Mojo Chicken Empanadas

So, it's been a while and I thought I'd come back with a roar! So, off we go:

Step 1: Marinade Ingredients

• 2 Oranges
• 1 Lemon
• 1 Lime
• 4 Pablanos
• 4 Chicken Breasts

Step 2: Juice 'em

Juice the oranges, lemon and lime, then chop up the pablanos.

Step 3: Marinate the Chicken

Stick the chicken in the bag and let it marinate in the refrigerator for a day.

Step 4: The Poaching Ingredients

• 1 Teaspoon of Cumin Seeds
• 1 Teaspoon of Pepper Corns
• 1 Tablespoon of Paprika
• 1 Tablespoon of Chilli Powder
• 2 cups of Beef or Chicken Stock
• 1/2 a yellow onion, chopped

Step 5: Toast and Saute

Toast the cumin seeds and peppercorns, then toss in a tablespoon of olive oil and the onion. Saute the onion until it's soft, then add 2 cups of beef or chicken stock, then the paprika or chilli powder.

Step 6: Poach the chicken

Toss the chicken in and put a lid on it, let it simmer for about 45 - 60 minutes.

Step 7: Shred it

Once most of the liquid has boiled away, the chicken should be tender enough to easily shred.

Step 8: Empanada Dough

Hopefully, Brendan will tell us how he made it because I'm not sure but whatever recipe he used was delicious.

Step 9: Roll it Out

Step 10: Cut out rounds

Step 11: Fill them

Step 12: Fold them

Step 13: Fry Them

Heat your fry oil to 350 degrees, then fry two empanadas at a time. Fry each for approximately 3 minutes before letting them rest.

Step 14: Let them rest

Once they're cool enough to eat without burning your mouth, enjoy!

Bacon Wrapped Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin

So, what's better than pork tenderloin? Bacon wrapped pork tenderloin.

This is a recipe that I got from a friend of mine, AJ. I first had the dish when I was living with her a few years ago and I've always wanted to give the recipe a try myself. So, thanks for the recipe, AJ!

Step 1: Ingredients

• Pork Tenderloin
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Soy Sauce
• Lemon Juice
• Cayenne Pepper
• Onion Powder
• Minced Garlic
• Brown Sugar
• Bacon

Step 2: Making the Marinade

Douse the tenderloin with Soy Sauce and give it a few good dashes of Worcestershire sauce and Lemon Juice. Sprinkle it with Onion Powder and Cayenne, then give it a really healthy amount of minced garlic:

Then reach in and mix everything together, fully coating the tenderloin:

Let it marinate for 4 - 24 hours.

Step 3: BACON

Once the tenderloin is done marinating, wrap it in bacon. There are a few different ways you can wrap the tenderloin in bacon. The way I did it was to lay out strips of bacon barely overlapping, then set the tenderloin near the edge and roll it up. You can also just wrap the bacon around and pin it in place with a toothpick.

Step 4: Cook it

Heat the oven to 350 degrees, then pour about half of the remaining marinade overtop. Put it in the oven, let it cook for 30 minutes, then flip it and pour the rest of the marinade overtop:

Let it cook for another 30 minutes and it's done!

So, here we have it! Bacon Wrapped Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin with coconut milk rice and peas:

Turkey Tetrazzini

Step 1: Ingredients

• Turkey Breast
• Salt
• Pepper
• Oregano
• Sage
• Garlic Powder
• Onion Powder
• Swiss Cheese
• 2 cups of grated Parmesan Cheese
• 2 cups of Milk
• 2 cups of Chicken Stock
• All Purpose Flour
• Egg Noodles

Step 2: Boil Noodles and Prep

Set your egg noodles on to boil and grate about 2 cups of Parmesan Cheese in to a bowl.

Step 3: Add Liquids

Mix in 2 cups of chicken stock and 2 cups of milk with the Parmesan.

Step 4: Cut the Turkey

Cut the turkey in to chunks, like so.

Step 5: Spice the Meat

Coat the meat with garlic powder.
Coat the garlic powder with onion powder.
Do a half coating of oregano.
Put just enough sage in the palm of your hand to make about a 10 sided dice sized mound, then sprinkle that on top.
Mix it all together with your hands so everything has a nice, even coating.

Step 6: Pan fry it

Put about a tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan and turn the heat on high. Once the olive oil starts to smoke a little, toss the turkey in the pan and quickly stir it around. You should notice that some of the spice sticks to the pan, this is a good thing. Keep stirring and eventually, your turkey will start to take on a brown, caramel color like so:

This is also going to be about the same time that the noodles are done, so take them up and drain them, then put them back in the pot and set it to the side for later.

Step 7: Add the Liquid Mix

Pour in the Parmesan, milk and stock mix in to the pan and turn the heat down to medium. Stir it around, making sure to get all of the wonderful crunchies off the bottom of the pan.

