Category: Cooking Ideas

Homemade Savory Beef Stew Recipe

Picture of Beef StewThis is a delicious and fairly easy to make recipe for Beef Stew. Since the recipe includes Adolph’s Tenderizer, you can use the tastier (and tougher) cuts of meat to make this beef stew, such as chuck or brisket. The Adolph’s Tenderizer combined with slow cooking will break down the tough fibers in the chuck or brisket, and make for a tender meal.

Beef Stew Recipe Ingredients

  • 1 – 1/2 lbs beef for stew
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1 tsp Adolphs Tenderizer
  • 1 tbsp Lawry’s Seasoned Salt
  • Canola oil
  • 1 tbsp Worcershire Sauce
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 3 stalks celery, diced
  • 2 tsps beef base
  • 4 cups water
  • 1 can diced tomatoes or whole crushed tomatoes with juice
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 small cans sliced mushrooms
  • 1 1/2 cups baby carrots, sliced
  • 2 medium potatoes, diced

To make Beef Stew

  1. Put flour, tenderizer and seasoned salt in plastic bag and mix together.
    Place beef in bag and toss to evenly coat beef.
  2. Heat canola oil in large dutch oven. Place beef in oil and brown, stirring to cook all sides.
  3. Add celery and onion to the dutch oven. Cook about 5 minutes or until onion is translucent.
  4. Add Worcershire sauce, tomatoes, beef base, and water; mix thoroughly.
  5. Bring to a boil and then add bay leaves, mushrooms, carrots, and potatoes.
  6. Simmer the beef Stew for 2-3 hours.
  7. You adjust consistency and make a little thicker with a little water and cornstarch mixed together and then adding to Beef Stew. Stir, and cook for 10 minutes more, stirring a few more times.
  8. Serve Beef Stew with hot biscuits or corn muffins.

Easy French Dip Sandwiches

Picture of French Dip Sandwich Okay, it’s a week night. You just spent an hour in rush hour traffic. You want a simple, easy meal, that’s ready in a jiffy. Our recommendation would be a French Dip Sandwich made with McCormick Au Jus mix. Of course, you’d need to have 3 items on hand: Au Jus gravy mix, sandwich rolls, and sliced beef.

The French Dip Sandwich was created in the 1920’s in Los Angeles, California when a roll was accidently dropped in to the Au Jus gravy. The customer said it didn’t matter, and took the sandwich anyway. The next day they came back and asked for the same sandwich and thus was born an American classic sandwich.

Don’t let the French name lead you on to the idea that this is a gourmet meal. It’s really just a roast beef sandwich served with a side bowl of Au Jus to dip the sandwich in. But it’s still a great sandwich and is loaded with flavor. Usually the French Dip Sandwich is served with a side of French Fries or French Fried Onion Rings.

This is a recipe for French Dip Sandwiches that we’ve been making for ages. As we said in the lead paragraph, it’s really a great recipe for a busy week night. That’s because it’s easy to make, and tastes great.


Au Jus gravy mix

Recipe for French Dip Sandwiches

  • 3 cups prepared McCormick Au Jus Gravy Mix, make according to directions on package
  • 1/4 pound sliced roast beef lunch meat per sandwich
  • Submarine sandwich rolls
  1. Make Au Jus gravy mix according to package directions.
  2. Add sliced beef to Au Jus gravy to heat the beef.
  3. Remove beef, and make sandwiches.
  4. Ladle 1/3 to 1/2 cup of Au Jus gravy into bowls to dip sandwiches in.
French Dip Sandwich #FrenchDip #FrenchDipSandwich
French Dip Sandwich

Chicken Jumbalaya

Chicken Jumbalaya on wooden placematOn weekends, we try to take advantage of having the time around the house to make a slow cooking recipe. Often those are recipes for soups, stews, Yankee Pot Roast, or standing rib roasts. Yesterday we decided to make a light Chicken Jumbalaya recipe.

