1 Tbsp. each salt, cumin, chili powder, paprika (we used smoked paprika), dried oregano, and black pepper (we used freshly ground black pepper)
2 tsp. red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ tsp. ground red
1 Tbsp. oil
3 cans (10 ½ oz. each) diced tomatoes w/ green chiles
1 jar (16 oz.) salsa (we used Pace mild)
1 onion, chopped (we used a yellow onion)
Directions
Take a large mixing bowl out and mix together in it the beef, salt, cumin, chili powder, paprika, oregano, black pepper, red pepper flakes, garlic and ground red pepper.
Set a large skillet over medium-high heat, pouring the oil in afterwards. Once the oil’s hot, add the beef in, cooking it to get browned for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring it around so the meat gets broken up. Drain off any fat before mixing in the tomatoes, salsa and onion. Place the meat mixture into a 4 ½-qt. slow cooker, putting the lid on afterwards. Let it cook on LOW for 4 to 6 hours. Serve immediately.
Serves 6.
This wasn’t as spicy as we thought it’d be, although it did get a little bit spicier overnight. We loved how easy this was to make, we’ll probably just be using a spicier salsa next time though.
3 lbs. of chicken wings, tips removed, wingettes and drumettes separated
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper for seasoning
Cooking spray
3 finely chopped large garlic cloves
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1/3 cup fish sauce
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 to 3 tsp. Asian chili-garlic sauce (we used 3 tsp. of sambal oelek)
3 Tbsp. finely chopped toasted peanuts (we used dry-roasted peanuts)
¼ cup torn cilantro and mint leaves
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Take two baking sheets and line them with aluminum foil. Spray the foil with the cooking spray. Divide the chicken wings between the two sheets, seasoning the top of the chicken with salt and pepper. Stick one sheet on the middle rack and the other on the bottom rack. Cook for 30 minutes, switching the sheets (middle rack sheet going on the bottom rack and vice versa) and letting the wings cook for another 30 minutes.
While the chicken wings are cooking, take a small saucepan and set it over medium heat. Pour the oil into the saucepan, letting it get hot. Now add in the garlic, stirring constantly for a minute or two or until the garlic looks golden. Mix in the fish sauce, brown sugar, and chili-garlic sauce, bringing the sauce to a simmer. Let it simmer, stirring occasionally until thickened and reduced down to about ½ cup (they said this could take between 4 to 5 minutes but it took longer than that for us). Mix in the peanuts.
Take the cooked wings and place them in a large mixing bowl. Pour the the sauce over the wings, tossing the wings to coat. Sprinkle the cilantro and mint over the wings and enjoy !
We tried the wings with cilantro and mint but we didn’t think the cilantro brought anything to the dish. The mint though tasted really good with the flavors from the sauce.
This sauce recipe came from Southern Living.
We weren’t paid in any form to promote Southern Living.
1 tsp. Sriracha or other hot sauce (we used Sriracha)
Directions
Take a mixing bowl out and add all the ingredients to it, stirring to combine. Cover the bowl and put it in the fridge for at least an hour so the flavors of the sauce have time to blend. After it’s been in the fridge for an hour, the sauce is ready to be used.
Toasted Rice, for serving with the étouffée (recipe follows)
Directions
Take a large pot (we used a large Dutch oven) and set it over medium-high heat. Once the pot’s hot, pour the vegetable oil in, adding in the andouille afterwards. Stir the andouille constantly for 4 to 5 minutes or until it looks crispy, taking the andouille out afterwards and placing it on a plate for now. Season the chicken with salt (we seasoned both sides of the chicken) before adding it to the Dutch oven in batches to get browned for 5 minutes per side (our chicken took 4-5 minutes per side to get browned). Once each batch is browned, put the chicken on the same plate as the andouille. Once all the browned chicken is on the andouille plate, you can move onto the next step.
