Ingredients:
1.5 KG white small beans in a glass or tin, or even dried ones, then fill the dried ones in a pot, fill up with water and let sit over night.
1 KG tomato juice, 2 packets or tins of 500g each.
1 KG tomato cubes, pizza tomatos, whatever. Tomatos cut into pieces, thats it.
pepper
salt
some chili, powder or fresh chili cut into small pieces, seeds removed.
some grind cumin
sweetener, based on stevia, 4-5 pills, drained in a half cup of hot water
2-3 medium sized onions
500g ham or bacon cubes
Oil, peanut oil for example
Heat a big pot or pan or wok and heat 2-3 tsp of oil.
Peal onions and cut into cubes, then fry them on medium temperature in the hot oil.
Add the ham/bacon cubes and stirr well.
Add the white beans, tomato juice, tomato cubes, spices and sweetener and stirr well and let it cook at medium heat for 30-45 minutes.
As the whole thing now is quite liquid, because of the tomato juice itself and the drained sweetener in a half cup of water, even if you cleaned the packages or tins of tomatos with water and poured it into the pot, you want to reduce the water from the dish by cooking it.
The result should look like beans covered with tomatos and spices and not like a tomato soup with beans and ham in it. So you know, how long you must cook it at a medium temperature. Until most of the liquid is gone.
Stirr from time to time.
Taste, if needed, add more spices as you like. Even some red hot chili sauce might fit, if you like it a little bit more hot.
Serve hot and enjoy.
It even tastes better if you let cool it down, freeze it in a fridge and heat it some days later in a microwave oven. The beans are more weak and the taste is more intensive.
Enjoy!
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Low carb hot and sweet red sauce
I posted a recipe for red sauce together with the spare ribs thai style.
Now i wanted to get rid of the sugar, to create a more or less low carb sauce, and this is the first result:
Ingredients:
500g/ml strained tomatoes
250 ml rice vinegar
sweetener, i used one based on Stevia, which replaces 8 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3-4 tsp sambal olek
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp sesam oil
1/2-1 tsp agar agar (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agar) *)
Put strained tomatoes, vinegar, sambal olek, soy sauce and sesam oil in a pot and heat it.
Heat 2-3 table spoons of water, microwave oven, and let dissolve the sweetener in it, then pour it into the pot.
Stirr well and let it cook for some minutes, then taste and add more sambal olek or sweetener, if wanted.
Lets cook it on lower heat to get some more water out of the sauce.
Then add Agar Agar, but be careful!
*) Agar Agar thickens liquids like gelantine does, but way slower than gelatine. While gelatine starts to thicken liquids after 1-2 minutes, Agar Agar might need up to 5 or even 10 minutes. And Agar Agar still thickens liquid, when the liquid cools down.
So better start with 1/4 tsp of Agar Agar and see if it's enough to thicken the sauce a little bit, if not, add a little bit more. Don't add too much, because when the sauce cools down, it will become thicker anyways.
If you add too much Agar Agar, you will finally have a pot with a block of jelly in it, when it's cooled down.
To preserve the sauce, heat it again, clean some glasses and their lids or small bottles with hot water, then pour the hot sauce into the hot, more or less dry glasses/bottles and close them with their, still hot, lids. That, and the vinegar should preserve the sauce for some months, i would guess.
This is the base for a hot&sweet red sauce, i will try some variations later, like adding chopped onions, maybe even garlic, remove soy sauce and sesam oil and replace it with some spices.
Well, we will see, the BBQ season still goes on ;)
Now i wanted to get rid of the sugar, to create a more or less low carb sauce, and this is the first result:
Ingredients:
500g/ml strained tomatoes
250 ml rice vinegar
sweetener, i used one based on Stevia, which replaces 8 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3-4 tsp sambal olek
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp sesam oil
1/2-1 tsp agar agar (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agar) *)
Put strained tomatoes, vinegar, sambal olek, soy sauce and sesam oil in a pot and heat it.
Heat 2-3 table spoons of water, microwave oven, and let dissolve the sweetener in it, then pour it into the pot.
Stirr well and let it cook for some minutes, then taste and add more sambal olek or sweetener, if wanted.
Lets cook it on lower heat to get some more water out of the sauce.
Then add Agar Agar, but be careful!
*) Agar Agar thickens liquids like gelantine does, but way slower than gelatine. While gelatine starts to thicken liquids after 1-2 minutes, Agar Agar might need up to 5 or even 10 minutes. And Agar Agar still thickens liquid, when the liquid cools down.
