Bulgogi

Being an Army brat, I had the pleasure of many new experiences and becoming friends with a diverse group of people while growing up. My first best friend ever I met in Germany in the 1980s while in elementary school. Gina and I did everything together and stayed at each other's houses often. I made my nachos for her, and her mother, a Korean native, introduced me to many foods I'd never tried before. Gina and I reconnected in adulthood and remain friends to this day. For Thanksgiving 2016, Gina and her daughter came to visit me and my family. We had so much fun reminiscing and allowing our daughters the chance to get to know one another. One of my favorite activities was the cooking we did together... just like old times. I made Gina several dishes she had not tried before, and Gina made me bulgogi. Have you ever had bulgogi? It's a Korean dish made of thin, marinated slices of beef or pork grilled on a barbecue or on a stove-top griddle. It is also often stir-fried in a pan in home cooking. Sirloin, rib eye or brisket are frequently used cuts of beef for the dish. This dish was so delicious, and both my daughter and I loved it. This is Gina's recipe that she shared with me. You have to try this!

4 lbs rump roast (ask the store to shave it as thinly as possible)
1 entire bulb of garlic finely chopped
2 bunches of green onions sliced thin
2 large yellow onions chopped
3 green (red, yellow or orange) bell peppers chopped
4 large carrots finely peeled and sliced or a bag of julienne pre-cut matchstix size
1/2 cup of white sugar
1 entire bottle of low sodium soy sauce
1/2 bottle of sesame seed oil

2 Tbsp of fresh diced ginger or use the purée in a tube

1 Tbsp of black pepper

Start by chopping and prepping the bell pepper, onion, green onion, and carrots and garlic, if you're chopping those. I chose to use jarred garlic and the matchstix carrots.

Add the soy sauce and sesame oil to the meat.

Add the garlic, ginger, and sugar and mix into the meat.

Add the carrots, bell peppers, onion, and green onion and mix all of it together by hand (put on latex gloves) and be sure to separate the slices of meat to get all the flavors mixed in it.

Let it marinate for 30 minutes to overnight. The 4 lbs of meat will make enough to feed 6 people two times. I chose to bag and freeze mine. I got four quart-size freezer bags full of bulgogi, which feed my daughter and me twice. Be sure to freeze them flat. It's easier to store, and they thaws quicker. 

If you are pulling it out of the freezer, be sure to pull it the night before and thaw in fridge. When ready to cook, fry in a frying pan or wok on high heat. No extra oil is needed. At first it will be very liquidy... just continue to cook until some of the moisture cooks down.

Serve over jasmine rice and enjoy the aromatic, delicious yumminess!

Chicken Chili

I grew up notorious for being a very plain, habitual, consistent eater. The past year or two, I have taken an active role in trying to push the boundaries of my self-imposed limitations. There are still plenty of areas that I'm not ready to push past, but this recipe for Buffalo Chicken Chili that I found on Pinterest was one of the ones out of my norm that I decided to give a try. It actually was a nice alternative to my regular chili, and worth a look at if you like chicken and chili. I messed with the recipe a little. The original is cooked in a crock pot, which I passed on. And I left out a few ingredients that I wasn't interested in. I don't think the recipe suffered any, because it was still rather delicious.

2 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 large red (or orange or yellow) pepper

Assortment of hot peppers - jalapeño, cayenne, Anaheim, cowherd
1 large onion
5 cloves of garlic
1/3 cup chili powder
2 Tbsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp paprika

1 Tbsp Ancho chili powder
Other possible chili powders are cayenne, chipotle, hot Mexican chili powder (I added an addition 2 Tbsps or so)

Dash of Adobo
3 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (15 oz) can kidney chili beans
1 (15 oz) can black chili beans
1 (15 oz) can pinto chili beans

1 (15 oz) can corn, drained
Salt and pepper to taste

Boil chicken in large pot until cooked and easy to shred.

Shred chicken. Heat about 2 Tbsps oil in the pot. Add onions and bell pepper and sauté for 2 minutes. Add chicken and garlic to pot and sauté for 5 minutes.

