Thai Panang Curry

I posted a great Massaman Curry recipe a couple of months ago, and this Panang is another one of my favorite Thai curries. It's good with either chicken or beef, but I typically make it with beef. A great thing with curries, is you can throw in vegetables that need to get used up, so a lot of times, I will just use what vegetables I have on hand.

1/2 lb Beef sliced very thin (I like to use a lean Sirloin Tip roast, and I just shave pieces off of it)

1 Tablespoon oil

1 1/2 Tablespoons Panang Curry Paste (I like Mae Ploy brand)

Coconut milk

Put oil and curry paste in a pan and cook together for a couple of minutes, or until the oil comes to the top. Add the meat and 4 Tablespoons coconut milk. Cook slow until the meat is tender (about 15-20 minutes or longer).

Add the following:

1 Tablespoon brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt (can also use 2 Tablespoons of thin soy sauce)

1 Kaffir Lime leaf torn in half

1 carrot, peeled and cut into pieces

1/2 cup peas (I just use frozen)

1/2 cup sliced red or yellow bell peppers

Cook for 5 more minutes or until the vegetables get cooked. Don't overcook, as you want the veggies a little crunchy, not mushy.

I prefer to have a saucy panang, so I always add the rest of the can of coconut milk at this point.

Red Beef Chili

This chili recipe rocks! It does have a kick to it, so be aware. This is one of Bobby Flay's recipes which I got off of foodnetwork.com. This only makes 6 servings, so if you are wanting to serve more than that, or want leftovers for your husband's lunches, I would definitely double it.

INGREDIENTS:

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 pounds bottom round beef, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 (12 ounce) bottle dark beer

2 tablespoons finely chopped semi-sweet chocolate

1 large red onion, finely diced

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/2 poblano, seeded and finely chopped

1 teaspoon seeded and chopped habanero

1 Thai bird chile, seeded and chopped (I couldn't find this, and omitted it)

1/2 jalapeno, seeded and chopped

1 tablespoon chipotle pepper puree

1 tablespoon ancho chile powder

1 tablespoon pasilla chile powder

1 tablespoon cascabel chile powder

1 teaspoon New Mexican chile powder

5 cups homemade chicken stock, or canned low-sodium or water

1 16-ounce can whole tomatoes, drained and pureed

2 tablespoons maple syrup, or more, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat. Season the beef with salt and pepper and saute until browned on all sides. Sprinkle with the cumin and stir well. Deglaze the pan with the beer and bring to a boil. Stir in the chocolate and cook until beer is almost completely reduced.

In a separate pot, add 1 tablespoon of the oil and add the onions to the pan and cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add the poblano, habanero, Thai bird, and jalapeno peppers and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the chipotle puree, ancho powder, pasilla powder, cascabel and New Mexican chile powders and cook an additional 2 minutes. Add the stock and tomatoes and bring to a boil and boil for 15-20 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender. Puree with an immersion blender. Add the beef mixture back to the pan, reduce the heat to medium, cover the pan, and simmer for 1 hour, or until thick and beef is tender. Remove from the heat and add the maple syrup. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Three Bean and Beef Chili

This is a very tasty chili recipe from Ellie Krieger on Foodnetwork.com. It had a ton of flavor, and even my little girls loved it.

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, diced (1 cup)

1 red bell pepper, diced (1 cup)

2 carrots, diced (1/2 cup)

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 pound extra-lean ground beef (90 percent lean)

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

2 cups water

1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, seeded and minced

2 teaspoons adobo sauce from the can of chipotles

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 (15.5-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 (15.5-ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 (15.5-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed

DIRECTIONS:

Heat the oil in large pot or Dutch oven over moderate heat. Add the onion, bell pepper and carrots, cover and cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes. Add the cumin and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the ground beef; raise the heat to high and cook, breaking up the meat with a spoon, until the meat is no longer pink. Stir in the tomatoes, water, chipotle and adobo sauce, oregano and salt and pepper. Cook, partially covered, stirring from time to time, for 30 minutes. Stir in the beans and continue cooking, partially covered, 20 minutes longer. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Horseradish Sauce

This is Emeril Lagasse's recipe off of Foodnetwork.com

INGREDIENTS:

2 Cups Sour Cream

1/4 Cup prepared Horseradish, drained

1 Tablespoon minced Chives

1 teaspoon Champagne or white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

Dash hot red pepper sauce

DIRECTIONS:

In a bowl, combine all the ingredients and blend well. Adjust the seasoning, to taste. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Beef Marinade

This marinade would be great on any beef, I think. I have used it several times with a London Broil, which we then cook on the grill. YUMMY!!

INGREDIENTS:

1/4 Cup Red Wine Vinegar

1/4 Cup Balsamic Vinegar

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce

2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce

2 Tablespoons Spicy or Dijon Mustard

1 1/2 Tablespoons minced Garlic

1 1/2 teaspoons ground Black Pepper

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder

1/2 teaspoon Onion Powder

1 1/2 teaspoons Paprika

1/2 teaspoon dried Thyme

1/2 teaspoon dried Oregano

1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Combine all ingredients and marinate with your meat for several hours.

French Dip Sandwiches--Slow-Cooker Version

If you want a real quick and easy recipe for French Dip sandwiches, try this other one.  I love french dip sandwiches, so I decided to try a recipe where I had to cook the roast and everything.  This turned out really good.  

