I Am... Easy One Pot Hainanese Chicken Rice
If you’re looking for your next hands-off, delicious one pot dinner, this is it: Hainanese chicken rice. Have you ever had Hainanese chicken rice before? Are you as obsessed with it as I am? I’m guessing the answer is no because I have a lifelong, deep obsession with chicken rice. It’s my ultimate comfort food, my all-time-favorite go to meal, my version of Anton Ego’s mom’s ratatouille. You know, the scene in in the Pixar movie where Anton is taken back to his mom’s kitchen and she serves him ratatouille and all is right with the world. That's Hainanese chicken rice for me.
What is Hainanese chicken rice?
Hainanese chicken is deceptively simple but somehow complex. It originated in Hainan in Southern China, but its spiritual home is Singapore, where you’ll find renditions of the ever popular dish everywhere, from hawker stands to high end hotels. I would fight to the death to say that Hainanese chicken rice is the best rendition of chicken and rice out there. It’s so humble, so flavorful, and so pure. At its heart, Hainanese chicken rice is just that: chicken and rice. The chicken is poached in a simple yet flavorful broth scented with ginger, garlic, and scallions and is silky, firm, and tastes like the most perfect chicken you’ll ever have. The rice that comes with it should stand on its own: full of chicken flavor, slicked with fat, savory, and fragrant.What’s so special about the rice?
You’ve got to taste it to believe it, but I think the secret to why Hainanese chicken rice is so good is the rice. And the secret to the rice is chicken fat. Any good cook knows that when you cook rice in broth, the broth infuses the inside of the grain, giving it extra flavor. A lot of cultures do this, like how Mexican rice is cooked in tomatoes and onions. Chicken rice goes one step further by frying uncooked rice in chicken fat with garlic, shallots, and ginger before cooking in chicken broth, giving the rice another layer of toasty, aromatic deliciousness. The rice should be glossy, luscious and full of flavor.The best chicken rice is the one you like making
There are a lot of Hainanese chicken rice recipes that call for 24 hour (or more) cures and other very complicated steps. It doesn't need to be this way, especially if you just want good chicken rice and you're not competing with a dozen other chicken rice hawkers at a market. It's the rice that you need to pay careful attention to, and that's an easy thing that doesn't take much extra time. Personally, I love making chicken rice, I find it therapeutic somehow. But sometimes I just want to eat chicken and rice without cooking a whole chicken. This easy recipe is for those times: skin-on boneless chicken thighs and rice are cooked in one pot for ease and fewer dishes to wash. Win-win!The secret to great Hainanese chicken rice
This is a basic one pot Hainanese chicken rice with all the flavor and none of the fuss. The recipe starts with chicken fat. If you’re like me and love chicken rice and make it on the regular, you’ll want to keep a jar of rendered chicken fat in the fridge. Even if you’re not like me and don’t want to make chicken rice every day of the week, you’ll want to keep a jar of chicken fat in the fridge. Chicken fat is PURE FLAVOR. Chicken fat is what makes the rice part of chicken rice taste so good. But, if you don’t have any chicken fat, don’t worry, toasting your rice in any fat is going to give it a glossy, delicious flavor coat. The key is cooking the ginger, garlic, and shallots in fat so that the aromatics release their deliciousness into the rice.How to render chicken fat
Chicken fat is the key to a good Hainanese chicken rice. The chicken fat adds so much flavor to the rice, you won’t believe it.- Collect. Trim excess skin off the chicken thighs. Every time you have a recipe that calls for boneless skinless chicken thighs, just buy skin-on, bone-in chicken. Debone and save the bones for stock and save the skin for rendering. I like to freeze a sizable amount then make a big batch of chicken fat and crispy chicken skin.
- Chop. Use a sharp knife and chop the chicken skin into small 1/2 inch pieces. You can use a pair of scissors for this too.
- Slowly render. Put all of the chicken skins in a non-stick (or cast iron) skillet, pot, or pan. I like using a pot to keep everything from splattering but it’ll be faster in a pan or skillet. Cover and cook on medium low for 15 minutes. The fat will start to render out and collect.
- Crisp. After you have a pretty pool of glistening fat, uncover the skillet and turn the heat up to medium. Let the skin and fat cook, stirring and breaking up occasionally, until the chicken skins start to crisp and brown.
- Strain. After all the skins are brown, remove the pan from the heat and use a fine mesh strainer over a heat proof liquid measuring cup to strain out the crispy skin. The rendered chicken fat is pure flavor. If desired, return the skin to the pan and crisp up further. The crispy chicken skins are the BEST. They’ll continue to crisp up as they cool, so don’t cook them too long. Store the strained fat in a jar in the fridge for several weeks and use to make chicken rice!
Chicken thigh vs chicken breast
But what about the chicken? Do you need a whole chicken? Should you use dark meat or light if you're just going with individual pieces? Again, this is personal preference, but I think the whole chicken isn't necessary. The only question is, do you go with thigh or breast? When you’re in Singapore, you have to pay extra for dark meat (thighs and drumsticks) because the meat is silkier and more tender. I definitely prefer thighs to chicken breasts when making chicken rice but sometimes I like the texture of breasts too.What kind of chicken for chicken rice?
Chicken thighs are clearly superior but they don’t tend to sell skin-on boneless chicken thighs. What I do is buy bone in skin on thighs and trim the bones out myself.How to debone chicken thighs
There’s only one bone to remove from a chicken thigh, making it super simple.- Place the chicken thigh, skin side down on a cutting board.
- Find the bone that runs along the length of the thigh. Use a sharp boning knife or paring knife along the side of the bone to reveal it.
- Use the knife to scrape along both sides of the bone, being careful not to cut all the way through.
