Tag: side dish
Bourbon Soaked Smoked Gouda Smoked Mac n Cheese
Bourbon Soaked Smoked Gouda Smoked Mac n Cheese
I’ve had a lot of versions of smoked mac n cheese, but none of them are even close to being this good (thanks drugs for all the great ideas that you give me). I made a basic cream sauce that had sautéed onions and smoked garlic in it. For the cheese, I found some bourbon soaked smoked gouda at the grocery store. I felt that this was the appropriate cheese to dominate the macaroni world. Once the cheese melts in the cream sauce, stir in the macaroni. Add the mac n cheese to a greased aluminum foil pan. Top it with more of the gouda. Throw it in the smoker for an hour until the top is bubbly and crusty. Wrap it in foil and continue to smoke it for another hour. Let it rest for 30 minutes before serving.
Equipment
- Electric Smoker
- 9”x13” aluminum foil pan
Ingredients
- 16 oz macaroni or your favorite pasta shape; cooked
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1 head smoked garlic cloves chopped
- 1/4 cup white onion finely chopped
- 4 tbsp flour
- 1 pint heavy cream
- 2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- 16 oz bourbon soaked smoked gouda grated
Instructions
- Melt the butter over medium high heat in a large sauce pan. Sauté the garlic and onions for 5 minutes.
- Turn the heat down to medium low. Whisk in the flour. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Pour in the heavy cream. Season with salt and white pepper. Whisk continuously for about 5 minutes until the sauce starts to thicken.
- Add in half of the grated cheese.
- Stir until the cheese has melted. Turn off the heat.
- Stir in the macaroni, making sure that it is evenly coated in the cheese sauce.
- Add the macaroni to a well greased 9”x13” aluminum foil pan.
- Top the macaroni with the rest of the cheese.
- Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees according to the manufacturer’s directions. Or you can put it in the smoker the last 2 hours of smoking a pork butt. It will only take an hour for the macaroni to brown on top. Wrap the pan in aluminum foil and place back in the smoker for another hour.
Boereboontjies (Mashed Green Beans)
Boereboontjies (Mashed Green Beans)
Mashed green beans are a great South African side dish to go with any meat. They are not purely mashed green beans, but are cut with potatoes. You get this great combination of green vegetables and starch that really makes sense once you try it. Add lots of cracked black pepper to give it a bite.
Servings: 4
Equipment
- potato masher
Ingredients
- 1 lb green beans washed and trimmed, cut into 2” pieces
- 1/2 medium white onion diced
- 2 medium potatoes peeled and cubed
- 4 tbsp butter
- cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add in the green beans and onions. Boil for 5 minutes.
- Add in the potatoes. Boil for 10 minutes until tender.
- Turn off the heat. Drain the water. Add in the butter. Mash the green beans and potatoes with a masher until fairly smooth. Lumps are a good thing.
- Add in lots of cracked black pepper.
Stir Fried Ong Choy
Stir Fried Ong Choy
Ong Choy, or water spinach, is a popular vegetable eaten all over Asia. They have long leaves and hollow stems that give the green a nice crunch. This stir fry is quite simple and can be found on any authentic Chinese or Vietnamese menu. You can purchase ong choy at just about any Asian market for a couple dollars for a huge bunch.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tsp ginger minced
- 2 tbsp Sichuan chili oil
- 1 bunch ong choy washed and chopped
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp sugar
Instructions
- Heat up cooking oil in a sauté pan over high heat. Sauté the garlic and ginger for 30 seconds.
- Add in the chili oil. Cook for another 30 seconds.
- Add in the ong choy.
- Stir fry for 4 minutes.
- Season with salt and sugar.
How to make Chili Oil in an Instant Pot
Ever eat at a Chinese restaurant and they have that chili oil at the table? Then you end up putting it on everything because it’s so damn good. Well now it’s time to learn how to make it for a fraction of the price of the store bought brands. Making this couldn’t be easier using the Instant Pot. The most important thing in making this chili oil is to not burn the ingredients. You want to keep the oil between 225 and 250 degrees. The Instant Pot has a custom temperature setting which makes making this street free. You can still make this on a stove top if you don’t have an Instant Pot. Just make sure to use a cane thermometer to make sure the oil doesn’t get too hot. If the ingredients burn, you will have to start over.Most cultures have some sort of chili oil in their cuisine, all made very similarly. This recipe is for a Chinese style chili oil, so I used ingredients in Chinese cooking. If you were to make a chili oil for Italian cuisine, you would you’d Italian crushed chili flakes and maybe some garlic and dried herbs in the oil. So experiment with making different oils. The chili flake is always the main ingredient, followed by aromatics steeping in the oil.
Ingredients
- 2 cups vegetable oil
- 1 large cinnamon stick
- 5 star anise
- 3 tbsp Szechuan peppercorns
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cup crushed Szechuan chili flakes
Instructions
- Set your Instant Pot to the sauté function. Choose custom temp. Set to 230 degrees, Add your oil, cinnamon stick, star anise, peppercorns, and bay leaves to the Instant Pot. Cook for 30 minutes, giving an occasional stir. Let cool for 5 minutes.
- Put the crushed chili flakes in a mason jar. Take a small piece of cheese cloth and put it over the jar, with a rubber band around it to hold in place.
- Take out the cinnamon stick and bay leaves. Pour the oil into the mason jar. The cheese cloth will catch all of the peppercorns and star anise..
- Screw on the cover and let cool to room temp. Refrigerate up to 6 months.
