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Tried and true Deli salad. Overnight prep is key, changes dramatically

Ingredients

• 3 7 0z cans tuna drained
• 2 celery stalk diced  fine
• 1/4 cup white or red onion diced fine
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup mayo.
• 1.5 tbsp hardy mustard
• 1 tbsp fresh oregano
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp fresh chives

Mix and leave overnight

Classic pico.

Ingredients

• 6 small hungarian chiles
• 6 plum/roma tomatoes of goldilocks firmness
• 16th to 1/8th of a white onion
• garlic powder
• salt
• 14 bunch of frangrant cilantro.

The Process

1. Dice Hungarians: Use the entirety of the chile (seeds/whites) with the exception of the stem cap.
2. Dice the toms and 1/8th of a white onion and mix the together. Taste to judge the ‘spiciness’ of the onion in the tomato.
3. Either add more onion or just add the diced hungarians
4. Now add dash of salt and dash of garlic powder. Def do before the cilantro….Mix.
5. Chop up the cilantro including about half of the stem part.. key for crunchiness
6. MIX
7. Salt to taste

Here is a great WIP benedict

• 1 lb true cod / halibut / thick white fresh fish
• Cabbage, thinly shredded (thin is key)
• Taco size flour tortillas
• Limes

• 2/3  cup sour cream or Mexican crema
• 1 Tbsp lime juice
• 1 tsp lime zest; the zest from a single lime
• 1 small garlic clove, grated or pressed
• 1 tsp salt (then to taste)
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• pinch cayenne

• 1 tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp cumin
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• Salt

Process

1. Mix all the sauce ingredients then let sit
2. Mix seasoning ingredients and spread evenly on both sides of fish. Let sit for a touch if you can 10 min
3. Heat grill to nice n hot.
4. Right before putting fish on lightly brush with olive oil on the side you are putting down first. Brush is key so that its light as possible for stickage
5. Put oil side down for 3-4 minutes, oil the side thats up..also lightly
6. Flip and cook to flakey / rare…

The build (this is crucial, bordering on art)

1. Lightly heat a tortilla
2. Spread a small touch of the sauce on tortilla
3. Lay down appropriate amount of rare flaky fish and hit it with a small pinch of salt across the breadth
4. Hit the fish with a good squeeze of lime and a generous amount of sauce across the breadth
5. Top with shredded cabbage
6. BOOOOOM

If you have it handy, add some tomatillo sauce (green) between steps 3 and 4…..

For Lou… lets see how this works out …..

Ingredients 

• 6 medium potatoes, cut into large chunks (⅙ or ⅛ ) 
• 3 tomatoes diced med 
• 6 roasted green chiles, diced med (cleaned, mom doesnt take out seeds for heat)
• 1 large onion diced med
• 1.5 lbs fresh cheese 
• ¼ cup whole milk (or a touch less) 
• Garlic powder
• Salt
• Pepper 
• Broth/Stock, (2 tbsp dry or equivalent). Beef, chicken veg is fine. To taste, don’t forget the cheese is salty and flavorful.
• 4 oz tomato sauce
• 14 cups water 
• Neutral cooking oil

Process

1. Boil your water and add the stock
2. Heat up your oil in a very large skillet to fry potatoes. Add garlic powder, pepper and salt to taste, mom seemed to use a few big shakes of each. Perhaps about a teaspoon each.
3. Get a light sear on the potatoes, reduce heat and add all the chopped veggies 
4. Saute for another 5 minutes, put all the ingredients in the water over medium heat.
5. Fry up some of the tomato sauce to get rid of some of the water and acidity, then put in the mix.
6. Let the pot go for about 20 minutes, this is when the potatoes will soften, your call on doneness. 
7. Add the chopped up cheese, not too small, you don’t want it to disintegrate 
8. Add the milk. This is optional, but mom always does it 
9. Go for 8 minutes or so on a simmer so the cheese flavor melds in but not so long it comes apart. Eyeball it.

Tinga is a classic mexican dish. This is my aunts version…..

