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Showing posts sorted by relevance for query cabbage. Sort by date Show all posts
I have been craving Beef Stew all week. It's a winter thing I guess, and having just come through having had a bad cold I was really craving some sort of comfort food.
In the UK they make things called Hot Pots in the winter months. This is usually with lamb, but I have also seen them made with other meats such as pork or chicken. This is the ultimate in comfort food.
.JPG "Beef Steak Hot Pot")
Meat and vegetables layered in an oven proof casserole dish with some stock, and then baked until everything is meltingly tender. Usually there is a thatch of sliced potatoes on top, but not always.
Today I decided to make myself a hot pot of sorts using some steak I found in my freezer, and why not! I was really pleased with how it turned out as well. This is sized for two to three people, but could certainly be made large enough to feed many more than that.
.JPG "Beef Steak Hot Pot")
Its not a recipe as much as it is a technique. Meat it browned and then layered up with a variety of vegetables. A flavor filled stock is poured over top and then the whole thing is baked long and slow until everything melts in your mouth.
You can thicken the juices to make a delicious gravy if you wish.
.JPG "Beef Steak Hot Pot")
Its all a matter of using what you have. I have even seen hot pots made with canned corned beef and baked beans. Using steak would be at the higher end of the scale!
Delicious, hearty and thrifty, that is the epitome of a classic hot pot, and in these days of having to pinch our pennies, thrifty counts more than ever!
.JPG "Beef Steak Hot Pot")
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE BEEF STEAK HOT POT
I simply used what meat and vegetables I had in my freezer and refrigerator. Using up what you already have is the name of the game! This is by no means a stringent list of ingredients!
- 1 tsp butter
- 1 tsp oil
- 10 ounces (285g) top round or stewing steak cut into pieces
- 1/2 tsp each garlic powder, salt, black pepper and summer savory (or thyme)
- 1/2 small white cabbage cut into wedges
- 1 large parsnip, peeled and thickly sliced
- 1/3 of a small turnip (rutabaga/swede) peeled and cut into thick half moons
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and thickly sliced
- 2 small onions quartered
- 2 cups beef stock
- 1 TBS tomato ketchup
- 1 TBS sweet pickle juice or Worcestershire sauce
- 1 TBS HP or other steak sauce
- 1 heaped TBS to thicken the gravy
.JPG "Beef Steak Hot Pot")
I am not sure what kind of steak I had as I had not marked the package but bear in mind you don't want to use your most expensive cut. I would suggest a rump or round steak. Any kind of steak which is well suited to braising.
Likewise, your vegetables. Root vegetables braise very well, and I think they taste even better if braised until they melt in your mouth. But I could be alone in that way of thinking. I like to mash them up on my plate and dot them with butter.
.JPG "Beef Steak Hot Pot")
Cabbage is especially lovely when braised long and slow for a lengthy period of time. It becomes almost buttery, and it does indeed melt in the mouth.
I love rutabaga, carrots and parsnips. They work very well in a dish like this.
.JPG "Beef Steak Hot Pot")
I chose to flavor the stock with a few aromatics, tomato ketchup, HP sauce and some sweet pickle juice. If you don't have sweet pickle juice then you can use Worcestershire sauce, or even leave it out altogether. I happen to like it in any dish like this one.
You will also note that there is not a lot of seasoning in this dish. With aromatics such as the above you don't really need a lot of seasoning. Just make sure you sprinkle some of it on each layer.
.JPG "Beef Steak Hot Pot")
HOW TO MAKE BEEF STEAK HOT POT
Nothing could really be easier. Brown your meat and then layer up your veg and bake. You can thicken the juices at the end for a delicious gravy if you wish.
Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/gas mark 4.
Heat the butter and oil in a heavy based oven proof casserole until the butter begins to foam. Add the pieces of steak and brown them well on both sides.
Mix together the herbs and seasonings in a small bowl.
