CookManFood.com!

What a title to a post “Chicken Skin.”  This part of the chicken gets my vote as its best part.  Sure you can fail a physical for most jobs that require one by eating some up to a month before the test but why should that stop you?  Really, are you overweight and if so, are you past the point that you even care anymore?  Chicken skin is great for a snack or for a main course.  Just throw some of the good crisply pieces between two circles or fried cheese and call it dinner.  I am getting tired of people complaining or commenting that it is gross.  If you don’t want any, leave it for me.  I’ll eat it and enjoy every last bite.  Truth be told, anything could happen to you in the next few months, you could get hit by a bus or get struck by lightning.  So, eat the skin and enjoy.

            I know what you are thinking; how in the hell could you in your right mind punish bacon by making it get married to chicken?  Can’t they just be friends with benefits forever?  What happens if they get divorced?  Did they sign a prenuptial agreement?  These are all very reasonable questions.  Maybe saying they are married is the wrong way to look at the bond that these to share when they are together but I don’t think I am ever going to eat another piece of chicken without bacon.  Why would I?  They are a perfect match.  Crispy chicken tacos are a great meal or snack but add bacon and it gets that much better.  Lay bacon over a smoked chicken and you have a masterpiece.  Chicken and bacon quesadillas, chicken and bacon sandwiches, you get the point.  Next time you are thinking about having your boring old baked or grilled chicken for dinner, think again, and then add bacon.  You won’t regret it.

So last week Todd and I were watching some football and we were talking about how some teams just produce winning season after winning season and do it with different receivers, quarterbacks and backfield.  What I came up with is the metaphor to the eleven men on offense and a sandwich.  We all love sandwiches and we all know what the key ingredient is to any sandwich.  THE BREAD!!!  You could have mediocre cheese, condiments, meat, and other toppings and have outstanding bread and have a great sandwich.  Take that in reverse.  You could have the top of the line meats, cheeses, condiments and have stale bread and you have a crappy sandwich.  The type of sandwich you might as well just throw away the bread and enjoy what is inside.  This is why teams like the Denver Broncos produce quality RB after RB each year and teams like the Detroit Lions in the hay days of Barry Sanders could never make it deep into the playoffs.  Bread.  So, teams like the Arizona Cardinals, Washington Redskins, Minnesota Vikings, it is time to up the ante and start putting together a decent line so you can have the great sandwich your fans demand.

Can anyone ever get enough of the bacon placemat?  Here is our latest video.  

Last week, Todd and I cooked for the final Ska-Ba-Q event for the summer at Ska Brewery in Durango, CO.  It was a huge success.  Thanks to Country Bob’s sauces to making the event even better.  We used their All Purpose Sauce on our pork sandwiches that we served to over 100 guests.  We were also happy to hand out a few samples and information about Country Bob’s Sauces.  We are going to be at a few more events this year as well as over 20 events in 2009.  Keep checking back for more updates. 

We are pleased to announce that we will be covering two events coming up at the end of September.   The first is the Oktoberfest that benefits the local nonprofit San Juan Citizens Alliance.   It will take place on Main Avenue in Durango, CO between 9^th  St. and 11^th St.  This is a great celebration based on the 200 year old Bavarian festival celebrating the marriage of King Ludwig I.   Basically the Bavarians spent about 5 days drinking all the beer they could and had a great time doing it. To this day Oktoberfest is celebrated all over the world.   While there are many things to do at these events, this is a great opportunity to try some great beers and enjoy the new fall brews for great cause.

This event will have a little bit for the whole family.   They will have a children’s play area so you can drop the wife and kid off there and go to the beer tent.   They will also so have live music all day.  At the end of the day they will have a pub crawl from Carver Brewing to Steamworks that ends at the Abbey Theatre.  I am sure that if you put your mind to it you can find as much beer as you want at this event. 

On Saturday night we will be moving over to the Summit where our friends the Freeman Social will rock it for a couple hours.  This is a cancer benefit for their friend Mike Freeman from Gina Go Faster who was diagnosed with brain cancer not too long ago. Door is $5 and there will be a huge raffle including snowboards and kegs.  All proceeds will go to Mike Freeman to help pay for his extensive medical payments.

