Sloppy Joe Slider

This has been sitting in my draft for a long time but I made it last night with new photos so I thought I'd finally post it. But really, who doesn't like Sloppy Joe's?! It's the perfect balance of sweet and tangy rolled up in a bun. The combination of the sweet gherkins and the tangy pickled onions also helps enhance the flavor profile of this slider.

Ingredients:

3 lbs ground chuck

2 bell peppers (diced)

1 yellow or white onion (diced)

1 roma tomato (diced

1/8 cup pancetta (diced)

2-3 garlic gloves (minced)

4 cups ketchup

2 tablespoon yellow mustard

1/2 tablespoon black pepper

1 1/2 tablespoon kosher salt

1/2 yellow or white onion (paper thin slices) for pickling 

3 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1/4 cup water

3-4 baby gherkins for garnish

12 whole wheat slider buns

Directions:

Start by rendering the pancetta in a large skillet until it's brown and crispy. Next add the diced onions, bell peppers and garlic. Cook until garlic is translucent. Then add the ground chuck and continue cooking for 8-10 minutes on high heat or until meat is cooked through. At this time you should also drain most of the liquid from the pan. Next add the mustard, ketchup, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and tomatoes. Reduce heat to a simmer and let it cook for another 30 minutes so that all the flavors will come together. Stir every 5 minutes to keep the bottom from burning.

To pickle the onions, add the red wine vinegar, the other 1/2 tablespoon of salt, sugar and water to a bowl and add the thinly sliced onions. Mix well and let it sit for 20 minutes and then drain the liquid.

There's nothing left but to layer your buns with the Sloppy Joe, pickled onions, and gherkins! Enjoy!

 



Stuffed Mini Sweet Peppers

It's been a long time since my last post and to be honest I haven't really cooked anything worth blogging about. This dish came from leftovers out of the freezer. Several months ago I made egg rolls and had some stuffing left over that I kept it in the freezer just in case I wanted to do something with it.

After going to Costco this weekend and picking up some of my favorite peppers to cook with I decided to use the egg roll stuffing to stuff the peppers. These peppers when grilled are sweet and tart at the same time and that's two of my favorite combinations.

You'll want to put these peppers on indirect heat to keep the peppers from over charring before the stuffing is completely cooked inside. Rotate the peppers so that all the sides have even grill lines and the stuffed peppers should be ready in about 15 minutes. If you have a thermometer the internal temperature should be about 165 degrees fareheit.

You can find the egg roll stuffing recipe by clicking on the link below. Other than that all you'll need are the sweet mini peppers and I like eat serve it with a side of sweet chili sauce, pickled carrots and roasted cherry tomatoes.

http://bistro331.blogspot.com/2010/08/egg-rolls.html

Baby Green Mangos with Spicy Rice Powder Fish Sauce

This is one of my favorite fruit snacks of all time. Thanks goes to my mom, who brought the mangoes down from Dallas with her during her recent visit. The tartness pairs perfectly with the sauce I made. I actually learned how to make this sauce as a young boy and it has stood the test of time. The sauce is salty, sweet, and spicy which is definitely a Southeast Asian flavor profile.

Just in case you can't procure any green mangoes, this sauce goes well with: green apples, dill pickles, cranberries and many other tart fruits.

Please forgive me for the cloudy picture. My camera lens cover is scratched and I'm waiting for a replacement. Hopefully it'll come in before my next blog.

Sauce ingredients:

1/2 tablespoon roasted rice powder
1/4 tablespoon dried crushed chili pepper
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon fish sauce (homemade padak or bottled will both work)
1 shallot thinly sliced
3 fresh Thai chili peppers thinly sliced

Directions:

Mix all ingredients well in a small bowl. Thinly slice your mangoes and discard the seed and the membrane housing the seed. To eat, simply dip your mango or desired fruit and eat. The combination of the dried and fresh chili peppers makes this a very spicy sauce. Feel free to reduce the amount of chili peppers used or have a glass of milk near by.

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