![Pan-Grilled Ribeye Steak with Creamy Herb Sauce]()
by Yvonne Maffei | Dec 30, 2014 | Beef, Red Meat Dishes
Recently I’ve been cooking with a lot of Angus beef products from Crescent Foods, which is a game changer for the halal food market here in the United States. It’s not easy to get beef from a grass-fed halal source, but Crescent has done an amazing job of sourcing it from New Zealand and providing it to us in a variety of stores throughout the country. Being in Chicago, I’m fortunate that it is available in some stores, but not everywhere yet- us halal consumers have to ask for it so that more stores will consider carrying it.
For this super easy and quick recipe, I used the Angus Ribeye Steak that Crescent carries. They also have beef cubes, ground beef, beef burgers and more. I also used a grill pan with ridges so you can get those really great grill marks in the dead of winter when you can’t go outside and grill!
I start out by salting the pan (add pepper, too, if you like) and a nice big pat of butter so that when it melts, it will cover the underside of the steak. I like to let it cook long enough that it gets a nice dark brown color and not move it until it easily moves itself with a little nudge of a spatula (silicone here, nothing metal or it will scratch the cast iron pan), around 5-7 minutes.
That gives me just enough time to prepare the no-cook creamy sauce that will go on top of the finished steak. All you need is some sour cream, mayonnaise, parsley and salt. Put it all in a small bowl and mix, then set aside until the steak is done.
Once the first side is cooked to your liking, turn it over gently and let it cook on the other side. Don’t do too much of that flipping, otherwise you’ll ruin the nice and neat grill marks. I like to do another 5-7 minutes, then find something to cover the pan for a couple minutes, just to be sure it’s well done, as I’m not keen on rare or medium rare meats.
Once it comes off the pan, you can salt again just a bit and even add a small pat of butter on top of the sizzling meat- it’s really delicious that way; otherwise just let it cool for a few minutes and add the cream sauce directly on top. If you’d rather not, you can simply serve it as a dipping sauce.
I absolutely loved this recipe, which is simply the product of starting with a high quality ingredient and not doing too much to it in the process of cooking to interfere with it. It came out juicy and tender and with just the right amount of cream on top, I felt like it was something you might order from a gourmet restaurant. Serve with some sort of potato dish, home-baked fries or even rice. Who needs to go out to eat?
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![Angus Beef Burger with Cheese]()
by Yvonne Maffei | Sep 12, 2014 | Beef, Summer
While grilling season may seem like it’s winding down or at a complete dead halt here in Chicago (we got a sudden cold spell), the weather usually takes a turn upwards again and we get a streak of a couple of hot (or at least some very warm days) where everyone wants to grill something. This recipe is the perfect quick fix to that juicy burger craving I get at least a few times each summer. It’s so simple to make, mainly because you can get the pre-formed Angus Beef Burger patties from Crescent Foods, a quality halal brand that is known for their humanely raise and antibiotic-free poultry products, and simply add your own flavorings to it.
To the burgers, I add steak sauce, salt and pepper- prior to grilling. You can use a grill pan inside, but if you get the chance to make it outdoors, why not?
I even tried my hand at starting the charcoal grill for the first time myself- and it wasn’t as hard as it seemed to me before doing it.
In fact, it’s something I think everyone should learn how to do!
Once the grill is nice and hot and you can pour the hot coals into the grill pit, let the burgers cook for about 7-8 minutes on each side (for a well-done burger). Flip and do the same thing again- add a drizzle of steak sauce, salt and pepper and cook again for 5-7 minutes. (If you don’t have pre-formed patties, simply add the steak sauce, salt and pepper to the burgers then mix up the ground meat and form the patties. You can add a little more steak sauce on top as they cook, just like we’re doing with these).
I also like to warm up the [wheat] buns on the grill, too.
I also prefer my own mayo and since it’s easy to make your own, why not do that, too?
I had a bit of leftover green peppers from the mayo but pickles taste great, too.
Add some shredded sharp cheddar cheese and a little more steak sauce on top.
So good. Not fussy. Quick to make. Delicious to enjoy. Anyone can do this, even someone who’s just learned how to start a charcoal grill…
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![Thai Beef Curry]()
by Yvonne Maffei | Aug 30, 2014 | Asian, Beef, By Meal Type, Dinner, Stews & Curries, Thai
This recipe comes from Derya Singhsumalee, a former teacher colleague of mine who is such a fun and interesting person. She is very well-traveled, is of Turkish ethnicity and married to a man from a Thai Muslim family. In the school lunch room we used to talk quite a bit about cultural diversity and, of course, food. She was very familiar with Sicilian cuisine having lived in Sicily for a short time during her life. I found her background fascinating and our conversations a great bonding experience between us. Recently when I saw that she posted this recipe to her Facebook page, I immediately asked her to share it with all of you, and she graciously obliged. Here you go- thank you, Derya!
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![Beef Kabobs with Grilled Vegetables]()
by Yvonne Maffei | Jul 19, 2014 | Beef, Iftar, Middle Eastern, Ramadan, Red Meat Dishes
Summertime is the best time to have kebobs- out on the grill, finally! Although here, it’s been a very rainy season plus with Ramadan falling in summer this year, it’s been a little difficult to get out on the BBQ before dark, so this recipe can be made indoors or out. I’ll show you how.