- Angle the tip of knife underneath the bone and run the knife alongside the bone to cut the end of the thigh away. Repeat on the other side.
Chicken and Rice
All cultures have some sort of chicken and rice. The Japanese have oyakodon, Latin Americans have arroz con pollo, and Southeast Asians (and Hainanese people) have Hainanese chicken rice. Like most chicken and rice dishes, it’s simple at heart: poached chicken and seasoned rice served with a variety of sauces. Like lots of immigrant adapted foods, there are actually a bunch of different types of Hainanese chicken rices: Singaporean, Malaysian, Vietnamese, and Thai. Growing up, it was a staple in our house. Chicken rice is the food that can bring me back to my childhood and transport me to some of my favorite memories as an adult. I’m not embarrassed to say that chicken rice is my everything.How do you eat Hainanese chicken rice?
Everyone eats it differently! Some people like to pour all three sauces on top and mix it all up, some people only use certain sauces, really, it’s up to you. Authentically, like with curry rice, it’s usually served on a plate with a spoon and fork – NOT a bowl and chopsticks – to scoop everything up.What to serve with Hainanese chicken rice
Traditionally it’s served with the poaching broth the chicken was cooked in, as well as chili sauce, scallion-ginger sauce (I kept it simple here with a scallion only sauce), and dark soy sauce. If you’re in Singapore, they’ll probably give you a couple pieces of cucumber, and a sprig of cilantro on top.Homemade Hainanese scallion oil
Sometimes I keep it simple with a pure scallion oil, but if you have the time to chop up some more aromatics, a ginger garlic scallion oil is an unforgettable umami bomb you’ll want to put on EVERYTHING. Ingredients- 4 cloves garlic
- 1/2 cup scallions
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger
- 1/4 cup neutral oil
- In a food processor - or by hand, you wizard you - chop up 4 cloves garlic, 2-3 scallions (about 1/2 cup), and 1 tbsp fresh ginger. Place everything in a deep heat proof bowl.
- In the smallest pot you have, heat up 1/4 cup neutral oil (grapeseed, sunflower, safflower, canola) over medium heat until it reaches 275°F. You can also test the heat by placing an uncoated wooden chopstick in the oil. If you see tiny air bubbles escaping from the chopstick in the oil, it should be hot enough.
- Carefully remove the pot from the stove and pour over the scallion mix. It will sizzle and bubble. Stir so everything is coated and season with salt to taste.
Hainanese chili garlic sauce
Ingredients- 2 fresno peppers (or other red pepper)
- 1 Thai chili pepper
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1" ginger
- 2-3 tbsp chicken stock
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- In a food processor, chop 2 fresno peppers, 1 Thai chili, 2 cloves garlic, and a 1 inch piece of ginger until it comes together in a paste. Stir in 2-3 tablespoons of chicken stock, 1 tablespoon lime juice, and 1/2 teaspoon of sugar. Add salt to taste.
Hainanese ginger sauce
This is different from the scallion oil and I make it when I want a pure ginger taste. It’s not too spicy because cooking the ginger mellows it out. It’s a perfect “clean” tasting sauce for those Hainanese chicken rice purists out there. Ingredients- 1/4 cup fresh ginger, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup neutral oil
- 2 tsp rendered chicken fat
- salt, to taste
- In the smallest pot you have, heat up 1/4 cup neutral oil (grapeseed, sunflower, safflower, canola) over medium heat until it reaches 275°F. You can also test the heat by placing an uncoated wooden chopstick in the oil. If you see tiny air bubbles escaping from the chopstick in the oil, it should be hot enough.
- Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the ginger. It will sizzle and bubble. The ginger should be soft and tender. Stir in the rendered chicken fat and season to taste with salt.
Pro-tips
Here are some of my tips for making chicken rice. I do it so much that it’s pretty much second nature to me!Use a food processor
I like doing prep work but a food processor makes everything easier and more enjoyable. There are a lot of aromatics in Hainanese chicken rice and it’s the aromatics that make everything taste amazing so you don’t want to skip out. A food processor will cut your prep time in half. This is the mini one we use on the regular.Save your chicken fat!
I have a little freezer bag of frozen chicken fat/skin in the freezer. This is probably not that strange to people who know how amazing chicken fat is. I add to it whenever I’m trimming chicken or if I need skinless chicken in a recipe. Skin on chicken is so much cheaper that skin-off so I just de-skin at home and happily add to my stash. When the bag is full, I render the fat, stash it in the fridge in clean jar and scoop it out to use whenever I have a chicken rice craving. The crispy chicken skins get eaten pretty much right away. Having a stash of chicken fat in the fridge means you’re never too far away from chicken rice.Use homemade chicken stock
This is my cheat version of Hainanese chicken rice, which is why it calls for store-bought chicken stock. But the truth is, like my endless supply of chicken fat, I also have an endless supply of Hainanese chicken stock in my freezer. To make homemade Hainanese chicken stock, use trimmed chicken bones:- Place as many trimmed chicken bones as you have in a deep pot and cover with water until it is covers the bones by 2 inches.
- Add 1 inch ginger, sliced; 1 shallot, halved, 2 cloves garlic, crushed; and 1 whole green onion.
- Bring to a simmer over medium heat and when there are lots of tiny little bubbles, cover and turn down the heat.
- Simmer for 1 hour. When the hour is done, strain the stock. Use homemade Hainanese chicken stock as directed in the recipe.
Make it in the rice cooker
If you’re not a fan of cooking rice on the stove you can still make this one pot chicken and rice:- Fry up the rice in chicken fat, along with the ginger, garlic and shallot until glossy.
- Add the fried rice to your rice cooker and add in the chicken stock, chicken, and green onion.
