Categories
Featured Main Dishes Recipes Snacks

Individual Cast Iron Tortilla Pizzas

Cast Iron Pizza from www.jasonscooking.com

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Believe it or not, this is the 100th Recipe on Jason’s Cooking!! I’ve had a blast over the past 6 months cooking and photographing and posting and I’m looking forward to the next 6 months of tasty food. Thanks for supporting me on this adventure and I hope you’ll tell your friends about the site!

Today we’re making some amazing and quick individual pizzas that I saw on Serious Eats a couple of months back. This was one of those rare recipes that showed up in my Facebook feed in the afternoon and I went home and cooked it that night.

These pizzas are super quick to put together (10 minutes from “Let’s have pizza tonight!” to eating tasty pizza) and are better than a lot of delivery pizzas. It’s also way less expensive to make these yourself than it is to buy from a pizza joint. Give these quick, delicious, crispy, and dead simple pizzas a shot tonight and let me know what you think.

The RecipeRecipe
Individual Cast Iron Tortilla Pizzas
 
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Serves: 1 Pizza
Ingredients
  • ½ tsp Olive Oil (you can also use vegetable oil)
  • 1 8” Flour Tortilla
  • 2 – 3 Spoonfulls* Store Bought Marinara or Pizza Sauce (see Tips and Tricks)
  • 1 Hand Full* of Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
  • Pepperoni Slices
  • Hot Italian Sausage (bulk or links with casing removed)
  • Any other pizza toppings you love. This “recipe” is more of a method than a recipe.

You’ll also need an 8” Cast Iron Skillet
Instructions
  1. Preheat your broiler to high and heat the oil in the cast iron skillet on the stove top over high heat until it shimmers. Once the oil shimmers, reduce the heat to medium low and follow the remaining steps quicklyish. These pizzas start out on top of the stove and finish in the oven.
  2. Place the tortilla on in the skillet, top with sauce (don’t go crazy or you’ll have a sloppy mess), cheese, pepperoni, and little dots of the raw sausage.
  3. Season with salt and pepper and, using a pot holder, place the skillet under the broiler and cook until the cheese melts and browns a bit.
  4. Slide pizza onto a cutting board, cut and serve immediately.
Notes
Note: for a crispier crust, put the skillet back on the stove top over medium heat after you remove it from the broiler. Use a spatula to lift up the pizza to check your progress.
Tips and TricksTips and Tricks

269_MEDimgThe best store-bought marinara in the whole world is Buitoni Roasted Garlic Marinara Sauce. It looks like this and you can find it in the fresh pasta section of the grocery store. It’s near the lunch meat in my Publix.

Feed the FreezerFeed the Freezer

I suppose you could assemble the pizzas, freeze them and then cook from frozen if you want to but I wouldn’t recommend it. These pizzas are so quick and easy to make, however, I recommend keeping the ingredients on hand so you can whip them up whenever you want them.

Fun FactsFun Facts

My favorite pizza from California Pizza Kitchen is the California Club without avocado. Don’t worry, you’ll see that recipe on the site soon.

Categories
Featured Main Dishes Recipes

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo from www.jasonscooking.com

BackgroundAbout this Recipe

As you’ve probably guessed, I’m a huge fan of cooking.  I’m also a huge fan of cold afternoons with nothing to do.  Put them together and (if you come over to my house on said afternoon) you get gumbo!  My gumbo just includes the stuff that I like (chicken and sausage) and excludes the things I don’t like (okra and shrimp in stews) so please feel free to use this as a base recipe and add or remove things that you like or don’t like.

People often shy away from making gumbo because the roux scares them.  When made on the stovetop, it takes a long time, you have to stir it constantly, and you can’t take a break.  It can also burn at the end and then you have to throw out the whole batch and start from scratch.  This problem is solved using Alton Brown’s oven technique for making the roux.  It takes longer to do, but you don’t have to babysit it.  Once you get past the roux, gumbo is pretty darn easy to make!