Place the onion quarters around the browned steak in the bottom of the casserole. Sprinkle with a bit of the seasoning.
Layer in the vegetables one at a time on top of the steak, sprinkling each layer with the seasoning mixture, and ending with the wedges of cabbage.
Whisk together the beef stock, ketchup, pickle juice, and HP sauce. Pour over the meat and vegetables. Cover the casserole tightly.
Place into the preheated oven. Roast for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours until the meat and vegetables are tender.
Remove from the oven. Using a slotted spoon remove the meat and vegetables from the juices to a platter. Set aside and keep warm. Whisk the flour into the remaining juices and cook, whisking constantly over medium high heat until the gravy thickens.
Serve portions of the meat along with the vegetables with some of that delicious gravy spooned over top.
.JPG "Beef Steak Hot Pot")
This really was delicious. I always love something like boiled potatoes or mash with this type of a meal. Today it was boiled potatoes.
I boiled them in their skins just like my mother always did. Just pick some small to medium sized potatoes and wash them very well. Cover with lightly salted water, bring to the boil and then simmer for 20 to 25 minutes until fork tender.
Spear with a fork and peel. As I was peeling mine, I was thinking of my mother and watching her peel boiled potatoes for our supper. What a sweet memory for me that was.
.JPG "Beef Steak Hot Pot")
If you are a fan of long and slow cooking, you might also enjoy the following:
POT ROASTED PORK WITH CABBAGE AND CARROTS - This Pot Roasted Pork with Cabbage and carrots is one of my favorite meals to cook when the temperatures start dropping and the nights begin to draw in. A long slow braise results in succulent moist pork, tender roasted carrots, butter tender cabbage and a rich gravy that is to die for.
LANCASHIRE HOT POT - If you are a fan of Coronation Street you will be familiar with the pleasure of the Lancashire Hot Pot. This is as traditional as they get, with layers of lamb, onions and carrots, and a lovely thatch of buttery sliced potato on top.
Yield: 2-3
Beef Steak Hot Pot
Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 2 HourTotal time: 2 H & 20 M
Tender pieces of beef with plenty of vegetables cooked long and slow. You can make a delicious gravy with the pan juices. I like to serve this with boiled or mashed potatoes!
Ingredients
- 1 tsp butter
- 1 tsp oil
- 10 ounces (285g) top round or stewing steak cut into pieces
- 1/2 tsp each garlic powder, salt, black pepper and summer savory (or thyme)
- 1/2 small white cabbage cut into wedges
- 1 large parsnip, peeled and thickly sliced
- 1/3 of a small turnip (rutabaga/swede) peeled and cut into thick half moons
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and thickly sliced
- 2 small onions quartered
- 2 cups beef stock
- 1 TBS tomato ketchup
- 1 TBS sweet pickle juice or Worcestershire sauce
- 1 TBS HP or other steak sauce
- 1 heaped TBS to thicken the gravy
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/gas mark 4.
- Heat the butter and oil in a heavy based oven proof casserole until the butter begins to foam. Add the pieces of steak and brown them well on both sides.
- Mix together the herbs and seasonings.
- Place the onion quarters around the steak in the bottom of the casserole. Sprinkle with a bit of the seasoning.
- Layer in the vegetables one at a time on top of the steak, sprinkling each layer with the seasoning mixture, and ending with the wedges of cabbage.
- Whisk together the beef stock, ketchup, pickle juice, and HP sauce. Pour over the meat and vegetables. Cover the casserole tightly.
- Place into the preheated oven. Roast for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours until the meat and vegetables are tender.
- Remove from the oven. Using a slotted spoon remove the meat and vegetables from the juices to a platter. Set aside and keep warm.
- Whisk the flour into the remaining juices and cook, whisking constantly over medium high heat until the gravy thickens.
- Serve portions of the meat along with the vegetables with some of the gravy spooned over top.
I have always been a huge lover of salads and of coleslaw in general. I never tire of them, and if they are quick and easy to make, so much the better.
