Southwestern Style USA - spicy, hot, cool & tangy
Chile con Queso
Directions:
2 cups of oil
8 large corn tortillas, cut into quarters
1 large tomato, cored and chopped
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
6 to 8 serrano or jalapeno chilies, seeded and chopped finely
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
Salt and pepper to taste
½ cup dry white wine
4 cups grated American or cheddar cheese
Pour the oil into a large heavy skillet and heat to 375.
Fry the tortilla sections until crisp and lightly brown, about 2 minutes.
Remove with a slotted spatula and drain on paper towels.
Keep warm until ready to use.
Pour all but 2 ounces of the oil out of the skillet and add the tomato, onion, chilies and garlic.
Sprinkle with salt and pepper and saute over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes.
Add the wine to the pan and reduce slightly.
Reduce the flame to low, add the cheese, and stir until melted.
Note: You can prepare the cheese mixture up to 2 days in advance and reheat it slowly in the top of a double boiler.
The tortillas should be fried the day they are used; however, they can be done in advance and reheated in oven set at 300.
Chimichangas - Pt. 1
Boiled beef
4 pounds beef tenderloin or eye of round
1 large onion, roughly chopped
2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1 gallon water
Beef filling
5 tbs lard
Reserved boiled beef
1 ¼ cups reserved beef stock
½ tsp ground black pepper
¼ tsp dried basil
¼ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp ground cumin
Salt to taste
1 green bell pepper, seeded, deribbed, and diced
1 medium onion, peeled and diced
6 green onions, trimmed and sliced
2 mild green chilies [ Poblano or Anaheim ]
seeded and diced
5 Tomatoes, seeded and diced
To finish the dish
Six 14 inch flour tortillas
6 cups vegetable oil for deep frying
Garnish
Green chili sauce
Guacamole
1 tomato seeded and diced
3 tbs green onion, white part only, chopped
½ cup grated Monterey jack cheese
½ cup grated cheddar cheese
Chimichangas - Pt. 2
Place the boiled beef ingredients in a stockpot and bring to a boil, skimming away any scum that rises to the surface.
Lower the heat and simmer, uncovered for 3 hours. Remove the beef and allow to sit until cool enough to handle.
Reserve 1 ¼ cup of the stock for later use in this recipe, and freeze the rest for future use.
Shred the beef loin.
To make the filling, melt 3 tbs of the lard into a large suate pan and add the meat, beef stock, and spices.
Simmer for 15 minutes and reduce.
While the meat is simmering heat the remaining lard in another saute pan and saute the vegetables for about 5 min; they should remain firm
Add the vegetables to the meat and simmer for an additional 5 minutes
To make the chimichangas place a scoop of the meat mixture into the middle of a tortilla and roll it like an eggroll, tucking in the ends.
Secure with toothpicks and repeat with the remaining tortillas
Heat the oil to 375 in a deep heavy pan and add the rolls making sure not to crowd them in the pan
Holding them with tongs to keep them submerged in the oil, fry until golden brown, let drain on paper towels.
To serve, place on plates with dollops of the sauces and a sprinkling of the other garnishes.
Coca-Cola Baby Back Ribs with Orange Ginger BBQ Sauce
2 2-liter bottles of Coke reduced down to 1 quart of syrup by simmering over low heat
2 baby back rib racks (12-15 ribs, 1 ¾ lbs or less)
Smoke Rub
Orange Ginger BBQ Sauce
Method:
Submerge ribs in coke syrup for 24 hours in a casserole dish. You can cut the racks in half to fit the pan. The half racks will also fit in a large airtight bag. Add the marinade, remove the air. Remove the marinade and season with the smoke rub. Smoke the ribs approximately 1 ½ hours at 220 degrees. When done, slice and serve atop Orange Ginger BBQ Sauce.