Step 8: Add a bit of flour

Now, you don't want to actually let the mix come to a boil but it's not the end of the world if it does. Once yous tart to notice some bubbling, sprinkle two or three handfuls of flour over the top of it and mix it in. Don't worry about doughballs forming, they're delicious.

Step 9: Add it to the noodles

Mix the entire contents of the pan with the noodles in an oven safe pot.

Step 10: Toppings

Add a layer of panko breadcrumbs, then add a layer of Swiss Cheese:

Then add another layer of panko breadcrumbs and put it in the oven on 350 for about an hour:

aaand done!

So, here we are, folks. Turkey Tetrazinni:

Duck Confit over Polenta with a Balsamic Reduction and Spring Mix Salad

This is probably the single most complicated recipe I've ever attempted to do and it turned out amazingly. This recipe is not for those with little time because it's a very time intensive recipe BUT IT'S WORTH IT. So, on with the show:

Duck Ingredients:

• 1/2 a Duck
• 0.5 cup of Kosher Salt
• 2 Bay Leaves
• 2 tablespoons of Chopped Thyme
• 1 teaspoon of Black Peppercorns
• (optional) 0.25 cup of packed Parsley Leaves

Balsamic Reduction Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups of Balsamic Vinegar
• 0.25 cup of sugar

Duck Step 1: Butcher It

Buy a whole duck and chop it in half. It helps to have a really sharp cleaver.

Step 2: Make Green Salt for the Rub

In a spice grinder, mix 0.5 cup of Kosher Salt, 2 Bay Leaves, 2 tablespoons of Chopped Thyme, 1 teaspoon of Black Peppercorns and, if you have it (which I did not) 0.25 cup of packed Parsley Leaves.

Step 3: Grind It

 Grind the mixture until it become a semi-fine powder.

Step 4: Trim the Fat

Use a sharp knife and trim the fat and skin off of about half of the duck, making sure to not touch the wing or leg. you want to take most of the fat and skin from the fore and aft of the duck, as pictured. Toss the trimmed skin and fat in a frying pan.

Step 5: Rub the duck in Green Salt

Rub down the entire duck, inside and out with the Green Salt. You'll have a lot of Green Salt left over but you can always use it for other recipes, so it's not a waste.

Step 6: Wrap it and Gather Approval

Wrap the duck in saran wrap, feel slightly insecure and get your roommate to give his approval. Looks like this gets a thumbs up! So, stick it in the refrigerator for AT LEAST 24 hours.

Step 7: Render the fat

Put the frying pan on the stove and turn the heat on low. Let it stay that way for several hours, you want all of the delicious fat to render out until you get, effectively, duck cracklins and this:

Step 9: Pour the fat off

Set aside, eat or throw away the duck cracklins and pour the fat off in to a bowl. You're going to need this later.

Step 10: Rinse and cure

After 24 hours, rinse the duck off and pat it dry with a paper towel. Then, take the fat you saved in step 9 and drizzle a bit of it over one side of the duck, then flip it over and do the same with the opposite side:

Put it back in the fridge and let it sit for 4 hours.

Step 11: The Second Dousing

4 hours later, pull the duck back out and repeat the process. You should have about 1/3 of the fat left by the end of the second dousing. Put it back in the fridge and let it sit for another day.

Step 12: The lead up to cooking

Place the duck in a baking dish and pour the remaining fat overtop of it. Cover it with foil and put it in the oven on 190 degrees (yes, really, as low as most modern ovens can possibly go) for 12 to 14 hours. Yes, you read that correctly, between 12 and 14 hours at 190 degrees.

Step 13: Check It

After 12 hours, take the duck out and see if you can pull a bit of meat from the duck with a fork without exerting any effort at all:

If you can, great! Cover the duck again and let it rest elsewhere while you make the Polenta and Balsamic Reduction.

Balsamic Reduction Step 1: Add it to a sauce pan

Mix 0.25 cup of sugar and 1.5 cups of Balsamic Vinegar to a sauce pan and turn the heat on high.

Step 2: Let it Reduce

Once the mixture comes to a boil, turn the heat down to medium and let it bubble until between 1/2 and 2/3 of the liquid has boiled away. The longer you let it reduce, the thicker the reduction will be in the end.

So, two days of curing and a day of cooking later, we have Duck Confit over Polenta with a Balsamic Reduction and Spring Mix Salad!

In a ramequin, I mixed part of the reduction with olive oil and a single raspberry to make a Raspberry Balsamic Vinaigrette to go with the spring mix. I laid down a bed of Polenta and placed a piece of the confit, then drizzled the Balsamic reduction over it. I paired it with a Petit Shiraz but a Pinot Grigio might have paired a little better. It's all personal taste, really.


This is the picture of four very happy bellies:

 

Also, since apparently I decide today was French day, I made Beignets for desert. :d