MACHACA DON PEDRO

We are going to revisit and once again try the dish Carne Machaca. Machaca is a dried beef product that has been marinated, cooked, dried and shredded. Our last experience with Machaca the results were less than stellar. Salty, with a funky off putting odor was a little too much. Andres Jaramillo, President of ‘Don Pedro’s Meat’ offered us a sample of Machaca that he produced. He claims that his popular Machaca was made with lean beef, salt & pepper, slow cooked and dried. We took him up on his offer and will try this beloved Mexican dish again. I am bringing out a secret weapon this endeavor. Ray, my friend and accomplished Chef will be making us breakfast with our Machaca. He used to own the very popular Mexican restaurant ‘Margaritas’ in Martinez California. This should be a very tasty experiment.

When I walked into Ray’s kitchen the aromas were intoxicating. The smell of fresh tortillas on the grill and onions and peppers cooking made me swoon with anticipation. We were going to cook the Machaca with sautéed onions, jalapeno peppers, tomatoes and eggs. We cut open the package of Machaca and took a whiff. It was very pleasant smelling. It smelled of dried beef. It was chopped very finely almost to a powder consistency. We took a little pinch and gave it a try. It was tasty with a beefy flavor. It was on the salty side straight out of the package.

Ray sautéed the onions/tomato mixture until it was soft and fragrant. We then added the whole package of Machaca. We later found out that we only needed to use several tablespoons. The mixture was cooked for several minutes before we added beaten eggs. No additional salt was added. Several more minutes of cooking and our breakfast was ready. Home made fresh tortillas, salsa, a cheese & pasilla chile dish, refried beans and our star ‘Huevos con Macha’ lined our breakfast table. A tortilla was our canvas. The painting consisted of a scoop of our Machaca and egg mixture with a little dab of salsa.

This was dish was an outstanding success. It smelled heavenly. A deep rich beef flavor permeated our egg mixture. The level of salt was perfect and accented the other ingredients. Because this beef was chopped so finely it practically melted and became one with the eggs. The peppers and salsa was warming. This was a comforting breakfast. The fresh tortillas with Machaca eggs have made me a convert. Ray is one hell of a cook. Is it okay to take a siesta right after eating breakfast?

Don Pedro’s Meats is located in Southern California. They not only make Machaca but other Jerky’s, dried meats, chorizo and salsas. Thanks to Andres Jaramillo for introducing us to some great tasting Machaca.  Thanks to Chef Ray for being a great friend and cook.

Don Pedro’s Meat
725 E. Edna Place
Covina, Ca. 91723

BARBEQUED BEEF CHEEKS

Beef Cheeks, another Mad Meat Genius first is on the barbeque today. I saw a package of beef cheeks at our local Wally World and was curious. It was shrink wrapped and looked like the darkest little red meat roast I had ever seen. Once home, in the kitchen, the wrapping was removed and the true nature of this beast was revealed. This was not a roast but several flaps of sinew and fat covered beef. It was not a pretty sight. A sharp knife dispatched the unwanted meat transgressions. The cleaned meat was rubbed with spices, rolled into a roast and secured with cotton twine. A trip to the apple wood fueled smoker for a low and slow baptism and we were cooking.
  Many hours later we were rewarded with some of the most tender and flavorful beef. I would compare the texture to slow braised veal shank. It was fall apart delicious. A lot of effort went into this meal. This was a flavorful adventure but not one that will be repeated soon.

VICTORIAN FARMSTEAD

We love to go on Meat Adventures. Today our journey only went as far as the Santa Rosa farmers market.’ Victorian Farmstead’ located in Sebastopol California sells their ‘all natural and pastured’ meats at this Saturday market. Local beef, pork, chicken, and lamb are sustainable, kindly, stress free and humanely grown. The beef is raised on certified organic pasture and grass finished. The pork is a Berkshire/Duroc hybrid. This meat vender is pushing all the right buttons for today’s demanding consumer. Does it taste good?

Some of you may know that I am not a big fan of grass fed beef. The attributes of grass fed beef has been overly hyped to the politically correct food connoisseur. You need to use caution cooking grass fed beef because of its lack of fat. It also has a flavor that proclaims that it is the original beef flavor. Boulderdash! If you have to tell me that it tastes good something is not right. Give me a ‘Midwestern’ corn fed beef any day. That is what beef should taste like. With that said, we purchased a 18 ounce rib-eye steak. It set us back 22.80 cents.

This steak had nice fat marbling. This was one impressive looking rib-eye. This would be cooked over a very hot mesquite charcoal fire. Cooking grass fed beef can be a little challenging. It should be cooked rare or medium rare to guarantee tenderness. You really need to be careful with the carry-over cooking. A medium rare can turn tough in an instant. We cooked our steak to the rare stage and after a 10 minute rest it was a perfect medium rare. Now, for the taste verdict.

