Grilled Rib Steak & Refried Rice Using Grilled Rib Steak Left Overs

While much of the discussion on this blog throughout the past week focused on my adventures in making no knead breads, it has been a whirlwind of activity here.  We decided to makeover the master bedroom completely including new furniture and at the same time finish the guest room.  The furniture (Vaughan-Bassett) for the master bedroom had an estimated time of arrival of three weeks giving me plenty of time to shop for accessories and work on the crochet bedspreads for each room.  The bedspreads are a huge undertaking given one is king and the other queen size, so a lot of work.  Shopping for accessories meant several shopping trips with many foodie stops!  Much of the focus was stocking up on herbal teas, K-cups, various flours and cherry picking the sales.  I did manage to find a few interesting foods to try so will talk about them as they are used.  Oh, and I just couldn't resist the cute salt and pepper shakers in just the perfect deep red for the kitchen, a new tea ball and a couple of kitchen organizers.  At the same time, I was experimenting with the no knead breads and testing the 4ever Recap canning lids.  Even though it has been rather busy, regular cooking continued.

It has been a cold, wet spring with wet snow a couple of days ago and frost on the roofs yesterday morning.  Still, we have been doing more grilling.  The deck off the kitchen is quite protected from the winds making it perfect for grilling in all but the most unpleasant weather.   Early this week the sun made a rare appearance so I thawed a couple of rib steaks for grilling.  The steaks were grilled to medium rare, served with baked potatoes and steamed broccoli.  It was a delicious meal! 

We seldom marinate or use barbeque sauce on our steaks.  Instead, we let the flavour of the gorgeous, hormone free beef shine!  I love baked potatoes baked in the oven but just can't wait to start baking them on the grill again.  The grill gives a bit of extra flavour yet keeps the skin crispy and flesh tender. 

All of the steaks from our beef on the hoof purchase are large, cut to our specifications of 1 - inch thick.  While the whole steak looks luscious for the photo shoot, it is too much steak for either of us although if my husband is in the right mood, occasionally he will polish off a steak this big.  At any rate, anytime we have steak for dinner we have left overs.  Although steak does reheat nicely to enjoy as is, I also use left-over steak in other dishes.

The following day, I cooked rice for dinner which is so nice now that I've mastered cooking it on the stovetop.  The rice comes out perfect every time, something I attribute to the gas burners that are considerably easier to control than electric burners that retain residual heat after being turned off.  I used the rice to make refried rice.

Refried rice is an extremely easy and inexpensive way to use left over rice and beef, chicken or pork that can be made in 15 minutes or less.  It uses soy sauce which is incredibly high in sodium content.  Even the low sodium soy sauces have over 500 mg of sodium in 1 tbsp!  I use Rooster Brand Dark Soy Sauce which has 800 mg of sodium per 1 tbsp but because it has a deeper, richer flavour, less is needed.  It does give a darker colour to any dishes it is used in. Neither of us are on a sodium restricted diet however, we do tend to eat fairly low sodium so refried rice is a dish we enjoy only a very few times a year.

Method:  Cook rice or use left over rice.  I used 3 cups of cooked rice.  Cut left over steak (chicken or pork) into strips or pieces.  Heat a little olive oil in a non-stick skillet.  Pour in the rice.  Stir in about 1½ tbsp dark soy sauce, mixing well.  Stir in prepared meat and about 1 c of frozen peas.  Mix.  Make a well in the centre of the rice.  Pour in three beaten eggs.  Stir and continue stirring while incorporating the rice mixture into the eggs as they cook.

Chicken Vegetable Stir Fry

The holiday season begins shortly after the cold weather hits. When the cold weather fits hits our bodies are not acclimatized to the temperature change so we seek warm, comfort foods like thick, rich soups and chowders as well as heavier dishes such as lasagne and roasts with all the fixings. Homemade breads become a norm for most meals and salads get a wee bit plainer. We rely on more of our home canned stores and less on fresh fruits and vegetables. I'm not saying we don't eat fresh fruits and vegetables just we eat less both in quantity and variety. Now overall this wouldn't be a problem for us except this is also the time of year we tend to do a bit more cocooning indoors so our activity levels are down. Knowing that most of the holiday eating we do away from home is going to be packed with extra calories, I try cooking a bit lighter at home for the month of December. A stir fry is an ideal way to cook a bit lighter without it feeling like you are cooking lighter.

