kosher salt and Old Bay and return to boil.

Step Four: Add food in sequence

Add the potatoes and Andouille and cook 20 minutes.
Add the corn and cook 5 more minutes. Make sure potatoes are done. If necessary, cook a little longer.
Add shrimp. Cook about three minutes, just until they turn pink. Do not over-cook the shrimp

Step Five: Dump basket contents onto butcher paper or scoop into serving bowls.

I like to serve Lowcountry Boil with lemon wedges, melted butter mixed with lemon, cocktail sauce, extra Old Bay, softened butter for the corn, and salt, and pepper on the side. You’ll need two rolls of paper towels per picnic table—this is messy, especially if you used unpeeled shrimp like most folks do.

Of course you’ll need cold beer with this, even if you’re a wine lover like me. I throw in some crusty garlic bread, and of course, homemade key lime pie for dessert. Or, if the night is chilly and you do have that fire going, s’mores make a great dessert.

If y’all try this, let me know how you like it!

Super Chili

November 7, 2016 in Occasionally I Cook

I love Crock-Pot recipes, especially in fall and winter. Even though it’s still plenty warm in South Carolina right now, we turned the clocks back, the leaves are falling, and I’m planning meals in the Crock-Pot.

Here’s one of my go-to recipes. I developed it over time, combining several recipes I liked, then adding other things I liked and taking away things I didn’t. It’s my trial-and-error chili, but it’s becoming a family favorite. Because I like to hedge my bets, I sneak in super foods where I can. I added turmeric (powerful anti-inflammatory) and cocoa powder (antioxidants and minerals) to this recipe and the combination gives the chili a unique depth of flavor.

If you try it, let me know what you think!

What’s your favorite chili recipe?

Super Chili

*** REVISED October 15, 2017 ***

(This is the version that won the chili cook-off!)

olive oil to cover the bottom of a 6-quart dutch oven (I use cast iron)

2 sweet onions, diced

2 red bell peppers, diced

3-4 poblano peppers, diced

1 cup diced carrots

4 tablespoons minced garlic (fresh or refrigerated kind)

2 tablespoons cumin

1/4 cup chili powder

1/4 cup turmeric

1/4 cup cocoa

3 lbs ground sirloin

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

1 can diced fire roasted tomatoes

1 1/2 cups diced fresh tomatoes

1 quart unsalted high quality beef stock (I used homemade bone broth for the contest. Instructions below.)

2-3 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, seeded and minced

2 tablespoons adobo sauce from the can of chipotles

2 (15.5-ounce) cans black beans, drained

2 (15.5-ounce) cans red kidney beans, drained

3 ears corn, roasted in oven, then cut from cob

2 tablespoons Worchestersire sauce

1/4 cup agave

1 tablespoon sea salt

2 teaspoons coarse ground black pepper

1 teaspoon Cayenne pepper

Heat the oil in dutch oven over moderate heat.

Add the onion and cook about five minutes, until it just starts to turn golden in places

Add bell pepper, poblano pepper, garlic, and carrots. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a separate cast iron skillet, brown the ground beef over high heat

Add cumin, chili powder, turmeric, and cocoa to vegetables in dutch oven and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

Add browned beef to dutch oven

Stir in crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, beef stock, chipotle chiles, adobo sauce, black beans, kidney beans, corn, Worcestershire sauce, agave, salt, and pepper.

If desired, transfer to Crock-Pot and cook on low for 8 – 10 hours or high 4-6 hours.

Alternately, place dutch oven in oven preheated to 250 degrees. Bake for 6 hours.

Serve topped with shredded Mexican 4-cheese blend and sour cream.

Instructions for Beef Bone Broth

In a cast iron skillet, bake 3 pounds beef bones, with onion, garlic, mushrooms, leeks, carrots, and celery for two hours. Transfer all contents to a stock pot, cover with water, and simmer 24 hours. Remove bones and vegetables and strain stock. (I used a permanent coffee filter.) Refrigerate until needed. I used mine within 24 hours. I have no idea how long this keeps in the refrigerator, but I would use within a day or two.

Chicken à la Twitter

November 19, 2011 in Occasionally I Cook

I can’t recall ever blogging a recipe before, but, by special request from a Twitter friend, here is the Crock-Pot^®chicken recipe I threw together week before last. I tweeted the ingredients as I was creating, but it took me a few tweets, and searching a Twitter stream is a hard way to find a recipe.

Chicken à la Twitter (aka Santé Fe Chicken–that’s what I was going to call it until Alyse asked for the recipe.)

3 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I used hormone & anti-biotic free)

1 envelope taco seasoning (I used Old El Paso brand)
2 cups uncooked rice (I used Uncle Ben’s original converted–orange box)
1 jar salsa (I can’t recall how many ounces, but you know, a regular-sized jar–I used chipotle flavor)
1 can fire-roasted tomatoes (I think that was a 14 oz. can–you know, regular-sized)
1 can whole kernel corn (I used yellow)
1 can black beans (I used Bush’s)
1/2 cup chopped olives (I used green because I like them better and had them in the pantry)
32 oz. chicken broth or stock
2 containers Philadelphia brand Philly Cooking Creme (Santa Fe flavor)

1.    Putthe chicken breasts in a large Crock-Pot^®(5 – 6 quarts)
2.      Sprinkle the chicken with the taco seasoning, turning to coat both sides

3.      Sprinkle rice over chicken

4.      Pour salsa over top

5.      Pour tomatoes on (don’t drain)

6.      Pile on the corn (drained)

7.      Pile on beans (drained)

8.      Pile on the olives

9.      Mix the chicken broth with the cooking creme in a separate bowl, then pour the liquid mixture over into the crock pot

10. Stir it a little, but leave the chicken on the bottom

11. Put the lid on the Crock-Pot^®and cook on high for 6 hours

12. Check the pot after 4 hours and again at five if you’re around just to make sure the rice doesn’t need a little more liquid. If it does, stir in a little water or broth. (Mine was fine, but I’ve made similar recipes where the rice was dry and needed more liquid.)

13. Using two forks, shred the chicken and stir in with the rest of the casserole just before serving.

If you like (I did) serve with sour cream and tortilla chips on the side.

If you have leftovers, try wrapping them up in tortillas the next day. We did this and topped with lettuce, tomato, sour cream, guacamole and I can’t even remember what else—but you get the idea. It made some pretty decent burritos.

If you try it, I hope you like it. All I can say is, we didn’t have to toss any of it out.

Peace, out,

Susan