Adventures with anrkst.

Discussion in 'Adventure, Hiking, Backpacking and Travel' started by anrkst6973, Jun 17, 2018.

  1. Hawkeye5

    Hawkeye5 Member

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    You the man! That looks good. To hot for me but that had to be yummy!
     
  2. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    Thanks Hawkeye, I'm trying to adapt and streamline some of the recipes I like for easy service outside. This one worked out nicely as well as being real good. :)
     
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  3. Strigidae

    Strigidae Administrator Staff Member

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    Always awesome sir!
     
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  4. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    Weddings, travel, kids away at college having birthdays, more travel.....yada, yada , yada. I needed something kind of easy and marginally fast.


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    I choose something from this classic by Hannah Glasse. Full disclosure: The recipe for "Rump steaks cooked in ale" is NOT in my version (Amazon purchase), at least I haven't found it. I chose the recipe while my book was in transit, from the you-tube channel of Townsends 18th century cooking. The copy they sell is apparently thicker and more comprehensive, as he reads from it and shows it in the video. I forged ahead all the same...

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    I didn't have any rump steaks on hand, that would be sirloin butt for us Norte Americano's ;). I did have some odd chunks of chicken breast left over from a while back. Just salt and pepper overnight.

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    I wanted a simple set up I could take outside at some point. In the video you can see how the forebears did things, I just used a small Tupperware. About 2 pats of real butter and some spices. Nutmeg though, nutmeg or mace seems to be in all these old recipes. You could make the gravy from scratch if you wanted...
     
  5. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    So here's that lil Tupperware with a chunk o butter and spices, to make a roux ( or to dress a dish in the parlance of the book) I put in a heaping tablespoon of flour, I also had these strips of bacon left over so what the heck, lets chop em up and add them. Why not, bacon makes everything better. :)

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    I sorta wandered off the page, these are not in Hannah's recipe. Some broccoli, a radish,that green leafy stuff is kale....I added a 10 oz can of mushrooms from the pantry later. ( I was at the store but forgot to get any. )

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    Then I went to the fridge and there was this onion...yeah this recipe just went completely off the chain....
     
  6. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    I was going to make Norfolk dumplings from scratch. They are not difficult, but I was only cooking for 2 and there was this tin of 5 biscuits hanging around.

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    Lay em out on a floured surface, squash em a bit, season liberally, (this is plain ole Mrs Dash)...

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    Then roll from the side good and tight. This insures your spices are evenly spread thru the layers.

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    Then cut or tear each roll into 5-6 pieces. I roll mine in my hands to make a ball about shooting taw marble size. Any bigger and they don't want to get done and smaller they cook too fast/burn...

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    There we go. These got refrigerated, thawed but not frozen. You can make these "on the spot". I've seen Townsends do it a bunch of times with nothing but flour, water, and a little tin bowl. ;)
     
  7. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    This is MY cook station, my scrap steel grill, my milk crate of split oak....this is what I do...where I "live".

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    Tell you what, There ain't much you can't set on fire with some oak shavings and some sweet Texas fatwood.

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    First thing, the gravy. You want it to sit and thicken before you add it back in. Side note: I love these tri clad pans. Open fire, grill, range, flat top ,oven, indestructible man. Worth every penny.
     
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  8. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    Then it's time to throw down with some Lodge carbon steel ( USA! USA! :D ) I used the big 15" so I have room to move things around..

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    Then your veg, don't even de-glaze, Just a bit more evoo and stir like a mad witch...

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    Now when your veg is seared or tender like you want, nest your meat back in and add your butter+ spices and your roux flour. Stir it till the butter is all melted and absorbed.
     
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  9. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    Now Hannah's recipe calls for an "ale, not bitter ". I went with this. She also cooked the meat in the ale but these recipes are merely ....suggestions once I start...

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    When most of the ale is cooked off into a nice roux, put the onion gravy back in. I simmered this a bit more then lifted it off. I didn't get a pic there because I was trying to watch a wood fire, handle a ripping hot pan, and manipulate a camera/ phone all at the same time. My apologies.
     
    Last edited: Sep 22, 2019
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  10. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    I brought out my 12" carbon for the dumplings. Little evoo, pat of butter, and get it smokin hot...