Sometimes one must admit that trying different styles of meat can be flavorful. This rib-eye was very tender. There was a rich beefy flavor. Victorian Farmstead must be doing something right because this was one great steak. I still am not a convert to grass fed but I will keep an open mind.

PEAS PASS THE BEEF RIBS

This is a true story except for the parts that are not. Beef ribs are my favorite rib of choice. We were traveling on the train to Bellefontaine playing Parcheesi with Marmaduke Gunk. She suggested a dinner of beef ribs. The only problem is finding meaty ribs. The best beef ribs are usually reserved for restaurants. Our local Wally-Mart had some nice looking ribs that I could not resist. A quick trim of fat and membrane with a dusting of rub was our only preparation for our trusty smoker. A combination of hickory and apple wood will be the smoke flavor today. Five hours in a smoker set at 225 degrees transformed these ribs into meat candy.

We are harvesting fresh peas daily. For the next two weeks we are experiencing ‘Whirled Peas’ that are the sweetest treat ever. Today we served these green orbs of pleasure with pasta that was new to us. It was spinach chow mein noodle that we found at our local International Market. Some ‘Damn Fine Bacon’ coated the bottom our pan and provided a little bacon love. Onions, garlic, tomato was simmered with the bacon. The peas were added at the last minute to briefly touch the heat. This was all tossed with pasta and numerous cheeses from Ms. Goofy’s cheese vault.

Sweet, sticky, smoky, beef ribs with peas and pasta. This is how we role on most weeknights. Peas pass the beef ribs Marmaduke Gunk!

BEEF SHANK

We will be cooking beef shank today, a Mad Meat Genius first. This was an experiment that sounded like some tasty fun. Beef Shank is usually braised because it can be very tough. There are tendons and fibrous muscle that need to be cooked low and slow in a moist environment. We will be cooking our shank low and slow in a Weber Smoky Mountain Cooker. This smoker will keep the temperature hovering around 230 degrees for the cooking duration.


The beef shank first needs to be trimmed. There is a layer of fat and silver skin that needs to be removed. A sharp knife and a little patience is all that is needed. Some secret rub was applied and the shank was brought to room temperature. Today’s fuel will be a combination of charcoal, apple and hickory wood chunks. The cooker was brought to temperature and the Stoker was plugged in. Six hours of smoking and the beef shank was temporarily removed from the cooker. Several sheets of aluminum foil were spread on a table. Stubbs beef marinade and some more rub were applied to the shank. The meat was tightly wrapped and returned to the cooker. Wrapping the shank will achieve braising technique with its own steam. Six more hours of cooking and the internal temperature of the shank reached 195 degrees.


The shank was unwrapped from the foil. The meat was falling of the bone. There was a pool of marinade mixed with beef shank drippings. This liquid gold was reserved and later made into smoky rich gravy. The shank was sliced with a sharp knife. We served our shank with garlic mashed potatoes and artichokes. The meat had a pot roast quality and texture. It did have a wonderful beefy flavor. This experiment was a success. We even had a lot left over. Several days later we took left over shank and made asparagus chow mein. Yummy Noodles!

KIMCHI BURRITO

What exactly is Kimchi? It can be many different things to many people. Generally it is a fermented Korean dish made of vegetables and spices. Napa cabbage, onions, radishes, cucumbers, garlic, green onions, chile powder and salt are typical ingredients. These vegetables and spices are mixed together and left to ferment for varying lengths of time. The results are a funky, spicy and sometimes hot dish that is used as a condiment. It just so happens that we have a Korean acquaintance that generously gifted a jar of home made kimchi to our pantry. It sat in our refrigerator for a while because I had really no idea what to serve it with. Kimchi burritos have been the buzz in the local food rags and it sounded intriguing to me. What the heck!

Some thinly sliced beef short ribs were marinated in soy, ginger, garlic and honey. They then were grilled over a hot mesquite fire. This would be the protein for our burrito experiment. Thinly sliced carrots, cilantro sprigs and some avocado would accompany the kimchi and grilled beef. The ingredients were rolled in a fresh flour tortilla.

Kimchi has a very distinct funky odor. It can be a little off putting if you are not used to it. The first bite into our burrito was a flavor explosion. The marinated short ribs were yummy, rich and delicious. The kimchi cabbage was crunchy, a little sour tasting and salty. The pepper heat was not overpowering but a welcome compliment. This condiment was a good balance to the rich and flavorful meat. I now understand why Kimchi burritos are the talk of the town. They are a non traditional flavor treat. I am now a Kimchi convert. I am looking forward to trying it with some other dishes.