INGREDIENTS:

1 boneless beef roast (appx. 4 lbs)

1 medium onion, sliced thin

1/4 C soy sauce

3 T worcestershire sauce

1 t beef base (or 1 beef boullion cube)

1 bay leaf

1 T pepper

3/4 t dried rosemary

1 t dried thyme

1 t oregano

3 garlic cloves, minced

Steak rolls, or french bread to serve (I like it toasted with garlic, with a slice of swiss cheese)

DIRECTIONS:

Trim roast of all visible fat.  Rub with a mixture of garlic powder, season salt, salt and pepper, then brown on stove before placing in slow cooker.  Saute onion in remaining drippings and add to slow cooker.

Combine soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, beef base, bay leaf, pepper, rosemary, thyme, oregano and garlic.  Pour over roast.  Add water until liquid reaches top of roast.  Cover and cook on high 6-8 hours, or on Low 10-12 hours (or until meat is tender enough to be shredded).

After cooking, remove roast from broth and slice or shred as desired.  Cook down reserved broth and use for dipping.

French Dip Sandwiches

Totally Easy, Totally Yummy!!

So I was asking my friend, Shar, what to fix for dinner the other night, and she gave me this quick and easy idea:

Makes 4 HEAFTY sandwiches:

1 lb deli sliced Roast Beef (I prefer the most rare they have--better flavor)

8 slices Swiss Cheese

4 french bread rolls

1 packet Au Jus Mix (Lawry's or the like)

1 Onion (optional)

1 Red Pepper (optional)

Butter

Garlic Powder

Slice onion and pepper and saute.  

Prepare Au Jus according to packet directions.

Cut rolls in half, butter and season with garlic powder, then put under broiler to toast.

When rolls are done, dip a portion of the roast beef into the au jus, then place on rolls.  Top with 2 slices of cheese, onions and peppers.  Dip sandwiches in au jus and enjoy!!  Yummy!

Brisket Tamales

This is Guy Fieri's recipe, but I used green chile sauce instead of red because I prefer the flavor.  I also made a couple other changes, for which I changed the recipe below.  These tamales rock!  I like that they do not have lard in them, but still have a great texture-- and they were so easy to make!  You could really use any meat with these, but I really did love the brisket.  Oh, and Derrick wanted me to say that these tamales "are the all-time favorite tamales.  WAY better than the ones I had in Cancun, and better than my employee Dora's."  I don't think they are better than Dora's.  But they are a good second when I am craving her's.

3-Pound Beef Brisket

2 T kosher salt

6 C water, divided

4 T Canola oil

2 Cups enchilada sauce, store-bought (I used Costa Vida's green chile enchilada sauce)

24 Tamale husks

2 cups masa harina (fine corn flour)

3 cups water (approximate)

2 T melted butter

3 t salt

In medium braising pot, simmer beef in salt and 3 cups water for 1 hour or until meat can be shredded with a fork (I ended up cutting up the brisket after an hour and cooking it for another hour before it was shredable).  Shred beef and let it cool completely.

In a medium saute pan, add oil and fry meat for 3 to 5 minutes or until crispy.  Add enchilada sauce and simmer for 15 minutes.

Soak husks in water for 30 minutes.

Mix masa, water, butter and salt into a THICK paste.

Apply 5 T of the masa mix into the center of the corn husk.  Cover with plastic wrap and roll into a thin layer.  Add 2 T of the meat to the center.  Roll one edge of the husk over and press masa around the meat.  Peel the husk back from the masa you just rolled over the meat, and bring the other edge over to cover the entire tamale.  Fold end over.

Place a colander in a large pot of boiling water, but do not let the colander touch the water.  Place the tamales in the colander, cover and allow steam to rise to the top.  Steam the tamales for 30-40 minutes, or until ready.

These are great served with the Cilantro Sour Cream.

Mexican Beef Brisket

Found this recipe on Foodnetwork.com (surprise surprise).  Make sure you have a baking dish big enough for all the liquid!

3 1/2 pounds beef brisket

1 T coarse salt

2 t freshly ground pepper

Flour for dredging

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch lengths

2 medium onions, chopped

10 garlic cloves, peeled and minced

3 dried chipotle or morita chiles

2 T tomato paste

1 T dried oregano

2 quarts chicken stock

5 bay leaves

Salt to taste

4 scallions for optional garnish

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Sprinkle the brisket with the coarse salt and pepper.  Dredge in flour to coat and shake off any excess.  In a large Dutch oven heat oil over high heat.  Sear the meat until browned on all sides.  Set aside.  Reduce heat to moderate and add the carrots and onions.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes.  Add the garlic and saute 2 minutes longer.  Return the meat to the pan along with all remaining ingredients except the salt and garnish.  Bring to a boil, cover the pot and transfer to the oven.  Bake for 2 1/2 hours, or until the meat slips off a fork when pierced.  Lift out the brisket and place on a cutting board.  Cover with a damp towel.  Pour the broth with vegetables into a tall container and skim off the layer of fat that rises.  Remove and discard the bay leaves and chiles.  Pour the broth and vegetables into a blender or a food processor fitted with the metal blade.  Puree until smooth, add salt to taste and strain.  Reheat the sauce.  Slice the brisket against the grain and arrange on a platter.  Pour the warm sauce over it, sprinkle with sliced scallions and serve.