For the second year in a row, I’ve been privileged to be invited by the Texas Beef Council to help tell the world about the wonders of Texas Beef through recipes. Though I’m incredibly honored to be a part of this campaign again this year it is an unfortunately bittersweet kind of pride as well, as this will be the last year that I am able to be a part of it.

In just a bit over a month my wife and I will be leaving Texas. I on my way to California and she on her way to Turkey. For me it’s a homecoming.  For her it’s a new part of the adventure of being in the Air Force. While neither of us are looking forward to being apart, we are both doing what needs to be done and trying to make the best of a somewhat bad situation.

Considering her destination, I decided that the Moroccan-Style Beef I was invited to make sounded fitting.  After all, she’ll have no limit on the kabobs she can get her hands on in the 15 months she’s gone and since I’d never cooked with bulgar before, it seemed to be a fitting last entry for my Texas Beef Council involvement.  Challenges are always good.

So tag along on a journey that spans continents.  Beef from Texas, spices from Morocco and the Orient, bamboo skewers from California and a grill from Illinois were all involved in the making of this dish.  There were smiles, there were tears, there will be retribution and perhaps even a sequel…

But you’ll never know if you don’t read part one:

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If you listen to most food magazines or watch food programming on TV, ancho chili powder is becoming a required ingredient for any pantry.  Ancho chilie powder is spicy, but without the heat of a lot of packaged chili pwders, leaving you with a subtle heat and smoky flavor that’s really hard to beat.  But what if you can’t buy ancho chile powder in your local area? No problem.  Just make your own. It’s actually quite simple, though there are a few things to keep in mind while you’re in the process.

The Ancho Chilie

Ancho chili’s are just the name used for smoked, dried poblano peppers.  Poblano peppers are most often associated with chili relleno, but have many other uses as well.  Poblanos have a wonderful fruity flavor and generally have far less heat than a jalapeno, even if it’s picked young. So basically, Ancho is to poblano what chipotle is to jalapeno, and the flavor is amazing.

Finding ancho chilies should not be a problem for most people in the U.S. market.  You know that BigScaryMegaMart that lurks in the middle of town?  They’ve probably got ‘em.  You’ll find Anchos in a big clear plastic bag, usually on the Ethnic foods aisle.  They’re not real lookers, but they pack a ton of flavor and are useful for everything from sauces to stews.

Now that you’ve got anchos, making ancho chili powder is only a few steps away…

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Popularity: 9% [?]

The ability to cook by the seat of your pants can be a benefit at times. For example: I pulled some steak out of the freezer yesterday morning for last night’s dinner only to find that it had gone into the freezer after it had already gone a little “funky”.

Now funky steak isn’t on my list of things to try for dinner anytime soon, so it was off to my local supermarket to find something acceptable. Did I have a plan? Of course not. I just knew I needed something ready to go on the stove when Mrs. seat of her pants got home from work.

A quick rush around the meat department at the local United Grocers gave me the answer. Pork blade roast was on special! Now I love me some pork roast so I grabbed up an 8.5 pounder and a few other sundries that we were in need of before heading back home, still brimming with excitement and satisfaction at my victory over the foul hordes of malodorous beef. Read more…

Popularity: 1% [?]