September | 2013 | Annie's Chamorro Kitchen

Archive for September 30, 2013

Beef Stir Fry with Mushrooms, Tomatoes, Bell Peppers and Onions

Posted on September 30, 2013 by AnniesChamorroKitchen 6 comments

I posted a recipe a while back for another version of Beef Stir Fry (with mushrooms, onions, broccoli, eggplant and bean sprouts). Here is another version — this time I added mushrooms (we LOVE mushrooms in our house), bell peppers, onions and diced grape tomatoes.

I didn’t make this version spicy because one of my daughters doesn’t like to eat spicy food. However, if you like pika (hot) foods, by all means, add your favorite hot pepper to this–even dried pepper flakes are good in this.

Give my recipe a try. I think you’ll like it. 🙂

Beef Stir Fry

Ingredients:

2 pounds thinly sliced beef
1 cup diced cherry or grape tomatoes
1 medium onion, sliced
1 package fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons Dashida beef flavored seasoning
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup water
2 tablespoons corn starch
1/4 cup soy sauce
Hot pepper flakes, optional

Directions:

1. In a large frying pan, place the beef, tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, bell pepper, garlic, and seasonings. Cook over high heat until the beef is cooked.

2. Mix together the water, cornstarch and soy sauce.

3. Pour the cornstarch mixture into the frying pan; bring to a boil. It is only when the liquid comes to a boil that the cornstarch will start to thicken. Stir frequently, cooking until the sauce thickens.

4. Remove from the heat and serve over hot white rice. ENJOY!

Posted in Beef, Dinner, Lunch, MEALS, MEAT tagged with Stir fry

Incredible Pumpkin Cake Donuts

Posted on September 29, 2013 by AnniesChamorroKitchen 4 comments

I love the fall season, mainly because it means pumpkins are in season and I can make some of my most favorite desserts, among them these delicious and moist pumpkin cake donuts. But why wait for fall to enjoy these sweet treats? With canned pumpkin puree readily available, you can make these donuts whenever you like. Why not bake up a batch today? I think you’ll like it. 🙂

This recipe makes about 4 dozen donuts. The ingredients below can easily be cut in half. I usually don’t, however. Half of my family likes cinnamon sugar coated donuts, the other half likes chocolate glaze. This way, there’s enough donuts to please everyone. 🙂

Incredible Pumpkin Cake Donuts

Donut Ingredients:

1 cup vegetable oil
6 large eggs
3 cups sugar
2 cans (15-oz) pure pumpkin pureé (do not use pumpkin pie filling)
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour

Coating Ingredients:

½ cup white sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon

Frosting Ingredients:

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
4 tablespoons heavy cream

Directions:

1. Preheat your donut maker.

2. Place all of the donut ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.

Add the oil…

Add the eggs… (The photo below shows only 5 eggs; I only had 2 large eggs and the rest were extra large, so I used 3 extra large and 2 large eggs instead of 6 large eggs.)

Add the pumpkin…

Add the cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking powder…

Add the sugar…

And finally, add the flour to the bowl.

3. Mix with a whisk until you create a smooth batter.

4. Spoon the batter into the wells of your donut maker, filling according to manufacturer’s instructions. I use a small cookie scoop to fill my donut maker with about 2 tablespoons of batter. (Hey, look! I captured my reflection in the cookie scoop!)

5. Bake per your donut maker’s instructions, or until the donuts feel slightly firm to the touch, about 5 minutes. Remove the donuts from the donut maker.

6. Coat the donuts:

To coat with Cinnamon Sugar:

Place the coating ingredients in a ziplock bag; shake to mix. While the donuts are still warm, place each donut (one at a time) the bag of cinnamon sugar; shake gently to coat. Repeat until all donuts are coated.

To coat with Chocolate Glaze:

Place the chocolate chips and heavy cream in a small, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 45 seconds. Stir until the mixture is completely smooth. Dip the top half of each donut into the chocolate glaze. Place on a wire rack to allow excess chocolate to drip off.

ENJOY!

