Smoked Chicken Stir Fry

Another Tex-Asian creation I make with my Hickory Smoked Chicken is this Stir Fry.  I'm gonna slice the Onion and Bell Pepper into large slices, like you would see in a Pepper Steak Stir Fry.  Then also rough chop some Cabbage.  The part of the Chicken that I am using is the Thigh, and I'll use one for this Stir Fry, Chopped.  The Stir Fry Pan is already warming up as I am doing the Sous Chef work.

Stir Fries go fast, and admittedly mine are not as fast as a Stir Fry Chef.  They use big BTUs (Lots of Heat) and I don't have that capacity here.  So, mine cook slower, but I think the end result is close to the same.

We'll get the Bell Pepper, Mushroom, and Onion in the pan first.  They need more time to cook than the Cabbage, and the Chicken is already cooked.  Keep the Stir Fry moving, otherwise you can burn it.

While the Vegetables are cooking I'll prepare a slurry of one teaspoon Corn Starch, One teaspoon of Caldo de Pollo, and three quarters of a cup of water.  Assemble the slurry in a one sup jar with a tight fitting lid.

Next we'll add the Smoked Chicken, Red Chile flakes, Black Pepper, and a little Sea Salt.  Then add the slurry after giving it a thorough shaking.  Let the sauce come up to a boil and stir to coat all the ingredients.

 I had prepared the white Rice earlier.  Form the Rice with a bowl, and then invert the bowl on the serving plate where you want the mound of Rice.  Then transfer the Smoked Chicken Stir Fry from the Stir Fry pan to the plate.  Now all I need is a Fortune Cookie...

Compost and Firewood

I don't trim my large trees very often.  Lately I have found myself having to duck under the limbs of my big Live Oak Tree so I guess its time to prune it.  I see so many people that trim their trees, and throw the trimmings out on the curb to go into the local landfill, tisk tisk...  Take a look at Organic Gold, where I explain how to recycle this material into your own local environment.

I am taking off some rather large limbs.  All the scrub, the little limbs on the main branches, and the down growing branches will get pruned to open up the inside of the tree, and clear the ground space around the tree.  As I prune the branches I will strip off all the leaves, and throw them on the ground.

Then I'll shop up the branches into small pieces.  Tiny stems go onto the lawn with the leaves.  Medium size stems will go into a city compost bag, and large stems will get chopped up into firewood for the smoker.

The medium size stems can go into a long term compost process, if you have one.  It really takes a long time to compost stems, and you will need another compost bin,, separate from the short term compost bin.  The short term compost bin is for grass clippings and leaves which decompose rather quickly, within a year.  While a long term compost bin will have to fester for a couple three years.  The larger stems will get dried out for use in the smoker by letting them sit on the woodpile for several months.

All the leaves and the tiny stems that I had thrown on the lawn will get processed with the lawn mower before they go into the short term compost bin.  I have a mulching mower which will grind up the leaves fairly well.  Smaller pieces compost faster, and this works for the stems as well.  If you can grind up all those medium sized stems they will compost much faster.

I cleaned off a spot in the area I use for composting so I can start a new compost bin for this year's compost.  I moved all the old material off to the side to mix with soil, and the new compost bin contents will not get used until next year.

Fennel Flowers

I have this monstrous Fennel plant that I have let go to seed on purpose to get Fennel seeds.  Fennel seeds are the Licorice flavored seeds that you will find in Italian Sausage, and other Italian dishes.

I am impressed at the size of this plant.  Its huge, and the number of flowers on this one plant is impressive.  Compared to a Fennel plant you would buy at a grocery store its maybe ten times bigger.

The whole plant has an Anise fragrance, and every time I brush up against it I can smell the Anise fragrance that reminds me of Italian Sausage Pizza...

Grains of the Gods II

I need to make a retraction.  I posted and article called Grains of the Gods where I elucidated the benefits of Quinoa, and Amaranth.  The information is valid, but the plant that I had selected to photograph was not Quinoa, Doh!  I had mistaken Burdock for Quinoa, and they are not the same.  Burdock does have medicinal value, and is a useful plant, but it isn't the topic of the elucidation.  These are Quinoa plants.

