Bacon and Green Bean Stew

Imagine your 8 year old in front of a plate of broccoli. That’s me sitting in front of this stew. We had it relatively often, since it was easy to make and the ingredients weren’t to expensive. And making a big portion of it wasn’t hard, either. There was just the resistance of a rebellious youth to deal with.
The stew eventually grew on me and I was happy when it was served. I didn’t have this dish for many years, since I had left for Munich and the US, because I was only rarely eating at my parents house, and when, it was usually a more festive meal. It is something for every day, something great for a cold fall or winter day. Warms you up from the inside.

Recipe: Bacon and Green Bean Stew
Author: 
Recipe type: Entree
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4
 
Easy stew
Ingredients
  • 1 pound green beans
  • ½ pound thick sliced bacon or diced ham
  • 1 pound potatoes
  • 1 large onion
  • 2 cups vegetable broth
  • olive oil
  • pepper
  • salt
  • garlic optional
  • nutmeg optional
Instructions
  1. Dice onion and potatoes.
  2. Cut the beans and bacon into ½-1 " pieces
  3. Heat the oil and fry bacon and onions in a large sauce pan until the bacon is light brown and the onions glassy. Don't let the bacon harden.
  4. Add some garlic, pepper and salt to taste.
  5. A sprinkle of nutmeg is optional.
  6. Add beans and potatoes and add vegetable stock until most is covered.
  7. Boil for 20 minutes and stir occasionally.
  8. Stir one final time until all the water has been soaked up by the potatoes

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Preparing Eggplant

Eggplant is somewhat problematic to prepare for cooking, since it is bitter and turns often mushy. What is done often to draw out some of the bitterness and fluids, is to slice or dice it, lay it out on some paper towels, carefully sprinkle some salt over it and cover it with another layer of paper towels. After about 30 minutes a lot of the moisture has been soaked up by the paper towels and it can now be cooked. Adjust your recipe for the amount of salt you’ve already added in this step

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Eggplant Pasta

It can’t get any easier than that. What do you do if your wife loves eggplant parmiggiano, but you really hate the breading and frying part of it? Here’s the answer. Just dice the eggplant already, fry them in the pan in oil and cover it in the same pasta sauce you’d be using for eggplant parmiggiano. Et Voila. You see, I speak multiple languages.

Oh, some trick in preparing eggplant. Follow the link.

Recipe: Eggplant Pasta
Recipe type: Entree
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
 
An easy variation on pasta and pre-made sauce
Ingredients
  • 1 eggplant
  • 1 pound of pasta (spaghetti, penne, you name it)
  • 1 pound of pasta sauce
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350-375 F
  2. Peel and dice the eggplant.
  3. Roast the diced eggplant in a pan.
  4. Transfer the eggplant into a fireproof dish.
  5. Add the pasta sauce.
  6. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
  7. Cook the pasta in parallel

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Pulled Sauerkraut Pork

What happens if you go out and buy some pork ribs because you always wanted to see what you can do with them in a crock pot? Right, you forget that you bought them and find them in the fridge at noon of the expiration date. And have no real clue what to do with them. Well, start by heating up the crock pot and throw in the ribs. Good. Done. Now add some barbeque sauce, because that’s what it’s supposed to be. Now what? Click here

Some emergency web research told me to add some Sauerkraut and some vinegar if you live in North Carolina. Two strikes. Sauerkraut works for Germans and guess where I live. The result? People love it. My wife does. Her coworkers do. You will.

Pulled Sauerkraut Pork
Author: 
Recipe type: Entree
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 1½ pound pork ribs
  • 8 ounce can sauerkraut
  • 1 cup vinegar
  • 2 Tbs BBQ sauce
  • 1 tsp caraway seed
  • salt
  • pepper
Instructions
  1. Fill the crock pot with the pork ribs
  2. Add the sauerkraut
  3. Fill up with 1 cup of vinegar. That should almost cover the meat.
  4. Add the BBQ sauce and the caraway seeds.
  5. Salt and pepper to taste
  6. Cook for 6-8 hours on low.
  7. About 4-5 hours in, pull off the bones.
  8. Pull the meat into pieces and mix with the sauerkraut.

 

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