The RecipeRecipe
Chicken and Sausage Gumbo
 
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Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Creole
Serves: 6 - 8
Ingredients
  • 4 oz All Purpose Flour
  • ½ Cup Vegetable Oil
  • 1 Cup Onion, Diced
  • 3 Cloves Garlic, Minced
  • ½ Cup Green Bell Pepper, Diced
  • ½ Cup Celery, Diced
  • 14.5 oz Can Diced Tomatoes, Drained
  • 1 Tbs Salt
  • 1 tsp Black Pepper
  • ½ tsp Dried Thyme
  • ¼ tsp Cayenne Pepper
  • 1 lb Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs, Cut into 1” Cubes
  • 1 lb Andouille Sausage, Halved and then sliced into half moons
  • 4 Cups Chicken Broth
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • 1 Tbs file powder
  • Cooked White Rice for Serving
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°
  2. Whisk the oil and flour together in a 5 ½ quart cast iron Dutch oven or other sufficiently large, oven proof pot. Cook for 1 ½ hours (or more if you want a darker roux), whisking every 30 minutes. As it cooks, the roux will get darker and darker and that’s good.
  3. When the roux is done, carefully transfer the pot to the stovetop over medium-high heat and carefully add the onions, garlic, bell peppers, and celery and cook for 5 minutes, stirring the whole time. Your roux can still burn at this point so make sure you keep stirring.
  4. When the onions start to turn translucent, add in the tomatoes, salt, pepper, thyme, cayenne, chicken and sausage and stir to combine.
  5. Add in the chicken broth, scraping the bottom of the pot to get any of the brown bits into your gumbo and toss in the bay leaves. Stir to combine, reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 45 minutes.
  6. minutes before serving, add in the file powder, stir to get the lumps out, kill the heat, cover and let the gumbo to rest…you’d want to rest too if you were gumbo.
  7. Serve with rice!
Tips and TricksTips and Tricks

If you like shrimp in your gumbo, add the raw shrimp in at the end when you kill the heat and add in the file powder 10 minutes before serving. That should keep them from overcooking and turning into rubber.

Feed the FreezerFeed the Freezer

Frozen Gumbo Kit from www.jasonscooking.comYou can freeze a roux! The best way to freeze this (in my opinion) is to cook, cool, and bag the roux in one bag quart-sized bag, prep and bag the veggies and spices in another quart-sized bag, and prep and bag the meats in a gallon-sized bag. Pop the quart sized bags in the gallon bag with the meats and store in the freezer for up to 6 months.

When you’re ready for gumbo: thaw the bags in the refrigerator overnight, heat the roux over medium heat until it’s hot and continue the recipe from there. These gumbo kits make a great gift for a new mother or as a get well gift for someone recovering from surgery.

Fun FactsFun Facts
Red Brick Roux from www.jasonscooking.com
Red Brick Roux

There are 4 stages of a roux that are described – and identified – by their color. They are white, blond, brown and dark brown. The “red brick” stage is somewhere between brown and dark brown. You can tell that you’re at red brick because the roux literally takes on the color of a red brick.*

*Obviously it doesn’t literally take the color of a red brick.  That would be remarkable – as in something that is able to be remarked upon.

Categories
Appetizers Featured Jason's Favorites Main Dishes Recipes

Oven Baked Crispy Homemade Chicken Nuggets

Temperature400°Time20 mins

Oven Baked Crispy Chicken Nuggets from www.jasonscooking.com

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Note: Today’s Feed the Freezer section is the best Feed the Freezer Section ever so make sure you scroll all the way down.

Today is homemade chicken nugget day!! If you eat chicken and don’t like chicken nuggets, you should probably go see a doctor or something.

“If you eat chicken nuggets too much, you should also go see a doctor or something,” you might reply.
“Not if you make these tasty chicken nuggets,” I’d say to you.

These crispy oven baked chicken nuggets are quick, inexpensive, and perfect for freezing. They’re baked in the oven rather than fried which automagically makes them better for you than most nuggets (nuggets from the freezer section are fried before you get them) and, because they’re homemade, you know exactly what’s in them (ahem…freezer nuggets and most fast food nuggets).

These may not end your kids’ love affair with the giant clown’s fried chicken pieces but I guarantee they’ll eat them if you make them.

