Chitown Sliders. A tribute to all night grills; Recipe

Sliders with Duck Fat Fried Potatoes

This recipe is dedicated to Julian “Jumpin” Perez, Tim “Spinnin” Schommer, Juan “The Electric E”, Edwin “Bear” Rios and Bo. I will never forget our late night adventures. Love you brothers!

As a young man growing up in Chicago there were two little neighborhood grills that made the best grill top food in the city. Don’s Grill at the corner of Cicero and Belmont and Gossage Grill at Harlem and North Ave. Simply the best greasy cheeseburgers to be had at 4AM or any other part of the day!

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef

8 slider buns

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

Worcestershire sauce to taste

Onion powder to taste

2 onions sliced thin

1 stick butter

8 slices American cheese cut in half

sliced pickles

Mustard

Ketchup

Combine Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper and onion powder with ground beef. Form mixture into eight 2 Oz patties and place on foil or baking sheet.

In a saute pan melt a quarter stick of butter and brown the inner sides of the slider buns. That’s both the top and bottoms of the bun but not both sides. I hope that makes sense! Remove buns to a platter or dish.

Using the same saute pan melt half stick of butter and add onions salt and pepper. Cook until soft about 7 minutes. Remove onions to a bowl.

Melt remaining butter and add beef Sliders. Cook for about 3 minutes until browned over medium high heat. Flip sliders and top with a generous amount of onions. By the time you have put onions on all the patties you will need to carefully flip the patties over with onions now being under the sliders. Top with American cheese crossing the halves over the patties as if making an X. Remover sliders using a spatula sliding under the onions and sliders to the buns. Top with a pickle and a small amount of ketchup and mustard. Serve immediately!

Find a comfortable place to pass out because you will be transported to a wonderful happy place. These sliders are one of the tastiest things I’ve ever cooked!

Enjoy!

Prime NY Strips from Eckerlin Meats

Dutch Oven Pot Roast With Vegetables; Recipe

Pot Roast

Chuck Roast is one of my favorite cuts of beef. I use Chuck Roast in my Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup, Chili, Shredded Beef Tacos, Beef Enchiladas and of course Braised Chuck Roast with Oven Browned Vegetables. There are Two ways I prepare Chuck Roast. The first is in the oven using a roasting pan or Dutch Oven. The Second is on the stove top using a Dutch Oven.

Ingredients

1 3-4 Pound Chuck Roast (Shoulder Blade)

6-8 Small red potatoes

2 Ribs celery into 3 inch sections

1-2 onions roughly chopped

1 Whole bulb of garlic

4-5 Carrots roughly chopped or a bag of baby carrots

1 Tsp dried thyme

Salt or Goya Adobo

Pepper

2 Cups beef broth using Miner’s or bouillon cube

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Wrap the whole garlic bulb in foil with a splash of olive oil. Roast garlic for 1 1/2 hours with the roast on the oven rack. Use garlic in the gravy.

Season the Chuck Roast on both sides with salt (Goya Adobo), pepper and dried thyme. Heat Dutch oven over medium high heat. Brown Chuck Roast for about 5 minutes on each side.

Add onions first then carrots, celery and beef broth to almost cover. Sprinkle with some thyme, salt and pepper. Cover Dutch Oven and place in oven for 1 hour.

After an hour increase heat to 350 degrees. Add potatoes cover and put back in the oven for another hour.

Remove pot to stove top; cut potatoes in half. Make sure most of the potatoes stay on top and out of the liquid. Add more beef broth or water if needed. Return pot to oven uncovered and cook for one last hour.

Remove vegetables and roast to a large serving dish and cover with lid or foil. Place in the oven while you make the gravy.

For the gravy:

Pour the juices from the Dutch Oven into a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Squeeze or mash the garlic into the broth and whisk together. Add more salt and pepper if needed. Thicken with corn starch or a flour and water mixture. Add more beef base or salt and pepper to taste.

