Orange Soda Asian Style BBQ Sauce.

Here is yet another sauce recipe that I tucked away for a later date to post about. If there is one thing that I like, it's good food with something that makes it better. Now, as far as beef is concerned, I'm a real purist. I love the taste of beef by itself, unless it's something that is cooked with rendered beef fat to make the steak even more sinful. However, pork, lamb, veal, chicken, turkey, and most seafood needs a little bit of help. Well, maybe not lamb, but I hardly eat much of it anyway because of cost. I tested this sauce on some pork and rice with broccoli and sweet carrots. Perfect opportunity to do an oriental inspired sauce right? Well, most of you know me, I love making things with flavor profiles that I can recreate with soda. I love the taste of orange in Chinese food. It's bright, has a snap, adds a depth of flavor, and is a vibrant addition to anything. Here are the things you will need:

1 cup soy sauce
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 orange soda (I prefer something like Sunkist or Crush...Fanta uses too much artificial corn sugar)
2 tbsp balsamic, sesame, or rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tsp duck sauce
1 tsp Siracha sauce

2 tbsp ground ginger
3 cloves of garlic (crushed or chopped)
2 tsp dried onion
1 tsp red pepper flake
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white pepper

This is a teriyaki based sauce with added liquid so you need a little bit of extra sugar to thicken the mix a little. Add the top list of ingredients together in a pot on medium heat and mix vigorously to make it mix evenly. Once hot, add the dry ingredients. Continue to simmer while covered on the stove top on medium low heat for about 20-30 minutes (stirring often). Keep warm until ready to serve. What you get is a tangy, slightly spicy, Asian style sauce that would taste great on just about everything. Enjoy this stuff, it is habit forming. I have since enjoyed it on salmon, chicken, and beef (even though I hate to admit it), and it worked great. Just remember that cooking isn't rocket science all the time, just mess with stuff that works together and it'll be good. Till the next time, love yo' food.

Roasted Chicken with a Soy, Ginger, Honey Glaze

If it's one thing that I absolutely love, it's Asian flavors on chicken. This glaze can be put on pork if you would like, or a good steak. This time I just chose to put this on chicken, considering chicken is like a blank canvas to bring out flavor. This is a fairly simple recipe and is rather quick to do. This only takes about an hour. Here are some of the things you will need.

1 large package of Chicken Legs or Thighs
2 Tbsp Italian Seasoning
1 tsp cajun seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 cup natural ketchup(no corn syrup)
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp ground ginger
1 Tbsp honey
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp Red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 375ºF. Place chicken on a flat broiler pan, or in a roasting pan with a chilling track underneath it. This way, the chicken fat can drip off. Combine herbs and spices together and sprinkle on oiled chicken. This will season the chicken while roasting. Cover pan with foil and place the chicken in the oven for 45 minutes. After 45 minutes, remove the chicken, uncover, and set it back in the oven on the broil setting for an additional 5-7 minutes. While that crisps the skin a little bit, you're going to mix the 2nd group of ingredients together. This is a very thin and sticky glaze. When you take the chicken out of the oven. Place the pieces in a large mixing bowl and drizzle the glaze onto the chicken. Roll the chicken in the glaze until fully coated. Place the chicken on a plate and serve. You're good to go and enjoy a wonderful meal. I served this with crispy hashbrowns and sweet honey glazed carrots. This is virtually easy to do if you can get the timing right. Just remember, cooking is easy. All it takes is a little bit of this and that and trying out different combinations of flavors. Just be patient and love your food. Take it easy.

Ranch dressing or dip

This is a recipe that I came up with for a quick and simple ranch dressing. I won't go back to the bottled stuff again, because I can use it as I need it. And the ingredients are cheap. If you want to make this into mite of a salad dressing consistency add 1/2 cup of milk and a Tbsp of white vinegar. This will also give it a buttermilk ranch flavor. Try adding bacon for smokiness.

Easy 5 minute fix.
1 cup mayo
1/2 cup sour cream
1 Tbsp dill
1 1/2 Tbsp parsley
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp dried onion flake
1/2 tsp cajun seasoning
1 tsp salt. Mix together
makes about 12 oz.

Mayonnaise-easy recipe and very fast

Just made some simple and easy Mayonnaise. If you have a stick blender, it's much easier than using a countertop blender.
Here's some stuff you'll need.

2 whole eggs
1 tbsp dried mustard
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp white vinegar
1 Tbsp salt
3 pinches sugar
1 1/2 cup oil (olive oil, soybean, vegetable, or a good mixed oil)

In a mixing bowl or blender add both eggs, vinegar, lemon juice, salt, mustard, sugar. Blend until yolks are broken fully. Add oil slowly and at a slight drizzle while blending. If using a stick blender, blend on high speed until mixture emulsifies and bring the blender up until it peaks. It'll thicken quite quickly. If you're using a countertop blender, blend stop and scrape until oil is completely emulsified. Tastes just as good as store bought Duke's and is one recipe that kids will love to help with because of its ease.