The RecipeRecipe
Oven Baked Crispy Chicken Nuggets
 
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Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 lb Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs, Cut into 1” Nuggets
  • ¼ Cup All Purpose Flour
  • ¼ tsp Kosher Salt
  • ¼ tsp Cracked Black Pepper
  • 1 Egg, Beaten
  • 1 Cup Panko Bread Crumbs
  • 1 Tbs Dried Parsley
  • ¼ Cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400°, line a half sheet pan with parchment paper, and spray that with non-stick cooking spray.
  2. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the bread crumbs, parsley and parmesan cheese. Toss to thoroughly combine and set aside.
  3. Place the nuggets, flour, salt, and pepper in a quart-sized zip top plastic bag, seal and shake vigorously until all of the nuggets are completely coated with a thin layer of flour.
  4. Dump the egg into the bag, reseal and shake again until the nuggets are all coated with eggs.
  5. Using your hands and working in batches of 5 – 7 nuggets at a time, shake off the excess egg and place nuggets in the bread crumb mixture, toss the nuggets in the crumbs until they’re completely coated, shake off excess and place in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining nuggets.
  6. Spray the tops of the nuggets with non-stick cooking spray and cook for 20 minutes or until the nuggets get to 165° – 175°.
Tips and TricksTips and Tricks

Because there is very little fat on the outside of the nuggets, there’s not much to encourage browning. That’s just fine with me but if you’d like to brown them a wee bit more when they’ve finished cooking, turn the broiler on for a couple of minutes. Be careful not to burn them because that would be very sad.

Feed the FreezerFeed the Freezer

Homemade Frozen Chicken Nuggets from www.jasonscooking.comI’m pretty sure God invented chicken nuggets so that people would buy freezers. Nuggets and freezers were made for each other so double or even triple this recipe and stash the excess in the freezer before cooking.

For Homemade Frozen Chicken Nuggets, put them in the freezer in a single layer on a sheet pan after breading but before cooking until they are frozen solid. Once they’re frozen, transfer to a large zip-top bag and store in the freezer for 3 – 6 months.

When you’re ready for nuggets, remove the desired number from the bag and cook as directed above, increasing cooking time by 5 – 10 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting a probe thermometer, and enjoy!

Fun FactsFun Facts

Tangled and Flynn Ryder (who my friend Lisa is a little in love with) make a cameo in Disney’s Frozen.

Categories
Featured Main Dishes Recipes

Homemade Chicken Fried Rice

Homemade Chicken Fried Rice from www.jasonscooking.com

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Happy Monday friends! If you read the Benihana Onion Soup recipe last week you may have been thinking, “Jason. What should I serve with that tasty soup?” Chicken Fried Rice of course! Fried rice is quick and easy to make at home using leftover rice from other dinners. All you do is cook some chicken, toss in your favorite veggies, rice and soy sauce and you’ve got home made take out.

One of my favorite things about this recipe is that, because the rice is the star of the show, you don’t need much chicken to feed a family of 4. You probably have everything you need to make this healthy and delicious Chicken Fried Rice at home right now, so put down the phone and pick up the pan!

The RecipeRecipe
Homemade Chicken Fried Rice
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Main
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 2 Tbs Vegetable Oil
  • 2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs, Cut into ½ in pieces
  • 2 Eggs, Lightly Beaten
  • 1 Cup Diced Onion
  • ½ Cup Diced Carrots
  • 6 Cups Cooked White Rice, cooled and refrigerated for at least 6 hours.
  • 1 Tbs Low Sodium Soy Sauce
  • Salt and Pepper
Instructions
  1. Heat the oil in a large skillet (or wok) on medium high heat until it just begins to smoke.
  2. Add all of the chicken and cook, stirring frequently until it’s cooked through (about 4 - 5 minutes).
  3. Add the eggs and mix until they’re cooked (1 minute).
  4. Add the onions and carrots, and cook until they’ve softened a bit (about 3 – 4 minutes)
  5. Add all of the rice and soy sauce and toss to combine and to heat the rice (about 5 minutes).
  6. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.
Tips and TricksTips and Tricks

Don’t use freshly cooked rice for this recipe or it’ll turn out mushy. Cooling and refrigerating your rice dries it out and makes it the perfect fried rice consistency.

