Duck alert! Duck confit recipe via sous vide, so good it’ll make your eyes roll back and your toes curl up. Think I’m lying? Try it! The duck leg is seasoned well with salt and pepper then slowly cooked over a day at a low temperature rendering silky smooth, tender and rich, flavorful duck. And …
5 Ingredients or Less
I've been reading the book On Vegetables lately and it has some great simple ways to enjoy vegetables such as this Daikon radish recipe which I tweaked just slightly. Just a few simple ingredients, little prep, and some easy cooking nets a beautifully delicious side dish. Musical Inspiration for Braised Daikon Radish Rapper/Singer Phonte released …
Tender, smoky, and perfectly seasoned—your new favorite Southern soul food side This Instant Pot Cajun cabbage is what happens when Southern comfort meets Louisiana swagger. Green cabbage gets pressure-cooked low and slow (fast) with smoky bacon, spicy andouille, and Cajun seasoning until it’s silky, savory, and soaking up every drop of that seasoned pot liquor. …
Quick and flavorful recipes for instant pot Brussel sprouts. Sprouts are braised in a coconut-based sauce for a great vegan side dish that’s as good as sprouts cooked with bacon or in butter. Five ingredients less than 30 minutes. I grew up a big Dragon Ball Z Fan; so many life lessons learned! Work hard …
Easy, quick and complex homemade syrup sans the high fructose corn syrup. Humble moments led me to make this syrup recipe. Stuck in the house and short on groceries, so had to go back to my roots and improvise. Funny thing is I used to work for one of the bigger syrup brands …
This black rice recipe makes for a colorful side dish that is as delicious as it looks! The sweetness of the potatoes is balanced with the savory nutty flavor of the rice and the tartness from the pomegranate seeds and all work together for an incredible mouth experience. Often when I cook I take on …
Tender vegan braised collard greens cooked with aromatic spices, offering a flavorful twist on a classic Southern dish. Related Collard Greens Posts: Braised vegan collard greens recipe, a quick and tasty way to get a soul food staple on the weeknight menu! It's only 5 ingredients and made with ingredients you're likely to have on …
Roasted Acorn Squash with Honey Ancho Chile Glaze are outstanding in both their taste and simplicity! Make this sweet and savory squash for your Thanksgiving meal, Sunday family gathering or even a weeknight dinner. They are naturally sweet but the glaze amplifies the flavor. Surprisingly I don't cook a lot most Thanksgivings. Between volunteering as …
These brined and smoked pork chops deliver everything I want from backyard barbecue. They are juicy and deeply seasoned on the inside with a beautifully caramelized exterior that develops a lightly crunchy bark from low and slow smoking. If you've ever struggled with dry pork chops, this recipe solves that problem while dialing up flavor …
Squash smoked on the grill until fork tender is a beautiful thing! Now listen my fellow soul food flavor this one’s comin’ straight from your guy's smoke and soul kitchen. We takin’ sweet butternut squash halves, givin’ ‘em low-and-slow smoke love ‘til they’re tender like a Sunday groove—about 90 minutes at 250°F, my friends. With …
This month's focus is on staple recipes from South American countries. I'm a big fan of yuca fries which are the Latin American version of French fries.
These roasted sweet potatoes are a lab recipe gone well. I was literally toying around with Thanksgiving sweet potatoes recipes and stumbled into this one. It's easy, quick, no fuss and damn good. Don't feel like you have to wait til the holidays though. Its perfect on plain old weeknights and weekends too.
Delicious salmon steaks made in 15 minutes tops with maximum flavor in the form of a green onion vinaigrette.
Simple and delicious roasted eggplant recipe that is bursting with bold flavors. This dish features a crispy brown outside with a creamy sweet inside then is topped with a garlicky Cuban mojo sauce. Silky roasted eggplant meets bright, garlicky Cuban mojo in a dish that eats like comfort but dances like a block party. High-heat …
I've always been a big fan of a good sandwich - Reuben, bahn mi, old school Dagwood you name it, but this grilled blt may be the ONE. Bacon is everything, but on the grill and with charred romaine lettuce and heirloom tomatoes. Oooh weeee, it's something to behold! Give it a try.
Favorite to eat root vegetables is roasted. Roasting can turn any humble root vegetables into greatness. Baby turnips make the perfect foil for this technique. You get concentrated flavor and tenderness delived in 30 minutes. It's the glaze that actually puts the dish over the top. It's time to stop running from those root vegetables your grandparents tried to get you to eat. Actually these aren't your grand dad's turnips. They're way more flavorful.
Quick, simple, yet gourmet is this charred baby eggplant. Charring vegetables is a go-to move for getting quick, no fuss sides on the table that look and taste phenomenal. Try this dish with the frequently used harissa sauce.
Weeknight grilling sometimes is the best grilling. This flank steak is a quick cook, but the flavor and tenderness are off the charts. The key is the marinade which blends both Asian and Caribbean flavors which also helps to tenderize. Marinate a day ahead then grill in less than 15 minutes.
Football season is almost upon us. I'm in grilling two-a-days to get ready for tailgating season. These brined pork chops may be on the menu for the first game! Brining meat prior to cooking, all but guarantees a juicy, moist and flavorful finished dish.
