Tag: Recipe

Delicious Mexican Pasta

Mexican Chicken Pasta

Published on by richbLeave a comment

This is a delicious, quick and easy meal to make for a weekday meal when you are busy and don’t have a lot of time to spend cooking.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil1lb chicken breast, finely diced
  • 1 tablespoons chili powder
  • 1 tablespoons ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon garlic salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 1/2 large red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 can (10.5 oz.) cream of mushroom soup
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 lb. any type of pasta
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • 1/4 cup cilantro, for garnish

Directions

  • Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium high. Add the chicken and sauté until browned all over, 5 minutes
  • Toss in the chili powder, cumin, garlic salt and red pepper. Sauté another minute. Add the red bell pepper, cream of mushroom soup and milk and stir to combine.
  • Transfer to an oven-safe baking dish and sprinkle with the cheese. Cover and slide into a 350°F oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake 20 more minutes, until the cheese is browned and bubbly

Healthy Instant Pot Elk Meat Chili

Published on by richbLeave a comment

A friend gave me some of the elk meat from his last hunt. This meat is very lean and can be pretty tough. Cooking it in the instant pot makes it nice and tender. I wanted a hearty meal so I came up with this recipe from the items I had in my pantry and it came out great.

Ingredients

  • 1.5 pounds elk meat (Round steak) chopped into 1 to 1/2″ chunks
  • 2 tbsp. oil (Canola, Vegetable, or Corn oil)
  • 3 slices of finely diced bacon
  • 1 – 14 oz. cans of stewed tomatoes
  • 1 – 8 oz. can of tomato sauce
  • 1/2 – 6 oz. can of tomato paste
  • 2 cups of pinto beans (soaked overnight)
  • 6 cloves of garlic
  • 1 bell peppers diced (Green or Red)
  • 1 onions, diced
  • 2 tbsp. New Mexico chili powder
  • 1 tbsp. cumin
  • 1/2 tsp of oregano
  • 1 tsp of basil
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp. Worcestershire
  • 1 tsp of crushed red chilies (I used 3 extra hot dried cayenne peppers crushed)
  • 3 tsp beef bullion powder
  • 4 cups of water
  • Additional Garlic & Onion powder and salt to taste (I added about 1 tsp of Garlic and Onion powder)

Directions

Night before, put pinto beans in bowl covered by 3″ of water. When ready to cook, set Instant Pot to sauté and add oil and Elk meat, bacon and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp of salt and 1/4 of the diced garlic. Sauté till browned. Then add in tomato sauce and paste, chili powder, cumin, oregano, basil, Worcestershire sauce, beef bullion, and red chilies and stir. Set Instant pot to pressure cook high and cook for 40 mins. When done do quick pressure release, open instant pot and stir in the rest of the ingredients and then set for pressure cook high for 15 more minutes. When timer expires do quick pressure release and enjoy.

Healthy Instant Pot Barbacoa

Published on by richbLeave a comment

Ingredients (barbacoa):
5 cloves garlic
1/2 medium onion chopped
1 lime, juice
3 chiptoles in adobo sauce
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground oregano
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 cup water
3 – 4 lbs beef cross rib roast 5″ chopped into large chunks
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
black pepper
1 tsp oil
3 bay leaves

Ingredients (Toppings)

  • Cooked rice for Barbacoa bowls or tortillas to make tacos
  • Sliced greeen onions
  • Diced red onions 
  • Avacado diced
  • Cilantro chopped
  • Tomatos diced
  • Sour cream
  • Frozen corn microwaved 3 to 4 mins to cook
  • Jalapeno cooked pinto beans (can)
  • Cheese (Monterrey Jack or Cheddar)
  • Salsa or hot sauce that you like

Set Instant Pot to saute, wait to get hot, add oil to pot and brown chunks of beef. Cancel the saute cycle when beef is browned. Add in water then beef, squeeze the lime juce over the meat, sprinkle the onion, garlic and other ingredients over the meat. Close the Instant Pot and pressure cook on high for 60-70 minutes depending on how much meat turning off the warming at the end of the pressure cook. Let the pressure naturally release. Shread and mix with sauce that forms in a bowl. Server over rice with