- Set the rice cooker and cook until the rice is finished cooking.
- Let the rice and chicken keep warm (on the keep warm setting) for 10 minutes before opening, fluffing, and enjoying.
Perfectly cooked chicken
I prefer to use boneless chicken for this quick and easy version because boneless thighs finish at the same time as the rice, making this quick and easy. If you want to use bone in chicken, make sure the chicken is tempered (not straight from the fridge) when you’re adding it to the pan. Cook the chicken and rice for 5 more minutes and let it steam with the lid on for an extra 5 minutes as well. The rice will be on the more tender side.Super silky Hainanese chicken skin
Something people really love about Hainanese chicken is the super silky smooth chicken skin. It’s delicate, tender, and delicious. In Singapore, if the chicken is gelatinous and silky, it’s considered perfect. The secret to super silky chicken skin is a combination of salt scrubbing and temperature control. Because we’re making a one pot Hainanese chicken I’m going to talk mostly about salt scrubbing, but I will lightly touch on the importance of an ice bath too.Salt scrub
The first thing you should do, if you’re looking for super smooth skin is to give your chicken a nice salt rub. Sprinkle on a generous amount of coarse salt and exfoliate the heck out of the chicken skin, making sure that the salt gets into every nook and cranny of the skin. After exfoliating, rinse the excess salt off the skin (so the chicken doesn’t end up too salty) and the chicken skin should look tighter, cleaner, and generally very pretty. This works super well on whole chickens but it also works on cut pieces of chicken to. Do it, it will definitely make a difference.Temperature Control
As for the other key aspect of silky skin, it’s temperature control. This recipe is for a super simple Hainanese one pot chicken and rice but when you’re making it traditionally (as I do quite a lot as well) you using a whole chicken and poach it gently. After scrubbing and exfoliating with salt, the chicken is gently submerged in a pot of just simmering water and aromatics (scallions, ginger, garlic, shallots) until it cooks through. Immediately afterwards, the chicken is put into an ice cold water bath. The hot then cold shocks the chicken skin, pulling it tighter against it’s body. The skin will be silky and perfect! When chicken rice is done well, you almost don’t need the chicken! Mike pretty much just eats giant bowls of the rice with no chicken at all, that's how good it is. I hope you give this recipe a try, it’s the perfect comfort food for chilly fall days. Chicken rice forever and always, xoxo stephOne Pot Hainanese Chicken and Rice Recipe
Super simple and satisfying Hainanese chicken and rice: juicy steamed chicken and ginger garlic rice cooked in the same pot. It’s what you want for dinner, right now!
Chicken Rice
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 4 boneless, skin-on chicken thighs
- 1 tbsp rendered chicken fat or neutral oil
- 1 tbsp minced ginger
- 1 clove garlic (minced)
- 1/2 small shallot (finely diced)
- 1 cup white jasmine rice
- 1 cup chicken stock (low sodium)
- 2 green onions (whole)
Green Onion Oil
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
- 1/4 cup neutral oil
- salt (to taste)
To Serve
- chili sauce
- sliced cucumbers
Rub the chicken skin with the salt and set aside.
In a pan or pot with a lid, heat up the chicken fat or oil. Add the ginger, garlic, and shallot. Cook, stirring, until fragrant. Stir in the rice and fry gently until glossy.
Add chicken stock, then place the chicken, skin side up, in the pan. Add the green onions on top. Bring to boil over medium high heat and when it starts to simmer, cover and turn the heat down to low. Cook for 17 minutes, turn off the heat, and let rest for 10 minutes.
While the rice is cooking, make the green onion oil: place the green onions in a deep heat proof bowl and set aside.
In a small pot, heat 1/4 cup oil over medium heat until it reaches 275°F. Remove the pot from the stove and very carefully pour over the green onions – they will sizzle and bubble up. Stir in salt to taste.
When the 10 minute rest is up, remove and discard the green onions. Remove the chicken and slice. Fluff up the rice and serve with thinly sliced cucumbers and green onion oil. Enjoy immediately!
Estimated nutrition facts don't include the green onion oil.
I Am... How to Make the Crunchiest Asian Fried Chicken in an Air Fryer
Every culture has fried chicken, and Asian fried chicken is some of the most celebrated around. From the ubiquitous orange chicken, sesame chicken, or honey garlic chicken, to favorites like chicken karaage or taiwanese popcorn chicken, it’s clear that the world loves all the Asian fried chickens. And, believe it or not, along with being quick and easy, the air fryer is one of the best ways period to make any Asian fried chicken recipe.
How is Asian fried chicken different?
Asians love texture to a fault; it’s just a fact. I have a running joke that if I ask Steph how good a Chinese restaurant is, she will only describe their textures, like “they make really crispy fried chicken” or “they have really chewy noodles”. It’s taken for granted that the food tastes good. So likewise with the wings, Asian fried chicken emphasizes texture. Sometimes this means crisp shattering crunch, but sometimes it also means “used to be crunchy but now saucy”. You have to taste it to understand that one.How to make the best fried chicken
Almost all Asian fried chickens are made the same way:- First you marinate the chicken (if it’s not being coated in a sauce).
- Then it’s dredged in a flour or starch coating, then fried
- Then sauced while hot or dusted with spices, if needed.
