Sous Vide Curd Burger Weekend!

This weekend, my pal Chef Haberer was able to make some sous vide cheese curd stuffed burgers, and for the first time around, they were fantastic.

He used 100% ground beef short rib, then blended in cheese curds into the mix.  He lightly seasoned them, then sous vide for about 2 hours at 134°F.  After the pouch, he seared them in a cast iron pan on an induction burner reaching about 520°F with a shallow pool of avocado oil.

The photo makes the insides LOOK very rare, but due to this process, it was actually a perfect medium/medium rare all the way throughout.  That is the beauty of sous vide.

 

Food Related Careers Other Than A Restaurant Chef

NERDSTEAK

Many people possess a passion for food but don’t necessarily want to spend their nights, weekends, and holidays tucked away in the kitchen for their career choice.  There are a variety of options available for a foodie, not including positions at a traditional restaurant:

• Catering/Food Truck – In some cases the hours can be better, you are more in control of the volume of work, and can plan ahead as opposed to a flurry of tickets and orders coming at you in a hot, sweaty kitchen.
• Personal Chef – Famous people, rich people, and some large corporations like to have their own person on staff to cook what they want, when they want.
• Corporate Chef – Large restaurant chains, food manufacturers, and retail outlets like to have someone at the helm to develop recipes, products, and presentations for the general public or to potential customers.
• Research and Development Chef – 

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BBQ Competition Checklist

As you may know, I am part of the Axe-Men BBQ competition BBQ team that participates in KCBS events in the Midwest. Here is a little checklist of things you may need if you don’t have a monster trailer with multiple sponsors who will throw free stuff at you. I have removed some of our top secret items, but this should give you a good start if you are looking to get into some KCBS events…

Meat				Camp Equipment
?	?			10×10 Canopy	1
?	?			10×10 Canopy with 3x Walls	1
?	?			Folding Chairs	4
?	?			Tent to sleep in	1
Rubs/Sauce/Presentation				Pop up Tables	4
?	?			Cinder Blocks	4
?	?			Tarps	2
?	?			Fire Pit	1
?	?			Wood for fire pit	5 bundles
?	?			Wood starters	2
?	?			Buckets for water/hold down tents	8
?	?			Small water hose w/ nossel	1
?	?			?	?
?	?			Bungie Cords	24
?	?			Fire Extiguisher	1
?	?			Ash bucket and shovel	1
Ketchup	1 jar			Duct Tape	1
Mustard	1 jar			Electrical Tape	1
Apple Juice	1/2 Gallon			Tool Box, Full	1
Salt	1 jar			Portable work light	1
Fresh Curly Parsley	6 Bunches			Flashlights	2
Additional Food/Drink				Extension Cords	3
Ice	Lots of it			Generator (If we have one)	1
Salt and Pepper	1 jar each			Cart or dolly	1
Water/gatoraid/beer/monster	A bunch			Rachet Straps for trailer	6
Snacks/Dinner/Breakfast	A bunch			Small broom and dust pan	1
Smokers/Grills/Fuel				Toilet Paper	1
?	?			Batteries for flashlights	3 sets
?	?			Battieries for Thermometers	3 sets
?	?			Large clock or timer set at competition	1
Propane Burner	1			Larger binder clips or table clips	4
Propane Tank, Full	1			Paper Towel Dispenser	1
?	?			Bulk rope	30ft
?	?			?	?
?	?			Bug Spray	1
?	?			Sun Tan Lotion	1
?	?			Ponchos	6
Stick Lighters	4			Sanitation/Disposables
Tools/Utensils/Pans/Storage				Paper Towels, Roll	2
Cambro Camcarriers	2			Shop Towels	1
Coolers	4			Parchment Paper	1 box
Kinfe Roll	1 Full			Bus Tubs	3
Cutting Boards	2			Sponge/Scrub Brush	2
Cutting Board skid	2			Dish Soap	1
Electric Knives	2			Sanatiser Spray	1
Injectors	2			Lysol Wipes, Tub	2
Grill Scraper	1			Sanatiser Bucket	1
Tongs	2			Aprins (Maybe)	2
Seasoning Shakers	3			Hand Sanitiser	1
Sauce Brush	2			Bleach, Small	1
Large Spatchula	2			Garbage Bags	1 roll
Grill Glove	2 pair			To-Go containers	2 dozen
Plastic Tray Inserts	6			Ziplock Bags XL	12
?	?			Ziplock Bags L	24
?	?			Solo Cups	12
Large Water Pot w/ lid	1			Aluminum Foil, Roll	1
Thermometer Probe	3			Plastic Wrap, Roll	1
Thermopen	1			Disposable Gloves, box	2
Thermocouple	1			First Aid Kit	1
Large cups/bowls for sauce/brine	4			Disposable Plates	24
Toothpicks	1 box			Disposable Silverwear	24 sets
Half sheet pans	3			Personal
Full aluminum pans	12			Pillows
Half aluminum pans	12			Blankets
Full sheet pan	1			Toiletries
Other				?	?
Directions
Sign In Documents
KCBS Info
Sponsor Info
Pens/Note Pads

