Chili Beef and Beans

Chili Beef and Beans

It is my first food photo, I am very proud of it. Not Bad for an amateur photographer.

I usually made this chili for my family as comfort food since we moved to new place very far from Midwest states. For some reasons, my family don't like West Coast or canned chili so much and settled for my recipe. Few years ago, my Deaf friends dared me to add the cocoa powder to my chili, they thought they are joking about calling it Chocolate Chili but I got surprised by discovering its earthy flavor it bring out in my chili. I loved it so much and always insisted that my chili have cocoa powder as one ingredients. My family thought I am crazy but I am not.

2 1/2 lbs Ground beef
1 Whole onion, diced
1 can Diced tomatoes, 14.5 ounces
1-2 Tbsp Tomato Paste
2 Tbsp Chili Powder
1 Tbsp Cumin Powder
2 Tsp Garlic Powder
2 Tsp Onion Powder
2 Tsp Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1 Tsp Cayenne
1 Can Pinto Beans, 15 ounces, rinsed
1 Can Red Kidney, 15 ounces, rinsed
2 Cups Water or Beef Broth
Salt and freshly grounded black pepper, to taste

Choice of Toppings
Sour Cream
Jalapeños, raw or pickled
Cheese
Green onions
Hot Sauce
Any Idea? Use it.

Until the meat are all browned along with onions, add diced tomatoes, paste and powders. Stir to blend. Add the beans and water or broth. Bring it to simmer for about half hour to allow the flavors blend together or cooking until the soup become slightly thickened. To serve in a bowl with choice of toppings. Bon appetit!

Variations: Add teaspoonful of crushed red pepper or more for more spiciness. Or, add any amount of your favorite hot sauce.

Ugliest Fish I ever encountered in the kitchen.

Monkfish is one of ugliest fishes I ever encountered in the kitchen but the cooked monkfish tasted delicious. It tasted almost like a lobster. But my conscious thought is preventing me from eating more of monkfish since I had seen how this fish looked like and it was very repulsive when I touched its skin.

For about a year, I have to clean the fish, debone and split. Made the stock out of its bones and used for making the sauce.

When I got home, my wife told me that I smelled like sex--I knew I did not do anything funny behind her back and told her that I cut monkfish, it is how I smelled like this. No matter, I tried to clean my hands with lemon and lot of soaps. It was not working but its odors stick to me for about a day.

Anyway, there are good Monkfish recipes but I have only two recipes in my files for a reason that I don't like them so much. I am very lucky that I lost these two recipes--I placed them in file and forget them. As far as I can remember: Pan-roasted Monkfish with Lobster Sauce, and Roasted Monkfish with Saffron-flavored Sofrito sauce. It is the ugliest fish I had tasted since trying sauteed calf brain for a tasting test. Well, calf brain is the worst dishes I ever tasted but some customers really liked it. I don't know why.

I had googled up Monkfish recipes and weeded them out, found good recipes from professional Chefs and other good cooks. Here are links to recipes:
Braised Monk Fish Provencal Recipe
Monkfish Thermidor Recipe
Spanish Braised Monkfish Recipe
Poor Man's Lobster Recipe
Pot-roasted Monkfish Recipe
Roasted Monkfish Recipe

Little Stories of Great Discovery in Kitchen

I want to share some discoveries with you about some weird bugs or others that I don't want to reach in a bag of salad.

Year ago, I found a F***ing long locust in Green Field Spring Mix after it made an attempt to move--it scared me when I noticed the salad in hotel pan sudden move. At first, I think it was my optical illusion when I tried to start on slicing the mushrooms. Took closer look at the salad and found the locust, crawling out of salad. The size description of my hand, that is how the locust looked like my middle finger to my palm:
I have to grab it and squish it under my shoes. It cracked so sick. Everyone in kitchen looked up at me. "Nothing" I gestured at them. Have to scoop the carcass up and spook a cook standing next to me by showing it to him. I pointed it that it was in salad mix. I asked him if he want to eat a dead bug. I lipread and understood that he said, "Gross."