The best coating to use for fried chicken: potato starch vs cornstarch vs flour
Most of the time, we use potato starch or cornstarch. Potato starch can be hard to find (although Amazon is now a thing, and Bob’s Red Mill is carried everywhere) but produces the best, lightest, crispiest results. Cornstarch comes in a close second and you can get it everywhere. Sometimes, we will use rice flour or cake flour. Unless you really have nothing else, try to avoid all purpose or bread flour. The lower the gluten, the lighter and crispier the wings.How to make Asian fried chicken in an air fryer
The air fryer is perfect for making light, crispy wings. The fan movement of the air allows an even cooking, while the lack of extraneous oil means you get a lighter final product. Here’s how you do it:- Season and marinate the chicken (optional). Salt and pepper your chicken and let stand for 5 minutes or so. If you are making a chicken that requires a marinade, do it now as well.
- Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Water generates steam, and steam is our enemy right now.
- Lightly oil the chicken. This is to help promote even browning. You can/should use a spray oil for this, but you can also just toss the chicken in 1 tablespoon of a high heat oil as well.
- Toss the chicken in potato/corn starch. I like to use a ziplock bag or, even better, a compostable produce bag.
- Air fry the chicken. Oil the basket of your air fryer with the spray bottle or a brush. Then arrange the chicken on a single layer with at least 1/4” spacing between each piece.
- Flip the chicken. I don’t like the shaking method, I’ve found that it’s better to just use tongs to flip the chicken so that the other side is consistently even. Besides, you need the tongs to take the chicken out later anyway.
- Sauce or salt? Remove the chicken immediately so that a) it doesn’t overcook and b) the sauce or spice dusting will stick to it better.
What can you make with this recipe?
- Vietnamese Fried Chicken: After frying, dust with our Vietnamese chicken spice (equal parts sugar, white pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder).
- Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken: Toss with 1 teaspoon soy sauce, then marinate with 1 teaspoon white pepper and 1 teaspoon five spice. After frying, dust with another 1 teaspoon white pepper and 1 teaspoon five spice.
- Korean Fried Chicken: After frying, coat with korean spicy chicken sauce (1 tablespoon each ketchup, gochujang, honey, brown sugar, and garlic, and half tablespoon each of soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, and minced ginger).
- Japanese Karaage Wings: Marinate with 1 tablespoon each of soy sauce, sake, minced ginger, and crushed garlic, as well as 1 teaspoon sugar.
- Thai/Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings: After frying, coat with our fish sauce vinaigrette (1 tablespoon sugar, 1 tablespoon fish sauce, 1 tablespoon lime juice, 2 cloves garlic, 1 Thai chili).
- Orange Chicken: After frying, coat with our 5 ingredient orange chicken sauce (1/4 cup each of orange juice, soy sauce, sugar, and rice vinegar, plus a tablespoon of cornstarch to thicken).
Tips for the best fried chicken
- Always season your chicken
- Dry your chicken as well as possible, steam is the enemy of crunch
- For ultimate crispiness, you can double fry the chicken by letting the chicken rest for 5 minutes after frying both sides, then putting it back in for another 5 minutes.
The Best Air Fryer Asian Fried Chicken Wings
- 1 lb chicken wings
- 1 tbsp oil
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- salt and pepper
Coat the chicken with the oil, then season with salt and pepper. Toss with corn starch.
Spray the air fryer basket with oil or use a brush/paper towel to apply a thin coat of oil onto it. Arrange the chicken in a single layer and air fry the chicken at 400ºF for 15 minutes. When the 15 minutes is up, flip the chicken and air fry another 5 minutes.
Remove chicken immediately. Sauce or dust as needed.
I Am... Cinnamon Rolls
Super soft and ooey gooey homemade cinnamon rolls are my love language. I mean, all food is my love language but cinnamon rolls are just the ultimate in comfort. Sometimes I wish I could just roll myself up in a soft and gooey cinnamon roll blanket and eat it whenever. But really, that would be kind of weird. So maybe I just want to wrap myself in a blanket that looks like a cinnamon roll while I eat warm soft cinnamon rolls right out of the oven!
How to make cinnamon rolls
- Activate the yeast. Sprinkle the yeast on to warm milk and let foam.
- Add sugar, eggs, and melted butter and mix throughly.
- Stir in the flour until everything comes together into a ball of dough.
- Knead the dough until smooth, then pop into a lightly oiled bowl so it can proof for an hour.
- After the dough is puffy and proofed, tip it out onto a floured surface and roll it into a rectangle.
- Spread out some soft butter and sprinkle on brown sugar and cinnamon.
- Roll it up tightly, cut into even pieces, and place in a pan and let proof until doubled.
- Bake until gooey and golden.
- Top it off with cream cheese glaze and enjoy!
Homemade cinnamon roll ingredients
- Yeast - this recipe uses active dry yeast which needs to be dissolved in a bit of liquid before using - in this case we’ll sprinkle it on to milk. If you have instant yeast, you can use it too, there won’t be much of a difference; your rolls might rise a bit faster, depending how warm your kitchen is.
- Milk - I use 2% milk but any milk will work here, even almond or oat milk. Warm the milk up slightly in the microwave (I usually pop it in the microwave in 20 second increments) You want it between 105-115°F, which feels like a warm bath.
- Eggs - not all cinnamon bun recipes have eggs in them, but this one does and it adds extra richness and flavor because the cinnamon roll dough is enriched instead of just regular. Make sure you take your eggs out of the fridge and let the come to room temp. If you forget, just pop them into a bowl with hot tap water, which will bring them to room temp faster.
- Bread flour - this one is important. You might be tempted to just use all purpose, and well, you can do that, but if you use bread flour your rolls will be soft and fluffy with just the right amount of chew. Bread flour has a higher protein content than regular all purpose – the resulting dough has more gluten in it which helps the rolls stay soft and chewy.
- Cinnamon - obviously cinnamon rolls need cinnamon. But the kind of cinnamon you use is important too. Cinnabon’s cinnamon (if you’re looking to create a copycat cinnabon) is a special super cinnamon-y proprietary blend called Makara - they sell it! If you don’t want to get cinnabon cinnamon, go for Ceylon cinnamon if you can.
