Ka chow, whats poppin' fellow weirdos. It’s ya boi Nutbarspadge back at it again with the recipes. This time, for the ASFC!
Arizona Outlaws - Chimichangas
Arizona is famous for leather and chimichangas apparently. You can’t cook leather, so here goes!
Ingredients
Austin Copperheads - Kolaches
So apparently Austin (or Texas in general) go nuts for these things called Kolaches. It' basically a sausage wrapped in dough with cheese, and cooked. What’s not to love? Fun fact: actually from Czechia.
Ingredients
Palm trees, hot weather, beautiful people, Dog the Bounty Hunter and cocktails. I went for the cocktail on this one, and word has it that it is Rusty Rucker’s favourite. Drink responsibly.
Ingredients
New Orleans Second Line - Chicken Gumbo
I personally see NOLA as the food Mecca. It’s variety and mixing pot of people make it an incredible place for fusion food. As such, I’ve decided to go with a staple for New Orleans and rustle up some Chicken Gumbo. Super simple and heartwarming.
Ingredients
New York Silverbacks - Pizza
New York is an absolute melting pot of different cuisines and fusion food, but the one constant is pizza. And there’s a ton of pizza styles out there. But the only one worth mentioning for the Silverbacks is New York Style Pizza. This one needs some time and patience! Probably one for the more adventurous of you!
Ingredients
For the dough
For the sauce:
Orange County Otters - Soft Fish Tacos
Orange County was a weird one for me. I know its in California which has a gigantic coastline, and I know California is near.. Mexico? So Fish Taco’s seemed like the best solution here.
Ingredients
Fish
San Jose Sabercats - Gluten Free Wings
San Jose is the technology hub of the USA, and I didn’t want to tell you guys how to build and deep fry a computer, so I went for chicken instead. Gluten-free too!
Ingredients
Shef.
Arizona Outlaws - Chimichangas
Arizona is famous for leather and chimichangas apparently. You can’t cook leather, so here goes!
Ingredients
- 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breast fillets
- 750ml water
- 1 tablespoon chilli powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic granules
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 130g tins chopped green chillies, divided
- 80g onion, finely diced
- 3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 30g butter
- 2 tablespoons plain flour
- 250ml water
- 1 cube chicken stock
- 125ml soured cream
- salt and pepper to taste
- oil for frying
- 8 flour tortillas
- 225g Cheddar cheese, grated
- Place the chicken breasts into a large saucepan. Pour in the water and season with chilli powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, cumin, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, garlic granules, onion powder and cayenne pepper. Bring to a simmer over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, stir in 115g green chillies, onion and garlic; continue simmering until the liquid has reduced to 250ml. Reserve remaining chopped green chillies. Remove the chicken, shred with two forks and return to the onion mixture.
- Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the water and stock cube until the water has thickened and the stock cube has dissolved, about 4 minutes. Whisk in reserved green chillies and the soured cream; season to taste with salt and pepper. Keep warm.
- Heat oil in a deep fat fryer or large saucepan to 190°C.
- Place a tortilla onto your work surface, then spoon about 5 tablespoons of the filling halfway between the bottom edge and the centre of the tortilla. Flatten the filling into rectangle shape with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle some of the Cheddar cheese over the filling. Fold the bottom of the tortilla snugly over the filling, then fold in the left and right edges. Roll the chimichanga up to the top edge, forming a tight cylinder; secure the ends with cocktail sticks. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
- Cook the chimichangas, 2 at a time, in the hot oil until they are crisp and golden brown on both sides, about 1 minute per side. Drain on a kitchen towel-lined plate and remove cocktail sticks. Top with soured cream sauce to serve.
Austin Copperheads - Kolaches
So apparently Austin (or Texas in general) go nuts for these things called Kolaches. It' basically a sausage wrapped in dough with cheese, and cooked. What’s not to love? Fun fact: actually from Czechia.
