Rick's Tuna Salad Tacos

If you ever get bored with tuna salad sandwiches, make some of these tacos.  It's a refreshing change!

Ingredients for the tuna salad:

2 cans tuna
1 small red bell pepper, diced
2 scallions, sliced thin
2-3 Tbs Mayonnaise
2 tsp OLD BAY® Seasoning
2 tsp Lea & Perrins Worcestershire
1 tsp horseradish
1 Tbs fresh cilantro, chopped fine

Ingredients for Serving:

taco shells, toasted
fresh tomatoes, diced
sharp cheddar cheese
Lettuce, shredded
hot sauce, to taste

Drain, rinse and squeeze the excess water from the canned tuna.  Add all the ingredients for the salad and mix well. Toast the taco shells in the oven.  Add the tuna to the tacos and top with fresh tomato, cheddar cheese and lettuce.  Top with hot sauce, if desired.  Enjoy!

Marinated Steak and Chicken Fajitas

Marinated Steak and Chicken Fajitas

Ingredients

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup lime juice from 6 to 8 limes
1/2 cup peanut oil
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp Wright’s Liquid Smoke
2 tsp ground cumin seed
2 tsp  freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbs chili powder
3 medium cloves garlic, finely minced (about 1 Tbs)
1 pound trimmed skirt steak (cut crosswise into 5 to 6-inch pieces)
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 large green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips
1 Vidalia onion, cut into 1/2-inch slices
6-8 fresh flour or corn tortillas, heated
Guacamole, for serving, if desired
Pico de Gallo, for serving, if desired
Sour cream, shredded cheese, salsa and hot sauce for serving, if desired

Directions

Combine soy sauce, lime juice, peanut oil, brown sugar, cumin, black pepper, chili powder, liquid smoke and garlic in a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Transfer 1/2 cup of marinade to a large bowl and set aside. Place steaks and chicken in a gallon-sized zipper-lock bag and add remaining marinade. Seal bag, squeezing out as much air as possible. Massage bag until meat is fully coated in marinade. Lay flat in the refrigerator, turning every couple of hours for at least 3 hours and up to 10. Refrigerate until ready to use.  When ready to cook, remove steaks from marinade, wipe off excess, and transfer to a large plate. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange the coals on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate.  Place a cast iron skillet over the cooler side of grill to pre-heat. Place the steaks and chicken directly on the grate on the hot side of the grill. Cover and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, basting with the reserved marinade. Flip the steaks and chicken, cover and cook for another minute. Continue cooking in this manner—flipping, covering and basting until the steaks and chicken are well-charred and an instant-read thermometer inserted into their center of the steaks registers 125 to 130°F for medium. The chicken should be cooked to 175 to 180°F. Transfer cooked steaks and chicken to a large plate, tent with foil, and allow to rest for 10 to 15 minutes.  Meanwhile, transfer cast iron skillet to hot side of grill and allow to preheat for 2 minutes. Add pepper and onion mix and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and beginning to char in spots, about 10 minutes. When vegetables are cooked, transfer the steaks and chicken to a cutting board and pour any accumulated juices from the plate into the skillet with the vegetables. Toss to coat.  Transfer vegetables to a warm serving platter. Thinly slice meat against the grain and transfer to platter with vegetables. Serve immediately with hot tortillas, guacamole, Pico de Gallo, and other condiments as desired.

Rick's Ragin' Baked Beans (for a crowd)

I published the recipe for making my "secret recipe" BBQ Ribs. Now it ain¹t
a BBQ without great "sides," so here is the secret recipe for Rick¹s Ragin¹
Baked Beans. This recipe serves 15, so it¹s great to take these to a party
or family gathering. You can cut all the amounts in half to make a "family
sized" batch. Now the first secret to my beans is to wash off all the
"goop" that they came in and replace it with my "good stuff!" I use BOTH
hickory smoked bacon and ground beef in my beans, so they are rich and
meaty. The spices give the beans their Southern flavor.