Here’s what you need:
Fresh beef cubes (such as for stew). I’m using the newest product out of Crescent Foods, their grass fed, hormone & antibiotic-free beef~ very exciting! Use their store locator to see if a nearby location sells it in your area.
Fresh herbs- I use mint, oregano, marjoram, rosemary- basically everything I have growing in my garden right now.
Plus spices- ground cumin, black pepper and salt. Also citrus zest, minced garlic and fresh lime.
For the skewers, you can use a variety of veggies, but I chose red pepper, green pepper, onion and tomatoes. I like red, white and green, for some strange reason.
To get started mixing up the ingredients, you’ll first make a paste- that helps the spices to stick to the meat nicely and for the garlic not to burn when cooking.
I like to use a mortar and pestle because you can really control how densely you’ll pound it all together. You can also do this in a small spice grinder or food processor, if you wish. Basically, you’re just making a paste out of the ingredients: minced garlic, salt and pepper.
Next, remove the leaves from the stems of fresh herbs. You can even chop them finely or pound them into the paste above, too.
Just make sure they’re small if you’re interested in keeping them in the meat mixture marinade when cooking the meat; if not, it’s just for flavor during the time it marinates.
Next, add the cumin to the meat. This could also have been added to the garlic paste made above- quite honestly, I just forgot to do it, but since it’s already a powder, it’s fine to add like this. The point is to make sure the spices will adhere to the meat.
Add the citrus zest, fresh or dried.
Add the garlic paste.
And the herbs.
Add the olive oil.
Mix all together.
Add the lime juice, lime faced down.
Helps it squeeze out everything…
Let the meat marinate like this for at least 30 minutes, refrigerated.
Now prepare the skewers. The very first vegetable cut should be pushed down with the inside facing up, as it serves sort of like a holder for the next few items.
I place a pepper, then tomato, then meat then onion and pepper. Repeat. It seems to hold nicely like this.
Two to three pieces of meat on an average size skewer seems to work nicely. Arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet if you’ll be making these in an oven (which you can absolutely do).
Or prepare a grill- get it nice and hot before you place the skewers on top.
Cooking times will vary (see directions below), depending up on whether or not you’ll be grilling indoors or out, or roasting these in the oven.
Either way, I like to serve on top of buttery saffron Basmati rice. Tender meat, grilled vegetables and buttery rice. What could be better on a summer day?
What’s your favorite way to have kebobs?
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![Sweet & Sour Beef]()
by Yvonne Maffei | Jun 21, 2014 | Beef
I don’t make Asian food that often at home, but I really do love it. I recently had a real craving for sweet and sour something– whether it be seafood, beef or chicken. Many of the recipes I found used ketchup for the sauce (which I’m not a huge fan of when it comes to cooking with it) and other prepared sauces for the ‘sweet and sour’ part. Instead, I tested my own version of a homemade sweet and sour combination that worked really well, particularly with a high quality Halal meat like the Billy Doe Meats.
The ingredients I used are fairly simple and can be found in just about any grocery store international aisle: cane sugar, pineapple vinegar (or any fruity vinegar- apple cider vinegar is particularly good here), tomato sauce, sesame oil or toasted sesame oil (or a combination of the two).
I also used some greens from my garden: kale, spinach, celery and Swiss chard. You can use just one of these, if you like.
If I had to choose just one, it would be kale- it’s thicker than spinach and tends to hold onto the meat a little better, if that’s all the greens you’re using.
But the Swiss chard does add some nice color when using the stems.
I also added carrots- shredded, but also the leftover chunky parts, as nothing is wasted. Garlic, too. Of course.
After everything is chopped, the larger parts plus the onion and garlic get sautéd in the sesame oil. You can use a wok or Dutch oven to do this.
I added ground ginger for added spice because I didn’t have fresh on hand. Either one works and freshly chopped is always preferable- to me, anyway.
Use high heat once those ingredients are in the pot.
Add the beef cubes. These looked fabulous.
And the tomato sauce, vinegar, sugar and corn starch.
Then the greens and shredded carrots, basically the thin stuff.
Now we’re seeing more color, which is always nice when you’re about to eat the dish soon after cooking it. Makes it so much more appealing.
Then you’ll need to cover it, reduce the heat and let the beef cook. The greens will actually add moisture to the meat, making it nice and soft after about 25 minutes. I like to serve it over rice or noodles, but I could it all by itself, too.
[yumprint-recipe id=’19’] ![Korean Slow Cooked Beef & Vegetables]()
by Yvonne Maffei | Oct 8, 2013 | Asian, Beef, Halal-Certified Products, Korean, Recipes, Slow Cook
Since we’ve moved into our house and begun construction, it’s the simple things in life that have kind of gone straight out the window- like an organized closet, knowing where all my cooking spices are, and the luxury (because it truly is) of having a working stove hooked up to a gas line, right next to a working sink where you can rinse off all your dishes and be on your merry way.
