Blogs

[#1]

Smashed Tater Salad

There are a million ways to make potato salad, but this technique of smashing the potatoes in the bowl makes for a nice texture.  The potatoes aren’t in chunks, and neither are they completely mashed like mashed potatoes.  It’s a good in-between place, and if you smash them up in a big Tupperware bowl with a lid, it’s easy to transport this side dish to your tailgate party or church picnic.

2 pounds small potatoes (the little red ones are good), scrubbed and cut into ½ inch pieces

2 teaspoons salt, divided

1/2 cup yellow or sweet red onion, minced

3 hard-boiled eggs, chopped (see Deviled Eggs recipe in chapter 5 for perfectly cooked hard-boiled eggs)

1 teaspoon minced garlic

¾ cup mayonnaise

¼ cup Dijon mustard, stone-ground mustard, or regular yellow mustard

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon brown sugar

½ teaspoon hot sauce (see Kickin’ It Hot Sauce recipe in chapter 6)

½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 to 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Boil the potatoes in enough water to cover with 1 teaspoon of the salt until fork tender, about 10 minutes.  Drain and transfer the potatoes to a large mixing bowl.

Mash the potatoes with a hand-held potato masher or sturdy fork.  Keep them a little bit lumpy.  Mix in the onions, eggs, and garlic.

Mix in ½ cup of the mayonnaise along with the mustard, lemon juice, and brown sugar, stirring to dissolve the sugar.  Add the rest of the mayonnaise if the mixture seems dry and even more if you want it “wetter”.  Season with the hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, and the remaining salt.  Stir well, then taste.  Add more salt, lemon juice, mustard, or whatever you think it needs.  Yes, it’s up to you; this is your potato salad, and these are your decisions to make.  Serve right away or chill before serving.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

 

Grilled and Smothered Strip Steak

Kix Story:  As the host of Steak Out with Kix Brooks on the Cooking Channel, I had the incredible opportunity to travel across the country in search of the best steak houses.  I visited all kinds of establishments from traditional steak houses to modern restaurants pushing culinary boundaries.  The number one thing I learned was that you have to start with a great piece of meat.  USDA Prime is the highest grade of meat you can get.  This is the grade of beef that contains the greatest degree or marbling, the flecks and streaks of fat in the meat.  The more marbling you have, the more tender, juicy, and full of flavor the meat will be.  USDA Choice beef has less marbling than Prime, but it is still very high quality, and it’s the most popular grade as it’s less expensive than Prime and more widely available.  The number two thing I learned is that you shouldn’t cook your steak immediately after buying it.  Let it sit in the fridge for at least a couple of days to give the enzymes time to break down and release the more flavor.

Instead of “out of the frying pan and into the fire”, this recipe calls for the steak to go “out of the fire and into the frying pan”.  You’ll be making your own steak sauce with this one as well.  It’s not hard to do, and the flavor rivals sauces that take way more time and effort.  This recipe calls for strip steaks, which are also called New York strip, Kansas City strip, or strip loin.  The “smother” is more of a sauce than a gravy.

Steak

4 (1 ½-inch thick) strip steaks (with or without bone---- bone-in has the best flavor)

2 tablespoons canola oil

½ tablespoon sea salt

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons KB’s Shreveport Shake Seasoning (see recipe in chapter 6) or other Cajun or Creole seasoning

Smother

2 tablespoons bacon drippings or lard

2 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil

1 red bell pepper, roughly chopped

1 green bell pepper, roughly chopped

1 medium white or yellow onion, roughly chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup beef broth

½ cup brewed black coffee

1 to 2 tablespoons of hot sauce

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon KB’s Shreveport Shake Seasoning (see recipe in chapter 6) or other Cajun or Creole seasoning.

2 tablespoons ketchup

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

To prepare the steaks to medium-rare, rub the steaks with canola oil, salt, pepper, and seasoning 1 hour before cooking.  Let the steaks rest at room temperature.

Meanwhile, prepare the smother about 30 minutes before you’re ready to cook the steaks.  Heat the grill to medium.  Place a cast-iron skillet on the grill grate and add the bacon drippings and oil.  Add the bell peppers and onion; stir and cook until the vegetables begin to soften, for about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic, and cook for 3 minutes.

Add the broth, coffee, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and seasoning, and bring to a low simmer.  Add the ketchup, salt, and black pepper.  Move the pot to lower heat, and simmer until the sauce thickens.

Place the steaks over direct heat (the hot area) on the grill; sear for 5 minutes.  Flip the steaks, and sear the other side for 5 minutes.  The steaks should now be done to medium-rare.

Stir the butter into the sauce, then remove steaks from grill, and place directly into the pan with the sauce.  Remove the pan from the heat, and baste steaks with sauce for a couple of minutes. 

Add the chopped parsley, and serve steaks and sauce at the table in the cast-iron skillet. 

Makes 4 to 6 servings.