BBQ Spare Ribs

Blog #12

It's been almost a week since I've blogged.  I feel like I should be doing it more but need to find time in my schedule for it.  When I originally started  this blog, I thought one recipe a day shouldn't be hard.  Boy was I wrong.  Between 3 kids, me being a single parent (at the moment), FRG, and trying to stay on top of daily housework, a girl gets busy and gets lost in mass ciaos.  So my revised plan is to get on here at least 2 times a week.  I know that some of you are anxious to see what I will put on here next.  So I thought that this rib recipe would be perfect since I put it on Facebook and got so many comments on it. This was my first time making ribs like this.  I usually use my Grandma Margaret's recipe but I was out of the super secret BBQ sauce.  So I looked up a BBQ sauce recipe, tried it out, didn't like it, revised it, and loved it.  I think from now on, this is how I will be making my ribs.

INGREDIENTS

1 Rack of spare ribs or baby back ribs
Garlic powder, salt, and pepper to season

*You can use your favorite dry rub if you wish! Adds flavor to the beef dripping. 

Sauce
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (more or less)
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 half medium sweet onion, diced or 1 tbsp onion powder
1 teaspoon dry mustard
2 cloves of minced garlic or 1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar
3/4 cup of ribs drippings or 1/2 cup of beef broth

DIRECTIONS

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Place ribs in a shallow pan or baking sheet.  Season with garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Rub all of ribs, front and back.  Cover and cook for 1 hour. Once ribs are done in the oven, save dripping for BBQ sauce.
2.  In a medium sauce pan, combine all ingredients for BBQ sauce.  Mix well.  Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens (about 30-45 mins).
3.  Once sauce is ready, turn on BBQ grill to low heat.  Place rib rack onto heated grill.  Using a sauce brush, brush BBQ sauce onto ribs, turning every 15 minutes and brushing on more sauce or until nicely browned and glazed.  Cook on grill for 1 hour.  (Should turn ribs and brush sauce on each side twice)
4.  Slice and serve with some mashed potatoes and corn on the cob. 

Orange Stir-fry Rice

So, tonight I decided to experiment with dinner.  I had chicken pulled out and I knew that I wanted to use the Con Culantro Y Achiote seasoning (Coriander & Annatto) in my rice.  For those of you wondering what the hell Annatto is, don't worry I had to look it up myself.  Annatto is a derivative of the achiote trees, used to produce a yellow to orange food coloring and also as a flavoring. Its scent is described as "slightly peppery with a hint of nutmeg" and flavor as "slightly sweet and peppery". 


My end product turned out to be a cross between paella and fried rice.  We got introduced to this seasoning by one of Gary's friends, co-worker, chief brother who worked with him at TPU in Great Lakes.  His wife is from Guam and he said that this is how they always make their rice.  I thought that it was so delicious.  So for today's entry, I decided to post this recipe.  I decided it to call it I don't have my friends from Guam so this might already be a Guamanian dish.  Please let me know if it is.  I added a picture of the seasoning so you know what to look for when and if you decide to buy it.  We have found it anywhere Goya products are sold - the commissary, Super WalMart, various Asian markets.  So for now, I'm calling this recipe Orange Stir-fry Rice.  If anyone comes up with a better name or if it already has a name, please share!

INGREDIENTS


5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cubed
2 tablespoons of oil
2 packets of Goya Con Culantro Y Achiote seasoning (I believe 8 comes in a pack)
2 cups of rice
2 cups of water
1 1 lb. bag of frozen stir-fry peppers with onion
Garlic powder, salt, pepper to season


DIRECTIONS


1.  Cook two cups of rice in rice cooker with 1 packet of seasoning and water.  Make sure to stir up seasoning and water before adding your water to your rice.
2.  Put oil into a frying pan with chicken.  Season with seasoning, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.  Once, chicken is cooked, add your stir-fry peppers.  Remove from heat after chicken is cooked until rice is done.
3.  Once rice is done, add rice to chicken and peppers.  Stir until it is completely mixed together.

Broccoli Cole Slaw/ Saimin Salad

Blog # 10

My island people know this recipe as Saimin Salad.  Paula Deen calls it Broccoli Cole Slaw.  My friend Melissa Weaver, who made it at one of their BBQ's in 2008, told me where I could find this great recipe.  I was so happy to have some ( I probably ate half of the bowl), especially since the last time I had it was in 2000 with my Uncle Ron Pritchard (R.I.P) at DDW (Don't Drink the Water) at the Pago Plaza in American Samoa.  I love it because you don't have to cut up cabbage all day long.  It is so much faster with this recipe.  It tastes exactly the same, just less time consuming.  I added a picture of what the packaging looks like that is used in the recipe.