Feed the FreezerFeed the Freezer

Throw your leftover white rice into storage bags and store in the freezer. When you have a hankering for fried rice, the frozen rice will be ready for use in this recipe! Just follow the same directions as above.

Fun FactsFun Facts

Soy sauce has been in use in China for over 2,500 years, making it one of the world’s oldest condiments.

Categories
Appetizers Featured Main Dishes Recipes

Benihana Onion Soup

Benihana Onion Soup from www.jasonscooking.com

BackgroundBackground

Until I met Michael, I had never been to a Japanese Steak House. By the time I realized that I’d never been to a Japanese steak house, I was probably 18 or 19 and I decided to never go to one and that would be an interesting thing about me. Many people were incredulous when I told them and they would invariably tell me that I should go and that I would like it. “Nah,” I would reply and that would be that.

Benihana Mike
Michael, his sister, and his brother-in-law celebrating birthdays at Benihana.

Then I met Michael…who LOVES Benihana. Specifically he loves the shrimp, the chicken fried rice, and the ginger dressing. Couple that with the fact that Benihana was the place that his family went when celebrating things and my days of “I’ve never been to Benihana” were over.

My first Benihana experience was before we went to a pottery painting place that I liked called Wired and Fired. It was a Something I Like + Something You Like evening. The food was fine (maybe a bit bland) and the show was entertaining and just like that I lost my status of Guy Who Had Never Been to a Japanese Steak House.

While the whole Thing isn’t my tokkuri of sake, I do like the sushi and the Onion soup is delicious! That brings us to today’s post (finally). Benihana Onion Soup is a pretty straightforward dish and a great example of less is more. You can whip up a batch really quickly and get more without feeling like a weirdo in the restaurant. It’s a light and simple soup that goes with pretty much anything.

The RecipeRecipe
Benihana Onion Soup
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Soup
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 3 Tbs Chicken Base (buy it near the bullion)
  • 8 Cups Water
  • 1 White Mushroom, Sliced very thinly
  • 4 Tbs French Fried Onions
  • 2 Green Onions, Sliced
Instructions
  1. Boil the water and chicken base in a medium pot over medium high heat for 30 minutes.
  2. Divide the French fried onions, the green onions, mushrooms and stock evenly between 4 serving bowls and serve immediately.
Tips and TricksTips and Tricks

For chickenier flavor, substitute chicken stock for up to half of the water.

Feed the FreezerFeed the Freezer

Use frozen chicken stock to whip up a batch of Benihana Onion Soup whenever you want one.

Fun FactsFun Facts

Gwen will eat chicken stock so this fits into the theme for the week. If you are a vegetarian who doesn’t each chicken stock, never fear. Better than Bullion makes No Chicken base too!

Categories
Featured Lunch Main Dishes Recipes

Sweet and Spicy Chicken and Waffles

Chicken and Waffles from www.jasonscooking.com

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On our recent trip to Walt Disney World, Michael and I decided to try the waffle sandwiches at Sleepy Hollow Refreshments. This place is a small counter-service joint in the Magic Kingdom that is on the Liberty Square side of the castle – it’s easy to miss so keep an eye out for it. We learned of this place from a WDW Radio Podcast and were pretty excited to try it. The great thing about having an Annual Pass is that you get to try hidden places like that because you’re not in a huge rush to do everything.

2014-10-11 11.15.24
Disney Chicken and Waffles

We both got the Sweet and Spicy Chicken Waffle Sandwich and, other than the fact that it’s more of a taco than a sandwich, it was fantastic! The Disney version is a waffle, fried chicken breast in a sweet and spicy sauce, arugula and cole slaw. The combination of Disney Magic, simple ingredients, and a straightforward presentation made the Sleepy Hollow Sweet and Spicy Chicken Sandwich a prime candidate for the blog.