Instant Noodles

When it comes to quick cooking noodles many think of the Ramen noodles that come in the little pouches with a high sodium content seasoning packet. Unfortunately Ramen noodles are also high in fat because they are fried as part of the pre-cooking then packaged to complete the cooking process at home. Now Ramen noodles do have their use but if you can eliminate the nutritional problems of this quick cooking noodle (3 minutes), why not?

I found Rooster Brand Instant Noodles that have all the convenience of Ramen noodles without being high in sodium or fat and they only take 1 minute to cook! Unlike Ramen noodles that has a list of ingredients a mile long the Rooster Instant Noodles ingredients are wheat flour, water, duck eggs, colour. So let's compare the nutritional value of each. Ramen noodles contain: 380 cal per 85 g pk, 22% fat (36% saturated fat), 5 mg cholesterol, 77% sodium, 18% carbs (16% fiber), 4% calcium and 23% iron. Rooster Brand Instant Noodles contain: 300 cal per 1¼c (85 g), 0% fat (0% saturated fat), 0 mg cholesterol, 14% sodium, 21% carbohydrates (8% fiber), 2% calcium and 10% iron. In terms of both fat and sodium the Rooster Brand Instant Noodles is a better choice nutritionally even though they are slightly higer in carbohydrates as well as lower in fiber, calcium and iron. As far as cost goes Ramen noodles (85 g) packages are often on sale 4/$1 or 25¢ per 85 g. The Rooster Brand Instant Noodles contains the equivalent of 4 packages of Ramen noodles at a cost of $1.19 or 30¢ per 85 g which really is not uch of a price difference to get a healthier product.

Chicken Vegetable Stir Fry

Instant noodles are ideal for adding to soups and into stir frys. The noodles can be cooked directly is soups just before serving. Once cooked which only takes 1 minute, the instant noodles can also be stirred directly into the stir fry coating them with the sauce. As instants go the Rooster Brand Instant Noodles are worth of a spot in your pantry.

Stir frys are always quick, easy and frugal meals. They really allow you to reduce the amount of meat per serving without noticing that there is less meat. They are ideal for those meals when time is at a premium or during the hot summer months because cooking takes only a few minutes. By far the most time spent is the food prep that consists mainly of cutting up a variety of vegetables. It is important to have all your vegetables ready before beginning to cook. If you are using meat or poultry it goes into the pan first as it takes the longest to cook then vegetables are added in the order of longest cook time to shortest. The resulting liquid can be thickened with a cornstarch slurry then if desired stir in cooked instant noodles. Give a toss and voila you have a lovely dinner with little effort.

Pictured is the stir fry I made a couple of nights ago. I served it on a bed of instant noodles that were cooked in turkey stock. The lightly seasoned chicken (lemon pepper) was cooked first then deboned, cut into strips and reserving the liquid. The chicken vegetable mixture consisted red onions, carrots, broccoli, celery, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts and red pepper. The mixture seasoned with a little soy sauce and Hoison sauce. The rich reserve liquid was poured back into the mixture then thickened with a corn starch slurry. The meal was quick, easy, very filling and quite tasty! The best part is the meal was low sodium, low fat, low carb yet quite nutritious :)

Last Week in the Kitchen

Sometimes a day goes by without a blog post here like yesterday. That's because life gets in the way. The kitchen hasn't come to a standstill. Saturday morning I spent doing a bit of straightening and and cleaning with the kitchen getting extra attention. So by lunchtime everything was squeaky clean just in time for parents of our middle grandbaby to arrive. At 18 months this grandbaby is about as adorable as you can get with a vocabulary that would amaze most people! After a nice visit they all changed into dress clothes for a wedding so the house was quiet again. I decided to get a little fresh air since it was so nice. Then my husband arrived home after being away for a week so things got really busy!

I had bought a pork loin as part of helping my husband get ready for his trip. He took half of it for pork loin chops so I put the other half into cure for pea meal bacon. The stores have been running some nice beef and pork sales along with great deals on beets (10 lb/$1), carrots (5 lb/$1), onions (10 lb $1) and kiwi (2 lb/$1) so I've been doing a fair amount of preserving. Coming out of the kitchen last week include home canned carrots and beets, dried kiwi along with frozen meats and onions. My secret indulgence for the week was daily cappuccino.