Ingredients
- 120ml milk
- 100g white sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 50g unsalted butter
- 2 packages active dry yeast (approximately 4-4.5 tsp)
- 100ml warm water
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 500g all-purpose flour
- 10 breakfast sausage links
- 300g Cheddar cheese (block)
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- Heat milk in a small saucepan over medium heat until it begins to bubble. Remove from heat immediately. Stir sugar, salt, and 50g butter into the milk and stir until sugar is dissolved. Set aside to cool to room temperature, about 10 minutes.
- Combine warm water and yeast in the large bowl of a stand mixer and stir until dissolved. Stir in cooled milk mixture, eggs, and 250g flour. Beat using the dough hook attachment until smooth. Add remaining flour, mixing as you go, just until the dough is elastic and slightly stiff, but not dry. If you don’t have a stand mixer, do it the old fashioned way in a bowl and wooden spoon for about 10-15 minutes until you get the desired consistency.
- Turn dough out onto a floured board and knead until smooth and very elastic, 10 to 15 minutes. Coat dough lightly with butter or oil and place in a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and let sit in a warm place to double in size, about 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, cut sausages in half and pat dry; this is important. Thinly slice Cheddar cheese block from the short end so that each slice of cheese is about the same length as the halved sausages.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C. Lightly oil a baking sheet.
- Turn risen dough out onto a very lightly floured board. Roll into a log, cut into 5 equal pieces, and cut each piece into quarters to make 20 equal-sized pieces of dough. Use the palm of your hand to flatten and press 1 piece into a circle or oval. Place the circle on the board and add 1 piece of Cheddar cheese topped with 1 dry halved sausage. Roll dough around fillings and very tightly pinch all seams together to seal. Smooth seams down and place kolache on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough and filling to make 20 kolaches.
- Bake in the preheated oven until golden, 12 to 15 minutes.
Palm trees, hot weather, beautiful people, Dog the Bounty Hunter and cocktails. I went for the cocktail on this one, and word has it that it is Rusty Rucker’s favourite. Drink responsibly.
Ingredients
- 45ml of gin (preferably dry)
- 12.5ml of fresh orange juice
- 12.5ml of pineapple juice
- 12.5ml of fresh lemon juice
- 12.5ml of simple syrup
- Pineapple Wedge
- Cherries with stems
- Shake all of the above ingredients in a shaker/glass with a spoon. Serve in a short glass with crushed ice and pour through a strainer (if you have one).
- Garnish with pineapple wedge on the side of the glass and stemmed cherry on top.
New Orleans Second Line - Chicken Gumbo
I personally see NOLA as the food Mecca. It’s variety and mixing pot of people make it an incredible place for fusion food. As such, I’ve decided to go with a staple for New Orleans and rustle up some Chicken Gumbo. Super simple and heartwarming.
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 5 skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunky pieces
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 celery sticks, sliced
- 3 bay leaves
- 5 tbsp plain flour
- 4 tsp Cajun spice mix (or 1 each paprika, ground cumin, ground chilli and dried basil)
- 600ml chicken stock (made with 2 stock cubes)
- 2 green peppers, deseeded and cut into chunks
- 300g thickly sliced ham, trimmed of any fat and diced
- 3 spring onions, sliced
- 2 tbsp very roughly chopped parsley
- Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a wide casserole or big frying pan and fry the chicken for a few mins to brown. Tip out onto a plate. Add the onion to the pan with 1 tbsp more oil and fry for 5 mins until almost softened. Add the celery and fry for another 2 mins, then tip out to join the chicken. Add the remaining oil, bay leaves and flour to the pan and cook into a paste. Carry on cooking, stirring constantly (with a splash of water if you need), until golden brown, then stir in the spices for 2 mins.
- Gradually stir in the stock until smooth and saucy. Return the chicken and veg to the pan, along with the peppers, cover and simmer gently for 15 mins. Stir in the ham, cover and simmer gently for 10 mins more. Check for seasoning, then serve, sprinkled with the spring onions mixed with the chopped parsley.
