Main Dish – Aubrey About Town http://aubreyabouttown.com The going-ons of SF party host & chef, bon vivant, homme du monde, & man-about-town Thu, 19 Nov 2020 23:22:38 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.3 https://i0.wp.com/aubreyabouttown.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/cropped-43DD7C41-CD23-44CF-9EC7-C1D81E967BB4.png?fit=32%2C32 Main Dish – Aubrey About Town http://aubreyabouttown.com 32 32 58900657 Curried Beef Meatballs & Ginger Couscous http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/curried-beef-meatballs-ginger-couscous/ http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/curried-beef-meatballs-ginger-couscous/#respond Thu, 19 Nov 2020 22:46:18 +0000 http://aubreyabouttown.com/?post_type=recipe&p=3063 This crowd-pleasing dish has great flavour and versatility. Serve as a quick midweek supper, an easy do-ahead for a special occasion buffet, or omit the pearl onions, peas, peppers, and couscous all-together for an addicting mouth-popping ‘Curried Meatballs & Mushrooms’ hors d’oeuvres at your next cocktail party.

Curried Beef Meatballs & Ginger Couscous
Full of flavour, and as the curry, garlic, onions, and ginger simmer away, it’s an absolutely sure-fire way to fill the house with warm exotic scents, exciting guests for the meal to come.
Servings4 servings
Prep Time15 mins
Cook Time45 mins
Passive Time1 hour
Ingredients
Beef Meatballs
Curried Beef Meatballs
Ginger Couscous
Instructions
To Prepare Meatballs
  1. Peel garlic cloves, and rough chop. Top with kosher salt. Using the side of a kitchen knife, press salt into garlic, rubbing knife back & forth to make a salty garlic paste. Divide the salty garlic paste into two, set aside.
  2. In a medium bowl, with a box grater, grate shallots to a watery paste-like consistency.
  3. Add ground beef, pecorino, Worcestershire, steak sauce, ground black pepper, and half of the divided salty garlic paste.
  4. With impeccably clean hands, knead meatball mixture until well combined (about two mins.)
  5. Using a 1-ounce ice cream scoop, form mixture into 20 small meatballs, roll each ball in the palm of your hands to round them out.
  6. Place formed meatballs on to a plate, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 1 hour.
  7. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  8. Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil, fit with a rack.
  9. Line-up meatballs on rack.
  10. Bake for 20 minutes or until they’ve shrunk in size, and have browned.
  11. Flip each meatball. (Flipping the meatballs will keep them from sticking to the rack as they cool.)
  12. Set aside to cool. Prepare Curried Beef Meatballs.
To Prepare Curried Beef Meatballs
  1. In a large mixing bowl, stir to dissolve corn starch in to 1-quart chicken stock, set aside.
  2. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over MED-HIGH heat.
  3. Add diced onion and sauté until translucent, and the edges just begin to golden.
  4. Add the other half of the salty garlic paste, curry powder, turmeric, and black pepper and stir until the garlic paste and spices begin to melt into the sautéed onions.
  5. While slowly whisking, pour the chicken stock mixture into sautéed onions.
  6. Whisk until sauce begins to thicken, lower heat to MED-LOW, simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  7. Transfer sauce to the pitcher of a blender, cover, and blend until smooth.
  8. Transfer back to the skillet, add whole mushrooms, increase heat to MEDIUM, and stirring occasionally, simmer sauce until mushrooms have shrunken a bit, and the sauce has thickened.
  9. To thickened sauce, add meatballs, julienned red peppers, pearl onions, and peas.
  10. Simmer 8 minutes longer, or until red peppers have softened slightly, and everything has heated through. Cover with lid, and keep hot on LOW heat while you Prepare the Ginger Couscous.
To Prepare Ginger Couscous
  1. Cut one 2-inch finger from a hand of ginger.
  2. Using the tip of a teaspoon or a vegetable peeler, scrape out skin from ginger.
  3. Against a microplane or ginger root grater, grate ginger into a tablespoon of paste.
  4. In a small saucepan, over MED-HIGH heat, bring chicken stock, butter, salt, and grated ginger just to a boil.
  5. Stir in couscous and parsley, cover with a lid and remove from heat. Let sit covered and undisturbed for 5 minutes.
  6. Gently fluff with a fork.
To Serve
  1. For family or buffet service, arrange fluffed couscous into a layer mound onto a large pasta bowl or platter.
  2. Arrange meatballs atop couscous, spoon sauce & vegetables over top.
  3. Top with fresh chopped cilantro (optional).
  4. Or plate in the same fashion on individual shallow pasta bowls, with 5 meatballs per serving (as pictured).
  5. Serves 4.
Recipe Notes

For a marvelous hot hors d’oeuvres, follow the steps above, omitting the pearl onions, red peppers, and peas (and couscous). Serve in a candle-warming chafer with fun cocktail picks. Watch guests make a ‘B-line’ from across the room!

