Spicy Teriyaki Beef Jerky

My nephew Tyler and I make beef jerky together.

Remember Tyler?

The nephew that I watch the Tour de France with?

That's the one!

He's home from college at the University of Oregon and came over the other day to make beef jerky!

Ty's a lot of fun.

He's chatty.

I love that he's chatty.

He's funny, too.

We laughed all afternoon as he told stories about his life.

Here he is laying out the marinated beef on the dehydrator trays.

Here's the kind of beef we used:

This is the beef I usually buy for jerky, top round roast from Costco.

This time I also bought a beef brisket because a friend told me they always make it with brisket and they thought it was the best, so I thought I'd try it.

I cut the brisket in half, then took the fat off the one side.

Well, I took it off both sides, but it's on one side of the meat.

We like it cut across the grain.

This is the top round roasts cut into pieces, wrapped in plastic wrap for chilling in the freezer.

That makes it easier to slice thin.

Chill the meat in the freezer for at least a half-hour before slicing.

If you like the meat really thin, freeze it until it's almost solid, it'll make slicing it thin easy.

Marinade:

1 cup soy sauce
1 cup sugar
1 cup mirin (sweet Japanese cooking wine)
1 scant tablespoon chile flakes
1 scant tablespoon black pepper
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 teaspoon grated garlic
1 chopped jalapeño pepper

Put all ingredients into the blender and blend until the sugar is dissolved.

Note: Double the amount of marinade and it will be enough for about 5 pounds of meat as shown in the photos above.



Slice the meat however you like it--we like it sliced on the thin side, across the grain--when you buy jerky at the store, they slice it with the grain so it's chewier.

Slice the meat--whichever way you prefer--and put it in a zippered plastic bag with the marinade using about 3 cups of marinade per 2.5 pounds of sliced meat.

Squeeze all the air out of the plastic bag, zip it, lay it flat and refrigerate overnight or at least a few hours before dehydrating.

Here's Ty showing you how to lay out the meat on the dehydrator trays.

Lay out the slices close together, but not touching.

I dehydrate the meat in an Excalibur dehydrator with the blower turned up to the highest setting.

5 lbs. of meat will fill up the whole dehydrator, maybe more--depending on how thick you slice the meat.

After 2 hours, I turn the slices of meat over, it's not really necessary but it keeps the meat from sticking too much to the plastic mesh on the trays.

Then check it every hour or so and turn off to cool once the meat has reached the desired dryness.

It's done!

When cooled, put into an airtight container.

I refrigerate it after a few days since I like the jerky a little softer, that means there's more moisture in it.

If you have any left, that is.

Itadakimasu!

***

Ty is on the right.

Colin, his brother, is on the left.

Hayley, Ty's sister is next and then my son Rick.

We all went to Loyola Marymount University to help Colin move-in.

Colin's a college freshman!

Hayley's a little sad.

Both brothers are away at college.

Don't worry Hayley, they'll be home before you know it, then you'll be off to college!

Colin and mom Nancy.

Colin only wanted to take what he needed to college, and Nancy wanted him to be well equipped with all sorts of do-dads.

Moms are like that.

When his bed was all made and all his stuff put away, that's when they decided to reconfigure the room.

Then we all had lunch in the Lion's Den cafeteria.

Colin and his roommate Chris have known each other since they were 5 and played ball together.

They're finally going to the same school--and roommates!

This is Chris & his mom Jenny.

The moms are so cute!

They both shed a few tears to have their boys away at college.

Moms are like that, too.

We'll be seeing each other at baseball games, I'm sure!

Study hard, Colin!



***

Cuts of meat that work well for jerky include: top round roast, brisket and flank steak. Portion the meat into pieces that will be easy to cut whether you prefer cross grain cuts or pieces cut with the grain. Freeze or partially freezing the meat makes it easier to slice.

Marinade:

1 cup soy sauce

1 cup sugar

1 cup mirin (sweet Japanese cooking wine)

1 scant tablespoon chile flakes

1 scant tablespoon black pepper

1 teaspoon grated ginger

1 teaspoon grated garlic

1 chopped jalapeño pepper

Put all ingredients into the blender and blend until the sugar is dissolved.