Birthday!!!!

Axe-Men BBQ Is Looking for Supporters and Sponsors This Season…

The Axe-Men BBQ team out of West Dundee, Illinois is looking for supporters and sponsors for this years BBQ season. We are a new team that competed in our first KCBS event in October of 2014, and still ended up with a 9th place call for ribs, and 10th place call for chicken, even with minimal equipment.  Our team is planning to compete in at least 6 events next season, and our goal is to participate in high profile events like the American Royal Barbeque Competition in Kansas City, as well as the Jack Daniel’s Championship in Lynchburg. Many of the regional events we participate in will be in the Midwest. We are fully invested in competing on the KCBS circuit and making Axe-Men BBQ a grand-champion team.  We also would eventually like to sell our sauces, rubs, and marinades to the general public.

As you might be aware, these BBQ competitions take a lot of time, effort, and money to complete. We are interested in everything from grills, smokers, trailers, campers, and meat…down to cleaning supplies, tables, chairs, coolers, wood, charcoal, beverages, knives, utensils, promotion materials, entry fees, and cash donations. In return, we want to go above and beyond to help promote any sponsors who help us along the way. We would add your company/personal name and/or logo to banners, clothing, or any other allowable items.  We can hand out sell sheets, contact info, or samples of anything you wish to visitors of the events. We would add you to our email list so you can keep track of our competitions, as well as visit us at any time to sample some of our award winning BBQ. Also, we would be more than happy to have a representative from your company on site to discuss your products with the public or other teams. If you have any other requests on what you would like from us in return for sponsorship, we are more than happy to discuss. The team also has a large network on social media including personal pages, blogs, and professional contacts.

Please let us know if you have any questions or need any additional information. Below are a few links to see how exciting some of the events and opportunities we will be participating in.

Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS)

American Royal World Series of Barbecue

Jack Daniel’s World Championship

Red, White, & BBQ in Westmont, IL

Wabash RibberFest in Mt. Carmel, IL

Thank you very much for your time, and we look forward to hearing from you soon!

Axe-Men BBQ

Steve Quirk

Mike Haracz

Axe-Men BBQ has successful debut!

My team, Axe-Men BBQ, just competed in our first KCBS BBQ competition at the Lamb’s Farm Barn Burner event this past weekend. At first we were a little skeptical about how well we would do, since we were competing against former champions and were one of three first-time groups. There was 44 teams competing in this event, and many were doing full BBQ competition tours. All the other teams had huge trailers, larger smokers, and banners with multiple sponsors.  We didn’t have any of that…

It was chilly, windy, and rainy.  We didn’t have walls on our pop-up tent, we didn’t have a fire pit, and we didn’t know you could trim and prep the meats ahead of time (which would have saved us a lot of work during the event). Most of our competitors who would walk by knew we were first-timers just by looking at us, however, I would bet we were having the most fun out of any team. Everyone was nice, but a lot of friendly poking at the noobs was had.