Will last about two-three weeks in a fridge. Great stuff.

Drunken Chicken Stew

Here is a one pot meal that is absolutely wonderful to fix and is a genuinely delightful thing to have on hand for leftovers. That and you set it to cook early in the day and eat it when you want. You can do this overnight in a crock pot or you can do it in the oven in a covered stock pot of you choose. I like using the oven on this one a little better, but to each your own. A longer list of things are needed but it is a phenomenal stew. Go ahead and gather these items.

1 whole chicken
2 bottles of dark or amber lager beer
2 carrots (peeled, sliced)
2 ribs of celery (diced)
1 large white onion (diced)
1/2 pound green beans
1 bag frozen corn kernels
1 large can stewed tomatoes
3 cloves of garlic (diced)

2 bay leaves
2 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp salt
2 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp dry mustard powder or seed
1 tsp celery salt
1 tsp Cayenne pepper

1 cup long grain wild rice
2 cups chicken stock

Put the onion in a large pot over the stove on medium heat until slightly transparent. Add the celery and carrots, and place the chicken on top of the veggies. Pour the two bottles of beer in and add the rest of the veggies. Fill the rest of the pot with water to the top of the chicken.Dump in the spices and mix in with a wooden spoon, cover and place in a 300ºF oven for about 4 hours, if you want to cook it longer, lower the temp 15 degrees for each hour over. After 4 hours remove from oven and remove the chicken, shred the chicken off the bones and place back into the pot and cook for an additional hour at 250ºF. Prepare your rice per recipe subbing stock for water. Place rice in a bowl and put stew over the top and you're ready to chow down. What comes out of this is a rich stew with delicious flavors and an overwhelming want to get second our even thirds. Save the leftover stew and have leftovers with smashed potatoes or more rice. Sometimes it tastes better the second time around. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Cocktail Sauce

One of my favorite things in the world is shrimp. I can throw down on them. Steamed, fried, broiled, grilled, it doesn't matter. They're good no matter how you make them. But in most cases, you eat cocktail sauce with them or with fish. It's quick, it's simple, it's absolutely delicious, and you can make it at home to suit you're tastes a whole lot easier and cheaper by making it yourself than buying that disgusting cocktail sauce that comes from the store. Adjust how hot you like it by adding and removing horseradish and hot sauce. Here are the things you are going to use:

1/2 cup of ketchup
1 Tbsp Horseradish (raw and prepared)
3 dashes Worcestershire sauce
2 dashes hot sauce
1 dash lemon juice
1 tsp dried parsley
Pinch of salt

Like I said, it's quick and easy and this amount radio can be tweaked to fit your taste. But this is a good basis of measurement. For a really good experience and if you can handle the heat, substitute the raw horseradish for wasabi paste. Absolutely delicious sauce and it tastes much better than that garbage that you buy in the grocery store. Plus it's much cheaper to make.

Mocha Stout BbQ Sauce

So, you know I'll get into the kitchen every once in a while and make up a new BBQ sauce when I find some ingredients that I truthfully love. On this occasion, I was looking for a mildly inexpensive Stout that would offer a spin on my Guinness sauce with some different flavors. Behold Highland Mocha Stout. Thick, rich, full bodied, stout with heavy overtones of chocolate malt and coffee. I knew if I were to make a sauce with it, the sweetness from the chocolate would blend in with the acidity of the vinegar and just perform a level of sweetness without tasting like chocolate. The coffee flavors would be super prevalent, and, well, the yummy, succulent bitterness of the stout would just shine through. Here is what you'll need:

2 cups of ketchup (no corn syrup added)
1 cup of Highland Mocha Stout
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup brown mustard
2 tablespoons chilli powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon molasses
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 Teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Agave nectar (for sweetness)
1 teaspoon died onion flake
1/2 teaspoon Cayenne pepper

Add ingredients to a small pot and simmer on medium low heat while mixing together. Make sure all ingredients meld and are completely mixed in. Cover and simmer on low heat for about 30-40 minutes. Stir every 10 minutes or so that the sauce doesn't burn into the pot. What comes to fruition it's a joyful symphony of flavor that can only bring thoughts of happiness and sunshine. I've saved the rest and have used it on multiple different things since the Steak Sandwich that it was meant for, and it gets better with age. A truly awesome sauce. Just make sure that you have fun with these recipes and you can use them on multiple occasions. You won't be dissatisfied.