Many Jumbalaya recipes are loaded with fat from bacon and sausage. Often the recipes use large quantities of these fats, such as 1/2 cup bacon fat, or 1/2 cup sausage drippings. We try to avoid fats in meals, and especially the saturated fats found in bacon and sausages. So our Chicken Jumbalaya Recipe uses minimal oils, and a light chicken andouille sausage. The meats in our jumbalaya are only chicken and chicken sausage. The resulting meal was excellent, but you can add shrimp to the recipe to increase the flavor.

One of the reasons our jumbalaya was tasty without seafood was our choice of chicken meat. We used chicken thighs, pre-cooked them in a little garlic, and allowed them to cool so we could remove the chicken meat from the bones. That all takes a little time, so you need to cook the chicken thighs at least 2 hours before starting the recipe for Chicken Jumbalaya.

Tabasco Sauce LabelThis is a made from scratch jumbalaya recipe, and the only short cut we may have taken is the use of Nina Chopped Garlic instead of chopping garlic cloves ourselves. We use Nina chopped garlic all of the time because you simply measure the right amount, and you’re done. A half teaspoon of chopped garlic is the equivalent to a clove of garlic. Nina Chopped Garlic is chopped finer then the way we usually chop garlic, so the garlic flavor is more pronounced then what we get from our chopping of fresh garlic cloves. If you try it, you’ll see what we’re talking about.

Chicken Jumbalaya Recipe

  • 5 chicken thighs
  • 1/2 – 1 tsp chopped garlic (about 1 -2 cloves fresh garlic)
  • 2 stalks celery, finely chopped
  • 1 green pepper, finely chopped
  • 1 onion, finely diced
  • 1 cubanelle pepper, finely chopped
  • 4 or 5 Amy’s Chicken Andouille sausages
  • 1 can whole tomatoes
  • 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 1/2 tsp chopped garlic
  • 2 tsp McCormick Cajun Seasoning
  • 1 tsp Tabasco Sauce
  • 1 1/2 cups basmati rice (or white rice)
  1. A few hours before planning to start cooking the Jumbalaya, cook the chicken thighs in 1 tbsp canola oil, along with 1/2 to 1 tsp chopped garlic. Turn frequently, and cook for 10-12 minutes, or until thighs are cooked through.
  2. Remove chicken thighs from pan to a plate covered with a couple layers of paper towels. Let drain, and cool 10 minutes, then place thighs in a reclosable plastic bag, and place in refrigerator.
  3. After chicken thighs have cooled to refrigerator temperature, about 1 1/2 hours, remove the meat from the thighs and discard bones. Cut the chicken meat up into 3/8 to 1/2 pieces.
  4. Add 1 tbsp canola oil to a large saucepan. Cook 1 1/2 tsp chopped garlic, diced onion, green pepper, cubanelle pepper, and celery over medium heat for 5-8 minutes until transparent. Don’t allow the garlic to burn.
  5. Cut the chicken andouille sausage into 1/4 inch slices, and add to the pan. Cook for 3 -4 minutes, stirring often.
  6. Add the cajun seasoning, Tabasco Sauce, can of tomatoes, and 3 cups chicken broth. Bring to a boil, and simmer covered for about 10 minutes.
  7. Stir in basmati rice, and cook for another 10-12 minutes. Check after 8 minutes and add additional water if needed. If using regular white rice, cook for 20-24 minutes checking water at 15 and 20 minutes.

Yum! Cajun Ground Beef And Rice

Picture of prepared Cajun Ground Beef Rice RecipeWe started out today planning to prepare Cajun Dirty Rice but didn’t have many of the ingredients on hand so we decided to improvise and make something similar. This recipe for Cajun Ground Beef and Rice is probably more healthy since it uses lean ground beef instead of chicken livers and gizzards that’s in Dirty Rice. In the end we came up with a great meal, so we’re sharing it here. The principle seasonings in this dish are Cajun Seasoning and Tabasco Sauce but the celery, onion, and green pepper certainly contibute to the great taste.

