Korean Beef BBQ tacos with cucumber slaw

This dish was a night-over-night winner.  Using the chuck roast makes it endlessly easier than using ribs.  And, it makes a cheap cut of meat fork tender.  The cucumber slaw gives a nice, refreshing crunch.  Next time I will definitely add bean sprouts, or even water chestnuts, because the crunch is such a nice thing.  My husband proceeded to eat the leftovers over anything else I served the next two nights!

Korean Beef Tacos and Cucumber Slaw
Adapted from Confessions of a foodie Bride


For the Korean beef:
~5 lbs beef  chuck roast
1 bottle (10 oz) low sodium soy sauce
1 cup packed brown sugar
6 cloves garlic, minced
4 Tbsp ginger, grated
6 Tbsp rice vinegar
2 Tbsp dark sesame oil
2 Tbsp vegetable or olive oil
2 Tbsp sriracha
1 1/2 cups water (optional)

For the Cucumber Slaw:
1 cucumber (seedless if you like)
Thinly sliced red onion rounds, about 1/3 cup
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
crushed red pepper flakes to taste

For the tacos:
homemade tortillas
cilantro
bean sprouts
Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
sriracha

To make the cucumber slaw, slice the cucumber very thinly.

Transfer to a bowl and toss with red onions, rice vinegar, and red pepper flakes. Refrigerate until ready to use (leftovers get less and less crunchy as they sit but it can be made ahead, just pour off any accumulated liquid and toss with an additional 1-2 tsp vinegar to taste, if necessary).

To make the Korean beef for the tacos, spray your pot with non-stick cooking spray and add the chuck roast.
Whisk soy sauce, sugar, and vinegar with the garlic, ginger, sriracha, and oils.
Pour over the chuck roast in the crockpot. (Adding 1 1/2 cups of water if necessary to cover meat.)
Cook at 250 F  for roughly 6 hours.
If desired, remove 1 1/2 cups of the cooking liquid and skim the fat from the top. Pour the liquid into a small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until reduced by about half and pour over the shredded meat.
To assemble, serve the shredded meat on warmed tortillas topped a spoon of cucumber slaw, cilantro, bean sprouts, sriracha and a dollop of yogurt.

Carmelized Onion and Chipotle Beef Tacos

Wow.  I am so impressed by this meal.  These tacos were simple and absolutely delicious.  Probably this has something to do with my adoration for goat cheese, but I could eat these every night for a week before moving on to something new.  Don't be fooled by the few ingredients, it's loaded with flavor.  We plan to try it with chicken, and with grilling the beef to make it a little better for us.  But it will definitely appear again.

note: I buy canned chipotles in adobe and then store them in the fridge in tupperware.  I usually use them within 8 weeks, and it hasn't killed me yet.

Carmelized onion and Beef Tacos
Adapted from Elly says Opa who adapted from Rick Bayless


4-5 chipotles in adobo
1 lb. skirt or flank steak
3 Tbsp. canola, divided
2 medium onions, sliced 1/4″ thick
12 warm corn tortillas
sea salt
goat cheese

Puree the chipotles in a small food processor until smooth.  Marinate for an 2 hours to overnight in the fridge.
I placed the whole thing in a zip top and smeared the chipotles on through the safety of plastic.

Heat an oven or warming drawer on low heat (200F).  Wrap the tortilla in aluminum foil and stick them in the oven.

Heat 2 Tbsp. of the oil in a large, heavy-bottomed or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the onions and cook  until carmelized.  Carmelizing them takes me 20-30 minutes, but apparently Elly and Rick can do this in 5 minutes.  Transfer to a heat-proof bowl and set in the heated oven.

Return the skillet to medium-high heat, and add the remaining Tbsp. of oil.  Once hot, lay in the steak, and cook until it’s done to your liking (3 minutes per side for medium-rare skirt steak, 5 minutes per side for medium-rare flank steak).  Let the meat rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing against the grain.

Toss the meat with the onions, and season to taste with 1 teaspoon salt.

Serve with the warmed tortillas, goat cheese, and salsa.

The Allegedly Perfect Burger with Comme Ca Sauce

Who doesn't love a good booger????  (Fabio??  Anyone? Top Chef?)  Comme Ca per the new york times suggests making this with 80% lean ground chuck.  Fine for them, but in this house, it's bison for the lean-ness.  Our friends also have a nice twist whereby they top with a slice of deli ham and swiss cheese to get fancy.  I hate ham.  I loved that burger!!!

What I like about this recipe is the meat is well seasoned while still tasting like a burger.  It takes great but not different from what you'd expect.

The sauce is very good- just a hint of spice.  It's also excellent as a deli sandwich spread.  It's better than the traditional ketchup and mustard, and I'm excited to try tossing lettuce in it and topping the burger with it.  Enjoy!

The Perfect Hamburger
Adapted From Annie's Eats

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground bison
2 Tbs. finely chopped yellow onion
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper
1 or 2 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
4 slices cheddar or Swiss cheese (optional)


Directions:
Prepare a grill for direct grilling over medium-high heat.

In a large bowl, mix together the beef, yellow onion, garlic, salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce. Form the mixture into 4 patties, each 3⁄4 inch thick.  The inside of a Jif peanutbutter jar lid, protected with plastic wrap, makes this easy to get equal patties.  (obviously, not on a jar still being eaten...)  "Dimple" the middle to allow for even cooking.

Grill the hamburgers directly over medium-high heat, turning once, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Check for doneness by cutting into a hamburger near the center or testing with an instant-read thermometer. No pink should show on the inside, and the internal temperature should register at least 160°F on an instant-read thermometer. If making cheeseburgers, place a slice of cheese on top of each hamburger during the last 3 minutes of cooking.

Burger Sauce
Adapted from Comme Ca restaurant via the New York Times

2 tablespoons mayonaise
1/2 tablespoon (e.g. 1 1/2 teaspoons) ketchup
pinch cayenne
pinch chili powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon (25 grinds) freshly ground black pepper

Combine.  Top burgers with sauce after cooking.  If desired, toss sauce with shredded lettuce and top burgers.