Hunter Beef

This beef recipe makes me feel nostalgic as it was a staple during the winter months while growing up. There was a particular place my father would go to buy it. Moving away from home forced me to develop this recipe to control my cravings. My kids love it in their sandwiches and i love it thinly sliced over my fresh garden salad. This high protein , low carb, low fat snack is not only good for you but easy to make and it keeps well for a long period of time. All you need is a bit of planning for the marination time. But the end result is well worth the time and effort due to its versatility. 

Ingredients

Lean Beef chunk                      2 lbs 

Vinegar                                    1 cup

Water                                      1 cup

Salt                                         2 tsp

Sugar                                      1 tbsp

Black pepper                          2 tsp

Cumin                                     1 tsp

Method

1. Coarsely grind black pepper and cumin.
2. Pour vinegar in a glass bowl, add water and dissolve salt and sugar in it.
3. Add cumin and black pepper.
4. Prick the chunk of meat with a folk all over.
5. Put the meat in vinegar solution making sure it is covered all over. Cover and refrigerate the meat.
6. Now begins the waiting part of it as this meat needs at least 5-6 days of marination. You need to keep it in the coolest part of your refrigerator. Turn it over once a day making sure it is submerged in the solution.
7. After 6 days, put the meat in a pan big enough to hold the meat as well as the solution. Let it come to a boil, then put on simmer for at least one hour. Take the meat out of the pan and turn the heat on high to evaporate the water until you are left with a thick sauce. Rub sauce all over the meat and let cool in the fridge for at least a few hours before slicing.
8. Slice thinly. You can use hunter beef for sandwiches, salads, pasta etc. It keeps well in the refrigerator for 10-15 days.

Brown Butter Steamed Potatoes With Parsley

Potato is such a humble ingredient but one can do wonders with it by adding spices, flavours, herbs etc. They are my go to item when I am looking for a side to meat. This simple dish is a sure hit on the table as I have never had any left overs. It is such an easy recipe with just 6 ingredients which includes salt and pepper :). I like using baby potatoes as they look pretty but feel free to use any waxy potato variety, you can mix red skin and yellow skin for even a prettier look. Here is how the recipe goes:

Ingredients

Potatoes                                    2 lbs

Butter                                        4 tbsp

Salt                                            3/4 tsp

Black Pepper                             1/2 tsp

Parsley                                       1 Cup finely chopped

Chicken Stock/Water                 1/2 cup

Method

1. Heat a heavy bottom pan or a dutch oven. 
2. Add the butter and when it starts browning on the edges, slide the washed potatoes in it.
3. Sprinkle salt and pepper and coat the potatoes well with butter mixture.
4. Put two third of the parsley and add water or chicken stock. 
5. Once it comes to a boil, lower the heat and cover the pot. Let the potatoes steam till they are fork tender and there is no water left. If you can still see some water, increase the heat and dry it out.
6. Sprinkle the remaining parsley to freshen up the flavours and colours and serve hot.

Note:

You may need to adjust the amount of water depending on the size of your potatoes.

Chicken Mandi

Mandi is a rice dish available throughout the Arabian peninsula s well  as some African countries. Mainly
 it belongs from Yaman. It is a dish cooked with rice and any kind of meat fro camel to chicken. Normally its a young animal which is cooked in the clay oven and rice are prepared separately. Its a dish of special occasions like weddings and feasts or celebrations. It is so delicious that i just need an excuse of the weekend to make it :) I won't call it authentic recipe as i have not got it from any Yemeni friend. I had it during one of my visits to UAE and fell in love with that. So i recreated it at home and it turned out amazing and very very close to the original. I am writing the recipe in two steps; one for chicken preparation and second for rice. Here is how the recipe goes.

Ingredients

Rice

Basmati Rice                    2 cups
Onion                               1 small finely chopped
Tomato                            1 large grated
Garlic                               3 cloves grated
Salt                                  1.5 tsp
Sugar                               1 tbsp
Oil                                   1/4 cup
Cinnamon                        2 inch pc
Star Anise                        1 flower
Green cardamom              4-6
Saffron                             1 pinch soaked in 1/4 cup hot water
Chicken Stock                  3 1/2 cups

Method

Wash and soak the rice in room temperature water for 1 hour.
Heat the oil in a pan and add onion. Fry till they start browning at the the edges.
Add green cardamom, cinnamon stick, star anise, chopped tomato and grated garlic and cook till tomato disappears and it all becomes a homogenize mix.
Pour the stock in and add salt and sugar.
Once it all comes to a boil, drain the water fro the rice and add it to the stock. Let it boil and then lower the heat to medium and cover. When all the water is evaporated, sprinkle the saffron water on top of the rice and cover and steam on the lowest setting of your stove until you see the steam escaping from the lid.
Open the lid and fluff the rice using a fork.

Chicken

Chicken                            2-3 lbs whole skin on
Butter                               2 tbsp melted
Saffron                              1 generous pinch
Salt                                   1 1/2 tsp
Black pepper powder        1 tsp
Garam Masala                   1 tbsp
Turmeric                            1/2 tsp
Lemon                                1
Garlic                                 1 head slit in half

Method

Add all the spices and lemon juice to hot butter. Reserve the lemon rinds.
Wash chicken and pat dry with a paper towel.
Coat the chicken with butter mix and rub it all over including the cavity.
Put the lemon rinds and garlic inside the stomach cavity and let it marinate for at least 1 hour or upto 24 hours in the refrigerator.
Preheat the oven at 425 degrees.
Put chicken in a baking tray breast side down. Cover loosely with aluminium foil.
Bake for 40 minutes. Take out the chicken and flip it over. Bake for another 20-30 minutes until juice run clear. If the skin is still not brown put it under the broiler while keeping a close eye on it.

Note:

Traditional way of serving mandi is to spread an inch thick layer of rice on a big round platter. Put the meat in the center.
I like to garnish mine with some raisins but its totally optional.