KOBE BRISKET EXPERIENCE

(Kobe on right)

Harry Stewart, the owner of 'The Great American Barbeque, serves some award winning barbeque. Harry competes in numerous barbeque competitions and has been quite successful accumulating awards. When Harry mentioned he served Kobe-style beef brisket at his restaurant, I began to drool with anticipation of tasting this exotic bovine. Kobe beef generally means a cut of meat from the Wagyu breed of cattle. This beef is renowned for its flavor, tenderness, and fatty well marbled texture. In Japan according to popular belief the Wagyu cattle receive one beer per day and are massaged with warm sake. Today's Kobe beef was from the Masami ranch located near Redding California.

Harry does not serve the Kobe brisket all the time. We called and arranged a time he would be serving this special beef. We wanted to compare and taste the Kobe side by side with some regular brisket. Kobe beef is graded above the 'Prime, Choice, Select" grades. Harry explained this beef was rated 'Kobe Supreme 10". This regular brisket was no chump. It had a pretty impressive pedigree itself of USDA Choice grade Black Angus. This will be a battle of two heavy hitters.


Both briskets were smoked for 15 hours, flavored and fueled by oak wood. They were both rubbed with a dry rub. Harry mentioned the Kobe was rubbed with a sweeter rub because it is a sweeter meat. They were both pulled out of the smoker and place on the cutting board. (Kobe is positioned on the left of the image.) You will notice the Wagyu does not have a distinctive flat and point shape of the regular brisket. Harry took a wickedly sharp knife and began to carve. Both of these brisket oozed with juices of flavor. I wanted to take a straw and suck the cutting board.

Now for the verdict. The Kobe was so very tender with a beef flavor that had a hint of sweetness. If you place a bite in your mouth and closed your eyes, the beefy rich flavor will take you on joy ride of meat pleasure. How did the regular brisket compare to the Kobe? This Black Angus was also on the tender juicy love train of beef flavor. It may have been a tad less tender and maybe not as sweet, but would be a stellar and superior meal on its own. I would like to give credit to Harry for smoking both these cuts of beef to maximize the flavor and bring out the tenderness.

(Kobe on bottom)

Was the Kobe superior to the regular brisket? This would be a close call. The Kobe beef cost twice as much as the regular. The Kobe-style may have a subtle difference of sweetness and texture from the Black Angus. I am declaring a tie. The Kobe is something that I would recommend to experience. Harry has worked magic with both of these cuts of meat and I would recommend both. What a beefy day!

The Great American Barbeque

BRINGING IN THE SPEARS

Last Sunday was a great day at the Marin Farmers market. We ran into two of our favorite vendors. Chris from Zukerman Farms had some wonderful fresh asparagus. This is the official vegetable of Spring in our book. We purchased a couple of pounds of the largest spears he had. Thick is better. They are more tender and flavorful. In theory the thinner spears get wind blown, hence they become tougher. We also ran into Larry from Peppahead. He is the 'Picasso of the Pepper World'. Larry had some Bhut Jokolia powder to sell today. This is an extreme pepper that is not for the pepper novice. This pepper originated in India and is 5 times hotter than the habanero pepper. We took a tiny, tiny taste and were rewarded with a huge rush of heat. Chris broke out into a sweat when he sampled this powder from Hell. We purchased some 'Yuppie, Marin, Grass Fed, beef ribs from 'Marin Sun Farms'. We took our bounty home and fired up the barbeque.

The asparagus was wrapped in some home made buckboard bacon. It was sprinkled with some olive oil, salt & pepper, lemon juice and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. The ribs were rubbed with salt and pepper. Both the ribs and the bacon wrapped asparagus received a very light dusting of Bhut Joklia powder. You really need to be careful with this powder. Everything was cooked on a mesquite charcoal fired Weber kettle grill.

I was actually pleasantly surprised by the flavor of the grass fed beef ribs. 'Grass Fed' beef has not been my meat of choice. The beef was very tender and had a beefy taste. The flavor stood out and satisfied a corn fed beef lover. The chile powder created a very warm glow over both the dishes. The buckboard bacon wrapped asparagus made me feel so good that I hugged myself. A lot of Asparagus will be consumed while the season lasts. Bring on the Spears!

Peppers and More

BARBEQUED POT ROAST

We are continuing our review of Trader Joe's charcoal briquet's. Our local 'Wally Mart' has 7-bone roast on sale. Some of you may know this cut of beef as Pot Roast. I call it liquid meat gold. This cut of beef is full of fat and flavor. The trick is to melt the fat to coat this beef into a masterpiece of the grilling world. A 'Weber Rocky Mountain Smoker' is the tool of choice today. We are using charcoal briquet's from Trader Joe's. They have demonstrated in our unscientific experiment that they are slow and long burning fuel. The smoke will be a combination of Peach and Sugar Maple wood. This hunk of 7-bone roast weighed out to 11 pounds. It was a mammoth. It was rubbed with my not so secret spices. The mammoth was placed in the smoker at 9:00 pm. The thermometer was set and a little shut eye was in order.

