Serves 4

3   pounds russet potatoes (about 4 large potatoes), peeled, ends and sides squared off, and cut lengthwise into 1/2 inch by 1/2-inch fries (see illustrations below)
3  quarts peanut oil (or canola oil), plus 1/4 additional cup
1 1/2  cups all-purpose flour
1/2  cup cornstarch
1/2  teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2  teaspoon paprika
1/8  teaspoon ground black pepper
Table salt
1  teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2  pounds 1-inch-thick cod fillet (or other thick white fish, such as hake or haddock) cut into eight 3-ounce pieces
1 1/2  cups beer (12 ounces), cold

1. Place cut fries in large microwaveable bowl, toss with 1/4 cup oil, and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on high power until potatoes are partially translucent and pliable but still offer some resistance when pierced with tip of paring knife, 6 to 8 minutes, tossing them with rubber spatula halfway through cooking time. Carefully pull back plastic wrap from side farthest from you and drain potatoes into large mesh strainer set over sink. Rinse well under cold running water. Spread potatoes onto kitchen towels and pat dry. Let rest until room temperature, at least 10 minutes and up to 1 hour.

2. While fries cool, whisk flour, cornstarch, cayenne, paprika, pepper, and 2 teaspoons salt in large mixing bowl; transfer 3/4 cup of mixture to rimmed baking sheet. Add baking powder to bowl and whisk to combine.

3. In heavy-bottomed Dutch oven, heat 2 quarts oil over medium heat to 350 degrees. Add fries to hot oil and increase heat to high. Fry, stirring with mesh spider or slotted metal spoon, until potatoes turn light golden and just begin to brown at corners, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer fries to thick paper bag or paper towels to drain.

4. Reduce heat to medium-high, add remaining quart of oil, and heat oil to 375 degrees. Meanwhile, thoroughly dry fish with paper towels and dredge each piece in flour mixture on baking sheet; transfer pieces to wire rack, shaking off excess flour. Add 1 1/4 cups beer to flour mixture in mixing bowl and stir until mixture is just combined (batter will be lumpy). Add remaining beer as needed, 1 tablespoon at a time, whisking after each addition, until batter falls from whisk in thin, steady stream and leaves faint trail across surface of batter. Using tongs, dip 1 piece fish in batter and let excess run off, shaking gently. Place battered fish back onto baking sheet with flour mixture and turn to coat both sides. Repeat with remaining fish, keeping pieces in single layer on baking sheet.

5. When oil reaches 375 degrees, increase heat to high and add battered fish to oil with tongs, gently shaking off excess flour. Fry, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Transfer fish to thick paper bag or paper towels to drain. Allow oil to return to 375 degrees.

6. Add all fries back to oil and fry until golden brown and crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to fresh paper bag or paper towels to drain. Season fries with salt to taste and serve immediately with fish.

This is one of my favorite filipino dishes. This is my Aunt Dolly’s recipe, and I think I almost have it close to tasting like hers. When I first asked for the recipe, she kind of joked, well you put this in then you put that in. So I finally sat down with her and she showed me how she makes it. After taking down notes while cooking, this is what the recipe turned out to be. It is best served with white rice. This makes about 8 -10 servings.

***UPDATE: I recently tried using trip tip instead of brisket and i loved the results. It more tender and moist. Not to mention, a shorter cooking time. I did like that at my local Costco they carried Tri Tip already cut into about strips, which made preparation easier. Additionally, my potatoes kept disintegrating into the sauce. I did want some of the natural potatoe starch to thicken the sauce, but I didn’t want to lose the whole potatoe. So I started to cut it into bigger chunks and it solved the problem. ***

5 pounds beef brisket, flat cut (USDA Choice is preferable), cut along grain in 1″ strips, then cut across grain in 1/2 ” pieces (OR Tri Tip)
1 medium onion, chopped
6 tablespoons dried minced onions
1 medium tomato, cut in 1/2 lengthwise, then sliced
2 bay leaves, whole
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 (16oz) cans tomato sauce
4 medium potatoes, cut into 1/2″ chunks
juice from 1/2 a lemon
pepper, to taste

1. Put ingredients in order into a pot. Cook on medium-high heat, until boiling.

2. Reduce heat to medium-low to medium. Cook until meat is tender, stirring every 15 min. Potatoes will melt into the sauce and thicken it. If sauce is not tastey enough, add a little more soy sauce.