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    This is where my "round/marble shape" dumplings make sense. They cook fast, like uber fast. It's easier to roll em around like you are shakin a popcorn pan than it is to try and flip em like pancakes. If you're doin a bunch, do them in stages, leave yourself lots of room in the pan.
     
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  11. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    The sous says "No pictures, Lets eat!"

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    It's very savory, rich. I'm thinking I could do this pretty easily out of the kayak and the Yeti....

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    This is what a cook likes. Empty plates, pans cleaned. :). This was gooood. You guys should try it, I don't think you'll be disappointed.
     
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  12. Strigidae

    Strigidae Administrator Staff Member

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    Townsends puts on a great youtube channel. Really love listening to him and seeing all the old ways of cooking and the history behind it all. I think i might need that book. :)
     
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  13. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    I think you would enjoy it. I'm a history buff so the information about jellies and preserves of foods is fascinating to me. The "olde" language and measures keeps me thinking too. I have to do research to find out how much of something, or where a spice originates and how that relates to the history of the times. It's a lot of fun.
     
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  14. Strigidae

    Strigidae Administrator Staff Member

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    I agree. The history of us lies a lot in our foods.
     
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  15. Hawkeye5

    Hawkeye5 Member

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    Man! All of that looks good right there.
     
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  16. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    .........and now......

    For something completely different.

    ;)
     
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  17. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    A little while back I was doing research into Japanese "1 pots", where ingredients are cooked in stages in a single iron pan ( it's called a kettle but looks like a skillet with a double bail). I found one I thought my clan of cutthroats would like.
    I give you my take on a. " Sukiyaki".

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    The heart of a Sukiyaki is its sauce. I don't have anything remotely like an Asian specialty store out here, I had to visit some culinary sites and find out what thing were and what they could be substituted with.
    The recipe calls for "Mirin". Yeah, what the heck is Mirin. Sugar water. You can use plain white, 1 tablespoon dissolved in 1 cup of water. Or you can do what I did and use the blackest molasses you can find....Heh Heh, yeah this just went sideways. :). You will also need 1 cup of white wine ( I had white cooking sherry) and 1/2 cup of soy sauce. I used this coconut aminos ( 50% less sodium than soy)

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    I decided the sauce needed just a bit more "bite". I added a fat pinch of red pepper flakes, some allspice, and a pinch of nutmeg to compliment. ( not in the original recipe either )

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    According to my reading this could have noodles or rice. In keeping with the spirit of the dish I chose noodles. You want them done but not squishy, and loose not stuck together. I dropped 1/2 box in 4 quarts of boiling water for 8 minutes. (pinch of salt and a teaspoon of any cooking oil you want) immediately drain and rinse with cool water until noodle are not warm. These can be pre cooked and stored without them getting soggy.
     
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  18. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    Beef is traditionally used but for the happiness of my eaters I used pork. Thick loin chops cut into strips about 1/4". These also got done 1 day in advance, a light sprinkle of sage, black pepper, Mrs Dash, and all spice. This get a small drizzle of chili oil to keep the pieces from clumping together.

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    Guys I took pictures of the vegetable prep...something went wrong. That whole series was just black screens. ( I think I'm getting real close to needing to replace my 2012 flip phone :( ). In lieu of those we have from L going down, carrots matchstick cut- califlower- pork strips- a large yellow onion and 3 green onions- sauce-noodles-broccoli- and a large box of mushrooms 1/4 cut. ( shiitake's are recommended but quess what? There weren't any! Surprise! )
     
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  19. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    I've been itching to use this monstrosity. :D

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    The "kitchen " is ready, the "cook" is slightly intoxicated, the "kids" are here to help.....someone should call the cops....:D
     
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  20. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

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    Stage cooking is just different cook times for different ingredients, hard vegetables start first. I put 4 tablespoons ( 1/2 stick) of real butter in 1/2 cup of evoo in a small saucepan, this gets spooned into the pot as needed.

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    This beast is big enough to start double staging. :). ( hot fire, keep the heat on high)

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    Carrots out ( see that sheet pan on the right hand corner...yep.;) ) broccoli in. Sizzle, smoke, love it.
     
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