What I did to figure this out was to buy some Quinoa grain, and plant it in my garden.  I had planted some last Fall, but the plants didn't have enough time to mature before we had the first freeze.  This year I planted some in the Spring, but now its Summer, and I think the plants are suffering because they are not acclimated to the Texas heat.  The new growth is a Lavender color, and they are flowering, but they don't seem to be doing as well as I thought they should be.  I think that Quinoa is usually grown in mountainous regions, and are not suited for being grown on the Texas prairie...

Sausage and Cabbage Soup

This may sound like a German soup, but you gotta remember that what I cook is usually Tex-Asian.  Yeah we're gonna use Kielbasa, a Polish sausage.  Then the cooked Cabbage is reminiscent of Sauerkraut, uniquely German, but that is the end of the similarity.  I'm going to start with a Stir Fry.  I'll add some Olive Oil to a hot stir fry pan then throw in some diced Onions, and quartered Mushrooms.  Let the Onions and Mushrooms cook for a while before adding shredded Cabbage, and the sliced Kielbasa.

At this point it is a stir fry, and could be served like this, but I want soup.  Next I'll add a couple cups of water, Sea Salt, Red Chile flakes, Black Pepper, and bring it up to a boil.

In the mean time we're going to make a slurry which will transform the water into soup.  The slurry is made with Caldo de Pollo, Corn Starch, and a half a cup of water.  I assemble the slurry in a one cup jar with a tight fitting lid.  Then shake the slurry with all your might, you want it mixed very well, other wise their might be Corn Starch lumps in the soup.  I know you don't want that.

Then we'll need to return the soup to a boil to cause the Corn Starch to "bloom", or thicken.  At the last minute we're going to add some Rice Wine Vinegar, and Sesame Oil to heighten the Asian flair.

So I have taken what might be assumed to be a German Soup and made Hot and Sour Soup with Sausage and Cabbage instead of Tofu, and Bamboo Shoots.  That Hot and Sour soup base is probably my favorite, and you can morph it into anything, like Brussels Sprouts.  Once you have the fundamentals recipes are irrelevant.  You have creative license, make soup...

Peach Trees

When I find great Peaches I save the seeds.  These are not just any Peaches, these are the ones that are over the top great.  I had got some California Peaches at Rosemeade Market last week which I thought were that good, and added them to my collection of great Peach seeds.  Now I had 10, accumulated over a couple years.  Some are freestone, some clingstone, in both regular Peach color, and White Peaches.  I decided that it was time to plant them.

So I managed to scrounge up ten pots, and filled them with my Compost Soil Mix.  Then planted my Awesome Peach seed collection.  I have them in a shady spot to sprout, and close to the Organic Bed so I can water them easy.  The tree they are under I also started from a seed.

It is a native Live Oak Tree.  There was an Live Oak Tree at a place where I worked, and I picked up some Acorns one day.  I planted a few of them in small pots, much like the Peach Trees, and within a couple years I was able to plant one in the ground.  Now its probably around 8 years old, and is probably about 15 feet tall.

Denver Burrito

Think Denver Omelet, but in a Burrito Tortilla instead of French Folded Eggs.

I'm gonna start here with some diced Green Pepper, and Onions in a teaspoon of butter.

Let the Onions and Green Pepper cook for a few minutes.   Throw in some diced Tomatoes next.

Then add a couple Eggs.  Break the Yolks, but don't scramble them.  Then the Eggs are two toned.

A Denver Omelet has diced Ham usually, and I'm gonna use sliced Black Forest Ham here.

While the Eggs are cooking I'll get the Burrito Tortilla ready by giving a handful of

shredded Cheddar, and letting it warm in the microwave for thirty seconds.

Once the filling is cooked I'll season it with Sea Salt and Black Pepper.

Then put the filling in the Burrito Tortilla, and Roll, Burrito Style.

Just like your favorite Denver Omelet, but in a convenient, hand held form.

Got Chips and Casa Loco Salsa on the side.