One of our favorite food is Korean Kalbi, or barbecued beef short ribs. We usually order this at one of the local fast food Korean restaurants, but it’s pretty pricey; you get 3 thin short ribs, a couple of scoops of steamed white rice, and a choice of 4 side dishes (kim chee, bean sprouts, tofu, etc.) for a over $12 a plate.
My husband’s main complaint about the local restaurants isn’t the the price or the serving size of the kalbi, it’s about the flimsy plastic utensils they provide which usually snaps in half the moment you try to cut into the meat. Hence he has decided not to patronize any of the fast food style Korean barbecue joints.
There are sit down Korean restaurants where you can grill your own meats, the meal comes with many side dishes, soup, and steamed rice; but they also come with a hefty price tag. The last time my girlfriend and I stopped at one for lunch it cost us a little bit over $65, and that’s without drinks or tip! Not to mention that was the least expensive barbecue dish on the menu! The food was good, specially the kalbi, but I’m sure we won’t be repeating it often.
To solve all these issues I’ve found a great Korean Kalbi recipe to make at home. I make it of our Sunday barbecue and it was a big hit with my family. I used thin cut boneless beef short ribs which I threaded on to bamboo skewers to make them into kebabs. You can use bone-in short ribs and don’t have to thread them on to skewers, I do however recommend that you use the thinner cuts so that the marinade will infuse the meat better.
I served this with steamed white rice, macaroni salad, and kim chee cabbage; it was even better than the plates we get at the Korean restaurants at less than half the price! (The short ribs cost $6.97 a pound, if you get the thin cut that’s 6 short ribs).
Another way to serve this is on small white corn tortillas with shredded cabbage, just like the Korean Kalbi Tacos from the food truck in L.A.! We served it this way for my mom’s 80th. birthday party a few years ago.
Just in time for your Labor Day barbecue! Here’s my recipe!
Boneless Beef Short Rib Kalbi Kebabs
Makes 18 skewers
Ingredients:
3 lbs. thin cut boneless beef short ribs (you should get 18 short ribs. You can use bone-in ribs if you prefer)
1 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tbls. fresh ginger – finely grated
1/4 cup sesame oil
2 tbls. minced garlic
1 tbls. white sesame seeds
1 tbls. black sesame seeds
2 stalks green onions – chopped
Directions:
1. Cut short ribs into thirds if you will be threading them on to skewers, if not then don’t cut them.
2. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a bowl. Mix until sugar dissolves.
3. Pour marinade into large ziplock bag.
4. Put meat into marinade and marinate in the fridge overnight.
5. Thread meat on to skewers and barbecue on the grill to desired doneness. If you’re not making kebabs then cook ribs on the grill until done.
Serve hot immediately off the grill.
Looking for more grilling inspiration? Check out PersonalCreations.com and see how people grill around the world!
Pretzel Dogs are another family favorite. The kids buy them from the Pretzel stands at the mall all the time. But they’ve gotten very pricey lately.
Before I continue you might be wondering what is the difference between Pigs in Blankets and Pretzel Dogs. The answer is quite simple Pigs in Blankets are wrapped in refrigerated Crescent Dough and Pretzel Dogs are wrapped in pretzel dough. Now which is better you ask, they’re both good. It just depends on how much time you want to invest into making them and also the taste you’re trying to achieve. For parties when you need to make a lot Pigs in Blankets are much easier to make.
Since I started making homemade pretzels, first the easy no dipping pretzels I made before graduating to the “real” pretzels, I thought why not make my own Pretzel Dogs. These Pretzel Dogs are pretty easy to make, they use my Pretzel Bites recipe which is modified to wrap around hot dogs.
These Pretzel Dogs are great for lunch an snacks. They sure come in handy this summer when the grandkids are home and are always looking for something to eat. Best of all you can make 10 Pretzels Dogs for less than the price of one you buy at the mall!
To make these Pretzel Dogs you will need to make a batch of the dough I use in the Pretzel Bites, it’s the exact same dough but shaped a bit differently. Here’s my recipe!
10 Hot Dogs (I use all beef hot dogs like Hebrew National or Nathan’s)
Directions:
Follow the directions for Pretzel Bites until you get to the step where you roll the dough into 10 ropes, which you do as you wait for the Baking Soda Bath to boil. Proceed as directed below.
Make 10 dough ropes – each one should be at least 2-3 times as long as your hot dog.
Wrap each rope on a hot dog. Leave the ends of the hot dogs unwrapped. Refer to the picture above. Tuck dough ends and pinch the seams to keep them from unraveling.
Drop each wrapped hot dog into the Baking Soda Bath.
Allow them to boil in the bath until they float, about 30-45 seconds.
Remove from bath and place on prepared baking sheet.
Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with coarse salt.
Bake in 450 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes or until the dough is golden brown.
Remove from oven and serve with your favorite dipping sauce.
Lumpia is the Philippines’ version of Egg Rolls. Like so many other Asian countries the Filipino Lumpia comes in many varieties.