Tip: Liquids do not achieve their optimal thickening potential until they are boiling.

Shredded Beef Tacos; Recipe

Shredded Beef Tacos; Recipe

Tacos, Tacos, Tacos! Who doesn’t love tacos? I have a love for tacos; all kinds of tacos. Steak, chicken, fish, carne adobada, lengua (beef tongue), chicharone (pork skin), chivo (goat), chorizo con juevos (sausage and egg), carnitas; you name it! Here is a simple way to enjoy tacos at home using one of my favorites cuts of beef; the versatile Chuck Roast.

Ingredients

1 Chuck Roast 2-3 pounds trimmed of excess fat

1 onion quartered

2-3 cloves garlic smashed with a knife

1/2 tsp black pepper

salt to taste

Fresh garden salsa

Fresh guacamole

lime wedges

Cilantro

Chopped serrano chilies

Homemade Hot Sauce

Corn or Flour Tortillas

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

Heat a dutch oven to medium high. Salt and pepper both sides of Chuck Roast. Brown chuck roast on both sides for about 4-5 minutes. Add onions and garlic and cover half way with water. Cover and place in 325 degree oven for 3 1/2 hours. After 1 1/2 hours turn over the chuck roast and return to oven. Cook chuck roast for another hour and remove to shred with two forks. Return the roast to oven uncovered for another 30 minutes. Remove after 30 minutes stir and shred the chuck roast some more and return to oven for a final 30 minutes.  The liquid should be gone leaving only the fat from the chuck roast. Remove from oven and cover. Prepare tortillas and serve with fresh salsa, guacamole, cilantro and fresh lime wedges. Add homemade hot sauce if you like a little more heat. The shredded beef should be very tender.

Homemade Hot Sauce Recipe

Guacamole

4 ripe avocados
1 medium onion
2-3 serrano chiles finely chopped
1 Handful cilantro
Juice of one lime
1 Tsp salt or more to taste

In a blender or food processor combine quartered onion, serranos, cilantro, salt and juice of ½ lime. Blend until smooth. In a bowl, mash avocados with a potato masher or fork until only small chunks remain. Next add serrano, cilantro, onion and lime juice mixture. Do not add all at once; about ¾ usually is but this way we can make it to our own taste and consistency. Add remaining lime juice if needed.

Carnitas at Jaimes in Arandas Mexico

Salsa

3-5 garden tomatoes chopped
1 medium white
2-3 serrano chiles finely chopped
1 handful chopped cilantro.
Juice of 1-2 limes.
1 Tsp salt

In a bowl combine all ingredients and let rest in the refrigerator for about ½ hour.
For a more liquid salsa combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor.

Enjoying chivo tacos (roasted goat) in Ocotlan de Morelos, Oaxaca Mexico.

Braised Beef Cheeks; Recipe

Braised Beef Cheek

When I was buying the beef cheek for this recipe I had no idea it would prove to be one of the best simple dishes I would ever cook. As I was taking the picture above I heard my son son moan and say “Ohhhh Damn!” He was right. Damn! The most tender meat ever and very rich in flavor; truly a delicacy.

Ingredients:

2-3 Pounds beef cheek trimmed of fat and tendon

3 cups red wine (Amarone or Zinfandel) or 3 cups beef broth

1 pound baby portobello mushrooms

5 -6 small red potatoes

1 medium onion quartered

1 small package peeled baby carrots

2 ribs celery cut in 3 inch pieces

1 tbsp dried oregano

1 tbsp dried basil

1 tsp ground black pepper

5-6 garlic cloves smashed with side of knife

Salt to taste

1 tbsp olive oil

preheat oven to 325 degrees

Heavily coat the beef cheek with black pepper. Heat  your oven safe pan or Dutch Oven over medium high heat. Add olive to coat the pan. Lightly salt the beef cheek and brown on both sides. Add garlic, oregano and basil to cook for 2 minutes letting the garlic saute. Add wine or broth to almost cover scrapping the bottom of the pan to remove the flavorful glaze. Add all the vegetables with the potatoes on top. Place in a 325 degree oven for 3 hours. After 1 1/2 hour remove and turn over the beef cheek. Return to oven and cook for the remaining 1 1/2 hours or until tender. The meat should be very tender.

