iPhriday: Not so po'



Fried oyster poboy:

3 to 5 oysters, lettuce, onion, corn meal, cajun seasoning, fresh french loaf

mix corn meal with cajun seasoning and salt
bread the oysters in the mix then fry them on medium heat in a sautee pan until golden
split the french loaf in the middle and give it a coat of tartar sauce
spread the fried oysters out then cover them with lettuce and chopped onion

enjoy the poor life :)

23 Feb, 2008 | Virgil | Leave comment - 12 -

The anatomy of the perfect sandwich

If you live under the illusion that people (at least around here) know how to make sandwiches, think again. Generally speaking, most Americans could not make a decent sandwich if their lives depended on it. So here are my directions on how to make one of the best sandwiches you could ever make. First there are a few major points you should know:

1. The bread is the most important part in a good sandwich.
2. The number of ingredients should be low, not high (i.e. don't pile a bunch of things on the sandwich thinking that it will get better).
3. The quality of the ingredients matters a lot (i.e. ham you buy at Walmart will make a "walmart level" sandwich).
4. Simpler is usually better when it comes to good food.

Step 1

Buy a fresh baguette from a local bakery or a loaf of fresh crunchy Italian bread. I buy sandwich-size baguettes from a bakery in town. Don't use sliced wonder bread...when you do that you already lost the battle. Also have your Provolone and Prosciutto di Parma ready. You should be able to find both Provolone and Prosciutto di Parma in a local high-end deli.



Step 2

Cut the bread in half and drizzle it with extra-virgin olive oil.



Step 3

Toast the bread in a toaster oven. Do not over-toast; just toast it enough to be lightly browned around the edges.

Step 4

Let the bread cool down for a few minutes and salt it lightly with coarse kosher salt. If you put the prosciutto down on hot bread, the fat will start melting and you will lose the flavor of the meat. Lay down three slices of quality Provolone cheese, after which you lay down 4 thin slices of Prosciutto di Parma.

Step 5

Fold the bread back up; you are now looking at possibly one of the best sandwiches in the world. Open a bottle of Blue Moon, top it with an orange slice, and have a great meal.



Note: You could try to add another ingredient such as onions or olives, however keep in mind that the subtle flavor of the prosciutto can easily be drowned by potent flavors. This is a delicate taste, so you need to use a delicate cheese and/or dressing for the sandwich; that is why I simply chose olive oil and salt.

16 May, 2007 | Virgil | Leave comment - 12 -

Romanian Chicken Soup

Everyone who has ever had my chicken soup always goes crazy over it, so I have decided to be generous and share the recipe. Life doesn't get any better than this folks. Here is the secret recipe...if you have any questions, please let me know.

What you need:

1 whole chicken or 4 chicken quarters (enough for the whole family) - use chicken with bones because the taste is much better/if you add chicken liver it will also taste better
2 Big carrots
1 Large onion
3 or 4 long sticks of celery
1 liter of sauerkraut juice (green cans of Frank's Kraut Juice)
1 liter of Campbell chicken broth - or you can make your own sodium-free broth if you wish
3 spoons of rice
1 small can of tomato paste
3 or 4 eggs

The Process:

Chop the onion and one carrot in small pieces. Also cut the celery in bite-size pieces. Cut one carrot in larger pieces

Take a large pot and put a small amount of olive oil in it and on medium to high heat caramelize the onion and the one chopped carrot. Be careful not to burn the onion, just brown it until crispy.

When the onion and carrot looks caramelized with high-heat on put half of the sauerkraut juice and half of the chicken broth in the pot. Wait until it starts boiling then add the remaining carrot, celery and 3 spoons of rice. Add the chicken (cut in small pieces) 3 or 4 cups of water and again wait until it starts boiling -- for detailed instructions on how to cut up a chicken, go to GormetSleuth.com. Turn the heat down to medium and as it boils for 15 minutes scoop out the foam (and fat if you want) that will come up to the surface from the chicken meat. After you dispose of all the foam, add the remaining sauerkraut juice and chicken broth. Let it come to a boil again and add water to fill up your pot.

Add salt to make it taste right and let it boil for another 30 minutes or so. The whole thing should boil at least an hour total to make sure everything is done well. When the time is almost up, add the entire can of the tomato paste. When you are done, turn off the heat and break the 4 eggs directly into the boiling soup. Cover and let it cool down for a few minutes before serving with fresh bread.

Enjoy! And let me know if you have any questions. It takes work to get this done but it's worth it. You can always add more sauerkraut juice or broth if your family is bigger. Expect to spend between $15 and $20 for supplies, and about one hour of your time to prepare. You may also add a large potato cut-up in small cubes if you wish...usually that makes the soup too rich for my taste.

13 Apr, 2006 | Virgil | Leave comment - 5 -

My recipe for Mititei

One of the most famous Romanian foods is the Mici or Mititei. They are a sausage-like grilled creation and they go very well with yellow mustard. Perfect for a back-yard party or bbq.

Ingredients:

1 lb. pork w/ some fat or lard
1 lb. beef (or lamb shoulder)
1/2 cup of beef stock
1 or 2 slices of bread
1 tsp (leveled) baking soda
1/8 tsp (leveled) ground cumin
1/8 tsp (leveled) thyme
garlic - several cloves, or as much as one head if you like a lot of garlic
salt to taste
pepper to taste

For an off-the-wall variance of this recipe, you can replace the 1 lb. of beef with 1 lb. of lamb shoulder. This will give the mici a very unique flavor which can't be experienced anywhere else.

mititei

Preparation:

The pork, beef and bread have to be ground once through a meat grinder. Crush the garlic very well, mix it with some salt and homogenize it with the ground meat. Run the whole meat mixture and the garlic through the meat grinder again, so that is has the consistency of a paste. Dissolve the baking soda into the beef stock, and mix the stock, herbs, pepper and salt into the ground meat.

Knead this mixture for at least 15 minutes so that air and water from the beef stock is well mixed throughout. Place the mixture into a bowl, cover it with wet towel and leave it in the fridge for at least 24 hours - 12 hours will work if you are in a hurry. This is a very important step during which the baking soda does it magic.

Grilling:

Make the mici by hand: with wet hands pick some of the meat mixture and roll it into sausage shape about 3 inches long and about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter. Place the mici on a wet cutting board (so that they do no stick together or to the board). Heat up the grill and place the mici on the grill on low heat - do not turn heat on high since they burn easily. Cook them throughout, and serve them hot, with yellow mustard. Some people enjoy them medium or medium-rare...not me. Oh, add a cold bottle of beer to the mix and you'll be a happy camper!


02 Feb, 2005 | Virgil | Leave comment - 4 -

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