Crockpot Corn Chowder

By

 

Neil Waring Revered Wyoming Chef, outdoor cooking expert, admired woodsmen, award winning author, retired politician and honored citizen.

 

Make it in five or ten minutes and let it cook from Morning until Supper Time.

 

 The two types of corn add depth and great texture of this one

Ingredients:

·         3 cups frozen corn

·         14 oz. can creamed corn

·         1 onion, chopped

·         2 (14 oz.) cans ready to serve chicken broth

·         1/8 tsp. pepper

·         1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves

·         2 Tbsp. cornstarch

·         3 Tbsp. water

Putting it together

 Mix everything but the cornstarch and water in 3-4 quart Crockpot and stir it up good.  Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or until corn is tender. In small bowl, combine cornstarch and water and mix it in; stir into the Crockpot.

Cover and cook on high for 10-15 minutes until it thickens.

 Top with crackers and its ready to go

Makes enough for four (it is really clever using two 4s in a row)

 

Good Ol’ Boy Corned Beef Hash

Got 'er done!

This is now one of your favorite recip                    

Stuff you will need - Ingredients

·      3 tablespoons butter

·      1 large onion, finely chopped

·      2 cups diced corned beef

·      4 cups diced potato

·      Salt and pepper – this really does not need salt but if your BP is good sprinkle a little on

---

 

1. Get out the big old black skillet for this one. I love it when I get to use this one – hunting camp type food – let the calories fly

 

2. Turn heat to medium/high melt the butter toss the onions in hot oil until they soften and turns a nifty golden brown

 

3. Toss in the corned beef and potato. Stir and let them sizzle, don’t let it get too hot, fry until potatoes start to turn soft

 

4. Press the potato mixture down to creating a more compact layer.

 

5. Cook for a few minutes continuing to smash down potatoes (like one large pancake), takes a few minutes to get a nice golden-brown crust, but that’s what you want

 

6. Flip and cook for another few minutes to heat through.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper before serving.

 

*This is great with wild game made corned beef

 

 

Chicken alla Cacciatora

Chicken alla Cacciatora

-by-

Neil Waring
Revered Wyoming Chef, outdoor cooking expert, admired woodsmen, award winning author, retired politician and honored citizen.

I am not big on ethnic foods, usually preferring good old Middle -America country food - what else for someone who grew up in Nebraska and now lives in Wyoming? But I do enjoy Mexican, Chinese, Japanese and especially Italian on occasion.

 

So what is this alla Cacciatora stuff? Or am I the only one asking? It refers to hunter style, game meat most often poultry, cooked with onions, herbs and tomatoes in a wine sauce.

Ø  Cut up one whole chicken, or 3 chicken breasts, or parts and pieces of your choice, sprinkle the pieces with flour, salt and pepper and fry.

Ø  Take chicken from skillet and set aside. When cooled cut into bit sized chunks about ½ by ½ inch each

Ø  Chop one large onion, cook until soft in a small mixture of the leftover fat and 2 chicken bouillon cubes

Ø  When the onion has browned, add back the chicken and one pint fresh or one can diced or stewed  tomatoes and half a dozen sweet green peppers or one rough chopped green pepper.

Ø  When the gravy is thick enough add enough hot water mixture (use a mix of I teaspoon of cornstarch, 1 crushed chicken bouillon cube and one cup water- add slowly).

Ø  To prevent the burning of the vegetables, turn down the heat. Cover the pan tightly and simmer until the chicken is very tender. Add more hot water if needed, but don’t let it get too thin.

Ø  You can make this with chicken breast meat, but I like to use pieces of the darker meat also-tastes great either way.

Enjoy!

Ol Time Macaroni Soup

Remember those cold days growing up when grandma would bring us in after a day of building snowmen and sledding? We were so cold and she would set us down and bring in piping hot bowls of Macaroni Soup—NO—I don’t remember those days either, but this soup sure would have been good. Here it is.

