Recipe of The Day: Pot Roast Stew

Hi all! Today is a rainy foggy day. I wanted to cook some comfort food today. I figure stew and rain go great together! So here we go...


I had a bunch fresh produce in my fridge I knew I wanted to throw together and make some kind of stew or soup. I bought a nice medium sized pot roast and cut it in half. I like to split up all my meat so I can have more to utilize. Anyhow, I pretty much just improvised this and had no real recipe. This dish is good, because you pretty much just let it do it's thing for a few hours. So it's not to labor intensive. lol You can add or subtract any vegetable you want. You can get creative with it!

Pot Roast Stew

Prep Time: 20-30 Minutes
Cook Time: 4 hours
Serving Size: 4-6 People

Ingredients:

1 half of a medium sized pot roast (you can use a whole one if you like)
2 stalks of celery
4 cloves of garlic
1 medium onion
1 large carrot
4 medium red new potatoes
a nice handful of small white mushrooms
salt, pepper, garlic salt to taste
Olive Oil for browning

I did not get a picture of the potatoes in there. You can use Russet potatoes if you like.
Start off by giving your piece of meat a nice coat of seasoning. Cover the entire piece. You can also trim any fat off. I like to keep the fat, it gives the meat nice flavor.



Drizzle Olive Oil in your pot. Then on medium high heat brown the meat on all sides. You want to do this quickly. You are not going to cook the meat all the way. So, your meat should come out looking something like this. Place on a plate and put it to the side for now. I am using my Technique Enamel Cast Iron 4 qt Chef's Pot for this dish. This pot is very heavy duty and is perfect for stews.

After I removed the meat from the pot I added in about a cup of water. I turned the heat up a little high. I started scraping around the pot to get all the nice bits left from the meat. I took that and placed it in a bowl to save for later.

I roughly chopped up my veggies.

Turn your heat back down to medium. Drizzle a little bit of Olive Oil in the pot. Throw in your vegetables and cook the veggies until they are tender. Do not overcook them.

Once vegetables are tender, place your roast back in the pot. Also, take that bowl of juices and bits and put into pot.


Add in 3 cups of water. Place a tight lid on pot. Cook for 3 1/2-4 hours. Try not to lift the lid to often. I maybe check on it once or twice just to give it a stir.


The last step is to throw in your potatoes. So in the last 20 minutes is when you want to throw them in. Some of the stock may be cooked down. So you can just add in another cup of or so of water if it is low. You need to have enough to cook your taters. Be sure to taste your stew. Add in any more seasoning if necessary. Once potatoes are tender you are ready to eat! You could eat this by itself or have some rice along with it. This is a nice hearty meal. Perfect for any rainy day. Enjoy!

~Feather
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Recipe of The Day: Chicken Katsu Revisited

I have posted this recipe before, but have never did a step by step picture post of it. I happen to be making it today, so I decided to go ahead and take some pics.


If you can fry chicken, then you can most definitely make this recipe. It's very simple. You can also use a pork cutlet, and then you'd have Tonkatsu. I like to eat Katsu with raw shredded cabbage with Japanese Mayo and Japanese Salad oil seasoning. A nice side of hot rice is good too.

Chicken Katsu

Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 20-30 Minutes
Serving Feeds: Family of 4


Ingredients:
4-5 boneless thighs (it's best to use thighs, because they are juicy)
1 package Panko Japanese bread crumbs (you can find these in some grocery stores or Asian markets)
2 eggs
flour for dredging
salt, pepper and garlic salt ( season as much as you want. I keep it light, because I like to dip in the sauce)
oil for frying



Give chicken a nice light coat of salt, pepper, and garlic. Put it to the side. Get three bowls. Crack your eggs and add a bit of water and lightly beat. The other bowls, fill them with a generous amount of flour and panko.



Okay, dip the chicken in the egg first. Now you can use your hand or a fork. If you use your hands, be sure to keep one dry hand. After you dip in the egg dip into the flour. Then go back and dip in the egg again. Finish it off by dipping in panko. Make sure you coat the chicken well.

Now, you can also fry these in a deep fryer if you have one. I do own one, but I'm to lazy to pull that thing out. LOL So I chose to fry on the stove. Put your stove on medium heat. You do not want the chicken to cook to fast on the outside. If your oil starts to get a little dirty turn the heat down a bit. You can also get a strainer and just strain out the dark parts. Fry the chicken until it is a nice golden brown color.

You should end up with something that looks like this. I let them drain on a paper towel and rest for a few minutes.


Once I have all of my chicken cooked. I cut them into strips and place them on a nice plate. If you won't be serving these right away. You can place them in a warm oven.


And that's it! You can serve with some hot gohan (rice) and some nice veggies. This is a great way to try something different.

Here is a Tonkatsu sauce recipe if you wish to dip the chicken in a sauce.
Tonkatsu Sauce:

1/4 cup ketchup
4 teaspoons rice wine
4 teaspoons soy sauce
4 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons applesauce
4 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
4 teaspoons yellow mustard
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder


JP Note: These are delicious. The chicken is really tender and the breading isn't overpowering.
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Happy Election Day

Happy Election Day from Banginfood! Be sure to exercise your right to vote today. We got up at 4Am, and are happy to say we were first in line. The line quickly grew, and luckily JP had the great idea to get there early. Our kids even did mock voting at school yesterday. This is an historic day. Don't miss out. Happy Voting!

~JP and Feather
Banginfood.com

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