This time around something simple. I'd love to see what you all can do with the king of meat, the mighty beef. What about a deadline in two weeks, March 29th? Should be plenty of time!
thenewgreen lil eightbitsamurai kleinbl00 Complexity _refugee_ mk ghostoffuffle flagamuffin and many others I'm forgetting now.
EDIT: Shit, I totally forgot about the vegetarians here, including thenewgreen, right? For you the challenge to make something good with meat replacers / tofu.
Beef Bacon Beer and Cheese Soup 1 pound beef ¼ cup butter ¼ cup flour 2 teaspoons garlic powder1/2 to 2 teaspoons ground chile de arbol (or 1/2 to 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper; to taste)1 teaspoon smoked paprika 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1 teaspoon pepper 1 cup beer 1 cup beef broth 2 cups half and half 8 ounces mild cheddar cheese, shredded 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce onions carrots celery 1 can diced white potatoes I stole it from this guy because I made his and didn't like it with chicken:
This combination of words is excellent. Bless you, tacocat. Bless you.Beef Bacon Beer and Cheese
Actually veen, I fell off the vegetarian wagon after 5 weeks. No worries, it was a nice ride while it lasted, I will still cut-down very heavily on my meat consumption, but not this week! I may prepare another dish for this challenge, but here is my first. It's dead simple, but it's perhaps the greatest use of beef. I can say that with some authority, because after 5 weeks without meat, the thing that I was most craving was a burger. Did I grind my own beef? Hell no. I bought it. Organic, grass fed and free to roam beef. I had an option between 80/20 or 90/10. I like more fat, so I went with 80/20 -Fat is where the flavor lives. I then took the patty and added some shredded cheese. Why? Because I have small kids and my daughter thought it was a good idea. -It was. you can see in the background the veggie patties Then I made them in to patties and added a pinch of salt and some fresh cracked pepper. pictured behind it, the St. Angel cheese that will make this burger kick ass, as well as the dinner rolls that I'll use for buns This next shot is of the asparagus that I marinate with white wine, lemon juice and salt and pepper. really it's to show off the flowers I bought my wife Tomatos with some vinegar, salt and pepper. BOOM! please forgive me for the BOOM. This next component was key. My cousins are farmers and they grow their own zucchini and pickle it. Tonight I opened a can from their 2013 batch for the first time. HOLY SHIT they're good. Here is a beef patty plated. If at this point you are saying to yourself, "wait a second, the new green just made a fucking cheeseburger, what's so special about that?" -Well, you're right, but I can promise you it tasted amazing. Topped with cheddar, St. Andre cheeses, fresh heirloom tomato, homemade pickles and on a brioche dinner roll. Really tasty: Here is the veggie burger version: It was 75 degrees out, sunny and perfect grilling weather. It was fun!
At last, a challenge where it was stuff I was going to make anyways (i.e. not really a challenge to do). The beef: Unfancy and cheap, but whatever. The flavorings, garlic and marjoram from the garden: Other provisions: The equipment: Preheated gradually for more even heat dispersion. Once it's starting to smoke it's time to move to the next step, butter! Garlic goes in too. Heat should be at least 450F before steak is added for a good sear, but I can't keep it empty like this for very long without burning the butter. Steak goes in: Also, shit, forgot to salt and pepper it before hand, but that's ok. Two minutes on the timer then flip: For this much steak it really should have been longer. Also higher temperature. I added more pepper to the finished side after. Marjoram is added at this point too. Fishing out the herbs and garlic before they burn in the pan: They're there to impart flavor to the butter, not get charred, they go into the foil that will house the steak as it's finished in the oven. Steak is transferred to foil for oven finishing: Also a thermometer probe is used at this point to ensure perfect medium rare finishing temperature. And off into the oven it goes (350F) as we wait until it reaches 122F internally: At last: ~8oz plate. Rest for several minutes Collect all the juices from the foil, enjoy: Not too shabby. A nicer cut would go a long ways, but the method certainly gives some of the best steak the meat can offer.
Alright so we cooked last night but I forgot to post it. Here's what randomuser and I made. Grilled. Motherfucking. Tri. Tip. Steak. Sliders. With potatoes and ravioli. Marinate Shirtless Potato Chopping Ravioli Grilllllll smmmokkkeeee mmmm
We are right up against the deadline, aren't we? mk, insomniasexx, b_b, kleinbl00, humanodon, Complexity, _refugee_, flagamuffin, eightbitsamurai -Any beef this weekend?
randomuser will be cooking me a big ole pile of meat this weekend.
Normally we ask for pictures and a step by step of the process. In this case I think an exemption is justified. Happy cooking.