 

Old Time Macaroni Soup

Ingredients:

ü 2 chicken breast fillets (chopped into approximately 1/2 inch squares)

ü 2 tablespoons oil

ü 1 med sized onion (chunked into medium piece)

ü 1 garlic clove or 1/2 teaspoon of granulated garlic

ü 3 medium sized carrots (chopped about same size as onion chunks)

ü 2 celery stalks (chopped); leaves (finely chopped) – I don’t like the texture of celery but I do like the taste, I substitute celery seed about a ¼ teaspoon

ü 1 small can evaporated milk

ü 2 chicken bouillon cubes (don’t forget to take the little yellow wrappers off)

ü 2 quarts of water

ü 1 cup elbow macaroni (cooked according to package instructions I really hope no one has to still read these)

ü Salt and pepper (heavy on the pepper and very light on the salt – I do not use salt as the bouillon seems to have enough salt)

ü Splash of oregano, and thyme (to taste)

ü Grated cheese-medium cheddar or fresh parmesan sprinkled on top –don’t overdo it

Directions:

·         In a Large pot, heat oil and toss in the garlic and onions until golden.  (Please- do not do this step if you are using granulated garlic)

·          Add chopped chicken to the oil, stirring and flipping all the time until browned nicely

·          Add the carrots and chopped celery to the mix chicken.

·         Boil the macaroni to a firm – al dente state.

·         Add  milk, and sautéed chicken cube mixture to the pot

·         Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for an hour (low heat)

·         Add your seasonings

·         Serve in bowls with grated cheese – can add celery leaves or parsley for color

·         At Christmas time we like to sprinkle the soup with a bit of paprika and parsley-fun and extremely festive for this ol’ Wyoming boy.

 

Sweet Potato Hay

 

 

Sweet Potato hay has been served in diffrent part of the world for hundreds of years, in america the recipe goes back to pre-Civil War times. And now it is back in the news because they were

served this year at the Obama Inaugural Luncheon

Slice two or more large sweet potatoes into very thin slices, (smaller than shoestring potatoes)

 

Slice and damp dry the potatoes and drop handfuls (hands full?) at a time into the oil

Deep fry in hot oil – a tad over 350 works best

They will tangle and come out in kind of stuck together piles – a like little hay stacks

 

I am not a sweet potato eater, not at all, but I like these

 

Refried Beans - Make Them Yourself

Refried Beans-Make them At Home-It Can be done!

-By-

Neil Waring

Revered Wyoming Chef, outdoor cooking expert, admired woodsmen and honored citizen.

Like stuff quick?   Well here you are.

Pinto Beans work the best but this also tastes and looks all-right with red beans.

·        2 Cups canned pinto beans-drain off the water

·        2 Tablespoons bacon fat

·        4 Tablespoons minced onion

·        4 Tablespoons Cheddar cheese, finely grated

·        Shake or two of paprika

Sauté onion in bacon fat.

Mash the cold beans (right out of the can after draining)

 Add the onions, keep on stirring as you add- Cook until it starts to dry out, (needs to be pretty dry).

 Add cheese while cooking on low or very low heat.

Best thing about this is you can make it quickly- make it while you are cooking the taco meat. Doesn’t take long.

-Enjoy-

Journey Bread and Donuts

Going on a Trip – Old Time Journey Bread

 

Also called fry bread or Indian fry bread (depended on who was cooking)

 

3 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp salt

2 tsp Baking powder

1 cup milk

 

Knead until soft but not sticky. Roll thin as you can get it.

 

Fry in cast iron (the big ol’ black one) frying pan in light coating of grease, no need for deep fry depth of grease

 

Easy to make while traveling thus – Journey bread

Sometimes on the trail this bread was placed on a greased board near the fire, but more often a piece of tin or iron was used

 

-Take the same dough –

Deep fat fry in an inch or so of grease, flip once with a fork

 Put it in a paper bag or cloth sack while still very warm (right out of the grease) pour in a 1/3 of a cup of regular sugar and shake like mad

Donuts, just like great-great grandma made!

Sour Dough Starter

By revered Wyoming chief, outdoorsman, historian, writer and all-around good guy.
Neil Waring

Easy to find sour dough recipes, especially on the western sites I frequent. Here is a good Old Time Sour Dough Starter recipe.

2 cups flour

2tbsp. sugar

1 tbsp. salt

1 ½ cups water

1 tbsp. vinegar

Mix up all the white stuff in a good stone crock. Pour in the water and mix-er-up

When is pretty well smoothed out pour in the sour stuff – the vinegar.

Cover with a dish towel or if you have it the new-fangled cheese cloth.

Set in a warm place, on the stove or fridge works well. It will sour in 8 to 12 hours, I like to leave it for 12. You will know when it is ready because you will smell the yeast.

There you have it Sour Dough Starter

After using add more water and flour  (at a ratio of about a cup to a cup)and it should last, if refrigerated, for years

Sourdough has also been called Chuck wagon bread, Cellar biscuits, Yeast dough, Forever dough and even Magic dough

SOUR DOUGH BISCUITS

1 1/2 c. sifted flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. softened butter
1 cup of your good ol’ starter

Stir dry ingredients together - add butter, then add starter and mix. Roll dough 1/2" thick, cut  

Let rise about an hour  bake hot about 425 degrees for 20 minutes.

