Corned Beef on the Stovetop

One of my greatest frustrations is that I make food overly complex and difficult. I invest too much prep time for meals that are tasty, but not worth the extra hour or two it took me to pull it together. I'm not cooking for gourmets, nor am I one myself. So this year I will improve my ROI by blogging more simple meals. And remember to record the oven temperature.

3.5 LB Corned Beef Brisket ($1.88/Lb 2011)
1/2 bottle of Guinness (widget bottle)*
Cover Brisket with water.
Add flavor packet + pepper corns (bay leaf?)
Bring to a boil, Skim foam, then reduce to low and simmer for 50 min/lb.

1Hr before dinner (D-60)
Peel and quarter potatoes, peel and cut carrots, Slab the cabbage

d-45
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, boil the cabbage for 30 min drain and cover
Remove beef, ADD potatoes and carrots to the crockpot return to boil for 20-30 min.
BROIL the Beef for 5 min to crisp the top, Remove and let sit for 20-30 min

Serve with mustard.

* No honest Irishman would waste a whole bottle of Guinness cooking. half to the roast, half to the cook! The widget bottle and the widget can are not as bitter as the stubby bottles (aka Guinness Export).

Thanksgiving 2010

Kate just advised me that we are having her family for Thanksgiving. 8 adults, 6 kids and and infant. Cool. My mind immediately goes to menu planning. My family Holiday dishes are Zesty Carrots and Cheesy Cauliflower Head. Moose made them, they defined the Holidays of my youth.

Mashed Potatoes. My ex-wife wouldn't eat them with milk in them, so he kindly set aside some boring spuds for her. She never liked my cooking, either.

A Ham and a Turkey. Maybe that green bean casserole, the one with cream of mushroom soup and French's onions on top and perhaps pearl onions. How the hell can I cook all of this with four burners and one oven? Wait I have a grill. for the ham. My clever sister did an extra breast on the grill one year... I think her oven was broken too.

But I think can do the ham on the grill. And Vince down the street has the Turkey fryer, he did three or four last year. I'll have to inquire! And some Pillsbury rolls. But what about a soup? A squash soup would be nice, and seasonal too. And there's the crock pot for soup. But the first recipes I found have creme fraiche, which made me wonder what is Thanksgiving about? It's not about gourmet, it's a feast of thankfulness, and hopefulness that we survive another winter. So in my mind it should be hearty food, pack on the pounds, come February they'll be gone, and we'll be looking for the first greens of spring and to slaughter the lambs.

And an olive tray: Gherkins, green olives and black and a fourth I can't remember what - pickle chips?

So methinks simple food it will be:

savory roasted squash soup - crock pot
mashed potatoes, perhaps with garlic and onion - stovetop 1
cauliflower with cheese and mustard - oven Y
zesty carrots - oven b
sting bean casserole with pearl onions - oven c
brined turkey - deep fry / oven X
roasted ham - BBQ
Beans with carrots - Microwave
Stuffing w /sausage - stovetop 2
Rolls - oven Z

Buy takeaway containers!
level the stove!
buy a brining bucket!
buy a turkey fryer?

Chili Leftovers 12 25 2009

1 can Hunts diced tomatoes
1 can Hunts diced tomatoes with mild chili peppers
1 can corn
1 can frijoles negro
1 can frijoles roja / pinto
1 LB leftover meat - pork roast
2 cloves garlic
1/2 - 1 diced onion
2-3 TBS Chili powder
2 TBS Cumin
1 Tsp Hot Hongarian Paprika
1 Tsp Oregeno
1 Tsp Ground Black Pepper
1/2 Tsp Coriander

Crockpot until hungry.

I think that's everything I threw in the pot Christmas morning at 3 a.m. after configuring net books for the boys.

Crockpot Roast Beef Deluxe

3-4 lb roast
3 med Potatoes cut into 1 inch cubes
1 sm - med Rutabaga cut into 1 inch cubes
4 Med Carrots halved then cut into 1 inch pieces
1 Med onion 12th'd
2 Ribs celery cut up 1/2 inch pieces
Olive oil
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup dry sherry
salt pepper to taste
dash of wocesteshire

Place vegetables in bottom of pot
coat roast in oil, rub with salt and pepper (or rub)
Brown on all sides in skillet, place in crock pot
dash of wosterschire
pour in water, then sherry over the roast

High 4 - 5 hours.

Crock Pot Roast Minimalist

3-4 lb Roast
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
1 cup BBQ Sauce
1 TBS Garlic
1 TBS spicy brown mustard
2 TBS Wocstershire Sause

Brown Roast, place in pot, cover with tomatoes
Mix remaining ingredients, spoon over roast
Low for 8 - 10
high for 4-5

Credit Where Due

I started out using my crockpot years ago and love that its easy and ready to go as soon as I get home. Here's my primary crockpot cookbook. I rarely use the recipes as they are published, b/c I find many of them a bit bland.

However they make wonderful starting points for my own deranged experiments (cue evil laughter.) It's also real helpful to determine how long to cook something, and a good ratio for ingredients. (i.e. 1 can of tomatoes to 2 LBS roast.)

Fix it and Forget IT Cookbook

Basic Goulash (Crockpot)

I love Central European Cookin' - My mother made pierogies from scratch when I was a kid (She's half Lithuanian). Anyway , I was fortunate to study in Vienna, Austria and Sophia, Bulgaria while I was in college. So I learned about even more delicious food. (And some pretty scary soviet-era food. After I left Bulgaria, they "threw off the yoke of Soviet Oppression. That's part of my secret CIA resume' you can ask Valerie Plame.)

Goulash is a Hungarian meat stew, with a Tomato and Red Pepper base.

2.5 lbs stewing meat
1 Lg Onion, chopped
3 TBS Oil
8 oz tomato sauce
28 oz can whole tomatoes - chopped up.
14 oz can mushrooms
3 Lg carrots chopped
1 Red Bell Pepper
1 C. H2O
2 beef bullion cubes
2 TBS ground hot pepper Szego Hot or hotter depending on your taste
3 TBS regular or "sweet" Paprika
2 TBS Flour
3-4 TBS dried parsley
Dash Pepper

roll meat in flour, brown in skillet
All Into the crockpot - 8-10 hours on low