So better start with 1/4 tsp of Agar Agar and see if it's enough to thicken the sauce a little bit, if not, add a little bit more. Don't add too much, because when the sauce cools down, it will become thicker anyways.
If you add too much Agar Agar, you will finally have a pot with a block of jelly in it, when it's cooled down.
To preserve the sauce, heat it again, clean some glasses and their lids or small bottles with hot water, then pour the hot sauce into the hot, more or less dry glasses/bottles and close them with their, still hot, lids. That, and the vinegar should preserve the sauce for some months, i would guess.
This is the base for a hot&sweet red sauce, i will try some variations later, like adding chopped onions, maybe even garlic, remove soy sauce and sesam oil and replace it with some spices.
Well, we will see, the BBQ season still goes on ;)
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Djuvec Rice (tomato rice)
Djuvec rice is a side dish from south eastern europe, which is known there by many names and many variations.
I will post the one recipe i have tried and like.
By adding some sliced saussage, like cabanossi, this recipe can be a regular dish, easy to make at a low cost.
Ingredients:
250g rice, like the one used for a risotto. Asian rice like Basmati and such is NOT the right brand.
1 big onion
1 big red bell pepper
1 small cup of peas
1 stock cube
500 ml tomato juice
water
salt
pepper
chili (if wanted)
sliced saussage like cabanossi (if wanted)
1-2 TSP olive oil
Peal and mince the onion, add the olive oil into a pot and heat it.
Add the minced onion and fry it a little bit at a medium temperature. It should not turn into charcoal.
Wash and cut the red bell pepper into cubes, add it into the pot. Stirr everything well for a few seconds.
Add the rice, stirr everything well for a minute or two, then add the tomato juice.
Add some salt and pepper and the stock cube aswell and stirr again.
Keep in mind that the stock cube is already salty, so don't add too much additional salt. You can anyways add additional salt later.
If wanted, add sliced chili (remove seeds!) and sliced saussage, stir well and let it cook at a medium temperature, until the rice becomes al dente (not too soft, but not that hard as uncooked rice). If needed add some water, if the rice becomes too dry.
Add the peas, stirr again, if it becomes too dry, add some water and let it cook at a lower temperature for 8-10 minutes.
When the rice and the peas are soft enough to be edible, serve.
This is a wonderful side dish for grilled meat, like lamb chops, or, with sliced saussage, a full, yummy meal.
I will post the one recipe i have tried and like.
By adding some sliced saussage, like cabanossi, this recipe can be a regular dish, easy to make at a low cost.
Ingredients:
250g rice, like the one used for a risotto. Asian rice like Basmati and such is NOT the right brand.
1 big onion
1 big red bell pepper
1 small cup of peas
1 stock cube
500 ml tomato juice
water
salt
pepper
chili (if wanted)
sliced saussage like cabanossi (if wanted)
1-2 TSP olive oil
Peal and mince the onion, add the olive oil into a pot and heat it.
Add the minced onion and fry it a little bit at a medium temperature. It should not turn into charcoal.
Wash and cut the red bell pepper into cubes, add it into the pot. Stirr everything well for a few seconds.
Add the rice, stirr everything well for a minute or two, then add the tomato juice.
Add some salt and pepper and the stock cube aswell and stirr again.
Keep in mind that the stock cube is already salty, so don't add too much additional salt. You can anyways add additional salt later.
If wanted, add sliced chili (remove seeds!) and sliced saussage, stir well and let it cook at a medium temperature, until the rice becomes al dente (not too soft, but not that hard as uncooked rice). If needed add some water, if the rice becomes too dry.
Add the peas, stirr again, if it becomes too dry, add some water and let it cook at a lower temperature for 8-10 minutes.
When the rice and the peas are soft enough to be edible, serve.
This is a wonderful side dish for grilled meat, like lamb chops, or, with sliced saussage, a full, yummy meal.
Tomato Olive Peperoni Salad
Peperoni is a kind of capsicum, more hot and smaller and longer than bell pepper and bigger and less hot than chili.
Ingredients:
Tomatoes
Peperoni, bell pepper or chili, depending on how hot you like it
Olives, green and/or black
Olive oil
Vinegar
Feta cheese
A little bit salt and sugar
Cut the tomatoes in slices, same with the peperonis, olives.
Cut the feta cheese in cubes, 5-10 millimeter size.
Add olive oil, vinegar, salt and sugar, mix well all together in a bowl and let the salad sit for 30-60 minutes at a cool place.