There is Lumpiang Sariwa or “Fresh Lumpia” that are very thin crepe like wrappers that are filled with stir fried vegetables, shrimp, meats, or a combination of them. Lumpiang Shanghai are meat filled deep fried egg rolls that are tightly wrapped to look like thin cigars or are cut into smaller pieces when served as appetizers, they are usually served with a sweet and sour dipping sauce. Then there are fried lumpia that closely resemble spring rolls. Fried Lumpia can be filled with just about anything including ripe bananas which are actually called Turon or Banana Lumpia.
Fried Lumpia is a favorite in my house; I make them by the dozen and freeze them so we always have some on hand. Making fried lumpia is pretty easy since I usually toss in whatever I have on hand including ground beef, green beans, tofu, carrots, bean sprouts, potatoes, and onions. You can put any combination of meats, seafood, and veggies in a fried lumpia, it’s really not complicated. Whatever ends up as my filling I always serve it with a garlic vinegar sauce, my family loves it!
Today I’ll share my version of Fried Lumpia. I’ll list ingredients just remember they’re all pretty much optional and you can toss in whatever you prefer; but use at least 3 of the optional items in your filling. You can buy frozen egg roll wrappers at any Asian Market, most packages contain 25 wrappers.
Fried Lumpia
Ingredients:
1 or 2 Package Egg Roll Wrapper – thawed
1 Lb. Ground Beef – but you can use pork, chicken, turkey, or shrimp instead
1 Small Onion Chopped
1 Tbs. Garlic Minced
2-3 Potatoes – Cooked and cubed (optional)
2 Cups Bean Sprouts (optional)
1 Package Firm Tofu – cut into small cubes
1 Cup Shredded Carrots (optional)
1 Cup Fresh String Beans – Thinly sliced (optional)
1 Cup Shredded Cabbage (optional)
1/8 Cup Soy Sauce
1/2 Tsp. Salt
1/2 Tsp. Ground Black Pepper
1 Egg slightly beaten (to seal wrappers)
Oil for frying
Dipping Sauce:
1/2 Cup White or Rice Vinegar
1/2 Tsp. Garlic Minced
1/4 Tsp. Ground Black Pepper
1/4 Tsp. Chili Pepper Flakes (optional)
Directions:
Heat about 1 Tbl. of oil in a wok or large skillet.
Saute chopped onions until they start to turn translucent.
Add minced garlic and saute for about 1 minute, be careful not to burn the garlic.
Add ground beef or whatever meat you are using. If you are using shrimp add them later after veggies have cooked as shrimp cook quickly and will over cook if you have to cook veggies.
Add salt and pepper. Cook until meat is well done and crumbly.
Add beans, carrots, cabbage if you are using them. Cook until soft.
Add Bean Sprouts and cook until soft.
Gently stir in Tofu and soy sauce.
Remove from heat, drain liquid from pan, and set aside.
Thaw egg roll wrappers and remove from package.
Separate wrappers being careful not to tear. Place on a plate and cover with a damp paper towel. You will be using one wrapper at a time so keep the others under the damp paper towel to keep them from drying out.
Take one wrapper and place on flat surface.
Place about 1 to 1 1/2 heaping tbl. of filling along one side of the wrapper.
Fold over both ends and roll like a burrito.
Brush some beaten egg on the wrapper to seal.
Place on a plate if you will be frying the same day or place in freezer bag if you plan on freezing them for later.
Repeat until you use all the wrappers.
When you’re ready to fry heat about 2″ of oil in a pan or use your deep fryer.
If you are frying the ones you just made, fry them in hot oil until they turn dark golden brown.
Place them on paper towels to absorb excess oil.
Serve hot.
If you are frying frozen lumpia, carefully place FROZEN lumpia in the heated oil. Do not thaw them as they will get too soft and fall apart. Fry them until dark golden brown.
To make the sauce just add all the sauce ingredients into a bowl and stir.
Other options for the fillings include shredding sweet potatoes, chopped water chestnuts, sliced bamboo shoots,and pretty much anything you like.
For years now I usually write about travel on my Wednesday articles. Lately due to the worldwide Pandemic travel has become difficult and many times ill advised.
Many of us have chosen to stay home this summer perhaps planning our next trip whenever we feel safe enough to venture further away from home. In our case I’m not really sure when that will be, specially since cruising is one of our favorite vacation travel. Sadly the cruising industry has canceled cruises thru September and will likely cancel cruises thru fall and possibly the rest of the year.
Yes we’re sad and even restless. We haven’t been able to visit our daughter and her family in Italy since last fall. And yes we miss traveling. That’s why I’ve been trying to bring a little bit of our travels in to our home. What better way to “re-live” some of our favorite vacation spots than thru food. I’ve decided to share some of our favorite cuisine which we discovered during our travels. Because isn’t food a big part of traveling anyway?
So for the next little while on my Wednesday post I’ll share a recipe for a favorite food we discovered during our travels. I hope it will inspire you to try something different and maybe make plans to visit one of the countries!
Today I’ll share this Piroshki recipe. Piroshkis are very similar to American meat pies, British Pasties, Middle Eastern Fatayer, and even Empanadas from Mexico, Spain, and other Latin countries.
