It's Good Though…

Yield: 4 Servings

Adapted from ATK

A nod to a shrimp boil, this soup delivers a taste of the South—fast. You should adjust the quantity of carrots and potatoes to your liking. I have doubled the amount of Kielbasa from the original and added the step of making shrimp stock from the shells and tails to improve flavor. This is a pepper forward dish, so you can omit the ½ tsp until adjust the seasoning at the end.

Note: I thought it had too much carrot, but I’m not a big fan of plain carrots.

• 2TBS vegetable oil
• 2-4carrots, peeled and sliced ½ inch thick
• 1onion, halved and sliced thin
• 2-4celery ribs, sliced ½ inch thick
• 1½TBS Old Bay seasoning
• 5cups water or shrimp stock
• 1-2lbs red or white potatoes, unpeeled, cut into ¾-inch pieces
• 114-16 oz Kielbasa, sliced on bias ½ inch thick
• ½tsp pepper
• ¼tsp table salt
• 1lb extra-large shrimp (21 to 25 per lb), peeled, deveined, shells and tails reserved
• 1cup fresh or thawed frozen corn
• Special Equipment: soup sock (optional)

Make Shrimp Stock:
If you have a soup sock you can skip this step. Place 5 cups of water in a large saucepan over high heat. Add shrimp shells and tails from at least 1 lb of shrimp. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer for 10 – 15 minutes. Strain into another heat proof container, pressing on shells to extract most of liquid. Discard shells.
Cook Vegetables:
Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add carrots, onion, and celery and cook until onion is softened, 5 to 7 minutes.
Cook Soup:
Stir in Old Bay and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds.
If using a soup sock, put shells and tails into the sock and add to the Dutch oven. Stir in water.
If not using a soup sock, add the strained shrimp stock to the Dutch oven.
Add potatoes, sausage, pepper (can be omitted until adjusting seasoning), and salt and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer until potatoes are barely tender, about 8 to 10 minutes.
Stir in shrimp and corn. Cover and continue to cook, stirring occasionally until shrimp is cooked through, about 4 minutes longer.
Taste and adjust seasoning.
Serve with a nice country boule (bread).

Yield: 4 Servings

Adapted from J. Kenji Lopez / Serious Eats

Intensely beefy and buttery skirt steak is the star of this quick stir-fry, featuring sweet snap peas tossed in oyster sauce.

Beef:

• 1lb skirt steak of flap meat, thinly sliced

Tenderize: (optional)

• ¼tsp baking soda
• 3TBS water

Marinade:

• 1egg white
• 1pinch white pepper
• ¼tsp salt
• 1-2½TBS of corn starch
• 1TBS of oil

Sauce:

• ½tsp kosher salt
• ½tsp sugar
• 1tsp dark soy sauce
• 1tsp Shaoxing wine
• ½tsp roasted sesame oil
• ⅛tsp baking soda
• ½tsp cornstarch

Stir-Fry:

• 3TBS vegetable, canola, or peanut oil, divided
• 1lb snap peas, trimmed
• 8oz mushrooms, sliced
• 2medium cloves garlic, finely minced (about 2 tsp)
• 2tsp finely minced fresh ginger
• 1scallion, white and light green parts only, finely minced

Beef:

Note: Tenderize the beef with a Jaccard before slicing. (optional)

Slice the beef with the blade tilted 45 degrees to get a thin cut through the grain.

Tenderize: (optional)

Mix 1/4 tsp baking soda and 3TBS water in a small bowl. Add beef and let sit for at least 30 minutes.

Marinate:

In a bowl, add the beef, egg white, white pepper, salt, Mix well. Add 1 to 2 TBS of corn starch and mix well. Add 1 TBS of oil and mix again. Set aside for 15 to 30 minutes.

Combine beef, salt, sugar, soy sauce, wine, sesame oil, baking soda, and cornstarch in a small bowl and toss to combine. Set aside for 20 minutes.

Premix Sauce:

Combine soy sauce, wine, chicken stock, oyster sauce, sugar, sesame oil, and cornstarch in a small bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.

Stir Fry Beef:

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a wok over high heat until smoking. Add half of the beef, spreading it out in a single layer, and cook without moving until lightly browned on first side, about 1 minute. Toss and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until barely cooked through, about 1 minute longer. Transfer to a bowl and set aside. Repeat with 1 more tablespoon oil and remaining beef.

Stir Fry Mushrooms:

Add oil if needed to have 1 tablespoon oil in the wok over medium high heat. Add the mushrooms and stir fry until lightly browned. Remove to bowl with beef.

Stir Fry Snap Peas:

Wipe out wok, add remaining 1 tablespoon oil, and place over high heat until smoking. Add snap peas and cook, tossing and stirring frequently, until lightly charred in spots and bright green. Add garlic, ginger, and scallions and cook, stirring, until fragrant.

Finish:

Return beef and mushrooms to wok and toss to combine. Stir sauce and add to wok. Cook, stirring and tossing constantly, until sauce is thickened and coats beef and vegetables, about 1 minute.

Serve immediately.

Yield: 4 to 6 Servings

AllRecipes

Not just plain Asparagus.

• 1bunch fresh asparagus, trimmed
• ½lb fresh mushrooms, quartered
• 2sprigs fresh rosemary, minced
• 2tsp olive oil
• kosher salt to taste
• freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450°F. Lightly spray a cookie sheet with vegetable cooking spray.

