Baked Oxtails

I am a big fan of ox-tails!  They are truly delicious..can never get enough.  I just love them and so do my mother!  My mom could eat 3 to 4 packs by herself!  LOL!  They will have your fingers sticky licking good! 

I make them several different ways.  Baked, stewed or what ever way you like.

Ingredients:

6 lbs ox-tails, trimmed
Seasoned flour (salt, pepper and cayenne) for dredging the ox-tails
Evoo (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
Sliced onions, part diced
Sliced green and red peppers
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp grated and peeled fresh ginger root
Sprinkles of red pepper flakes
Oregano
jalapeno pepper, seeded (depending on your pilot), chopped
Potatoes, cubbed
Thyme
Salt and Pepper
Bay leaf
2 Tbsps brown sugar
2 cups beef broth


Heat oil in a heavy large frying pan.  Season oxtails with salt and pepper.  Working in batches, coat oxtails with flour; shake off excess.  Add to the pan and cook until golden brown on all sides.  Transfer oxtails to a plate.  Drain oil from the pan but leaving about 3 TBSPs of drippings in the pan.  Add diced onions, garlic, ginger, thyme, Oregano, jalapeno pepper, and bay leaves.  Add wine, 1/2 cup broth, sugar and oxtails.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about an hour.  (You probably want to use a large Dutch oven so you can fit all the oxtail in one pot.  That depends on the amount you are making.)

Pour the oxtails along with the liquid (skim fat from surface) in a large baking dish.  Add the remaining broth, sliced onions, peppers, potatoes, and red pepper flakes to the baking dish and mix well.  Bake for about 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours.  And dinner is served!!!!  Bon Appetit! 

I served these with rice medley, steamed green beans, potato salad, navy beans and corn bread.

Enjoy!



Jill's Comfort Zone

Meatloaf

I have been trying to master meatloaf for sometime now. Every time I made it it always fell apart! Well last week I nailed this MOFO!!!! It stayed together...nice and firm and it wasn't dry either! I'm so proud of myself! ;) I wanted to serve mashed potatoes with it but I was out of potatoes so we had mixed veggies and seasoned rice! Since I chopped up too much onions and peppers I added the rest to my rice.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup yellow onions, finely chopped
1/2 cup green bell peppers
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 Italian seasoning
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 bread crumbs
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
About 2 splashes of Worcestershire Sauce
EVOO

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small nonstick sauce pot or pan, heat EVOO over medium high heat. Once oil is hot add onion and green peppers and saute for about 5 minutes. Set vegetable mixture aside and allow to cool.


Combine ground pepper, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, Italian seasoning and paprika in a small bowl. In a large mixing bowl combine seasoning blend, eggs, milk, half of ketchup and Worcestershire Sauce. Beat mixture well using a whisk or fork.

Next form meat mixture by adding together all ingredients to the ground beef. Now using your hands or a wooden spoon, mix all the ingredients together until uniform. Form meat mixture into a loaf by lightly packing into the loaf pan. Slightly round off the top of your loaf for presentation purposes. pour the remaining ketchup over the top of the loaf. Evenly spread the ketchup over the top using a spatula or spoon.


Bake at 350 degrees for about 2 hours. Don't allow meat to dry out. Let meatloaf stand for about 12 minutes before slicing. This was truly delish!!!!



See....still in tact!  Love it!!!!  Go Jill!  Go Jill!  LOL


Enjoy!


Jill's Comfort Zone

Baked BBQ Beef Ribs

I am a true beef ribs lover! I usually don't buy the big beef ribs because there's never any meat on them. I usually just buy the beef shorts ribs or boneless beef short ribs. There's no much to tell you about making beef ribs. These I made in the oven. Preheat your oven 350 degrees. You just slice up your onions, green peppers and some garlic. Use some of your favorite seasoning/rubs to season the ribs with. Get a bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce or homemade BBQ sauce and add some beef broth or water. Add all the ingredients in a baking dish except for the BBQ sauce. Oh and don't forget your bay leaf!  Place the baking dish in the oven and cook for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until done. Pour BBQ sauce over ribs and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Oh man...the meat (the little bit that's on there) just falls right off the bone!

Enjoy!


Jill's Comfort Zone

Pepper Steak

Pepper steak is one of the quickest meal for me to make when I'm pressed for time or tired. This is always one meal that I mostly eat at home or a restaurant I frequent! You just can't be too safe anymore...LOL! I want to be sure I'm eating beef and not something else! I'm not going any further on this topic...you get me drift? ;) I'm just saying... (LT) LOL! Anyway, I serve the pepper steak over some long grain white rice with steam broccoli! Delish!

Ingredients:

3 Tbsps butter or oil
1 1/2 pds round or flank steak
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced onions
1 cup diced celery
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tsp sugar
2 bay leaves
3 large green peppers
1 1/2 large red peppers
1 plum tomato, chopped
1 1/2 tsps cornstarch
2 tsps soy sauce
1/4 cup cold water

Heat butter over med.-high heat, brown meat, remove and set aside. Reduce heat, saute onions for 5 minutes. Return meat to skillet, add remaining ingredients except peppers, cornstarch, soy sauce and water. Cook for about 5 minutes and then add peppers and simmer covered for 10 minutes. Blend cornstarch, soy sauce, and water in a dish; stir into meat mixture. Cook until thick and clear, about 1 to 2 minutes.

Enjoy!



Jill's Comfort Zone