mgaretz

It was just me for dinner last night, so I thought I'd try smoking a small sirloin steak. Rubbed with McCormick's Montreal Steak Rub and smoked at 225F to an IT of 120F, then a reverse sear on the gasser. Came out very smokey, maybe even a little too much smoke. I think I prefer steaks done sous vide, then reverse seared.

Used some of the leftover meatloaf to make a meatloaf casserole. This was invented by my wife and realized by me. It was meatloaf, colored spiral pasta and a little more chopped celery, mixed with a sauce similar to the meatloaf glaze (ketchup, sugar, soy and molasses) and topped with panko. Baked at 375 for 30 minutes. Served with salad.

I've always found it slightly disturbing that restaurants will charge more for the bone-in cut, ostensibly because it weighs more. Like an 10 oz boneless ribeye for $18 and a 14 oz bone-in ribeye for $22. Most of the added weight is in the bone you don't eat. Of course they sell it by saying it's more flavorful!

Just be sure to adjust the beater/wisk height before running it. I got a 6 qt from Costco and it could not be adjusted correctly - the beater hit the bowl regardless. Had to take it back.

Made meatloaf the other day. My plated pictures didn't turn out, but there's a shot of the whole thing: And the cut loaf:

Reheat in the microwave or the oven or even a pan on the stove, but definitely slice first and the key is to save as much jus as you can from the first day and reheat the slices in that. If there's isn't much jus (or none), use (or supplement) with some low sodium beef broth.

Probably have, but pretty simple: The chops are oiled with EVO and the rub is Meathead's Memphis Dust (I use the version with salt - he has since taken it out of the recipe and advocates dry brining with just salt and then applying the rub just before going on the smoker). The smoker is set to 225F (it's a Rec Tec pellet grill and will hold that temp within a degree or two). Smoke to an IT of 145F. I use a leave-in remote thermometer (a Maverick 732) so I have a constant readout of the temperature. Since the chops are cooked low and slow (well they only take about 90 minutes, but that's slow compared to direct heat), no need to worry about how lean they are. They come out moist and tender.

Last night I made smoked pork loin chops for dinner. Came out very flavorful and juicy. Served with my ubiquitous roasted carrots:

It's small but pricey - primarily because it's designed for outdoor use and can fit under a cabinet. For the same money you can get a 13.7 cf model: http://www.sears.com/kenmore-13.7-cu-ft-upright-freezer-white/p-04628432000P?prdNo=7&blockNo=7&blockType=G7 FYI, brand matters little, so shop by features and price. Almost all freezers are made by Frigidare for everyone including kenmore and whirlpool.

What dcarch said! I would never have a manual defrost again. If you are looking at an upright (which I highly recommend), then another advantage of most frost-free models is that the shelves are adjustable.

Yet another smoked tri-tip! This time I dry brined it with just salt and applied a rub just before smoking. Came out very nice! Served with roasted carrots (and salad, not pictured):

I like radishes in my salad, but dealing with them is a pain (washing, de-stemming, etc.) and you really don't get much for the money. Instead I have been using daikon radishes. I peel and slice them. If the daikon is fat, I'll halve or quarter the piece before slicing.

Lasagna Chicken noodle soup Chow mein, lo mein etc. Macaroni salad

Almost all of my steaks are cooked from frozen. Why? Because when they go on sale I stock up! And sometimes they'll have a roast on sale, but not the cut sliced into steaks. I'll buy the roast and slice it myself. That would end up being too much meat to cook it all fresh. Just like weedy, I sous vide them first then do a quick reverse sear. Since I vacuum seal them for freezing, it's very easy to pop them in the SVS for an hour. Defrost and cook to perfect doneness in one step.

No idea as I've always followed the recipe. I would assume it'd be harder to toast well when wet.

My daughter is moving to Portland tomorrow to attend Grad School. She requested one her favorites that I make: Drunken Noodles (Pad Kee Mao). How could I refuse? I usually will serve that with an Asian vegetable, but I totally forgot to pick up something. All I had fresh were Brussels Sprouts, so I free-lanced a sauce from sesame oil, soy sauce and hoisin sauce and dusted them with toasted sesame seeds. They both came out good!

Could be, but my mom never used it nor have I. Just vegetable oil.

Looks like what you have isn't roasted like most boxed kashas, but I think if you toast it like in the recipe, it would accomplish the same thing.

Well the question is: "Is kasha a dish or a grain or both?" It appears to be a dish. According to Wikipedia, kasha comes from kashi which means porridge and depending on where you are in the world it can be made form a variety of groats (aka berries). What you have appears to the same as what you'd get if you bought a box of kasha, so I'd go ahead and make kasha with it. Here's my mom's kasha recipe (and I assume it was passed down through the generations): Beat an egg and then mix it thoroughly with the kasha and let it dry (about an hour). Meanwhile saute a diced onion and set aside. Heat up a large pan on high heat and spread out the kasha, tossing and toasting it until you get little wisps of smoke. Reduce the heat to simmer and pour in boiling water to just cover the kasha. Cover and simmer until all the water is absorbed. Stir in the onions and season with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Some people like to add in bowtie pasta creating Kasha Varnishkas. I don't bother. It is much better when served with mushroom/beef gravy!

Maybe try a cake collar.

The last of the chicken became chicken chow mein: Chow mein noodles, bean sprouts, carrots, celery, cabbage, onion, mushrooms, snow peas and the chicken. Seasoned with sesame oil, fresh ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes. Sauce was soy sauce, cream sherry, sugar, and cornstarch.

Same chicken as the other day, cut up this time and served as leftovers with a leftover half spud. Reheated them both in the BSO on reheat at 375F for 15 minutes, The skin was still crispy!

Did yet another wood smoked chicken last night. Served with baked potato, my usual roasted carrots and salad (not pictured).

Dcarch, that's a great crust on that pork - how did you get it?

Gosh, I haven't made French Toast in, well, a large number of years. I can't actually ever remember making it, but I must have. It was 2 cups of milk (I used unsweetened, plain coconut milk), 3 extra large eggs and 1.5 tbs of sugar. I meant to add vanilla but forgot. The challah was pretty dense so I soaked the bread for about 10 minutes, flipping every couple. It wasn't absorbing fast enough for my hungry daughter so I zapped the dish for a minute in the microwave, which helped. Pre-heated a non-stick skillet with some rice bran oil and cooked them for about 3-4 minutes per side. Dusted with cinnamon and powdered sugar.