Burgundy Beef

Ingredients:
1 Pound Stew Meat
1 Cup Chopped Onions
8 oz sliced Mushrooms
1 Pound Baby Carrots
2 tsp minced Garlic
2 Cups Red Wine
1 Can Golden Mushroom Soup
1 Can Beef Consommé
1/2 tsp Fresh Ground Black Pepper
2 TBLS Flour

Directions:
Heat oven to 300 F.
Mix all of the ingredients together.
Put in an oven safe casserole dish with lid.
Cook at 300 F for 3 hours.

Serve over mashed potatoes or egg noodles.

Turkey Brine

Ingredients

·         2 gallons water (32 Cups)

·         1 1/2 cups kosher salt (DO NOT USE TABLE SALT)

·         3 tablespoons minced garlic

·         1 tablespoon ground black pepper

·         1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

·         1/3 cup brown sugar

Directions

Notice the thermometer in the top right.
Be sure that it is under 38F at all times.

1.      Boil 4 Cups of water with Salt to dissolve salt. [DO NOT USE TABLE SALT]

2.     Let cool to room temp. 

3.     As cooling, add remaining ingredients except additional water, stir to mix.

4.     In a large bucket or container large enough to hold your turkey, add mixed ingredient to rest of water.

5.     Store in a refrigerator, and soak thawed turkey for 2 days before smoking or roasting.

Note:  I had a 24 pound turkey that would not fit in frig.  I put it in a bucket in a cooler out in my garage.  I put ice in the cooler to keep cool.  Must be kept under 38 degrees, check temperature and add more ice if needed.

Not so Scandinavian Potato Sausage with Sauerkraut

Potato Sausage is a thing that we ate growing up in a Norwegian family.  It is a wonderful blend of pork and potatoes, but does not have a lot of flavor.  This is how I cook my potato sausage now.

Ingredients:
Potato Sausage (My folks made their own, but I buy mine at my local Cub Foods.  I do not know if you can buy outside the Dakotas and Minnesota)
1 Hot pepper of your choice - Chopped Coarsely
1 pepper (green, yellow, red, orange:  Your choice) - Chopped Coarsely
1/2 large sweet onion - Chopped Coarsely
2 Tablespoons minced garlic
1 - 12oz beer (I prefer a microbrew or dark beer, but anyone will work)
1 - 14 ounce can sauerkraut (I am part German, but use the cheapest sauerkraut at the market)
Kosher Salt
Olive Oil

Directions:
Heat frying pan over medium low heat.  Add olive oil.  Brown sausage on both side over medium low heat.  Add chopped veggies and salt and cover.  Stir occasionally to remove excess water from veggies.  Cook for about 10 minutes.  Add beer. Cook covered for about about 30 minutes.  Add Sauerkraut, juice and all.  Cook until sauerkraut is hot.  Serve with any vegetables and bread of you choice.

BBQ Sauce

I have a simple BBQ sauce that is not tomato based that I generally used on grilled pork, but it is also good on grilled chicken.

First I put the meat in a brine and brine for 24 to 48 hours.  To make the brine, I boil 1/4 cup kosher salt and 4 cups water.  I boil for a minute or two and take off heat.  Once it has cooled to room temperature, I put the meat in a ziploc bag and pour the brine over it.  I seal the bag and keep in frig for 24 to 48 hours.  I turn the bag about twice a day.

Sauce - This can be made and refrigerated up to 48 hours ahead of time.

Ingredients:
2  Cups Cider Vinegar
1/4 Cup Sugar
1 1/2 Tablespoons Hot Sauce (I use Frank's)
1 Tablespoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
1 1/2 Tablespoons Liquid Smoke
1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 can of beer (you can drink the rest of the beer)
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Directions:
Bring all of the ingredients to a boil .  Let cool and put in frig.  When cooking meat, use 1/2 of the sauce to baste the meat on the grill.  Save the other 1/2 for a dipping sauce.