Dear Faceless Void of Collective Knowledge, I just got a case of organic broccoli from a place I volunteer at. Probably 10-15 pounds of it. Full stalks. Weird thing to bring home, right? What would you do with that much broccoli? Prefer something that will keep in the freezer because I will probably end up with a shitload of it. Also prefer something fairly broccoli intensive because I don't want to buy a lot of other stuff. Thanks.
For a healthy option, Gordon Ramsay's broccoli soup isn't bad: <a class="postlink" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mvc8Au4YO60" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mvc8Au4YO60</a> For the unhealthy (Midwest) option, go with the broccoli salad: <a class="postlink" href="http://www.midwestliving.com/recipe/vegetables/sunny-broccoli-salad/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.midwestliving.com/recipe/veg ... oli-salad/</a> Also, you can make casseroles out of those stalks. Cheese and broccoli is a classic combination.
I've made Panera's Broccoli and Cheddar soup a few times with good success. The plus side is that you can also freeze it afterwards. I usually go to the local bakery and get small bread bowls to hollow out and fill with the soup. Here's the recipe I use.
I've got deer hunting on my mind (opening weekend is this weekend) and would like to know if anyone here has some good "standy" recipes for venison. I'll do as much butchering as I can myself, which means I'll just have the loins and roast cuts and a pile of scraps to have turned into sausage and brats. Maybe I'll more options depending on how big/small my buck is, but I'm planning on keeping it simple.
Cut up a small venison roast in 1 inch or a little bigger cubes, wrap with half a piece of bacon, secure with toothpick, and throw it in the deep fryer. Take a back strap and filet it out length wise, almost like your trying to unroll it. Put a layer of onions/cheese/mushrooms over the top and then roll it back up and tie it every so often with butcher twine. Smoke indirect over oak or hickory until 150 internal, remove from smoker and let rest under foil for 10 minutes. EDIT: Almost forgot my favorite, take the tender loins and slice them up into small medallions, heat up a skillet and saute onions/mushrooms/garlic in some butter, add the venison and don't over cook it, served with mashed potatoes and entirely to much beer.
Use some of the neck, or fattier nasty bits to make a Carbonnade. Unsalted butter or oil 2 pounds fatty meat, cut into 1/3-inch-thick slices, about 3 inches wide Salt and freshly ground pepper 2 large red onions, cut into thin half moons 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour 1 bottle Dark Belgian Beer (or something like Yuengling, but NO lighter) 1 Cup Venison stock * Fresh Thyme 2 bay leaves Chopped parsley, for garnish Salt and pepper the meat. Put butter or oil in a stew pot, bring to medium heat. Sear the meat in batches on both sides. Don't cook through. Put meat in separate bowl while you cook all the onions in butter. Cook them until they get soft, slightly brown. Add the flour and more butter to make a quick roux. Brown it, don't burn it. Add the beer, scraping up all the good stuff on the bottom of the pan. Add the stock, herbs. Adjust seasoning a bit. Add the meat back. Cook covered about 30 minutes to "pressure cook" it a bit, take the lid off to reduce that gravy for another 45-60 minutes or until fork tender. Add more stock if it gets too thick. Venison stock: take some of those bones. Roast them at 350 for an hour with a roughly chopped carrot, an onion, garlic cloves, and some celery. Deglaze that pan with water. scrape up the good shit. Toss it all in a big ass pot. Cover the bones and vegetables with water. Throw in 1 tablespoon black pepper, 1/2 to 1 tablespoon salt. Simmer gently for at least an hour. Some people let it cool and scrape off the fat. I like to leave that flavor in there. You can also make a ton more of that stuff. It keeps in the freezer indefinitely.
Konatown posted his paella recipe on page 33 of this thread - Link. There's also a bunch of interesting information just after that post.
Take the loin and marinate in a hearty red wine (like a Bordeaux or similar) overnight. Make a rub of salt, pepper, garlic, thyme and rosemary. Remove the loin from the marinade and pat dry. Apply the spice rub. Wrap the whole thing in strips of bacon. Smoke at 225 - 250 until you get an internal temp of around 135 for medium rare, then remove and let rest for 10 - 20 minutes. Slice and serve.
