I like London Broil, and all those TV chefs better stay away from it as it is one the few nice pieces of meats they have not discovered. Remember when they discovered Flank and Skirt Steaks? Supply and demand baby- the prices of those cuts sky rocketed. LB is mine, keep off! LB is nice for marinating and grilling or searing (which is what I mostly do). It is a lean cut, that can sometimes be tough if not done right. For this procedure I am using two 2 pound, a smidge over 1 inch thick LBs, although the one on the right looks a bit shifty. I think I got duped at the butchers. Anyway, let these guys sit out until they are room temp. Relax, you won’t get sick. Pat each dry with a paper towel then salt (my personal fave is celery salt) and pepper them up real good while you get your skillets HOT.  When your skillets are hot, place the LBs down in them. I like to use a little fat rendered from bacon, which is a classy way of saying bacon grease, in my pans. Or you can use olive oil, it’s classy too, only a few teaspoons though, we are searing not frying.  Set the timer for 6 minutes to sear the first side. Be sure your fans are going as high as they can, it may be smoky.

Ding. 6 minutes up, now flip to the other side, and let is sear for another 4 minutes. They will be rare on the inside. If you want it more medium rare, take it another minute longer. They will cook to the next level once in foil. Rare will become medium rare, medium rare will become medium- at least in my experience.

Ding. Timer goes off and now you wrap each steak in 2 pieces of aluminum foil to rest. This will further cook the meat and let the juices flow out and then back in. The entire prep and cook time took me about 15 minutes. Pretty much a hands off task. I let these guys rest about 30 minutes yesterday while driving out to pick up a kid from his tutoring. Once I got back, I thinly sliced each steak placing them into 1 quart jars. Refrigerate up to three days.   This is a very simple task, but the results can be turned into numerous meals.

Why so rare?
1. I like my meat pink.
2. If eating the meat right away, I will cook it the extra minute to get it more medium. This takes experience and can vary with the thickness of the meat and how hot you can actually get your pans.
3. We reheat this meat for various meals, such as sandwiches and salads by getting a skillet hot and in seconds to a minute, flash in the pan style, we have searing hot meat that is now medium to well done.  Every member of Team BRK knows how to do it.

Here are two ways we have used the meat in the last 24 hours…

Beef Strips over Red Cabbage with Pistachios and Sautéed Carrots
I placed my beef strips over Red Cabbage Salad with Pistachios and a side of Sautéed Carrots (I’ll share that recipe next week).  Here’s what I did. After I cooked the meat and while it was resting, I sliced and salted the cabbage then ran out the door to get the kid from tutoring.  When I came back, the meat was ready for slicing and the cabbage was ready for draining. Small bits of time can allow you to get many passive cooking things done.  The kids (the NonP’s- Non-Paleos) were offered the same meal with leftover Rice Pilaf from Monday Night, made without the noodles to keep it gluten-free.  You see I used the word offered there. Sigh. The NonP’s are getting there, slowly, but getting there. When Himself and I got back from CrossFit, I took several slices of the beef for each of us out of the fridge and did a flash in the pan reheat. The meat was still fresh and tender, so don’t let the word reheat turn you off.  This was a fantastic Paleo meal for two Paleo Heads.

Pear and Spinach wrapped in Beef Strips
I coached the 6 and 7 am CrossFit classes yesterday, so this made a refreshing post workout meal and breakfast.  I like to be sure and get a nice bit of protein post workout, and this beef is a perfectly lean protein.  If I had arugula, I would have used that too.  Get richly colored veg in your diet as much as possible, even if it is in little bits like this.  Because I had the beef already prepared, this meal went together in 5 minutes (score!)

What do you think? Will you make this your new healthy habit?  Don’t do beef? Jars of shredded, roasted chicken work wonders too.