Cajun Ground Beef and Rice Recipe

Precook the basmati rice

This recipe requires precooked basmati rice. We cook this first and refrigerate it so that the basmati rice stays together when combined with the Cajun Beef during the final steps of the recipe.

  • 1 cup uncooked basmati rice
  • 1 can chicken broth
  1. A standard can of prepared chicken broth contains about 2 cups of broth. Pour into a sauce pan, and bring to a boil.
  2. Add 1 cup basmati rice, and return to boil.
  3. Cover and cook about 12-14 minutes until all broth has been absorbed by the basmati rice.
  4. Remove from heat, allow to cool, and refrigerate.

Make the Cajun Beef Recipe
Cajun Seasoning

  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • 2 tsp chopped garlic or about 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 green pepper, chopped fine
  • 1 stalk celery, chopped fine
  • 1 onion, chopped fine
  • 1 1/2 tsp McCormick Cajun Seasoning
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 1 tsp Tabasco Sauce
  • 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
  • 1 scallion, chopped fine
  1. Place 1 tbsp canola or olive oil in a large non-stick skillet, along with 1 pound lean ground beef. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until beef is cooked through.
  2. Add diced onion, diced pepper, chopped garlic, and chopped celery. Cook, stirring frequently for 3 – 5 minutes or until vegetables begin to turn translucent.
  3. Add Cajun Seasoning, chicken broth, and Tabasco Sauce. Stir well, then cook 30 – 45 minutes, stirring often, until broth thickens.
  4. Add fresh ground pepper, chopped scallion, along with basmati rice. Mix carefully until rice separates into individual grains, and then cook until rice warms.
  5. Enjoy. Add more Cajun Seasoning at the table as desired. This isn not a hot seasoned recipe as prepared.

New Orleans Style Cajun Seasoned Catfish Recipe

Picture of Cooked Cajun Seasoned CatfishCajun seasoned foods are among the most tastiest foods we eat. The strong blend of spices, and rich color in Cajun Seasonings mix well with many foods, most notable of which are seafood (including shrimp, catfish, crawfish) and chicken. Last night we decided to make Cajun Seasoned catfish, a standard Louisana entree.

We carry two different Cajun Seasonings in our store, one from McCormick Spices, and the other from Tones Brothers. The McCormick Cajun Seasoning is a little more coarse then the Tones Louisana Style Cajun Seasoning, and both provide delicious authentic Cajun flavor. We made our Cajun Catfish Recipe using the McCormick Cajun Seasoning Blend, and you could just as well substitute the Tones Louisana Cajun Seasoning.

Cajun Seasoned Catfish must be one of the simplest main dishes you can make. All you need to do is season the catfish and then cook. We sprinkle a little bit of Cajun Seasoning on a paper plate, then dip a catfish fillet in the Cajun Seasoning, flip the catfish fillet over, and repeat. Cajun Seasoning is a seasoning with a bit of heat, so if you feel you’ve seasoned too much on a single catfish fillet, run a second catfish on the overseasoned first catfish to pick up the seasoning. Or if you really overseasoned, wash the Cajun Seasoning completely off with fresh water, pat the catfish fillet dry, and start over. Speaking of the proper amount of seasoning, we feel 1/2 – 3/4 tsp of Cajun Seasoning per fillet is the right amount and has a little zing. Serve with Red Beans and Rice, or Cheesy Grits. Picture of seasoned Cajun Catfish Fillets

 

Cajun Seasoned Catfish Recipe

  • Cleaned Catfish Fillets
  • 1/2 – 3/4 tsp Cajun Seasoning (per catfish fillet)
  1. Sprinkle Cajun Seasoning evenly over both sides of Catfish Fillet
  2. Cook in a lightly oiled non-stick skillet about 3 – 4 minutes per side, depending on thickness of catfish fillet. Don’t over cook.