Taco Salad

I kept dinners on the simple side planning for two because most evening one of our kids stopped by for dinner. The week started off by using up the rest of the lasagna followed by using a large container of homemade spaghetti with meat sauce from the freezer. I made a nice batch of butternut squash soup as well. I planned on treating myself to dinner out Friday night as we normally eat out Friday nights however a sinus attack convinced me staying in would be a better choice. So, I thawed a package of hamburg from our bulk meat purchase and made taco salad. Included in the toppings were homemade medium salsa and taco hot sauce. This is one of my favourite meals that is always sure to please!

Pickled Beets

The beets were it this week! At 10/$lb I just had to get a bag. I canned plain beets (not shown) and pickled beets (pictured). I love beets so a good portion of the hot beets were popped into my mouth as part of quality control ☺ I still have a large bowl of cooked beets to use up in the next couple of days but that shouldn't be a problem! Even though my husband was away it's apparent the mouse or should that be gnome still had time to play in the kitchen!

The sales continue this week with boneless pork loins and sirloin halves on for $1/lb The fresh whole pork picnic shoulder are still n at $1/lb. Fresh bay scallops and smelts are on for $4.54/lb. It's going to be another great week for stocking up!

Liver & Onions Revisited

It's that time of the year when I'm doing some type of preserving daily with a large emphasis on canning. That means I want simple to prepare meals that take advantage of the extra produce I have on hand. It's always nice when the meal happens to be both frugal and comfort food. Such is the case with liver and onions. In an earlier blog entry, Three Simple Budget Stretching Dishes, I gave the method my husband uses for cooking liver and onions.

Many people turn up their noses at eating liver quite often because of unpleasant childhood memories. Liver should never be dry or tough. It should be melt in your mouth, full of flavour and nicely textured. If you refuse to eat liver because of previous experiences, consider cooking it using our method. It might just change your mind. Liver is generally quite inexpensive making it a very frugal meat choice. It is rich and filling so less goes further. Leftovers heat nicely in the microwave but I don't know if they would freeze. It's high in protein and iron but also high in cholesterol so those watching their dietary intake of cholesterol should limit their intake.

The original instructions I posted follows this discussion.

The total price for 3 packages of fresh liver was $6.58 giving enough for dinner for three adults, lunch for one adult, and dinner for two adults. Paired with new crop Spanish onions (50 lb - $8.99) and new crop potatoes (50 lb $7.99) it makes for a nice frugal meal. Choose firm, fresh liver (1) preferably calf liver with the intent of cooking it the day you buy it. The liver should have good colouration with glistening appearance. Do not buy if there is excess blood leaking around the liver. Open the package to allow the liver to breath about 5 minutes before coating.

The coating should be kept simple with a little seasoning to accent the liver but not so as to overpower it. We used about 2 cups of unbleached flour (2) with a couple of dashes of garlic pepper and garlic salt but you can add whatever seasonings you like as long as they don't overpower the liver. Old Bay seasoning works nicely too as does simple salt and pepper. The best way to coat the liver is to dredge using your hands. Once coated the liver is placed into a medium sauteé pan to brown only (3). You will need two fry pans, one for the liver and one for the onions. Sauteé sliced onions until translucent in butter then add the browned liver (3). Butter is the best for flavour but it can be cut in half with extra virgin olive oil to reduce the saturated and trans fats or you can use half ghee and half extra virgin olive oil for the flavour. Continue cooking the liver and onions on medium heat stirring often until the onions are caramelized (4). Remove from heat and let rest about 5 minutes.

Method: You will need a sautee pan and fry pan for this method. Timing is important so be sure to use mis en place. Cut two large spanish onions in half then into slices against the layers. Melt about 2 tbsp butter in the sautee pan then add onions. Stir occasionally and if need be add a little extra butter. While the onions are sauteeing, dredge the liver in flour seasoned with a little salt and pepper or garlic salt if you prefer. Lightly brown on both sides in heated fry pan on medium heat. Remove from heat. When the onions begin carmelizing, transfer the liver to the sautee pan. Continue cooking until the onions are carmelized, stirring often.

Presentation

Liver and onions are comfort food so choose comforting sides like potatoes and/or carrots cooked simply without added fats. I served the liver with steamed new potatoes with a just little butter and sea salt. A side garden salad with lemon juice instead of dressing rounded out the meal. Lemon juice brings out the flavour of a salad without adding fat or calories. It was an ideal side for this dinner. We had plain yogurt with a bit of fresh fruit for desert.

So all in all, liver is a very frugal, comforting and healthy meal. Do give it a try.