]]> http://www.bigredkitchen.com/2013/04/busy-carnivore-this/feed/ 7 http://www.bigredkitchen.com/2013/04/kebab-koobideh/ http://www.bigredkitchen.com/2013/04/kebab-koobideh/#comments Tue, 09 Apr 2013 10:00:55 +0000 Robin Sue http://www.bigredkitchen.com/?p=18507 We are just at the beginning of barbecue season, and in fact had out first Cook Out Sunday night. Only burgers, but man it was awesome to be out there without having to wear fifty … read more»

We are just at the beginning of barbecue season, and in fact had out first Cook Out Sunday night. Only burgers, but man it was awesome to be out there without having to wear fifty layers of clothes. I don’t even care that my hair smells of smoke. Nope, don’t care a lick. With the rising cost of groceries- what’s with that?!, and me now trying my best to get as much organic foods into my family as I can afford, I turn often to ground beef as a reliable and affordable protein.  It can be seasoned with anything, molded to any shape and size,  grilled, roasted, sautéed, stuffed, or seared.  I like the grass-fed beef I get at my local market and do my best to make it go far. Not like a javelin far. More like enough in everyone’s belly far.  The other night we enjoyed some Kebab Koobideh which was a huge hit with Team BRK.  Very flavorful and much like we get at the Persian Kiosks here in the DC area.  I served the kebabs with organic basmati rice, and a simple green salad. I made a basic vinaigrette dressing and stirred some fresh yogurt into it to make it tangy and creamy.  Great over the entire meal.   If you are strict paleo, this meal is great with my cilantro-lime cauliflower rice.

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Kebab Koobideh

Author: Robin Sue Joss, Big Red Kitchen LLC

Recipe type: Dinner, Appetizer

Cuisine: Persian

Prep time:  5 mins

Cook time:  10 mins

Total time:  15 mins

Serves: 4

 

Deliciously seasoned kebabs. Perfect for grilling.

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef, 85% lean grass-fed beef
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. garlic salt
• ¼ tsp black pepper or more if you like
• ½ tablespoon turmeric
• ⅓ cup finely minced red onion

Instructions

1. Mix all ingredients very well, I used my stand mixer to really get it mixed.
2. Divide into 4 equal pieces and roll out into about 7 inches in length. You want the roll to be about 1 inch thick.
3. Either grill outside until done or grill on a cooktop grill, griddle, or skillet turning often until done. It will no longer feel squishy, but be slightly firm.
4. Remove from heat and serve. Just before serving I did slide long skewers through the meat to make it look more authentic. I am a cheater.

Notes

For the Sauce: I made a simple vinaigrette of… About ⅓ cup olive oil whisked with 3 tablespoons vinegar, a teaspoon of Dijon mustard, a pinch of salt and pepper. Then I added a heaping tablespoon of organic Greek yogurt to make it creamy, add more if you like. Sprinkle the entire dish with chili powder. * my measurements are a suggestion, make it the way you like. Sometimes I like a touch of garlic too.

3.2.1230

With the rising costs of groceries, what are some healthy ways your are stretching your menus and budget?  Please share…

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First up. I fried some un-cured bacon in my cast iron skillet. Drained the bacon grease but left enough in the pan to fry the burgers.  I like to scoop the ground beef with a regular ice cream scoop to get even burgers. Here I am using grass-fed 85% ground beef. I seasoned the burgers with Penzeys season salt and black pepper.

Next I fry them up in a pan. I like to get a good sear on them and them flatten them out with a big spatula. Takes a bit of muscle, but my kids like them thin.

Once they are pressed and seared a bit more, I flip ‘em and top them with a piece of organic Meunster Cheese.

Mmmm, nice and melty. Now to place them on little Angel Rolls I found at Whole Foods and top them with the bacon.

My kids love these little sliders! They enjoyed these with a side of raw carrots and my homemade Ranch Dressing for dipping.

Now for my sliders. Same method as the kids’, no cheese though, and with a huge bed of  baby spinach to place the sliders on and then topped with mango salsa and bacon.  Delicious, bold, smokey, sweet, and spicy.

And everyone was happy once again.

