GZ Tai-Tai

Shake and Bake Mix

 This recipe came to me from a High School friend's Mother. We have stayed in touch over the years.I have always scoffed at mixes that you buy because of the high salt content. Hubby came from a house hold that used lots of store bought mixes. When Linda told me about this recipe I thought it would be worth a try. Hubby loves it, he says it is much better than the store bought.

 You can follow the cooking instructions below, or do as I do, instead of using butter, I spray the pan with Pam or olive oil. Instead of basting with the butter I give a spray or two of the Pam or olive oil over top of the meat before placing in the oven.

I have even used it on fish and reduced to time in the oven to about 20-25 minutes at the 400F temperature.

I can get several uses out of this amount of mix. I just put what I need in a bag for each particlar meal.

 

Shake and Bake Mix

4 cups flour
2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 cup bran flake cereal (crushed) Grape Nuts are great too.
2 Tbsp. parsley flakes
2 Tbsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp. onion powder
2 Tbsp. taco seasoning
1 Tsp. ground pepper
1 Tsp. curry powder
1 Tsp. basil
1 Tsp. oregano

Mix together well. Store in an air tight container until ready to use.

 

When ready to use:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Put the amount of mix needed, for the meat you are cooking in a plastic bag. Place meat in bag and shake to coat. 

 

Chicken:

Shake 1 disjointed chicken in above mix.
Melt 1/4 cup butter in a shallow 9 x 12 baking pan. Place chicken skinside down and baste top with melted butter from the pan. Bake uncovered for 25 minutes. Turn skin side up, reduce to heat to 350 degrees and bake until tender, about 30 - 35 minutes.

 

Pork Chops:

Use the amount needed to cover moistened pork chops and
shake them in a plastic bag. Do the same with the chicken if using pieces.

 

 

Turkey Thoughts

Slowly getting back into the blog.

We are going to have Thanksgiving at the folks again this year.  This got some discussion going with the kids about leftovers and such, and how they like when we have Thanksgiving in our home, because of the leftovers. My response was , " We have two turkeys in the freezer, how about if I make one a week early? "  The kids were up for it and I even got help! Woo hoo!

Last Friday was Turkey day at our house! Daughter has Fridays off, love college students, and their schedules. Son was home, for an inservice day or something, I can never keep track of all those days off. 

The turkey was taken out of the freezer early in the week and put in the refrigerator to thaw. Friday morning I took it out of the refrigerator, it was time to prep the bird.  I took it out of its packaging in the sink, under cold running water I rinsed the bird inside and out, taking out the giblets and neck from the cavity and rinsing the cavity very well.  Then we dried the bird with paper toweling and put the turkey aside for a moment.   I have a rack for the roasting pan, but, I decided to do what I usually do and cut up onion, celery, carrots and make a rack out of the vegetables for the turkey to sit on, we placed the turkey on the homemade rack of vegetables. I have done this for many years while living overseas because, I did not have a rack. I actually prefer to cook the turkey this way now. The drippings in the pan are flavored by the vegetables and they taste wonderful.

The giblets and neck were put in a pot of water with more of the same vegetables and salt and pepper to make a stock for the gravy I would make later.

Now came the question... what are we putting on the turkey mom?   Butter?   My response was nope.  Just grab the olive oil and salt and pepper and some sage.  We gave the bird a rub down with the olive oil, a grinding of fresh ground pepper corns, a sprinkling of salt, we used kosher salt,  you can use whatever you have, and some dried sage, from our garden. We also did the same in the cavity of the bird and added some of the vegetables we made the rack with too.  I put about 2 cups of water in the bottom of the pan.

How are we going to cook it? " We will preheat the oven to 325 F and put the meat thermometer in the bird, in the thickest part of the thigh and pop it in the oven. 

"Hey, Mom,   Did you know you have a "turkey button " on your fancy stove?"  As I searched the back of my mind, I vaguely remember there was, but, I know how to cook a turkey so what was the point. Cool, I can try another feature on the oven.

" Can we try the "turkey button" ?  Sure we can try it!  So we did!

The "turkey button" sets the oven temperature at 325 F  and ,uses the probe to track the internal temp of the bird. Pretty cool as you can check where the temp is all throughout the cooking time on the main display of the oven, no need to open the door to the oven and let heat escape.Probe inserted into the thickest part of the breast which is where the stove instructions say to place the probe thermometer  and the oven set,  turkey placed in the oven and we were off.

