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Showing posts with label slow cooker. Show all posts
Showing posts with label slow cooker. Show all posts

March 13, 2014

St. Patrick's Day Corned Beef ~ Crock Pot Style

St. Patrick's Day is coming right up this weekend and if you're like me, you only make corned beef once a year.....in the month of March for St. Patrick's Day.

Low and slow is how I cook mine....in a slow cooker.









Place your corned beef roast in your slow cooker.




Add water, about 3 cups, seasoning packet, potatoes,




and carrots.  Set on low for six hours and that is it!




The easiest corned beef you'll ever make.




In the United States and Canada, corned beef typically comes in two forms, a cut of beef {usually brisket, but sometimes round or silverside} cured or pickled in a seasoned brine, and canned {cooked}.














In the U.S., corned beef is often purchased ready to eat in delicatessens. It is the key ingredient in the grilled Reuben sandwich, consisting of corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Thousand Island or Russian dressing on rye bread.

Corned beef hash is commonly served with eggs for breakfast.

Smoking corned beef, typically with a generally similar spice mix, produces smoked meat {or "smoked beef"} such as pastrami.


Corned Beef and St. Patrick's DayIn the U.S. and Canada, consumption of corned beef is often associated with Saint Patrick's Day.  Corned beef is not considered an Irish national dish, and the connection with Saint Patrick's Day specifically originates as part of Irish-American culture, and is often part of their celebrations in North America. In Ireland, the closest traditional dish is bacon and cabbage {similar to Canadian style bacon or ham}. Corned beef and cabbage became popular in the U.S. after Irish immigrants in the northeast used corned beef instead of pork in the dish. This substitution was likely due to the low cost of corned beef in the U.S.


Corned beef was used as a substitute for bacon by Irish American immigrants in the late 19th century.  A similar dish is the New England boiled dinner, consisting of corned beef, cabbage, and root vegetables such as carrots, turnips, and potatoes, which is popular in New England and parts of Atlantic Canada.
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September 5, 2011

Crock Pot Asian Beef Broccoli

In honor of having heard Temple Grandin speak again yesterday, I'm sharing a Crock Pot beef dish with you today.  Over a year ago, Dominic and I had the pleasure of having lunch with Temple at a friend's house and then attended her speaking engagement afterwards. She is always so inspiring. I love her no-nonsense, tell it like it is approach. 


With the kids after school soccer practice and other activities this fall, I sometimes feel like a taxi cab driver, I'm sure you all can relate.  It seems most practices and activities, 4H meetings and such are scheduled either right before or just after dinner time, so preparing a home cooked meal can sometimes be tough.  My Crock Pot is definitely going to be my best friend in the up-coming months.

We raise our own pasture raised beef, so we typically have a freezer full of meat.  Perusing the freezer, I discovered we have quite a variety of roasts to choose from.  My kids like roast but they much prefer steak, venison or hamburgers.  I pulled out a Chuck Roast and tried this new recipe for Crock Pot Asian Beef Broccoli and it was a hit!  My kids even ate the rice without any threats or bribery on my part.

Here's what you need for success....












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March 18, 2010

How Was Your St. Patty's Day?

What is corned beef? For us, it's something that we eat every year on St. Patrick's day. Corned beef refers to a particular style of brine-cured beef. The "corn" in corned beef refers to the "corns" or grains of coarse salts used to cure it. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the usage of corn, meaning "small hard particle, a grain, as of sand or salt." Potassium nitrate (saltpeter) is often added to the brine to help preserve the beef's pink color. In the U.S. and Canada, corned beef typically comes in two forms, a cut of beef (usually brisket, but sometimes round or silverside) cured or pickled in a seasoned brine, and canned (pre-cooked).

In the United States, corned beef is often purchased ready to eat in delicatessens. It is the key ingredient in the famous grilled Reuben sandwich, consisting of corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Thousand Island or Russian dressing on rye bread. Corned beef hash is commonly served with eggs for breakfast. Smoking corned beef, typically with a generally similar spice mix, produces the cold cut known as pastrami. Here is how our Corned Beef and Cabbage dinner went last night~ Corned Beef bought at CostCo (we didn't have the brisket part of our last Natural Beef harvest made into corned beef this time) Packaged in San Jose, CA (local for us) Place Corned Beef, carrots and potatoes into a slow cooker with 5-7 cups of water and pickling spices (normally comes with the corned beef). Cook for 8 hours in slow cooker... The result.... Cut your cabbage into wedges. Place in a microwave safe dish. Pour in 2 cups of the liquid from the slow cooker and microwave for 7-10 minutes. Okay, I forgot to use the liquid from the slow cooker and used tap water instead. It happens. The cabbage could have been more flavorful. There's always next year....right? Corned Beef goes well with any mustard, I use a spicy sweet type..... All in all, it was a good dinner......to eat once a year. The kids enjoyed it, Bryce even liked the cabbage. Hope you all had a wonderful St. Patrick's Day with Corned Beef & Cabbage.....or just had a wonderful St. Patrick's Day without corned beef. Happy Thursday!

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February 5, 2010

A Favorite Party Recipe ~ Pulled Pork

The trick to making pulled pork healthy is to trim the meat well and then skim any extra fat off the sauce after cooking. Serve on a soft whole-grain bun with crisp, cool coleslaw. This is delicious! Tangy, sweet, smoky and spicy. You can also modify this recipe to work in a slow cooker, that way it will stay warm for the entire length of your party.
Pulled Pork
Ingredients
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium yellow onions, diced
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
12 ounces beer, preferably lager (1 1/2 cups)
3/4 cup ketchup
3/4 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup whole-grain mustard
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced, plus 1 tablespoon adobo sauce (see Ingredient Note)
1 5-pound bone-in Boston butt, (see Shopping Tip)

Preparation
1.Preheat oven to 300°F. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned and very soft, about 20 minutes.