The next morning, at 9:ooam the charcoal was a little spent and the internal temp. of the Mammoth was only at 160 degrees. Some more briquet's were fired and we were cooking again. My goal was to get the Mammoth to 190 degrees. This is the stage where the beef will just begin to fall apart and shred with ease. I had a little time to kill, so bread dough was created. I needed a vehicle to support this Mammoth of beef. This would also be an excuse to fire up the Beehive Oven. (Like an excuse is needed!)

Lets talk about the Beehive. This was the best present Ms. Goofy ever came up with. We are still experimenting with cooking times and recipes. When you fire up the Beehive, a Show of Burning love and a Ring of fire will follow. Sitting in front of the glowing oven is better than any television program, play and or concert that comes to mind. Place your protein in the chamber and magic will happen. Today's bread turned out more than stellar. It was a sign of the meal to follow.

The Pot Roast was taken out at 1:00pm. This was 16 hours from its first kiss of smoke. It was loosely wrapped with foil to rest. 30 minutes passed and a big hunk of meat was put in a frying pan with our favorite barbeque sauce of the minute. It was only heated and mixed throughout. It was then served on top of some home made bread and some salad on the side. It does not get any better than this. Thankyou very much!!!!!!!!!

The briquet's performed fine. The heat did last longer than Kingsford. There was no flavor except the woods that we used for smoke. These charcoals get the Mad Meat Genius seal of approval. Are they special? I do not think so.

CHRISTMAS DAY

Prime Rib, not really. Choice Rib Medium Rare. It does not get any better. Leftovers for the week!

Merry Christmas.

PULLED BEEF

My dog Oscar has his own idea how to make Pulled Beef. I turned my back for an instant and look what happend. Luckily for both of us he only got a taste. Today I am smoking a Monster 7 bone roast. This is a very flavorful cut of meat. It has a lot of fat marbled through out the cut. This is the cut of beef that is usually used for Pot Roast.

I got the idea to smoke this roast from a fellow writer Larry Gaian. Sometimes one needs a little inspiration. Our local supermarket had this cut of beef on sale. I talked to the Mark the butcher. He was very helpful. He brought me in the back and showed me the whole cut. It weighed over 30 pounds. That was a little much. Mark cut a 12 pound hunk right out of the center. It is a beauty.

I started my Weber Rocky Mountain Smoker at 9pm. It came to temperature (225-250 degrees) and apple wood chunks were added. The roast was rubbed with salt, pepper and a few secret spices. This monster of beef stayed in the smoker till 2 pm the next day. It took 15 hours to reach an internal temperature of 190 degrees. I tell you it was worth the wait. The beef fell apart taking it off of the grill.

The roast rested for a while. A large chunk was put in a bowl and shredded with two forks. I got a Little impatient and used my fingers. This shredded beef was put in a hot frying pan with a cup of barbeque sauce. I seasoned the mixture with a little salt and pepper. You are only reheating the beef and coating it with sauce.

Ms. Goofy, Dr. Biggles and Dagny were in the kitchen drooling while the beef was prepared. This mixture was served over hamburger buns with a side of cole slaw. The long process to make this pulled beef sandwich was well worth it. It turned out to be a success. Dr. Biggles went back for more and everybody took a little home. OH YEAH!

Photo by Dr. Biggles

Sandwich Photo taken and eaten by Dr. Biggles

PRIME RIB

You ever get a hankerin for a Fred Flinstone hunk of Beef. Ms. Goofy did. She instructed me to find a large old Dino Roast. Luckily for Dino I found one that was beef. This roast is Choice USDA , Number One, and Boneless. This is the cream of the crop . We are going to cook this beauty with respect. It will be cooked with a indirect fire on my special Smoker/Barbeque. Mesquite wood charcoal is the fuel of choice. With a quality cut of beef you do not need any fancy dressings. Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper will do the trick. One of the secrets to the perfect roast is to achieve your correct temperature. I am shooting for Medium Rare. I will be using a remote thermometer and rechecking with an instant read thermometer. To achieve Medium Rare, cook till 125 degrees. When you take it of the grill and let it rest for 15 minutes the temperature will rise to 135. This is the ideal Medium Rare!

Ms. Goofy made her special Risotto. Some fresh corn on the cob was included. We had home pickled tomatoes and cold beverages. How can it get any better?