Meatballs, Homecanned Meatballs in Sauce and Homecanned Sauce

I'm a bit behind on my tomato schedule this year so hopefully the motivation will strike soon! The fourth hamper of tomatoes was sitting in the kitchen waiting processing yesterday. I decided it would be a good day to make a smooth tomato sauce for canning and using some of that sauce for a homecanned convenience product. A family sized package of lean ground beef provided the inspiration. My husband loves meatball subs so I routinely make up a large batch of meatballs then freeze them. However, the prospect of having ready-to-use meatballs in sauce sitting in the pantry would be even easier for a quick meal. With the decision of what to can settled it was time to set to work.

The sauce (see below) was prepared first and simmering while I made the meatballs. I had the meatballs in sauce processing in the canner just in time for dinner which of course was meatball subs made from another batch of meatballs. After dinner, I processed most of the remaining sauce, cleaned up the kitchen and smiled each time a jar pinged.

Meatballs

When I make meatballs I don't use any fillers or eggs. I want pure lightly seasoned meatballs that let the flavour of the meat shine though giving me a versatile meatball that can be used with a variety of sauces. My method follows. There are no measurements as I just use what I have.

Method:
I start with freshly ground lean ground beef. The KitchenAid food grinder attachment is ideal for this purpose. I mix in a couple of healthy dashes of Worcestershire sauce, light sprinkling of salt and fresh ground pepper. Once mixed I pour in cold milk and mix adding more cold milk until the meat holds together when pinched. The meat is then formed into balls using a meatballer (1). I use a little extra virgin olive oil in a non-stick skillet to brown the meatballs (2) on medium heat turning as needed. Once cooked*(3) the meatballs are ready to enjoy or can be cooled for freezing**.

* for canning - Brown only but do not cook through. Keep hot until ready to fill the jars.
** for freezing - Once cooled, spread the meatballs in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Freeze. Remove from cookie sheet and pack into zipper style freezer bag or vacuum seal into meal sized portions.

Meatball Sub

Meatball subs are inexpensive, quick and easy to make sure to please. This was my husband's meatball sub so he decided against the nice green (upper right) romaine lettuce. His excuse was it might interfere with the full flavour of the meatballs!

Method: Start with a submarine bun. Cut down one side of the top on an angle from end to end. Repeat. A "V" shaped wedge will be formed leaving a "V" shaped well in the bottom. Fill the well with meatballs. Sprinkled on fresh grated Parmesan cheese. Place the wedge on top and enjoy!

Sauce & Meatballs in Sauce

I decided to make a smooth tomato sauce that would do double duty. Again there are no firm measurements only the method so adjust the seasonings to taste. I used approximately 3/4 of a hamper of tomatoes for the sauce. A food mill is essential for making smooth sauces. It makes quick work for easily removing skins and seeds. The sauce can be canned using a boiling water bath (BWB) canner but the meatballs in sauce must be processed using a pressure canner.

Method: Wash the tomatoes then cut in half. Place about 1/4 of the tomatoes into a large stock pot and slowly bring to a boil while stirring to prevent sticking. Continue adding cut tomatoes until all are used. When all the tomatoes are heated through remove from heat. Run then tomatoes in small quantities through the food mill. Return the sauce to the stockpot reserving the skins and seeds for drying (good for tomato powder). Add one finely chopped Spanish onion, 2 finely chopped stalks celery, 2 cloves garlic pressed and 1/2 finely chopped green pepper. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Seasonings are optional but if using: Stir is Italian seasoning, 1 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tbsp cinnamon, 1 tbsp garlic/onion powder mix, 2 cans (369 ml/13 oz) tomato paste (or same amount homemade) and light dash of salt. Simmer 15 minutes. Adjust seasonings as necessary then simmer for another 15 minutes. The sauce is now ready for canning or freezing.

canned sauce only: Ladle the hot sauce into sterilized mason jars leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Wipe the rims. Adjust two piece lids. Process in a boiling water bath 35 minutes for 500 ml (pints) jars. Remove from canner and allow to cool undisturbed. Check for seal. Label and store.

meatballs in sauce, canned: Pack hot meatballs into 500 ml (pint) jars leaving 1-inch headspace. Ladle hot sauce over the meatballs leaving 1-inch headspace. Wipe the rims. Adjust two piece lids. Process at 10 lb pressure for 75 minutes 500 ml (pint) jars or 90 minutes for 1 L (quart) jars. Allow to depressurize then remove jars to cool. Check for seal. Label and store.

to freeze: Allow sauce to cool then freeze as is in freezer containers. If adding meatballs, allow the meatballs to cool. Stir into the sauce and freeze in freezer containers. For longer storage, pop the frozen sauce or meatballs in sauce out of the container and vacuum seal.