That is the way with this crunchy cashew slaw salad recipe I am sharing with you today. Not only is it very quick and easy to make, but it is incredibly delicious!
I know I say that about everything I cook and make, but its true. It is delicious. Its a fabulous combination of all things crunchy, salty, sweet and tangy!
Plus it only uses six (if you count all the nuts and seeds as one) basic ingredients. It makes for a great mid-week salad for the whole family, filled with plenty of color, fiber and crunch!
The recipe is one which I adapted from a cookbook I have by Gooseberry Patch, entitled Best Church Suppers and is attributed to Lori Comer of North Carolina.
I have always loved the Gooseberry Patch cookbooks. I used to have quite a few of them. I can remember when they put out a lovely catalogue a few times a year filled with sweet little illustrations and the company used to sell all sorts of things besides cookbooks.
I loved their catalogues.
I cut the original recipe in half today because I just did not need 12 servings of anything. I will save the full recipe for sometime when I have a potluck or some such to go to. God willing we will not be restricted from gathering for too much longer.
Who would have ever thought that this would carry on for more than two years? I can remember at the beginning of the pandemic I thought maybe six months or so at most. I think we all did.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE CRUNCHY CASHEW SLAW
Very simple ingredients that can be as complicated or as uncomplicated as you wish.
- 8 ounces (226g) of coleslaw mix (grated cabbage and carrot)
- 1 package chicken flavored ramen noodles
- 1/4 cup (50g) sugar
- 1/4 cup (60ml) rice wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup (60ml) light olive oil
- 1/2 cup (55g) roasted cashew halves
- 1/2 cup (55g) shelled sunflower seeds
If you are not able to get the ready made coleslaw mix where you live (and I can appreciate it is not available everywhere) then you can very easily make your own. Just shred cabbage and carrot in the same measure.
I would use 1/3 carrot to 2/3 cabbage. I do not recommend using anything other than the white/hard cabbage for this. Red cabbage would dye everything an unsightly color.
Ramen noodles are those square packages of instant noodles that you see in the stores. They come in a lot of different flavors. Some spicy some not so spicy.
You will need the chicken ones for this recipe and you will also be using the flavor packet which is included.
I used Chinese rice wine vinegar in this. You can use just plain white vinegar. It will work just as well.
I like to use light olive oil, but you can use canola oil if you wish. I also have a confession to make here. I used a one to one sugar substitute in this as I am a diabetic. Swerve granulated sugar. It works very well.
Also I used salted cashew nuts and unsalted sunflower seeds.
HOW TO MAKE CRUNCHY CASHEW SLAW
Nothing could be easier. This goes together in a flash, especially if you are using a prepared package of coleslaw mix. Otherwise you will need to take the time to shred your own, but even so, that doesn't take too long.
Place the coleslaw mix in a bowl. Crush the noodles from the packet of ramen and add them to the coleslaw. Reserve the seasoning packet.
Whisk together the oil, vinegar, sugar and reserved seasoning mix.
Pour this dressing over the coleslaw/noodle mix in the bowl and toss to combine. Cover and chill for two hours. (Don't chill it overnight as the noodles become soggy.)
When you are ready to serve add the cashew halves and the sunflower seeds, tossing to mix them in well. Serve immediately.
It is not recommended that you make this much more than a few hours ahead of time as the noodles will soften in the dressing. That doesn't really bother me overly much however, and so I am just as happy with this the second day as I am on the first day!
Its all a matter of taste I guess! Crusty bread goes very well with this as well. It also makes an excellent side dish for a week night supper and I will be honest, I enjoy it in a packed lunch, but again, I don't mind soggy noodles.
There are a lot of versions of this salad out there. You can add all sorts of things. I have even seen it with mayonnaise added. Spring onions go well.
I like it in this very basic version myself. It quick, easy and delicious. That works for me on every level!!