Yea, found some ladybugs in Salad mix and I felt compassionate about these bugs. Sent them outside. Then have to "wash" salad mix straight from a bag to ensure that everything in salad are rinsed and cleaned.

Found some weird bugs on Garlic bulbs, I realized it was an organic garlic, unprotected and not rinsed. I decided to break bulb up and found that bugs lived inside like you have seen some black holes inside an apple. Found one ugly blue worm inside corn cob after I pulled the husks off.

Sometime I am picky about food that I kind already know about--just wondered if someone really clean the food before serving it to customers. I don't eating out so much but went to few that I trusted and felt comfortable to eat in there.

Sometime I have few nightmares--found a snake in a case of potatoes, ugliest frog in case of apples and a mouse in bag of broccoli.

When you are in a grocery store, make sure you check or examine anything before you buy. Don't assume that everything in store are taken care of. Here is lovely link to my wife's blog--sometime she is little weird (sigh) but I still love her: Nice picture of Spring Green Salad

Garlic, Garlick, Gaaarlickk!

I alway had lot of fun with garlic. Spooked some lovely ladies by taking it to my mouth and chew. I think they are all vampires, serious. I had made pesto sauce with garlic cloves several times and still love the taste of garlic in sauces.


Pesto Sauce
According to many recipes but I chose and borrowed one recipe from Epicurious.com for an example. I had made very garlicky pesto sauce several time, including cilantro pesto, too, without a recipe.

4 cups fresh basil leaves (from about 3 large bunches)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts
2 garlic cloves
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup freshly grated pecorino Sardo or Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt

Combine first 4 ingredients in blender. Blend until paste forms, stopping often to push down basil. Add both cheeses and salt; blend until smooth. Transfer to small bowl. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Top with 1/2 inch olive oil and chill.) Enough to make about 1 cup.

Comment: I used a food processor rather than blender because it is easy for me to tell when the paste is done--blender went too fast and turn the paste into very smooth gooey stuff. I like little chunky and garlicky pesto sauce, not very smooth paste with olive oil covered on top. Whatever a person think a blender is better than food processor, that's fine with me.

Cilantro pesto The recipe from Simply Recipes are good. Follow this recipe.

Sun-dried Tomato Pesto sauce
Well, there are so many recipes for this sauce but I have mine, too.

1 c Sun-dried tomatoes in oil
or, Sun-dried tomatoes, already re-hydrated
3/4 c Grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 c Walnut pieces or Pecan pieces
2 Garlic cloves or more, if desired
1/4 ts Kosher Salt
1/4 ts Freshly ground Black pepper
1/3 c Olive oil

To make 2 cups of pesto:
Position knife blade in food processor bowl; add tomatoes, and pulse 2 or 3 times or until tomatoes are chopped. Add Parmesan cheese and next 4 ingredients. Top with cover and process until smooth. With processor running, pour warm oil through food chute in a slow, steady stream, processing until combined. Use immediately, or place in an airtight container, and refrigerate up to 1 week. Serve over hot pasta.

Suggested uses for tomato pesto:
1. Stir 1/4 cup pesto into one 8-oz. carton of sour cream for an instant dip for vegetables.
2. Try pesto as an omelet filling. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the sauce over half of a three-egg omelet; fold omelet over, and serve.
3. Stir 3 tablespoons pesto into 1/2 cup softened unsalted butter. Serve the pesto butter as a bread spread, or toss it with hot vegetables.
4. Pesto top on Brie Cheese and bake until cheese softened. Serve with rustic bread slices and nice apple wedges.
5. You can use tomato pesto in place of basil or cilantro pesto with pasta or others.

Harissa Recipe

Since I had introduced to hot harissa paste by taking it straight to my mouth--very spoonful. I don't know to explain but you know the rest of spicy stuff. Yea, gallon of water to douse on my tongue. It tasted very interesting but too hot to mention. I am in sweaty heaven for while. After that, I went online and googled Harissa up. My searches gave me an idea about how to make the harissa--I knew it might not be authentic recipe since I have found many recipes. Someone are enough qualified to explain hot stuff better than I am. Well, there are some recipes that contained red bell pepper, others have paprika. It does not matter to me since I had made my "own" harissa recipe thanks to wonderful recipes from my hot chillies buddies.

