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Category Archives: Meat


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Braised Short Ribs

I spent hours scouring the web, food magazines, and cookbooks for Valentine’s Day dinner ideas. Lamb? Ravioli? Cornish hens? The possibilities were endless. I had only one requirement for this meal – it had to be something I’ve never made before. I found a recipe for braised short ribs on epicurious.com and glanced at the recipe. I decided to pass when I saw that I needed veal stock. No thanks, that’s a little too much work for me. I Googled “braised short ribs” and The Pioneer Woman’s recipe popped up. That woman knows how to cook and I could find all the ingredients at the grocery store. Perfect!

I followed her recipe exactly with a few minor alterations. I added 3 stalks of celery, diced, and used bacon instead of pancetta.

I finally decided to break out a wedding present I’ve been waiting to use… this monster of a cutting board by Catskill.

I love this cutting board! My only warning: be careful when opening! I stupidly managed to slice my finger on one of the oddly sharp finger slots on the board when I was tearing off the plastic. It was worth it, though. Look at how pretty food looks on it!

Braised Short Ribs
from The Pioneer Woman

8 whole beef short ribs
Kosher salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 pieces bacon, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3 carrots, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
2 shallots, minced
2 cups red winte
2 cups beef broth
2 sprigs thyme
2 sprigs rosemary

  1. Salt and pepper ribs, then dredge in flour. Set aside.
  2. In a large dutch oven, cook pancetta or bacon over medium heat until complete crispy and all fat is rendered. Remove pancetta and set aside. Do not discard grease.
  3. Add olive oil to pan with the pancetta grease, and raise heat to high. Brown ribs on all sides, about 45 seconds per side. Remove ribs and set aside. Turn heat to medium.

    Look how tasty they look at this point! And don’t worry, it gets better.

  4. Add onions, carrots, and shallots to pan and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in wine and scrape bottom of pan to release all the flavorful bits of glory. Bring to a boil and cook 2 minutes.
  5. Add broth, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Taste and add more salt if needed. Add ribs to the liquid; they should be almost completely submerged. Add thyme and rosemary sprigs (whole) to the liquid.
  6. Put on the lid and place into the oven. Cook at 350 for 2 hours, then reduce heat to 325 and cook for an additional 30 to 45 minutes. Ribs should be fork-tender and falling off the bone. Remove pan from oven and allow to sit for at least 20 minutes, lid on, before serving. At the last minute, skim fat off the top of the liquid. (Can also refrigerate mixture, then remove solid fat from the top.)
  7. Serve 2 ribs on bed of creamy polenta, spooning a little juice over the top.


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Buffalo Chicken Dip

I had this dip for the first time over the summer and I just had to recreate it for the Super Bowl! I found a few recipes online and made some adjustments. I made it with ranch dressing this time, but I think that I will try it with blue cheese next time for something different.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2 8 oz packages of Neufchâtel cheese (1/3 less fat cream cheese), softened
1 cup ranch or blue cheese dressing
1 cup Frank’s Hot Buffalo Wing Sauce
1 1/2 cups cooked chicken breast, shredded
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1 bunch celery, washed and cut into 4-inch sticks
1 package crackers of your choice

  1. Place cream cheese, dressing, and Red Hot in a medium size pan and heat over medium heat until melted, stirring occasionally.
  2. Mix in chicken and 1/2 cup cheddar cheese. Heat until chicken is warm. Transfer to a slow cooker and sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup cheese on top. Cook on low until cheese is melted.
  3. Keep warm and serve with celery and crackers.


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Shrimp Scampi

The first time I made this recipe from allrecipes.com it was just a little too buttery for me. This time, I scaled back on the butter and made a few other adjustments. I was pretty pleased with the results.

 

Shrimp Scampi
serves 6

1 stick butter, melted
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 lemon, juiced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 pounds medium raw shrimp, shelled and deveined
1 pound spaghetti, cooked
Grated Parmesan cheese for garnish, optional

  1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
  2. Whisk butter, mustard, lemon juice and garlic in a bowl.
  3. Arrange shrimp in a baking dish and pour butter mixture over the shrimp.
  4. Bake for 12 – 15 minutes until shrimp are pink and opaque.
  5. Serve over spaghetti and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, if desired.


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Pelmeni

One of the saddest days of my college life happened when Pelmeni closed. Pelmeni was a tiny little restaurant in Madison that served just that – pelmeni, or Russian dumplings. They had meat or potato or mixed and you could get it spicy or plain. There were piles of sour cream in the cooler and a few sodas, too. Not spicy enough? They had bottles of some sort of magical spicy sauce that you could dump onto the pelmeni.