Braised Beef Cheek in Dutch Oven

Homemade Chili with Beef, Venison or Turkey; Recipe

Homemade Chili with Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Over the years my Chili recipes have varied to some degree. Today I’ve tried something new. Previously I have used Chili Powder but today I tried using re-hydrated “Ancho Chilies”. Everything else is pretty much my basic style. I’m hoping the anchos will add some richness to the chili. Below you will find the ingredients list. The Ingredients List is merely a road map with many ways to get to your final destination. You may want to add quantities, use less of them or include some of your own. When making soups and chili we always need to adjust seasoning during cooking… So don’t get too caught up in exact measurements. If it needs more or less of something; make the adjustments! I have never made this exactly the same every time!

I treat my chili like an Italian Bolognese layering flavors. It may seem easier to just add everything at once and cook; this will work, however the resulting chili will not be even close to it’s potential.

Warning: If you can’t handle spicy food; this recipe is not for you!

Ingredients

3-4 Pounds ground sirloin, ground venison or ground turkey

7-8 Ancho chilies

2 Medium onions diced

1 Red bell pepper chopped

1 Green bell pepper chopped

7 Garlic cloves

25 Ounces crushed tomatoes

3-4 Cans Goya red beans drained

4 Packets Sazon Goya

1 Tbsp ground cumin

1 Tbsp Miners beef base

1 Tbsp Smoked paprika

1 7.5 Oz Can Chipotle in Adobo with sauce.

Goya Adobo or salt yo taste.

Prepare Ancho chilies by breaking them open and removing seeds; leave the seeds in if you want your chili spicier. Don’t worry if you don’t get all the seeds; they will come out after we soak them. Cover Ancho Chilies with warm water and let soak for 20-30 minutes. Take chilies out of water and combine them with the garlic and chipotle peppers in a food processor or blender along with some of the soaking liquid. Set aside!

Heat a large dutch oven over medium high heat; add olive oil to coat. Add ground sirloin, venison or turkey. Cook and break up with a spoon or spatula. Cook until all the meat has turned brown. Add onions, cumin, smoked paprika and 4 packs Sazon Goya and cook until onions are translucent. Add Ancho, chipotle garlic mixture and cook for twenty minutes stirring frequently Add bell peppers and miners beef base or 2 beef bouillon cubes and crushed tomatoes. After 10 minutes lower heat to medium low (about 3-4 on electric stove) and cook for one hour stirring every 15 minutes.

Tip: Stir this recipe as directed to avoid burning and sticking. If it does burn DO NOT scrape it off. The foul flavor will ruin the chili. 

Add Goya red beans and adjust seasonings. I start adding my Goya Adobo or salt at this point. Cook covered for about an hour. Taste and adjust for seasoning, cook uncovered until adjustments are incorporated and a chili consistency is achieved.

Serve in bowl with shredded cheddar cheese or over a burger like I did. I really liked what the Ancho chilies did for this recipe. I will make the Anchos standard from now on. You can make this as spicy as you like by adding chopped jalapenos or New mexico/Anaheim chilies.

Slow Cooked Standing Prime Rib Roast

Slow Cooked Standing Rib Roast Recipe

I cooked this last night for my New Year Meal. It turned out so good I had to post pictures and the link to my recipe.

 

Skirt Steak and Eggs; Recipe

Skirt Steak and Eggs

Back in the early 1990s my group of friends would go for late night/early morning breakfast after a night of clubbing. One of our favorite places was the Addison House on Lake Street and Route 83. I always ordered the Skirt Steak and Eggs (Greek Style) and topped it with hot sauce.

Ingredients

Skirt Steak

2-3 Eggs

Olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Oregano

Preheat a small non-stick pan to medium heat.