Posted in DESSERTS, Donuts tagged with Chocolate, Pumpkin

Pot Roast, Chamorro Style

Posted on September 28, 2013 by AnniesChamorroKitchen 42 comments

Whenever I find myself feeling a bit homesick, I think of something to cook that soothes my longing for my island home. Chamorro Pot Roast is one of those dishes. This is a dish that was usually on the menu for Chamorro gatherings. I remember going to parties when I was younger, and before the table was opened, I’d check to see if there was any pot roast. If there was, the ONLY things I’d have on my plate were rice (red or white), pot roast (with as much gravy as I could scoop up), and lots of fina’denne’. These days, I use a crock pot to cook my pot roast. Set it and forget it…what could be easier?

Give my recipe a try. I think you’ll like it. 🙂

Chamorro Pot Roast

Ingredients:

1 2-lb chuck roast (look for one that is nicely marbled with fat)
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
8 whole garlic cloves
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped into large chunks
5-6 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup soy sauce
1 14.5-oz can diced tomatoes with juice
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar (you can use white vinegar instead)
2 tablespoons Dashida seasoning (Korean beef soup stock)
1 teaspoon Accent or Ajinomoto
1 cup water (if cooking this on the stovetop, use 2 cups water)
4 tablespoons corn starch plus one cup water

Directions:

1. Place a large skillet or dutch oven over high heat.

2. Using a long, sharp knife, CAREFULLY cut 8 deep slits into the sides of the roast. Push a whole clove of garlic into each slit.

3. Rub the sides of the roast with salt and pepper.

4. When the pan is hot, add half of the oil into the pan. Brown the roast on all sides then remove it from the pan and place it into a slow cooker or crock pot set to HIGH.

5. Add the remaining oil to the pan used to brown the roast. Add the onions and garlic and sauté until the onions are translucent. Add the sautéed onions and garlic to the slow cooker.

6. Into the crock pot, add:

the tomatoes with juice…

the Dashida seasoning…

the accent or aji…

the balsamic vinegar…

the soy sauce…

and 1 cup of water (see note below) plus any remaining salt and pepper.

NOTE: If making this on the stovetop, add 2 cups of water instead (a lot of water will evaporate as the roast cooks).

7. Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook on HIGH setting for 2 hours then lower the heat to LOW and cook for an additional 2 hours then turn off the slow cooker. If cooking this on the stovetop, cover the pot and cook over medium-low heat for 2 hours.

8. When the roast is done, remove the roast to a plate or cutting board and allow to rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing (don’t cut it sooner that this or all the juices will flow out and leave your roast dry).

9. In the meantime, while the roast is resting, prepare the gravy. Using an immersion blender, purée the chunks of vegetables in the gravy until it is completely smooth. If you don’t have an immersion blender, transfer all of the gravy (the liquid and all vegetables) from the slow cooker to a blender and blend until smooth.

10. Pour the puréed mixture into a small pot; bring the mixture to a boil.

11. Mix the cornstarch with the remaining 1 cup of water.

Whisk the cornstarch mixture into the gravy and return to a boil, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens. Turn off the heat once the gravy has thickened.

12. After the roast has rested, use a serrated knife or very sharp carving knife to slice the roast into 1/4 to 1/2 inch slices.

Pour gravy over the sliced roast beef.

Serve with hot white rice and Enjoy! I love to “drown” my pot roast and rice in lots and lots of gravy! 🙂

Posted in Beef, CHAMORRO DISHES, Dinner, Easter, MEALS, MEAT, Totche (Meat)

Chamorro Bistek (or Bisteak)

Posted on September 26, 2013 by AnniesChamorroKitchen 22 comments

Bistek (or Bisteak) is a favorite Chamorro dish. The addition of achote (or annatto) gives a unique flavor, along with the tanginess of the added vinegar.

If you have it, I prefer using achote water made with fresh achote seeds. Fresh is always best, but of course, using achote powder works quite well too. This is what the packet of achote powder looks like. As with the Sazon Goya seasonings, achote powder is another item that is commonly found in either the Asian aisle of most grocery stores. If your local store doesn’t carry it, try looking for it in your local Asian supermarkets.

If you don’t have fresh achote seeds or achote powder, you can substitute with Sazón Goya seasoning that contains achote. This is what the packaging looks like. It’s a common item in the Hispanic aisle in most grocery stores.