Then serve.
Ingredients:
Tomatoes
Peperoni, bell pepper or chili, depending on how hot you like it
Olives, green and/or black
Olive oil
Vinegar
Feta cheese
A little bit salt and sugar
Cut the tomatoes in slices, same with the peperonis, olives.
Cut the feta cheese in cubes, 5-10 millimeter size.
Add olive oil, vinegar, salt and sugar, mix well all together in a bowl and let the salad sit for 30-60 minutes at a cool place.
Then serve.
Easy Grilled Lamb Chops
This is an easy recipe for grilled lamb chops.
It takes some time to marinate though.
Some say, this recipe is for 2 persons.
But two lamb chops for a single person? Come on...
Ingredients:
4 lamb chops
olive oil
2 tsp rosemary
2-3 garlic cloves
1-2 chili, fresh, dried or powder
salt
black pepper, fresh grinded
Pure olive oil into a casserole, which is big enough to hold the 4 lamb chops. Use enough oil that the chops are covered (you can add more later, if needed).
Add rosemary, minced or squeezed garlic, minced chili (remove the seeds!), salt (1/2 tsp) and the black pepper in the casserole and stir everything well.
Then add the 4 lamb chops, if needed add some more olive oil that the chops are covered.
From time to time turn the cops and re-arrange them inside the casserole, so that they marinate well.
Cover the casserole with a lid or a plastic wrap, then marinate at least for one hour. The longer you marinate it (can be even over night at a cool place, like inside a fridge), the stronger the taste of the marinade will go into the chops.
Fire up the grill and grill the chops for 4-6 minutes from each side, so serve them after 8-12 minutes, depending on the heat of the grill.
Serve with bread, djuvec rice (tomato rice), tzatziki, olives, salad, roasted vegetables, baked potatos and such.
It takes some time to marinate though.
Some say, this recipe is for 2 persons.
But two lamb chops for a single person? Come on...
Ingredients:
4 lamb chops
olive oil
2 tsp rosemary
2-3 garlic cloves
1-2 chili, fresh, dried or powder
salt
black pepper, fresh grinded
Pure olive oil into a casserole, which is big enough to hold the 4 lamb chops. Use enough oil that the chops are covered (you can add more later, if needed).
Add rosemary, minced or squeezed garlic, minced chili (remove the seeds!), salt (1/2 tsp) and the black pepper in the casserole and stir everything well.
Then add the 4 lamb chops, if needed add some more olive oil that the chops are covered.
From time to time turn the cops and re-arrange them inside the casserole, so that they marinate well.
Cover the casserole with a lid or a plastic wrap, then marinate at least for one hour. The longer you marinate it (can be even over night at a cool place, like inside a fridge), the stronger the taste of the marinade will go into the chops.
Fire up the grill and grill the chops for 4-6 minutes from each side, so serve them after 8-12 minutes, depending on the heat of the grill.
Serve with bread, djuvec rice (tomato rice), tzatziki, olives, salad, roasted vegetables, baked potatos and such.
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Spare ribs on Sauerkraut
This is an interesting and yummy recipe i tried lately. The interesting thing is the mix of kraut and spare ribs, which is yummy itself. If you want low carb food, you can eat it without potatos, if you don't care about low carb, you can eat it with potatos, smashed potatos, potato dumplings.
Ingredients:
1-1.5 KG of spare ribs
1 KG of sauerkraut
1 onion
pepper
bell pepper powder
salt
300 ml of apple juice or apple wine
some water
1 TSP oil, for example peanut oil
a few juniper berries
a few pepper corns
2 bay leaves
Cut the spare ribs into pieces, like 10x10 centimeters or such.
Season them with some salt, a lot of pepper and bell pepper powder.
And i really mean "a lot", pepper and bell pepper powder, that should season the sauerkraut and the sauce too.
Peel the onion, cut it into cubes and roast the onion cubes in a pot or pan with the TSP of oil for 2 or 3 minutes.
Then add the sauerkraut, the apple juice or apple wine, depending on how sweet you would like this dish, add, if needed, some water, so that all the kraut is covered with liquid.
Add the juniper berries, pepper corns, bay leaves, mix everything well, then put the seasoned pieces of spare ribs on the top of it, put a lid on the pan or pot and let it simmer, nearly cooking, for at least one hour.
The dish is cooked well, if you could easily remove the meat from the bones of the spare ribs.
