What are you having for dinner? (wanna share your recipe?)

[blackemerald1]

Yep..
Greek Lamb and cabbage bowl

Ingredients

1 tablespoon Olive Oil
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 small onion, diced
1 lb ground lamb (or beef)
¼ cup tomato paste
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ cup water (or broth), more or less as needed
½ large head green cabbage (or 1 small), cored and sliced
1 teaspoon sea salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper, or to taste

Instructions

(I added in a couple of extra green veg's too)

In a large pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic and ground lamb. Sauté until the lamb is cooked about 5- 7 minutes. Add in the tomato paste, cinnamon, oregano and nutmeg. Stir until well combined.
Add in the cabbage and continue to sauté. You want to cook until the cabbage is gently cooked with a little bite, not mushy.
Add a little water or broth, as needed if it's too dry.
Serve over cauli-rice or rice, zucchini noodles or pasta. Top with fresh dill and crumbled feta. Or drizzle tzatziki sauce over it. Or top with a fried or poached egg.

 

[Friday]

Huh. I can’t believe I haven’t posted Beef Barely Stew in here, before. It’s my #1 go-to BIG soup that I make almost once a month (I usually make 1-2 soups a week in winter... a lot are stone soups, but Beef Barely Stew, Clam Chowder, Lentil Soup, Gumbo, & NotQuiteChili are my “core” soups... only BBS & Gumbo being made monthly, and my gumbo changes around a lot depending on my mood, so it’s really only Beef Barley that stands alone on a podium.).

So freaking weird.

Okay, so THAT recipe will follow... but I was out of beef shanks... which meant no bones & no marrow, which meant the broth was weak / lacking in all those lovely minerals and vitamins. So I tipped in a can of V8 and a bottle of Stout to deepen it. Voila! Loooooovely Steak&Ale Stew. I’ve been trying to find a great one of those for ages. Lots of okay/good, but nothing that blew me away. I maaaaaaay try adding mushrooms to it tomorrow, but for now? It’s awesome.

 

[Friday]

Beef Barley Stew

Giant Pot Necessary & about 3-4 hours

Spoiler: Talking

Pretty much everything that follows are in a loose “rule/ratio of 5s” ...5 pounds of meat, 5 cans of this, 5 chunks of that, 5 pieces of thisother. The only thing I’m careful about not adding too much are freaking carrots. I love carrots. But they’re so sweet that they can kill savory soups. So I err on the side of too few carrots rather than too many, when everything else I’ll just tip an extra whatever in if I’m near the end of it, to use it up. Because my kid is a carrot fanatic, I’ll boil a pound or two of carrots all by themselves in beef broth with a clove of garlic, jist to top his bowl. Cooking them in the soup though, just ruined it for everyone. Even he hated it.

The Onions and Celery I rough chop 2 for chunky veggie bits, and finely dice 2 to disappear into the soup, and split the 5th half chopped & half diced. Everything else just gets chopped

.

Ingredients
- Enough beef shank slices to comfortably cover the bottom of the pot. Size variations means anywhere from 3-5 for my pot. Roughly speaking, 3lbs or 1.5 kilos ** & ***
- 2+ pounds / Kilo of beef chuck cut to bite size (or precut stew meat)
******
- 5 Onions
- 5 Large stalks of Celery
- 5 cloves of garlic
- 5 medium carrots (or about half a pound of baby carrots)
- 5 cans of stewed tomatoes
- 5 Yukon gold potatoes
- half a cup (ha! Point 5 ;) of barley
- 1 or 2 bay leaves
- Salt & Pepper to taste (garlic salt whilst meat is browning is also good)
- Water to cover, and then double that, so everything floats free & happy

Method
Brown the chopped meat, <<<most important part, add onions/celery/garlic and stir until translucent (or you get bored, it does help, but isn’t totally necessary, they’ll cook soft). Tip In tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, beef shanks, and barley. Add enough water to cover and then double that. Bring to boil, and then turn down to simmer. Stir occasionally for 3 hours.

Spoiler: More talking

* If you don’t have stewed tomatoes (or are like me and can’t eat the commercial ones with dairy added) you can make your own by mincing up 1 green bell pepper, 2 stalks of celery, and 3 garlic cloves per 2-3 28oz cans /or/ 5 15oz cans of diced or whole tomatoes. I’ve done it separately, and just added them to the stew with everything else, and there is absolutely no difference. None. Totally not worth washing an extra pot for. But it screws up my “5s” rule, so I always think of them separately.