Curry Powder

I use “S & B Oriental Curry Powder” from Japan. It’s available at fine food grocers, or online.

S & B Oriental Curry Powder

]]> http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/curried-beef-meatballs-ginger-couscous/feed/ 0 3063 Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/salisbury-steak-with-mushroom-gravy/ http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/salisbury-steak-with-mushroom-gravy/#respond Sat, 10 Oct 2020 23:07:48 +0000 http://aubreyabouttown.com/?post_type=recipe&p=2797 Invented in the late 19th century by Civil War physician, James H. Salisbury, as a means to incorporate a meat-rich diet for soldiers on the battlefield, this American original soon became a family classic that is still a favorite today. 

Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy
Servings4 Servings
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time40 mins
Ingredients
Steak Patties
Mushroom Gravy
Instructions
To Prepare Steak Patties
  1. On the course grate of a box grater over a large bowl, grate one small onion.
  2. Add ground beef, minced parsley, garlic paste, kosher salt, dried thyme, and 1/2 tsp ground black pepper.
  3. With clean hands, knead beef mixture until well-combined. (About 2 mins)
  4. Form beef mixture into four 5-inch long, 3/4 inch thick oval shaped patties. (For smaller family-style or luncheon size, form eight 4-inch, 1/2 inch thick patties. See notes for alternative)
  5. Season patties with the remaining 1 tsp ground black pepper.
  6. Set patties on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 1 hour.
  7. Heat a large skillet over MED-HIGH heat, add olive oil.
  8. Brown Steak Patties 2 minutes per side, or until a rich chestnut-brown crust forms, and fond (tasty brown bits) has formed at the bottom of the skillet.
  9. Remove patties and transfer to a plate, move on to Prepare Mushroom Gravy.
To Prepare Mushroom Gravy
  1. To the hot skillet, add the olive oil, then the sliced onions and mushrooms. Allow the onions to sweat.
  2. With a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the skillet to release the fond.
  3. Add brandy, and continue to scrape the bottom of skillet until all of the fond has melted from the surface.
  4. Add demi-glace (or the alternative found in the Notes below), water, Worcestershire, and ground black pepper.
  5. Adjust heat to MEDIUM. Allow to simmer for 20 minutes, or until the gravy coats the back of the wooden spoon.
  6. Add the juices that formed on the bottom of the plate from the Steak Patties.
  7. Nestle the browned Steak Patties in to the Mushroom Gravy, simmer (uncovered) 12 minutes or until sauce has thickened to the desired consistency.
  8. Serve over mashed potatoes, buttered parsley egg noodles, or buttered spätzle. Serves 4.
Recipe Notes

As an easy-to-find alternative to demi-glace, use two 24 gram packets of brown gravy mix, plus 1 cup water, plus two 10oz cans of Campbell’s Beef Consommé.

To feed a crowd or the little ones, in Step 4, form beef mixture into 48 1-inch meatballs, continue as directed. Serve over Buttered Parsley Egg Noodles.

 

]]> http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/salisbury-steak-with-mushroom-gravy/feed/ 0 2797 Summer Cooking: Firehouse Chili http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/summer-cooking-firehouse-chili/ http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/summer-cooking-firehouse-chili/#respond Sat, 20 Jun 2020 05:21:01 +0000 http://aubreyabouttown.com/?post_type=recipe&p=2752 A combination of chopped chuck roast & ground beef makes for a meaty base with chunky bites of steak. 