Add corn, beans, tomato sauce, hot peppers and spices, and mix well.

 Cook on low for several hours until hot and flavors come together. 

Hungarian Goulash

A big pot of something warm simmering on a cold day lifts my soul and makes everything better. I make some soups and beans, but I didn't have a huge amount of recipes for cold day meals, so when I came across this Slow-Cooker Hungarian Beef Goulash recipe on Pinterest, I knew it was one I needed to try. The final product reminded me of the Hungarian Goulash that I remember from my childhood in Germany. It was rich and thick and aromatic, and warmed the body and the soul. Add a nice warm slice of the Rustic No-Knead Bread that I just blogged and is pictured above and you have an amazing meal!

2 lbs beef stew meat, trimmed and cubed
2 tsp caraway seeds
2 Tbsp sweet or hot paprika (or a mixture of the two)
1/2 tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 large onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper chopped
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
2 cups reduced sodium beef broth
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1 Tbsp cornstarch mixed with 2 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

Dice beef into bite size pieces, and place beef in a 4-quart slow cooker.

Crush caraway seeds with a mortar and pestle (or you can use the bottom of a saucepan or meat tenderizer). Add paprika, salt and pepper, and stir to combine.

 

 Sprinkle the beef with the spice mixture and toss to coat well.  

Add onion, bell pepper, tomatoes, broth, Worcestershire sauce and garlic to slow cooker. 

Place bay leaves on top. Cover and cook until the beef is very tender, 4-1/2 to 5 hours on high or 7 to 7-1/2 hours on low.

Discard the bay leaves. Add the cornstarch mixture to the stew and cook on high, stirring 2 or 3 times, until slightly thickened, 10 to 15 minutes. Sprinkle fresh diced parsley over goulash before serving.

Unstuffed Bell Peppers

I find it rather funny... growing up my mom used to make this meal, and I would meticulously pick out every piece of bell pepper that was in it. I never, ever thought I would make this myself. About 10 years ago, I was at a vegetable stand getting some fruit and vegetables for me and my daughter and I saw these bell peppers in a basket and they just looked so pretty. I picked one up and squeezed it and then smelled it, and I had never smelled anything so amazing. I bought them, brought them home and made this meal. I make it at least once a month now. And now it's my daughter's turn to meticulously pick out all traces of pepper in the mixture. This is a very easy meal to make, and the leftovers warm up very well, which is great for lunches. It's also very flexible. You can make as much or as little as you want or you can have it more meat heavy or more rice and bell pepper heavy, which is how I make it.

1 lb ground beef

1 medium onion, diced

1-2 small to medium jalapeños

2-3 tsps minced garlic

2-4 cups uncooked instant Minute rice (white or brown works fine, and sometimes I mix them)

1-3 green bell peppers

2-4 cans tomato sauce

season all salt

Brown the ground beef in a skillet large enough to hold the whole meal. I season my ground beef with season all salt. It's lower in sodium than regular salt and I just like the flavor better. While the beef cooks, dice up the bell pepper, onion and jalapenos and set aside. 

With just a very light bit of pink left to the meat, add the jalapeños and onion and continue cooking until the beef is thoroughly cooked. Add the garlic and mix well.

Now here's the hard part... pour in as much rice as you want for the mixture of meat to rice that you desire. Afraid I have never once measured how much rice I use, but I guess it's about 2 or 3 cups. Add the bell pepper, and pour the tomato sauce over it all. 

I usually use one to three 15 oz cans of tomato sauce depending on how much rice I add. This batch I added more rice than usual and ended up using two 15 oz cans and a small one. The most important part is that when it's all mixed together it needs to be soupy. Not swimming in tomato sauce, but it cannot be dry. This is what cooks the rice and bell pepper.

Put a lid on it, reduce the heat to med-low or med, and simmer for about 20 minutes. The rice will be tender when it's done. You need to stir it frequently to ensure it doesn't stick or burn, but that's it. What I love most about the recipe is that the bell pepper cooks some, but still maintains a bit of crunch to it. Lots of flavors in this meal. And as I said, it's super EASY to make, and it reheats very well. Let me know if you try it and alter it any!