Ingredients:

• 2 Chicken Breast (skinless / boneless)
• Chorizo about a pound
• 1 large onion or more
• 2-3 TBSP salted butter
• Small canned Chipotle adobo sauce
• Dried Oregano
• Bay leaves
• Salt

The process

1. Add the salt, oregano, bay leaves and onion to the water and bring to a boil
2. Boil the chicken over low heat in the love for 2 hours or more. Basically overcook it. Turn off and let it sit in water for a good spell
3. Meanwhile
4. Drop 2-3 tablespoons of butter into a sizable deep pan and turn to medium heat. Get it bubbling.
5. Julienne an onion or onion and a half and drop in the butter
6. Saute for a good long while until its soft
7. Meanwhile…..
8. Shred the chicken with a fork, it should be hard to take out of pot.
9. Drop the shredded chicken into the buttery onion and cook over med to low heat for a good 10 min + (u cant overdo)
10. If it feels dry (it will) add stock from the lovely chicken to get it moist, it should taste amazing. Dont be shy, you cant go wrong
11. Meanwhile
12. In a separate pan fry about 3/4 lb of chorizo
13. When done frying, separate chorizo from fat (to a point, this is still a tbd, might need the fat) and mix into the chicken butter onion love
14. Work for a bit
15. Mix in 2-3 tbsp of the adobo sauce
16. Simmer. and work the taste… you may need more adobo, or more stock or if it got too hot you will need tomato sauce to cut the heat

Serve on a tiny taco tortilla with crumpled mexican casero cheese, shredded cabbage and lime.

booom

To follow are two distinct fried rice dishes based on what you are up to. Pork fried rice with a solid prep marinade and then a leftovers recipe. The pork one is epic. You can use any veggies, these just sing.

Pork Fried Rice:

Ingredients:

• Day old cold ass rice
• One boneless pork chop
• Veggies
  • Green onions (1 small bunch, use just the money end)
  • Carrot (1)
  • Green Beans (about 15)
  • Broccolini (1 small bunch, tops only)
  • Bean Sprouts (small handful)
  • Yellow or red bell pepper (1/4)
  • Garlic (1 clove)
• Marinade (mix up)
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sesame seed oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
  • Pepper
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic

Process:

1. Dice up all the veggies to your spec. Set aside
2. Chop pork chop into small cubes
3. Drop in marinade for 12-15 mins
4. Fry up pork in large skillet with a very small amount of oil (since it has a tiny bit of oil) over high heat. Go about 60 second per side, you want sear texture but def med rare since it will cook a bit more later.
5. Take pork out and sautee veggies in pork love.
6. Drop in carrots, onions, green beans and peppers. Saute for a bit then add broccolini florets. Not too cooked. At end crush the garlic head in and mix around.
7. Hit with salt and pepper (instead of sauces)
8. Add a handful of rice or more, depending on how many mouths to feed. Mix around to get all the flavors combined
9. Add in the pork, will have some juicy love. Mix it all up again and go for a few mins to blend
10. Let cool for 5 minutes and mix in the bean sprouts
11. Serve up

I have decided not to do egg on this one… am sure it works well.

Standard fare Ingredients:

• Peas
• Carrots
• Onions
• Cabbage 
• A protein (steak/pork ideal) 
• Eggs
• Fish sauce 
• Soy Sauce
• Japanese bbq sauce or any kind of flavor sauce (optional) 
• Day old cold hard rice
• Olive oil
• Salted Butter
• Salt
• Very large pan

Process:

1. Dice up your protein, set aside. I prefer a medium rare to rare steak. 
2. Dice up vegetables. Carrots small, onion julienne, cabbage thin and long. You can use anything. Add salt if you want..you will want.
3. Saute onions and carrots in a very small amount of olive oil, less than you would think 
4. After a while add the frozen peas. Just to warm through. 
5. Next add cabbage, not too much, sautee for a bit 
6. Add soy sauce and fish sauce, not too much of either. Only a few dashes of fish sauce. Work it for a few.
7. Push veggies to the side of your very large pan. Very large pan is key
8. Add your diced med rare steak to the open side
9. Fry for a bit, will get a little love…
10. Stir together… set back to side..
11. Lay down a touch of salted butter on open side…put the cold rice on it spread evenly. “Fry” for a bit 
12. Now mix all together… let it meld for a bit. 
13. Push back again to one side.. Turn up heat on open side
14. Drop 2-3 -4 eggs, let them over cook sunny side up then flip over on to the rice side and mix up. 
15. Boom…use japanese sauce for extra flavor but very little