Summertime is fun time. Grilling all things including watermelon is a favorite past time of mine. It's hard to describe grilled watermelon, but trust me it's simple and delicious. Give this one and try and impress family and friends
One of the best things about summer is the availability of fresh fruit and vegetables. And living in hot Texas you're always looking for ways to stay cool, get refreshed, etc. Cooking wise I'm trying to avoid turning on my stove as much as possible. This chilled soup "Gazpacho" addresses all these things. It's the soup equivalent of a nice cool summer breeze. The fact that it's a chilled peach soup that's spiced up and topped with charred kernels of corn just makes this next-level gazpacho. Don't worry, all you need is a blender and a few ingredients.
Fried chickpeas are fairly comomn these days. But fried black-eyed peas are much better. The recipe is simple and takes less than 20 minutes to make. Try these out.
Grilled wedges are one of my favorite and easiest ways to enjoy sweet potatoes. The best thing about this recipe though is the perfect sweet heat chili lime sauce pairing. Just a few a few ingredients that net a lot of flavor. They go fast so make enough!
As you know I've designated July okra month. This is my favorite way to enjoy okra outside of a good pot of gumbo. It's quick, flavorful, and only requires a few ingredients. You'll want to keep the harissa sauce on hand and use it for other dishes as well.
Cool, crisp, and straight-up refreshing — this Japanese sunomono salad is your go-to side for summer dinners, sushi nights, or when the grill’s running hot and you need a little chill on the plate. Your flavor DJ here, spinning something cool for your plate and your palate — this ain’t your average cucumber salad, baby. …
Quick and easy take on an American classic recipe. I make this Cuban twist on sloppy joes. The sauce is based on a spiced ketchup that is elevated with smoky paprika and cumin. When I'm feeling nostalgic or need to get something of substance on the table fast this is a go to. This ain't your momma's sloppy joe recipe though. It's straight-up homemade with a sauce that's over the top. In keeping with this month's TR808 music production theme, Daft Punk's "Doin It Right" powered this recipe.
A salad you can eat with your hands in the form of a watermelon wedge salad. Fresh, ripe watermelon is cut into wedges and topped with chimichurri style sauce featuring fresh mustard greens, cilantro, and lime juice.
Bold, Sticky & Fall-Off-the-Bone: Smoked Jerk Oxtail with Deep Heat and Tender Soul Now we talkin’ smoked oxtail, baby and this one’s got that low-and-slow groove that hits like a funky bassline. Jerk seasoning is added for next level flavor. Smoked oxtails take a classic soul food cut and give it the slow-burn magic of …
Instant Pot black-eyed peas with bacon is a soul food classic reworked for weeknight ease, where creamy peas simmer in a smoky, deeply savory broth layered with aromatics, spices, and rich pancetta bacon. Unlike traditional versions that rely on ham hocks or standard bacon, pancetta brings a cleaner pork flavor and silky richness that melts …
A smoked cherry tomatoes salad may sound a bit unorthodox, but take a leap of faith and trust me on this one. The tomatoes work well as a stand-alone salad, vegetable poppers, or as an ingredient in another recipe.
One of my new favorite condiments/snacks. I avoided celery like the plague until I discovered that lemongrass and coconut water make for great pickling flavor. Stay tuned for recipes featuring them, but just know they taste great on their own.
It's almost okra season, but I couldn't wait. This is my version of "fried okra aka "Southern Popcorn." I switch it up to longer okra halves so they're more like fries. And for a super crispy texture, I subbed rice flour for wheat flour. It's not only crunchier but has a light, clean finish about it. Don't worry there is absolutely no slime!
The last of the recipes featuring harissa sauce, I think. I'm tempted to make another batch and create more recipes to pair it with. Keeping the simple + elegant vibe these glazed harissa carrots will put a smile on your face. No fuss, but high flavor.
My first grilling recipe of the spring is this Cedar Plank Salmon. However, the black tea (Lapsang) rub is a special one and elevates a really simple dish. It's a 20-minute recipe that tastes like hours of work.
Charred Asparagus may just be the perfect side. Less than 5 ingredients, Less than 10 minutes total cook time including prep, and backed by an ever so versatile and killer harissa sauce. Don't worry the sauce is not too spicy, as the honey and lemon juice tames the heat from the chili paste.
Kicking off what is essentially "Harissa Month" with these game day worthy spicy chicken wings. These are fiery and hella tasty.
These grilled prawns are as quick and gourmet you can get in about 5 minutes. We serve them as weeknight appetizers, but they're snazzy and unique enough to pull-off at a fancy party. Make the sauce ahead of time and be sure to make enough to use for a few other recipes.
Quick Tapas Dish Fast! Shishito or Padron peppers are my go-to eat while cooking dish or tide me over appetizer or fancy party finger food.
Nothing like a quick and easy side dish with incredible complex flavor. This blanched spinach salad is simple, unique, and everyday! Put it on your weeknight menu in less than 10 minutes.
Fried bologna sandwiches were a staple of my childhood, and I'm sure for many it still is. I refer to it as a "hood classic" as every kid from the hood has a story and a recipe version for bologna sandwiches. Though a humble sandwich made with basic ingredients, it along with other humble dishes have played a significant role in Black History as a means of survival, show of resourcefulness, and example of innovation. My grandparents told me stories of The Negro Motorist Green Book which was essentially a guide for black road trippers to find safe havens in the form of restaurants, gas stations, and hotels given the hatred and related dangers they faced in Jim Crow South. Shoebox lunches were also the norm, and bologna sandwiches were prominent in these pack lunches which were brought along for those stretches on the road where you were not likely to find a restaurant that served "coloreds." Enjoy the sandwich and learn a lil black history in this post.