Why are cinnamon rolls so good?
These particular cinnamon rolls are super soft, fluffy, and perfectly chewy, with so much gooey brown sugar cinnamon and luxurious melty cream cheese icing. The sweet, sweet smell of brown sugar and cinnamon and butter while you’re baking is absolutely irresistible. These are my DREAM rolls. If you love sweet, bread-y things, these cinnamon rolls are for you.Cinnamon roll icing
Is cinnamon roll icing the best part of a cinnamon roll? I think the little medium rare nugget in the middle is the best, but gooey, drippy cream cheese icing comes close. Make sure you ice your rolls when they’re still warm so the icing nestles itself into all the noodles and crannies.To make cinnamon roll icing
Simply mix together room temp cream cheese, soft butter, and powdered sugar. The key is to use room temp cream cheese so you don’t get any cream cheese lumps. You can also add a touch of vanilla.Overnight cinnamon rolls
To make overnight cinnamon rolls, after shaping and cutting the rolls, pop them in the pan and wrap well with plastic wrap. Let the rolls rise overnight in the fridge. The next day, 1 hour before you’re going to bake, let them rest on the counter top, then bake as directed.How to freeze cinnamon rolls
You can freeze these 2 ways, before baking and after baking:Before baking
After cutting the rolls, place them in the pan, then immediately cover with plastic wrap and freeze - don’t let them proof. The night before you’re going to bake, let the rolls rise overnight in the fridge. The next day, 1 hour before you’re going to bake, let them rest on the counter top, then bake as directed.After baking
Let the rolls cool completely and leave them unfrosted. Wrap up the entire tray or separate them out individually. Defrost at room temp then warm in a 350°F oven until warmed through, about 10 minutes, or microwave for 20-30 seconds.How to store cinnamon rolls
Keep them in an air tight container on the counter top for up to 3 days. After that, store them in the fridge for up to a week and make sure you reheat before enjoying!How to reheat cinnamon rolls
Heat in the microwave for 20-25 seconds or in a low oven for 5 minutes or until warmed through.Cinnamon rolls or cinnamon buns?
Do you think there’s a difference between cinnamon rolls and cinnamon buns? Personally I use the terms interchangeably. They’re both soft and squishy and delicious. But, did you know that the youths refer to people as “cinnamon rolls”? When someone calls you a cinnamon roll, it means you’re soft and cute. It’s a good thing!Other Cinnamon Roll Variations
- Small Batch Copycat Cinnamon Streusel Starbucks Coffee Cake Recipe
- Cinnamon Roll Mugs: The Best Ever Overnight Cinnamon Rolls Recipe
- Easy 6 Ingredient Vegan Cinnamon Rolls Recipe
- Coconut Cinnamon Buns
- Sunday Brunch: 1 Hour Mini Cinnamon Buns with Whisky Cream Cheese Frosting
- The Best No-Knead Cinnamon Roll Recipe
- Tiktok Cinnamon Rolls
And other things to bake with cinnamon!
- Small Batch Copycat Cinnamon Streusel Starbucks Coffee Cake Recipe
- Caramelized Cinnamon Toast Recipe
- Best Ever Cinnamon Toast Recipe
- The Best Snickerdoodles
Cinnamon Roll Recipe
Super soft, fluffy, and perfectly chewy cinnamon rolls with so much gooey brown sugar cinnamon and luxurious melty cream cheese icing.
- 3/4 cup warm milk (110°F)
- 2.25 tsp active dry yeast (1 envelope)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 egg (plus 1 extra egg yolk, room temp)
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter (melted and cooled)
- 3 cups bread flour (or 360g all purpose flour + 3.57g vital wheat gluten)
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter (room temp)
- 2/3 cup dark brown sugar (lightly packed)
- 1.5 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 4 oz cream cheese (room temp)
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter (room temp)
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
In the bowl of an electric mixer, add the milk and sprinkle on the yeast. Let sit until the yeast starts to foam, 1-2 minutes. Stir in the sugar, egg, egg yolk, and melted butter then stir in the flour and salt with a wooden spoon until everything comes together into a ball of dough.
Knead with the dough hook on medium for 8 minutes. Alternately, knead by hand for 8-10 minutes on a floured surface. Lightly oil and large bowl and place the dough inside.
Cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and let rise for 1 to 1 and a half hours or until doubled in size.
On a lightly floured surface, tip out the dough and roll out to a large, long rectangle, about 14 x 20 inches. Spread the butter evenly, all the way to the edges. Whisk together the cinnamon and sugar in small bowl then spread evenly onto the dough.
Roll into a tight roll, and cut into 9 even pieces for an 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 inch pan. If using a 11 x 7 inch pan, cut into 6 pieces for giant rolls or 12 for smaller rolls. Place the rolls into the pan.
Cover loosely with plastic and let rise in the fridge overnight. Or, if you’re wanting to bake right away, cover and let rise at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour, or until doubled.
When ready to bake, remove the rolls from the fridge and heat the oven to to let come to room temperature as the oven is heating up, about 30-45 minutes. Heat the oven to 350°F. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until slightly golden and just cooked through or the internal temp comes to 190°F.
While the rolls are baking, make the frosting by beating together the cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla (if using) until light and fluffy. Let the rolls cool for 5 minutes, then frost. Enjoy!