There is something good and rewarding about giving the kids responsibility over the menu planning because after this meal they all asked what tomorrow night’s theme would be. How exciting to see them so involved and interested. I felt a bit triumphant.  Until this…

One shouted for Pizza Night. “No, you dummy that is for a Friday Night. I think Soup Night and it should be beef stew.” said the oldest.
“Fish on Fridays.” I said to blank stares of disbelief. And without missing a beat…
“I hate beef stew.” said the middle.
“That’s because you don’t eat healthy and will die young.” quipped the oldest.
“What about Tex-Mex Night?” said the littlest.
“We just had that last night stupid,” mocked her big brothers. “What about Pasta Night?” they bullied.
“OK, lasagna then,” she said.
“We just had Lazy Lasagna all last week! No.”
“Then spaghetti.”
It was a long while before they found me curled in a dark recess of our home, rocking and clutching a bottle of Scotch while breathlessly whispering, “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”

Only a fool declares victory so early in war.

Come back next week to see how I got my picky headed kids to ALL like the same fish dish- miracles of miracles; a nice simple appetizer I picked up in Miami; and more Theme Nights and how I am adapting them to please both the paleos and non alike.  All with one arm, frazzled mind, and feeble humor.

Last week I posted a reminder to myself about “Simplicity” and how I need to share more about my journey in seeking it.  Did you know that we all have the same 24 hours in a day and that when my fridge is full of beautiful meals, my laundry does not get done, and when the laundry is done, there is nothing to eat?  Funny how I have to rob Peter to pay Paul- we all do!
Today you are going to rob Peter of one precious hour and make 3 delicious Salads, but these are no normal salads, they are big fanciful meal salads of which you will get 6.  One Hour, 3 Salads, 6 Meals.  1:3:6.  Now figure out which hour you are going to steal- Facebook?  Football?  Housework?  Work?  A tough choice we all have to make, but guess what?  We have to eat.  I get many emails, questions in real life, comments about how people don’t know how to cook, or have the time to cook.  You make the time, I’ll teach you how. Deal?  Now, give me one hour and I will make this as SIMPLE and painless as possible.

Greek, Niçoise, and Cobb Salads- 3, 2, 1 Go!

1. Grocery List
Produce
one- 5 ounce container baby romaine, spinach or other favorite salad greens.
tiny cherry or grape tomatoes, one small container will work
1 red onion
12 fresh green beans- a reader noted that very long beans will not stand in jar, so go for shorter ones.
12 nice black olives- I like mine with pits, from olive bar or purchase a jar
2 pepperoncini peppers- from olive bar, or purchase a jar
1 lemon
1 avocado- to pack un-cut and eat fresh with your Cobb Salad.
one bag tiny potatoes- These are about 1 inch in diameter, if you cannot find these, then use 1-2 red new potatoes cut into inch cubes.  **If you are strict paleo, may I suggest roasting 12 fresh tiny radishes in place of the potatoes, you will love them!

Protein
2 eggs
1/2 pound ground beef 85% lean
2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
4 slices bacon- buy the whole pack, I think you can figure out what to do with the rest.  **Strict Paleos will use uncured, organic, sugar-free bacon. Let me know where I can get some. Please.
2 cans wild caught albacore tuna, salmon, or boneless skinless sardines in olive oil

Dairy- **If you are paleo, leave the cheese out
Feta crumbles- leftovers freeze well
Blue cheese crumbles- leftovers freeze well

Pantry
Extra Virgin olive oil
white wine vinegar
Dijon mustard
kosher salt
black pepper
garlic powder
dried oregano
6 mini grease-proof cupcake liners for holding bacon and cheese- optional but nice. Found in the baking isle at your local grocer.  So far I really like the If You Care brand of baking cups, parchment paper, and sandwich bags. That they are greaseproof has really been great for stacking all my salads in jars. If you ever see then on sale at Amazon. let me know.