Cashew Slaw
Yield: 5 to 6
Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 2 HourTotal time: 2 H & 5 M
Simple to make and scrumptious. I could eat a bowl full of this and nothing else. It is crunchy, salty, sweet, yummy.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces (226g) of coleslaw mix (grated cabbage and carrot)
- 1 package chicken flavored ramen noodles
- 1/4 cup (50g) sugar
- 1/4 cup (60ml) rice wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup (60ml) light olive oil
- 1/2 cup (55g) roasted cashew halves
- 1/2 cup (55g) shelled sunflower seeds
Instructions
- Place the coleslaw mix in a bowl. Crush the noodles from the packet of ramen and add them to the coleslaw. Reserve the seasoning packet.
- Whisk together the oil, vinegar, sugar and reserved seasoning mix.
- Pour this dressing over the coleslaw/noodle mix in the bowl and toss to combine.
- Cover and chill for two hours. (Don't chill it overnight as the noodles become soggy.)
- When you are ready to serve add the cashew halves and the sunflower seeds, tossing to mix them in well. Serve immediately.
I have read a lot lately about the photographic "value" of brown foods in the blogosphere. I read a column recently in the Guardian in which Nigella Lawson said the following (In speaking about platforms such as Instagram):
”Of course, Instagram is a visual medium, no less than television, so it’s always going to favour photogenic food, but still, it can make a cook despair. When I post a picture of a stew, I feel I have to remind people – who find the messy brownness unappealing – that 1) stews are brown and 2) brown food tastes the best. It doesn’t really matter to me whether people post pictures of stews on Instagram or Pinterest, but it does worry me if they stop cooking them. Not because it would be a bad thing, but because it would be a sad thing”.
Personally, I happen to like "brown" food . . . and this is "brown" food season . . . these last days of Winter, when we all like to warm the chill off of our bones with a tummy warming soup or stew. We, here in the North West, have been treated to finger knumbing, bone chilling weather as of late, and I took the opportunity today to fix us a delicious Beef & Vegetable Soup, which . . . whilst not totally visually appealing, was mighty tasty, and fulfilled the main purpose of a hearty bowl of soup in that it both warmed us up and filled our bellies beautifully!
I think I have shared with you before that my mother was a "Master" at creating wonderful soups. Everything I know about making a good soup, I learned at her knee. I don't think we ever had a roast dinner the whole time I was growing up that wasn't followed in the days afterwards by a steaming hot and delicious potage! She used to make huge potful's and our home freezer always had several large plastic ice-cream buckets filled with the fruits of her labours, at the ready when they needed to be.
That is not to say that every soup you make needs to begin with the leftover bones or scraps from a roast dinner . . . sometimes you can make a really tasty soup with nothing but what you happen to have in your refrigerator. One thing you do need however is a good stock to build upon. This is the critical basis of any good soup. If you make it a habit to keep really great basic stocks and broths in the freezer you will never be very far from a tasty bowl full of heart and soul warming soup.
For this soup today I used mainly some good beef stock that I had frozen, (you can use cubes in a pinch and it will still be okay), a piece of good lean rump steak, and the vegetables that I found in my refrigerator's vegetable bin . . . carrots, parsnips, turnips, cabbage and of course onions (which I do not keep in my fridge, but in a net basket beneath the stairs, in the dark.)
I had been going to also throw in a handful of barley, but once I got all the vegetables into the pot, there was very little or no room. You certainly could add some barley if you wanted to, but it really wasn't necessary.
I used a savoy cabbage, about six of the bigger, larger outer leaves, that some might be tempted to throw away, but really . . . . the greener the leaf the higher the nutritional value, and in a soup, they work perfectly. Washed really well, and trimmed of any tougher stems, I simply shredded them into large shreds crosswise I think any cabbage would work, but visually you will have a nicer looking, more interesting soup with the savoy.
