Chili without tomatoes (Bosnian Pasulj)

I used to hate chili when I was little and I would come up with every excuse in the book as to why I couldn’t eat it. Every time my mom made it I would tell her that it gives me an itchy throat and every time she made me eat it anyways. I guess it’s true that your taste buds change over time because now I crave it when it gets cold outside.

In Bosnia we don’t use tomatoes in chili and most people use roux to thicken the sauce instead of tomato paste. Personally I think roux makes the chili quite heavy, but I do like my chili thicker. Years ago my mom came up with a great solution to the problem: OATS. It works great! The chili taste earthier but is still light. We also don’t put ground meat in our chili. My mom would throw in any meat she had, but my favorite was always ribs. There is something about ribs and beans cooked together in the pressure cooker that makes the chili taste fantastic.

Recipe:

• 1lb bag of Red  KidneyBeans  and 1lb bag of Black Beans either soaked overnight or quick soaked per the package instructions ( I usually do the quick soak and it works just as well) (traditionally you wouldn’t use black beans, but I really like them)
• 1 rack of Ribs (or however many can fit into your pressure cooker)
• 1 chopped Onion 
• 10 cut up Baby Carrots or 2 big Carrots
• 3 cloves of Garlic
•  2 cups of rolled Oats
• 2 tbls Paprika (I like to do half Smoked Paprika and half Spanish Paprika)
•  Water 
• Salt
• Pepper
• 2 tbls All purpose seasoning
• Olive Oil
• Scallions to put on top of chili (if you love onions this is a must because it gives it a nice onion flavor without overpowering your chili) 
   
  Add olive oil and onions in the pressure cooker. Sauté on medium until the onions are clear and add the garlic. Add the rest of the ingredients. Make sure your water covers the ribs. Put the stove on high until your cooker whistles, then turn it back to medium and cook for another 20 min or so. The time really depends on the size of your pressure cooker, mine is 5qts. Once it’s done remove from heat and let it cool off. Once you are able to open the cooker, taste the chili to see if you need to add any seasoning.  Place in a bowl and sprinkle with scallions. Enjoy!

Asian Bok Choy, Mushroom and Rice Noodle Soup

I recently went to a Chinese market to stock up on some Asian ingredients. After I came back, I wanted to cook with them so I decided on making a spicy soup. I only made enough for 2 bowls (which is what the recipe below is for) because I wasn’t really sure what I was making. My favorite Asian soups are the once where the broth itself just tastes so delicious that it doesn’t matter what else is in it. I kept putting ingredients in and after I liked the flavor, I decided the broth was done. Then I just added some vegetables, noodles and an egg to finish it off.  I served the soup for dinner and after we were done eating Mark got up and walked over to the stove to get more. He was really disappointed when he discovered that the pot was empty. He started to huff and puff that I had to make the soup again and that time I wrote the recipe down. Since then I have made the soup again tonight and decided to serve it with some spring rolls.  It’s a great soup when you are not that hungry or are feeling sick.

Recipe:

For the broth:

• 4 cups of water
• 2 tbs  soy sauce
• 1 tbs red wine vinegar
• 2 tsp chili garlic sauce
• 1 tsp ginger powder
• 1 tbs fish sauce
• all purpose seasoning
• salt
• black pepper

The rest:

• 1 egg
• 1 bok choy
• handful of shiitake mushrooms
• scallions
• clear rice noodles

Make the broth and let it come to a boil. Add the rice noodles and let it cook for about 2 min. Add the mushrooms, bok choy and scallions. Cover the pot and cook for another 2-3 min. Whisk the egg and add it slowly to the soup while stirring it. Cook until the noodles look done.  When you cook the broth make sure you taste it and add salt, seasoning, soy sauce etc. per your liking. Don’t be afraid to use different vegetables in your soup or maybe some shrimp. Enjoy!

Lentil and Black Bean Chili

This is a super easy and tasty vegetarian chili. Healthy food shouldn’t taste bland and you shouldn’t cringe when thinking of eating it. Trust me this a great tasting meal.

Recipe:

• 1 cup of small green lentils
• 6 cups of water
• 5 cloves of garlic
• 1 big onion
• 29 oz can of black beans
• salt
• black pepper
• olive oil
• dried herbs
• all purpose seasoning
• 1 can of tomatoes
• hot sauce

Boil the lentils with 5 cups of water. Turn the heat down and cook until all the water has been absorbed. I like my lentils a little firmer but Mark likes them mushy, so I throw the lentils in with the chili to keep cooking. If you like them firm add them at then end to the chili.

In the meantime take another pot add some olive oil and chopped garlic. Cook the garlic for about 1-2 min. Add the onions and cook for another 2-3 min. Add the can of tomatoes and dried herbs. Cook for a few minutes until everything is soft. Add the black beans , all purpose seasoning,  salt, black pepper, cooked lentils and the remaining cup of water and your favorite hot sauce. Cover and let stew for about 20 min.  Pour it over some brown rice or just eat as is.