Should make about a dozen, unless you cut them real big

SOUR DOUGH HOT CAKES

1 cup starter
2 cup flour
2 cup milk
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking soda
3 tbsp. melted shortening
2 tbsp. sugar
2 eggs

About 12 hours before serving hot cakes, mix starter, flour, milk and salt

Makes about 30 nice small cakes

 Enjoy!

Cowboy Potatoes

Cowboy Potatoes

This recipe is a takeoff of the old time Sheppard’s Pie, but no self respecting Cowboy would ever eat something named after a sheep herder-So here it is Cowboy Potatoes, could have named it something more like Sheppard’s Pie but somehow Cow Pie just didn’t have the right ring to it.

4 - 6 Slices of bacon

One cup bacon bits

One good sized onion sliced and chopped

A couple 2 or 3 pounds of taters (6 or 8 big ones)

 One cup of frozen corn - more if you have a taste for it

Salt and Pepper to taste (I don’t like much salt as the bacon takes care of the need for salt)

Paprika to taste

Brown up the bacon, but do not cook fully – save for the oven

Leave the bacon grease in the skillet (you will need the big old black one today)

Fry Potatoes and onions in bacon grease-when the potatoes have stated to soften remove from burner and stir in frozen corn and the bacon bits.

Place in oven for 20-25 minutes or until the corn is hot, soft, and yummy.

*If it is warm enough to grill you can mix everything together, wrap in foil and put on the upper rack of the grill. Let it cook while you are grilling; just remember it needs some closed lid time to cook through.

You can experiment with other stuff in this also- we add chopped carrots, pretty good and if you like some color a little parsley sure looks fine.

Happy Cookin’

*In no way does this fit any kind of heart friendly diet!

For my tongue in cheek look at a heart healthy cowboy diet click here

http://crazy-cooking.blogspot.com/2007/11/original-heart-healthy-cowboy-diet.html

The Masterpiece and a Smoke Alarm

Neil Waring
Revered Wyoming Chef, outdoor cooking expert, admired woodsmen, award winning author, retired politician and honored citizen.

I really hate it when the smoke alarm goes off when I am creating one of my kitchen masterpieces. Not sure if I need a new smoke alarm or a new recipe. You would think the smoke alarm could smell the difference between something burning and the yummy smells of my most recent culinary invention.

Oh-I burned the heck out of it and my wife said, “You know, there is a lower setting on the broiler.”

I thought about playing dumb but instead, fessed up, “there is?”

Pork Butt Rub

How to Properly Rub Pork’s Butt

-by-
Neil Waring
Revered Wyoming Chef, outdoor cooking expert, admired woodsmen, award winning author, retired politician and honored citizen.

I have found that marinating and/or injecting a pork butt is simply a waste of time and space. I do not find any additional flavor by doing this. (My opinion) I know this might be sacrilege to long time Pork Smokers, but it is what I have found in my semi-long and checkered career as a part time meat smoker.

I smoke at 220-250 for two hours with hickory chips and then 2 hours with apple or cherry - finish in the oven or a big-ol’-roaster. Finish at 240ish may take up to 6 or 8 more hours. Keep meat with the fatty side up throughout the smoking and roasting process. (I really like the word fatty, don’t get to use it much- quit trying to picture what I must look like).

Wait someone has a question about their butt ??

 Well, here is the answer - A Pork Butt is actually the Boston Butt cut (maybe a career in cowboy poetry is calling) why it is called that is a mystery to this old cowboy, the cut comes from the front shoulder.

-Here’s The Rub-

ü 2 Tbs Paprika

ü 4 Tbs Light Brown Sugar

ü 1 Tbs Salt

ü 1 Tbs Black Pepper

ü 1 tsp Garlic Powder

ü 1 tsp Ground Coriander

ü 1 tsp Onion Powder

ü ¼ tsp Ground Sage

ü 1/8 tsp ground Clove (we could say dash here)

ü Mix very well before using

-How to use-

Get your butt up to room temperature (about 90 minutes out of fridge)

*Slather your butt with yellow mustard* (about two tablespoons will be enough) then rub the entire butt with the mix. Press it in pretty good and fill any little cavities you find. Do all sides and use the entire rub (this is for an 8-12 lb butt, a pretty big butt actually)

Using the mustard and getting the rub coated well will help create those very tasty burnt ends—if you are a smoker or eater of fine BBQ you know what I am talkin’ about here.

*This is not a late night cable show

Happy Eatin’