Dd's Tasmanian Chili

Didi recently recreated her husband's favorite chili from Outback Steakhouse and he loved it.

OUTBACK STEAKHOUSE COPYCAT TASMANIAN CHILI

 

1 ½ # chuck roast, 1-inch cubes

Kosher salt and pepper, to taste

1 TB vegetable oil

½ medium onion, diced

½ red bell pepper, diced

1 small jalapeno pepper, seeds removed, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 TB tomato paste

14 oz. can fire-roasted diced tomatoes

1 c. beef stock

1 TB chili powder

1 ½ tsp. cumin

½ tp. paprika

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper, as desired

Kosher salt and pepper, to taste

2 TB masa harina or cornmeal

2 TB water

 

Garnish: crushed tortilla chips, shredded cheese, chopped green onions

 

 

Generously season cubed chuck roast with salt and pepper. In a large saucepot over medium-high heat brown meat on all sides. Remove from saucepot; set aside. 

In the same pot, add onion, bell pepper, and jalapeno pepper. Sauté until softened, about 5 minutes.  Return browned meat to pot. Stir in tomato paste until coats meat and vegetables evenly. Add tomatoes, stock, chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper. Stir well to combine. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover saucepot; simmer 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until meat is tender and flavors are well combined. 

In a small mixing bowl combine masa harina and water until a paste forms. Stir into chili until thickened, about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.

Serve, garnish as desired. Serves 3-4.

Traindor - Hakata Station

One of the best things about Traindor Bakery in Hakata Station besides the delicious pastry was that it opened at 6:30 a.m.  Great for people just arrived from Hawaii who can't help waking up at 4:00 in the morning. 

Mizunashi-Honjin Fukae

On November 17, 1990 Mt. Unzen Fugendake erupted after being dormant for 198 years.  The pyroclastic flows (numbering 9,432) lasted for 5 1/2 years with the last flow occurring on May 1, 1996.

Mizunashi-Honjin Fukae is a road station preservation park for some of the houses affected by the debris flows.

Dd's Mushroom Risotto

Didi says:  These oven baked mushrooms are so so ono, I will be making these again and again.  Probably good with cremini mushrooms !!!

MUSHROOM RISOTTO WITH OVEN BAKED BALSAMIC SOY MUSHROOMS

 

4 ½-5 c. chicken broth, as needed

1 TB olive oil

2 TB butter

½ c. shallots, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

5-6 oz. oyster mushrooms, thinly sliced (HOME HARVESTED !!)

2 c. arborio rice

½ tsp. dried thyme

1 c. white wine

Salt, freshly cracked black pepper

¼ c. heavy cream, as needed

½ c. parmesan cheese, grated, divided

Garnish: Italian Parsley, chopped

Balsamic Soy Mushrooms:

6-8 oz. oyster mushrooms, coarsely chopped

¾ tsp. olive oil

1 TB balsamic vinegar

1 ½ tsp. soy sauce

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 tsp. thyme, chopped

¼ tsp. freshly cracked black pepper

pinch salt

 

In a medium saucepan over medium heat simmer broth. In a large saucepan over medium heat saute shallots and garlic in oil and butter. Add mushrooms; cook until slightly browned.  Stir in rice until opaque, about 1 minute. Add thyme and wine. Stir until completely evaporated. Add 3/4 cup of stock, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until stock is nearly completely evaporated. Continue adding stock 1/2 cup at a time until previous addition is nearly absorbed, until rice is tender and risotto is creamy, 18-20 minutes. Stir in cream, 1/2 cup of cheese.

Remove from heat. Taste for seasoning. Top with Balsamic Soy Mushrooms, remaining cheese and chopped parsley. Serve immediately. Serves 4.

 

Balsamic Mushroooms: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl toss mushrooms with ingredients well. Arrange on an aluminum foil lined baking pan in a single layer. Roast until mushrooms are tender, about 14-16 minutes, mixing halfway through. Time will be dependent on size of mushrooms. Serve immediately.

Global Knife

Earlier this year I asked my siblings to send me a photo of their three favorite knives.  You can check out that post here.  

Based on my brother Cy's and my cousin V's choices, and mostly because the knife was staring me in the face at a Loft store in Tenjin, Hakata, I got this knife.  It was actually the floor model, the last one.  It was 10,000 yen, so around $70.

 

I love it.  You can click on the photo below to watch a short video of the knife in action. 

  

Omiyage Winnah!

Only seven people entered this giveaway so if you were one of them, your chance of winning was pretty good.

You can click on the photo below to watch Kai picking the winnah.

Wendell's Ginger Soy Fish

Wendell found this recipe on the Rasa Malaysia site.  It was gooood.  Landon said it was "Killah!"  And Wendell's softball team enjoyed it too.

• ▢ 
• Ingredients:
12 oz (350g) halibut fish fillet or other white fish, please see recipe notes
• ▢ 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• ▢ 2- inch (5cm) ginger, peel, slice, and cut into thin strips
• ▢ 2 tablespoons cooking oil
• ▢ 1 tablespoon chopped scallions

SAUCE:

• ▢ 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• ▢ 2 tablespoons water
• ▢ 1 tablespoon sugar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• ▢ 3 dashes ground white pepper




Instructions:

• Cut the fish into thick, bite-sized pieces. Add cornstarch to the fish fillets and coat them evenly. Set aside.
• Peel and slice the ginger into thin strips. 
• Mix all the ingredients for the Sauce in a small bowl. Stir well to combine and ensure the sugar melts.
• Heat a non-stick skillet or well-seasoned wok with cooking oil over medium to high heat. Once the oil is fully heated, add the ginger and stir-fry until it turns light brown. Remove the ginger from the oil and set aside in a bowl.
• Using the ginger-infused oil, pan-fry the fish until both sides turn light to golden brown. Be sure to turn the fish gently with a spatula, tongs, or preferably a pair of long cooking chopsticks. Fish fillets are delicate, so handle them carefully to avoid breaking them while pan-frying.
• Add the sauce to the fish. Once the sauce starts to bubble, turn off the heat and dish out the fish. Top with the ginger strips and scallions. Serve immediately with steamed rice.

First Meal

We arrived at our hotel in Hakata, Fukuoka at around 8:30 pm.  Even though our flight took 10 hours and we were pretty tired, we quickly dropped off our stuff and hurried to Yodobashi Camera which was right around the corner from our hotel.  Our main goal there was to find Tomica train toys for one of Geri's grandsons.  

We didn’t find anything on grandson's list, but while we were there we decided to check out the food on the 4th floor.  

We weren't really that hungry, but the tempura place was still open and the tendon looked so good and WE WERE IN JAPAN after all.  And so at 2:00 am Hawaii Time we had our first meal.  And it was good!

Unzen Hot Spring

You can click on the photo below to see a short video that my sister Geri took of a hot spring in Unzen, Nagasaki, Japan.