2.  Prep your Ingredients for Roasting

You will need one 9×13 inch glass baking dish. I like my Anchor Hocking brand 9×13′s because the lid has come in handy for potlucks or when I have cooked a bunch of dishes and I need to stack them up in the fridge.
Use the photo above as a guide as to how to lay out your ingredients.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
a.  Place the eggs in a silicone cupcake liner if you have one or a cup formed from foil will work well too. This is just in cast the eggs decide to have a wardrobe malfunction all over your other ingredients.  Hasn’t happened to me yet.
b.  Wash your beans and potatoes. Make two bundles of 6 beans and wrap each with a piece of bacon. Lay in dish seam side down next to your potatoes.
c.  Trim any excess fat from the chicken thighs and place in the dish.  I like thighs as they have more flavor and remain juicy when cooked.
d.  Cut two 1/2 inch thick slices from the red onion and top each with a piece of bacon that has been cut in half. The roasted onion is delicious in these salads!
e.  Make your Gyro Meat. See recipe in the box below.  You will thank me for this! Place the Gyro meat in the dish too.
f.  Drizzle everything but the eggs with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
g.  Place baking dish in preheated oven for 27 minutes.  As all ovens are different, be sure a sharp knife can go through the potatoes- they should be soft, the gyro feels firm, and the chicken is no longer pink.  Do not let the eggs go longer than 27 minutes- trust me. Note- a reader stated that her eggs were not done in this time and her bacon was not crispy. All ovens are different, so you may have to remove the chicken and beef and let the bacon and eggs go a few minutes longer.  *I made this using large eggs, not jumbo or extra large, so that may make a difference too.

 3.  Prep the Rest of Your Salad Ingredients
While your ingredients are roasting, clean up your previous mess and prepare the remainder of your ingredients, then clean up that mess too.  Sip water as you go.

a.  Place 1 tablespoon of Feta cheese in each of the two mini cupcake papers. Place 1 tablespoon of blue cheese in each of the other two.
b.  Count out 12 olives and 2 pepperoncini peppers, drain well.
c.  Wash and dry 18 grape tomatoes.
d.  Make your Vinaigrette Dressing- Whisk together 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1/2 tsp. kosher salt, 1 tsp. dijon mustard, pinch black pepper.  You may use your favorite bottled dressing to save more time.
e.  Slice lemon into 6 wedges.  This is optional, but I do like a fresh squeeze of lemon over my salads.
f.  Prepare 6 containers for your salads. Everyone by now knows I use Mason Jars, and here, I have used 6 wide-mouth pint-size jars.  Find what works for you! Don’t let NOT having Mason Jars keep you from doing this.
g.  Fill a medium bowl with ice and water. This is for your eggs after they roast.

4.  Prepare Roasted Items
Now your kitchen should be smelling heavenly!  And we are soon to the fun part, but just a few more things to do before we build those lovely salads.  Ready?

a.  Immediately after pulling your dish from the oven, place the eggs in that bowl of water and ice you had prepared earlier. Set aside.
b.  Slice chicken and gyro meat.
c.  Cut onion slices in half.
d.  Cut bacon into bits and place in 2 mini baking cups.
e.  Place all of these items on a plate to cool for about 10 minutes.
f.  Peel eggs and cut them in half length-wise.

5. Build Your Salads
a.  Divide the dressing evenly between all the jars. About 1 1/4 tablespoon each. I even divided the pan drippings between the jars.  No waste.
b.  To build 2 Niçoise Salads- Stand a Green Bean bundle on the edge of 2 jars, or other container, and fill jar with 6 tiny potatoes, 3 olives, 3 grape or cherry tomatoes, 1/2 egg, top with lettuce (press the lettuce gently into the jar and continue to add more without squishing it), top with a lemon wedge. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.  Pack or serve with one can of tuna, salmon, or sardines.  I like this with albacore tuna packed in olive oil. You may also use fresh fish, cooked to your liking and packed in a separate container.  Eat fresh fish within a day of cooking it.
c.  To build 2 Cobb Salads-  To 2 jars add, half each of the chicken slices, half of the onion slice, 3 tomatoes, 1/2 egg, top with lettuce,  top lettuce with a baking cup each of blue cheese crumbles and bacon crumbles along with a wedge of lemon. A classic Cobb has avocado which I serve fresh with this salad as I do not like the way cubed avocado stores- it turns an ugly brown.  So pack a fresh one and a knife and enjoy this delicious classic salad. Store in the refrigerator up to 3 days.
d.  To build 2 Greek Salads-  To 2 jars divide meat evenly and stand up on the side of each jar, fill jars with 3 olives, 3 tomatoes, half of the onion slice, fill with lettuce, top with a baking cup of feta cheese, a pepperoncini pepper, and a lemon wedge.  I like this salad with sliced cucumber as well, so add it if you have it down in the jar with the other veggies.  Store in the refrigerator up to 3 days.