Heat a Cast Iron or Heavy Skillet to medium high. Add a small amount of oil to barely coat the skillet. Season skirt steak with salt, pepper and oregano on both sides. Cook steak for 2-3 minutes per side or more to your liking. Do not move steak around the pan for at least 2 minutes so you can achieve a nice browned crust. Turn over and cook until browned on second side. Remove to plate and rest.

Spray your non-stick pan with Pam or cooking spray, add one egg at a time and cook for about a minute and a half. Spray the uncooked side with Pam and flip. Cook for 30 seconds or less and slide onto plate. repeat for more eggs using more cooking spray each time.

Season with more salt & pepper and hot sauce if you like.

This recipe works great with Rib Eyes, New York Strips and Sirloin.

Prime Rib with Garlic Cheddar Mashed Potatoes

The absolute best Prime Rib I’ve ever had!

I first experienced Prime Rib as a kid on vacation in Wisconsin. The ” Supper Clubs” of northern Wisconsin usually offered Prime Rib as the special on Saturday nights and featured wonderful salad bars with home made three bean salad, pickled beets and homemade dressings. Sadly most of these supper clubs have closed or removed the salad bars. Several years ago I decided to try my hand at Prime Rib based on James Beard’s “low heat method” James Beard liked his meat succulent, on the rare side and simply cooked. I like my beef roast cooked to medium rare. serve the outer pieces to folks that like their meat a little more done. I took Jame’s Beard’s recipe and added a few things to make it my own.

My mom and Aunt Boo make some of the best mashed potatoes in the world! Obviously I try to duplicate them and come very close. Well…. I decided to come up with my own recipe for mashed potatoes. Garlic Cheddar Mashed Potatoes were my masterpiece.

The Prime Rib Roast

Ingredients

5-10 Pound boneless or standing rib roast

5-8 sprigs rosemary leaves removed; it is a complete waste of time to use dried rosemary!

4-6 tbsps fresh thyme leaves removed or 2 tbsps dried

3-6 cloves garlic depending on size of roast

1/4 cup olive oil or 1/4 cup softened butter

1 tbsp cracked black pepper.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Make sure to bring your roast to room temperature considering the size. Combine rosemary, thyme, garlic and black pepper in a food processor and pulse to chop. Add olive or butter until you achieve a rough paste. Rub paste all over your roast in generous amounts. Place roast fat side up on a shallow rack in your roasting pan. Roast uncovered for 28 minutes per pound for medium rare. Do not trust the minutes per pound; check your roast with a meat thermometer after the theoretical halfway point. At the halfway point add a little water to your pan to help lift the drippings from your pan to be used in the “Au Jus” I pull my roast between 130 and 135 degrees at the extreme center. remove roast from pan and let rest under foil while you finish the potatoes and prepare the Au Jus.

The Au Jus

Scrape the bottom of the roasting pan adding liquid if needed. transfer to a sauce pan and add enough liquid to bring you to about 5-6 cups. Stir in beef base to taste (1-2 tbsps) or to taste. I use Minor’s Beef Base by the Nestle Co. Heat to a boil then turn down to simmer.

The Garlic Cheddar Potatoes

Ingredients

3-4 pounds red potatoes cut into even sized pieces

2-6 cloves of garlic

1-2 cups high quality shredded medium sharp cheddar cheese; I used Tillamook brand.

1/2 stick butter or more

3 tbsps heavy cream or vitamin D milk

Salt and Black Pepper to taste

In a stock cover potatoes and garlic with cold water and bring to a boil. Test for doneness by tasting the potato. Remove and drain in a colander. combine potatoes, garlic, butter and cream. Mash by hand and fold in your cheese and salt & pepper. Keep warm in your 200 degree oven.

Carve the roast to generous portions and side with the Garlic Cheddar Potatoes. Ladle hot  Au Jus over meat and potatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper if needed.

This is one of the top ten meals I have ever prepared!