This is on of the more simpler Filipino dishes to make. Its also one of my favorites. There’s a version of this that my aunt makes that uses pork instead of steak that is really good. I will post that later. I like to make this with top sirloin, but it could probably made with like flap steak or top round.

Filipino Beef Steak
Serves 6

2 lbs top sirloin, cut into 1/4″ slices
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup lemon juice
pepper, to taste
2 medium onions, sliced into 1/4″ slices
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp oil

Mix soy sauce, lemon juice, garlic, pepper and sliced steak in bowl. Let marinate in refrigerator for 15-30 minutes.

Heat oil in 12″ saute pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions and cook until just getting tender and edges start to brown. Remove from pan onto separate plate.

Fry beef in small batches until cooked and remove them into separate serving bowl. Once all beef is cooked, pour remaining sauce into pan and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 2-3 minutes. Add onions and toss to coat. Cook until onions are soft. Pour over beef. Serve with rice.

This is just a quick little dish I made today. I wanted something relatively simple, but tasty. All I did was lightly season some boneless pork loin chops with some Garlic Award Mix. Then I pan fried it in just a little bit of oil. I made the sauce in the same pan, taking advantage of the fond that developed while I was cooking the pork chops.

If you’ve been read some of my other recipes, there has a been a trend of the all-purpose seasoning that I use. I really like the Garlic Award Mix, its an excellent blend of spices and garlic (one of my favorite spices). Any other season blend can be used (e.g. Mrs. Dash, Montreals Steak or Chicken seasoning, or make your own etc).

Brine
1/2 cup kosher sault
1/4 cup sugar
2 quarts water

Pork Chops
6 1/2″ pork loin chops
Garlic Award Mix
2 tb oil

Sauce
1 shallot, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 ts worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup vermouth
1 tb lemon juice
2 tb butter

Mix salt & sugar in 2 quarts of water until dissolved. Place pork chops in brine to soak and place in refrigerator for 30 minutes. Drain and lightly rinse the pork chops. Pat the pork chops dry with paper towels. Lightly sprinkle the garlic award mix on both sides of the pork chops.

In a 8″ skillet heat oil over medium high heat. Reduce heat to medium and cook pork chops in 2 batches. Cook on each side for 3 minutes. Place cooked chops on a warm plate, tented with foil, while cooking the 2nd batch.

Once all the pork chops are cooked, remove pan from heat and saute the shallots for 15 seconds, scraping the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add garlic and cook (off heat), for another 5-10 seconds. Put pan back on the burner at medium low heat and add the vermouth worcestershire sauce. Stirring over medium low heat, bring just to a slight simmer, about 2-3 minutes. Add juice that has collected in the bottom of the plate where the chops have been resting, bring back up to a slight simmer. Add lemon juice and butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. Stir until well combined.

Serve sauce on the side.

This is fairly simple recipe for BBQ chicken. I just gussy up some bottled bbq sauce, and voila yummy sauce. The chicken can be grilled or broiled. If broiling, I suggested basting with the sauce prior to putting under the broiler and to make sure its at least 6″ from the element. Otherwise the bbq sauce can burn before the chicken cooks. The recipe I made was for a big batch of chicken, it could easily be halved. I also found that cutting slits into the thighs makes cooking the bone-in thighs easier. You could use boneless, skinless thighs for the recipe, but you would need to decrease the cooking time by almost 1/2, depending on the thickness of the chicken. And reduce the brining time to 30 minutes, otherwise the chicken might be a little salty.

Brine:
1 cup kosher salt or 1/2 cup table salt
6 garlic cloves, smashed
2 quarts water

Sauce:
1 cup Bull’s Eye Original BBQ sauce
1 tb molasses
1 tb worcestershire sauce
1 tb Garlic Award Mix (or other seasoning, like Mrs. Dash)
couple of dashes of tobasco

12 bone-in chicken thighs

1. Dissolve salt in the 2 quaarts of water. Addgarlic cloves and chicken. Soak in brine solution for 1 hour in refridgerator. Drain and rinse with water to remove some of the surface salt. Cut two slits crosswise (across the bone) on the skin side.

2. Fill a chimney starter with 6 quarts of charcoal and light. Once charcoal have a light grey ash all over, pour onto grate and stack 2 high on one side of the grate. Put grill on and let heat for 5 minutes. Clean grill with a grill brush. With a paper towel lightly soaked with oil, wipe the grill down. Close the vents closest to the fire, and keep the vents wide open on the opposite side.