Sunday is the Grand Opening for the New SKA Brewing World Head Quarters.  This will begin at Noon at 225 Girard Ave,  Durango Colorado.  They are still in Bodo Park just a little further south.   They will be showing off their new space and trying to get rid of a lot of beer.   The Guys from SKA have been great supports of this community and we hope you will join us to thank them for their support and celebrate their success of their new brewing facility and tasting room.  Durango’s own The Freeman Social will be playing as well as Warsaw.

Hope to see you all there!

  It is that time of year again.  The chili harvest is happening and now is the time to get your chilies for the year.  Living near the New Mexico border, we have access to great chilies right now and I will be going to buy my bushel of them in two weeks.  Hatch is famous for their chilies but many other farms in the state also have a great growing environment.  The chilies that I am talking about may be known to you as Anaheim chilies.  Each fall they are harvested and put into boxes that measure just over a bushel and roasted at local grocery stores and festivals.  They are cheap too. About $20 worth will get enough to last you into next year. 

            You do not want to bring them home fresh unless you plan on roasting them yourselves.  Rather, you want to have them roasted where you buy them and then take them home to process them.  The key is to let the chilies rest in the bag for about 4 – 6 hours so the chilies will sweat making the skins easy to remove.  Next it is time to take them upstairs to process.  Here is how I separate them:

1. Whole chilies
2. Shredded chilies and pieces
3. Chilies that need additional time roasting

The whole chilies are the ones that are intact and the skin comes off easily.  These are laid out individually onto cookie sheets and placed in the freezer.  I freeze them individually so I can pull them out one at a time when needed for brats, burgers, and sandwiches.

The shredded and pieces of chilies all go into a bowl after I remove the skins and seeds.  I dice them up and put them pre-measured into plastic bags and then put them in the freezer.  I use these for soups, stews, dips, and many other applications where diced chilies are needed.

Finally, I take the chilies where the skins do not come off easily, put them on the grill for enough time needed to remove the skins, and then place the chilies in either of the two previous mentioned groups. 

Chilies have many many uses in the kitchen and if you have the means to get a hold of a half bushel or quarter bushel to get a feel for these wonderful fruits, I highly recommend it.  Chilies are addictive and are a great source of vitamin C. 

            In the many backpacking and hiking trips we take throughout the year, we are often asked what we bring with us.  Too many times you see trail mix, power bars, power gels, and other crap foods that people bring for just energy with no real flavor.  Granted, when we are trying to put in an 8 – 20 mile day in the backcountry, we do pack gels to get us through the trip but for the most part, we bring food that tastes good and gives us the energy we need.  For day hikes this is what we typically bring:

1. Smoked Gouda, Provolone, or Edam Cheese
2. Summer Sausage
3. Beef Jerky
4. Hard Salamis
5. Pepperoni
6. Smoked Salmon Pouches
7. Stone Ground Wheat Crackers
8. Mayo Packs for lunches

There are also other variants that go with this list.  Depending on the terrain of overnight hikes, we also pack in some good Manfood.  One thing we love to bring is pork tenderloin and roasts.  How we bring it in during the summer months without it going bad is to freeze it a few days before you leave.  Pack it the morning you leave and it will thaw out as you are hiking in.  Another tip is to leave it in the center of your pack and keep it next to other items that you would want to stay cold such as some goat cheese and smoked sausages.  By dinner time, it is usually defrosted but still cold ready to be put in the fire or on a small backpacking grill.  Caution: people that go with you who do not decide to carry and extra pound or two to eat well will be very jealous when you are cooking and eating this.  This does make the first few days of a trip much more enjoyable to the stomach.  On trips longer than 3 days, you will have to resort to catching fish, small game or give in to the freeze dried camping dinners or MRE’s.  I recommend being a good fisherman or going with someone who is. 

September 20^th, to celebrate Dan’s Birthday, we will be heading up to Mt. Sneffles outside of Ouray, Colorado to summit yet another 14er this year.  It is going to be a day trip with friends and we hope to bring some good Manfood along with us.  The peak stands at 14,150 ft. and is considered difficult class 2.  Looks to be a great day and we will have pictures up upon our return. 

September 18th we will be at Ska Brewery in Durango,CO serving up various dishes to the patrons of the tasting room. We have not decided on our final menu but we are considering not just serving one item but rather having 3 or 4 things to choose from.  Whatever we serve, it will be served with Country Bob’s Sauces.  The event starts at 5pm. Hope to see you there.