2 oz bacon, ground in a food processor
1/3 cup onion, finely diced
1 Tbs garlic, chopped
½ cup fresh ginger, chopped
2 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup orange juice concentrate
3 Tbs champagne vinegar
1 tsp Tabasco
1 ¾ cup ketchup
1 tsp salt
Cook bacon. Add onions, garlic, ginger, and black pepper and sweat until onions are translucent. Add brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, orange juice concentrate, vinegar, and Tabasco and bring to a boil. Add ketchup and simmer 10 minutes. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
Crawfish Boil Pt. 1
Ingredients:
3 x 35 pound bags crawfish
25 pounds red potatoes
2 pounds garlic
25 ea fresh corn cleaned and broken in half.
10 pounds salt
96 ounces vegetable cooking oil
1 8-ounces bottle Rex or Zatarain's Crab & Shrimp Boil liquid concentrate
20 ounces red (cayenne) pepper
20 ounces black pepper
4 ea box (bag) rex (or equal) crab & shrimp boil
32 ounces powdered Louisiana (or equal) crab & shrimp boil
2 bottles 12 ounces catsup
2 bottles 12 ounces Tabasco sauce
1 bottle 12 ounces horseradish
2 bottles squeeze butter
1 douncesen lemons
4 ea large yellow onions
8 ea rolls paper towels
4 ea old newspaper to spread on tables
2 ea tables
2 ea 39 gal garbage cans with 39 gal plastic bags.
1 ea 60 qt cooking pot w/cooking basket
1 ea propane gas burner w/stand
2 ounces red (cayenne) pepper
2 ounces black pepper
16 ounces salt
8 ounces powdered "crab & shrimp boil"
4 ounces red (cayenne) pepper
4 ounces black pepper
24 ounces salt
32 ounces liquid "crab & shrimp" boil (with 8 ounces liquid concentrate "Crab & Shrimp Boil" make a one (1) gallon batch )
3 ounces Tabasco sauce or your favorite Louisiana hot sauce
24 ounces vegetable cooking oil
1 bag Rex or Zatarain's "Crab & Shrimp Boil"
2 lemons cut in half. Squeeze into seasoning pot throwing reins into pot.
1 large yellow onion cut in half.
The boiled crawfish recipe was adapted from the old Jazz and Heritage Festival Cookbook, now sadly out of print. This is the way boiled crawfish were prepared by Jazz fest food vendors The Fontana Family, of New Orleans, Louisiana. Comments and instructions from the original recipe are in quotes; all other comments are mine.
"The Fontanas are one of the largest, oldest, and best known Italian families to settle in New Orleans, originally coming from various parts of Italy and settling in Louisiana in the early 1850's. This recipe is the one served at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival boiled crawfish booth. The secret is to serve hot."
"Place all ingredients but the crawfish in the biggest pot that you can get your hands on and bring to a good boil for about 15 minutes. As all comes to a boil, put you face over the steam and take 10 deep breaths, as the boiling cayenne, garlic and lemon mist is good for your soul - being careful to breathe only through your nose.
"In the meantime, the crawfish should have been soaking in cold fresh water, with a couple of boxes of salt emptied into it as to allow "mud bugs" to be spitting out the mud.
"Put crawfish in boiling water. After water comes to boil again, add 10 ears freshly peeled corn of the cob and 20 small potatoes. Allow 8-10 minutes cooking time. Remove and add a bag or two of ice to cool the crawfish water, and allow the crawfish to soak in the pot for another 10 minutes after turning off the boiling water. Strain and serve the crawfish hot with the garlic cloves, potatoes and corn." (Alternate method: Remove the hot crawfish from the boiling pot and layer in ice chests with sprinkled Tony Chachere's seasoning.)
Some people also like throwing anything from andouille sausages to whole heads of garlic to hot dogs into the boil ... be creative, but not foolish!
For a great seafood dipping sauce, take some ketchup, add horseradish and Tabasco to taste, and finish with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice (never use that swill out of the bottle). Mix and dip. That's how we do it in Louisiana.
Eating instructions: Find the biggest crawfish in the pile. Break the tail off of the crawfish, and slurp all the good juice and fat out of the head (optional). Peel off the first section of the crawfish tail shell, pinch the bottom of the tail, and the meat pops right out. Eat. Drink. Repeat. (Some people save time by pinching the tail and removing the tail meat with their teeth and eating it immediately, rather than wasting a few precious seconds getting the meat out with their hands. As one hardcore native crawfish eater once put it, "That way I could eat four crawfish to maybe y'all's one."