Unlike some of the competitors, we made all of our injections, rubs, and sauces from scratch. We did not have very much area to cook numerous portions of meat, so we had to make sure the limited amount of product we were preparing turned out the way we wanted it to.  We only used a smaller Pit Boss pellet smoker and a 22-1/2 inch Weber grill. This also meant it needed to be constantly monitored, so there was a definite lack of sleep.

We are proud to have received a 9th place call on our ribs and 10th place call on our chicken, along with being 26th place overall. We could not be happier and are looking forward to doing 6 to 10 competitions next season.  We will also being upping our game as far as equipment, sources for meats, and getting a sweet banner with sponsors (if we can!)

 

Traina Foods® Sun Dried Tomato Ketchup – Product Review

Traina Foods – Sun Dried Tomato Ketchup

The people at Traina Foods (http://trainafoods.com) were nice enough to send me a sample of their sun dried tomato ketchup to review. After trying the product, this is what I thought:

• Packaging Apparence – The product arrived in a sturdy squeeze bottle with an overwrap label, as well as a foil/paper seal under the cap.  The overwrap on my bottles were actually a little off-centered. The Traina logo and the sun dried tomato ketchup fonts were a little fuzzy, but the black script and the tomato image looked very clear. My small concerns are that the full overwrap does not allow you to see the product on the inside, and a repeated use of a squeeze bottle with an overwrap label will eventually wrinkle and shift even more.
• Product Appearance – As expected, this ketchup is not as smooth as the leading brands, however it held together very nice when squeezed into a bowl.  There are visible pieces of tomato, but not big enough to be a chewy nuisance. It has a rich, dark red color, and just enough thickness to adhere to foods just like its traditional counterpart. When using it as a condiment for french fries however, you will need to give it a little more scoop action to get it on the fry.
  

  Traina Foods – Sun Dried Tomato Ketchup

• Eating Experience – This stuff tastes fantastic! I am a ketchup fan, but this definitely brings it to the next level. It has the deep, natural sun dried tomato flavor you would expect, with just the right amount of natural sweetness. It has a great acidity level, along with just a touch of onion and other spices.  I had the pleasure of trying this with homemade french fries, and on a prime beef patty melt. Again, it has just the right amount of sodium which was not overpowering, but complimented everything I ate it with.  Even after it sat in a bowl for a while, I did not see any signs of separation.
• Value – You get what you pay for. A 16oz bottle runs about $4.99 which is much higher compared to the leading ketchup brands, however this was made to be an upscale alternative. The Traina Foods website states it takes about 4 pounds of tomatoes to make one bottle of their ketchup, and sun dried tomatoes themselves already cost more that your average tomato.
• Overall – I personally think the packaging could use an upgrade, maybe either a printed on package label, or sticker label, but the flavor from the ketchup is outstanding. It has a much greater depth of flavor compared to the high sweet/salty/acid standard brands, a nice texture you would expect from a sun dried tomato product, and even though it is at a higher price point compared to the leading standard brands, it is well worth it! I give Traina Foods® Sun Dried Tomato Ketchup a 4.5 out of 5.

NERDSTEAK is more than happy to review any food, beverage, restaurant, CPG or equipment items you have to offer.  Feel free to contact Mike directly at chefman316@aol.com to arrange for shipping of samples, or to schedule a review. You can also follow Chef Mike on:

LinkedIn – Twitter – Facebook – Pinterest 

 

Quinoa ‘Fried Rice’ Recipe

Quinoa ‘Fried Rice’

If you are not familiar with Quinoa and are looking for a good recipe to give it a try, this is the one! Make sure you prep. all of your ingredients ahead of time, because once it is stir-fry time, the cooking process goes pretty quick!