I want to share the quotes with you I found on LA Times, the Saucier:

"Harissas vary widely from region to region, so there isn't really a definitive recipe. The most basic, using just dried chiles, a few spices, garlic, salt and olive oil, is traditional -- but even this is open to debate." Harissa, mon amour, by Amy Scattergood, Los Angeles Time Staff Writer, September 26, 2007 Link to LA Times, The Saucier

Making your harissa recipes is your own creation based on kind of traditional ingredients. That kind of hot stuff will put hairs on your chest when you taste the paste. I'm kidding.

Homemade Harissa
Notes: Hot sauce from Middle Eastern and Northern African cookings.

12 dried hot chile, whole
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground caraway seeds
1/2 teaspoon cumin

Soak the dried chilies in hot water for 30 minutes. Drain. Remove stems and seeds.
In a food processor combine chili peppers, garlic, salt and olive oil. Blend.
Add remaining spices and blend to form a smooth paste.
Store in airtight container. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil on top to keep fresh. Will keep for a month in the refrigerator.

Bloggers are enough qualified to share their spicy knowledge than I have, I admitted. Here are other recipes
Harissa from Zlamushka's Spicy Kitchen
Not so fiery Harissa recipe from The Stonecup

Gordon Ramsay, again.

Personally, I don't like the food critics for some reasons but one question, do they really know about food? The article about "feared" food critic who dismissed Gordon Ramsay's French Venture. Blah. Blah. Blah. Gordon, you have my sympathies. I am, myself, new Gordon Ramsay fan for some reasons due to watching his show, Kitchen Nightmare. What he had seen in some dirty kitchens, I have similar experience in few places but got fired from work because I mentioned and emphasized on cleanliness in the kitchens. Some "bigwigs" don't like me so much, ship me out. What are happening to some restaurants with filthy kitchen, they are not my problems, anymore.

I don't care if that food critic are that picky about who is cooking or making the food. Sometime, food criticism are very helpful but most are not. Sometime, that will wound the business after little screw-ups--I don't know what else to call the screw-ups but I am sure most Chefs knew what I am talking about. Let them write anything for newspaper but still draw the customers to restaurant to try some food out. Blah. Blah. Blah.

Surprising, this food critic wrote something nice about Gordon Ramsay and his venture in France. I wish Gordon big good luck in capital of gastronomy. I will post more about food criticisms on him as soon as I can find more news

Well, that doesn't matter if you are a Brit who cook French food but I don't care if anyone think that he is Paul Boucse, or Gordon Ramsay, or some celebrities, or other super chef, just have him to peel the potatoes on his first day in kitchen or have him to make the beef stock and see for myself--if his stock is good or not.

You can learn lot about culinary arts, you can learn French, Italian, or Tex-Mex cooking--no matter which nation you come from. Most importantly, how do you know about cuisines? If not, don't debate with yourself about how "chef" you are. Don't talk about how much you know, just show how you do with food and I will know how much skills you possess. I don't give a damn about who graduated from Cordon Bleu, CIA or JW or where-ever. I rather have someone who is willing to work in the kitchen, rather than "talk the walk" things. Chef who talk about himself? Blah. Blah. Blah. Get your #*@^: ass back to work.

News about slaughterhouse worker

Finally someone got what he deserved for what he did to cows. I was wondering how come the media didn't cover the news about slaughterhouses. I have not find one articles but found it on Chinese media. In my opinion, it is big news to me. Former slaughterhouse worker pleads guilty

I am in good mood for French Food.

I had read many cookbooks about French cuisine, I always got inspired by few things that I have in my kitchen. I don't know which one I can call my beef stew beside "Bistro" Beef stew recipe--I always made the stew in kinda fancy cast iron pot, known as fake Le Creuset cast iron pot but I didn't find a brand name for my cast iron pot that I got Christmas present from my wife.