Combine all ingredients for strawberry soup in a blender and puree until smooth. Pour into a carafe or pitcher and hold in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Clean blender. Repeat previous steps with all ingredients of peach soup. Chill soups at least 3 hours. Simultaneously pour soup into an ice bowl and garnish with mint.
*With very ripe fruit you can cut back on the sugar added because there is more natural sugar in the fruit.
Ice Bowls
This frozen soup bowl gets the most points for presentation. The only things you need are a little extra freezer space, metal bowls, and duct tape. These bowls not only look great, they keep the soup chilled, and there are no dishes to wash.
Water
Edible flowers
Fill a metal bowl ¾ full with water and edible flower petals, for example, rose, pansy, sunflower, etc. Place a smaller bowl inside the first bowl and anchor it with duct tape to keep it centered. Freeze bowls overnight. When ready to serve, remove duct tape and small bowl. Flash the larger bowl with a blow torch to release the finished ice bowl. You dont have to use a blow torch. Room temperature will release the bowls in 10-15 minutes.
Dueling Strawberry & Peach Soup
In Ice Bowls
Strawberry Soup
3 cups strawberries, cleaned with greens removed
1 cup chardonnay
1 ½ cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup sugar*
½ cup cream
Peach Soup
3 cups peaches, skin on, pitted
Mint for garnish
Flan
¾ cups of sugar
3 eggs
3 egg yolks
2 tsp vanilla extract
One 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 3/4 cups of milk
2 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
Place the sugar in a small skillet over medium-high heat and stir while it liquefies.
Allow the sugar to boil and turns a walnut brown, stirring occasionally. Watch carefully so that it does not burn.
Pour caramel into 9 inch flan pan or soufflé dish and, working quickly, spread it evenly
with a rubber spatula over the bottom of the pan.
Preheat oven to 350.
Place the eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, milks, and cream cheese into food processor and process for at least 5 minutes.
Pour the mixture into the flan plan and place in a baking pan in the center of the oven.
Pour boiling water halfway up the sides of the pan and bake for 1 hour and ten minutes, or until a knife can be inserted in the center comes out clean. Watch carefully and cover the flan with foil if the top seems to be getting too brown.
Remove from the oven, allow to cool to room temperature, then cut around the edges and invert onto a deep sided serving plate. Serve each piece with some of the caramel syrup.
Note: The flan can be made up to three days before serving and kept covered with plastic wrap in the refrigerator. Leave it in the pan until ready to serve.
Four Salsas Pt. 1
Green Chili Salsa
2 Tbs coriander seeds, toasted and ground
½ yellow onion, large dice
4 Tbs garlic, minced
3 Tbs olive oil
1 quart tomatillos, husks removed and quartered
2 cups New Mexico green chili peppers (mild)
5 limes, juice and zest
3 Tbs sugar
2 red bell peppers, small dice
1 bunch cilantro, leaves only
Toast coriander seeds in a small dry skillet over medium high heat, stirring constantly until lightly toasted. Set aside to cool. Sauté onions and garlic in olive oil over medium high heat. Add tomatillos, green chilies, juice, zest, and coriander seeds and cook until slightly thickened. Add sugar and seasonings, transfer to food processor, and pulse to an even chunky consistency. Add red bell peppers and cilantro, mix and refrigerate.
Papaya Salsa
6 Tbs guava paste
1 Tbs + 1 tsp sugar
1 lime, juice and zest
¼ cup raspberry vinegar
1 papaya, diced (approx. 1 cup)
1 star fruit, diced
1 kiwi, peeled and diced
1 tsp garlic, minced
1 tsp shallots, minced
½ red bell pepper, small dice
½ jalapeno, minced
Combine guava paste, sugar, lime juice, zest, and raspberry vinegar, and liquefy in a blender. Combine fruits and vegetables in a bowl and stir in guava dressing. Adjust seasonings with salt and chill.