Healthier Enchilada Soup

Healthier Chicken Enchilada Soup (Crock Pot/Instant Pot)

Published on by richbLeave a comment

Ingredients

  • 1 can of Cream of Chicken Soup
  • 1 8 oz can of tomato sauce (low sodium if desired)
  • 2 tbsp of Chili powder (I used 1 tbsp of New mexico chili, and 1 1bsp of generic chili powder)
  • 1 tbsp of Garlic powder
  • 1/2 tbsp of cumin
  • 1 tbsp chicken bouillon
  • 1 tbsp olive oil to saute chicken
  • 1 diced red bell pepper
  • 1/2 onion diced
  • 1 can of black beans (rinsed)
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tsp Siracha sauce
  • 1 can of sweet corn (optional)
  • 1 lb of chicken tenders
  • 1/2 cup of sour cream
  • 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese
  • 1/2 cup of whole milk (or heavy cream for creamier soup)
  • Toppings
    • Crispy tortilla strips
    • Cilantro minced
    • Avocado diced
    • Extra shredded cheese
    • Extra sour cream

I reduced some of the sodium by not adding extra salt and used chili powder, garlic powder, and cumin rather than canned enchilada sauce. Choosing low sodium tomato sauce. You could further reduce it by using frozen corn and low sodium bouillon.

Directions

Set Instant Pot to saute and put oil, chicken, onion, and pepper. Saute for few mins. Now add rest of ingredients but sour cream, cheddar cheese, and milk to crock pot or instant pot. Cook on high pressure for 25 mins. Quick release stir in sour cream, cheddar cheese, and milk. If using a crock pot skip the saute step and cook for about 4 hours on high or 6-8 on low.

Fluffy White Bread Machine Bread

Published on by richbLeave a comment

This Bread came out amazing. It had a really nice flavor, was fluffy, and incredibly moist. After cooling, I cut it and made a sandwich and it was excellent. Actually the bread greatly improved the sandwich taste.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/8 cups of hot water. (about 105 degrees F)
  • 2 teaspoons activated dry yeast
  • 3 tablespoons of sugar (I used organic)
  • 1/4 cup of vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 cups of white flour (I used all purpose)
  • 1/2 tablespoon butter to grease pan.

Directions

Add sugar into bread maker, then add hot water, followed by yeast. Let set for 5 minutes till frothy. Then add in flour salt and vegetable oil. Set for Dough setting if you want to bake in loaf pan (this is what I did). When dough cycle done, add into greased loaf pan. I used a long loaf pan (12 “), let rise for 30-40 mins till it rises above the top of the pan. While the bread is rising preheat the oven to 325 degrees F with a pan in the shelf below the bread pan in the oven to add about 1/4 cup of water when the bread goes in the oven. Add water and loaf pan with risen bread and bake for approx 30-35 minutes. Check temperature using a probe thermometer. Should be at least 190 degrees F in center to be completely cooked. Take bread out of the oven and immediately remove from pan and place on cooling rack covered with a dish towel. Let cool for 1 hour before slicing. After bread is cooled it can be halved and stored in a 1 gallon ziploc bag.

Ginger Black Refried Beans (Chino Bandito style)

Published on by richb2 Comments
  • 1 cups of dry black beans soaked overnight
  • 1 tbsp fresh grated ginger
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 tsp of Caldo de pollo (dry bouillon)
  • 1/4 tsp of white pepper
  • 1/4 tsp of dry mustard
  • 3 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 tablespoons of olive oil
  • Enough water to cover beans 1/2″

Place the beans in a pot, and fill with enough water to cover with 2 inches or so. Add in all other ingredients, bring to a boil and then let simmer for 3 hours or so, stirring occasionally. Put immersion  blender in and blend beans. Add the bouillon powder and other ingredients. Simmer for a while to the right thickness

Fried Rice Easy ~10 min in Microwave

Published on by richbLeave a comment

Ingredients

  • 1 cup rice
  • 2 cups of water
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon oyster sauce
  • 3 strips uncooked bacon, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic chopped finely (Can use chopped garlic in jar)
  • 1 cup cooked peas (If frozen heat in microwave for about 2 mins)
  • 3 eggs
  • salt, to taste
  • fresh scallion, to garnish

Directions

Combine first 7 ingredients in a microwavable bowl at least 1 quart sized. Microwave for about 8 minutes. Add eggs and some salt to bowl and beat. Microwave eggs for about 2 minutes or until cooked. Chop eggs and add to rice. Stir in peas and 3 green onions chopped.