After that, serve it with potato stuff or not, depending on if you like low carb or non low carb food and enjoy :)
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Birnen, Bohnen und Speck (Pears, Beans and Bacon)
Pears, Beans and Bacon is an interesting dish from northern germany.
There are some variations of it, but all recipes include, you won't guess it, pears, beans and bacon.
Usually it is cooked in August and September, when the ingredients, pears and beans, are available in the garden or at a market.
The needed beans are French Beans, the bacon is usually smoked bacon, and the pears are a little bit special, since you can't eat them, when they are not cooked.
They are small, hard and not so sweet as usual pears are, called cooking pears.
If you're not living in northern germany, you can try to get some small, hard and not too sweet pears as a replacement. The sweet and big ones you can buy everywhere aren't a good replacement, because they will become too soft after cooking and are too sweet.
You can use the bacon as a hole piece or cut it into pieces before cooking it.
Ingredients for 4 persons:
800g French Beans
6-8 pears
400-500g bacon
500-600g potatos
some savory
water (or broth)
if wanted, pepper
Preparation:
Put the bacon in the pot, add water (or broth) until the bacon is well covered and cook it for 25-30 minutes.
Clean and wash the beans and cut them into not too small sections. Something like the size you can still eat with a table spoon.
Remove the flower from the pears, but not the stalks, and wash them.
When the beacon is cooked, after 30 minutes, add the beans and the savory and put the pears on top and let it cook for another 20-30 minutes.
If there is not enough water left in the pot, add some, that at least the bacon and the beans + savory are covered.
Meanwhile clean and peal the potatos and cook them separately.
After cooking that whole thing for at least 50-60 minutes in total (30 mins for the bacon, 20-30 mins with the beans and pears), you can add some flour, if the stew is too liquid for your taste. Just mix some flour with water, add it and let it boil a little bit.
So, when everything is cooked, serve.
First, the potatos, put them on the plate and cut them into pieces. Then every person gets one or two pears, depending on how many you have cooked, then add the beans, bacon and liquid.
A fresh beer goes well with this dish :)
Variations:
Add some beef or mutton, cut into pieces.
Add some salt, if the bacon itself is not salty enough.
Don't use savory but add chopped parsley before serving.
Use broth instead of water or add some broth to the water.
Add some pepper.
What you should not do is to make it too spicy or you won't be able to taste the fine taste of the bacon, pears and beans.
There are some variations of it, but all recipes include, you won't guess it, pears, beans and bacon.
Usually it is cooked in August and September, when the ingredients, pears and beans, are available in the garden or at a market.
The needed beans are French Beans, the bacon is usually smoked bacon, and the pears are a little bit special, since you can't eat them, when they are not cooked.
They are small, hard and not so sweet as usual pears are, called cooking pears.
If you're not living in northern germany, you can try to get some small, hard and not too sweet pears as a replacement. The sweet and big ones you can buy everywhere aren't a good replacement, because they will become too soft after cooking and are too sweet.
You can use the bacon as a hole piece or cut it into pieces before cooking it.
Ingredients for 4 persons:
800g French Beans
6-8 pears
400-500g bacon
500-600g potatos
some savory
water (or broth)
if wanted, pepper
Preparation:
Put the bacon in the pot, add water (or broth) until the bacon is well covered and cook it for 25-30 minutes.
Clean and wash the beans and cut them into not too small sections. Something like the size you can still eat with a table spoon.
Remove the flower from the pears, but not the stalks, and wash them.
When the beacon is cooked, after 30 minutes, add the beans and the savory and put the pears on top and let it cook for another 20-30 minutes.
If there is not enough water left in the pot, add some, that at least the bacon and the beans + savory are covered.
Meanwhile clean and peal the potatos and cook them separately.
After cooking that whole thing for at least 50-60 minutes in total (30 mins for the bacon, 20-30 mins with the beans and pears), you can add some flour, if the stew is too liquid for your taste. Just mix some flour with water, add it and let it boil a little bit.
So, when everything is cooked, serve.
First, the potatos, put them on the plate and cut them into pieces. Then every person gets one or two pears, depending on how many you have cooked, then add the beans, bacon and liquid.
A fresh beer goes well with this dish :)
Variations:
Add some beef or mutton, cut into pieces.
Add some salt, if the bacon itself is not salty enough.
Don't use savory but add chopped parsley before serving.
Use broth instead of water or add some broth to the water.
Add some pepper.
What you should not do is to make it too spicy or you won't be able to taste the fine taste of the bacon, pears and beans.
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