Quinoa ‘Fried Rice’

1 tablespoon peanut oil
1/4 cup diced yellow onion
1/2 cup peeled and diced carrot
1/4 cup sliced green onions plus extra for garnish
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon minced ginger
3 cups cooked Incan Quinoa Blend
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
3 tablespoons sweetened seasoned rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup green peas, fresh or frozen
Sesame seeds, for garnish

Heat peanut oil in a large sauté pan or wok on high heat, then add yellow onion and carrot. Sauté for about 2 minutes, then add green onions, garlic and ginger, continuing to cook for an additional 2 minutes.
Add cooked Incan Quinoa Blend and sauté for an additional 2 minutes, making sure to break up any clumps of quinoa.
Toss in soy sauce, rice wine vinegar and sesame oil until evenly incorporated.
Make a well in the center of the pan, and add beaten eggs, Cook just until scrambled, about 2 minutes.
Finally, toss in peas and cook just until warm and tender, about 3 minutes. Add more soy sauce if needed.
Serve topped with sesame seeds and green onions.

Makes 4 to 8 servings

Here are a few of my favorite types of Quinoa to use:
Incan Quinoa Blend
Black Quinoa Blend
Red Quinoa
Standard Quinoa 

Red Quinoa Crab Cakes with Sriracha Mayo (Recipe)

Red Quinoa Crab Cakes with Sriracha Mayo

Red Quinoa Crab Cakes

1 cup cooked Red Quinoa <–(you can order quinoa here)
1-1/2 to 2 cups lump crab meat
1/4 cup diced celery
1/4 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup diced red pepper
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs plus extra to coat cakes
2 whole eggs
1/2 cup mayonnaise
Vegetable oil for frying

Mix Red Quinoa, crab, celery, onion, red pepper, parmesan cheese and parsley in bowl and toss until evenly incorporated.
Add salt, black pepper, garlic, red pepper flakes and panko breadcrumbs and continue to blend.
Add eggs and mayonnaise and mix just until evenly incorporated.
Form patties from small handfuls of mixture, then coat the outside in extra panko breadcrumbs.
Heat vegetable oil in a sauté pan over medium heat and brown both sides of patties until golden, about 2 minutes on each side.
Drain on paper towel before serving with your favorite accompaniments.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

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Notes:

I simply blended 1 cup of mayo with 2 tablespoons of Sriracha Seasoning and a few drops of lemon juice. I also topped the crab cakes with some lemon zest and fresh chopped parsley, as well as placing a few lemon wedges around the plate.

Adding the quinoa makes these bad boys a little more nutritious, cuts down on the cost so you can make more cakes, and adds some nice texture to the mix.  You can also replace the breadcrumbs with rice flours for a gluten-free variety. Feel free to play around and let me know how it turns out!

Black Lentil and Chard Stuffed Tomato Recipe

Black Lentil and Chard Stuffed Tomato

Here is a recipe I created using Black Beluga Lentils and Swiss chard. This is actually a vegetarian recipe, however the lentils and toasted pine nuts give it a very savory and meaty flavor. If you can’t find the black beluga lentils at your store, you can order them right here!

Black Lentil and Chard Stuffed Tomatoes

6 large tomatoes
1 tablespoon salt plus additional to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup pine nuts
1 cup minced yellow onion
4 cups sliced Swiss chard, cleaned and picked
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup vegetable broth
2 cups cooked Black Beluga Lentils
1 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons fresh dill, picked, plus extra for garnish
Juice of 1/2 lemon

Slice tops off of tomatoes and hollow out the insides, being careful not to damage the outer walls.
Sprinkle 1 tablespoon salt inside tomatoes, then turn upside down and place on a cooling rack to allow excess juice to drain for at least 1/2 hour.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Heat olive oil in a large saucepot over medium-high heat and add pine nuts.
Cook until lightly toasted, about 3 minutes, then remove from oil and set aside.
Add yellow onions to same pot, and cook until translucent, about 4 minutes.
Add chard, black pepper and salt to taste, cooking just until wilted, about 2 minutes.
Add vegetable broth, then sauté until most liquid has been reduced, about 7 minutes.
Add remaining ingredients and heat until just warmed through.  Stuff tomatoes with this mixture, then place on a baking sheet and bake until tomatoes are warm and tender, about 15 minutes.
Serve garnished with extra fresh dill.

Makes 6 servings