• 4 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp paprika
• 2 tbsp garlic powder 
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 2 tsp dry thyme
• 2 tsp dry mustard
• 3.5 tbsp salt
• 1 tsp white pepper 
• 1 tbsp ground coriander

Light olive oil on salmon so rub adheres, hefty amount of rub. Ideally an hour or two before but real time works. 

A take on the Lugar approach. Entirely about process and runs contrary to everything you have ever learned. This is ideal as a shared appetizer since its so rich and flavorful.

Ingredients:

• Prime NY steak on the very thick side, at least a 20 oz’er
• 1.5 tablespoons salt
• approx 3 cloves of garlic (1 tablespoon+ when mashed)
• 3 tablespoons melted butter 
• 1 tablespoon+ Worcestershire 

Process:

1. Crust your steak with coarse salt and pepper. Room temperature it for 6 to 8 hours. This is key, nothing will go bad….don’t believe the vegans
2. Create the butter sauce by mixing the melted butter with the garlic and Worcestershire. I create the paste by pressing garlic then mashing it with about a teaspoon of salt with the side of a knife. 
3. Get your grill to at least 550 degrees by turning on all your burners (back+sear+grill)
4. Put the steak down on the very hot grill. I always use the sear side of the grill. It will start to burn and smoke immediately since fat is dropping straight into fire. Look away.
5. At the same time put a cast iron on the cooler (still super hot) part of grill to prime it 
6. Do about 60-90 seconds each side. Then pull off, it will still be rare inside and ideally charred on outside with a lot of that fat rendered/burned the hell off.
7. Put steak on a cutting board and cut in 1/2″ to 3/4″ strips. but keep the steak pressed together when you are done cutting. 
8. Transfer the steak in one “piece” to the cast iron skillet which you are treating very carefully and have taken off the grill
9. Spoon the butter into crevasses of the held together slices and put back on the closed grill that we need to be 550-600 . 
10. Cook for about a minute. Its cooking very fast at this point because it’s already hot and the grill/oven is super hot. Check the doneness visually by looking at / cutting into a piece. Pull when still between rare and medium rare (closer to barely rare) because it’s still going to cook
11. Pull quickly out of skillet and onto a serving platter. Spoon butter from the pan back into those crevasses. 

Do: room temp the steak, use very thick steak

Don’t: Overcook or under-char

This is the mother of all healthy breakfasts. There are a million ways to make this online. All wrong. Mine was forged in the heat of weekend battle manning the griddle at a very large and very busy Bagel Bakery. As always, process is everything.

• 5 eggs
• One half white onion
• A touch olive oil
• Lox, typical 4 oz package
• Creme fraiche

The process

1. Lightly whip the eggs in a cup, breaking up the yolks but not much farther than that. Set aside.
2. Heat a very small smidge of good olive oil in a non stick egg pan
3. Dice the onion and drop in the pan. Get it to almost translucent. No more than 3-4 minutes over low to medium heat.
4. Lower heat and pour in the eggs. Let it chill, don’t stir.
5. When you get to a happy place stir a bit and flip. Until 80% done
6. Tear the salmon into  pieces and drop into the egg mix as you take off of the heat, with one small stir/flip. You do not want to cook the salmon at all.
7.  Move to a serving plate quickly so it doesn’t keep cooking.
8. Hit with a few dollops of creme fraiche across the eggs.
9. You can then have additions on side or sprinkled on like: thyme, capers, green onion….or nothing. If you use, pick one, don’t overdo

DO:

• whip the eggs a tiny bit
• use low heat

DON’T:

• Cook the salmon AT ALL
• Use too much oil
• Overcook the onions, keep em freshish