Ingredients:
1 #5 can (or four 1 quart cans) of Bush¹s Pork and Beans, drained and rinsed
1-1/4 cups Vidalia Onion, chopped
6 strips thick-cut hickory smoked bacon, cut into 1" pieces
1/2 lb ground beef (chuck)
1/2 lb dark brown sugar
3/4 cup "Rick¹s BBQ and Broilin¹ Baste", or other BBQ
sauce )
1 Tbs Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce
3 Tbs Rick¹s BBQ Rub , or use the rub from my rib recipe)
1 Tbs chili powder
1 tsp granulated garlic
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp yellow prepared mustard

Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add just enough vegetable oil to coat
the bottom of the pan. Fry the bacon pieces until they render out some fat
and become translucent, but do NOT brown them. Add the chopped onion and
cook, stirring constantly, until they are also translucent. Remove the
cooked mixture to a large bowl lined with paper towels to absorb the excess
fat. Wait several minutes and remove the saturated paper towel and discard.
Clean the pan and place over high heat again. Add 1 Tbs vegetable oil and
swirl to coat the pan. Add the ground beef and cook until it is well
browned. Turn off the heat and push the beef to one side. Tip the pan
slightly toward the empty side so the fat collects there. Place a crumpled
paper towel in the pan to absorb the excess fat and discard the saturated
paper towel. Mix the beef with the bacon and onions cooked previously.

Wash and drain the beans to remove the liquidy goop they come into into a
"doubled" disposable aluminum roasting pan (nest 2 aluminum pans so they are
strong enough to hold the heavy ingredients). Place the beans into the
roasting pan and stir all the remaining ingredients together. Bake
uncovered in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for about 2 hours, stirring gently
once every half hour. The beans are done when the BBQ sauces caramelizes,
but the beans near the center are still slightly loose when the pan is
shaken.

It's Hatch Green Chile Time!

Labor Day weekend heralds the beginning of the annual Hatch New Mexico Chile Festival, a two-day celebration of their world-famous crop. The festival attracts over 30,000 visitors from all over the United States. Festival goers can sample famed green chile recipes, watch the crowning of the “Chile Festival Queen”, or toss a horseshoe in celebration of their most famous crop.  In a “wonder-of-wonders” moment, I found out that Wegman’s in Hunt Valley was having a “Hatch Chile Event” this weekend.  I got some on Friday and made Green Chile Cheeseburgers (See my recipe here: http://ricksragin.blogspot.com/2013/03/green-chile-cheeseburgers-ala-owl.html )

Having been to Albuquerque and Sante Fe, Ruth and I savored these delicious chiles in everything from Omelets, Green Chile Stew and Green Chile Cheeseburgers. I went and bought 6 bags of them at Wegman’s to process and freeze for the coming Fall and Winter nights when you need a heart-warming bowl of Green Chile Stew to warm you up. (See my Green Chile Stew recipe here:  http://ricksragin.blogspot.com/2013/03/hatch-green-chile-stew.html)

To savor these delicious chiles, you first need to remove the skins.  This is done by roasting them over an open flame. Wegman’s had two big roasters on-site and would roast the chiles for you if you bought a 40 lb case.  Since I have a 160,000 BTU wok burner, I decided I would do that myself.

After charring the chiles, I put them in a big covered pot to steam for about 20 minutes.  This makes removing the skins much easier, which you do by gently scraping them with a sharp knife.

Once the skins are removed, you can cut them open and remover the seeds and veins.

Then you run the roasted and cleaned chiles through a food mill.

I use the coarse grinding blade so the chiles retain some texture. 10 pounds of chiles yielded about 7 cups of pureed chile.

To prep them for storage, I lightly oiled a muffin tin and spooned in the chile puree.

I popped them in the freezer until they were frozen solid.  Once frozen, the 1-cup portions are removed from the tin, put in a vacuum bag and sealed.  These can be stored in the freezer and thawed to make your favorite Southwestern dishes!
 

'Aw Shucks' Grilled Corn

Years ago, there was a food vendor at the PA wine festival called "Aw Shucks" that sold grilled ear corn slathered with a delicious mixture of cheese, mayo, sour cream, fresh cilantro and spices. Since they didn't share their recipe, I reconstructed it from my taste memory. It's a great side dish with grilled meats or steamed crabs, although it could almost be a meal all by itself!  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup mayonnaise (I use Duke's)
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup finely crumbled feta cheese, plus some additional to add at the table
1/2 tsp each chili powder and Old Bay Seasoning mixed together (also, make some to use at the table)
1 medium clove garlic, finely minced (about 1 teaspoon)
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro 4 ears shucked corn
2-3 Tbs butter, melted
1 lime, cut into wedges

Directions:

