kayb

My grandmother would wade out into the flock and select the one she wanted to cook for dinner. She'd grab it by the neck and with a quick swing and flip of her wrist, snap the head right off. I always marveled at how she could do that. We didn't have chickens long. Daddy hated them, and we soon got rid of them and got ours from the lady down the road. She, in turn, got pork from us. It all worked out.

My nickel's worth: Beans, unless you're putting your chili over tamales, in which case, no beans. I am not certain why. It's just that way. I've made it with both chuck and ground beef, and like @Shelby, prefer it with venison. If I'm pulling meat out of the freezer specifically to make it, I'll generally use ground beef, to use up what usually winds up surplus in my annual beef share. I do use tomatoes, and a variety of chiles/chili powder. I do use RoTel, when I have it on hand, or I'll dump in a can of diced green chiles with my tomatoes. I do use beer. I do use chocolate (generic cocoa powder), and lots of cumin, and generally some allspice. i may serve it any number of ways; with rice, inside a baked potato, in a bread bowl, with a wedge of cornbread, with a grilled cheese sandwich, or just with a stack of saltines. And significantly more beer. It is one of those meals, like grilled burgers, that call for accompaniment by beer. Negra Modelo is my favorite with chili. I also love it over cheese enchiladas. I'm making myself hungry.

I, too, forgot to take pics, but dinner was beef curry, from Instant Pot Indian (or something to that effect) by Urvashi Pitre. I used tenderized round steak, cut in small chunks, vs. the called-for chuck roast, because I had it. Good. Like most of her recipes, I used probably 30 percent more of all spices except the red pepper, and used maybe half of that. Word of caution: If you like the sweet tinge that take-out Indian so often has, add a tablespoon of honey to her sauces. And most of her recipes create a surplus of sauce, which is not necessarily a bad thing. Cooked it PIP in the stackable tiffin tins in the IP. 20 minutes, 20 minute NPR.

Re: Olivier salad. Perhaps I'm sheltered, but I'd never heard of it. Sounds good (and potential variations are buzzing in my brain as I type). I have learned a New Thing. Today is therefore a worthwhile day. Thanks, @Tropicalsenior. And I'm glad the egg pucks (LOVE the term!) worked for you. I highly recommend 'em with proscuitto on that English muffin (I keep accumulating 4-oz packages of proscuitto from Aldi and freezing them; cheap and good!). Today I used my IP to: boil six eggs for deviled eggs I have not yet made make rice pudding and make beef curry with rice for dinner. None were things I could not have done otherwise, but the convenience and time savings were well worthwhile. I don't know that I can think of anything I can do in it that I couldn't do otherwise, and for some things that many people use the IP, I still prefer the old-fashioned method, like carbonnades a la flamande or bouef Bourguignon, but it's a worthwhile device in my kitchen and I'm sold on it. Particularly with the little pot-in-pot stackable tiffin-style pans.

They now make candy corn flavored Hostess cupcakes. I'm going to have to try them. I, too, have used the Buddig beef for SOS. Which, interestingly enough, I really like over a hot smashed potato (the potatoes you either bake or boil, then mash flat with a potato masher, brush with butter, and broil). Which, I reckon, would make it SOP. Damn, I hate it when that happens.

Inquiring minds want to see fried pumpkini....

Helluva deal. I'm tempted to get one and just put it up, against the day mine dies.

Oops. My apologies, Chris. Very good as toast the next morning. This may go in the regular rotation. I think I got my dough a bit too dry; I was on the phone as I was measuring flour, and may have overdone it. Suspect I shall try a sandwich later today.

Other than being a different color, it appears to be the same. There are also a couple in the "also looked at" collection at the bottom of the Amazon page that look similar. There was not quite an inch clearance in my Duo 6 for these, if that's helpful.

Oddly, the item no longer appears in Amazon that I can find. I bought them only a month or two ago. They are Rednolia Baby Food Freezer Trays. And yes, two fit perfectly atop the trivet. I am told silicone cupcake liners work well, too.