2.Increase heat to high; add chili powder, cumin, paprika and cayenne and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1 minute. Add beer, ketchup, vinegar, mustard, tomato paste, chipotle pepper and adobo sauce; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is slightly thickened, 10 minutes. Meanwhile, trim all visible fat from the pork.

3.Remove the pan from the heat and add the pork, spooning sauce over it. Cover the pan, transfer to the oven and bake for 1 1/2 hours. Turn the pork over, cover, and bake for 1 1/2 hours more. Uncover and bake until a fork inserted into the meat turns easily, 1 to 2 hours more.

4.Transfer the pork to a large bowl and cover with foil. Pour the sauce into a large measuring cup or glass bowl and refrigerate until the fat and sauce begin to separate, 15 minutes. Skim off the fat. Return the sauce to the pan and heat over medium-high until hot, about 4 minutes.

5.Remove the bone and any remaining pieces of fat from the meat. The bone should easily slip away from the tender meat. Pull the pork apart into long shreds using two forks. Add the hot sauce to the meat; stir to combine. Serve hot.
Tips & Notes
Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 months.
Ingredient Note: Chipotle peppers are dried, smoked jalapeƱo peppers. Ground chipotle chile pepper can be found in the specialty spice section of most supermarkets. Chipotle chiles in adobo sauce are smoked jalapeƱos packed in a flavorful sauce. Look for the small cans with the Mexican foods in large supermarkets. Once opened, they'll keep up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator or 6 months in the freezer.
Shopping tip: Boston butt (or “Boston-style butt,” “fresh pork butt,” “pork shoulder”) can weigh upwards of 10 pounds, so you may have to ask your butcher to cut one down for this recipe.
Nutrition Per serving: 283 calories; 13 g fat (4 g sat, 6 g mono); 97 mg cholesterol; 10 g carbohydrates; 29 g protein; 2 g fiber; 489 mg sodium; 529 mg potassium. Nutrition Bonus: Selenium (46% daily value), Zinc (29% dv), Vitamin A (17% dv), Potassium (15% dv). 1 Carbohydrate Serving

Do you have a favorite Party Recipe?? I'd love to hear!
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January 15, 2010

Playoff Pleasers ~ Food To Feed A Crowd



















With the playoffs coming up again this weekend, I wanted to share some party food, great for serving to a crowd and easy too. Beef and Bean Chili Verde and a vegetarian chile~ Zesty Wheat Berry - Black Bean Chili.

Make up a Chili Bar for your guests. Set out bowls of grated cheese, chopped onion, avocado & sour cream as toppings & serve with some warm corn bread and you will have a delicious meal that goes great with football and beer.

Tip: keep warm all day in a slow cooker/crock pot

Zesty Wheat Berry-Black Bean Chili

6 servings, about 1 1/2 cups each (Double the ingredients for a party)

Ingredients• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 1 large yellow bell pepper,chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed
• 2 14-ounce cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1-2 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced (see Tip)
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 teaspoons light brown sugar
• 2 cups Cooked Wheat Berries
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Preparation
1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add beans, tomatoes, chipotle to taste, broth and brown sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 25 minutes.

2. Stir in cooked wheat berries and heat through, about 5 minutes more. (If using frozen wheat berries, cook until thoroughly heated.) Remove from the heat. Stir in lime juice. Garnish each bowl with avocado and cilantro.

Tips & Notes
Tip: Canned chipotle peppers (smoked jalapeƱos) in adobo sauce add heat and a smoky flavor. Look for the small cans with other Mexican foods in large supermarkets. Once opened, store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator or 6 months in the freezer. Cooked wheat berries will keep for up to 1 month in your freezer and there's no need to thaw them; just stir them directly into the chili.

Nutrition
Per serving: 386 calories; 11 g fat (1 g sat, 7 g mono); 61 g carbohydrates; 14 g protein; 15 g fiber; 703 mg sodium; 311 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin C (130% daily value), Fiber (72% dv), Folate (48% dv), Iron & Vitamin A (25% dv).
3 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 3 starch, 1 vegetable, 1 very-lean meat, 2 fat






















Beef & Bean Chili Verde

6 servings, about 1 1/2 cups each (double the ingredients for a party)

Ingredients• 1 pound 93%-lean ground beef
• 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 1 16-ounce jar green salsa, green enchilada sauce or taco sauce
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 15-ounce can pinto or kidney beans, rinsed
• 1 15 oz can of corn
• 1 15 oz can of black beans
• 1 15 oz can of diced tomatoes

Preparation
1. Cook beef, bell pepper and onion in a large saucepan over medium heat, crumbling the meat with a wooden spoon, until the meat is browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic, chili powder, cumin and cayenne; cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Stir in salsa (or sauce) and water; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in beans and cook until heated through, about 1 minute.

Tips & Notes
• Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Reheat just before serving.

Nutrition
Per serving: 307 calories; 8 g fat (3 g sat, 3 g mono); 64 mg cholesterol; 29 g carbohydrates; 27 g protein; 6 g fiber; 516 mg sodium; 641 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin C (100% daily value), Vitamin A & Zinc (40% dv), Folate (20% dv), Potassium (18% dv).
1 1/2 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 1 starch, 2 vegetable, 3 lean meat Pin It