Recipes
Phil loves to sear flesh, play with the chemistry set of spices and cater to oral sects with his cooking. Here are some of his favourite recipes...
Chile Con Queso
Tripp's Cuervo/Corona Chili
Chile Ole
St Louis Barbeque Prawns
Poke
A hot creamy cheese dish that is mildly spicy, chock full of tomatoes, onions and ready for dipping with corn chips. This recipe is authentic as you can do, I've had it for 30 years and it is addictive!
2 TBS butter
2 large or three medium yellow onions, diced fine
2 fairly large or three medium tomatoes peeled, seeded and diced
(Just drop them into a pot of boiling water for about 30 seconds, then pour out the water and run cold water over them to peel)
1 can 4 oz Ortega or Old El Paso green chile peppers (not jalapenos, they're mild chilis like banana chiles--you can probably get these at Coles or David Jones but also at USAFoods in Melbourne online for $3.09
1 8 oz block Philly cream cheese room temperature and cubed
1 cup cream (not with gelatine in it, just plain cream)
salt and pepper to taste (about 1-1.5 TBS salt and 1 TBS pepper, preferably white)
If you can't find the chilis, use 1 medium jar Old El Paso Chunky Salsa and eliminate one tomato
Melt butter in pan over medium high heat add onions and cook for 12 minutes until transparent, not browned, stirring fairly frequently
Add tomatoes and chilis, cook 12 minutes more. Add salt and pepper
Add cream cheese and whisk in or stir to break up and blend into vege mixture. Cook for 3-4 minutes at medium heat letting bubble but not stick. Adjust salt and pepper if you wish.
Add cream and whisk in until mixture starts to bubble again and remove from heat.
Serve in heated bowls with corn chips.
Ingredients (suggest you triple this recipe!)
1 kilo chuck steak cut into 1/4 inch cubes (roo is also great!)
1/2 kilo leanest beef mince
1/2 kilo chicken thigh fillets sliced in strips along the grain
6 strips bacon
6 large yellow onions chopped
6-8 cloves garlic minced
1 large can tomato paste
1 large can tomatoes
2 capsicums finely chopped
2 bottles Corona Beer or use the cheap stuff
6 cups beef stock or 6 bouillion cubes in 1 1/2 liters boiling water
8 tablespoons chili powder must be mexican chili poweder
4 tablespoons cumin powder
2 tablespoons ground oregano
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
3 tablespoons coarse black pepper
1 tablespoon seasoned or plain salt
6 tablespoons approximately olive oil
2-3 large cans kidney beans, undrained
1 shot Cuervo Gold Tequila per bowl
Fry bacon in two batches and reserve fat. Trim fatty bits off cooked bacon and discard, setting aside leaner crispy portions.
In separate batches over high heat, use bacon fat to sear beef, mince and chicken until meat loses colour and turns grey. Set aside in large pot. Add spices and stir into meat to fully coat all pieces. Drain fat and reuse with oil
Saute batches of onions in fat/oil over medium high heat until clear but not brown. Add onions to meat/spice mixture and let rest while sauteing capsicum and garlic together over medium heat. Add them plus bacon bits to mixture.
Stir in tomato paste and tomatoes and blend thoroughly. Add beer and stir. Add bouillion or beef stock and stir.
Bring to boil. Let simmer lightly with lid on for 2 hours stirring occasionally. Add beans. Let simmer another half hour and let cool for four hours. Add salt to taste. Reheat or chill overnight and reheat the next day. Serve hot in bowls with shot glass of tequila and mug of icy cold beer on the side--tequila to supercharge the palate, beer to chill it out.
Garnish with fresh red onion slices, cheddar cheese or red capsicum slices as desired. Sour cream is also great as are corn chips or tortillas
Chile Ole
1.5 kilos Top Round or Chuck cut into 1/2 to one inch cubes
6 TBS Vegetable Oil
3 Large Yellow Onions chopped
8 cloves of garlic minced
6 or 7 TBS chili poweder
1 heaping TBS oregano
1 heaping TBS cumin
1 tsp red chili flakes
1 6 oz can tomato paste
4 to 6 cups beef stock or bouillion
1 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper
4-5 medium size cans of kidney beans
2 bay leaves
Heat 4 TBS oil until haze forms
Cook meat at high heat for 3-4 minutes until lightly brown
Add remaining 2 TBS oil and cook onion and garlic 4-5 mins
Remove skillet from heat and add spices until onions are well coated
Add tomato paste and pour in beef stock
Mix thoroughly, then add to meat. Add black pepper
Bring to boil stirring once or twice, then simmer 2-2.5 hours
Refrigerate overnight. Reheat at simmer for 1 hour
This is the prawn dish that we do which is our house signature pupu appetiser
1.5 kilos cleaned shelled prawns (large) tails left on
Marinade
3 cloves garlic minced
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup oil
1 tablespoon parsley minced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 cup pineapple juice
1 teaspoon salt
Combine marinade ingredients and mix well. Marinate shrimp in refrigerator for 2-3 hours
Place shrimp in grill basket or over grid on barbie (oiled for non stick) for quick and easy turning. Cook over hot fire for 3-5 minutes each side. My secret is using soaked hickory or mesquite wood chips and spreading those on the coals a minute before grilling. Then smoke in a sealed Weber for 5 minutes each side really makes the grade.
This is a dish that is extremely healthy and if you like sushi or sashimi, you will die for. It's called Poke and it is hawaiian.
750 grams or so of fresh tuna, try to get the best steak cut with as little strings of white as possible. Cube into 15 mm chunks
Marinade
1/2 cup shoyu (light) soy
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons dried seaweed/sesame seed mixture (you'll find this is health food or Japanese food stores often called Mishima or furukake spice, also at Harris Farm markets)
About 3 TBS green onion (shallot) sliced including some of the green
pinch of chili flakes
2 TBS macadamia nuts finely chopped
Combine, let sit in fridge a couple of hours.