Place the asparagus and mushrooms in a bowl. Drizzle with the olive oil, then season with rosemary, salt, and pepper; toss well. Lay the asparagus and mushrooms out on the prepared pan in an even layer. Roast in the preheated oven until the asparagus is tender, about 15 minutes.

Yield: 4 Servings

J. Kenji López-Alt / Serious Eats

Using traditional technique, caramelizing onions is a slow, painstaking process. Thirty minutes in the pressure cooker, though, and they taste just as good as if they had been on the stove for hours. Once they’re done, it just takes a few more minutes to make them into soup. Our recipe calls for a ton of Gruyère—French onion soup just isn’t right without a thick blanket of cheese.

• 6TBS unsalted butter, plus more for toasts
• 3lb yellow or mixed onions, sliced 1/8 inch thick (about 4 to 5 large onions) (see note above)
• ½tsp baking soda
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• ½cup dry sherry, such as Amontillado
• 2quarts chicken stock
• 2sprigs thyme
• 1bay leaf
• 1tsp Asian fish sauce (optional)
• 1tsp cider vinegar
• 8bowl-size slices rustic bread, toasted until crisp
• 1medium clove garlic
• freshly minced chives, for garnish
• 1lb Gruyère cheese, grated

Onions:

Set a 6-qt Instant Pot to the SAUTÉ MEDIUM setting. Add butter and heat until foaming stops.

Add onions and baking soda and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until onions slightly soften and start to release liquid, about 3 minutes.

Seal Instant Pot and set to MANUAL HIGH pressure for 20 minutes. Release pressure using Quick Release, then remove lid.

Continue cooking with lid off, stirring constantly, until liquid inside has completely reduced and the onions are deep brown and sticky, about 5 minutes.

Add sherry and bring to a simmer, scraping up any browned bits. Cook until alcohol smell is mostly gone, about 3 minutes. Add stock, thyme, and bay leaf, raise heat to medium-high, and bring to a simmer. Lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add fish sauce, if using, and cider vinegar and season with salt and pepper (if necessary). Discard thyme sprigs and bay leaf.

To Serve:

Preheat broiler and move oven rack to top position. Butter toasts and rub with garlic clove until fragrant. Spoon a small amount of broth into the bottoms of 4 ovenproof serving bowls, then top with half the toasts. Sprinkle some grated Gruyère on top of toasts, then spoon more soup and onions on top, nearly filling the bowls. Set the remaining 4 toasts in each bowl, pushing to nearly submerge them. Top with remaining grated cheese and set bowls on a rimmed baking sheet. Broil until cheese is melted and browned in spots.

Garnish with chives and serve.

with Mashed Potato

Yield: 6 Servings

TastesBetterFromScratch

This flavorful, juicy Instant Pot Meatloaf is an easy instant pot dinner. The meatloaf is made with ground beef (or a combination of ground beef and ground turkey), breadcrumbs, spices, and eggs, and I usually add potatoes to the bottom of the instant pot to make mashed potatoes at the same time, for an all-in-one meal!

For the Meatloaf:

• 2lb ground beef (or ground turkey, ground pork or a combination)
• 2large eggs
• 4TBS ketchup
• 2TBS Worcestershire sauces
• 2tsp Dijon mustard
• 4cloves garlic, minced (or 1½ tsp garlic powder)
• 1tsp salt
• ½tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1tsp dried sage
• ½cup yellow or sweet onion, minced (or 3 tsp dried minced onion)
• ½cup unseasoned breadcrumbs, regular or Panko
  

Meatloaf sauce:

• ½cup ketchup
• 6TBS light brown sugar
• 2tsp Dijon mustard
• ¼tsp ground nutmeg

For the mashed potatoes:

• 3lb Yukon gold potatoes, quartered
• 1cup water
• ½tsp salt
• ¼cup milk
• ¼cup sour cream or plain yogurt
  
• 3TBS butter

Special Equipment:

• Instant Pot and its Wire Rack
• Heavy duty aluminum foil

Total Prep & Cook Time: 60 minutes

Meatloaf Prep:

Add all of the meatloaf ingredients to a large bowl and gently mix everything to combine (without over-working the meat).

Form the meat mixture into a round loaf that will fit into your instant pot.

Place the loaf on a large piece of aluminum foil and fold the edges up to make a secure nest for the meatloaf to rest in. (You want the edges high enough that grease from the meatloaf won’t spill out onto the potatoes while cooking.)

Instant Pot:

Add the quartered potatoes, water, and salt to the bottom of the instant pot.

Lay the Instant Pot wire rack on top of the potatoes. Place the aluminum foil “nest” with the meatloaf on top of the rack.

Secure the lid on the pot and close the pressure release valve. Select manual/High pressure and cook at high pressure for 25 minutes. When the timer beeps, allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes, then use quick release.

Sauce:

While the meatloaf cooks, make the sauce by combining all of the sauce ingredients in a bowl. Mix until smooth. Set aside.

Finish:

Remove the Instant Pot lid, and carefully remove the meatloaf. Check for an internal temperature of 155°F. If below 155°F, finish in a 350°F oven. Discard the aluminum foil and grease drippings.

Spoon the meatloaf sauce over the top (or serve on the side) and cut into slices.

Mashed Potato:

Add the milk, sour cream, butter, salt and pepper to the instant pot with the potatoes. Mash to combine. Taste and adjust seasonings, as needed.
Serve with your choice of vegetable.

A trick to ensuring your foil boat will fit on the rack, is to form it around the rack.