The RecipeRecipe
Sweet and Spicy Chicken and Waffles
 
Author:
Recipe type: Main
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • For the Waffles
  • 3 Eggs
  • 1 ½ Cups Buttermilk
  • ¾ Cup Butter, Melted
  • 1 ½ Cups All-Purpose Flour
  • 2 tsp Baking Powder
  • ¾ tsp Baking Soda
  • ½ tsp Salt
  • 2 Tbs Sugar

  • For the Toppings
  • 3 Cups Bagged Cole Slaw Mix
  • ¼ Cup Prepared Cole Slaw Dressing
  • ½ Stick Butter
  • 1 Tbs Siraccha
  • 2 Tbs Orange Juice
  • ¼ Cup Maple Syrup
  • 8 Fried Chicken Tenders (I get them from the deli at my grocery store)
  • 1 Green Apple, Cored Sliced
Instructions
  1. Make the Cole Slaw – Toss the cole slaw mix and dressing together in a large bowl and set aside.
  2. Make the Chicken – In a small sauce pan, melt the butter, siraccha, orange juice and syrup over medium heat. When the butter has melted and the glaze has warmed through, remove from heat. Using a large bowl, toss the cooked chicken tenders with the glaze and set aside.
  3. Make the Waffles – Preheat your waffle maker and spray it with non-stick cooking spray. In a large bowl, beat the eggs, buttermilk, and melted butter together using a fork. Add all of the dry ingredients at once and mix just until everything is combined. The batter should be about as thick as pancake batter (flowey but not soupy). If it’s too thick, add some milk to thin it a bit. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions to make your waffles.
  4. WAFFLES ASSEMBLE! – Stack the ingredients thusly: waffle, 2 chicken tenders, apple slice(s), cole slaw.
Tips and TricksTips and Tricks

Overcook your waffles just a bit to help them stand up to the tasty toppings of this tasty treat.

Feed the FreezerFeed the Freezer

Can I use frozen chicken fingers and frozen waffles for this recipe? Yes you can. Look for home-style or Belgian waffles for the base and then simply whip up a batch of the glaze, toss the chicken, mix up the cole slaw and dinner’s ready! It won’t taste quite the same but it should satisfy your craving.

Fun FactsFun Facts

A lot of people associate Chicken and Waffles with the south but recipes for this unique combination are nowhere to be found in old southern cook books. 1930’s Harlem is who we have to thank for the chicken and waffles we enjoy today.

Categories
Featured Jason's Favorites Main Dishes Recipes

Dad’s Favorite Beef Stew

TemperatureSimmerTime1 ½ – 2 Hours Total

Beef Stew from www.jasonscooking.com

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Today would be my dad’s 66th birthday. To celebrate, we’re making his favorite beef stew! This stew is one of the few things that he could cook, and he would often make a large pot of it on winter afternoons. Some of my fondest memories include cold evenings in his condo watching movies by the fire place with a warm bowl of stew. He loved to make this stew and I love birthdays so I’m sharing this with you today. I hope you enjoy it.

This recipe is the epitome of a family recipe. My mom, my sister, my dad and I all have slightly different versions and all of them are delicious. My version is below but here are some of the variations:

Mom – Thinner with chunkier veggies
Brooke – No onions and flour slurry added at the end
Dad – Painstakingly consistent cuts of meat and veggies and served with rice

As with all recipes, use this as a base and then add or remove things that you like or don’t like. The great part about cooking is that it is personal and most recipes can be adjusted to suit your taste.

The RecipeRecipe
Dad's Favorite Beef Stew
 
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Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 6 - 8
Ingredients
  • 3 Tbs Vegetable Oil, Divided
  • 2 lb Boneless Beef Chuck Roast, Cut into 1-inch Cubes
  • ¼ Cup All Purpose Flour
  • 1 tsp Salt*
  • 1 tsp Pepper*
  • 1 Large Onion, Chopped
  • 4 Cloves Garlic, Finely Chopped
  • 4 Cups (32 fl oz) Beef Stock
  • 2 ½ lb White Potatoes, Peeled and Cut into 1” Chunks
  • 8 oz Carrots, Cut into 1” Chunks
  • 1 Packet of Beef Stew Seasoning Mix