Note: Double the amount of marinade and it will be enough for about 5 pounds of meat, it's about 3 cups of marinade to 2.5 pounds of meat.

Marinate the sliced meat overnight or for several hours, drain, and lay the pieces out flat on dehydrator trays. I use an Excalibur dehydrator.

Dehydrate on high for several hours, turning them over after about 2 hours, then checking them every hour or so until they reach the desired dryness. Drying time varies with humidity, it took mine about four hours but has taken up to 6.

I like to make it a little on the moister side, not too brittle, so I put it in an airtight container in the refrigerator after a few days if there is any leftover.

Green Chile Posole

I just recently tried making posole with green chiles instead of red chile sauce.

I guess I'm just a green chile kind of girl, because I really liked it!

My family may even like the green chile posole better than the red.

Serve the soup plain, with meat and hominy, and let each person add the toppings themselves.

Cabbage, cilantro, green onion, jalapeños, lemon, and radishes are the usual accompaniments. 

I forgot to buy the radishes, that's why you see a bit of tomato.

Here's what you'll need:

2 lbs. pork butt

2 lbs. chicken thighs

1/2 onion

1 carrot

1 stalk celery

2 cloves garlic

28 oz. can diced green chiles

1 1/2 lbs. fresh tomatillos

2 28 oz. cans white hominy

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon ground cumin

toppings:

thinly sliced cabbage

thinly sliced green onions

cilantro leaves

lemon or lime wedges

sliced radishes

chopped jalapeño

I bought this pork butt from my local Mexican market.

The butcher was really friendly and helped me pick a good cut of meat.

I haven't seen this cut of pork butt at Vons.

I like to use a mix of pork and chicken for posole.

I learned how to make posole from my friend Sue Godinez.

She makes a delicious pot of posole for her annual New Year's Eve party, along with her German Chocolate cake.

Before I added the chicken thighs to the pot, I trimmed them up a little, removing the skin and some fat.

You can use them as is for a richer broth.

Put the pork and chicken into a large pot and cover with water.

Bring to boil, skim the foam, and lower the heat to simmer.

Add the garlic and onions.

The whole carrot and celery too.

You don't need to chop them, you're going to be fishing them out later.

Add 1 teaspoon each--cumin and dried oregano.

Drain and rinse a 28 oz. can of diced green chiles and add them to the pot.

I used about a pound-and-a-half of fresh tomatillos.

Peel the outer husk away from the fruit, then core, wash and dice.

Tomatillos are often referred to as green tomatoes.

Dice them and add them to the pot.

The tomatillos can also be pureed before adding.

Take the chicken out after one hour, simmer the pork for another hour or until tender.

Remove the carrot and celery.

The meat will be tender, and it will be easy to separate the meat from the fat.

Shred the meats into bite-sized pieces and return to the pot.

If you are making the posole ahead of time, you can cool and refrigerate from this point.

I like to make the posole a day ahead to remove the fat that gathers on the surface and is easy to remove.

Reheat after skimming, adding the drained and rinsed hominy.

Taste and adjust the seasonings.

Serve with the toppings on the side.

The condiments add a great freshness and crunch to the soup.

Some spanish rice and toasted corn tortillas round out the meal.

 ¡Buen provencho!

***

Last week I had a big "The Song Remembers When" moment.

Do you know that Trisha Yearwood song?

The song is about hearing a song and it transports you back to a day and time--The Song Remembers When.

Last week on American Idol, one of the contestants sang "End of The Road" by Boyz II Men.

Listening to the song took me right back to when Sue and I took our junior high age kids to Irvine Meadows Amphitheater to see Boyz II Men.

TLC and Montell Jordan were also on the bill, but TLC had to cancel their appearance. The kids were disappointed, but they had so much fun!

I remember Sue and I didn't know what to do to keep the boys from staring at the couple vigorously making-out in the seats right in front of us!

