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Favorite recipies?
Xiaou2:
Reverse Seared Steak - Melt in your mouth Tenderness
This might be a Simple One... but its the Process, that makes it a Game Changer.
When I was a little kid, I hated steak. The reason? My mother was an AWFUL cook.
The steak she served, was Tough like Shoe Leather. Hard to Cut, Harder to Chew,
and no seasoning at all. Often Gray in color.
When she would be at work... I was ocassionally expected to cook dinner for my
Brother and Sisters. In some ways, I was happy to do it... because I could try to
make food that actually Tasted good.
As an Adult... I eventually discovered what GOOD steak actually tasted like.
I realized that the redish color, was not actually blood, and didnt taste like Iron,
when it was cooked to the proper temp. Instead, the steak became incredibly Tender
and Mouthwateringly Juicy... when cooked to a Medium Rare temp.
Still... for most of my Steaks.. I just Pan Fried them. This process tends to
create a Layered effect... where the Outer layers are cooked to "Medium", and the
inner core is Medium Rare.
But when I Discovered the Reverse Sear method... My Steak game, was taken to a whole
other Level. I could get a steak that had "Center to Edge" Medium Rare... with no
other Banding. Only the first milimenter of the steak, was Crispy. The rest was
so tender and juicy, that you barely had to chew.
There are many examples of Reverse Searing on the Internet now... But in many of them,
there is One Key FLAW, that many of these people make... which totally ruins the whole
reason for Reverse Searing in the First Place.
Instructions:
- Buy a Thick Cut Steak. Try to get closest to an Inch in Thickness.
- Take your Steak, and season all sides with Salt, Black Pepper, and Garlic Powder (minimum).
- For a more Seasoned steak, add some dried Thyme and Rosemary.
- For best flavor.. put in the Fridge for a day, to allow the spices to penetrate deeper.
- For immediate use... Leave the Steak on the counter for about 15 minutes, to get
up to Room Temperature + allow the spices to sink in.
- Pre-Heat the Oven to 250F
- Place Steak on a Heavy Duty Plate, or Pan.. and cook until the internal temp is about 115F.
(an Internal Oven Thermometer would help. If you dont have one... you will have to be very
attentive, checking the internal steaks temp often. Its very easy to go past the desired temp,
once the steak gets up to a certain temp threshold)
- Place the Steak on the Counter. The internal Temp will continue to rise, and should eventually
reach "Medium Rare".
- Leave the steak on the Counter for about 20 minues. This is IMPORTANT !!! If you try to
Sear too soon... the external layers of the steak will over-cook.
- Heat up a Cast Iron Frying Pan, until its pipping Hot.
- Add a Generous amount of Peanut Oil / High Smoke point Oil to the pan... and wait until the
oil starts to smoke a bit.. or is at least, very Hot.
- Use some Paper Towels, to dry off the steak (you dont want any moisture on the surfaces)
- Place the Steak in the Cast Iron Pan, and wait for 60 seconds. Dont move the steak at all,
until that 60 seconds is up.
- Flip the Steak over, and let it Sear for 60 seconds.
- If both sides are Crisp as Chips... then Sear the Sides, and Plate. You can eat it Immediatly,
since the Steak had already "Rested" earlier in the Cooking Process. This was just the finishing
Sear... so it doesnt need any additional Resting period.
- If the steaks surfaces are not Cripy enough... Flip the steak over again, and Sear each side
for 30 seconds. Flip and Repeat, until the desired Crispy External Texture, has been Attained.
Notes:
- If your Stoves Temps are a little Low.. the Searing could take a little longer than
60 seconds per side.
- If you left too much Moisture on the surface of the Steak... the surfaces might not get
Crispy enough... and or, will take too long.. and might cause the steak to reach
"Medium" temp.. rather than staying within Medium Rare temps.
- Make sure not to cook a steak that has not yet risen to room temp. That can cause internal temp
differences... resulting in an unevenly cooked result.
- Remember, above All Else.. to wait 15 to 20 minutes, to allow the steak to COOL down... before
Pan Searing it.
Sides:
- Pan Fried Mushrooms and Onions, go extremely well as a Steak topping.
(Seasoned and grilled "Sherry Mushrooms", are the absolute Bomb, as a Side)
- A nice Baked Potato, will also be a great Side to the Steak. Cook it in the oven (which was
already heated from the steak), at a higher oven temp... until the skin becomes crunchy like
a Crisp... and slightly Charred. Serve cut open, with Butter, Salt, and Black Pepper.
(You could probably pre-microwave the potato, for about 4 minutes, to reduce some oven time)
- Asparagus also goes fantastic with Steak. Boiled is Ok... but Grilled or Oven Roasted, is Best.
