Category: Recipes

Quick and Easy Instant Pot Chicken Adobo

Tom

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo on RiceInstant Pot Chicken Adobo…easy, quick and delicious…three things that make me want to make a recipe again and again (especially the delicious part!). This recipe is a very slight variation on one found on thekitchn.com (thank you!). The chicken thighs are fall-off-the-bone tender and taste like they’ve been marinated for hours and cooked low and slow, but through the magic of one of my absolutely favorite new kitchen tools, the Instant Pot, they’re ready in about 30 minutes.

This Instant Pot Chicken Adobo is a based on Filipino adobo (adobo is derived from the Spanish word adobar, which means “marinade” or “pickling sauce”), which is a cooking process in Filipino cuisine that involves meat, seafood or vegetables marinated in vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and black peppercorns (I added a little Sriracha because, well, I like to add Sriracha to everything), which is then browned in oil, and simmered in the marinade. It has sometimes been considered as the unofficial national dish in the Philippines. The Instant Pot has made this dish faster, easier to prepare and much more accessible, without sacrificing any of the flavor.

Like most popular ethnic dishes, there are many differing opinions as the right way to make adobo. In my opinion, as long as the results taste great, any recipe is a great recipe. This is my version, it’s incredibly delicious, and I’m sticking to it.

For the printable recipe, please click…

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Easy Chicken Fajita Foil Packets

Tom
chicken fajitas in foil
Ready to be sealed
Hot out of the oven
On a deformed homemade tortilla

These healthy, spicy Chicken Fajita Packets are incredibly easy to prepare and serve…and the clean-up is a breeze! All the ingredients are sealed in a foil packet and cooked together in the oven. Serving can be as easy as plating the packet, opening it up and digging in or go the real fajita route and slice the spicy chicken and top with onions, peppers and black beans in a warm tortilla, and garnish with avocado, sour cream and cilantro. For the printable recipe, just click…

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Sourdough Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

Tom
Suasage, Mushroom, Caramelized Onion Pizza ready for oven
Ready for the Oven

There’s nothing better then homemade pizza and this crust is simple and delicious. If you need sourdough starter, check out my bread post from last week, where you’ll find a link to get FREE sourdough starter. I prefer thin crust pizzas (being from the New York area…where we make REAL pizza), but if you prefer a thicker crust, it’s all here in the printable recipe. This is one of those recipes that appears to be a little vague at first, but once you try it and get the feel for how the dough should come together, it’s simple and quick to replicate whenever you get the urge…which for me, seems to happen about 3-4 times a week lately. And since the recipe makes 3 crusts which freeze incredibly well, you actually don’t have it make it that often. Just take one out of the freezer, and in about 3 hours, it’s ready to roll. The crust is also very versatile and can be used in dozens of different ways. Just the other day, I topped one with just caramelized onions, crumbled goat cheese and drizzled some olive oil on it and it was amazing.

For the printable recipe, please click below…

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Extra Large, Cage-Free, and More: How to Shop for Eggs | Serious Eats

Tom

What makes a good egg? There are so many things to consider, especially when egg carton vocabulary seems to grow by the day. If you’re in an egg-sistential quandary in the grocery aisle, here’s a cheat sheet on how to decipher egg dozens. A great article from Serious Eats on one of my favorite foods.

Click to read article: Extra Large, Cage-Free, and More: How to Shop for Eggs | Serious Eats

The Official Cookhacker T-Shirt is Here!

Tom

Well it’s finally here. Be the envy of all your favorite food lovin’ friends when you wear the official Cookhacker T shirt…now on Amazon. It’s available in five different colors and comes in in Men’s, Women’s and Kid’s sizes.  I guarantee if you wear this shirt when preparing one of the great recipes on Cookhacker.com, like our Sous Vide Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin, the results will be way tastier than if you just wore a generic shirt while cooking. It’s also a really cool shirt to wear when visiting your favorite restaurants and hangouts. Help spread the word…Cookhacker has the recipes, secrets, tips and tricks to help a good home cook become a great home Chef.

 

Sous Vide Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin with the Anova Sous Vide Precision Cooker

Tom

Sous Vide Teriyaki Pork in my new favorite cooking “toy”… the Anova Culinary Sous Vide Precision Cooker, the ultimate Really Cool Kitchen Tool. Everything I’ve made so far (steak, chicken and pork) has come out perfectly every time with restaurant quality results…it’s kinda idiot-proof! All you do is just attach the machine to any pot, add water and click start, put whatever you want to cook in a sealable bag (any ziplock-type bag will do), remove the air, drop it in the water and set the timer! You can also use the free wirelessly Bluetooth connected Anova Culinary app on your phone to find your recipe and cooking settings for exactly how you like it done, and just hit the “Start” button and the Anova goes to work.  My Sous Vide pork tenderloin is shown here. I just marinated it in teriyaki for a few hours, placed it in the Sous Vide bath and after an hour at 136°, I removed it and seared it on all sides for 2 minutes in a screaming hot cast iron pan. It was tender, perfectly cooked from end-to-end and incredibly tasty. I know this sounds like a gushing paid-for review, but it’s really not…I just love it that much.Save