INGREDIENTS


Salad:
1 bags (3-ounce) Ramen Noodle Soup
3/4 stick butter
1/4 cup slivered almonds

1 bags (12-ounce) bags broccoli cole slaw (in the bagged salad section of the grocery store) or regular cole slaw mix
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
Chopped green onions, for garnish

Dressing Mix:

3/4 cup canola oil

1/4 cup brown or white sugar

1/4 cup apple cidar vinegar

1 ramen noodle seasoning packet

1 tsp sesame seed oil

DIRECTIONS

1.  Put the ramen noodles in a bag and crush them with a rolling pin.

2.  In a large skillet, melt butter over low/medium heat. Add the crushed noodles and slivered almonds to the skillet and saute, stirring occasionally (keep temperature at low/medium heat). 

3.  Whisk together all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl. 

4.  Place the shredded broccoli/coleslaw into bowl and toss with the noodles, almonds, and sunflower seeds. Pour dressing over salad just to coat. Toss right before eating. Garnish with chopped onions.

Stuffed Chicken Rolls

Blog # 9

This one is from the side of a Stove Top Stuffing box.  I wish my kids would eat stuffing so I could make it once a week.  I'm a huge fan of this recipe.  It is super delicious.  And other than the pounding that you have to do in the recipe, it is pretty easy to make.

INGREDIENTS

1 6 oz. box of Stove Top Stuffing mix
2 eggs, lightly beaten
6 small boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, pounded to 1/4-inch thickness
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon paprika

DIRECTIONS

1.  Combine stuffing mix and 1 cup of water in a large bowl.  Let stand for 5 minutes.  Stir in eggs.  Spread stuffing mixture evenly over chicken breasts, to within 1/2-inch of the outer edges.  Roll up chicken from one short end to enclose stuffing mixture.
2.  Place chicken rolls, seam side down, in 13 x 9-inch baking dish.  Mix soup and milk; pour over chicken.  Sprinkle with paprika.
3.  Bake at 400 degrees F for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

*  To pound chicken, I found it easy to put chicken in a Ziploc bag one at a time.  It keeps the chicken juice from getting all over your kitchen and is easier with clean up too.  If you don't have a mallet, use a can of veggie or whatever you have in your pantry.  A rolling pin works too.  Roll it across the chicken, putting your weight on it until you get the desired thickness.

* If you have leftover stuffing, put it on top of you chicken before you pour on the soup and paprika.

Muddy Buddies

Blog # 8

This recipe you can find on any box of Chex cereal. It's great for any occasion - snack, potluck, dessert.  It's also a great way use your WIC checks (if you are on it), especially if your kids and you are only into sweet cereals.  I'm sure most of you have this recipe in your recipe box.  It's super easy to make and only takes about 15 minutes to make.

INGREDIENTS

9 cups of Rice Chex, Corn Chex, Chocolate Chex, or Honey Nut Chex
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS

1.  In a large bowl, measure out cereal.  Set aside.
2. In a 1-quart microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter uncovered on High for 1 minute; stir.  Microwave about 30 seconds longer or until the mixture can be stirred smooth.  Stir vanilla.  Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated.  Pour in 2-gallon resealable food storage plastic bag.
3.  Add powdered sugar.  Seal bag; shake until well coated.  Spread on waxed paper to cool.  Store in airtight container in refrigerator.

Panko Breaded Deep Fried Shrimp

Blog #7

My husband came home for the holidays and brought me home 10 pounds of jumbo tiger prawns from Mississippi.  So this is what we decided to make with about 2 pounds of them one night for dinner.  It was very tasty and had really good flavor. 

INGREDIENTS

1 pound medium shrimp, peeled (tails left on) and deveined
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon paprika
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup panko crumbs
1 quart vegetable oil for frying

DIRECTIONS

1.  Place the shrimp in a medium bowl and season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder and mix.  In a small bowl, stir together the flour and paprika.  Place eggs into a separate bowl and finally place the panko crumbs into another bowl.
2.  Heat the oil in a deep fryer or skillet to 375 degrees F.  Dip each shrimp into the flour mixture, then into the egg, and finally into the panko crumbs to coat.  Fry a few at a time until golden brown.  This should take no longer than 5-7 minutes (depending on the size of your shrimp).  Remove and drain on paper towels before serving.

Mochiko Chicken

Blog #6

Ever since I lived in Hawai'i, Mochiko Chicken as been a favorite of mine.  It is so easy to make and my children love it.  It is a great dish for lunch, dinner, or for a party platter.  The preparation time is close to nothing, but it does need to refrigerate for at least 8 hours.  I usually make it the day before.

INGREDIENTS

5 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breast, cut in strips
1 cup of white rice flour (mochiko flour)
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 cup soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon salt
3/4 cup of white sugar
1 cup chopped green onion
6 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
5 eggs
oil for frying

DIRECTIONS

1.  In a large bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, soy sauce, salt, sugar, green onions, garlic, cayenne pepper, and eggs. Mix well.  Add chicken and marinate for 8-24 hours, refrigerated.
2.  Remove from refrigerator, deep fry and serve.