Epic Portions

Tag: recipe

  • Beer Butt Chicken

    For those of you scared of roasting a chicken, wanting to wow your dining guest, or even just looking for an escape from grilling yet another burger; behold, the beer butt chicken!

    Ingredients:

    • Olive Oil
    • 1 Whole Chicken
    • Kosher Salt
    • Fresh Pepper
    • 1 Can of beer

    Also, if you want a little more flavor, rub the outside of the bird with this rather than just salt and pepper:

    • 1/4 cup of minced rosemary and crushed and minced garlic
    • 1/4 teaspoon each of cayenne pepper, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, dried oregano
    • Ground coriander, cumin, and cayenne pepper equal portions

    Directions:

    1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees; make sure that it is heated all the way, don’t throw the bird in to the cold oven. Check the temperature using an oven thermometer.2. Open the can of beer, take a good swig, and enjoy the cold refreshing drink

    2. If you take small drinks take another sip leaving just over half the liquid in the can. Resist the temptation of finishing what is left, you need this for the roasting. The beer will make the chicken exceptionally juicy and moist

    3. Set chicken on can, inserting can into the cavity of the chicken. The chicken should be standing on its legs supported by the beer can inserted in the cavity, hence the name of beer butt chicken. Lightly oil, using enough to make the entire surface of the meat glisten, but not so much that you leave a puddle.

    4. Season the chicken well. Kosher salt and freshly ground peppers are all the seasonings you need. Most people go too easy on them, I say don’t be shy. See below for other seasoning variations.

    5. Place baking sheet with beer and chicken in the pre-heated oven. Word of advice: two sets of hands here are better than one! The chicken is done when the internal temperature reaches 180 degrees. For a 4~5lbs bird, you are looking at any where from an hour to an hour and half, at the most. But don’t let the time decide the fate of your dinner guests; stick an instant read thermometer to make sure that you don’t undercook, or even worse overcook.

    6. Once the chicken is done, let the bird rest for 10~15 minuets so that your guest have time to view and wow over it 🙂 Okay, so this is to allow the juices to settle back into the meat, but there’s nothing wrong with impressing. Remove the chicken from the beer can using oven mitts and spring-loaded tongs. Be very careful, the can is still very hot. Again, two sets of hands are best.

    The end result, is roasted chicken without the usual hassle. Brown and crusty all over, juicy and flavorful inside; and some argue, superior to the standard oven roasted bird.

  • Corn Dogs

    Like corn dogs? Try making them at home. They are 100 times better than anything you can get at any store, carnival, wherever. This is Alton Brown’s recipe.

    Ingredients:

    • 1 gallon peanut oil
    • 1 cup yellow cornmeal
    • 1 cup all-purpose flour
    • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
    • 1 teaspoon baking powder
    • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
    • 2 tablespoons (approximately 1 large) jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely minced
    • 1 (8.5-ounce) can cream-style corn
    • 1/3 cup finely grated onion
    • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
    • 4 tablespoons cornstarch, for dredging
    • 8 beef hot dogs

    Directions:

    Special equipment: 8 sets chopsticks, not separated

    Pour oil into a deep fryer or large heavy pot and heat to 375 degrees F. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cayenne pepper. In a separate bowl, combine the jalapeno, corn, onion, and buttermilk. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients all at once, and stir only enough times to bring the batter together; there should be lumps. Set batter aside and allow to rest for 10 minutes.

    Scatter the cornstarch into a dry pie pan. Roll each hot dog in the cornstarch and tap well to remove any excess.

    Transfer enough batter to almost fill a large drinking glass. Refill the glass as needed. Place each hot dog on chopsticks, and quickly dip in and out of the batter. Immediately and carefully place each hot dog into the oil, and cook until coating is golden brown, about 4 to 5 minutes. With tongs, remove to cooling rack, and allow to drain for 3 to 5 minutes.

  • Mexican Lasagna – Ohhhh yeah

    I couldn’t just start the blog off with a boring post that the majority of people won’t even read, so I thought I would post a recipe that I typed up for someone the other day.

    Mexican lasagna is just a mexican casserole, and is done by a lot of people.  I think my recipe is one of the better casseroles I have ever tasted.  Some people use ground beef for this, but I prefer to use ground chicken.  I like the taste better, and oh yeah.. It’s healthier too.  I don’t really measure my seasonings too much, so I will try to describe how much I use the best that I can.  I would probably sound more professional if I said “season to your liking”… Oh well.  Here goes.

    First step, pre-heat your often to 360 degrees.  That’s always important when you’re cooking something.  Heat.

    Mix Together in a Bowl:

    • 4 lbs of ground chicken
    • 4 cloves minced garlic
    • Half an onion.. Minced
    • 1 can of original Rotel tomatoes.. You can use the mild kind if spicy scares you.  You can also use fresh tomatoes if you prefer, but Rotel is good stuff.  If you were going to use fresh, I would reccomend one to two, depending on how much you like them.  You could also use your favorite salsa.
    • Two minced jalapenos.. You have a few options here.  If you don’t like the heat, you can either remove the membranes and seeds from the jalapenos, or substitute them with green chiles
    • 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilanto.
    • 1/3 cup of tequila

    Mix all that together and add salt, pepper, cayenne pepper,  cumin, and chili powder.  Like I said, I have no idea how much of each I put in, so season to your liking.  Damn, that was professional.  The longer this mixture sits, the better it will taste.  I usually let it sit for an hour or two.  By the way, this mixture looks a little nasty before it’s cooked.  Don’t worry about it.  It will taste amazing.

    I like to make my own red sauce, but any enchilada sauce will do.

    Once you’re ready, cook up the chicken mixture on high heat.  Right before the chicken is done, add corn and black beans beans .  I usually use a 14.5oz can of each.  Turn the heat down after the chicken is cooked and let the beans and corn cook in the juices.  Make sure the beans aren’t hard before you take off the burner.

    You will need about 5 medium to large sized tortillas.  Cut them in halves and quarters.

    Line the bottom of the pan with a little bit of the enchilada sauce.. Just so its covered.  After that, line it with the tortillas followed by the meat mixture and cheese on top.  For the cheese, I use either a mild cheddar or monterey jack.  Keep repeating that order until your pan is filled, but make sure you have the cheese on top.

    When you’re all done there, throw it in the oven for about 10 minutes.  I like the cheese on top to be a little browned, and for the edges of the tortillas to be a little crunchy.  Let it sit for about 5 minutes, and then dig in.  This should feed 5-6 people.  Enjoy!