1 Hour Veggie Chili

I needed a guest blogger for this month and it couldn't be more perfect. I walked in the house and smelled my friend Kelly's vegetable chili the moment I opened the door. I politely asked her if she would like to share that deliciousness with the world and here we are. She said YES, it's super simple, I make it all the time and it's quite tasty. So, world, here's Kelly's vegetable chili.

Ingredients

1 Can Chili Beans
1 Can Black Beans
1 Can Kidney Beans
1 Can Diced Tomatoes
2 Small Cans Hot Green Chilies
1 Red Onion
1 Red Bell Pepper
1 Orange Bell Pepper
Couple Dashes of Red Pepper Flakes
Salt to taste

Method

Combine all of the ingredients in a deep pan, cover and let simmer for an hour. Remove from heat and serve hot with rice or your favorite bread and a glass of vino rojo.

Korean Style BBQ Pork Riblets

I love having friends from all over the world. I got the secret to a simple Korean BBQ Sauce from my dear friend Judy. Growing up with a Korean mom, she documented the skillful cooking styles and ingredients that makes Korean dishes so tasty and easy to prepare. I asked her for a quick recipe for a BBQ and she said, simply use brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger and scallions and add whatever you want to it. Well, needless to say, I added my twist to the base of the classic Korean BBQ sauce in a subtle way, and here it is. Give it a shot and tell me what you think.

Ingredients

2lbs of Pork Riblets- cut to bite sized chunks

2 Tbsp of Grated Ginger plus 1 tsp for garnish

2 Stalks of Scallion (Green Onion) plus 1 for garnish

1/4 Cup Brown Sugar

1/4 Cup Soy Sauce

2-3 Tbsp of Warm Water

1 Tbsp Garlic

1Tbsp Sesame Oil

1 Tbsp Toasted Sesame Seeds plus 1 tsp for garnish

6 Jamaican Allspice Berries (Pimento Seeds)

2 Tsp Cornstarch

Method

Dissolve brown sugar in warm water and stir in soy sauce. Pour over meat and mix in with your fingers (I always wear gloves when I work with meat). Add garlic, scallion, sesame oil, pimento seeds and ginger. I used the regular soy sauce so it was nice and salty, and eliminated the need for more salt. Allow to marinate for at least an hour or overnight.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove the meat from the marinade and arrange on a foil covered cookie sheet. Bake for 50 minutes, flip each piece after 30 minutes. Pour the marinade in a saucepan and add 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 of the sesame seeds. Simmer until the sauce starts to thicken. Dissolve cornstarch in cold water and add to sauce. Stir and allow to thicken for 5 minutes and then remove from heat. Place Riblets on a dish and garnish with fresh ginger, sesame seeds and scallions. Pour remaining sauce in a souffle cup or small bowl for dipping. This is lovely, so I hope you'll enjoy it.

 

I love meat!

~BNW

9 Beans, Sweet Potatoes and Chicken Soup

Here's to fall, and here's to Jamaica. In previous posts with soup recipes, you would have seen my note about our Saturday tradition in Jamaica. We eat one of the many variations of soups to get our Saturday fill, but no doubt, everyone has a pot of soup bubbling in the neighborhood close to 5 pm or so. This a twist on our Pumpkin and chicken soup that my mom makes EVERY Saturday. I used sweet potatoes instead of the pumpkin and a high protein base of a 9 bean mix. So, if you want to go meatless, simply leave out the chicken and you will still get complete nutrition from this meal.

Ingredients

2 Large Sweet Potatoes

1.5 Cups of 9 Beans Soup Mix

2 Seasoned and Cooked Chicken Breasts (Diced)

2 Corns On the Cob (Cut into 3 pieces each)

1 Packet of Chicken Noodle Soup

1/4 Cup Chopped Onion

2 Medium or One Large Carrot -(Cut into small circles)

1 Sprig of Fresh Thyme

2 Stalks of Scallion

Salt

1 Small Jalapeno

I Can of Chicken or Vegetable Stock

Water

1 Cup of Flour for Dumplings (knead flour with 1/3 cup of water and a pinch of salt. Pull little pieces of dough, about the size of a grape, and rub between your hands to form the dumplings. Add to soup)

Method

Wash beans and pour into a pot with 4 cups of water and soak overnight. This will significantly reduce the cooking time. Rinse and add another 4 cups of fresh water to the pot. Add carrots, onion, jalapeno, scallion, corn and sweet potatoes and bring to boil. Allow to cook for at least 35 -45 minutes. When the water reduces, add 1 more cup of water and the can of chicken stock, diced chicken, chicken noodle packet, dumplings, and fresh thyme and stir. Allow to cook until it thickens and the potatoes have completed dissolved. Stir occasionally to ensure that the potatoes do not stick to the bottom as they soften.