Light a chimney full of charcoal. When the charcoal is lit, build a two-stage fire by spreading most of the coals evenly over half of the grill and just a few coals on the other half.  Set the grill grate in place, close the lid and allow the grill to preheat for about 5 minutes. While the grill is heating, combine the mayo, sour cream, cheese, chili powder, Old Bay, minced garlic, and chopped cilantro in a large bowl. Stir until mixed well and set aside.  Place the shucked ears of corn in a one-gallon Ziploc bag and microwave them on high for about 3-4 minutes to partially cook them.  Uncover the grill and using tongs, brush the grates with a folded paper towel dipped in vegetable oil to both clean them and keep the corn from sticking.  Brush the microwaved ears of corn with melted butter and then place them on the hot side of the grill.  Rotate the ears occasionally and move them to the cool side of the grill (as needed,) until they are slightly and evenly charred on all sides (about 8 minutes total.)  Transfer the grilled corn to a shallow bowl and slather the ears with the Feta cheese mixture, using a large spoon or spatula to evenly coat the ears on all sides.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, some additional chili powder and Old Bay, if desired, and garnish with some cilantro.  Serve immediately with sliced lime wedges to squeeze over the corn.

Rick's "Special Sangria"

Made a batch of "Rick's Special Sangria" today. Yummo!

2 bottles Chambourcin wine
1 orange, zest and slices
1 apple, cored and sliced
1 pear, cored and sliced
1 cup blueberries
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup Triple Sec
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp ground Saigon Cinnamon (McCormick)

Rick's New Orleans BBQ'd Shrimp

Its been over 20 years since I traveled to NOLA for a broadcast convention (back when I worked for Westinghouse Broadcasting.)  I remember walking along the “Mississippi Riverwalk” (about 2 blocks from the famous Café Du Monde) and stopping at a restaurant for dinner.  I wish I remembered the name of the place, but that brain cell is long gone.  It might have been Mr. B's, as they are famous for the dish. Anyway,  the menu said "New Orleans BBQ’d Shrimp," so being a BBQ nut, I thought I’d give it a try.  It wasn’t at all what I expected, but it was absolutely delicious!!  Now in New Orleans, BBQ’d shrimp means sautéed shrimp in a Worcestershire-spiked butter sauce.  I did some research on-line and looked through my cookbook library to find a recipe, and over the years, I have made this dish many times, tweaking the recipe to make it “just right.”  Mr. B's Restaurant in NOLA has their recipe on their website and that one uses THREE sticks of butter!! Hell, mine uses two sticks, but I like my recipe with its hint of rosemary,  thyme and Old Bay.  As Mr B's said "There is enough butter in this dish to scare you into cholesterol shock, but the butter is the key to the flavor and consistency of the sauce."  It’s also critical not to overcook the shrimp, or they’ll become tough and hard to peel.  The best part about eating this dish is sopping up the spicy sauce with the crusty French bread.  The shrimp ain't bad either!  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

16 Tbs. butter, (2 sticks) cut into 1 Tbs sized chunks
1 Tbs. garlic, minced
2 lbs jumbo shrimp, un-peeled and still in their shells (heads on, if you can find them)
¼ cup clam juice
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
2 cups beer
1 Tbs. Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbs “Rick’s Ragin’ Cajun Seasoning”
2 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
1 Tbs cider vinegar
1 Tbs black pepper
2-1/2 tsp dried rosemary, crumbled
1/2 tsp dried thyme
¼ tsp. cayenne sauce
1 loaf French bread

***or you can make a basic blend from the recipe at the bottom of the page:

Directions:

Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Add the minced garlic, black pepper, rosemary, thyme and the other seasonings and simmer uncovered for about 15 minutes until the sauce is reduced by 1/3. Add the fresh lemon juice and the Worcestershire sauce and whisk well to emulsify the ingredients.  Add the shrimp (still in their shells) stirring to coat them well.  Keep the shrimp moving around in the pan so they cook evenly.  Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes until the shrimp turn pink and are just cooked through.  Transfer the shrimp and sauce to a large serving platter or to individual shallow bowls and serve the sauce on the side. Serve immediately with slices of warm, crusty French bread. Remove skillet from heat. Place shrimp in a bowl and pour sauce over top. Serve with French bread for dipping.

Rick's Ragin' Cajun Seasoning: 
 
Ingredients:

1/2 c. paprika
4 tsp. salt (opt.)
4 tsp. garlic powder
4 tsp. onion powder
4 tsp. cayenne
1 tbsp. white pepper
1 tbsp. black pepper
1 tbsp. oregano leaves, crushed
1 tbsp. thyme leaves, crushed
2 tsp. dry mustard

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in small bowl. Store in a jar tightly sealed. Makes about 2/3 cups