Before I give you a recipe, I wanted to talk about Le Creuset cast iron pot and other cast iron pot that I get a Christmas present from my wife--she told me that she bought it from IKEA store and she told me that my pot have same quality as Le Creuset. It doesn't matter to me so much since I was not willing to buy something expensive because I have a little fear that I might break it and see the money flew out with its wings. Last time, I checked the price on 5 quarts Le Creuset pot: 250 dollars and I looked for the bargains on same brand online: varies from 150 dollars to 400 dollars for one 5 quarts pot. My wife got one for me ( not Le Cresuset--I wished) at around seventy dollars.

I had good experience with Le Creuset pots, made several stews, various sauces and au jus sauces at one restaurant I worked in few years ago. I got good results from cooking something in this pot. Ok, other one my wife bought for my Christmas present, I used it two days after Christmas with Bistro Beef Stew recipe. I got rave reviews from my family and my dog. They asked me to make stew again in future. Since that day, I had made several time. Personally, I love kind of cast iron pot that I used for making stews, and some sauces, too.

I used the pot most time when I am in good mood for something French. When I am cooking, I alway got peaceful moments since my family will leave me alone with my creativity--they knew how cranky I am when they started to "talk so loud" in sign languages across my head. I have to say, "Wait!" in sign language to them. When I am away from the stove, they do enjoy to have me hanging around.

Ok, ok, ok.

Bistro Beef Stew

(Recipe adapted from On Cooking, by Sarah R. Labensky and Alan M. Hause, under recipe name: Brown Beef Stew. I added some ingredients according to my preferences and my family really liked my recipe.)

2 fl. oz. Oil
5 lbs Beef Chuck, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2 in. cubes
2 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Black pepper
10 oz. Onions, small dice
1 tsp. Garlic, chopped
3 strips Bacon, chopped
1 1/2 oz. Flour
8 fl. oz Red wine
1 Qt. Brown Stock
4 oz. Tomato Puree
Sachet:
2 Bay leaves
1/2 tsp. Dried thyme
1/2 tsp. Peppercorns, crushed
10 Parsley stems, optional

Heat a heavy pot until very hot and add the oil.
Season the beef with salt and pepper and add it to the pot, browning it well on all sides. Do not overcrowd the pot. If necessary, cook the beef in several batches.
Add the onions, garlic and bacon and saute until the onions are slightly browned.
Add the flour and stir to make a roux. Brown the roux lightly.
Add the red wine and brown stock slowly, stirring to prevent lumps.
Add the tomato puree and the sachet.
Bring to a simmer and cook until the beef is tender, approximately 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
If desired, remove the cooked beef from the sauce and strain the sauce. Return the beef to the sauce.
Degrease the stew by skimming off the fat.

Variation: Vegetables such as turnips, carrots, celery, celeriac root, and pearl onions can be cooked separately and added to the stew as garnish.

I usually serve stew over the mashed potatoes.

There are so many beef stew recipes online, you can Google a recipe up and find what you like.

If you are looking for good cast iron pot, here is the link to IKEA Store or, Le Creuset Store ( be ready for high prices.) There are more sites that have kind of cast iron pots--I have not checked them out.

Baked Pork Sirloin and Lentils

During my "rookie" first year as a humble cook, a Chef told me that a recipe looked so simple after you had tried one and taste the food. I am glad that I took his advice about trying some new recipes and see the results of taste testing. I learned a lot by tasting food and start to think about anything to improve or "marrying" food together to reach what I wanted it tasted as it should be tasted. I had been cook so many food for long time and started to have an kind of intuition or someone called it "genius" stuff. Knew when the hollandaise sauce is going to break, knew how the recipe is going to be good or bad by reading its recipe, and knew how to improvise recipe when I discovered that I am out of....

This recipe, I could not think about what else to go with pork until I looked up and found the lentils in my food cabinet--my light bulb in my head went on. I started to work on sort of recipe with bacon and mirepoix with lentils and bake the pork on top of the lentils. Result: very good.