Pickerel Done Two Ways

During the nicer weather I like to fish. The most often caught fish here are perch, bass and pickerel although other fish are caught as well. I'm able to stock the freezers with fish for the winter as well as serve fresh fish on a regular basis during the other months.

To freeze: Clean and fillet the fish. Rinse. Dip in water and flash freeze on a baking sheet. Repeat twice so the fish is covered with a nice glaze of ice. Package into vacuum freezer bags. Vacuum seal.

Simple Beer Battered Pickerel

I don't often prepare deep fried fish. This time I decided to use a simple beer batter to coat the pickerel then deep fry. A simple beer batter consists of a pre-made mix such as complete pancake mix and beer. In this case I used Bisquick but I've used the homemade version of baking mix successfully. Don't laugh as this does result in very nicely English style battered fish despite the simple ingredients.

Of note is the yellow corn! I have been begging the farmer's market to grow yellow corn for ages. The norm here seems to be peaches & cream corn but yellow corn is better for freezing, canning or making corn relish. This year the farmer's market has yellow corn so I am going to be doing up a lot of it.

Simple Quick Beer Batter (for fish)

2 c Bisquick or homemade version
1 can/bottle light beer (preservative free eg. Sleeman's)
2 c unbleached flour
seasoning salt (optional)
fish fillet of your choice
vegetable or peanut oil

Pre-heat deepfryer to fish setting (375ºF). Peanut oil is best but vegetable oil works as a substitute. Mix the flour and seasoning salt in a shallow baking dish. In another baking dish mix the baking mix and beer. Dredge each fillet in flour then the baking mix mixture. If you want a thicker coating, repeat. Fry until golden brown then remove from fryer and drain.

Draining

I drain deep fried fish in a strainer lined with a layer of paper towels. Traditional English style fish & chips are drained in newspaper. This draining step is necessary to prevent the coating from becoming soggy as well as removing excess calories for the oil. Once drained, the fish is ready for plating.

Malt vinegar or lemon juice are the perfect accompaniment for fish prepared this way. A light sprinkle of salt is nice too but avoid the heavy tartar sauces.

Pan Fried

Pickerel is also wonderful simply pan fried. A small amount of oil and seasoning of choice is used for this method but no coating. Coatings range from very lightly coated to the more heavily coated English style fish. More often than not we fore go the coating to let the taste of the fish shine through.

Method: Heat a fry pan (preferably cast iron) with a small amount of extra light olive oil. Add the pickerel fillets and sprinkle oh so lightly with seasoning salt. Allow to fry about 5 minutes or until the side facing the pan is no longer translucent. Turn the fish and repeat. Fry the fish only until it turns white and no longer.

Baked Salmon Steaks

As the move date draws closer and more things are packed I feel less like cooking so am turning to easier, quick to prepare meals. Baked salmon steaks fit that criteria last night. The meal used up two of the remaining four potatoes, two salmon steaks (freezer), peaches & cream corn (freezer) and my last lemon (refrigerator).

Baked Salmon Steak

Salmon steaks are one of our favourite either grilled or baked. Salmon is high in Omega-3 fatty acids making it one of the good foods to eat. Left-overs can be made into a filling for sandwiches and wraps. It can be baked or grilled from frozen in about 20 minutes and in less time if using fresh.

Salmon has a nice, rich flavour that goes nicely with rosemary, butter, lemon, thyme and chives. I insist on both butter and lemon when either grilling or baking salmon then use the desired herbs to compliment the side dishes. I like keeping the sides simple so as to not overpower the flavour of the salmon.

Baked Salmon Steaks

1 salmon steak per person
herbed butter
juice on half lemon
lemon slices

Place the salmon steaks in a baking dish or 2-piece broiling pan*. Brush with the herbed butter. Sprinkle generously with lemon juice and place one slice of lemon on top. Bake at 350ºF for 15 minutes or until the fish feels just firm to the touch. Do not over bake. Remove from baking dish and serve as is with a wedge of fresh lemon.

* If using a broiling pan, put a little water in the bottom tray to prevent smoking.