*You’ll need more pinches of salt and grinds of pepper to season the onions and at the end.
Instructions
  1. Heat half of the vegetable oil in a large pot over medium high heat.
  2. Place meat, flour, salt and pepper in a large zip-top bag, seal and shake to coat all of the meat.
  3. Once the oil has heated up, add half of the beef to the pot to brown, stir after about 3 minutes to get the other sides. Remove the beef to a large bowl with a slotted spoon and repeat with the remaining oil and beef.
  4. After removing the second batch of beef, add all of the onion to the pan (add more oil if needed) and season with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper and stir everything around. After about a minute, add the garlic and cook until the onions are translucent (about 4 or 5 minutes).
  5. Add some of the beef stock and scrape the bottom of the pot to get the browned bits into the stew. Be very thorough and you’ll be rewarded with more flavor in your stew and a pot that is easier to clean.
  6. Add the remainder of the beef stock, the reserved meat, potatoes, carrots and seasoning mix to the pot and stir to combine. Bring the stew to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 – 1 ½ hours.
  7. If needed, adjust seasoning and serve.
Tips and TricksTips and Tricks

If you want to simmer this stew for more than an hour and a half, go for it. Just add the potatoes and carrots in 1 ½ hours before service to ensure they don’t disintegrate. I wouldn’t stew it for more than 3 hours though…your meat might start to break up.

Feed the FreezerFeed the Freezer

This stew freezes really well so feel free to make a large batch and put some in the freezer for a rainy day. Reheat on the stovetop, adding water if needed to thin it out.

Fun FactsFun Facts

My dad’s name was Charles so his nickname was Chuck. My mom once told me that she used his nickname to remember what kind of beef to buy for stew and now that’s how I remember it too!

Categories
Breakfast Featured Main Dishes Recipes

Chicken Sausage, Tomato and Green Onion Wraps

Sausage, Green Onion and Tomato Wrap from www.jasonscooking.com

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If you like quiche, omelets, breakfast burritos, or breakfast for dinner, you should give this Sausage, Tomato, and Green Onion Wrap a try. It’s quick and easy, healthy, inexpensive and is great for breakfast, lunch or dinner. We went with sausage, tomato and green onions but you can switch those out for any meats and/or veggies that you like. If you think of it as a handheld omelet, it’s easy to come up with ingredient combinations that you will love.

This is probably the first recipe that Michael and I disagreed on since we launched Jason’s Cooking. Michael liked it and I wasn’t a huge fan – mostly because I found it bland and boring. I’m not going to write this recipe off completely because I do think it has potential…I’m just not in a hurry to make it again. Next time I will definitely add cheese!!

The RecipeRecipe
Chicken Sausage, Tomato and Green Onion Wraps
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Breakfast
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 Tbs Butter
  • 6 Eggs
  • ¼ Cup Milk
  • 2 Green Onions, Sliced
  • ½ tsp Salt
  • ½ tsp Black Pepper
  • 2 Chicken and Apple Smoked Sausages
  • ¾ Cup Cherry Tomatoes, Quartered
  • 4 Whole Wheat Wraps
Instructions
  1. Melt the butter in a medium-sized non-stick pan over medium heat.
  2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs, milk, salt, and pepper until they are well scrambled.
  3. Split the sausages in half lengthwise and then cut into ¼ inch thick slices.
  4. Add the sausage and the green onions to the egg mixture and pour it into the pan to cook. Leave the eggs alone for about a minute so that the bottom layer can set up a bit.
  5. Using long strokes with a rubber spatula, gently push the eggs around every 30 seconds or so. Don’t fuss with them, you’re looking for big, creamy curds.
  6. The eggs are done when they set and still look a little moist (about 3 minutes). Stir the tomatoes into the egg mixture, and remove the pan from the heat.
  7. Divide the egg mixture among the 4 wraps, wrap them up like a burrito and serve!
Tips and TricksTips and Tricks

Remember: if your eggs look done in the pan, they’ll be overcooked on the plate. Take them off the heat when they still look a tiny bit moist and let carryover cooking do the rest.

