The TTLG Official Cookbook, 2nd Ed. - by Mr.Duck
catbarf on 3/11/2015 at 15:28
Quote Posted by MrDuck
Does anyone have a great recipe, or two, for prepping burgers? :)
The meat is the most important thing. Get some good beef, preferably grass-fed, not too lean and not too fatty. I like 85% myself. If you want to go real fancy you can pick out a nice cut of beef and get a butcher to grind it. Once I have the beef, I like to mix in salt, pepper, a dash of chili powder, and just a touch of cayenne- all in moderation because you want to taste the burger. Form patties, throw on the skillet or grill.
I've also had success mashing black beans and adding them to the beef, along with generous helpings of cumin and chili, and serving the burgers with homemade pico de gallo, guacamole, and lime aioli. This is great when I can't find good beef because even the most insipid beef makes tasty burgers when you saturate them with spices and drown in fresh toppings.
Quote Posted by MrDuck
And, any good methods to making cheap cuts of beef taste great and not be tough without drowning them on sauce?
Slow cook it! Seriously, slow cookers are an incredibly easy way to make even the toughest cuts of chuck tender. As for taste, you can season them however you like. I've had success with a Mississippi Roast, which is where you put a 3-4lb chuck steak in the slow cooker and add a packet of au jus mix, a packet of ranch dressing mix, a stick of butter, and scattered pepperoncini, and it cooks down into a wonderfully rich gravy for the roast with minimal effort.
faetal on 3/11/2015 at 17:57
Lebanese shawarma is also a great way to add pizzaz to any cut of beef (lamb or chicken for that matter). The long marinade in the vinegar tenderises as it flavours, so you can really get away with using most cuts.
There should be plenty of recipes for it online or I can pester my wife (she's Lebanese) for it if you like?
bob_doe_nz on 5/11/2015 at 12:29
Quote Posted by heywood
Mine serve 2-4 depending on your appetite.
bob_doe - Thanks for the pictures, it looks great. I'm going to have to try that recipe too. What do you think about substituting chopped or diced tomatoes + some red wine in place of the tomato soup?
Try it if you want. No harm in giving it a go. Though I suggest perhaps cooking the tomatoes a bit to render down the chunkier bits. Or use a stick/immersion blender to puree it a bit more.
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And now...
Orange Pound Cake With Strawberries...
(Because I didn't have lemons on hand)
Recipe (
http://thesecretlifeofbee.co.za/2015/10/lemon-pound-cake-with-strawberries/) Here
3 Eggs
170gm Icing / Confectioners Sugar.
2 teaspoon vanilla essence / extract
170gm plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
A pinch of salt
170gm unsalted butter
The zest of an orange.
Strawberries. Quartered.
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http://imgur.com/1xMGQIv)
* Preheat oven to 170 degrees celcius. ~360 fahrenheit.
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* Start with the orange. Zest it lightly so you have smaller finer bits of zest.
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http://imgur.com/2MqBc4p)
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* Line and/or grease a bread tin.
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http://imgur.com/YKdtNCj)
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* In a bowl, add the sugar, eggs and vanilla.
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http://imgur.com/wVaIpEx)
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* Beat for about 5 mins till risen, combined and bubbly.
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http://imgur.com/HqZi9AH)
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http://imgur.com/3blsqhH)
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* In a second bowl, sift flour, baking powder and salt.
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http://imgur.com/IeuFHIl)
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* In a third bowl, melt the butter until just melted.
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* Add the zest into the butter and mix. The oils in the citrus will combine with the butter.
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* Now incorporate all three main bowl ingredients. Don't over mix.
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http://imgur.com/oA5TOhF)
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* Pour into prepared tin.
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http://imgur.com/NN4Gdug)
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* Place strawberries on top.
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http://imgur.com/srI5Hd4)
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* Place in oven and bake for around 40 - 50 minutes.
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* Cool, dust with more sugar.
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http://imgur.com/rj1k8of)
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http://imgur.com/4FcYyOp)
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* Serve.