Enjoy!

Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup; Recipe

Feels like home!

Homemade Roasted Vegetable  Beef Soup

My mother made a version of this when I was a kid growing up on the Northwest Side of Chicago. I can remember coming home after playing out in the snowstorms with frozen limbs to a nice hot bowl of this soup. I took my mothers original recipe and made some changes and additions to come up with my own. One of the changes was to make my own beef stock using beef shank and shin marrow bones. The stock really makes the broth very rich and hearty. I substituted frozen mixed vegetables for fresh and added celery. This is an all day event if you make the stock the same day. This is one of my favorite recipes inspired by my mom.

Ingredients for the stock:

5-6 pounds beef bones (shank, shin bones with marrow, soup bones)

Roasted Ingredients

6 -8 sprigs fresh thyme

1 handful Italian parsley

2 bay leaves

3-4 large carrots halved

4-6 celery ribs halved

2 large parsnips

2-3 large leeks washed very well. Use the green parts also.

1 tsp ground pepper

2 heads whole garlic

Stock

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Place beef bones in a large roasting pan and cover with celery, parsnips, carrots and leeks. Place whole garlic bulbs on top. Drizzle a little olive oil on top and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Roast uncovered at 400 degrees for 1-1 1/2 hours.

In a large stockpot combine the roasted ingredients with the remaining ingredients with enough water to cover. Bring to a light simmer and let simmer for 4-6 hours replacing water as it cooks off. The longer this simmers the more flavor it will have. I find homemade stock makes the soup richer in flavor. When the stock is done drain it first through a colander into another large stockpot or container. Press down on the mixture to force all the liquid out of the vegetables. For a clearer stock, pour the stock again through a colander lined with cheesecloth. I don’t find this necessary but you are welcome to. Refrigerate the stock overnight to solidify the fat on top. Scrape the fat off the top and discard. Store the stock in mason jars or containers that can be filled and frozen if necessary. The stock will have a jelly like consistency.

Tip: Make sure to pick the bones clean and take out the marrow. This is a delicacy; very rich flavor. I also eat the tendon and bits of meat left over; a nice treat during the process.

The Soup

Ingredients

3-4 pound chuck roast fat and membrane removed cut into thick bite sized chunks.

Homemade beef stock or store bought.

2 pounds peeled baby carrots

2 pounds red potatoes cut to bite size pieces

6-7 ribs cellery

50 ounces chopped tomatoes (Pomi Brand)

1 pound green beans snapped in half

3 large leeks with greens roughly chopped

1 small to medium package corn thawed to room temperature

1 small to medium package peas thawed to room temperature

2-3 tbsps beef base or 5-6 beef bouillon cubes. Optional

3-4 packs Sazon Goya

5 cloves fresh garlic through a press or minced

 

Soup

Heat a large dutch oven to medium high. Drizzle enough olive oil to coat. Brown the beef cubes in batches and remove to a bowl to avoid overcrowding the pan. When all the meat has been browned and removed de-glaze with a bit of red wine or water (1/2 cup). Pour the liquid into a large stock pot and add the beef, celery, leeks, garlic, thyme, beef base, sazon goya and 25 ounces chopped tomatoes. Add all of your beef stock and turn the heat to high. Stir constantly until the heat of the soup comes up. Cook uncovered for 45 minutes at just under medium heat ( vigorous simmer). Add the carrots, peas and corn, water to cover and turn the heat back up to medium high until you reach a vigorous simmer. Turn down the heat to maintain this simmer until  the carrots are about 75% done. Add potatoes and turn up the heat to medium high until you reach a vigorous simmer. Turn down heat to maintain your simmer. The soup is done when the potatoes are done but not mushy. Be sure to regulate your seasoning adding more beef base, salt, black pepper as needed.

Serve with hunks of crusty bread to soak up the valuable broth. This recipe produces a lot of soup. Give some away to friends and eat it over a few days. Freezes well.

Enjoy