Inspired by Ambitious Kitchen
I Am... Big Mac Tacos (Smash Burger Tacos)
Big Mac tacos, smash tacos, big mac smash tacos, smash big mac tacos, Tiktok big mac tacos, smash burger tacos – no matter what you call them, they are delicious! If you love tacos, Big Macs, and smash burgers, this mash up smash taco recipe is going to bring a smile to your face and a hum in your tum. Crispy and soft flour tortillas, a juicy smashed burger patty, bright and zesty big mac sauce, briny pickles, and fresh crunchy lettuce all combine together into a perfect handheld bite. If you’re on foodtok you’ve definitely seen Big Mac Tacos. Maybe you’ve even made them but want to make them even tastier. We’re here to help! The marriage of Big Mac and taco is not something to just smash together. We’ve got all the tips and tricks for making the best big mac tacos out there.
What is a big mac taco?
It’s essentially all the perfection of a Big Mac in taco form: a juicy beef patty, special sauce, melty American cheese, shredded lettuce, a pickle slice, and diced onions, tucked into a crispy flour tortilla.How to make big mac tacos
- Smash - portion out tiny balls of ground beef and smash/press them onto flour tortillas, so they’re super flat and thin. Lightly season the beef with salt and pepper.
- Grill - heat up a pan over medium-high heat and place the tortilla burger meat side down. The beef will cook through completely while pressed up directly against the hot pan. When the beef forms a golden brown crust and cooks through, lower the heat and flip the tortilla over so the tortilla crisps in the pan.
- Melt - while the tortilla is crisping up, add a slice of American cheese and cover the tacos so the cheese melts.
- Sauce - Mix together all the Big Mac sauce ingredients (mayo, ketchup, sweet relish, mustard, vinegar, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika).
- Finish - when the cheese is melty and the beef is ready, remove the tacos from the pan and top them with a slice of pickle, Big Mac sauce, shredded lettuce, diced onions, and an optional sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds.
- Enjoy - fold them up, devour, and enjoy!
Big mac taco ingredients
- flour tortillas - mini flour tortillas are sitting in for buns. Flour tortillas are where it’s at for these tacos, they stay plush and soft, while getting a little bit golden and crispy in the pan.
- ground beef - you’ll want a standard 80/20 ground beef for your tacos so the patties stay juicy and moist.
- Big Mac sauce - it’s not a Big Mac without special sauce. You can make an amazing copycat recipe at home, more on that below.
- toppings - classic toppings for a Big Mac are: melty American cheese, sliced pickles, diced onion, and shredded iceberg lettuce. I added a tiny sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds to give it the sesame seed bun finish, but this is completely optional.
What kind of tortillas for Big Mac tacos?
Definitely use flour tortillas to emulate a bun. If you only have corn tortillas you could use those too, but I really feel that flour tortillas are perfect for Big Mac tacos. Street size flour tortillas, that are about 4.5 inches across are perfect.Who invented big mac smash tacos
I’m not sure who invented them, but I think the first Big Mac smash taco that I saw wasn’t actually on Tiktok! It was on instagram on thenaughtyfork’s page. From there I’ve been seeing them pop up everywhere. If you know who invented them, let me know in the comments.Big mac sauce recipe
Big mac sauce is what makes a Big Mac a Big Mac. That and well, the “two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame seed bun”. Big Mac sauce is essentially a burger sauce made from regular condiments. If you’re really crazy, I think you can go to McDonald’s and ask them if you can buy some of their sauce. McDonald’s Big Mac sauce ingredients include: sweet relish, sugar, vinegar, onion powder, mustard seed, garlic powder, paprika, and a bunch of preservatives and additives. Surprisingly there are no tomatoes or ketchup in it. For our homemade purposes, we’re going to use ketchup, because ketchup has a lot of the ingredients that is in Big Mac sauce (high fructose corn syrup, vinegar, and onion powder). Big Mac sauce is creamy, sweet, and tangy. You can make an amazing copycat Big Mac sauce at home with pantry ingredients. You’ll need sweet relish, mayo, vinegar, yellow mustard, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and yes, in this case, the oh-so-controversial ketchup. Mix everything up, let the flavors meld, and enjoy your at home Big Mac genius.What to serve with big mac tacos
To be honest, these guys are perfect on their own, but you could also serve them up with: And you can also use that delicious homemade big mac sauce anywhere and everywhere! Happy taco-ing! xoxo stephBig Mac Tacos
This mash up recipe is going to bring a smile to your face and a hum in your tum
- 1 lb ground beef (lean or extra lean preferred)
- 12 flour tortillas (street/mini size preferred)
- 1 tbsp neutral oil
- 12 slices American cheese
- 2 cups lettice (shredded, iceberg preferred)
- 12 slices pickles
- 1/4 onion (chopped)
- toasted sesame seeds (optional)
Big Mac Sauce
- 1/4 cup mayo
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tbsp sweet relish
- 1 tsp yellow mustard
- 1/2 tsp white vinegar
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
Mix together the mayo, ketchup, relish, mustard, vinegar, sugar, paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder in a small bowl. Cover and place in the fridge to let the flavors meld. The longer the sauce melds, the tastier, but you can use it right away after the tacos are ready.
Make the smash tacos by dividing the beef into 12 equal portions that are ball shaped. You can eyeball it or use a scale to divide it into 1.3 ounce portions. Lay out a tortilla and place a portion of beef on top.
Use clean or gloved hands to press the meat onto the tortilla, flattening it out to the edges. Alternatively, you can use the bottom of a glass that’s lightly moistened with water or a burger press to press the meat flat. Lightly season with salt and pepper. Repeat with the remaining tortillas.
Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add a touch of oil, swirling to spread it out. Add as many tacos as you can, without crowding too much, beef side down. Cook without moving for 2-3 minutes or until the beef gets a good golden brown crust. When the patties are ready, flip them over and lower the heat to medium low.