Baked Pork Sirloin and Lentils

Oven Temperature: 400 F

For lentils

1 Tbsp olive oil or clarified butter
1 cup dried green lentils
3 strips of bacon
Few garlic cloves
2 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped
half of yellow onion, roughly chopped
3 cups water or broth

For Pork

4 Pork Sirloin Steaks
Salt and Pepper

Sautee the vegetables and bacon in the soup pot on the stove top until vegetables started to caramelize and bacon get browned. Stir the lentils into and coat with bacon fats. Add water or broth and bring it to boil. Reduce to simmer for about half hour or Lentils doubled its sizes. Transfer to baking pan. Season the pork and put the meat on the lentils. Bake for about hour or until the meat is tender.

Spaztel Recipe

There are so many recipes about how to make the spatzels. I found one that I always made at home when I feel like making mess in my kitchen with my wife's approval. Make sure you have an spatzel "machine" ("it is what package said" I found it at a garage sale which an old lady sell to get rid of her stuffs before she moved to Vancouver--95 years old who drank Canadian Whiskey on New Year Eve--I am not kidding, you should seen her partying with, hmm, young men.) available for that or other way, use kind of colander with little bigger holes on it with spatula to "push" the dough through it.

Spaztel Recipe

1 cup All Purpose Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1 Egg, beaten
1/3 Cup, Water

Mix all ingredients but not over mix. Have a hot boiling salted water ready, and bowl of ice cold water ready. Use spaztle machine, put the dough and push it through the holes and allow the tiny dumplings cook in hot water until they are floating. Transfer the spaztle to cold water bowl to "cold shock" or stop cooking process. Toss the spaztle in oil or butter. To serve, heat the spaztle in saute pan and season with salt, pepper, garlic and parsley.

Hungarian Goulash (Veal, Beef, or Pork)

Since last time I had an argument with a guy about goulash. He insisted that goulash should be cooked for few days but I insisted that protein should be cooked until tender. I tried to convince him that the protein will be toughened after all hours of cooking and it will taste pretty different than it should be. I preferred to cook until the meat are well tender. I usually served this recipe with spaetlze. Well, he can do his own way, chew and see the light at the end of tunnel.

Hungarian Goulash (Veal, Beef, or Pork)

7 1/2 pounds beef chuck, 1-inch cubes
5 ounces lard
2 1/2 pounds onions, fine diced
5 tablespoons Hungarian paprika
2 teaspoons garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
10 ounces tomato puree, see directions
2 1/2 quarts white stock, see directions
2 1/2 pounds potatoes, medium diced
Salt, to taste

Tomato Puree: Can be chopped, drained canned tomato or tomato puree. Beef stock or beef concentrate with water can be substituted for white stock for taste effects.

Cut the meat into 1-inch cubes.
Heat the fat in a brazier and saute the meat until lightly seared on all sides.
Add the onions and cook over moderate heat to sweat the onions. Continue to cook until most of the liquid that forms is reduced.
Add the paprika, garlic, and caraway seeds and stir.

Add tomato and stock, cover, and simmer until the meat is almost tender, about 1 hour in the oven (325 F) or on the range.

Add the potatoes and continue to cook until the meat and potatoes are tender.. The potatoes will thicken the sauce slightly but, if necessary, reduce the sauce slightly. Degrease and season to taste. Serve with spaetzle or noodle.

Animal Abuses

I don't know how to say about the animal abuses as I had seen the news in February--I am sure you already heard the news about someone poked cow's face, I guess I don't have to explain more. Sometime I had felt little sad when I don't know if I had eaten the meat that was from abused cow or other animals. Sometime, I felt that my trust in some good brands, that I liked to have some in my freezer or refrigerator, were violated by some stupid cattle electric poking nitwits, who poked cow's face without us knowing about it.


Ok, I don't sponsor the PETA Girls who pretend to be nude abused animals--I think they are so blind that animals do have furs but girls don't have any. Sorry, I don't have any links to these nitwit girls because I tried to keep my blog rating level at PG. Sorry, Guys.