Piroshkis are a popular street or comfort food in Russia and the Ukraine. They’re fried or baked oblong buns (I prefer the fried) filled with a variety of fillings including beef, chicken, pork, mushrooms, and cheese. In Russia they’re considered a main course when eaten with a soup or salad. It’s often served with sour cream.
Today I’ll share a recipe for Beef or Chicken filled Piroshkis. They’re not too difficult to make and if you’re not used to working with yeast breads this is a fine recipe to start with as it’s fairly simple.
Meat Filled Piroshkis
Ingredients for the dough:
4 cups flour
1 Tsp. Active dry yeast
1/4 Cup warm water
1 Cup Milk
3 Eggs
1/2 Cup Olive Oil
2 Tbs. Sugar
1 Tsp. Salt
Filling Ingredients:
1 Lb. Ground Beef, Turkey, or Chicken
1 Large Onion very finely chopped
1/2 Cup Mushrooms very finely chopped
1 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 Tsp. Salt
1 Tsp. Pepper
2 Tbs. Fresh Dill
1 Tsp. Dried Dill
1 Tbs. Fresh Garlic – minced
Oil for frying
Directions:
First prepare dough as follows:
Dissolve yeast in the warm water and place in a warm place until it’s frothy – about 10 minutes.
In a medium saucepan on low heat pour in milk and let warm up.
Whisk in the eggs, oil, sugar, and salt. This mixture will be warm and lumpy.
Remove from heat.
Place 1/2 of flour in bowl of stand mixer (or large bowl if mixing by hand). Using the dough hook gradually stir in the milk mixture until fully combined.
Alternately add yeast mixture and rest of the flour, be sure you mix well between additions.
Mix well.
Knead until the dough forms a ball and does not stick to sides of bowl. You may have to add some more flour (1 Tbs. spoon at a time) to get the dough to the proper consistency.
Cover with a cloth and set aside in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size. About 1-2 hours.
Meanwhile mix all the filling ingredients together in a bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.
When dough has doubled in size place the ball into a lightly floured surface.
Pinch of pieces of dough to form a ball about 2″.
Flatten dough and using a rolling pin roll each ball into disks about 4″ in diameter.
Place a heaping Tbs. of filling in the center of dough. Form filling into a line across the diameter. Fold dough over meat and pinch both ends to seal.
Place filled piroshki on to a sheet with the seam side down and allow to rest for about 10 minutes.
Heat enough oil in a pan deep enough so that the piroshkis will be at least halfway immersed in oil.
Place piroshki in hot oil seam side down. Fry until golden brown.
Gently flip over and fry other side.
Drain cooked piroshki on paper towels before serving.
St. Louis–style ribs just might be the best kind of ribs. For the traditional style, use spareribs and ask your butcher to cut them “St. Louis style”. This simply means that the breastbone will be cut off and the ribs will be in a rectangular shape. To get REALLY traditional, you’ll want to smoke your ribs, but we opted to bake ours in the oven for convenience. Oven-baked ribs still get perfectly tender and will be falling right off the bone!
YIELDS: 6 SERVINGS
PREP TIME: 0 HOURS 10 MINS
TOTAL TIME: 3 HOURS 35 MINS
INGREDIENTS:
3 lb. spareribs
2 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. mustard powder
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
4 tbsp. butter, cut into cubes
1 c. barbecue sauce
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 300° and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. If your ribs have a thin membrane over the bones on the backside, remove by carefully sliding a knife under the membrane and then peeling it away.
In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and seasonings. Rub mixture all over ribs until well coated.
Evenly distribute butter cubes over ribs, wrap tightly in foil, and place on prepared baking sheet. Bake until very tender, about 2 1/2 hours.
Switch oven to broil, unwrap ribs, and brush all over with barbecue sauce. Place back on baking sheet and broil until sauce starts to caramelize, 5 minutes.
This classic Argentinian sauce couldn’t be more versatile. It’s amazing on flank steak, grilled shrimp, and even veggies like roasted zucchini. Use it as a marinade for beef or chicken, or spoon it over just-grilled meat while it rests on a cutting board. Heck, it’d even be good on fried eggs! Garlicky, super herbaceous, and tangy from vinegar and lemon zest, there’s nothing this genius sauce can’t improve.
Made it? Let us know how it went in the comment section below!
INGREDIENTS
1 c. flat-leaf parsley, firmly packed
3 cloves garlic
2 tbsp. fresh oregano
1/3 c. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
2 tsp. lemon zest, optional
Pinch red pepper flakes
Kosher salt
DIRECTIONS
1. Combine parsley, garlic, and oregano in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until herbs are finely chopped and garlic is minced.
2. Transfer herbs to a medium bowl and stir in olive oil, vinegar, and lemon zest if using. Season with salt and a pinch of red pepper flakes.
One of our favorite food is Korean Kalbi, or barbecued beef short ribs. We usually order this at one of the local fast food Korean restaurants, but it’s pretty pricey; you get 3 thin short ribs, a couple of scoops of steamed white rice, and a choice of 4 side dishes (kim chee, bean sprouts, tofu, etc.) for a over $12 a plate.
