Slow Cooker All American Meat n' Potatoes

Nothing says "American comfort food" than meat and potatoes.  This recipe is my homage to the All American Meat n' Potatoes classic dinner. Really simple every day pantry ingredients, an economical cut of meat and of course potatoes make-up this recipe.  And the best part? It all goes in the slow cooker. So when you get home at the end of a long work day, the scent of rich beef, and slow cooked onions hit you right when you walk in.  All you have to do is decide what to serve it with.

Serves 3 - 4

1 pound  of round -  3/4" top round steaks, sliced in half - (about 4 steaks - like little filet mignons without the cost.)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
2 large onions, sliced in half moons
1 tablespoon minced
1 cup beef stock
1/4 cup white wine
Salt
Pepper
Onion powder
4 red potatoes cut in quarters (unpeeled is just fine)

• Heat a stainless steel pan over medium heat, add oil, butter and all the onions.
• Sprinkle with a few pinches of salt. Stir and cook for 15 minutes at medium low heat until the onions are a deep golden brown but not burnt. 10 minutes into the cooking process, add the garlic.
• While the onions cook, salt and pepper the meat, then add a generous dusting to each side of the meat of onion powder. Set aside.
• Deglaze the onions with 1/4 of the beef stock, allow to evaporate*.
• Add the potatoes to the bottom of the slow cooker, spoon half the onions over the potatoes.
• Lay the meat slices over top of the onions and then spoon the remaining onions over top.
• Slowly pour the remaining beef stock and the white wine over top.
• Cook on high for 4 hours, low for 8 hours.
• You'll have a nice broth at the end of the cooking cycle. To thicken the broth, remove the meat, potatoes and whatever onions are left  with a slotted spoon and set aside. 
• Leave behind 2-4 of the potatoes in the slow cooker with the broth and using an immersion blender buzz through until you have a nice thickened sauce. Tip: Start with 2 potatoes and add in the remaining two, one at a time or until the sauce has thickened to your liking.

Serve this as is, over rice, mashed potatoes (yes double carbs!), egg noodles, toasted bread, it's really up to you. To drink? Beer or a robust red wine. Enjoy!

*Recipe Notes:

You can make the onions the day before, even up to two days ahead of time, Just keep in a tightly sealed container in the fridge until ready to use.

Grilled Tomato & Garlic Bread a la Catalana

Lately I seem to be indulging in a lot recipes that originate in or are inspired from my trips to Spain. This very simple recipe is one that I make often when I am grilling and it surprises people just how delicious it actually is. The recipe is from the region of Catalonia in Spain.  If you happen to visit Barcelona, you'd probably be apt to find it there - it is quite popular.  This recipe takes the simplest of ingredients, tomatoes, garlic, olive oil and bread to absolutely delicious and it's very addicting too! Not that there is anything wrong with that.
Next time you grill, try this recipe, I promise you will not be disappointed!

1 loaf of ciabatta, French or if you can find it Spanish bread. Cut in half length wise so that you have the top and bottom of the bread in two big slices, and then cut in quarters.
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled and one end cut off
2 large tomatoes
Olive oil, preferably Spanish
Salt - Kosher
Pepper

• Heat your grill to high heat.  Grill each side, avoid burning, just a little char and a few grill marks will do.**
• Rub the garlic over the inside of the bread
• Rub the tomato over the inside of the bread
• Drizzle with olive oil
• Sprinkle with salt and pepper

Aside from serving it with grilled chicken, steak etc., I love to serve it with a board of serrano ham (a dry-cured Spanish ham), manchego cheese and paper thin slices of Spanish chorizo and, of course, a glass or two or three of red Spanish wine. Enjoy!

**Notes:  You can also toast the bread in the oven or on a grill pan.

Easy Ground Beef Curry

I have been on an Asian kick lately. Asian flavors have been dominating my taste buds for some reason and the best part about it is that Asian cooking is generally very easy, quick food to make. This beef curry I made in about 45 minutes; another good weeknight dinner without sacrificing flavor. Asian food, for some reason, reminds me of my grandmother. I am always mentioning her, but I can't help it because she was she a huge role model in my life. She and I would order Chinese food on Saturday nights when I came to sleep over while the parents were out to play. We would drive to Canton Chinese food, order the food (she did not believe in phoning the order ahead of time), sit and wait for the order to be ready, pay and take it home. The beginning to a series of fun Saturday nights was always with Chinese food. We would always order the same thing; me the chicken with broccoli and her I believe was the special friend rice and chicken wings.