Salad Tips
1. Lay out all the ingredients you need for that particular salad and start layering the items in the jar with the dressing always on the bottom and more delicate ingredients on the top such as leafy greens or fresh herbs. I tend to pack creamy dressings separately as they can turn watery at the bottom of the container/jar.
2. Make the meals look visually appealing by making the layers look nice and even. The more appealing the meal, the more likely your family will want it!
3. Layering salads helps if you want to reheat any salad items, like the potatoes or gyro meat.
4. Items that need to remain crispy, if you like croutons for instance, need to be stored in a little baggie or container and placed with the jarred salad.
5. We like to eat up our salads within 3-4 days.
6.  I do not seal/can/preserve these salads in any way other then putting the lids on them and refrigerating. I am simply using the jars as short term, fresh, and green storage containers. Any container will work well for this as long as the lettuce is not touching the dressing.  Do not freeze salads.

Update- A reader stated that this took her 3 hours to prepare. I must admit that I have done this so many times, that I can do it in a hour. Reading the notes alone can take a while.  So if you are a first-timer, this make take longer than an hour. Tips to make it faster…
1.  Have your kitchen cleaned up and ready to cook.
2.  Pull out everything you will need to make this dish.
3.  Clean as you go.
4. Get help, make it a date, or a fun day with a friend and split the meals.
5.  Read all instructions a few times before starting.
6.  One friend wrote that it never made it into her jars, her family enjoyed all of it for dinner, with everyone getting a little of this and that- they loved it!

Who is this tutorial written for?
1.  Busy students, couples, and families.
2.  Individuals who are looking for efficient meal making. More meals in less time.
3.  Individuals who are looking for healthy meals.
4.  Individuals who are looking for healthy lunches to pack.
5.  Individuals who are trying to decrease eating out.
6.  Budget wise people.
7.  People who enjoy eating delicious meals.

For more Meal on the Go ideas, or Mason Jar Meals, go HERE.

Disclaimer: Some of the links go to my Amazon Store. I have linked products I love and use regularly in my home. I have no association with the brands but do make a small bit of money from Amazon if you purchase through my store. Thanks!

We will still host “Cranky Pasta Nights” for Himself’s company’s Summer Associates, I have promised my vegan friend I would teach her how to crank out homemade pasta (sans eggs), and I still love the idea of hanging pasta from hangers all over my kitchen to dry. Those events are few and far between, so for the day to day interludes with pasta, I will enjoy adding  Onion “Pasta” Noodles to my repertoire of pasta impostors. The sweet vidalia, cut in thin slices, rings separated, drizzled with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper creates a sweet, savory, nutty, and surprisingly flavorful substitute for pasta under the mass of my Bolognese Sauce.

Roasted Onion “Pasta” Noodles
Ingredients:
4 large vidalia onions
olive oil
Kosher or finely ground sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

One Recipe Bolognese Sauce- If you are strict Paleo, leave out the Parmesan Cheese

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut root and stem end from the onions, peel, and slice into 1/4 inch slices. Separate rings and place in a large roasting pan. You may have to use 2 pans.  Drizzle with a generous amount of olive oil and sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes or until onions become tender and begin to brown, some pieces may even toast up a bit- yum! You may want to give them a stir halfway through roasting. Plate and top with Bolognese Sauce, or another sauce or stew of choice. Serves 4.

Note: I case you were wondering, I did not experience any re-belch-a-burp-atation with the onion pasta. But a breath mint is suggested.

Need more Paleo Recipes- Click Here

Dear Biz, I know you are gagging right now! Hee hee.