** If you don’t have beef shanks, soup bones work, generally 1lb of bones per 3 pounds of meat. Oxtail, on the other hand, can kiss my tail. Those things are obnoxious. And make for a very greasy soup. If all I have are oxtail I make a roux based soup to absorb all the grease, rather than this soup.

*** As I’ve just discovered, a can of V8 & a bottle of Stout is another substitute for shank or soup bones.

Aaaaaaand I’ve just discovered why I’ve never posted this. It’s a stupid easy soup to make... chop everhthing, brown the meat, add everything else, add water, bring to boil turn down to simmer, wait apx 3 hours... but it takes forever to write out.

 

[TruthSeeker]

Huh. I can’t believe I haven’t posted Beef Barely Stew in here, before. It’s my #1 go-to BIG soup that I make almost once a month (I usually make 1-2 soups a week in winter... a lot are stone soups, but Beef Barely Stew, Clam Chowder, Lentil Soup, Gumbo, & NotQuiteChili are my “core” soups... only BBS & Gumbo being made monthly, and my gumbo changes around a lot depending on my mood, so it’s really only Beef Barley that stands alone on a podium.).

So freaking weird.

Okay, so THAT recipe will follow... but I was out of beef shanks... which meant no bones & no marrow, which meant the broth was weak / lacking in all those lovely minerals and vitamins. So I tipped in a can of V8 and a bottle of Stout to deepen it. Voila! Loooooovely Steak&Ale Stew. I’ve been trying to find a great one of those for ages. Lots of okay/good, but nothing that blew me away. I maaaaaaay try adding mushrooms to it tomorrow, but for now? It’s awesome.

Good ol' V* to the rescue. Works everytime in flavoring soups and stews when something fell short.

Beef Barley Stew

Giant Pot Necessary & about 3-4 hours

Spoiler: Talking

Pretty much everything that follows are in a loose “rule/ratio of 5s” ...5 pounds of meat, 5 cans of this, 5 chunks of that, 5 pieces of thisother. The only thing I’m careful about not adding too much are freaking carrots. I love carrots. But they’re so sweet that they can kill savory soups. So I err on the side of too few carrots rather than too many, when everything else I’ll just tip an extra whatever in if I’m near the end of it, to use it up. Because my kid is a carrot fanatic, I’ll boil a pound or two of carrots all by themselves in beef broth with a clove of garlic, jist to top his bowl. Cooking them in the soup though, just ruined it for everyone. Even he hated it.

The Onions and Celery I rough chop 2 for chunky veggie bits, and finely dice 2 to disappear into the soup, and split the 5th half chopped & half diced. Everything else just gets chopped

.

Ingredients
- Enough beef shank slices to comfortably cover the bottom of the pot. Size variations means anywhere from 3-5 for my pot. Roughly speaking, 3lbs or 1.5 kilos ** & ***
- 2+ pounds / Kilo of beef chuck cut to bite size (or precut stew meat)
******
- 5 Onions
- 5 Large stalks of Celery
- 5 cloves of garlic
- 5 medium carrots (or about half a pound of baby carrots)
- 5 cans of stewed tomatoes
- 5 Yukon gold potatoes
- half a cup (ha! Point 5 ;) of barley
- 1 or 2 bay leaves
- Salt & Pepper to taste (garlic salt whilst meat is browning is also good)
- Water to cover, and then double that, so everything floats free & happy

Method
Brown the chopped meat, <<<most important part, add onions/celery/garlic and stir until translucent (or you get bored, it does help, but isn’t totally necessary, they’ll cook soft). Tip In tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, beef shanks, and barley. Add enough water to cover and then double that. Bring to boil, and then turn down to simmer. Stir occasionally for 3 hours.

Spoiler: More talking

* If you don’t have stewed tomatoes (or are like me and can’t eat the commercial ones with dairy added) you can make your own by mincing up 1 green bell pepper, 2 stalks of celery, and 3 garlic cloves per 2-3 28oz cans /or/ 5 15oz cans of diced or whole tomatoes. I’ve done it separately, and just added them to the stew with everything else, and there is absolutely no difference. None. Totally not worth washing an extra pot for. But it screws up my “5s” rule, so I always think of them separately.

** If you don’t have beef shanks, soup bones work, generally 1lb of bones per 3 pounds of meat. Oxtail, on the other hand, can kiss my tail. Those things are obnoxious. And make for a very greasy soup. If all I have are oxtail I make a roux based soup to absorb all the grease, rather than this soup.