Firehouse Chili
Servings6 servings
Prep Time5 mins
Cook Time150 mins
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a 6-quart stock pot, heat olive oil over MED-HIGH heat. Add ground beef (or chopped chuck), sauté to brown.
  2. Add chopped onions and minced garlic, cook just until onions become semi-transparent.
  3. Stir in chili powder, paprika, granulated garlic, black pepper, cumin, and salt.
  4. Mix in canned tomato & green chili (with juice) and hot coffee. Lower heat to MED-LOW, stirring occasionally, gently simmer for 1-1/2 hours.
  5. Stir in cooked pinto beans (with liquids). Stirring occasionally, continue to simmer on MED-LOW for 1 hour.
  6. Add masa, simmer 10 minutes longer to thicken.
  7. Taste for salt.
  8. Serve with cornbread or saltine crackers. Top with minced onion & shredded cheddar cheese if desired. Serves 6.
]]> http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/summer-cooking-firehouse-chili/feed/ 0 2752 Honey-Glazed Pork Tenderloin http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/honey-glazed-pork-tenderloin/ http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/honey-glazed-pork-tenderloin/#respond Fri, 05 Jun 2020 09:45:07 +0000 http://aubreyabouttown.com/?post_type=recipe&p=2709 The Honey-Glaze is marvelous on baked or grilled chicken, grilled double-cut pork loin chops or baby back ribs.

Honey-Glazed Pork Tenderloin with Ethiopian Ginger Rice & steamed asparagus

Honey-Glazed Pork Tenderloin
Ethiopian Ginger Rice pairs beautifully with the Honey-Glazed Pork Tenderloin.
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 325.
  2. Rinse and pat dry pork tenderloin.
  3. Tuck and fold the flap onto itself, (the narrowest end of the tenderloin) securing it with kitchen twine.
  4. And continue trussing every two inches, with a total of 5 ties, making the tenderloin even in width.
  5. Rub to generously coat pork tenderloin with 1 tbsp olive oil, season with 1/2 tsp kosher salt. Set aside.
  6. In a small bowl, combine honey, soy sauce, grated garlic & shallots, (or granulated onion) and black pepper. Mix well, set aside.
  7. In a oven-safe skillet, over MED-HIGH heat, heat remaining 2 tbsp olive oil until it slightly smokes.
  8. Add pork tenderloin to skillet, gently rotating it with tongs, lightly browning all sides (about 3 mins total).
  9. Transfer skillet to preheated 350 degree oven, with a pastry brush, brush tenderloin generously with half of the prepared honey glaze and roast 10 minutes. Brush on remaining glaze, roast 5 minutes, repeat brushing tenderloin with glaze from the pan, roasting for 5 minutes between brushings for a total of 20 minutes.
  10. Remove from oven, transfer pork tenderloin to a plate, cover with aluminum foil, and allow to rest for 6 minutes.
  11. Meanwhile, carefully transfer skillet to the stove, add 1/4 cup water, scraping bottom of skillet to lift any caramelized glaze, reduce glaze for 3 minutes to thicken.
  12. Slice Honey-Glazed Pork Tenderloin at an angle into 1/2 inch slices.
  13. Serve honey glaze on the side. Serves 4.
]]> http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/honey-glazed-pork-tenderloin/feed/ 0 2709 Fig-Balsamic Glazed Pork Tenderloin http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/fig-balsamic-glazed-pork-tenderloin/ http://aubreyabouttown.com/recipe/fig-balsamic-glazed-pork-tenderloin/#respond Thu, 07 May 2020 04:05:18 +0000 http://aubreyabouttown.com/?post_type=recipe&p=1779

Fig-Balsamic Glazed Pork Tenderloin
McQuade’s Celtic ‘Fig ‘n Ginger’ Chutney add that rich & sweetness to this decadent meat.
Servings4-6 people
Prep Time10 mins.
Cook Time30 mins:
Ingredients
Marinade Paste
Fig Glaze
Instructions
  1. Rinse and pat-dry Pork Tenderloins. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Line baking sheet with aluminum foil, fitted with a wire rack.
Marinade Paste
  1. Prepare Marinade Paste: In a small bowl, combine Marinade Paste ingredients, mix to a paste.
  2. Rub Pork Tenderloins with prepared Marinade Paste, wrap in plastic wrap, marinade refrigerated 1 hour.
Fig Glaze
  1. In the pitcher of a blender or bowl of a food processor, process Fig Glaze Ingredients - blend until smooth.
  2. Add glaze mixture to a small saucepan, bring to a simmer. Simmer on medium-heat until reduced by half (about 10 minutes), set aside, let cool to room temperature, stir in 1/2 cup Honey.
  3. Roast Pork Tenderloins: Remove Pork Tenderloins from plastic wrap, place on wire rack, and roast in 400 degrees over for 8 minutes.
  4. Remove from oven and spoon or brush half the Glaze over tenderloins, return to oven and roast 10 minutes. Repeat Marinade with the other side, roast 10 minutes.
  5. Remove from oven, cover with foil, and allow to rest 10 minutes. Slice at an angle into 1/4-inch medallions, serve with Lebanese Rice Pilaf.
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