Apply a small amount of oil, Soysauce, balsamic vineagar, salt and Black Pepper.. and coat all of the
Asparagus, before placing on baking sheet, and oven-roasting them (Make sure you pre-break off
the stringy/tough ends, before cooking them).
- A Dry Red Wine... is MUST Try, when eating a good Steak. There is something Magical that happens
when the Red Wine is drank, after a bite of Steak. It improves the taste of the Steak, as well as
makes the Wine more enjoyable too. It doesnt have to be anything expensive, either. Just make
sure its a Dry Wine, not a Sweet Wine. I often prefer to just use Boxed Wines, as they are
fairly Cheap per Volume... and the taste is perfectly fine to my pallette.
Xiaou2:
================================
Salt Potato's & Backed Potato Tricks
================================
Living in Upstate NY... we have a special Potato dish, called "Salt-Potatoes".
(They actually sell Salt-Potato kits in our grocery stores, with potato's and the massive salt package, included)
You take a bag of small round white potatoes (these tend to be about 1 to 1.5" thick).
(If you cant find these, maybe use Fingerlings. Anything that isnt too thick)
Then you pour a metric Ton of salt into a large pot of water. Stir the salt into the water... until it all dissolves.
If it all dissolved... keep adding more salt... until you reach a level where the salt will no longer absorb into the water.
Heat the water to a Boil... then Add in the Potatoes.
Boil them, until they can easily be pierced with a fork. Slightly resistant on the outside, and creamy on the inside.
(dont overcook them to be too mushy / fragile. You dont want them to easily break apart)
Drain all of the water out of the pot... but DO NOT RINSE THE POTATOES !!!
You will quickly see that Potatoes start to turn a very White-Ish color... as the Salt Coating Cools down.
If you want, you can eat them as-is. However, they tend to heat up a bowl of melted Butter... and Dip them
into the butter, before chomping down on one.
These things are much more Tasty, than you would Imagine. They are very Addictive, too.
If you have any Left-Over... they keep extremely long in the Fridge, due to the salt levels acting like a preservative.
===================
Backed Potato Trick
===================
Rinse a large Russet potato (or any large potato), with Tap Water.
While still very wet... rush to sprinkle Heavy amounts of a Seasoning Mix, on the Exterior of the Potato
This could be a simple Beef/Steak Seasoning mix. Or you could make your own... using:
- Salt
- Black Pepper
- Cheyanne pepper
- Garlic Powder
- Thyme
- Rosemary
(or add some "Italian Seasoning" spice mix in, which already has Thyme and Rosemary in it)
Mix these into a small bowl or cup... and then taste to see if its "Good". Adjust spices and salt levels, until you
get a good tasting Spice Mix.
Place the seasoned Potato on a baking sheet, and cook at like 400f... until the skin gets very Crispy, and has started to
Crack + is slightly Charred.
If you dont want to wait that long... and dont want the superior taste and texture.. then you can just Microwave
the Potato.
The water helps dissolve the seasoning mixture, and helps it stick to the Potatoes surface.
If you have Seasoned the Potatoes heavy enough... you wont actually need to apply any additional Salt, Pepper, or
Seasoning.. to the Potato. Just cut, and Eat, as is. Or Cut open... add butter, and eat. These are so good
when done properly.. that you wouldnt even miss not using any butter.
The thickness of a Potato can play a factor in whether or not you need additional Salt / Spices. If the thing
is an absolute Monster of a Potato.. then make sure you use a lot more Seasoning on the exterior.
This method is Somewhat similar to the effects of a Salt Potato.. but not quite. You should still try Salt Potato's,
on their Own.
Note: That a potato's surface doesnt hold water very well... so as soon as you wet it... make sure to pull it out
with excess water dripping off it of.. and IMMEDIATELY coat the sucker, on all sides, in Spices. Use your wet hands to
get those spices into all of the crevices, as you spin the potato around in circles... while you coat it.
You could alternatively coat the potato in oil, to get spices to stick. However, I believe the water actually works better
as far as I remember. As the water helps dissolve the salt and spices, better than the Oil... thus, I believe you
experience more Flavor from the water method.
Xiaou2:
No Fat Salad Dressing & Sauce / Marinade Base
In a small cup or dish, mix Soysauce and Balsamic Vinegar.
Use More Balsamic than Soysauce, or it will be too Salty.
Balsamic has a sweet flavor to it... and the Soysauce has that salty flavor bomb. When Combined,
they form a very delicious "Savory" flavor.. that is unique to itself.
This can be used straight up on Salads.. without the need to use any Base-Oil. The stuff imparts fantastic
flavor, sticking to the leaves quite easily on its own.
If you wanted to improve this as a Dressing... you could add in other Ingredients, like:
Garlic Powder, Thyme, Rosemary, Black Pepper, Onion Powder... etc.
This Base, can also be used for other recipes / sauces / and or as a marinade.
While its a very simple thing... its quite profound.
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