Mom, where is the baster?  " I threw that away years ago because, I never used it."

Yeah, I don't baste... Basically, once the bird is in the oven I check on it by looking through the door and open the door only to check the internal temperature on my thermometer.If the bird is getting too brown I make a loose tent with foil and put it over the bird and remove it later.

The" turkey button" on my fancy oven worked out quite well.The timer sounded when the turkey was finished. I double checked the internal temperature of the turkey with my instant read thermometer just to be sure that we were spot on and we were.  The turkey was beautiful! Daughter said," it looks like the turkeys in the magazines! "

Of course, it was delicious, moist and flavorful.

The kids made dressing/stuffing, to go with the gravy I made with the drippings, and stock from the turkey.

I froze half of the meat from the turkey and the carcass.  I used the carcass a few days later to make stock and to make turkey pot pies for dinner.  

We still have a breast, thigh and leg in the freezer for another day. There is also turkey stock in the freezer from the carcass. This will be used in various recipes too.

Words of advice.

Don't sweat it if you are making the turkey. It really isn't difficult to make..... this was something I wanted my kids to see and learn. We did it very basic, you can add any herbs you choose, and fruit and vegetables to your bird. I have done birds with citrus and rosemary, with apples and cinnamon, with thyme.  Do what you like and relax while that bird is in the oven.

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Latkes

Just before Christmas the kids were in the mood for latkes. It was actually during Hanukkah that they made them. We are not Jewish but we do enjoy the food and the latkes the kids made were delicious.

The recipe is from a book that Expat Son received last year for Christmas. Kids in the holiday kitchen by Jessica Strand and Tammy Massman-Johnson.

Here is the kids and my adaptation.

Latkes

8 potatoes, peeled

1 large onion

4 eggs

1 C bread crumbs

1 Tbsp Sea Salt

1 Tsp black pepper

Vegetable oil for frying

Sour cream to serve

Thinly slice or grate the onion. Grate the potatoes, and toss onion and potatoes together to combine evenly. Put paper towels or a clean dry tea towel on a cookie sheet, squeeze moisture out of potatoes with your hands and then spread the potato mixture evenly on the toweling, to collect any  moisture that has not come out of the mixture.
Then place the potatoes into a dry bowl. Beat the eggs and pour into the potatoes, stir while adding the bread crumbs and salt and pepper.

Heat a large frying pan with approximately 2 inches of oil over a medium high heat. Form the potato batter into patties and place them gently into the hot oil. Turn the latkes when they are a nice golden brown color.  When the latkes are finished browning on both sides, remove from pan and drain on paper towels to absorb excess oil.

Serve hot with sour cream.

Gourmet Seven Layer Bars

 

 

This morning I had a cuddle with Expat Son; these are getting fewer and further between as he gets older. I mentioned while we cuddled that I did not have to go anywhere today, I could even stay in my pajamas if I wanted today. His reply was," you could make cookies too."

Well I showered and dressed as usual before 7:00 A.M. After Expat Son left for school I organized my closet. When that was finished I decided to see what type of cookie I could make. I scanned the Pantry and came up with Seven Layer Bars, but not your average Seven Layer Bar, a gourmet version.

 

Gourmet Seven Layer Bars

1 ½ cups Anna's Pepperkakor ginger thin crumbs

½ cup butter, melted

1 cup Marabou milk chocolate cut into chunks

1 cup white chocolate chips

1 1/3 cups baking coconut

1 cup pecans, chopped condense

1 can (370g) sweetened condensed milk Eagle brand

 

Mix cookie crumbs and melted butter then press into 9 x 13 pan. Layer the rest of the ingredients on top of cookie mixture. Pour sweetened condensed milk over top of everything. Bake at 180 - 190 C or 325 – 350 F for 20 - 25 minutes, or until golden. Cool. Cut into bars.

Macaroni Salad

We had a beautiful day today the weather was perfect for grilling burgers. When I asked Hubby what he wanted with his burger, he requested Macaroni Salad. Here is my very basic Macaroni Salad, feel free to dress it up if you want, with some chopped pickle,capers, cheese, bell pepper or even some tuna.

