Barbecue Beef Ribs

Ingredients

• Beef Ribs
• Barbecue Sauce

While it’s not rocket science, making good Barbecue Beef Ribs may seem a little daunting to the novice.  Some people promote pre-boiling, baking, or marinating.  I promise that it’s not hard–you just have to be willing to get your hands dirty.  If you are grilling your ribs, slice them apart, cover ribs with barbecue sauce, and place on grill on medium heat.  They should cook for 45 minutes to an hour.  Periodically (every 15 minutes or so) turn and baste with additional barbecue sauce.  If you are using the oven, preheat to 325*.  Leave ribs together and cover entire rack with barbecue sauce.  In a roasting pan, place rack of ribs on rack of pan and cook for 45 minutes to an hour, basting every 15 minutes or so (no need to turn).  Cut apart before serving.

 

Foil Dinners

A fun activity as everyone should assemble their own!  Generally, a foil dinner consists of a meat, a few vegetables, a ‘liquid’ (oil, water, or condensed soup), and a few seasonings.  There is no ‘one way’ to assemble a foil dinner, so I have included our family’s favorite combination.

Ingredients:

• 3-4 oz hamburger meat/person
• Sliced Mushrooms
• Diced and peeled potatoes (russet, red, or yukon golds)
• Diced Onion
• 1/2 T Margarine/person
• Garlic
• Oregano
• Salt

Form meat into a patty and place in the center of a 1.5-2 ft square of aluminum foil (use two layers of foil, shiny side up to direct heat inward).  Top with vegetables, margarine, and seasonings.  Bring two opposite sides of foil together and roll.  Roll up remaining two sides.  On a third sheet of shiny side up foil, place dinner upside-down and repeat wrapping maneuver.  Mark the top with name/initials using a permanent marker to identify after cooking.  Place in firepit or on the grill turned on high for about 30 minutes.  Peel away foil to check for doneness.

 

Shredded Beef Enchiladas

Ingredients:

• 2 T Shortening
• 3 T Flour
• 2 T Chili powder
• 1 t Cumin
• 1 t Garlic powder
• 2 C Water
• 4 oz Tomato paste
• Beef (such as Country Style Beef Ribs)
• Tortillas
• Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Heat and blend shortening and flour in sauce pan.  Add chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, water, and tomato paste.  Stir until blended and cook another 2-3 minutes.  If you start early enough in the day, you can put the sauce and the beef in a slow cooker/crock pot on low for 5-8 hours.  This variation makes the beef easier to shred (plus the house smells like Mexican food all day).  If you don’t have all day, however, you can add the beef to the sauce pan and let it simmer for 1.5 hours.  Remove the beef and shred it using two forks.  Wrap the shredded beef in tortillas.  Top with enchilada sauce and shredded cheese and warm in the oven.  I like to serve this with refried beans and Mexican rice.

 

Chili

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 C diced onion
• 3/4 C diced green pepper
• 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 14.5 oz can pinto beans
• 1 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 1 t salt
• 2 t chili powder
• 1 bay leaf

Brown beef in large pot.  Add onion and green pepper (cook until tender).  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Cover and simmer for approximately 1 hour, stirring every 15 to 20 minutes.

 

All-American Stirfry ~or~ Beef Stew

One day, Matt felt like having stir-fry and I wanted something more…American, so we decided to make stir-fry but replace each Asian ingredient with its American equivalent (noodles become potatoes, chicken becomes beef, and so forth).  When we were finished, it turned out that we had some very good beef stew.

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb Country Style Beef Ribs (chopped in bite-sized pieces)
• 1 Medium Onion (minced as small as possible to encourage boiling away)
• 6-8 Mushrooms (sliced)
• 4-6 Medium Potatoes (cubed)
• 1 8-ounce can of Cream of Mushroom Soup
• 1 Cup Milk
• Olive Oil
• Oregano
• Garlic
• Salt
• Pepper
• Paprika

Brown beef in olive oil and seasonings in a large stew pot.  Add onions and cook until onions are soft.  Add mushrooms and sautee until mushrooms are cooked.  Add potatoes, condensed cream of mushroom, milk, and 1/2 C water.  Cover and simmer approximately 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.  Add additional milk or water if stew gets too dry.  Serve with rolls or buttered bread.

 

Nacho Bites

Doesn’t take much more work than regular nachos.  Less mess to serve.  Also fun as a party appetizer.  A family favorite!

Ingredients:

• Tostitos Scoops Tortilla Chips (or any bowl shaped tortilla chip)
• 1/2 lb Ground Beef
• Taco Seasoning
• 1 can Refried Beans
• Finely Grated Cheddar Cheese
• Avacado, Peeled and Cut in Small Pieces
• Sour Cream
• Salsa

In frying pan, combine ground beef and taco seasoning (an arbitrary amount according to your taste buds) and brown beef.  Set out individual chips in rows on a cookie sheet (we fit about 30).  Add a small amount of beef to each chip.  Next add a small amount of beans and top generously with cheddar cheese.  Turn oven on broil and put in the oven until cheese is melted.  Remove from oven and top with sour cream, chunks of avocado and salsa.  Use your own favorite nacho toppings!