It made me think of that time in our lives, picking up the neighborhood kids in my white Astro van for school, and how Cosmo used to check his hair in his reflection every morning as I'd drop them off at the back of Orangewood.

I love how music can do that, trigger memories, and transport us back to a time and place.



Trisha Yearwood, The Song Remembers When.

No printable recipe for Green Chile Posole yet.

Guacamole!

It's avocado season at our house!

We've got several Haas variety avocado trees, and they're finally in-season. 

Seems like a long wait.

This year, though, there aren't too many, so we'll savor them while they last.

One of our favorite things to make is guacamole.

The weather has warmed up fast, Spring is here, and the avocados are ripe.

Time for guacamole!

The first thing you'll need are perfectly ripe avocados.

Well, maybe they don't need to be perfectly ripe.

What's great about guacamole is that you can use avocados that are a little over ripe, since you're going to mash them up anyways.

Here's what you'll need.

Ingredients:

6 large avocados

1/2 sweet onion, chopped

1 lime

1/2 jalapeño, deveined, seeded & minced

1 green onion, thinly sliced

1/2 cup diced tomatoes

1/4 teaspoon cumin

1/4 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

Optional: 1/2 small clove garlic, minced

I think this one is perfectly ripe, the skin will come away from the avocado in one smooth piece, and there's no purple remnants of the skin on the flesh of the fruit.

This one is still okay, the skin doesn't come away in one piece, but the flesh is still clean.

If the skin doesn't come away from the fruit cleanly, you can scoop the flesh out with a spoon.

This is about 6 large avocados.

Add some lime juice, it will keep the avocados from turning brown.

Add 1/2 the juice of a lime first. Reserve the others for later.

Mash with a potato masher or a large fork.

A rough mash with some chunks still present is perfect.

Dice or mince 1/2 a sweet onion.

I think if there's a secret ingredient to guacamole, it would be the jalapeño.

Best wear gloves when handling hot peppers, it might sting your skin.

I like the heat, but some of my family members don't, so I remove the veins and seeds.

Finely chop, but if you like the heat, leave it chunky.

Add a couple of teaspoons of lemon juice.

I ran outside to grab a lemon, and also to check on how my cilantro is growing, since I had saved some cilantro for the guacamole, but forgot, and put it in my breakfast quesadilla.

Oops.

The cilantro is still too small to use.

Chop the tomatoes and add a little salt and pepper.

Add about 1/4 teaspoon of cumin.

I liked this jar because it's got 'cumin' on the lid, but I generally buy cumin at the Mexican market in a bag and refill the jar. That costs a LOT less.

Stir all the ingredients together.

You'll have cilantro in yours, of course, since you won't have eaten the last of it for breakfast.

Then, give it a taste.

I like it with a lot of lime, so I generally add an extra half of a lime.

Guacamole's a great dip for veggies and chips.

You can serve it with your tacos, taquitos, and burritos.

Or put a big scoop of guacamole on the top of your salad.

Yum!

***

Dixie loves avocados.

This is Dixie.

When the avocados start to fall from the trees, she likes to bury them.

She buries them in the soft dirt in the planters next to the house.

I can tell she's buried some avocados when she comes to the door with dirt all over her nose.

In the summer, we'll find several mini avocado trees starting to grow next to the house.

This was taken on the day we brought Dixie home.

These are Dixie's litter mates.

The one with the pink cord around her neck is Dixie.

She's had a pink collar since she was born.

One Christmas, the kids gave us this picture in a little Cottonelle puppy frame.

Rick threw the tennis ball for her a bunch so she would be panting and smiling.

Dixie.

Not Karen.

When we got Dixie, Mrs. Jensen, the breeder, said, "This one has a sense of humor."

She was right.

Dixie jumps up on the bed, steals my neck pillow, and runs under the piano and waits for me to see her.

We've lost touch with the Jensens, they moved shortly after we got Dixie ten years ago.

I wanted to thank her.

Dixie's brought a lot of joy to our lives.

No printable recipe for this one yet.