Wednesdays with Eryka

It was our tradition; we would eat then play Bingo or Parcheesi, watch her favorite Saturday night variety show and we'd end the night with my favorite show: I Love Lucy or The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour! I'm happy for these memories as well as for the developed taste for Asian food that start for me at a local Chinese restaurant and now that expanded beyond that. I hope you enjoy this recipe on Wednesdays with Eryka!





Recipe
2 tablespoons oil
1 lb ground beef
1 onion, finely chopped
1 green pepper, diced
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 bay leaves
4 tomatoes, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 1/2 cups stock

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a saute pan. Over low-medium heat, cook the onion, pepper, cumin seeds and bay leaves. Stir and cook for about 2-3 minutes until the spices are fragrant. Add the tomatoes and cook and stir for about 10 minutes.

2. In the same saute pan, add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute then add the ground beef, coriander, turmeric and chili powder. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes until the meat is browned.

3. Pour the stock into the pan and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer , stir occasionally for about 20-25 minutes. Season with salt when done and discard the bay leaves. Serve with steamed rice. Enjoy!

Grilled Cabbage "Steak"

First, Happy St. Patrick's Day! 
No, I am not sharing a recipe for corned beef and cabbage (CB&C), I am pretty sure there will be plenty of that to go around today in  the blog-o-sphere of food. And I am pretty sure those sites have a heck of a lot more experience then me, making CB&C, since I confess I have never eaten nor made it. GASP!
What I am sharing is my continued love for the under-rated and under-appreciated cabbage.
More specifically, my grilled cabbage "steak". Why call it "steak"? Because it's cut like a steak, and it's thick, chunky, smokey and just slightly charred ... like a steak.
There is even, just like you might have on a grilled steak, a very simple glaze that deepens and brings out the cabbage's natural sweetness.
Come on ... show your love for the cabbage, fire up the grill and make yourself a cabbage steak.

Serves 4 - 8

Fire up your grill to high heat (gas or charcoal - your choice)

To cut and prepare the cabbage steaks:
1 head of cabbage
Salt - Kosher or give pink Himalayan salt a try, it's pretty cool
Pepper
Olive or grapeseed oil

• Slice the cabbage in half, then quarters then eighth. (DO NOT REMOVE THE CORE this is what keeps it together) You should have nice thick "steaks" now. Right? I'll assume you've nodded in agreement.
• Oil each side generously
• Salt and pepper each side, generously

Glaze:
3 tablespoons of brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter
2 pinches of salt
1 or 2 pinches of cayenne (optional - you can use more cayenne if you want)

• In a small sauce pan, over medium low heat, add brown sugar and butter. 
• Allow to melt and stir.  
• Cook until sugar is completely dissolved and incorporated into butter, stirring often. 
• Add salt and cayenne (if using). Cook and stir for 30 second. Turn off heat.

To Grill: (Cooking time may be more or less depending on your grill)**

• Place the oiled cabbage steaks on the hot grates of your grill, leaving space in between, do not crowd. 
• Brush the top side with glaze. Cover, grill 3-5 minutes. 
• Turn over with a large spatula. Brush the top side with glaze. Cover, grill 3-5 minutes.
• Turn over again, Cover, grill for one minute.

Serve with any grilled protein or make it a vegetarian meal and just grill other vegetables too. Don't forget the beer! ENJOY!

**Notes:  Because all grills are different and only you can know your grill's hot and cold spots, be sure to check it during the cooking time, so you don't end up with a big inedible heap of cabbage.

Decadently Creamy Mushrooms, Onions & Beef Sauté

Here's  a recipe that doesn't have a back story, except that I defrosted sirloin strip steaks instead of  round steak which I was going to use to make a quick stir-fry. Yes, I could have made a stir fry with this cut too, but I was craving something creamy and just a tad decadent. This recipe has some of my favorite ingredients; sirloin, mushrooms and onions in a thick cream sauce that has a hint of thyme and a touch of butter.
You don't have to use strip steak to make this recipe, certainly you can use thinly sliced skirt steak or another cut of beef*. But if you have the opportunity to splurge, this recipe will do the splurge justice.

Serves 2 - 4

1 pound of sirloin, cut in bite size pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large sweet onion
8oz mushrooms, thick sliced
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt & pepper
1/2 cup white wine
1/3 cup low lowfat milk
1/3 cup half & half
1/2 to 1 teaspoon corn starch

• Salt & pepper your sliced beef. Set aside.  
• Heat a skillet over medium high heat. Add oil, onions and mushrooms. Sprinkle lightly with 2 pinches of salt. Lower heat to medium  and saute 5-8 minutes. 
• Sprinkle with thyme, stir  to distribute evenly. Add in butter, stir, lower heat to medium low and allow to saute an additional 3-5 minutes until onions and mushrooms are a light golden brown.
• Remove onion and mushroom mixture from pan, set aside.
• Raise heat o medium high, and brown beef in small batches, till all the beef is browned.
• Add onion and mushroom mixture and all the beef back to skillet, stir to incorporate.
• Pour in white wine, lower heat to medium, allow to reduce by half.
• Add milk and half & half, bring to a low simmer.
• Using a small colander, add half a teaspoon of corn starch and lightly sift over simmering sauce. Stir immediately to incorporate. 
• Add 2 -3 pinches of salt and a generous grind of black pepper.
• Simmer an additional 2 minutes
• For a thicker sauce add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of cornstarch in the same manner.

Serve over white fluffy rice, or egg noodles and a glass of red wine. Enjoy!

*Recipe Notes: 

Since the first time I made this recipe I have used different cuts of beef to experiment and while the strip steak is by far the best, here are a few more economical cuts you can consider using and work just fine:

Flank, top round, round tip, round sirloin tip center and round sirloin tip side.

You may also want to consider tenderizing the thin strips of  cheaper, less tender cuts of beef by using baking soda.  Here is a link to my post on how properly use and when to use baking soda to tenderize proteins: Baking Soda as a Tenderizer.

Ginger Tomato Chicken

Ginger is an underrated ingredient that I have grown to love. Although it can be overpowering at times, it definitely adds a lot of flavor to your dish. I usually use ginger in more Asian recipes since it is popular in a lot of Asian recipes. This recipe is  a fusion of Italian and Asian; Italian because of the olive oil, tomatoes, garlic and Asian because of the coconut milk and ginger. Coconut milk is a hidden gem at your grocery store. It adds nice body to your sauce or even for a stew believe it or not. It doesn't add too much flavor but it certainly makes your sauces/stews have a creamy consistency, which I tend to enjoy. You can pair this with brown or white rice or pasta because the sauce is creates is versatile for either one. Or serve with a nice green vegetable for that extra fiber! As usual of most of my recipes, this is a pretty simple and quick recipe you can whip up after a day at work. The most time consuming part of the recipe is simmering the sauce and waiting to eat. Enjoy!

Recipe:
1 lb chicken breast, butterflied
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons ginger, grated
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained

1. In a large skillet, heat the oil on medium heat and brown the chicken breasts on both sides. Remove and set aside.

2. In the same pan, add more oil and saute the garlic, ginger, stock and coconut milk. Bring to a boil.

3. Add the can of tomatoes and the chicken into the pan. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for about 15 minutes. Stir occasionally and baste chicken with sauce. Cook until the chicken is cooked through. Serve with white or brown rice.

Weekly Recipe Round-Up March 3-7, 2014

This was a big week at 
The Fork Ran Away with the Spoon as we celebrated our Food Blog's One Year Anniversary. We've posted over 180 recipes and are looking forward to posting many more in the new year.  Having the support and kind words, likes and shares from our followers and fellow food blogger has made it all worth while, especially at moments when we wondered if it was worth it. And you know what? It sure is! Thank you all for your continued support!

Don't forget to spring forward this weekend as we catapult into daylight savings time in the U.S. I for one am happy about the time change.  It's been really hard to go out running because by the time I get home from work it's late and it's dark. I am not a good night time runner, not to mention that the park I run at has lights off by sundown. The time change also means I have time to photograph my recipes with natural lighting and that alone is good reason enough! I think this week may be the last of the "cold" weather in South Florida and that I will miss dearly but as the famous philosopher Jagger once said "... you get what you need". 

This week's Recipe of the Week was featured on Wednesdays with Eryka, Caramelized Ginger Chicken.  It had the most shares, pageviews and likes from our awesome followers and for that we Thank You!  Here's a look back at what was cooking in the kitchens of The Fork Ran Away with the Spoon this past week.

Featured on Monday:


Red Curry & Coconut Lentil Soup

This is an easy to prep and cook soup that's perfects for weeknight meals. It's vegetarian, spicy, thick, rich in flavor yet light. Loaded with carrots and potatoes, fiber rich red lentils and lots of warm spices.  Makes a big batch, enough for two meals, so you can eat one, freeze one.




Featured on Wednesdays with Eryka:

Caramelized Ginger Chicken

The chicken is seared over high heat then simmered in a rich sauce of ginger, soy, shallots and garlic. Truly delicious!

Featured on Friday:

Zarzuela de Marisco - Spanish Seafood Stew

The perfect quintessential classic Spanish meal. The mix of various seafood is simmered in a sauce that is first infused with tomatoes, onions, peppers, lots of garlic and of course saffron, then thickened with ground almonds and enriched with seafood stock and sherry. Finally it is quickly flambe'd with brandy and sprinkled with parsley.