So. Dang. Good.

I was devastated when they closed. Where else was I going to be able to get such a filling meal for only $5? I searched everywhere for pelmeni – in grocery stores, other restaurants, everywhere. I finally gave up and tried making my own version. The verdict? I think it came out pretty close to the original State Street restaurant.

Pelmeni

To make the dough:
2 cups flour, sifted
7 fluid ounces of cold water
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt

 

To make the filling:
1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
1 medium onion, finely chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

To make the topping:
1 tablespoon butter, melted
2 tablespoons vinegar
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 tablespoon Sriracha chili sauce
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
Sour cream, to taste

  1. Place flour in a large bowl. Make a dimple in the top of the mound and crack the egg into it. Add salt. Gradually add cold water and knead.
  2. Knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 15 – 20 minutes.
  3. Combine all filling ingredients and mix until all ingredients are evenly distributed. Set aside.
  4. Roll the dough into a rope 1 inch in diameter. Cut into 1 inch pieces.
  5. Roll the pieces into circles 1/16 of an inch thick.
  6. Place a teaspoon of filling into the center of the dough and pinch the edges to seal the pelmeni. The pelmeni will be in the shape of a semi circle. Bring the two pointed ends together to form the final shape.
  7. Mix the butter and vinegar together and set aside.
  8. Boil the pelmeni in salted water for 3 – 5 minutes.
  9. Toss pelmeni with the topping ingredients
  10. Toss the cooked pelmeni with the butter and vinegar and garnish with a dollop of sour cream, a dash of curry powder, a sprinkle of cilantro and a drizzle of Sriracha!

 


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Tater Tot Casserole

I had the privilege of trying this delicacy for the first time last year. As much as I hate to say this, I actually kind of like it. A lot. And I have a few little secrets that make it even better.

1. Red pepper flakes, and lots of ’em.
2. Baking the casserole without cheese to get the tots crispy

I apologize in advance for the photo. I think it’s dang near impossible to take an appetizing photograph of this monstrosity of a meal.

Tater Tot Casserole
serves 8

1 pound ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
1 pound frozen green beans
1 pound frozen corn
2 10.75 ounce cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 32 ounce package tater tots (I like the mini tots)
1.5 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

  1. Preheat oven to 350F
  2. Sauté the onion in a large pot until cooked. Add ground beef and cook until browned.
  3. Mix in green beans, corn, and soup. Stir in red pepper flakes until well-distributed.
  4. Spread mixture into a casserole dish and top with tater tots.
  5. Bake 30 – 45 minutes, or until tots are golden brown and casserole is heated through.
  6. Top with cheese and broil until the cheese is golden brown and bubbly.


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Pesto Chicken Pasta

It’s amazing how quickly time goes by. I create a to-do list almost daily with the intention of completing every.last.thing. on the list before I go to bed at night. I don’t think I have succeeded in doing so yet this semester. No matter how busy I am though, I still find the time to cook almost every single night. I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s not that I have too much to do, it’s that I just don’t want to do any of it. With graduation just a few months away, I’ve found it increasingly difficult to get my school work done. Senioritis much?

Pesto Chicken Pasta
serves 4 – 6

1 16 ounce package of pasta
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
crushed red pepper flakes to taste
1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, rehydrated and cut into strips
1/2 cup pesto sauce

  1. Cook pasta according to direction. Drain and place back into pot.
  2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic until tender, 2 minutes, and then stir in chicken.
  3. Season with red pepper flakes and cook until chicken is golden brown and fully cooked.
  4. In the pasta pot, combine the chicken, sun-dried tomatoes and pesto with the pasta. Toss to coat evenly.
  5. Serve immediately.


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Market Street Meat Loaf

I had meatloaf for the first time last semester. We made it in my food science lab and I was pretty disgusted by the process of kneading the raw meat for 5 minutes, but I was surprised by how good the end product tasted! I asked Mike to buy me the book the recipe came from for Christmas, and he delivered.

If you have a food processor, I highly recommend that you use it. I spent so much time finely chopping the ingredients until I remembered I had purchased a Cuisinart food processor during Black Friday. Unfortunately, I was already half way through the prep work, but the other half only took 30 seconds.

Don’t let the length of the recipe deter you from making it! It really doesn’t take that long, especially if you have a food processor.