Goat Cheese Rellenos
Chilies
12 Anaheim or poblano chilies
2 garlic cloves
½ a pound mild crumbled goat cheese, at room temperature
½ a pound Monterey jack cheese, grated
2 tbs chopped shallots
2 small pieces oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, minced
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
½ cup chopped fresh basil
2 tbs chopped fresh marjoram
2 thyme sprigs,or ¼ tsp dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste
1 egg
2 tbs heavy cream
Blue cornmeal for dredging yellow can be substituted
Oil for deep-frying
Salsa
2 shallots, finely minced
¼ cup champagne vinegar
¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
1 Jalapeno or Serrano chili, seeded and chopped
¼ cup chopped fresh basil
2 tbs chopped fresh thyme
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
3 ripe avocadoes
6 salad savory purple kale or radicchio leaves
To prepare the chilies, roast and peel them
Carefully slice them down one side and remove the seeds, leaving the stem attached.
Set aside
Blanch the garlic in boiling water for 5 min
Remove the garlic with a slotted spoon, peel, and chop finely.
n a bowl combine the garlic with the crumbled goat cheese, Monterey jack, shallots, sun dried tomatoes, cilantro, basil, marjoram, and thyme.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Mix well and shape into 12 roll-shaped pieces about the size of the chilies.
Gently insert the cheese rolls into the chilies, being careful not to overfill.
Close the chilies securing them with toothpicks, and refrigerate until needed
Beat the egg into the cream and coat the filled chilies with the mixture.
Dredge the chilies in the blue cornmeal
Heat the oil up in the deep fryer or heavy sauce pan until hot, 350 to 375
Fry the chilies until they are a golden brown.
Remove them and drain on paper towels
Remove toothpicks
To make the salsa, whisk the shallots into the vinegar.
Add the oil slowly, continuing to whisk, then stir in the rest of the ingredients.
To serve peel and halve the avocadoes.
Cut each half into a fan and set on either side of the serving dish.
Place 2 chilies in the center and spoon the salsa into a lettuce cup on the other side of the plate.
Serve immediately
Note:
The chilies can be roasted and stuffed up to 2 days in advance and kept covered with plastic wrap in the refrigerator. The salsa can be made up to 6 hrs in advance.
Hot and Crunchy Trout with Mango Jalapeno Aioli
Trout Preparation
6-8 trout fillets, 8 oz each
¼ cup almonds
¼ cup sesame seeds
2 cups cornflakes
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 ½ Tbs red chili flakes
1 Tbs salt
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 cup all purpose flour
6 Tbs clarified butter
Toast almonds and sesame seeds separately in a dry skillet until lightly toasted. Set aside to cool. Combine almonds, sesame seeds, cornflakes, sugar, red chili flakes, and salt in a food processor and pulse until coarse and crunchy but well blended. Empty onto a platter or baking sheet.
Whisk milk and eggs together to make an egg wash. Put flour in a flat dish. Then, holding the trout fillet by the tail, dredge it in the flour until well dusted. Pat off excess flour. Pass dusted fillet through the egg wash, wetting the entire fillet.
Place fillet in hot and crunchy mixture, lightly pressing the mixture on the fillet with the palm of your hand. Remove and shake off excess. Set aside on a dry sheet pan until all the trout is breaded.
In a large heavy bottomed sauté pan, heat 6 tablespoons clarified butter to about 325 degrees until it shimmers. Lay the trout in the hot pan skin-side up.
Sauté for about 3 minutes on each side. It will cook to a golden crunchy brown. Turn the fillet only once. Place each fillet on a cookie sheet in a warm oven (180 degrees) until you have completed this process for all the fillets.
Mango Jalapeno Aioli
1 lb mangoes, diced
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
3 oz champagne vinegar
2 Tbs garlic, minced
3 Tbs red onion, diced
4 jalapenos, seeded and sliced
½ tsp salt
Juice of 2 lemons
1 bunch cilantro, leaves only, rough chopped
1 cup mayonnaise
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper, to taste
Combine mangoes, sugar, vinegar, 2 tablespoons garlic, and red onion in a sauce pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook 10 minutes. Add jalapenos and salt. Chill completely. Combine mango jalapeno mixture with remaining ingredients in a bowl. Whisk together until well blended.
