Camping Oatmeal

For each serving:

1/2 cup oatmeal:  (I use Dan-D Pak Goji Omega Boost Oatmeal.  It has Goji berries, Blueberries, and flax seeds.  You could also make your own)

2 tsp brown sugar

2 tsp powdered milk

Raisins

To cook add to 1 1/2 cups boiling water, stir, and cover.  I use my Jetboil.  So easy and a great breakfast.

Dill Pickles (friend's mother's recipe)

In each jar place:

1 handful or head dill 

1 clove peeled garlic

1/8 tsp alum

Pack with pickling cucumbers, whole or sliced

Each jar holds about a pound of cucumbers

Brine:

13 cups distilled water

6 cups white vinegar

1 cup canning salt

Bring to a boil and pour over cucumbers, leave about a 1/2" gap.  One batch of brine fills about twelve jars

Processing:

Boiling water bath for 5 minutes

Note: the pickles are a bit soft, probably because I sliced them.  Perhaps a bit of "Pickle Crisp" next time but that will be a while as I have thirty jars of pickles.

Note 2: I added a quarter of a jalapeno pepper, seeds removed, to each of four of the jars, just to see if I liked spicy pickles.

Spicy Pork Chili

 

3 - 4 pound pork loin roast OR 4 thick cut pork loin chops, cut into 3/4" cubes

2 large sweet onions, chopped

Saute the pork and onions until pork is lightly browned and onions are starting to become more translucent

Add four cloves minced garlic and give it a good stir

Add:

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 cup celery, chopped

1 box Pomi chopped tomatoes (or two regular cans)

1 can tomato paste (large size, not the tiny one)

1 can black turtle beans (or your favorite kind of beans)

1 tbsp brown sugar

2 tsp oregano

1 tbsp chili powder (use something good if you can, not the stuff you buy at the grocery store as it will have more flavor.  I have a friend who makes his own and sends me some once a year or so)

Instapot: 25 minutes

Stovetop: Simmer for 45 minutes 

Chicken Pumpkin Cat Food

Two boneless, skinless chicken breaststroke

One small can pure pumpkin (I use Libbys)

Cube chicken and steam for ten minutes

Puree in food processor

Add pumpkin and puree til mixed

Serving size: one large tablespoon

Char Sui (Chinese BBQ Pork)

This recipe was conglomerated from a variety of web sites.  I started with two Chinese cookbooks that I have in my kitchen, thought they looked uninteresting, which led me to three other recipes online, which led me to making my own hoisin sauce.

Hope you enjoy.

3 lb pork shoulder, deboned and sliced into 8 in x 3 in x 1 1/2 in strips

Marinade

1/2 c white sugar (I use turbinado)
4 tsp salt
1 tsp five spice powder
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 tsp sesame oil
2 T rice wine
2 T soy sauce
2 T hoisin sauce
4 tsp molasses
1/4 tsp red food coloring
6 cloves minced garlic

As usual, if you have been reading my recipes, I didn't measure much of any of this, just chucked it into the shaker bottle.

Combine in a shaker bottle.  Full disclosure, the recipe pictured I actually made a batch of hoisin sauce and then marinaded the pork in that, because I forgot that I was making the hoisin to go in the marinade.  I then mixed all the other ingredients and re-marinaded the pork.  It came out good anyway but I don't have any hoisin sauce for next time I need it.

Basting sauce:

2 - 4 T marinade
2 T maltose (honey if you can't find maltose but they have it at Asian groceries)
1 T hot water
Mix and shake well to dissolve sugar

Marinate overnight in the fridge.

Preheat oven to 475 - 550 °F and put rack in top third of oven. (I did 525°F)

Line a sheet pan with foil and place a metal rack on top.  Place the pork on the rack, leaving as much space as possible in between pieces, and pour 1 1/2 cups of water into pan below pork.  This should cut down on smoke.

Note: I recommend a large heavy sheet pan.  I used two normal pans and they were thin enough that the heat caused them to warp during baking.  This caused the water to flow to one end and defeated the purpose.  I had a lot of smoke.

Roast pork for 25 minutes and then flip over.  Add water if necessary.

Roast for 15 minutes then baste both sides and roast another 10 minutes.

If pork is not sufficiently caramelized, broil for a couple minutes but watch closely as it will burn.

Remove from oven and baste with the leftover sauce, let sit 10 minutes, slice thinly and across the grain and serve.

Various sites say that this freezes really well for inclusion in fried rice later.

Hey 19)

Doesn't really have a name.  Alton Brown made it up during quarantine kitchen . They called it a Hey 19 but I don't know why (yes, I get the Steely Dan reference).

Anyway, grate about three inches of ginger, add a dozen cardamom pods, and one star anise to some water (I did a little more than a cup).  Bring to a simmer, then strain and cool.  Boom, ginger syrup.

Use a juicer to extract the juice of half  a large lemon.












2 oz bourbon (I am partial to Maker's Mark)
1 oz ginger syrup
juice from a half lemon

I shake this up with ice in a cocktail shaker but then just dump the whole thing, ice included, into a glass for drinking.

Grill burgers

Can't remember where I saw this, but it wasn't anything super complicated, just really good.

Take your hamburger and gently form patties about 2 inches across.

Heat up some butter til it sizzles and starts to turn brown.

Set patties in butter then mash down with a solid spatula until they are about 1/2 inch thick.

Cook until they start to brown a bit on the edges (about 2 minutes), then flip. 

Pile a small heap of grated cheese (cheddar pictured) and cover with a lid until cheese is mostly melted (about a minute or so).

Serve with carmelized onions and a green salad (or don't, that's what's in the picture)

And yes, that's a lot of blue cheese dressing.  Don't judge me, it's why I eat salad.

Hoisin Sauce

1/4 cup light soy sauce

2 T peanut butter
1 T honey
2 tsp rice vinegar
2 tsp sesame oil
1 clove garlic, grated (I used minced)
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 tsp spicy fermented bean paste (careful here, stores will sell you the wrong stuff)

Add to a shaker bottle and shake well until completely mixed.

From The Omnivore's Cookbook

Pictured at right, me using the Hoisin Sauce to make Chinese BBQ Pork.

The Asian grocery in town sold me Spicy Soybean Paste, which is not the same.  For your protection I include the following link, also from the Omnivore's Cookbook

https://omnivorescookbook.com/pantry/fermented-bean-paste

Smoked Macaroni and Cheese

This uses four different cheeses.  I've also done it in the oven. Not quite as good but if you aren't running the smoker it's a nice option.

• 16 ounces (1 package) macaroni

• 1/4 cup butter

• 1/4 cup  flour

• 3 cups milk

• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, cut into chunks

• 1 t salt

• 1/2 t black pepper

• 8 ounces extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded, divided

• 8 ounces smoked Gouda cheese, shredded, divided

• 4 ounces Parmesan cheese, shredded (do NOT use the powdered stuff)

Directions are just a straightforward mac and cheese.

1. Cook the pasta til it is al dente (slightly chewy when you eat a piece)

2. Melt the butter in a saucepan.  Whisk in the flour and bring it to a boil (whisking constantly) for one minute.  This is important because it eliminates the flour taste.  Slowly add milk, whisking constantly and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and stir in cream cheese, s & p and wisk til smooth.

3.  Combine 2 cups each cheddar and Gouda, parmesan, pasta, and sauce and mix it all up.

4. Coat 9 x 13 aluminium foil baking dish with cooking spray (you are putting in the smoker so you want the aluminium dish) and dump the whole mixture in.  Cover with foil.

5. Smoke for 45 minutes (if you are doing meat  you'll have a temperature somewhere between 210°F and 250°F), then take off the foil, sprinkle with the rest of the cheese, and stick it back in the smoker for another fifteen minutes.

Lamb Shawarma on the rotisserie

From the NY Times cooking blog, I did this on a countertop rotisserie that friend's gave me, it was incredible.

Marinade

2 t black peppercorns
5 cloves
1/2 t cardamom pods
1/4 t fenugreek seeds
1 t fennel seeds
1 T cumin seeds
1 star anise
1/2 cinnamon stick

Dry roast in a small cast iron pan until they begin to pop.