While the beef is cooking, remove the slices of American cheese from the wrappers. Top the cooked patties with a slice of cheese each, then cover with a lid and cook for another 1-2 minutes, or until the cheese melts and the tortillas are gold and crisp. Remove from the pan and keep warm in a low oven or top immediately and enjoy.
To finish the Big Mac tacos, add pickles, Big Mac sauce, shredded lettuce, diced onions, and an optional sprinkle toasted sesame seeds. Enjoy immediately!
I Am... Huevos Rancheros
Huevos rancheros might be the greatest breakfast out there. Fried eggs, warm crispy tortillas, refried beans, and salsa come together in a beautiful medley of flavors and textures. So satisfying and truly the best way to start the day. Like most beloved breakfasts, there are many, many ways to make huevos rancheros and every family has their own way. That being said, all huevos rancheros plates include: sunny side up eggs, salsa, and tortillas. This iteration is our ultimate huevos rancheros and it’s absolutely one of my all time favorite breakfasts. Making huevos rancheros from scratch is one of the most satisfying breakfasts you can make, and it's so easy, whether you use fresh made or store bought salsa.
What are huevos rancheros?
Huevos rancheros is a Mexican breakfast that consists of lightly fried tortillas, refried beans, sunny side up eggs, and salsa. It can be spicy or mild and dressed up with cheese, avocados, cilantro, and all the extra toppings. Huevos rancheros means “ranch style eggs” and essentially, it’s a super hearty breakfast that ranch/farm hands ate to keep up their strength throughout the day.How to make huevos rancheros
Most great breakfast foods (just like French toast or chilaquiles), are a clever way to use up leftovers in a new dish and huevos rancheros is no exception. It awesome in two ways. One, because you’re using up ingredients already in your fridge. And two, because many of the components are already ready, it makes getting breakfast on the table even faster. Of course, you can go the more complicated route and make everything from scratch too. I will go through both methods so you can choose your own huevos rancheros adventure.- Make the salsa. In a sauce pan, lightly fry chopped onions and add fire roasted tomatoes, chopped chiles, broth, cumin, and oregano. Simmer until slightly thick and aromatic.
- Fry the tortillas. Lightly crisp up the tortillas in hot oil until golden and crunchy on the edges.
- Fry the eggs. Fry the eggs sunny side up with firm whites and creamy yolks.
- Assemble. Lay out the crisp tortillas and top them with some warm salsa.
- Add a fried egg and top with even more salsa.
- Finish with a bit of queso fresco and cilantro and add a side of refried beans.
- Enjoy. Dig in, making sure to get a bite of everything: crispy tortilla, savory salsa, and creamy egg!
Huevos rancheros ingredients
Salsa
Salsa means sauce in Spanish and for huevos rancheros you can use your favorite sauce of choice, either store bought or homemade. I like making a simple homemade ranchero salsa with canned fire roasted tomatoes, onion, and roasted green chile simmered in chicken broth, but store bought salsa works too. Keep in mind, salsa here means sauce. The salsa can be either roja (red), verde (green), or both (divorciados/Christmas). If you happen to have some rojo chile or chile verde leftover in your fridge, they make a delicious choice. If you’re buying store bought sauce, I recommend cooking it on the stove for a little bit with some added cumin and (Mexican) oregano to deepen the flavors.Beans
Refried beans are optional, but often seen on the plate, either on the tortillas themselves or served on the side. They’re not essential, but I love the combination of creamy beans with salsa, eggs, and tortilla. It’s totally up to you! If you want to go all out, you can make your own refried beans, use leftover refried beans you have in the fridge, or just go store bought.Tortillas
Huevos rancheros comes with small corn tortillas lightly fried into tostadas, but if you only have flour tortillas, you can use those too. Or, if you’re in a hurry, you can use store bought tostadas as well. Frying your own corn tortillas at home is what takes this dish to the next level and lets you control just how crispy and soft they are and it’s the combination of crispy edges and a tender center that is key.Eggs
You can’t have huevos without eggs! Sunny side up is classic. I like mine with crispy lacy edges and a gloriously sunny, creamy yolk.Toppings and sides
- Avocados (either sliced or guacamole)
- Cheese (Queso Fresco is the way to go here)
- Mexican rice
- Pico de gallo
- Sliced jalapeños
- Cilantro
- Carnitas
- Barbacoa
- and even Birria
Huevos Rancheros
Huevos rancheros might be the most ultimate breakfast out there.
- 2 tbsp neutral oil
- 8 small corn tortillas
- 1/4 medium onion (chopped)
- 14.5 oz fire roasted tomatoes (1 can)
- 1/4 cup roasted green chile (or 1 jalapeno, chopped)
- 1/2 cup chicken broth (or vegetable broth, no sodium preferred)
- 1 tsp oregano (Mexican preferred)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 cups refried beans (optional)
- 8 eggs
- 2 tbsp fresh cilantro (chopped)
- 2 tbsp queso fresco (crumbled)
Add about 1 tbsp neutral oil to a sauce pan. Add the onions and sauté until soft, but not brown. Add the tomatoes, chiles, chicken stock, oregano, and cumin. Bring to a simmer and reduce until slightly thick, 7-10 minutes. Taste and season with salt.
Warm up the refried beans, if using.
Meanwhile, heat 1-2 tbsp of neutral oil in a heavy skillet. When the oil is hot, carefully fry the tortillas until lightly crisp and golden, flipping once, 15-20 seconds per side. Let drain on paper towels or a wire rack.
Once the tortillas are finished, fry the eggs sunny side up to your preferred doneness in the same pan.
