Basic Seasoning for Meats

This is one of my favorite meat seasonings. We use it a lot here and it goes with any kind of meat. It's simple to make and very flavorfull. I used it in my past post of pork shoulder, but I figured it would be useful to have it in a separate post. Hope you guys enjoy making recipes with it!

Ingredients for the Adobo:

6 cloves of garlic 

6 black peppercorns (or ¼ tsp. of ground black pepper)

1 tsp. of dry oregano

1 ½ tbsp. of olive oil

1 ½ tbsp. of white vinegar

1 tsp. of salt per pound of meat

Crush the garlic cloves in the mortar.

Add the salt and continue mashing. 

Add the ground black pepper.

Add the dried oregano.

Add the olive oil

Add the white vinegar

 Lastly add the salt and combine everything. 

Pork Shoulder (Pernil al horno)

My husband loves pork shoulder, so every New Year's Eve I make him this traditional Puerto Rican dish. Despite the fact that I eat it every Christmas season, I was a little scared the first time I tried to make it at home, almost five years ago... That said, it really is a fairly easy, straightforward recipe so don't be afraid to try it yourself!

Also one piece of advise, as with pretty much any meat don't be afraid to really use your hands. For some people handling raw meat is a little icky. Well I'm here to tell you that your hands are your most valuable utensil in the kitchen so don't be afraid or grossed out. It's your food!

     

Procedure for the day before baking

Slice and remove the excess fat. 

Weight your remaining meat. Weighing your meat is vital as it determines how much seasoning you'll be employing.

Briefly rinse the meat under running water then immediately pat it dry with a paper towel. (Make sure to dry it well or else the meat won't brown properly.)

Place the meat in the cooking vessel, fat side up.

Score the meat. The cuts should be about an 1/8 of an inch deep and 1 1/2 inches apart.

Lastly rub the adobo all over the meat and then refrigerate overnight. (See the adobo recipe below)

Adobo Recipe

(The amounts used in this recipe produce enough adobo for a 4-5 pound pork shoulder.)

Ingredients for the Adobo:

6 cloves of garlic 

6 black peppercorns (or ¼ tsp. of ground black pepper)

1 tsp. of dry oregano

1 ½ tbsp. of olive oil

1 ½ tbsp. of white vinegar

1 tsp. of salt per pound of meat. (4 tsp. in this case)

Crush the garlic cloves in the mortar.

Add the salt and continue mashing. 

Add the ground black pepper.

Add the dried oregano.

Add the olive oil

Add the white vinegar

 Lastly add the salt and combine everything. 

Really rub the mixture into all of the pork shoulder. Then cover everything with aluminum foil and put it in the fridge.

Procedure for baking day

Remove the baking pan from the fridge and collect any liquid that the meat may have released. Drizzle any liquid over the meat.

Insert your meat thermometer into the meat (not just the fat). Be careful not to hit the bone when you do this.

Bake the pork shoulder for 35 min. per pound of meat or until the meat reaches 185 degrees F.

Enjoy!!

Vegetable Fritatta

I made this recipe for my hubby a while back, like... almost a year. It was before I got pregnant. I was on bed rest for a while and couldn't cook. After that I was too tired to even think about making elaborate recipes or anything that took more than half an hour to make, so my hubby had to eat spaguettis with chicken, mashed potatoes with chicken, quesadillas, sandwiches, rice with chicken or take out. He really loved this recipe though so I decided to make it again for him.

The first time I heard the name fritata I thought the recipe was gonna be hard to make. Sometimes they make the names more difficult than the recipe. So I took a aimple recipe and studied the basics. In a frittata the essential elements are: eggs, vegetables and the baking time. From there you can make a lot of variations. Have fun and make yourself, your partner, kids and friends some delicious and easy meals.
The traditional fritatta uses more eggs than what I used in this recipe. If you google images of fritatta recipes you will see that classic fritattas tend to be bigger and fluffier than in my recipe. The reason for the change is that I prefer using fewer eggs. But when my whole family comes for a visit, I just inclrease the eggs to make a bigger fritatta! So here is my combination for an all vegetable fritata. Hope you guys enjoy it as much as my husband and me!

Ingredients: (to taste)

Butter
Eggs
Garlic
White onion
Tomatoes
Green pepper
Red bell pepper
Cilantro
Salt
Ground black pepper


Procedure:  ( It's important to use an oven safe pan for this recipe!)

Put the butter in the pan. When the butter is melted add the garlic and cook it for a little while.

While that is in the skillet, cut the tomatoes, onions, cilantro and bell peppers.
Put all the ingrdients in, except for the cilantro. When the onions look transluscent add the cilantro. 

Mix up the eggs then pour them onto the vegetables and cook for two minutes.

Put the pan in the oven at 350 grades for 15 to 20 minutes. Take the pan out of the oven and it will look like the picture above or bigger depending on the quantity of the eggs.

Basic Marinara Sauce

This is my basic version of a marinara sauce. I prefer making it with fresh tomatoes but sadly I couldn’t find some good-looking tomatoes to bring home. I made this one with canned whole tomatoes. The sugar in the recipe is to cut out the acidity of the canned tomatoes. If you make a big batch you can freeze it and use it later, having the amazing taste of fresh marinara sauce even in winter. So hop on and try something new! Hope you guys enjoy it. 

Ingredients:

1 large yellow onion diced

2 Tablespoons of olive oil

6 cloves of garlic, minced

2 Tablespoons of Italian Seasoning

½ cup of wine

56 ounces of whole tomatoes

14 ounces of tomato paste

4 Tablespoons of white sugar

Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

In a large pot heat the olive oil.

Add the onions and cook them slowly.

Until caramelized.

Add the garlic.

Add the Italian Seasoning. 

Let it cook for 5 minutes.

Add the red wine to deglaze.

  Cook for 2 minutes.

   

Add the tomatoes.

Add the tomato paste. 

Add the sugar.

Mix and crush until combined.

Bring to a simmer and cook on low for 2 hours.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Ground Turkey Chili

Today was a rainy, dreary day. The kind of day that just begs for something to warm you up from the inside; and nothing warms you up better than chili!So I decided to make a basic ground turkey chili. Hope it warms your hearts! Enjoy! : )

Ingredients:

2 pounds of ground turkey beef

2 onions chopped

4 cloves of garlic minced

2 tablespoons of chili powder

2 teaspoons of salt

2 teaspoons of dried oregano

4  (14.5 ounce) cans of stewed tomatoes

1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce

1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans with the liquid

Sharp Cheddar Cheese to taste

Procedure:

Combine ground turkey, onion and garlic in a large stockpot. Cook and stir over medium heat until meat is brown. Drain.

Stir in chili powder, salt, oregano, tomatoes and tomato sauce; break up tomatoes while stirring it. Heats to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, for one hour.

Stir in the beans. Allow it to simmer uncovered for another 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.