Parilla
10 ounces beef filet, cut into strips
6 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 7 ounce shelled lobster tails, sliced into medallions
Marinade
Juice from 2 grapefruits, about 1 ½ cups
Juice of 1 orange, about ½ cups
2 Tbs olive oil
2 bay leaves
¼ red bell pepper, seeded, deribbed, and cut into fine julienne
1 small jalapeno chili, seeded and cut into thin strips
2 small poblano chilies, seeded and cut into thin strips
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
1 Tabasco chili, seeded and chopped, or a Serrano can be substituted
¼ cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves
1 medium onion, peeled and sliced
1 tsp Tabasco sauce
4 tbs olive oil
2 jalapeno chilies, seeded and sliced into strips
½ onion, peeled and sliced
3 ounces tequila
Prepare the meat and seafood and mix the marinade ingredients together.
Marinate for 2 to 3 hours.
Remove the meat and keep it separate from the seafood.
Heat 2 tbs of olive oil in a saute pan or skillet over high heat and, when hot, sear the beef on all sides
Add the jalapenos and onion and saute briefly, then deglaze the pan with the tequila.
Reserve the mixture and keep it warm.
In a second saute pan or skillet, heat the remaining olive oil until hot and saute the lobster and shrimp with some of the vegetables in the marinade
Flame with the remaining tequila and remove from heat.
Fill a paviada . with hot coals, or heat up a serving platter.
Place the beef mixture and seafood mixture in the center, and flank with lettuce, cups of guacamole and refried beans wrapped in tortillas.
Note: do not marinate the food for more than the time allotted, since the acid in the fruit juice will break down the fibers
Pheasant with Giblet and Croutons Stuffing
STUFFING
3 slices fresh white homemade-type bread
2 tablespoons butter
The heart, liver and gizzard of the pheasant
4 large chicken livers, about ¼ pound
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
4 whole juniper berries and 3 whole black peppercorns, finely pulverized with a mortar and pestle or wrapped in a towel and crushed with a rolling pin
Pinch of ground allspice
Pinch of dried thyme
Pinch of dried marjoram
PHEASANT
3½-to 4-pound oven-ready pheasant
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
4 slices lean bacon
1 cup chicken stock, fresh or canned
½ cup sour cream
1. STUFFING: Preheat the oven to 350°. To make the stuffing, trim off the crusts and cut the bread into ¼-inch cubes. Spread the cubes on a baking sheet and toast in the middle of the oven for 10 minutes, turning them over once or twice. When golden brown, transfer the cubes to a mixing bowl and set aside.
2. In a heavy 8- to 10-inch skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over moderate heat. When the foam subsides, add the pheasant giblets and the chicken livers, and cook for 2 or 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the giblets and liver are lightly browned.
3. Then remove them to a board, chop them very fine and add them to the toasted bread. With a rubber spatula, scrape any fat remaining in the skillet into the bread and stir in the parsley, pulverized juniper berries and pepper, allspice, thyme and marjoram.
4. PHEASANT: Wash the pheasant quickly under cold running water and pat it thoroughly dry inside and out with paper towels. Beat the 3 tablespoons of butter, lemon juice and salt together with a spoon and rub it into the pheasant inside and out. Fill the cavity loosely with the stuffing, and close the opening by lacing it with skewers or sewing it with heavy white thread.
5. Fasten the neck skin to the back of the pheasant with a skewer. Lay the bacon slices side by side across the bird and wrap them around it, pressing the slices snugly against the body to keep them in place.
6. Place the pheasant, breast side up, on a rack set in a shallow baking pan just large enough to hold the bird comfortably. Roast undisturbed in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes. Then increase the oven heat to 400°, remove the bacon slices and set them aside.
7. Baste the pheasant with ¼ cup of chicken stock and roast for about 30 minutes longer, basting every 10 minutes or so with another ¼ cup of stock. To test for doneness, pierce the thigh of the bird with the tip of a small, sharp knife. The juice should spurt out a clear yellow; if it is slightly pink, roast for another 5 to 10 minutes.