Add:

1 T grated nutmeg (about a half a nut if you are grating your own)
1/4 t ground ginger
1 T sweet paprika

Toss for a few seconds, transfer to a spice grinder (a well cleaned out coffee grinder will work fine), and grind to a powder.

Add:

1 T dried sumac
3/4 T kosher salt
3 inch piece ginger, peeled and grated
3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced or crushed
3/4 cup chopped cilantro (leaves and stems is fine)
4 T fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup peanut oil

Stir it all together.

I used a boneless leg for this since it's going to be in the rotisserie.

Rub marinade all over the leg and then tie it up thoroughly with butcher twine.  You don't want it falling off the rotisserie because it isn't secure.

Rest overnight in the fridge.

Fire up the rotisserie and follow it's directions.  Cook to an internal temperature of about 125° for medium rare, up to 145°F for well done.  DO NOT cook it to 160 which the little chart on some thermometers recommends.  It will be dry and horrible.

Let it rest for about fifteen minutes with a sheet of foil over it, then slice and serve.  I like this with Rosemary Potatoes (cook small red potatoes, quartered with some rosemary, garlic, and butter in a sealed foil packet for about an hour)

Smoked pork butt

Can't believe I've never posted this or some of my other smoker recipes so I'll have to try to catch up.

My favorite (and only since I cleared out some recipe books) is Smoke & Spice by the Jamisons.  This is from that book and if you are going to buy a smoker you should pick this one up.

My go to recipe from this book is a pork butt:

Rub:
1/2 c ground black pepper
1/4 c paprika
1/4 c raw (Turbinado) sugar
2 T salt
2 t dry mustard
1 t cayenne

6 to 8 pound butt

Rub all over and refrigerate overnight.

I try to keep my smoker between 210°F and 250°F.

It will take about 10 to 12 hours so get up early (I have read 1 1/2 hours per pound but can't confirm.

I use an oven thermometer with a wired probe to track to the meat temperature, that way I don't have to keep opening the lid to check the temperature.

I also use a mop, or basting solution.

2 cups cider vinegar
1 cup water
3 T black pepper
2 T salt
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 T paprika
1 T cayenne

Shake it up and mop the meat every hour or so.

I then added a bit of sugar to the leftover mop and used it as a vinegar BBQ sauce.  Mm, mm, mm.

Here's the Coleslaw recipe that I serve with this, the only coleslaw I've ever actually liked.

As usual, I am not good at remembering to take pictures, but I did manage to get one of the rubbed butt and the smoker setup so there you go.

Coleslaw

The only coleslaw I've ever actually liked.  I make it every time I do pork in the smoker.

1 cup half and half
1/2 cup sugar
6 T cider vinegar
2 T mayonnaise
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 t salt

1 medium cabbage, grated
4 medium carrots, grated

Shake up the dressing ingredients, mix with vegetables.  Refrigerate for at least an hour.

Baked shrimp with feta, tomatoes, and spinach

3 large shallots, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 T olive oil

Heat oil over medium heat then cook shallots and garlic until they are soft.  Mixture should resemble a coarse paste.

2 pounds sweet Campari tomatoes, cut into small wedges.  Original recipe said blanche and peel tomatoes, I don't bother.

Add tomatoes to onion mixture and cook over low heat til you have a chunky sauce.

Add salt, pepper, and about a 1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes.

Stir in two large handfuls of spinach and cook for a couple minutes to  wilt the spinach into the sauce.

Pour into large, shallow casserole dish.  I used a 13 x 9.

1 1/2 pounds large shrimp with veins and tails removed.  Cooked or uncooked, I'll address this later.

Layer over sauce.  Season with salt and pepper.

1/2 to 3/4 pound feta cheese, crumbled

Layer over shrimp.

If you use raw shrimp bake in 400°F oven until cheese starts to brown and sauce is bubbly.  Original recipe says 12 minutes but that wasn't enough for mine.

If you use cooked shrimp, broil on high until cheese starts to brown and sauce is bubbly.  I baked mine and the cooked shrimp was a bit tough.  I bought the cooked, however, because I didn't want to deal with the de-veining part.   Next time I will broil instead.