Robert Irvine's Venison Oscar recipe is unbelievable and a switch from the standard deer recipe. <a class="postlink" href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/robert-irvine/venison-oscar-recipe/index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/robe ... index.html</a> I also recommend picking up a copy of Afield, a cook book specifically for wild game, it is one of the better cookbooks I have ever seen and it's great because it's just wild game recipes. <a class="postlink" href="http://welcomebooks.com/index.php?main_page=product_book_info&products_id=182" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://welcomebooks.com/index.php?main_ ... cts_id=182</a>
Anyone have tips on how to poach an egg? I've read some tips online, and this is what I do: -2-3" of water, very hot but not boiling -splash of white vinegar in the water -swirl the water around before you drop the egg -put the egg in a coffee cup or measuring cup or something to drop from, it helps it stay together I'm having something like a 40% success rate. I hate wasting eggs, but poached eggs on toast are so good that I have to figure this out. Suggestions?
Have you tried soft boiled eggs? They're much easier and just as good in my opinion, plus you can just crack the top open and do soldiers and eggs. Failing that, this is what we did before we started doing soft boiled.
Don't let them over complicate this. Bring a pot of 100% natural spring water harvested from Latitude 88 in the Chilean highlands to a boil with 1 teaspoons of vinegar and a pinch of salt. Procure one organic farm raised chicken egg from New Zealand no more than 2 inches by 2 inches in size. Crack the egg into a pyrex ramekin from Williams Sonoma, hand blown by a Sherpa. When the water boils, turn off and remove from heat. Drop the egg gently into the steaming water and allow to cook for 3 minutes. Barring all that, just crack an egg into steaming water, gently, and let it go no more than a few minutes. Seriously, this is it. No vinegar, that old trick doesn't do crap for me. Season it when it is out of the water. You will lose some of the white, that's natural. Use a slotted spoon to retrieve the egg from the pot.
Ahh, so you're supposed to lose some of the white? I thought I was effing it up because little white trails were everywhere. They tend to come back together a little bit as I cook it but I thought it was supposed to be one white mass in the pot and that I was doing something wrong. Thanks for the tips everyone.
Guess Ill ask it here since it seems most pertinent. Im looking into getting a set of knives for butchering deer. My chef buddy who butchered my deer for me last year suggested just getting a solid Miyabi chefs knife as you can use it for everything else when not chopping up a deer. But regular chefs knives are a bit above what I could ask for as a birthday or christmas present. I found this and looks more like what I might want if I go big or go home, something that could last a lifetime: <a class="postlink" href="http://www.wayfair.com/Shun-Classic-6-Gokujo-Boning-and-Fillet-Knife-DM0743-SUH1030.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.wayfair.com/Shun-Classic-6-G ... H1030.html</a> or I could go with something cheaper like a Dexter Russell. Something made a little more for the specific task be not as high quality.
I think I should have submitted that post in question form. Would that Shun be a decent knife for boning out 2-3 deer a year? Over kill? Any good boning knife recommendations?
http://www.bubbablade.com/ Love the japanese knife it is beautiful, but this is a good choice and a tough knife.
I cooked a venison loin for my family on Friday night and did a stew tonight. I shot the deer about a week ago (to the hour) and butchered it last Monday night so it hasn't been in the freezer very long. It was a small deer and the loin was pretty skinny, so I cut it in half. I wrapped the halves in bacon, seasoned with salt and pepper, and grilled them over charcoal and hickory chips for smoke. I grilled them to just medium rare as they kept cooking a bit as they rested after I took them off. Spoiler for big pics. Spoiler The stew was pretty standard- just a roast cut cubed and braised with potatoes, carrots, celery, and onions, but I also used a porter beer for the liquid. All of the bitterness is cooked off and it makes for a really nice broth (with some salt, pepper, and Cavendar's Greek seasoning too). Worth trying. I will be making ground venison and sausage with a co-worker this week. Any ideas for what will be good to blend with the venison for ground meat? I'm thinking pork fat and/or bacon.