8. Transfer the pheasant to a heated platter, drape the bacon slicesover it, and let the bird rest covered with aluminum foil for 10 minutes before carving. Meanwhile, make the sauce by pouring any remaining stock into the pan, bringing it to a boil over high heat, and scraping in the brown bits clinging to the bottom and sides of the pan.
9. Stir in the sour cream a few tablespoons at a time, and simmer long enough to heat it through. Taste for seasoning. Pour the sauce into a heated sauceboat and serve it with the pheasant.
Red Beans and Rice
2 large onions, chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped
6 bay leafs
24 drops Tabasco or other hot sauce
1 tablespoon plus one teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon Creole seasoning
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Worcestershire
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons kitchen bouquet
20 cups of water
2 to 3 pounds ham seasoning, cut up
2 to 3 pounds regular smoked sausage, cut up
Preparation:
Cook long grain rice, for serving. In a large mixing bowl combine all ingredients except ham, sausage and rice. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours. When ready to cook, place all in a pot with the ham and sausage. Bring to a boil, then lower heat, cover, and strongly simmer, for 1 hour; stir as needed to keep beans from sticking.
Reduce heat and slowly simmer, covered, between 2 and 4 hours, or until mixture is very thick and beans are tender. During the slow-simmering process, stir frequently, especially toward end of cooking time, adding more water to pot only if dish seems too dry.
About 1 hour before done, periodically mash some of the beans with a potato masher, scraping pan bottom clean after each mashing; try to mash about 40 percent of the beans.
Serve immediately over rice or, let cool and refrigerate overnight. Reheat for serving.
Sausage and Chicken Jambalaya
1/3 cup butter
½ cup white onions, chopped
1/3 cup green bell pepper, chopped
½ cup celery, chopped
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
½ half cup scallions, chopped
1 ½ cups uncooked chicken, diced
1 ½ Andouille (or other spicy smoked ) sausage, sliced
2 cups fresh or canned whole tomatoes
1 cup chicken stock
1 bayleaf
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup uncooked rice rinsed
Preheat over to 350 degrees F. Melt butter in a large ovenproof saucepan or Dutch oven. Add the onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic and cook over moderately high heat until tender. Stir in scallions (green onions), chicken, and sausage. Sauté the mixture an additional 5 minutes, and then add the remaining ingredients, except the rice. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the rice and cover the pan. Place in the preheated oven until the rice tenders, about 45 minutes. Stir mixture occasionally during cooking. You can also add corn and red potatoes if desired.
Sirloin of Beef in a Rosemary Crust with Creole Mustard Sauce
Rosemary Crust
1 ½ cups fresh rosemary, cleaned from the stem
1 cup pine nuts
2 cups dry bread crumbs
½ cup garlic, minced
½ cup shallots, minced
2 Tbs salt
Toast pine nuts in a dry skillet, stirring constantly until lightly browned. Combine all ingredients in a food processor with an S-blade. Pulse to a coarse texture. Pour into a flat dish to coat steak.
Seasoned Egg Wash
1/3 cup spicy mustard
¼ cup green peppercorns, drained
8 egg yolks
¼ cup milk
Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until the peppercorns are minced. Put in dish to dip steaks.
Sirloin of Beef
8 12 oz sirloin steaks
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup olive oil for sautéing
Creole Mustard Sauce
Trim all the fat off the sirloin. Sear each side of the sirloin in a very hot skillet. After searing, chill sirloin in refrigerator before breading. Dust sirloin with flour and dip in seasoned egg wash. Roll and press in the crust mixture, coating the entire sirloin. Heat a large skillet with ½ cup olive oil until approx. 325 degrees. Sauté each steak (2-3 at a time) until browned on both sides- approx. 4 minutes on each side. If you want your sirloin cooked past rare-medium rare, pop it in a 350 degree oven another 3 minutes for medium, or 6 minutes for medium well. Serve atop Creole Mustard Sauce.