Macaroni Salad

4 cups macaroni cooked,drained, and cooled
1/4 of a medium onion chopped finely  about 4Tbsp
2 stalks celery chopped small
6 hard-boiled eggs chopped
3 Tbsp heaped, mayonnaise
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard  or American mustard like French's
cayenne pepper or paprika, garnish

Mix well to coat all ingredients well, sprinkle with cayenne pepper or paprika for garnish.

Chili for an Autumn day

This morning is one of those cool in temperature mornings here in GZ China that remind me that Autumn has arrived. The cooler temperature puts me in the mood for comfort food, and for me nothing says Autumn like a bowl full of Chili.

Here is my recipe for Chili from my Archives.

Tai-Tai's Texas Chili Your Way

500g  beef cut into cubes

 OR

500g Ground Beef – lean

2 - 400g cans peeled tomatoes whole or diced

1 - 425g can Red Kidney beans or Pinto beans

1 onion chopped

1-2 cloves garlic crushed or chopped finely

1 tsp. dried oregano (optional)

Water

2-3 Tbsp. Chili Powder

1 - 6 oz/170g can of Tomato Paste used to thicken

Salt to taste

Oil for browning the meat

In a small amount of oil brown the meat; add the onion and garlic during the browning. Add tomatoes break them up while stirring the meat. Add Chili Powder and Oregano.

Add water at this time enough to make it look like soup.

Drain the kidney beans and rinse then add to the soup mixture.

Let simmer for an hour to an hour and a half on low heat. You may have to add a little water if the heat is too high.

After about an hour add the tomato paste and some salt to taste and let simmer stirring occasionally until ready to serve.

Serve with shredded cheese, green onions or sour cream.

Optional ingredients

2 tsp Cumin

1 Tbsp Cocoa

You can use both or only one. Occasionally I use these last two ingredients…but usually I make the Chili without them, because, the kids prefer it this way.

This Chili is pretty mild, if you want to make it really hot, you can, by adding fresh Chili’s or Hot pepper sauce like Tabasco. Although the next day it is usually spicier on it's own. Remember a recipe is a guideline you should experiment and make it the way you want.

Tai-Tai's Texas Chili - Make it Your Way

Cook Club went off well even though I am a slave driver and we made a ton of food.

The menu was Chili, Corn Bread,Taco's made with homemade seasoning, Chicken Fajitas, and Guacamole, with that we had 3 types of cheese, Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack and Cheddar, Sour Cream, Salsa and lettuce and tomato for garnishing.
Since Mexican food is a mystery to many of the club members it was a real hit and everyone enjoyed making and eating it.
What's for dinner tonight? Leftovers of course. I will try to post all of the recipes from this class. I already posted the Corn Bread recipe a while ago, It is a back of the box recipe which is very good.
The Taco Seasoning is here .   Today I will leave you with my recipe for Chili you can make it your way.
The recipe is versatile and I enjoy adding cocoa to it once in a while for a little different taste. Is it really Texan, well, I lived in Dallas - Fort Worth when I was 5 years old, so maybe just a smidgen, Y'all.

Cook Club Meets - Homemade Taco Seasoning

Our Cook Club the "Hot Chilies" meet this Friday. I have been busy preparing for the class that I will teach. Scouring recipes, cooking them, adjusting, and even writing a few from memory as I tend not to follow recipes when cooking for the family, and printing them up.
We will have a Mexican theme for this class. Mexican food is non-existent in our corner of Guangzhou, China. I can think of one restaurant that boasts that it is Mexican, and it does not serve anything, that resembles Mexican food or Tex Mex food. So I make Mexican food at home and when we are in Hong Kong we are lucky enough to know of a Mexican Restaurant that is quite good and worth the trip.

Finding the ingredients for some Mexican food is a lot easier than it used to be in the years of 1996-2001. I carried (smuggled) in from Hong Kong in those years, many a taco shell, flour tortilla, salsa and refried beans. All of those items are available now in the little specialty stores where the expatriates shop. We can even buy avocados more frequently now. However if you are looking for tomatillos and cactus you will have to look in Hong Kong and try smuggling them in, and hopefully, not be caught.

In the old days the Taco Seasoning packets were only to be had in Hong Kong. I scoured many a book to find a seasoning years ago, Ex-pat Daughter then about 8 years old loved tacos and I had to come up with something.  I found this recipe in a Church cookbook. Here it is with a few tweaks that I have given it over the years too.