Finally, add salt to taste and  remove from heat. Let stand for 10 minutes before you serve.

 

Enjoy~BNW

Caribbean BBQ Chicken Legs

My take on a tropical BBQ flavored chicken. I made these with liquid smoke, pineapple juice, passion fruit sauce, spices and seasonings. I hope you'll enjoy it and make it your own.

Ingredients

4 Chicken Leg Quarters

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 Powdered Chicken Bouillon

1 Tbsp Minced Garlic

1 Teaspoon All Purpose Seasoning

BBQ Sauce

1/2 Cup of Pineapple Juice

1/2 Cup Ketchup

2 Teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce

4 Cloves of Garlic- Mashed

1/4 Cup of Onion- Chopped

2 Tablespoon of Brown Sugar

1 Tablespoon of Passion Fruit Sauce

1 Tablespoon of Liquid Smoke

Salt to taste

1/4 Teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

1/4 Cup of Water

1 Teaspoon of Cornstarch

Fresh Parsley for garnish

Method

Season chicken with garlic, salt, pepper, all purpose and powdered chicken bouillon. Allow to marinate for at least two hours or overnight for best results. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Once heated, bake for 40-45 minutes and let stand.

In a deep saucepan, combine all of the ingredients for the sauce, except the cornstarch and half of the water and cook for 10 minutes on medium heat. Mix cornstarch with remaining water and add to the sauce to thicken. Add baked chicken to the sauce, lower the heat and simmer until the liquid reduces to a glaze, turning the chicken at least once. Remove from heat and serve with rice and veggies. Garnish with fresh parsley.

Dinner is ready. Enjoy~

BNW

Cracker Stuffed Lobster Tail

Welcome to heaven on a plate. When I was eating this lobster, I could hear a chorus singing sweet melodies in my ear. It was a peaceful 30 minutes that I would have held on to if I could. At some point during this meal, I eventually put the knife and fork to the side and got down and dirty with my fingers just pulling the meat from every corner of the shell. Can't do that in a restaurant, now can you? Any who, my taste buds were very happy and since this was a fraction of the price of restaurant lobster meal, my pockets were equally happy, too. Let's go!

 

Ingredients 

 

2 Lobster Tails

2 handfuls of crushed saltine crackers

2 Tablespoons of Chopped Onion

2 Tablespoons of Chopped Bell Peppers

1/2 Packet of Chicken Bouillon (powdered form)

1 Tablespoon Parsley

3 Tablespoon Butter

1/4 Cup of Water

1 Lemon- sliced

 

Method

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Boil lobster tails for 6-7 minutes, or until the color of the shell turns light orange. I used rock lobster so they are not red like the Maine lobster shells. Once cooked, remove from hot water and place in a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process and to cool quickly. In a saucepan, melt butter and spoon out a tablespoon and set aside. To remaining melted butter, add onion and pepper and parsley and cook for 5 minutes. We are getting there, just exercise patience. Add the crackers, bouillon and water and cook for 5 minutes and stir frequently. You should have a homemade stuffing consistency at this point. Cut the lobster tails open with a pair of scissors. I had to stuff mine from the belly because the shells were so damn hard to crack. Brush the inside of the lobster tails with the melted butter that was set aside and season with salt and pepper. Pack the stuffing inside the tail to the point where you have some extra stuffing on the top. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the top is golden and the center is nice and hot. Roast the lemon slices for 10 minutes and use to garnish the plate and sprinkle over lobster..

Allow to cool for a few minutes and serve with your favorite sides. I whipped up some garlic mashed potatoes and broccoli to go with this. Looks like my job here is done, go on, eat up your homemade lobster tail and come back to leave your comment. Peace out.