This dish usually includes peas as a main ingredient. Some think that if you DON’T add peas, it isn’t Bistek, but my family prefers this dish made WITHOUT peas. We like using fresh or steamed green beans or sugar snap peas instead. It’s all up to you, really. With peas (or vegetables, for that matter) or without, it’s still a very tasty dish that is a must-add to your list of menu choices.

Scroll all the way to the bottom to find my recipe. Give it a try. I think you’ll like it. 🙂

Chamorro Bistek (or Bisteak)

Place thinly sliced beef into a large frying pan. I like to use minute steak for this.

Add Dashida seasoning, minced garlic, black pepper, and thinly sliced onions. Stir to combine all the ingredients. Cook over medium high heat until the meat is browned.

Add to the pan white vinegar and soysauce. Stir to combine.

Add water to the pan. Add more or less water, depending on how much gravy you like. We like a lot of kådu (gravy)–adding about a cup of water will yield a lot of kådu. Cook for a couple of minutes–just long enough to reheat the gravy–then stir in achote powder (the achote powder will dissolve better if the liquid is HOT).

NOTE: You can substitute the water and achote powder with achote water made using achote seeds.

Cook for another couple of minutes then stir in fresh or frozen peas (OPTIONAL). My family actually prefers to use fresh sugar snap peas. Cook for a few more minutes, or just long enough to either reheat the frozen peas, or to cook the sugar snap peas to your liking (we like it al dente, or cooked but still crisp). You can also use fresh green beans instead of peas. In the photo below, I used steamed sugar snap peas.

After the vegetables are cooked/reheated to your liking, remove the Bistek from the heat and serve with steaming hot white rice. ENJOY!

Chamorro Bistek (or Bisteak)

Ingredients:

2 pounds thinly sliced beef
4 tablespoons Dashida beef flavored seasoning
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 large onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 cup water*
1 packet achote powder*
*If using achote seeds, make enough achote water to yield 1 cup
Optional: 1 cup frozen or fresh peas, sugar snap peas, or green beans

Directions:

1. Place the beef, Dashida, garlic, black pepper, and onions in a large pan. Cook until the beef is browned.

2. Stir in the vinegar, soy sauce, water and achote powder. Cook for about 5 minutes.

3. Stir in your vegetables. Cook long enough to reheat the vegetables (if frozen), or until the fresh vegetables are cooked to your liking.

4. Serve with hot white rice and ENJOY! 🙂

Posted in Beef, CHAMORRO DISHES, Dinner, MEALS, MEAT, Totche (Meat) tagged with Achote

Buñelos Månglo’ (aka Typhoon Donuts)

Posted on September 21, 2013 by AnniesChamorroKitchen 53 comments

Buñelos Månglo’ is another Chamorro dessert. The name is loosely translated into “Air Donuts”. I’m not sure why they’re called that. Maybe it has something to do with WHEN Chamorros most often fry up a batch. Often, during stormy weather when the rain is pouring down buckets and the wind is howling, many Chamorros fry up some Buñelos Månglo’. No matter the origin of the name, this is another Chamorro comfort dish that you can make any time you want to, rain or shine. Any way you look at it, it’s delicious. You can’t go wrong with fried dough sprinkled with sugar.

Give my recipe a try. I think you’ll like it. 🙂

BUÑELOS MÅNGLO’

Ingredients:

2 cups All-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup coconut milk (*may need more or less, depending on your location. Dry/less humid places may require more liquid, up to a cup; more humid places may need just the 3/4 cup.)

Directions:

1. Mix flour, baking powder and sugar.

2. Add the coconut milk to the flour mixture.

3. Gently mix until a dough forms. The dough should be smooth and soft.

4. Roll out to about 1/3 inch thick, then cut in diamond or triangle-shaped pieces using a pastry wheel/cutter or a knife. *I used a pizza cutter.

5. Preheat the oil. When the oil is hot, drop the pieces of dough into the hot oil. Turn the donuts frequently to ensure both sides are evenly browned. Fry until golden brown, then remove from the oil and place in a colander or on paper towels to let any excess oil drip off.