3. Grill chicken skin side up for about 6-8 minutes until the underside is starting to get golden brown. You may need to spritz any flare up with a water bottle.

4. Turn over and start grilling skin side down. While the chicken is cooking with the skin side down, start basting with the bbq sauce. After about 6-8 minutes turn over to start carmelizing the bbq sauce. Start basting the skin side with the bbq sauce.

5. After a few minutes and the underside just start to char turn over to carmelize the skin side of the chicken. Baste the chicken again with the bbq sauce.

6. Turn over one last time and check for doneness. Take off the grill once internal temperature reaches 175 degree. If additional cooking time is required, give one last basting with bbq sauce.

Serves 12

When I was doing my shopping in preparation for the BBQ I was having this weekend, I came across a Jack Daniels Mesquite EZ Marinade. The marinade was already in a heavy duty zip lock type bag, and all you needed to do was add meat. I’ve always liked the Jack Daniels menu items at Friday’s, and I thought what the heck I’ll try it. I did have enough tri tip to marinate both in the Jack Daniels Mesquite EZ marinade and a Garlic, Ginger and Soy marinade I had originally been planning on doing. In this recipe I used tri tip steaks (at least thats how it was marked on the Costco packaging). It just looked like a tri tip that was cut into strips. I thought it would be easier to cook when it was in strips, and easier to cook the strips to different doneness. When I have the whole family over, I normally have to cook beef from anywhere between medium-rare to well done.

I got the Garlic, Ginger and Soy Marinade from one of my favorite sites for recipes, America’s Test Kitchen. I used a little less ginger than the recipe called for becase I’m not fond of a strong ginger taste. The recipe actually calls for marinating for 1 hour, but I marinated it for 3-4 hours and got good results. I was surprised that the flavor was quite mild, but tasty. As opposed to the tri tips that I marinaded with the Jack Daniels EZ marinade that had a bold, sweet flavor. Quite reminiscent of the Jack Daniels items at Friday’s. Both sets of tri tips came out quite tender. I’m not sure if they start out that tender, or by marinating for up to 3 hours helped in its tenderness.

I cooked the tri tip over medium hot coals, and I pulled most of them off by the time it was medium (some of the pieces were tapered so I knew those ends would be closer to well done). I let the meat rest for about 5-10 minutes

1 pkg Jack Daniel’s Mesquite Marinade
Garlic, Ginger Soy Marinade (recipe below)
4 lbs Tri Tip Steaks (about 1 1/2 inches thick)

1. Poke all the tri tip steaks with a fork all over. Put 2 lbs of tri tip steaks into Jack Daniel’s marinade bag. Put other 2 lbs of tri tip steaks into a zip lock bag and pour the garlic, ginger, and soy marinade over it. Refigerate for at least 1 hour. Flipping the bags over about 1/2 way through the marinating time.

2. Fill a chimney starter with 6 quarts of charcoal and light. Once charcoal have a light grey ash all over, pour onto grate and stack 2 high. Put grill on and let heat for 5 minutes. Clean grill with a grill brush. With a paper towel lightly soaked with oil, wipe the grill down.

3. Lay tri tips to a right angle of the grill grates and baste with some of the extra marinade. Cook for 5-6 minutes on first side. Turn over and cook for another 5-6 minutes (or longer depending on desired doneness). Baste again.

4. Remove from grill when you’re 5 degrees below desired doneness. Tent loosely with foil and let rest 5 minutes.

Medium-Rare 145 degrees
Medium 150 degrees
Medium-Well 165 degrees
Well 170+ degrees

5. Slice thinly (about 1/4″) pieces against the grain and serve.

Serves 6-8
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Garlic, Ginger, and Soy Marinade
Source: America’s Test Kitchen

1/3 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
3 medium cloves of garlic pressed through garlic press or minced (about 1 tablespoon)
1 piece fresh ginger (1 inch), minced (about 1 tablespoon)
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons grated orange zest from 1 orange
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 medium scallion sliced thin

Combine all ingredients in small bowl

I’ve been craving Tonkatsu for weeks and I just haven’t gotten around to making it. I think this is probably one of the easiest Japanese dishes to make. I learned this technique from a Japanese co-worker years ago. I did make a few of my own tweaks to it that I thought made a crunchier (and better sticking) crust. I bet you’re wondering what ‘ajinomoto’ is, well, its just MSG. I just think ajinomoto sounds better . This is an optional ingredient to use, as I am aware that there are many people who are sensitve to MSG. I have never omitted MSG, so I do not know what the taste difference would be. I do not use very much, just a light sprnkle on each side. On to the pork chops, I bet you’re asking why buy 1/2″ chops just to pound them down to 1/4″, why not just buy 1/4″ ones. I guess you could do that, but I think pounding them makes them a little more tender, and you relieve some stress at the same time.