I’m not saying this to complain, but rather to illustrate the fact that to eat well by cooking at home, it’s not that you have to have complex ingredients, but you do need some pretty good basics. I guess I’ve learned that having the grand cooking tools and resources at my disposal is something I never thought I’d do without for more than a day or two. Although I haven’t written about it much here, our kitchen renovation – or whole house remodel/renovation on top of a situation in which our well water is severely compromised- has been a test of patience, endurance and an exercise in gratitude.
How in the world do millions, perhaps billions of people around the world live, cook and eat in places like refugee camps, war zones and completely impoverished residences? What this has taught me is to look around the corner for yet another blessing, hold my tongue about the hardships and realize we don’t have it that bad at all.
In fact, we have it great. Alhamdullilah thank God).
For example, the recipe I’m going to show you how to make right now is one I savored with all my heart- not only because I really appreciated not having to eat out for the umpteenth time (when I really prefer not to), but because I could actually get the help and convenience of a wonderful, high quality and halal product in the Saffron Road Simmer Sauce to help me eat well and serve my family something healthy- and finally break out that slow cooker! Of course I cannot forget that it was all made possible by the generosity of family and friends who keep letting me cook in their kitchens throughout this process, too…
This Korean stir fry-turned-slow cooker-meal is absolutely delicious. It’s filling, full of good ingredients and yet has basic ingredients that you can probably get your kids to eat, too. I’m a huge fan of Korean food, and when Saffron Road came out with this very unique simmer sauce to use in cooking, it was extra special because it’s pretty challenging to get halal Korean food, at least where I am. Their simmer sauce flavors are so authentic that
The best way to start is by securing the right cut of meat from your butcher.
You want to make sure you get a cut and that the meat is nice and fresh- red or pink- not gray (= not fresh).
Then assemble a few important ingredients.
Good quality sesame oil, bean sprouts, fresh garlic and ginger, yellow onion, carrots, broccoli, and the ever important Saffron Road Korean Stir Fry Simmer Sauce (to make your life easier without compromising on what’s healthy and halal and not having to worry about GMOs in your food, as the company is part of the Non-GMO Project and holds itself to the highest standards of food quality possible.
You’ll also need some fresh scallions for finishing the dish, if you like those. Also, pick out the rice to cook later, since you won’t need it for a while but you will want to have it on hand.
The first thing to do is to cut all the veggies. Break up the broccoli into small to medium size pieces, then cut up and/or grate the carrots thinly. Chop the onion and mince the garlic and ginger, too.
Next, prepare your pan to saute the onion in sesame oil and then to add the beef so it browns nicely, something it won’t do in most crock pots.
Make sure the onions get nice and hot, then add the meat so it can sear a bit. Add a little grape seed oil if the meat needs it. Too much sesame oil and it burns quickly (the oil), making it quite bitter. Grape seed oil will help the frying go a little more smoothly since we’re not using a large wok here that might make it a whole lot easier to do, if you’re used to cooking like that (I am not).
Cook it down quite a bit so that it turns color.
This is when it starts to smell amazing- when those onions wrap themselves around the meat….
Next add the cut veggies. Season, as desired. I just used salt and pepper because we have seasoning in the packet of simmer sauce we’re going to use.
Oh yum..I got a little impatient and transferred the meat and veggies to the slow cooker before the meat was super browned, but I recommend you do that. Either was is fine. Just wait until the meat is mostly cooked through, if not at all before transferring it.
Slowly add in the Saffron Road Korean Stir Fry Simmer Sauce (just one packet is needed).
And then look at all that amazing sauce (don’t forget to smell it, too)…
Now cover it and leave it alone for about 3 hours. Yes, you read me correctly- three. This is slow cooking. You really don’t even have to stir the sauce in, but go ahead if you like.
This is what it looks like all stirred up (my favorite Instagram photo during the process):
Because after three hours, this is what you get:
And now you can add that spinach you’ve been reserving.
Cover and let cook for an additional thirty minutes, covered. No need to stir in the spinach, it’ll just wilt away and then you can re-open it all and mix it together. Now’s also a good time to get that rice cooking.
You didn’t think I was going to let you off without a steamy rice photo, did you?
Okay, here are some that are more clear. But if you’re reading this in the morning and beginning to wonder what’s for dinner, as your tummy grumbles, this is it guys. This is it.
Saffron Road sells their Simmer Sauces like this one in Whole Foods Markets across the country as well as World Market stores (I couldn’t believe when I saw them there), but there are many others, so please check their store locator. They also sell their products online at their site.
I definitely want to try this simmer sauce again very soon, maybe even for Eid ul Adha buffet dish. How would you try using this sauce? Tell me…
*Special shout out to my rock star butchers and meat store owners at Sara Meat Market (Niles, IL) for their patience, attention to my very detailed orders and for giving what seems like every customer the special attention needed to get their orders just the way they want them, like when I got my meat for this recipe. Thank you for being such a service to the halal food community in our Chicagoland area!
**Also, as a Brand Ambassador for Saffron Road foods, I received the Simmer Sauces from the company to try out in a recipe. All opinions, recipes and feedback on the taste, texture, usage, quantity, etc. are my own. 