Market Street Meat Loaf
serves 8 – 10
from The New Basics Cookbook

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
3/4 cup finely chopped scallions
1/2 cup finely chopped carrots
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup minced red bell pepper
1/4 cup minced green bell pepper
2 teaspoons minced garlic
Salt, to taste
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 eggs, well beaten
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup half-and-half
2 pounds lean ground beef chuck
12 ounces sausage meat (not fennel-flavored Italian sausage)
3/4 cup fine fresh bread crumbs, toasted

  1. Melt the butter in a heavy skillet and add the onion, scallions, carrots, celery, bell peppers, and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until the moisture from the vegetables has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Refrigerate, covered, until chilled, at least 1 hour.
  2. Preheat oven to 375°F.
  3. Combine the salt, black and white pepper, cayenne, cumin, nutmeg and eggs in a mixing bowl and beat well. Add the ketchup and half-and-half. Blend thoroughly.
  4. Add the chuck, sausage, and bread crumbs to the egg mixture. Then add the chilled vegetables and mix throughly with your hands, kneading for 5 minutes.
  5. With damp hands, form the mixture into an oval about 17 x 4 1/2 x 1 1/2 inches, resembling a long loaf of bread.
  6. Place the loaf in a baking dish and place this dish inside a larger pan. Pour boiling water into the larger pan until it reaches halfway up the sides of the baking dish.
  7. Place the pan in the oven and bake 35 – 40 minutes.
  8. Remove the baking dish from the water bath, and let the meat loaf rest for 20 minutes before slicing and serving.


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Szechaun Shrimp

I make a large variety of food here at school, but I don’t really make a lot of seafood. I decided to give shrimp a spin and I love love love this dish. It’s so incredibly easy and it’s surprisingly good with a really full flavor profile. Try it out! If you really like spicy foods (like me), toss in a little more red pepper flakes! I think I ended up accidentally dumping in 2 – 3 tablespoons and it was SO good.

Szechuan Shrimp
serves 4

4 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup sliced green onions
4 cloves garlic, minced
16 ounces large shrimp, cooked and tails removed

  1. Combine water, ketchup, soy sauce, cornstarch, honey, red pepper flakes and ginger in a bowl and set aside.
  2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in green onions and garlic and cook for 1 minute.
  3. Add shrimp and cook for 30 seconds, stirring often.
  4. Pour sauce on top and mix thoroughly with the shrimp. Cook until the sauce is thick and bubbly.
  5. Serve over white rice and enjoy!


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Stuffed Bell Peppers – with Venison!

These stuffed bell peppers went from good to great with the addition of venison! Mike got a deer this year and we have so much venison now! Though there are a lot of venison recipes out there, I’ve been trying to think of ways to incorporate it into unexpected places. The ground venison is perfect for that since it is easy to cook with! I’ve already put it into pasta sauce and now I’ve tried it in stuffed peppers, too! Both had really tasty results.

Stuffed Bell Peppers
serves 2

1 cup cooked white or brown rice
2 green bell peppers, halved and seeded
1/2 pound ground venison
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced, divided
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1 pinch ground black pepper
2 tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
  2. Place the peppers cut-side down on the prepared baking sheet. Roast 25 to 30 minutes or until tender and skin starts to brown.
  3. While the peppers are roasting, heat oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Cook half the green onions, basil, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper in oil for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in ground venison and cook until browned.
  4. Spoon in the cooked rice, tomatoes, and the remainder of the green onions and stir until heated through. Remove from heat, mix in the feta cheese, and spoon the mixture into the pepper halves.
  5. Return to the oven for 5 minutes. Serve immediately.


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Sweet and Sour Pork

I originally made this dish in my Food Science lab during fall semester using seitan, a meat substitute. The entire lab was really interesting, since it was based on using meat-substitutes. We used tofu, seitan, tempeh, and beans to make a huge variety of delicious dishes. This one was my favorite, and I decided to recreate it at home. While I enjoyed the seitan, I opted to use pork, since that was what I had on hand. Since then, I have also made this dish with chicken – both are very good!

Sweet and Sour Pork
serves 4

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 pound pork chops, cubed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large bell pepper, cut in strips
1 large onion, chopped
1 20 ounce can pineapple chunks with juice
1 cup pineapple juice
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons cornstarch

  1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add pork and cook until browned, stirring occasionally. Add the bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Cook until tender-crisp, stirring occasionally.
  2. Stir in the pineapple juice, brown sugar, vinegar, soy sauce and cornstarch. Reduce heat to low; cook and stir until thickened. Mix in pineapple chunks just before serving.
  3. Serve with white or brown rice.