 

 

Homemade Red Beans and Rice Recipe

Picture of homemade Red Beans and Rice recipeIt was just Mardi Gras in New Orleans and we were thinking about what we could make for a meal to celebrate the season and revival of New Orleans. One of our favorite Cajun meals is Red Beans and Rice. Outside New Orleans, Red Beans and Rice is often served as a side dish. But, it’s really a well rounded main dish that’s high in fiber and suitable as a single dish meal.

Our recipe for Red Beans and Rice will feed about four people. Now, this is a homemade Red Beans and Rice recipe, so it takes a bit of time for the beans to cook. So you need to start cooking this meal early. And since it’s homemade, there’s not artificial preservative or extra salt added.

Recipe for Red Beans and Rice

  • 1 pound dried kidney beans
  • 1 tbsp canola oil
  • 1 green pepper, chopped
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced (or 1 tsp chopped garlic)
  • 1 smoked ham hock
  • 1/2 pound Andouille Sausage
  • 1/2 tsp marjoram leaf
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 1 can of good beer such as Guiness
  • Fresh ground black pepper
  • Cook white (or Basmati) rice
  • 1/4 cup chopped green onion
  1. Clean the beans and remove any foreign ingredients such as pebbles.
  2. Heat the canola oil in a large dutch oven, add chopped onion, chopped green pepper, and garlic. Cook, stirring often, about 4 minutes.
  3. Add ham hock, red kidney beans, marjoram, bay leaves, sugar, and beer.
  4. Top with water to cover beans by about 2 inches.
  5. Cover, and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer, and cook about 3 hours. Add additional water if needed.
  6. When beans are tender, take out the ham hock, and chop up the meat from the ham hock into pieces about 1/2 inch in size. Place the meat back into the pot, and discard the bones.
  7. Cook the sausage in a separate pan for about 10 minutes, turning to cook through. Then remove the sausage, chop the sausage into 3/8″ slices, and add to the pot.
  8. Cook the beans another 30 minutes so the sausage flavor blends into the beans.
  9. Remove from heat, and let cool about 10 minutes.

Serve with white rice and chopped green onions as a garnish.

Homemade Stuffed Cabbage Roll Recipe

Picture of prepared Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
This recipe is a bit of work, but the rewards are well worth the effort. We’ve made these cabbage rolls for years, and they’re always well received at the dining room table. Cabbage rolls require slow cooking for the flavors to blend, so they’re cooked in a slow oven. Some folks cook their cabbage rolls in a pot on the stove, but we find our cabbage rolls stay together better if we bake them in a covered baking pan. These cabbage rolls are really good on a cold winter Sunday afternoon served with buttered, toasted rye bread as we have in the picture.

Recipe for Stuffed Cabbage Rolls also known as Blind Pigeons

  • 1 large head of cabbage
  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • 1 pound lean ground pork
  • 1 large sweet onion
  • 1 tsp Nina chopped garlic (or 2 cloves garlic chopped)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 cup cooked basmati rice
  • 1 large (28 oz) can tomato juice
  • 8 to 10 slices of bacon
  1. To precook the cabbage, bring a large pot of water to a boil.
  2. While the pot is heating, core the head of cabbage. Place the head of cabbage in the boiling water and cook just until you can start to peel the cabbage leaves off.
  3. Peel the leaves from the head of cabbage, and place the cooked cabbage leaves on a plate.
  4. Chop the onion finely.
  5. Cook the lean ground beef and lean ground pork along with chopped onions. Add
    salt and pepper to taste. Cook until onions are tender and beef and pork are cooked
    thoroughly.
  6. In the meantime cook rice according to package directions.
  7. Combine the cooked meat mixture and the cooked rice.
  8. Place strips of bacon evenly spaced in large roasting pan.
  9. Take a large cabbage leaf and cut a “v” out of the bottom of the leaf to remove the tough core section.
  10. Place a large spoonful of the meat and rice mixture towards the top and center of the leaf.
  11. To roll the cabbage rolls take the bottom edge of the leaf and fold it towards the center over the meat and rice mixture. Take the side of the cabbage leaf and tuck it under the meat mixture. Take the top and fold it down over the center of leaf. Take the bottom of leaf and fold it towards the center of the leaf. Roll the leaf so the open edge is under the cabbage roll.
  12. Place prepared cabbage rolls on top of bacon slices in roasting pan. Repeat until all meat mixture is finished.
  13. Pour tomato juice over prepared cabbage rolls. Place extra cabbage leaves
    over the top of the prepared cabbage rolls. This keeps the moisture in.
    Slow cook the cabbage rolls in a 300-325° F. oven for 1 to 2 hours*.