Cooking times vs thermometers (spoiler alert: thermometer wins)

I am walking away from cooking times for my recipes.  You may notice that some of them say "cook to temperature" and then include a disclaimer of "about xx minutes".  I found that much of what I was cooking was either overcooked or undercooked when I went with the recipe recommendations.  I bought a really good oven thermometer which looks a lot like this one:

and I plug it in every time I cook meat.  Set to temp, alarm goes off when I get there, perfectly cooked meat every time so long as I know what temperature I like it.

Honey and Soy Glazed Chicken

From the NY Times: (disclaimer) I mostly started this so that I would have access to my recipes no matter where I was.  If you are reading this and thinking about making it, please go to the NY Times recipe site and subscribe or otherwise support them.

2 T vegetable oil
1 T minced garlic
1 T minced ginger
6 T soy sauce
5 T mild honey
3 T unsalted butter
S & P

3 pounds skin on chicken thighs (I used a mix of thighs and legs)

Heat 1 T oil over medium heat and then add garlic and ginger, cooking until they are softened.
Add soy and honey and simmer until slightly thickened .
Turn off heat and stir in butter, salt, and pepper.  Whisk until melted.

Season chicken with S&P and lay out on foil lined, rimmed baking dish or tray.  There should be space between the pieces.

Coat all over using about half the glaze, then bake at 425°F for about fifteen minutes.

Brush with 2 tablespoons of glaze, then bake another ten minutes or so (or until internal temperature is reached).  Chicken should be golden and cooked all the way through.

Drizzle with remaining glaze and serve.

Bock Stew

From Instapundit:

3 pounds beef chuck, cubed
1/4 c vegetable oil
4 large sweet onion
6 - 8 cloves garlic, crushed
1 stick butter, halved
1/4 c flour
14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 pound mushrooms
1 T sweet paprika
2 t salt
2 t fresh ground pepper
1 t thyme
1 t ancho chili powder
1/2 t sage
2 bay leaves
3 12 oz bottles beer

In a dutch over (I used my Instant Pot) brown beef in batches with vegetable oil.  Set aside and remove oil from pot.
In half stick butter, carmelize onions and garlic over low heat.

In small saucepan melt remaining butter until it starts to bubble, whisk in flour and cook over low heat until it turns brown (this is a roux).

Add roux and beef back to dutch oven or Instant Pot.  Add mushrooms, herbs, and spices.  Mix and then stir in beer.

Instant Pot: Set IP to pressure cook for 25 minutes, then natural release for 10.

Dutch oven: Bring to a simmer on stovetop, then put in 350°F oven for 2 hours.

Both, when cooked, remove lid, simmer until liquid reduces to saucelike consistency.

Mmmm.

I don't have a picture but it looks like a stew.

Rotisserie Boneless Leg of Lamb w/ Rosemary Garlic Marinade

Was given a Ronco Showtime Jr Rotisserie.  Slightly used but everything was there and it was in the original box (except without the user manual) so I can't complain too much.  Was told that if I didn't like it I could give it away.  Wiped it down a bit and went to work.

Ingredients:

1 boneless leg of lamb, butterflied (Costco has good quality lamb for VERY reasonable prices)

6 cloves garlic, minced
1 T chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 c extra virgin olive oil
juice from one large lemon
2 t Kosher salt
1 t freshly ground black pepper
1 t fresh lemon zest

Whisk together marinade ingredients and put in a one gallon plastic ziplock bag.

Add leg of lamb and squish around to completely cover.

Marinate at room temperature for one hour.  Notice the spelling difference between "marinade - the noun" and "marinate - the verb".

Roll lamb as tightly as possible  and tie with butcher's twine.

Install into rotisserie and cook until internal temperature is 145°F (about 13 to 15 minutes per pound).  Now, having said that, I don't recommend that you cook it that much.  I did mine and it came out a bit well done.  I'd probably go no more than 125°F.

I also read something recently that recommended basting at 30 minute intervals.  Might be a good use for the leftover marinade so I'll try that next time.

This was delicious except for the whole "too well done" thing.  Next up, Jerusalem Lamb Shawarma, which I have roasted in the oven but not cooked on the rotisserie.  (Just checked and this recipe hasn't been added so I'll probably put both up at the same time).