I added a splash of tomato ketchup because I like the slight sweet/spicy note that it adds to any soup or stew. It also adds an additional bit of colour to the soup and renders it less transparent and more full bodied. Todd loves pureed soups, but I like my soups filled with lots of lovely texture and chunks. We differ somewhat in that respect and that's okay. There is a time for smooth . . . and there is a time for texture, and to my mind when you are making a soup such as this Beef & Vegetable Soup, you want texture. It went down a real treat.
*Beef & Vegetable Soup*
Serves 6
1 TBS dried parsley
1/2 tsp each garlic and onion powders (not salts)
fine sea salt and coarse black pepper to tasteHeat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Add the beef, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it starts to brown nicely. Add the onions, carrots, celery, parsnip and turnips. Cook and sweat over medium low heat for about 5 minutes or so, then stir in the garlic. Cook, stirring until quite fragrant. Add the beef stock, sliced cabbage, sprigs of thyme, bayleaf, parsley, garlic and onion powders and tomato ketchup. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a very slow simmer, cover tightly and cook on low for 40 to 45 minutes, at which time the vegetables will all be nicely soft and the beef very tender. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve hot.
Note - feel free to add a small handful of pearl barley to this if you wish. Add when you add the stock. Cook for 45 minutes, until everything is tender.
Back home if you order soup when you are in a restaurant you will more often than not be presented with a bread basket containing a few rolls, and a variety of crackers. Todd is a roll or a bread person. Mom always served our soups with crackers and that is still how I prefer to enjoy them for the most part. This was really, really good, very healthy, and I had the added bonus of some leftovers to freeze and enjoy at a later date. Bon Appetit!
There is one thing that the British do very well . . . and that is the good old British Banger! (Sausage to you non-Brits! Of course, it is also something that they do really poorly too . . . but we won't talk about those!) You just can't beat a good old fashioned, meaty, top quality, Butcher's thick sausage banger . . . avoid the cheap ones at all costs. They are just plain nasty and filled with fillers and other ucky stuff that you don't want to be eating.
I don't know about you, but I find that it's getting harder and harder to stretch my food budget these days. Food just seems to be costing more and more and sizes are getting smaller. (Don't get me started on that scam!!) I am always looking for ways to make a little bit go further, but at the same time keeping things to the same standard of deliciousness and nutritiousness that we are used to.
Pasta is a great meal stretcher. I know it's not Todd's favourite thing to eat, but he does like the idea of saving money, and so he tolerates it. Myself . . . I adore pasta, and so these types of meals are my absolute favourites!
Meals which take a little bit of protein, some vegetable and some pasta, combined in a tasteful way. Simple recipes which make good use of simple ingredients in a delicious way.
I have no idea why this is called Irish Supper. I am not even sure if this is actually Irish! Certainly there would be cabbages and sausages in Ireland, but the pasta noodles? Well, I am not too sure about that!!
What I know for sure it that it makes a little bit of meat go a very long way and that it is delicious. Two things that are positives! I do hope you will try it and that you will enjoy it as much as I do!
You want to use a good quality sausage with this. Not those cheap and nasty ones that are all filler and fat. You get what you pay for. Paying a tiny bit more and using a good quality sausage makes sense as you won't be pouring half of it away and they'll also taste a lot better! Choose a nicely flavoured one! I am partial to a peppery Cumberland myself!
*Irish Supper*
Serves 4 to 6but you could use any type, so long as they are wide and flat)
a knob of butter
finely grated cheese to serveWhile the cabbage is cooking, cook your noodles according to the package directions in a pot of lightly salted water. At the end of five minutes remove the lid to skillet and turn up the heat and cook stirring, until the cabbage begins to brown a little. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
Turn out the heat and drain the noodles well. Toss the drained noodles into the skillet along with a knob of butter. Toss to combine. Serve immediately without or without cheese as desired to your grateful family which will be sitting at the table drooling in anticipation.
Do you think they might approve?? I like to think they would . . . ☺ to be sure, to be sure . . .
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