Thai Red Curry Chicken

Published on by richbLeave a comment

This is a really easy to make and fresh tasting Thai dish. The lime juice brings a freshness to the dish and the brown sugar balances out the lime’s acidity. It took me about 30 mins of prep work and about 10 mins of cook time.

Ingredients

  • 2 – 3 Tbsp of red curry paste
  • 2 Tbsp of canola oil
  • 1 Tbsp of brown sugar
  • 1 tsp of minced ginger
  • 1 cup of green beans (I used frozen)
  • 1 small onion sliced into thin strips
  • 1 small red bell pepper or 1/2 of a large one cut into strips
  • 1.5 lbs of chicken cut into 1/4″ strips pieces
  • Juice from 1/2 of a lime
  • Cilantro and Green Onion chopped fine for topping when serving
  • 1 14 oz can of coconut milk

Directions

Heat pan on high then add canola oil, then add in curry paste and fry for about 30 seconds to wake up the flavor, then add in coconut milk and stir until curry paste is blended in. Add brown sugar and ginger stir till mixed. Add in the vegetables and cook till almost tender. Add chicken in and cook until the chicken is no longer pink. This should be quick since it is sliced thinly. Serve over rich and top with cilantro and green onion.

Thai Basil Chicken

Published on by richbLeave a comment

Ingredients

  • 1.5 lbs of boneless skinless chicken Breast Chopped into bite size pieces
  • 3 Thai chilies chopped
  • 5 cloves of garlic
  • 2 Tablespoons of Oyster sauce
  • 2 Tablespoons of low sodium soy sauce
  • 2 Tablespoons of Canola Oil
  • 1 cup of Thai Basil leaves chopped into small slivers
  • 2 green onions sliced finely
  • 2 Teaspoons of fish sauce
  • 1 teaspoon of white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon of brown sugar

Directions

Add garlic and peppers into a mortor and pestle and crush together then put into a bowl and mix in oyster sauce, soy sauce, white and brown sugar, and fish sauce till combined. Add oil into a hot pan and then add the chicken. Stir till it starts to brown and then add in a tablespoon of the mixture from the bowl. Keep stirring till it starts to caramelize. Add in the rest of the sauce and stir till pan deglazed and a coating forms on the chicken. Add basil and green onions to the pan and stir till mixed, then remove from heat immediately and serve with rice.

Note: The first time I made this, the sauce looked very thick and I added 2 tablespoons of water to thin a little. This was a mistake, the sauce has to be thick to coat the chicken. If it doesn’t cote the chicken the sauce along with most of the flavor will be all at the bottom of the pan.

Leftover Turkey Stew

Published on by richbLeave a comment

This is a great meal to use up the leftover turkey. Tastes great and is pretty healthy.

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon of butter + 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 2 – 3 tablespoons of flour (add for desired thickness of sauce)
  • 5 cloves of garlic minced
  • 2 carrots sliced about 1/4″
  • 2 potatoes cut to a small dice
  • 2 stalks of celery diced to desired size (I prefer small dice)
  • 1 med. sized onion chopped into about 1/2 inch pieces
  • 32 oz of chicken broth (I used low sodium)
  • 1.5 pounds of chopped cooked turkey
  • 2 – 3 tablespoons of flour (add for desired thickness of sauce)
  • 1 teaspoons salt (approx 1 tsp. add 1/2 tsp and add more salt to taste)
  • 1 teaspoon curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon of dried minced sage (or 1 tablespoon of fresh minced)
  • 1 teaspoon of black pepper

Directions

Add butter into pan over medium high heat, then add olive oil. When hot add garlic and lightly fry (don’t brown). Add in carrots, celery and onions and fry about 1 minutes more. Add in flour and stir and fry for another 2 minutes. then add in chicken broth slowly stiring and mixing with rue until smooth. Add potatoes, turkey,  about half the salt, sage, curry powder and black pepper. Cook until vegetables are tender. Add as much additional salt until seasoned to your preference. Serve and enjoy.