2 Tbs shallots, minced
½ cup red wine
½ cup rich veal stock
½ cup Creole mustard
1 tsp cracked black pepper
Combine garlic, shallots, and wine in a saucepan and simmer over medium-high heat until red wine has reduced to almost dry. Add veal stock and cream, return to a boil. Add Creole mustard, salt and cracked pepper. Simmer for two minutes and serve with sirloin.
Warm Lobster Tacos with Yellow Tomato salsa and Jicama Salad
Lobster
Court bouillon or salted water
Four live 1-pound lobster
Yellow tomato salsa
2 pints yellow cherry tomatoes [red can be substituted]
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely minced
2 tbs white wine vinegar
2 serrona chilies, seeded and finely minced
2 tbs fresh lime juice
1 tbs maple syrup [optional]
Jicama salad
1 small jicama
1 small red bell pepper
1 small yellow bell pepper
1 carrot
1 small zucchini
6 tbs peanut oil
3 tbs fresh lime juice
Salt and cayenne to taste
3 tbs oil
4 to 6 tortillas
1 cup grated jalapeno jack cheese
1 cup shredded spinach leaves
Bring the court bouillon or salted water to a boil in a large stockpot.
Add the lobsters, cover the pot, and bring the liquid back to a boil over high heat.
When it returns to a boil, cook the lobsters for seven minutes
Remove from the water and, when cool enough to handle, remove all the meat from the lobsters, cutting the tail sections into medallions and the claw meat into large dices.
Set aside.
To make the Yellow tomato salsa, grind the tomatoes in a meat grinder, or chop finely in a blender or a food processor fitted with a steel blade.
Mix all the ingredients except the maple syrup into the tomatoes, then add syrup if the mixture needs sweetening.
Allow to sit in refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving, to let the flavors blend.
To make the jicama salad, cut the jicama, peppers, and carrot into fine julienne.
Peel the zucchini and cut the peel into fine julienne, reserving the flesh for another use.
Mix the oil, salt, lime juice, and cayenne and toss with the salad.
Refrigerate until ready to serve.
To finish the dish, place the tortillas, wrapped in aluminum foil, in the oven to heat for ten minutes, or until hot.
Heat the oil in a small skillet and briefly saute the lobster meat to heat it, about 3 minutes over medium heat.
Spoon lobster meat into the middle of a heated tortilla.
Portion the cheese and spinach on top and wrap tightly into a cylinder shape.
Repeat to make 4 to 6 tacos.
Place tortilla on a warm plate, with the yellow tomato salsa and jicama salad on the side
Watermelon-Injected Pork Tenderloin with Watermelon Salsa
3 cups diced watermelon flesh (approx., to yield 2 cups juice)
3 jalapenos (leave jalapeno ribs and seeds in for max heat, out for less)
2 cups granulated sugar
¼ cup Midori liqueur (optional)
2 lbs pork tenderloin
Salt and pepper
Seed, then puree watermelon and jalapenos in a blender. Strain mixture through a sieve and return to the blender. If you wont be injecting the tenderloin, dont worry about straining the marinade. Add salt, sugar, and Midori liqueur and blend for 2 minutes. Reserve 1 cup for basting. Draw marinade up into syringe-type injector. Poke and inject marinade throughout tenderloin. After marinating, season the meat with some salt and pepper. Have your coals prepared on the grill and use the combination of direct and indirect heat. Roll the tenderloin over the direct heat to establish some grill marks, and then move to a slower part of the grill to finish cooking. Baste the tenderloin periodically throughout the cooking process. Finishing over indirect heat will allow it to cook without burning. Cook the tenderloin to an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Allow the meat 5 minutes to rest, then slice into medallions. Fan across some watermelon salsa for a great summer meal.
Variation: If you dont have an injector, just marinate tenderloin overnight. This marinade will also improve the taste of lesser cuts of meat, such as London Broil, chicken, pork chops, or lamb.
Watermelon Salsa
2 cups watermelon, seeded and diced fine
1 Granny Smith apple, diced fine
1 red onion, julienned
1 mango, peeled and diced
2 jalapenos, seeded and diced fine
2 Tbs sugar
2 limes, juice only
Splash of rice wine vinegar
Combine all ingredients and chill well.
