Presidential All Meat Chili

I read a great book recently called "Dinner with the President: Food, Politics, and a History of Breaking Bread at the White House". It was really interesting cover foods and meals favored by all the presidents from Washington to Biden.   What people will, and will not, eat says so much about a person, so it was fascinating to me to see all the presidents tastes. How about the one president who likes his steak well done with ketchup! Ugh.

The book included some recipes at the end, and this recipe was popular with Lyndon Johnson during his presidency.  It was so simple, I just had to try it!  It was a big hit with everyone that I've served it to, so I wanted to share this one.  It does make a bunch, but I would recommend making the full batch and freezing it for future easy mills.

 Link to the LBJ recipe 

12 servings

Ingredients: 

• 4 pounds ground beef (I used 80/20 mix)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 3-4 tablespoons chili powder, or to taste (I used Extra Hot chili powder)
• 1 tsp cayenne, optional
• 2 cans (15 oz) of diced tomatoes (I used with green chilies)
• 2 can (8oz) of tomato sauce
• 1 can (6 oz) of tomato paste
• 2 to 6 dashes hot sauce, or to taste (optional)
• Salt to taste (likely needs between 2-3 tsp)

In a large pot, cook the ground beef, onions and garlic, over medium high heat.  There's no need to add any olive oil, as ground beef has a lot in it naturally when you use 80/20 mix. Using a flat bottom wooden spoon breaking it into small pieces. 

Drain the meat, there's a lot of fat and water in there that won't add anything to your chili.  Here's how much I got from my 4lbs of ground beef.  I usually put this in the fridge to harden and then throw away the fat.  You could add the watery broth back to your chili if you felt it was too thick.

Add the chili powder, cumin and oregano.  Mix well. Add all the tomatoes, 2 cans of diced tomatoes, 2 small cans of tomato sauce and the can of tomato paste.  Let simmer on medium low for about 30 minutes.  Add the salt gradually, to ensure its just the right amount of salty for you.

I have made this ahead and it keeps, and reheats, very well.  

Serve with grated cheese, chopped onions, jalapenos and cilantro and maybe some sour cream.  This is also great for chili hot dogs or even "chili sloppy Joe's" on hamburger buns.

Easy Seared Ahi- Sesame Crusted

This is such an easy dinner that we have been making forever, so I was surprised that I hadn't shared this one before!

Frozen ahi tuna is pretty easy to find at the grocery store, ask at the fish counter they might have some there that is kept in the freezer. We usually buy a case from Costco online every January when it's on sale.  You get about 26 pieces and it comes to about $5 to $6 a piece. It thaws SO fast, that its a great last minute dinner idea.  We also make a homemade poke with it, which is pretty awesome for a lunch or an appetizer.

Serves 2-4

Ingredients

2-4 pieces of frozen ahi tuna

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 Tbsp sesame oil

1/2 cup Sesame seeds, toasted

1-2 Tbsp vegetable oil for cooking

In a ziploc bag, or a low dish, add the soy sauce and the sesame oil. Add the ahi to marinate for about 10 -15 minutes. If you marinate it much more than that, it will be overly strong.  I learned this the hard way.

Once marinated, drain the fish and dredge it in a plate of the sesame seeds.  

Add to a nonstick fry pan heated over medium heat.  Cook for 2-3 minutes per side.  Remember, ahi is best a bit under cooked, which is what my cooking times account for. If you want your fish well done, you will need to cook it more.  Don't use too high of heat, or your sesame seeds will burn.  Serve at once with some stir fried veggies and rice.

We love to serve it with this wasabi sauce.  I know this is NOT authentic and made with horseradish and sugars, but it is really good!