Adventures with anrkst.

Well it's in the upper 80s f in December...let's make something melt your face off hot n spicy!


it was supposed to be Marion Grasby’s Spicy Asian Noodles with Prawns…but I can’t seem to stay on recipe.


There’s a critter..alayin on my feet.


well it’s too nice to be indoors for certain!

 

can’t get my cook on without my food critic in attendance.


punch the afterburner dude!

nibbles…nibbles for the orange 1?


12 minutes. From start to table. Oh and bring a sweat towel…you’re gonna need it!

 

LadyAsh and I were just talking one evening and things we mutually like that don’t turn up often came up. Hominy. We both like it well enough, heck I grew up down here, my granny could make it! That set me on a quest…the result,
Pozule Rojo. ( pu-Zule-eh Row-hoe) a kind of Mexican chili/ soup often served in winter. Did I follow the recipe of my internet sources? Well no. Of course not.



My version will be made in 2 parts. A sofrito reduction, and a stock base. I’m going to “adjust” my personal Tex Mex spice blend for a bit more hoozah.

mine is going to be pork pozule. Here are the basics I use. ( tech trick- put just dab of vinegar in your boil water after browning the bones. Makes it really dark and rich. )


Ingredients. I used a bagged cabbage slaw mix so as to not have a big pile of produce left over.


This one…he’s pretty sure he would like a bite from up there.

 

then it’s just take this prep tray…


and go here. Where it’s dropping to close to freezing and there’s a good gusting north wind!


no matter. Give me…just about an hour total. Time enough for a long slow tenderizing simmer then some spicy warmth to push that chill back. Nothing to it.

 

Cipaille. ( “Sea-Pie”) This one dates to the early 1700’s during the great fur trade age and supposedly has roots with our French-Canadian neighbors to the north. I found it on Townsends 18th Century channel. Mine is far from his more authentic version but I wanted to go portable and treat some friends.


Don’t ask me how I know this will work. I can’t really tell you. It just….”happens”.


As soon as I start pilfering around the orange foot warmer appears…like magic.


Ok, Now I need to make this go across the county….

 

I’m giving my swamp crawling friend a machete of her own today so I’m adding photographic proof that what tell her is true.

Is it the easiest? Most efficient? No. But practice what is hard and it will be easier when you need to use it.

Mine is going to use 4 different cuts of meat. Full bore and all out. Is there any other way?

Your machete doesn’t make smooth slices? Why not?

Somebody’s sharp nose knows Her Ladyship doesn’t like fatty bits on her meat cuts.

 

In my crazy world even the trunk of a car can be a prep station.


Using a coal plate and some bricks there will be no mark or scar when we’re done here. LNT all the way for me.
We’ll just take this up to about 400f and leave it alone for an hour while we go for a short hike…


Then a most pleasant meal and conversation with people who live on the same plane as us. It was a good day, A very good day.

 

I apologize for my recent absence from the forum my friends…LadyAsh and I have sort of “adopted” a dear friend who expressed an interest in our Bushcrafty life. She’s taken to it like an otter to a muddy riverbank but has been perennially shy of being on our social site. As such I’ve avoided using my phone when we go play in the muck. In the meantime..

I wanted to do Kent Rollins’s Carne Guisada but as per the usual…I did it my way. . ( did you just hear that in the mouse’s voice in Disney’s “Sing”? Love that part! )


I used pork for mine over the more traditional chuck or flank steak…and dried poblano and Serrano peppers will give it a nice kick…


Texas decided to drop 30 degrees and lay down some cold gusty wind and rain, so I used my biggest DeBuyer and oven toasted corn tortillas for a delicious crunch…


You should’ve seen these heathen’s go at this. I’m lucky I got a picture because there was no leftovers. They wiped it completely in multiple bowls in one sitting. Sheesh!

 

While you guys up north get those picturesque blankets of white…down here you need insulation under a hi-vis rain suit and rubber boots. The mud is deep, sticky, slick, and persistent.


This does not make for enjoyable conditions to be in if you don’t have to….cold, and wet.



Sid says it’s better in here by a warm stove…



More fun to work with some ground up feral pig and a nicely made piece of carbon steel…



Trying something I learned from Gordon Ramsey but she is not a Swedish taste fan…how about in a nice curry instead?