I like meat come from health animals. I had enough to say more before I start to say F-word in Gordon Ramsay style. Animal abuses News

There are some websites--very good, about animals' paradise in green pasture. Their free-range meats tasted good unlike you had one in restaurant or you had bought from your favorite grocery store. I already tried some myself and love them alot. Sadly, the prices are pretty steep for my budget but it is worth to buy.

Here are links to Free-Range meats:
Eat Wild
Big Bluff Ranch
Grass Fed Farms

Guess what I am having dinner today?

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I am so lucky no one knew that I am half Irish--from my father's side and I do have an Irish temper--it is so unfortunately but I knew how to control my temper when I work in my kitchen. But....but, my wife knew my nationality and my Irish temper.

Beside my temper, generally, I am nice guy in kitchen and in my home.

Today I had made St. Patrick's Day dinner for my family and its menu is Corned beef, Potatoes, Cabbage and Carrot. Very good eating, I had two plates--oh, two bowl of it because I like the broth in my dinner.

It is very simple way to make dinner. First, follow an instruction on package of raw corned beef. Cover the beef with water and bring it to boil. Add seasoning from packet you can find it along with beef in package. Allow it simmering for about two hour and half. Add peeled and quartered potatoes, cut-up cabbage and thick cut carrots to corned beef on last hour. Result is very good. And, my burps tasted very good. My dog behaved very well, not begging so hard on me and now he have good snacks that I bought from pet store.

It is almost similar recipe I had made at work for lunch. Strange I noticed there are so many young people didn't order Corned beef but older people are so eager to order. I guess something like a traditional thing that older people knew about. Yea, right, I am so dumb--it is St. Patrick Day....Almost run out of beef but plenty cabbage in its beefy broth. Cabbage, anyone?

Here is the link to Food Network for your entertainment with few funny chefs: St. Patrick's Day Recipes, Menus, and Beer

Bon appetit!

News about Gordon Ramsay.

In my opinion as a professional Chef, I don't think that it ever happened in USA. The action could get a Chef into possible job termination. If I ever discover someone stealing my recipes, I might want to write a chef up or let a chef go in professional manners. I don't need to wrap anyone up with saran wrap or hang one up somewhere in kitchen for many employees to look at one for an example.
I am not going to say more about Gordon Ramsay and his action due to my understanding about stealing Chef's recipes from files. I agreed with him that anyone who want a recipe, ask Chef. Asking for something from Chef won't hurt you. Ramsay made nude chef in cling film.

Tasty Sardines and others....

I have to admit that I like sardines better when I am really hungry and grumpy.
I had eaten few interesting sardines, few from canned, you know, from the stores and some fresh sardines. I always wished for good sardines in one of restaurants on Friday as their own Friday Fry Night. Nothing but most time I had seen many such as fried halibut, awful cod, some moldy triangles and some mysterious fake "beer-battered" squares. Overcooked fishes, fishy hockey pucks, a deep-fried "cake" flavored with mysterious fish thing, and watery with little meat inside the batter crust. That's my usual complaints about some processed food, stretched with chemicals, preservation, and "fillers" are served in restaurants and fast food places. I am not taking more craps that come straight from fryer or boxes or has been nuked in microwave.
I am sure many people don't like the fishy dishes like sardines but they are good for you and your health. The recipe with pretty ugly picture of sardines, I found, considering to try this out and feed Pam, my wife, and see what's happening to her. I am sure she would not talk to me for a week. Only one problem: where the hell can I find some fresh sardines? I guess I will look for any good lead to fresh sardines.

Here is the link to a recipe: Mediterranean Grilled Sardines

Other recipes I had read:

Poached Red Snapper
Calamari Recipes
Fifteen Great (?) Shrimp Recipes
Catfish, anyone?

Bon appetit!