Serve with toasted buttered rye bread.

*Cook longer to allow the flavors to blend. Since everything is cooked, the baking time is to allow seasonings to mix together.

Marinaded Pork Roast Recipe

Marinated pork roast prepared
This is a recipe for a tasty roast of pork. It takes only a little bit of time to mix the marinade ingredients, and a few hours to allow the roast to absorb the flavors. We cooked our roast in the oven, but with a little care you could barbecue this roast over slow coals and have a delicious smoked roast.

  • 3 – 4 pound pork roast
  • Marinade

Place all ingredients (except roast) in a reclosable plastic bag and mix well. Pierce roast on all
sides. Place roast in marinade in plastic bag and turn to coat all sides of
roast. Place in refrigerator at 3 hours or overnight. Make sure to turn the
roast as it marinades. Slowly cook pork roast uncovered until done 165
degrees.

A Quick Recipe for Pasta Salad

McCormick Salad Supreme Pasta SaladHere’s a way to make a delicious pasta salad with ease.

We make our Supreme Pasta Salad using whole wheat pasta which fits the lower carb craze, is nutritionally better than semolina pasta and is high in fiber. For all of those reasons we tend to lean toward whole wheat choices in all of our daily cooking.

Recipe for McCormick Salad Supreme Pasta Salad
Ingredients:

  • 8oz cooked pasta of your preference [we used Penne]
  • 1/2 cup Italian Salad Dressing
  • 2 tbsp McCormick Salad Supreme

Directions:

  1. Cook pasta according to directions on the package. You can use any pasta that you find appealing.
  2. Add the Italian salad dressing to a 1 cup Pyrex measuring cup. Mix in McCormick Salad Supreme Seasoning. Mix until well blended.
  3. Drain the pasta, and place in a suitable sized bowl. Pour about half of the Salad Supreme / Salad Dressing mix over top, and mix. Then pour the remaining Salad Supreme mix over the pasta and mix until pasta is thoroughly covered. Make sure to mix gently so as not to damage pasta.
  4. Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours, mix, and serve cold.

Here’s a picture of McCormick Salad Supreme Seasoning. It’s color is quite red, which comes from the paprika, but it also has Romano cheese, sesame seeds, red pepper and other spices. You can click on the image to see all of the product information in our store. Picture of Salad Supreme

Savory Caribbean taste with this recipe for Jamaican Jerk Chicken

Picture of Jerk Chicken BreastThis Jamaican Jerked Chicken recipe is a breeze to make. Simply add McCormick Caribbean Jerk Seasoning into a heavy duty one gallon reclosable plastic bag. Then add some canola oil, water, and lemon juice. Mix the McCormick Caribbean Jerk Seasoning Blend well with the liquid ingredients, add up to 4 chicken breasts, thighs, or a mix of parts. Then flip the bag over several times to coat the chicken with the Jamaican Jerk Seasonings. Place the bag in a refrigerated location for several hours. Turn the bag over every 1/2 hour or so, so that the Jamaican Jerk seasonings can penetrate the meat evenly. Then either grill until done, or bake for about an hour at 350° F.

This Jamaican Jerk Chicken recipe can be complemented by serving the Jamaican Jerked Chicken with Pigeon Peas and Rice, and a small salad of lettuce, cucumber and cherry tomatoes with French Dressing on the side.

The exact mix of ingredients for making 4 Jamaican Jerk Chicken Breasts are: