Kalbi aka Korean Short Ribs
2lb LA cut beef ribs*
4 garlic cloves
1 in knob of ginger
1 Asian pear, peeled and chopped**
1/2C soy sauce
1/4C brown sugar
2T rice vinegar
2T Mirin***
5 green onions
2T sesame oil
1/4 t salt
1/4 t pepper
Add all ingredients except beef and to a blender or food processor. Whiz it up until it's fairly smooth. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary by adding more S&P, soy or sugar. It should be sweet but also savory, if it's too sweet add more soy.
Add marinade to meat in a large resealable bag. Allow to marinate on the counter for an hour or overnight up to a couple of days in the fridge. When you're ready, heat up a grill to smoking and grill a couple of minutes per side until the sauce is beautifully sticky and the meat is cooked to desired done-ness. Serve with rice, lettuce, veggies, kim chee and siracha. We like to eat this in wrap style - rice, sriracha and meat all wrapped up in a lettuce leaf.
* Also called flank ribs, found in Korean or Asian supermarkets. Some conventional grocers or Hispanic stores carry these too - just make sure to get them unseasoned.
** Granny Smith apple or green pears work too
*** Rice wine, found in international section of most grocery stores. If you can't find it, just leave it out (my MIL has been known to sub Sprite)
My MIL's Bulgogi
1 - 2 lbs beef, thinly sliced*
1/2 C low sodium soy sauce
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
3 green onions, chopped
2 - 3 T dark brown sugar
1t - 1T ginger, grated on a microplane
1T sesame oil, plus more for serving
1T rice wine vinegar
Salt
Pepper
Korean red pepper**
Toasted sesame seeds
Assorted veggies
Sticky rice
Roasted seaweed
Sririacha or Korean Bibimbap Sauce
Kimchee
Eggs - optional
Start by making the marinade. Combine the soy sauce, garlic, onions, sugar, ginger, vinegar and a dash of salt, pepper and Korean red pepper, if using. You can do this two ways - either use your microplane for the ginger and garlic then add the sugar and liquid OR dump everything into a blender. I favor the blender method because I am lazy and it gets the onions finely ground so the marinade really has all the flavors incorporated. Add more vinegar, sugar or soy to your taste. Add the meat and marinate at least an hour and up to 48 hours in the fridge. This is best grilled - place foil over the grill grates and poke lots of holes to allow the charcoal flavor and heat to come through but keep the meat on the grill. OR you can saute in a grill pan. If you go the saute route, drain and pat the meat dry then saute in olive oil over HIGH heat. Crispy edges are the goal.
The veggies are all sauteed separately - just do one at a time in olive oil, season each batch with S&P and a sprinkle of sesame seeds and set aside, keep warm.
To serve add rice to the bottom of a wide bowl. Add piles of veggies and meat over the top of the rice (this is essentially a Korean buddha bowl...or you can just have the meat with rice and kim chee). If desired, top with a fried egg, a drizzle of sesame oil, sesame seeds, sliced seaweed and Sriracha.
Leftovers make a great fried rice - just chop everything up and saute with the cold rice, season with soy, sesame oil and S&P.
*If you have access to a Korean store you can purchase ribeye that is very finely sliced. If not, buy whatever steak you like, sirloin pictured above. Freeze for 1/2 an hour and slice as thin as possible with a very sharp knife. This is a great recipe for a crowd - you can easily add more meat and more marinade to feed as many people as necessary!
**If you can get it, if not, just leave it out.
Quinoa Burgers with Feta and Spinach
2 1/2 C Cooked quinoa (any type)
1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/3 C panko breadcrumbs
1 large garlic clove, roughly chopped
2 eggs
4 oz feta cheese
1C spinach, roughly chopped
S&P
Olive oil
In the bowl of a food processor, puree beans and garlic until smooth. Add quinoa and eggs pulse to combine. Add breadcrumbs and pulse. Add in crumbled feta and spinach and season with S&P. Pulse to combine. The mixture should be fairly tight at this point but if it is not holding together at all, add more breadcrumbs until it's a consistency that will form a patty. Form into six patties and rest in freezer for half an hour (or more, you can freeze these in a single layer then transfer to a feezer bag when firm - totally fine to cook from frozen). To cook, heat olive oil in a heavy skillet (I use cast iron), add burgers and cook 5 - 6 minutes per side, until golden brown. Serve on buns or atop a salad.
Butternut Squash Pasta
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1C ricotta cheese
1C parmesan cheese, divided
1C heavy cream
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 C pine nuts, toasted
1 lb pasta (any shape will do, pappardelle in the picture)
1tsp cumin
2T butter
2T olive oil
Zest of one lemon
Basil
S&P
Preheat oven to 400. Toss squash with cumin, S&P and olive oil and roast until soft and slightly browned (around 30 minutes). Allow to cool slightly. In a food processor, combine cooked squash, ricotta, lemon zest, and pulse until combined and squash is pureed. Taste and season to taste. Drop the pasta into boiling, salted water. While the pasta cooks, in a wide saucepan melt butter, when sizzling, add squash mixture and stir. Pour in about a cup of pasta water to thin to a thick sauce consistency. Taste and season. Add cooked pasta and 1/2 to 1C heavy cream, toss well. Serve with bacon, pine nuts, basil and more cheese.
Mere's Favorite Chili
1.5 - 2.0 lbs lean ground beef
2T olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
2T Chili powder
1T cumin
1T Paprika
1t - 1T smoked paprika
1 bottle Shiner Bock beer (or another dark bitter)
1 28oz can San Marzano tomatoes, crushed by hand
2 - 3 cups beef broth
2 14oz cans red kidney or pinto beans
In a large skillet (with a lid) heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute until just translucent. Add beef and a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Saute until all watery liquid evaporates and the beef is very brown and crumbly. Add garlic and stir until fragrant then add the rest of the spices and stir well. Let this cook a minute (don't worry if it looks like everything is burning and sticking to the bottom of the pan...that's the good stuff and will come up when you add the beer!) then pour in the beer. Scrape up the bits off the bottom of the pan as the beer bubbles and starts to evaporate. Add in the tomatoes and 2C of beef broth, bring to a boil. At this point I check for seasoning and add S&P if necessary then add in the beans. Pop the lid on and let simmer at least an hour or more. Keep an eye on it and add more broth if necessary. Serve with grated cheese, onion, sour cream, avocado or Frank's Red Hot. &*If you really like it spicy, add 1/2 to 1t cayenne or chopped jalapenos with the onion. Or both!
Jaeger Schnitzel
Schnitzel:
3 large chicken breasts sliced across and pounded thin OR
6 bonless pork chops, pounded thin
1C flour
2 eggs
1T dijon mustard
1 1/2 C panko bread crumbs
Canola oil
Quartered lemons for serving
Sauce:
1T butter
1 lb sliced mushrooms (I used cremini)
2 T flour
1/2 cup dry sherry or marsala
1 - 2 C chicken stock
1/2 C heavy cream
For the chicken:
Preheat oven to 200. Over medium, heat enough oil to come about half way up the sides of a large cast iron skillet. While the oil heats, get to breading your chicken. In three shallow dishes - one for flour, one for egg and mustard, one for breadcrumbs. Season all three liberally with salt and pepper. Bread starting with flour, then egg, then breadcrumb then into the hot oil. Don't crowd the pan, 2 or 3 at most in the pan at one time. Fry until golden on both sides. Remove from pan, drain on paper towel then remove to a rack over a baking sheet and pop them in the oven and get on with the next batch. Once their all fried, keep warm in the oven while you make the sauce.
Pour all but 1T of the frying oil out of the pan. Add the butter. When it sizzles, add the mushrooms. *If you're feeling fancy, you can add onion now and caramelize it until it's golden brown THEN add the mushrooms. Saute until browned. Add S&P and 2T flour. Stir around for about a minute. Add the sherry and stir until it's absorbed most of the flour. Add in about a cup of chicken stock. Bring to boil and add more if it's too thick. Turn off the heat and finish with the cream. Ladle a generous portion over the chicken and serve.
Note: You can never have too much sauce, it's really good over spaetzle too. Enjoy!
Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese
1 lb. short pasta (Macarone, Ziti, Penne...etc. I used Rotini)
2 C butternut squashed, cubed and steamed or roasted
4 T butter
3 T flour
2 C whole milk (approximate)
2 C shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 C grated Parmesan cheese
4 oz. goat cheese
1 C fresh bread crumbs
1 clove garlic, minced
S&P
Preheat oven to 375. Get a large pot of boiling water on to boil. Cook for 2 minutes less than package directions, reserving a cup of cooking liquid before draining. Set aside. While that happens, get going on the sauce. In a large, wide, ovenproof skillet (I used a cast iron enamel braiser but really anything goes as long as it's big enough and oven proof) melt butter. Add the flour and whisk into a paste. Add your milk and keep whisking over medium heat until the sauce thickens. Season generously with S&P. Add in 1C of the cheddar and the rest of the cheese. Stir until melted and combined. Add in the pasta and your squash (I cheated here...used the steam in bag from Target but I've also roasted fresh in a hot oven with S&P, which is obvi. better). If it looks thick, add in some reserved water until it's a bit soupy. Combine your bread crumbs, 1 T melted butter, garlic and reserved cup of cheddar and sprinkle over the top. Bake until browned and bubbly, about half an hour.
*If you don't have any breadcrumbs, like I didn't when I made this, just whizz up some bread with the garlic and butter.