BNW~

Deboned Salted Mackerel with Peppers and Onion

This is a classic Jamaican dish. Whether be it breakfast pr dinner, this one is sure to pop up on the dinner table in Jamaica at least once a week. I was always a fan of "Salt Mackerel." My favorite accompaniment was breadfruit or boiled green bananas. The Sunday morning tradition was to go to the neighbor's for my bowl of roasted breadfruit and some red herring or salt mackerel.  Man, those were the good ole days. Angela, I will never forget the many times you fed me on the weekends. Onto the recipe :)

Ingredients

1 lb Salted Mackerel  (Can be found at Asian Markets)

1 Medium Yellow Bell Pepper (Chopped)

1 Large Tomato (Chopped into big chunks)

1 Onion (Chopped)

3 Sprigs of Thyme

2 Tablespoon of Olive Oil

Sea Salt and Pepper

Crushed Red Pepper (Optional)

 

Method

Add water to a medium sized pot and bring to boil. Cut fish in two pieces and add to boiling water. Ensure that there is enough water to cover the fish completely. Cook for 15 minutes and then remove from pot and allow to cool. You can add a cup or two of cold water to help speed up the cooling process and to also remove excess salt. The boiling process usually removes the majority of the salt so do not leave the cooked fish in the cold water for too long.

When cooled, carefully pull pieces of the fish apart and remove all of the bones. Repeat until you get through all of it. The center bone is easy but you have to get into the sides for the tiny little bones.Once you have all of the fish deboned, give it a taste to see if it is still too salty. If it is, rinse with cold water, drain and set aside. Meanwhile, add olive oil to a saucepan. When hot, add the peppers, onion and thyme and sautee until onion becomes translucent. Add fish pieces, salt and pepper, crushed red pepper and tomato chunks, cover and cook for 10 minutes on medium heat. Stir and taste and if needed, add more seasoning.

 

Since I didn't have breadfruit handy, I served this with boiled purple potatoes, Coco Malanga (similar to dasheen) and some Jamaican Sweet Potatoes. Very easy to make. All pure ingredients added and there you go, another dinner on the table in no time.

Fingerling Potatoes, Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin and Beans and Peas

I am obsessed with Pork Tenderloin

I have been cooking pork tenderloin as least twice a month since of late. I did some herb crusted, peppercorn, mildly seasoned with a strong sauce, and today, ladies and gents, I present to you, a Teriyaki flavored plate of happiness. This is one of the easiest meats to cook. You are guaranteed a delicious tender bite in every forkful by following some simple instructions. Here's to a delicious, colorful and healthy serving of love on your plate ....

 

Ingredients

1 pork tenderloin

Salt and Pepper

1 Tsp Garlic Salt

Teriyaki Sauce (I use an Asian Brand, can't write out the characters on here, but it's the best, per my Chinese BFF)

7 Fingerling Potatoes

1/2  Tsp Dried Rosemary

1/2 Tsp Dried Thyme

Olive Oil

1 Tbsp Butter

1/2 Cup Frozen Green Peas

1/2 Cup Frozen Lima Beans

1/2 Red Onion- sliced

1 Slice of Apple wood Smoked Bacon- cook but not crispy

Sauce

1/4 Peach thinly sliced

1/4 Pear thinly sliced

1/4 Tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

1/4 Cup Water

1 Tbsp Maple Syrup

1 Tsp Brown Sugar

2 Tsp of Cornstarch

Scallion for garnish

 

Method

Remove pork from package and trim excess fat and skin from the meat. Rub with olive oil, garlic salt, pepper and Teriyaki sauce and let marinate for an hour. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Lay the tenderloin on a greased aluminium lined cookie sheet. Bake for 30 minutes. I always like to test the temperature at 25 minutes in to see if I need to take it out a couple minutes sooner. The meat should get to 160 degrees. While the meat is cooking, season fingerling potatoes with salt, pepper,olive oil, thyme and rosemary and roast for 20-25 minutes.

Heat a medium pan and drizzle with olive oil. Once the oil is heated, add butter, frozen peas, lima beans, onions and bacon and season to taste. I didn't add any salt as the bacon and the butter were enough to give taste to these veggies.

In another sauce pan, add 1/4 cup of water, peach, pear, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup and sugar and let allow to cook for 5 minutes on medium heat. Dissolve cornstarch in 2 tablespoons of cold water and add to mixture. Cook for another 2 minutes and then remove from heat.

Remove meat from oven and let rest for 3-5 minutes. Slice on an angle and keep the pieces together in the same order. Carefully remove slices and spread on a plate, top with sauce. Serve with veggies and fingerling potatoes. Garnish with scallions and there you go, happy eating!

 

 

BNW~