Salsa Recipes

Grilled Salsa

10 plum tomatoes
6 scallions
1 green bell pepper
3 jalapeño peppers
1 or 2 garlic cloves, minced, optional
Juice and zest of 1 lime
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Salt, to taste
Freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
Tabasco sauce, to taste

Grill the tomatoes, scallions, green bell pepper and jalepeño peppers at a medium high heat for 3 to 4 minutes and remove from the grill.
Remove the seeds from the peppers and chop the vegetables. In a medium bowl combine the vegetables with the garlic, lime juice and zest, cilantro, salt, pepper, and Tabasco. Stir well and set aside for 1 hour before serving to allow the flavors to meld.

This recipe yields 2 cups.

Salsa Fresca

1 cup tomato juice
1 1/2 medium tomatoes, seeded
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp freshly grinded black pepper

Blend together well in blender for few seconds, or in food processor until they are chopped, blended together, and refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

Roast Chicken with Crisp Yukon Potatoes and Tender Garlic

I discovered the recipe from Roasting, A Simple Art by Barbara Kafka—Big thanks to my wife, she is first to try the original recipe, Roast Chicken with Crisp Potatoes in this cookbook. I changed few ingredients and roast in same way the original recipe suggested. Nice aroma from chicken and roasted garlic.

The result is, I am in Paradise!

I started to learn something new from this cookbook and hope to make some heavenly food for my family and yea, best tasting bones for my dog.

Roast Chicken with Crisp Yukon Potatoes and Tender Garlic
Total roasting time: 50 to 60 minutes. Preheat the oven at 500º F

5 lbs (approximately) Chicken quarters
1 ½ lbs Yukon potatoes, peeled or not and quartered.
8, or more, cloves of garlic, unpeeled and toss in olive oil.
Kosher Salt
Freshly grinded black pepper
Paprika, granulated garlic, thyme, or rosemary, optional.
Olive oil

Coat a large roasting pan with non-sticking spray. Season the quartered chickens with salt and pepper, coat with olive oil. For 10 minutes roasting, move the chicken with spatula to keep it from sticking. Arrange the potatoes and garlic cloves, that are already seasoned with paprika, garlic, thyme and rosemary(optional) and toss in little olive oil, around the chickens. If any fat oozed from chicken, roll the potatoes if possible. Sprinkle the salt and pepper. Roast for about 35 to 45 minutes, scooping the potatoes to turn them over every 15 minutes. Some potatoes may stick to the pan a bit, depending on the amount of fat from the chicken. This helps form the surface crust. Just be sure to scrape along the pan with the edge of the spatula to unstick the potatoes.

64 sq ft kitchen: How To Make Roasted Garlic Oil in 3 Easy Steps / Comment Préparer L'huile D'ail En 3 Etapes Faciles

There are several ways to make garlic oil and this recipe I am planning to try this weekend. It looks so good to me.

Garlic is my best friend, my good woman repellent, and my favorite seasoning for anything that need some garlicky punches. Sometime I ate raw garlic to impress other chefs and love to see their reactions--you can find out which one is a vampire or garlic lover out of chefs.

Don't ask me why I like garlic. I discovered the garlic after tried a recipe that called for garlic, and I fell in love with the garlic flavor in food. Using garlic for cooking, flavoring and snacking since I was young teenager.

64 sq ft kitchen: How To Make Roasted Garlic Oil in 3 Easy Steps.

There are more researches on Garlic but I will add more links to good information about how the garlic will help the health by sort of curing the body ailments. I am not an expert on these stuff but read really good articles on garlicky health.

Ok, gaaarlliick. Bon appepit.

Chicken Bacon Roulade Recipe

I had experienced making the roulades--chicken or beef or pork, and even salmon. I knew how to pound the meat except the salmon, and add the ingredients, then roll and bind them with toothpick or butcher strings (my preferred method).
I googled the roulade and there are so many recipes to look up. I better leave the recipe search to you guys and gals because too many inspirations are waiting for me to try one.
There are good recipes to try but one I could not resist the temptation of bacon with chicken. Here is the link to Simply Recipes website ( one of my favorite sites to visit): Chicken Bacon Roulade Recipe