Mr.Duck on 9/11/2015 at 07:15
<3
Gryzemuis on 9/11/2015 at 13:07
A simple pasta dish.
Fry little blocks of bacon in its own fat, or in a little olive oil.
Take out the bacon. Fry chicken-breast, cut in small pieces.
Take out the chicken. Fry sliced white mushrooms (champignons).
Put back the bacon and chicken.
Add Boursin cheese, or another soft creamy cheese with garlic, pepper, etc.
Add whipped cream. But just the cream. Don't whip it. Don't add sugar.
Put over the pasta.
Sprinkle with cut pieces of chives.
Very simple. Very quick. Very tasty. Very fat.
heywood on 9/11/2015 at 14:39
Quote Posted by MrDuck
And, any good methods to making cheap cuts of beef taste great and not be tough without drowning them on sauce?
Slow cooking. Soups and stews, pot roasts, braising in a slow cooker, smoking, etc. Whatever the heat source, get the interior temperature of the meat above 160F/70C which is the temperature at which the collagen starts to liquify into gelatine, and then hold it in the 170-190F/75-85C range until the meat is sufficiently tender.
Smoking is great for fatty cuts, especially pork shoulder and ribs, but also beef clod and short ribs. When smoking leaner cuts, like brisket, I find that it is necessary to inject liquid into the meat before cooking and sometimes again while cooking, otherwise it becomes too dry and needs to be sauced up to eat.
I love braising beef short ribs in a slow cooker with a thick chili-based braising liquid. I start with a mix of dried chilis, usually a few anchos, maybe a guajillo or two, and a couple of chipotles. Remove stems and pour out the seeds, place in a small pot, cover with water, and cook on low heat until they are rehydrated and soft (usually 30 min or so). Brown up some chopped onion and garlic. Add chilies, onion, garlic, and whatever other spices or flavorings you think warranted to a blender and chop into a thick puree. Sear and brown the short ribs, on a charcoal fire if you can, otherwise a hot steel skillet, then put them in the slow cooker and cover with the chili sauce. Cook overnight on low heat until the meat literally falls off the bone, and then serve however you like. Pulling it apart with forks makes great taco meat when friends come over. For a slightly less flavorful but much cheaper alternative, use a chuck roast rather than short ribs.
If you want a rich beef experience, make daube. Daube is a French dish that is sort of in between a stew and a pot roast, made with beef marinaded in red wine, and is very rich. I can write a recipe if anyone is interested.
Another way to make tough cuts tolerable is by slicing the meat across the grain, either before or after cooking. This is particularly effective with cuts from the abdomen which have long muscle fibers all going in the same direction, such as brisket, flank, and skirt. Also with flat iron/oyster blade steak from the shoulder. And flanken style (cross cut) short ribs, which are great for barbecue.
DiMarzio on 9/11/2015 at 14:55
Bachelor's special:
Ingredients:
* Nothing. Literally nothing. It won't work if you have something.
You need:
* A microwave or oven.
Preparation time:
* Reserve a whole day
1. After some time, realise you haven't eat anything all day.
2. Check your fridge.
3. Realise there's nothing to eat.
4. Go back to your PC/TV/whatever, thinking that you'll go to grocery later.
5. Repeat steps 1-4 until close to starvation.
6. Gather your last strength and finally go to store, fighting weakness and tremor.
7. Buy just the first easy processed food you see.
8. Go home and prepare it.
9. Serve with disposable dishes and self-loathing.
10. Don't enjoy!
bob_doe_nz on 12/11/2015 at 02:39
Quote Posted by MrDuck
And, any good methods to making cheap cuts of beef taste great and not be tough without drowning them on sauce?
Well for our takeout that our family had, we used Beef Skirt (Like but isn't Flank) and part of the marinade included...
Baking Soda.
Other options are to use Kiwifruit as part of a citrus-y marinade.
Mr.Duck on 12/11/2015 at 04:10
Tell me more...