Now we make the roux: take the pot off the heat and let it cool down a little bit before measuring how much drippings are in the pot (you only need ¼ cup, if you have more than that, then discard the excess but if you don’t have enough to get ¼ cup then add more oil until you do reach ¼ cup). Return the pot (with the ¼ cup of drippings in it), sitting it over medium heat. Once the drippings are hot, sprinkle in the flour, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot using a wooden spoon. Continue to stir for 10 to 12 minutes or until the flour mixture looks deep brown and smells nutty. Now mix in the following ingredients: celery, onion, bell pepper, garlic, cayenne and salt to taste (we added in ½ teaspoon). Stir for 6 to 8 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
Whisk the broth in now, putting the andouille and chicken back into the pot. Let the mixture simmer for 25 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked (25 minutes did it for us). Take the chicken out of the pot and put it on a plate where it can cool down enough that you won’t end up burning your fingers when you handle it (don’t turn the heat off, let the stew simmer). Remove the skin and bones from the chicken and throw them away. Shred the chicken meat and put it back in the pot, adding in the shrimp and sherry as well. Let the stew cook for another 2 to 3 minutes or until the shrimp is pink and just cooked through. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
Toasted Rice
Ingredients
4 tablespoons butter (we used unsalted butter)
2 cups converted long-grain rice
1 teaspoon salt (we used table salt)
½ teaspoon pepper (we used freshly ground black pepper)
2 cups chicken broth (we used reduced-sodium chicken broth)
Chopped scallions (we sliced 3 scallions)
Chopped parsley (We took a bundle of Italian parsley, removed the stems and roughly chopped the leaves. We got somewhere between 1/3 to ½ cup of chopped parsley.)
Directions
Add the butter to a pot, setting the pot over medium-high heat. Once the butter’s melted, stir in the rice, salt and pepper. Continue to stir for another 5 minutes or until the rice looks golden. Stir in the broth and water, bringing it to a simmer. Once simmering, turn the heat down to low. Put a lid on the pot to cover and let the rice cook for 15 minutes. Take the pot off the heat and let it sit for 5 minutes. Fluff the rice with a fork and mix in the scallions and parsley.
Étouffée in french means “smothered” and believe us, this tastes so good you’re definitely going to want to smother the rice with this delicious étouffée ! While the dish did turn out salty (which is on us), there was so much flavor in the sauce that it was hard to put it down ! The rice actually helped cut down on the saltiness and added more texture to the meal but was tasty enough that we could’ve been happy just eating it all by itself. The andouille was like an extra burst of flavor every time you had some in a bite. The chicken and shrimp helped make this feel hearty as well as adding additional textures to the dish. This étouffée is wonderful whether you’re looking for something to fix for mardi gras or just want a scrumptious, hearty meal
This recipe came from Food Network.
We weren’t paid in any form to promote Food Network.
2/3 cup finely chopped onion (we used yellow onion)
2 pounds ground chicken
¼ cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
1 ½ teaspoons koser salt
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon ground black pepper (we used freshly ground black pepper)
Slider buns (we used Pepperidge Farm Golden Potato Slider Buns), pickles (we used dill pickle slices), and White Barbecue Sauce (recipe follows), to serve
Directions
Take a small skillet out and pour 1 tablespoon of the oil into it, placing the skillet over medium heat. Once the oil’s hot, toss in the onion, cooking it for 6 minutes or until it’s softened. Transfer the softened onions to a large mixing bowl, letting them cool before adding the following ingredients to the bowl as well: chicken, bread crumbs, salt, paprika, garlic powder, and pepper. Stir well to combine, putting a lid on the bowl afterwards and placing it in the fridge for one hour. Take the bowl out of the fridge and roll the chicken mixture into 32 balls (about 4 teaspoons of the mixture per meatball).
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Take a rimmed baking sheet out and spray it with cooking spray (we lined our baking sheet with aluminum foil and then sprayed the foil with cooking spray).
Take a large skillet out and pour 2 tablespoons of the oil into it, placing the skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil’s hot, add a portion of the meatballs in, gently turning them now and then for 3 minutes or until they get browned all over (we had to turn them frequently so they wouldn’t get burnt). Transfer the browned meatballs to the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining meatballs, adding in the last tablespoon of oil if necessary.
Place the baking sheet in the oven for 15 minutes or until the meatballs are fully cooked. Serve the meatballs on the buns, topping the meatballs with the pickles and White Barbecue Sauce.
White Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients
1 cup mayonnaise
5 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
½ teaspoon ground black pepper (we used freshly ground black pepper)
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
Directions
Add all of the ingredients to a medium-sized mixing bowl, stirring until combined and smooth. You can serve this right away or cover and stick it in the fridge for up to a week.
We love Alabama barbecue so when we saw a meatball slider version, we had to try it out ! You get a little bit of smokiness in the meatballs and while the meatballs taste good on their own, these sliders taste fantastic once the White Barbecue Sauce is added on. The sauce was creamy and tangy and paired wonderfully with the meatball. The pickle slices only add more flavor as well as some crunchiness to the dish that’d be missing otherwise. Hope you enjoy these as much as we did !
We got this recipe from Taste Of The South.
We weren’t paid in any form to promote Pepperidge Farm or Taste Of The South.
Sweet 'n Savory Therapy 