 

Ah, nothing like little fried balls of pig!
Got hungry again

 

So I’ve been following along with friend LostViking (@Lostviking ) while he’s using and learning a new knife. That’s always a fun thing to do, but for those that don’t live (or come n visit us y’all) down South aways …the machete is king.
I’m trying out a new version myself this year and going for the thinnest, lightest, razor edge I could find.


I got a couple of these both for myself and my swamp companions. Gave it a tune up, fine hair pop edge, 90 spine, food safe ACV patina, and some custom fitting of the molded plastic handle.


First test the edge retention. How about let loose on some iron hard air cured oak? Slight loss of fine edge but still sharp and no deformation…


Then over to baton some fat wood and both draw and push cut some shavings…


A couple of strokes on the ferro and whoosh there it goes. . (Hard to photograph the massive spark shower while working alone though.)

 

Because I wander around with the minimum of weight and complications I have often found myself doing things out of the ordinary with my cutlery choices. I consider food production or food processing to be pretty high on the list of priorities. It seems like a good test and way to get a feel of the precision handling ability…

My experience is learning edible plants is a top tier skill. They are both easier to find, and way easier to capture than any animal source.


The thinness of this one is a real winner here. Despite the long length it felt like it was just zipping through this collection of vegetation. (Yes I eat a lot of salads…I also do 5 miles or more and a something like a thousand reps most days..are you sure you want to go hiking? . )


If you make something do the best job you can. Some ranch, a shake of Mrs Dash, a dose of Tabasco. I’ll see you boys in the gym tomorrow…..right?

 

Man it was just a beautiful day down here in swampland. All that breeze and sunshine just makes you want to go outside….and cook something!!


let’s work up a stir fry. For this mob we’ll need a mountain size pile…


Step back. Look down. Yep. The ever faithful is present and accounted for.


At this point other Carbon Steels seem…inconsequential by comparison.

 

The steam, the smells, the gong like ring from the steel…man I love this stuff!


This was just too colorful not to get a pic of…


I’m serving…best hurry. It won’t last once they tuck in.

 

T n I were hanging out watching the u tube and he asked if we could do something like his favorite guy “Binging with Babish”. The guy does some fun stuff but we decided to make something unique but in the spirit of his channel.
I give you, T’s Ultimate!! Pork Adobo. We borrowed elements from Al Pastor, Carnitas, Tostadas…and just went all out in left by the fence.


We jumped around and watched multiple videos and talked about things we liked. I took notes.
Have you ever wondered what the scribblings of a madman would look like? Here you go.

We need an adobo sauce, surprisingly not hard..if I’d just stay on recipe that is…

Lemonade. Gatorade. Orange aide?

My oh my Why have I not done this before?!

This will work. 2 cups of spicy deliciousness.

 

All right! Time to break out the armor plate and get down with it!


Garlic browned in bacon grease….somebody just bring me some biscuits.


Sous on the knife for the win. Turn this pile of porkulus into little thin slices for me Son..


Looky here, 14” of awesome. Needs to go low n slow, 290f for 1 1/2 hours then top with the adobo and go up to 350f for 30 minutes.
While it’s finishing we need a couple of quick things…

 

I wanted a cool topping. I borrowed this from my Tostada recipe. To me it’s way better than just plain sour cream.
I used Greek Yogurt and a generous pinch of Chipotle powder for a zooming taste.


Im serving on pan browned corn tortillas, done with real butter, garlic powder, and Mrs Dash. I also opted for a Cabbage slaw mix lightly steamed in a deep chefs pan with butter and Himalayan pink salt.


This is living my friends….


This is living good!!

 

Afrikaner Fish Stew. This one had me perplexed for a bit, I made it a while back but I needed to alter it..make it super good for my LadyAsh. The original recipe called for potatoes (she eats but says meh) asparagus (she no likey) snow peas ( she no likey those either) and used milk/ full cream ( needs to go dairy free).
I decided to go with Butternut Squash, Salmon, Super rich homemade Chicken Stock, and Coconut Milk with a just slightly spicy seasoning touch to make it into an almost curry.



This is what happens when you let lunatics in the kitchen.



Just like fisherman everywhere..he patiently waits for a bite.





This is what an 45 minutes of no recipe creationism will get you.



with loads of goodness, butternut squash , salmon….this might actually BE “health food”. (Boom, mind blown.).

 

She swears this way was miles better than the original recipe.