New York Silverbacks - Pizza
New York is an absolute melting pot of different cuisines and fusion food, but the one constant is pizza. And there’s a ton of pizza styles out there. But the only one worth mentioning for the Silverbacks is New York Style Pizza. This one needs some time and patience! Probably one for the more adventurous of you!
Ingredients
For the dough
- 500g bread flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
- 3 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 430ml lukewarm water
- 1 can whole peeled tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 2 medium cloves garlic, grated on microplane grater (about 2 teaspoons)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- Pinch red pepper flakes
- Kosher salt
- 2 (6-inch) sprigs fresh basil with leaves attached
- 1 medium yellow onion, peeled and split in half
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 350g grated full-fat dry mozzarella cheese, placed in freezer for at least 15 minutes
For the sauce:
- Process tomatoes and their juice through a food mill, pulse in the food processor until pureed, or puree with a hand blender. Puree should not be completely smooth, but should have no chunks larger than 1/16 of an inch. Set tomatoes aside.
- Combine butter and oil in a medium saucepan and heat over medium-low heat until butter is melted. Add garlic, oregano, pepper flakes, and large pinch salt and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant but not browned, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, basil sprigs, onion halves, and sugar. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to lowest setting (bubbles should barely be breaking the surface), and cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced by 1/2, about 1 hour. Discard onions and basil stems. Season to taste with salt. Allow to cool and store in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
- Combine flour, sugar, salt, and yeast in a bowl of food processor. Pulse 3 to 4 times until incorporated. Add olive oil and water. Run the food processor until the mixture forms a ball that rides around the bowl above the blade, about 15 seconds. Continue processing 15 seconds longer.
- Transfer the dough ball to a lightly floured surface and knead once or twice by hand until a smooth ball is formed. Divide dough into three even parts and place each in a covered tupperware or in a zipper-lock freezer bag. Place in the fridge and allow it to rise at least one day, and up to 5.
- At least two hours before baking, remove dough from the refrigerator and shape into balls by gathering dough towards bottom and pinching shut. Flour well and place each one in a separate medium mixing bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow to rise at warm room temperature until roughly doubled in volume.
- 1 hour before baking, adjust the oven rack with pizza stone to the middle position and preheat the oven to 500°F/260°C. Turn a single dough ball out onto a lightly floured surface. Gently press out dough into a rough 8-inch circle, leaving outer 1-inch higher than the rest. Gently stretch dough by draping over knuckles into a 12 to 14-inch circle about 1/4-inch thick. Transfer to pizza peel / well floured large baking tray (you can use flour or semolina here to dust your baking tray)
- Spread approximately 2/3 cup of sauce evenly over the surface of the crust, leaving 1/2 to 1-inch border along the edge. Evenly spread 1/3 of the cheese over the sauce. Slide pizza onto a baking stone (or if you used a baking tray just bang it in the oven) and bake until cheese is melted with some browned spots and the crust is golden brown and puffed, 12 to 15 minutes total.
- Transfer to a cutting board, slice, and serve immediately, so as to traditionally burn the roof of your mouth with scalding cheese.
- Repeat with remaining two dough balls, remaining sauce, and remaining cheese.
Orange County Otters - Soft Fish Tacos
Orange County was a weird one for me. I know its in California which has a gigantic coastline, and I know California is near.. Mexico? So Fish Taco’s seemed like the best solution here.
Ingredients
Fish
- 4 skinless fillets of firm white fish, such as hake or haddock (750–900g)
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp paprika
- 1 tsp sea salt flakes
- 1 garlic clove, peeled and finely grated or minced
- 2 tbsp regular olive oil
- 8 soft corn tortillas
- 1 small red onion, peeled, halved and sliced into half moons
- 2 limes, juice only
- 1 x 198g tin sweetcorn, drained
- 1 fresh red chilli, finely diced (de-seed if you don’t like too much heat)
- 3 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
- salt, to taste
- Preheat the oven to 220°C/430°F for the fish, and begin by preparing the sides for your tacos.