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Super Bowl Party Oven Baked Buffalo Chicken Wings

Tom

Buffalo Chicken WingsOne more great Super Bowl Oven Baked Chicken Wings Recipe repost (actually this is a much better version with updated recipe tips)…but first, the backstory. Back in 1976, I was working at The Foundry restaurant in DC and one of the waiters, Michael Murphy, who happened to be from Buffalo, told us of the amazingly simple way they prepared, of all things, chicken wings, up there at a place called the Anchor Bar. We started giving away the Buffalo Chicken Wings during Happy Hour and immediately the place became packed each day at around 4:45 pm with everyone waiting for the wings to come out of the kitchen…and the rest is culinary history. It seems that every bar today has chicken wings on the menu, and for good reason…when they’re made right, they’re incredibly and addictingly (if that’s even a word) good! They’re actually very simple to make…cut 12 wings into three pieces at the joints (discard the wing tips or keep them for preparing stock) and just deep fry the flats and drummettes for 10-12 minutes in 375 degree oil (preferably peanut) until they’re crispy and golden brown, toss them in Frank’s Red Hot Sauce and serve with celery and bleu cheese dressing…that’s it…nothing else is needed. The problem is that it’s really a pain (and a greasy mess) to deep fry at home, but there is a not-so-secret way to avoid that mess, while still getting that great Buffalo Chicken Wing crunch and flavor……just bake them in the oven.

But there are REAL SECRETS to making incredibly delicious Oven Baked Buffalo Wings, and here they are :

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Super Bowl Special – Best Pulled Pork Sandwiches EVER!

Tom

slow cooker pulled pork sandwichIt’s that time of year and to me, it’s the Super Bowl Special…the best pulled pork sandwiches ever and Oven Baked Chicken Wings…and oh yeah…an amazing football game. I’m reprising this post (as I do every year about this time) because this is a great recipe for a Super Bowl party…slow cooked, pulled pork sandwiches topped with my grandmother’s amazing Cole Slaw. The best thing about this pork recipe is it’s done in a slow cooker. The prep is really simple, the cooking is low and slow (it can be done overnight), the resulting flavors are incredible and, best of all, it makes dozens of sandwiches with very little effort…perfect for a party. And if any pork is left over (not likely) just divide it up into serving size portions (4-6 oz each), wrap in plastic wrap and freeze them. When you get that irresistible craving for a pulled pork sandwich,  just pop one in the microwave, top it with some bbq sauce (I love Bullseye Original Flavor), put it in a steamed bun, slap on some cole slaw and, in minutes, I guarantee you’ll be wallowing in the throes of pulled pork nirvana!

Click here for Grandma Molly’s Legendary Homemade Cole Slaw recipe.

Just click Read More to get this fantastic recipe… Read More …

Garlicky Buttery Shrimp and Pasta

Tom

This is a simple one pan (if you don’t include the pot the pasta is cooked in) weeknight-type recipe that comes together quickly (about 30 minutes) and tastes terrific. The trick of adding a little baking soda to the shrimp before sautéing insures that they will remain juicy, plump and tender when cooked (thank you SeriousEats). Serve this with garlic bread and a salad and you have an easy, delicious, relatively healthy meal. The combination of shrimp, garlic, butter and parsley is really hard to beat…and the leftovers (if there are any…I doubt it) taste great the next day!

Please click here for the printable recipe.

Spicy Garlicky Crispy Oven Baked French Fries

Tom

The secret to crispy oven baked french fries? A few years ago I posted my favorite oven baked french fry recipe…that one was great (it was for thicker steak-cut fries), but I’ve been experimenting with oven baked fries since then and came up with this recipe, which is even better…it turns out thinner, crunchier, crisper fries with way more flavor. The secret is par cooking the potatoes in the microwave for a couple of minutes in a garlicky olive oil and then coating them with a spicy cornstarch mixture before baking them in the oven. It sounds a lot more involved then it is…it’s actually simple, fast and definitely worth trying. It is also very forgiving, so feel free to experiment with different spices and quantities…as long as you dry the potatoes well after soaking, and keep an eye on them as they cook, they’ll come out great. Pair the fries with a super-melty cheeseburger topped with caramelized onions and you’ll never want to go out for burgers and fries again, ’cause crispy oven baked french fries don’t get an better than this.

Please click here for the printable recipe.