Made @Anna N's oatmeal bulgur bread today. Very good warm from oven. Think it will be excellent as toast or in sandwiches.

My Irish genes must be strong ones. I have yet to see a potato dish after which I do not lust. This one is no exception. I can close my eyes and hear my grandmother directing me to go to the basement and bring her up six "arsh" potatoes. Not until much later did I realize she was saying "Irish." I'm making that potato pancake tomorrow. Possibly latkes as well. I may have a baked potato for dinner.

I have taken the egg bite plunge. I was planning on doing them in the SV, had the jars and everything, and then ran across these cute little thingys on Amazon that I thought would be useful for a multitude of purposes. The first thing I did was freeze beef stock in them, then pop the little cubes out and stash them all in a big freezer bag. Today, I used the cups again to make egg bites in the IP. Six eggs, a healthy glug of cream (maybe 1/4 cup?), 2 oz crumbled goat cheese, 1.5 oz grated aged farmhouse cheddar, salt, pepper and chives, all whizzed up in the blender. Cut up some leftover brats, put in the cups; topped with egg mix. Six minutes high pressure, let it release 20 minutes or so, until I thought about it again. The leftover egg went into a pair of ramekins in the CSO at 350 for 15 minutes (and serendipitiously, are just about exactly the diameter of an English muffin). These were pretty doggoned good. I plan to freeze them and have them for quick breakfasts. In the pot: Cooked: Ready to wrap and freeze:

Anova is presently offering $30 off on their website.

That link should go directly to a sample page of the book that has the recipe. When I fire my laptop back up, I'll post the Screenshot I did of it.

Here.

Second the Anova. Mine has a Bluetooth function. I don't use it. It has enough power to cook a Coleman cooler full of ribs (long as you start with hot water, anyway). It's been steady and dependable and done everything I've asked it to do. And they periodically run sales on them.

I don't even want to hear it. You already cost me nine bucks plus tonight for the Six Seasons book. Like I need another freakin' cookbook on my Kindle.

They've got those babies in South Arkansas (the original Razorbacks). They're ugly, big, and mean. They'll kill you in a heartbeat, and eat you; they're omnivores. If I were going to hunt one, or be in the woods where they ranged, I'd want a .300 magnum Model 70 Winchester with me. I have eaten wild hog. It ain't great. You need to soak it at least 24 hours in buttermilk, and then cook the living hell out of it for about a day and a half.

OMG. That looks stunningly wonderful. I may have to get this book on the strength of this recipe (which I have found and saved) alone.

Noticed that. Butter and half-and-half went up, too, but they're still significantly cheaper than Kroger. Since the Masterbilt arrived yesterday, I dropped by today while I was out to see what they had in the meat realm. I walked out with a bottom round roast I plan to corn, and a sirloin tip I plan to smoke for Sunday dinner. I think that, with the Syracuse salt potatoes everyone's been raving about, and some roasted broccoli would be a quite admirable dinner. Also picked up some steelhead trout I plan to brine and then smoke. I've had smoked trout and liked it; might as well try smoking my own. I also ordered an assortment of six different kinds of wood chips -- mesquite, cherry, apple, hickory, alder, and I forget what else. Oh, how much fun new kitchen gadgets are! Any tips from you electric smoker peeps on smoking a sirloin tip? I'm going to have to cut it in half and smoke half of it properly (medium rare) for myself and one daughter, and incinerate the other half for the other daughter and her hubby, who will tolerate no pink in their meat. Philistines that they are.

Perhaps between us we can generate enough brain cells to remember. If not, we will call on the others to help.

Well, I'm glad that mystery is cleared up!

I like mine a lot. I don't use it every day...maybe not even weekly. But I would hate to not have it. It's great for cooking dry beans, and I like it for soups and stews. I rarely use my crock pot any more.