*** As I’ve just discovered, a can of V8 & a bottle of Stout is another substitute for shank or soup bones.

Aaaaaaand I’ve just discovered why I’ve never posted this. It’s a stupid easy soup to make... chop everhthing, brown the meat, add everything else, add water, bring to boil turn down to simmer, wait apx 3 hours... but it takes forever to write out.

Very similar to what I call "refrigerator soup," except it has barley and I don't always add that......and my tomatoes aren't stewed, I use the Italian diced flavored with basil, garlic and oregano. I love that combination of seasonings.....always room for V8, too when low on liquid or flavor.

 

[Friday]

Very similar to what I call "refrigerator soup,"

LOL... Those are my “stone soups”. Chicken, beef, pork, fish, shellfish, smoked meats, cured meats, water/broth/booze/cream, tinned, fresh, dried, grains galore... Never know what’s going in! The only real similarity is that they’re all eaten with a spoon.

 

[nursenurse]

LOL... Those are my “stone soups”. Chicken, beef, pork, fish, shellfish, smoked meats, cured meats, water/broth/booze/cream, tinned, fresh, dried, grains galore... Never know what’s going in! The only real similarity is that they’re all eaten with a spoon.

i love soup, and have gotten to making bases to take to the north, add the stock there. Easy, delish, and great when I only have an hour after working all day before call starts. I love barley. One thing I can get occasionally up north are beef short ribs. Stout, not so much, lol. I have taken up oxtails as well and given them a similar treatment. Used to be such a cheap cut in youth, but no more.

 

[Friday]

Used to be such a cheap cut in youth, but no more.

Right???

Seems like about 10 years ago (almost) all my fave cuts (brisket, flap/skirt, hanger, TriTip, shank, etc.) quintupled in price. Aaaaaargh. Most got a “steak” added to them, even if they’re cut as a roast. <rolleyes>

 

[TruthSeeker]

LOL... Those are my “stone soups”. Chicken, beef, pork, fish, shellfish, smoked meats, cured meats, water/broth/booze/cream, tinned, fresh, dried, grains galore... Never know what’s going in! The only real similarity is that they’re all eaten with a spoon.

Almost always, mine have some kind of tomato and beef or beef like broth/meat (bison, elk, beef, etc.).......everything else is a surprise....when I open the fridge! A great way to use up those veggies instead of letting them spoil.

 

[Mee]

Some sort of tray bake with chicken and vegetables. Recipe to be dictated by contents of the crisper draw.

 

[Mee]

I have taken up oxtails as well and given them a similar treatment. Used to be such a cheap cut in youth, but no more.

oxtail is a big treat now- the price has become silly. It’s such a process of love to prepare - the way I was taught is easier over two days for people who don’t live in the kitchen - it fits into a working lifestyle a bit better - but it’s been - huh - probably not for over ten years? My cats always used to love knocking off the top of even the cast iron casserole to try and liberate the oxtail.

 

[Mee]

Beef stew again . Pickled walnuts and a teaspoon of molasses ( breaking my sugar fast) for the win. Partly because my gums are so pale they could be pretending to be a ghost for Halloween . And partly because my online grocery order went a bit weird and sent me loads of meat .

 

[Friday]

Cream of Watercress Soup

Couple/Few bunches of watercress, stems removed
Swipe of (vegan) butter
Pound or two of chopped leeks
Small yellow onion, chopped
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups heavy (cashew) cream
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt & White Pepper
(Optional) Dollup of vegan coconut yogurt or Creme Fraische
(Seeeeeriously optional) caviar on top of the cream

Melt the butter in a deep sauce pan, and sweat the leeks and onions until soft but not caramelised. Add stock & cream, bring to simmer for about 30 minutes until veg are soft and base a bit reduced. Add watercress. After about 5 minutes, hit with an immersion blender, season with lemon & salt/pepper, and serve.

(Optional) I almost always add the yogurt, I only add caviar when I’ve got Japanese flying fish roe in my freezer, or I’ve just been sturgeon fishing. I only fish for sturgeon once in a blue moon. And the weather is good. Because line fishing for sturgeon is boooooooring. Most people add black sturgeon caviar via some restaurant that popularized this years back; many others add salmon roe. To me salmon ‘caviar’ is better known as “bait”. Hard pass. Shudder. But some people like it. I’m not sure why? But to each their own.