Feed the FreezerFeed the Freezer

This recipe is the epitome of quick and easy so freezing isn’t necessary.

Fun FactsFun Facts

Michael doesn’t like uncooked tomatoes but he loves green onions.

Categories
Featured Main Dishes Recipes

Jason’s Guinness Stew

TemperatureVarious Stove Top TemperaturesTimeAbout 3 Hours

Jason's Guinness Stew from www.jasonscooking.com

BackgroundBackground

My friends Lisa and Melissa went to Ireland with me to celebrate my 30th birthday! If you ever get the chance to go to Ireland – take it. We rented a car and did a tour of the southern part of the Emerald Isle. That trip included 10 of the most memorable days of my life and I would absolutely go back in a heartbeat.

One of the greatest things about Ireland was the food – specifically the brown bread, Kerry Gold Butter, and Irish Stew. The most surprising thing about it was that most of the bars in Ireland serve brown bread and Guinness Stew and it’s delicious in all of them! Being an avid cook, I decided to try my hand about both the stew and the brown bread.

I started with this recipe from Cooking Light but decided that I wasn’t a fan of turnips and parsnips. They’re fine – kind of cinnamoney – but not my cup of tea. I substituted those veggies for potatoes and came up with this version of Guinness Stew that will keep you warm on a winter evening. Give it a shot and let me know what you think in the comments!

The RecipeRecipe
Jason's Guinness Stew
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Stew
Serves: 6 - 8 Servings
Ingredients
  • 3 Tbs Vegetable Oil
  • 2 lb Boneless Beef Chuck Roast, Cut into 1” Cubes
  • ¼ Cup All Purpose Flour
  • 1 tsp Salt*
  • 1 tsp Pepper*
  • 2 Large Onions, Chopped
  • 4 Cloves Garlic, Finely Chopped
  • 1 Tbs Tomato Paste
  • 4 Cups (32 fl oz) Beef Stock
  • 1 Bottle Guinness Stout
  • 2 ½ lb White Potatoes, Peeled and Cut into 1” Chunks
  • 8 oz Carrots, Cut into 1” Chunks
  • Dried Parsley for Serving

You’ll need more pinches of salt and grinds of pepper to season the onions and at the end.
Instructions
  1. Heat half of the vegetable oil in a large pot over medium high heat.
  2. In a large bowl, toss the flour, salt, pepper and cubed beef together so that all of chunks get some flour and some seasoning.
  3. Once the oil has heated up, add half of the beef to the pot and cook for about 2 ½ minutes, stir the beef and cook for an additional 2 ½ minutes to brown all sides. Remove the beef with a slotted spoon and repeat with the remaining oil and beef.
  4. After removing the second batch of beef, add all of the onion to the pan (add more oil if needed) and season with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper and stir everything around. After about a minute, add the garlic and cook until the onions are translucent (about 4 or 5 minutes).
  5. Add the tomato paste, beef stock and beer, scraping the bottom of the pot to get the browned bits into the stew.
  6. Return the meat to the pot and bring to a boil. Once the stew is boiling, cover, reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.
  7. After an hour of simmering, uncover the pot, increase the heat to medium high and bring it back to a boil. Let your stew boil uncovered for about 45 minutes or until the liquid is reduced by ⅓.
  8. Add the potatoes and carrots, reduce the heat to medium, cover and cook until the potatoes and carrots have softened, about 30 minutes.
  9. Taste, add more salt and pepper if needed (you probably will) and serve with a sprinkling of parsley.
Tips and TricksTips and Tricks

If you’d like to make this the day before, check out the freezer tip below. Instead of cooling and freezing, before the veggie step, cool and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Feed the FreezerFeed the Freezer

If you’d like to freeze the stew, stop cooking before you add the carrots and potatoes, cool completely, and freeze. When you’re ready to enjoy some stew, bring it to a boil, add the carrots and potatoes, and cook on medium for about 30 minutes until the veggies have softened.

Fun FactsFun Facts

You can get Irish Butter at the grocery store. Look for Kerrygold Butter on the top shelf of the butter section for your bread-topping needs. That’s right…there’s a top-shelf butter!