As a suggestion from a friend, I decided to add a few more pictures to this recipe. It will show some of the steps I took to create this dish. And you’ll a couple of links to some short videos demonstrating a couple of things. Sorry no voice instructions for this recipe .

6 - 1/2″ Pork Top Loin Chops
1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 eggs
2 tbl water
salt
pepper
ajinomoto (optional)
canola oil for frying

1. Put pork chops one at a time into a ziplock bag. Pound the pork chop (video link here) with a meat pounder until they are approximately 1/4″ thick.

2. Sprinkle both sides with salt, pepper, and ajinomoto.

3. In a shallow bowl or plate put cornstarch, set aside. In a shallow bowl add eggs and water and beat until frothy. Set aside. In a separate plate add the panko bread crumbs.

4. Working with one chop at a time. Dip both sides into cornstarch to lightly cover. Then dip both sides into egg mixture.

5. Set onto panko bread crumbs and sprinkly some bread crumbs on top. Flip the chop over to coat the other side with bread crumbs. Press firmly on pork chop to bread crumbs set in. Transfer to plate or baking rack set over paper towels.

6. Repeat steps 5 & 6 with the remaining chops.

7. Pour about a 1/4″ of oil into a 12″ skillet. Heat over medium-high heat until breadcrumbs bubble and float to the top once dropped into oil (video link).

8. Reduce heat to medium and carefully put 2 pork chops into hot oil. (video link here)

9. Cook for about 3-4 minutes until golden brown. Turn over and cook for 3-4 minutes until golden brown.

10. Transfer to wire rack to drain and cool slightly. Cook remaining pork chops as diredted in step 10.

Serve with rice and tonkatsu sauce.

I experimented with variations of the dry rub before I came up with the combo that I have here. I started off with the base from the Good Eats episode “A Rib for All Seasons” The dry rub recipe that he used is excellent as well. I’ve changed quite a bit of the ingredients but have roughly kepts the proportions at a ratio of 8:3:1:1. This rub works well quite a few meats, I’ve used it on the pork loin roast, ribs and chicken. The original rub is quite yummy, but I wanted mine to be unique. I wanted to add my own twist to it. Some of the ingredients I used can be found in the spice asiles of most grocery stores but there is one (Garlic Award Mix)that I got from the Gilroy Garlic Festival and I am not sure how easily available it is in markets. But it can be found over the net. I’ll usually make a double batch of this and put into a jumbo size shaker. That way I always have some readily available.

Da’ Rub
8 tablespoons light brown sugar, tightly packed
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons Garlic Award Mix
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon pappys seasoning
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon coriander seed, lightly crushed
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika

Pork Loin Roast
2 1/2 to 3 lbs pork loin roast, tied in 1 1/2″ intervals
6 tablespoons salt
3 quarts cool water
2 tablespoons olive oil

mesquite charcoal

1. Dissolve salt in 3 quarts water. Place pork loin in salt water and let soak 1-2 hours in the refrigerator.

2. Remove pork loin from salt water, rinse and pat dry. Pour the oil over the pork loin and generously coat with rub. You may not use all the rub, and that is ok. Let pork loin come to room temperature while you start the bbq.

3. Light approximately 6 quarts of coal until they’ve covered with a thin layer of ash. Create a 2 level fire by stacking coals 2 - 3 deep on one side of the grill. Put grate on grill and clean with grill brush. Close lid and let grate warm up for about 5 minutes.

4. Place pork loin perpendicular to the grate but opposite side of the fire. Close grates closest to fire and open ones on the oposite side of grill. Grill for 10 minutes, turn pork loin and cover again. (I sometimes keep the the grill lid open, but use one of those aluminium chafing dish pans to cover it.) Cover and grill until internal temperature reaches 145 degrees.

5. Once pork loin is cooked take off the grill and let stand, tented with foil, for 10-15 minutes. Slice and serve. I like to serve it with roasted red potatoes.