- Put the red onion slices into a bowl and cover with the lime juice. Stir with a fork to mix the onion well in the juice. Actually, if you can get this done ahead of time (up to 1 day), so much the better, but even 20 minutes is fine.
- For the corn relish, put the canned sweetcorn into a bowl. Add the chilli to the sweetcorn, along with the chopped coriander and some salt to taste. Give it all a good stir, and set aside.
- Cut the fish fillets in half lengthways, so you have long fingers, and arrange in a shallow roasting tin. Mix together the cumin, paprika and salt, and sprinkle over the fish fillets. Mix the garlic and the oil in a small bowl. Drizzle the fish with the garlicky oil, and roast in the oven for 8–10 minutes, depending on the thickness of your fillets. Check to see if the fish is cooked through (though only just) before taking out of the oven.
- Once you’ve taken the fish out (though don’t let it get cold) turn off the oven and warm the tortillas in the fading heat.
- Arrange the fish on a plate (lined with salad leaves, if so desired), sprinkle with some chopped fresh coriander, and take to the table along with the warmed tortillas. If you don’t want to add any salad to the fish directly, you may want to put a bowl of shredded iceberg or some other crisp leaves nearby.
- Put the bowls of soused, but drained, red onions, the corn relish, and any other sides such as hot sauce, limes or sliced avocados nearby, and serve family style.
San Jose Sabercats - Gluten Free Wings
San Jose is the technology hub of the USA, and I didn’t want to tell you guys how to build and deep fry a computer, so I went for chicken instead. Gluten-free too!
Ingredients
- About 1.5kg bone-in skin-on chicken parts
- 330ml buttermilk
- 225g plain yogurt (or you can use buttermilk in place of the yogurt)
- 280g basic gum-free gluten free flour blend (any type is fine as long as it doesn’t have xanthan gum in it)
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons smoked Spanish paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 3 tablespoons (36 g) sugar
- Neutral oil, for frying
- In a large, zip-top bag or large bowl, place the chicken parts, buttermilk and yogurt, and stir to coat the chicken parts fully. Squeeze out all of the air if using a zip-top bag before sealing the bag. If using a bowl, cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Place the chicken in the refrigerator to marinate for at least 4 and up to 16 hours.
- Once the chicken has finished marinating, in a medium-size bowl, place the flour blend, pepper, salt, paprika, oregano, thyme, parsley, cumin, cinnamon, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, and sugar, and whisk to combine well.
- Pour all of the dry ingredients into a large, zip-top bag. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside. Remove the chicken parts from the marinade, about 2 at a time, and place in the bag of dry ingredients, seal the bag and shake to coat the chicken parts fully.
- Remove the chicken from the dry ingredients and place on the prepared baking sheet. Allow the coated chicken to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes to allow the dry ingredients to form a thick paste on the chicken. This will help the coating stick to the chicken during frying.
- While the chicken is sitting, prepare the frying oil. Place about 3-inches of frying oil in a large, heavy-bottom pot or fryer. Clip a deep-fry/candy thermometer to the side of the pot or fryer, and place the oil over medium-high heat. Bring the oil temperature to 350°F/175°C.
- Place the coated chicken parts in the hot oil, taking care not to crowd the oil. To prevent the chicken from sticking to the bottom of the pot, hold each piece with tongs or a long necked spoon thingy in the hot oil just above the bottom for about a minute to allow the bottom skin of the chicken to seal.
- Fry until golden brown all over, about 7 minutes on each side. Turn the heat down to bring the oil temperature to 325°F and allow the chicken to continue to cook until the internal temperature of each piece reaches nearly 165°F/75-80°C (about 10 minutes more).
- Place the chicken on a wire rack placed over paper towels to drain and cool before serving.
Shef.
"Sheed Thebaw - The Unblockable Situation"