To assemble: Lay the fried tortillas on a plate, slightly overlapping. Top with salsa and an egg on each tortilla. Top the eggs with a touch more salsa. Serve with refried beans on the side and finish with cilantro and queso fresco and enjoy!
I Am... Rabokki
Sometimes I scroll through the rabokki hashtag on Tiktok to see how other people make their rabokki. Inevitably I get hungry, and ask Mike if he wants to share a bowl so I don’t feel so guilty eating a huge amount of carbs when most people are snug in bed. Always so worth it though!
What is rabokki?
Rabokki is a popular Korean street food that is ramen and tteokbokki in one dish. Ramen and rice cakes is carb on carb action and I am here for it.Ramen + tteokbokki = rabokki
Sometimes it’s called rapokki as well. It’s a sweet and spicy, super savory delicious dish, perfect for warming up with and a quick satisfying meal. The combination of instant noodles, Korean rice cakes, and savory spicy-sweet sauce comes together incredibly quickly so it’s great when you’re craving something spicy, filling, and delicious. It goes awesome with beer and late night rabokki is one of my favorite late night treats, especially with cheese. The slurpy noodles, chewy rice cakes, and spice are a match made in heaven. Rabokki is incredibly popular, both as street food and as an easy meal you can make at home. They even have Costco rabokki!How to make rabokki from scratch
- Make the sauce. In a small bowl, mix together gochujang, sugar, soy sauce, minced garlic, and a bit of gochugaru.
- Simmer the soup with the rice cakes. Add the sauce with the rice cakes to a pot of water and bring to a simmer.
- Cook the ramen. When the rice cakes are soft and chewy, add the ramen and cook it. If you like, add some Korean fish cakes.
- Top and serve! Serve everything up topped with scallions and maybe a boiled egg and some cheese!
How to make instant rabokki
- Make the soup. Open up the instant seasoning packet and add it to a pot with 2 cups water and 1 tbsp brown sugar and bring to a simmer.
- Make the “rice cakes.” Lightly soak a piece of rice paper in warm water and tightly roll up. Cut it into 2-3 inch pieces. Repeat with one more piece of rice paper.
- Cook the noodles. Add the noodles to the soup and cook for 2 minutes. Add your homemade rice cakes and simmer for 1 more minute.
- Enjoy! Top with toasted sesame seeds, scallions, and a slice of cheese and enjoy!
Which one is better?
Truthfully it depends on time of day. For me, after about 10pm the instant version starts looking pretty darn good. The rest of the time, I'd have to go with the traditional-with-real-ingredients version though.Ingredients
- Instant ramen. You need the noodles from an instant ramen pack, but not the seasoning pack. I like using Shin Ramyun noodles because they’re thick and chewy.
- Korean tteokbokki rice cakes. You can find Korean rice cakes freshly made, packaged in the refrigerated section, or frozen in the freezer aisles at a Korean grocery store. If you can’t make it to the Korean grocery store, I have a tteokbokki substitute for you!
- Gochujang. A spicy Korean sauce. It’s savory, sweet, spicy thick fermented paste made from chili powder and sticky rice. It adds sweet and heat and a ton of flavor. Traditionally it comes in tubs, but these days you can find it in convenient squeeze bottles in the Asian aisle of literally any grocery store.
- Gochugaru. Korean chili flakes. Korean chili flakes are fruity, sweet, smoky, sun dried bright red flakes. They’re not too spicy and their heat is gentle and delicious. I always buy coarse gochugaru which looks like flaky sea salt. They usually come labeled with mild, medium, or hot, so you can buy them according to your spice preference. https://amzn.to/3sMzY6e
- Sugar, garlic, soy sauce. A bit of sugar makes the sauce sweet, garlic adds a hit of raw spiciness, and the soy sauce adds umami and salt.
Is rabokki spicy?
It really depends on your spice tolerance. I would say they are a little bit on the spicy side but they’re also a touch sweet. If you add cheese that helps cut the spice too. They’re spicy in an addictive way! If you like spicy, hot food, they won’t be too spicy for you and you can always adjust the sauce to adjust for your spice level.Best instant ramen for rabokki
You’re just going to be using the ramen and not the spice pack (unless you’re making instant rabokki) so the flavor doesn’t matter much, but if you’re going to be making the easy version of rabokki, I recommend either Nong Shim Shin Ramyun Black for regular spice or Samyang Buldak if you’re a spice fiend.Where to buy Korean rice cakes
You can find tteokbokki rice cakes at Korean markets. They’ll usually come freshly made by the store, commercially made fresh and packaged, or frozen. If you can get ones that are fresh, they are the top choice, but packaged and frozen are good too.Korean rice cake substitute
If you can’t make it to the Korean grocery store, I have the perfect rice cake hack for you. All you need is Vietnamese rice paper. They sell rice paper at most grocery stores in the Asian aisle. Just soak the rice paper, roll it up tightly, wait for minute and then slice them into rice cake lengths. Not the same as tteokbokki but a really good sub!- Place some warm water in a shallow bowl.
- Lightly soak the rice paper.
- Place the rice paper on a cutting board and roll it up tightly.
- Slice the rolled rice paper into 2-3 inch lengths.
- Use the rice rolls in your rabokki.
Rabokki toppings
Toppings make the rabokki! You can keep it simple with just ramen and tteokbokki or you can all all the mix-ins and toppings for a super luxe and filling rabokki.- Onions - Add some onions to the mix, they add sweetness and onion vibes.
- Cabbage - if you want a little bit of health, add sliced cabbage when you’re simmering everything together. The crunch and softness are perfect with the spicy sauce.
- Dumplings - Go wild and add some mandu/Korean dumplings for an extra filling rabokki.
- Fish cakes - add sliced Korean fish cakes while you’re simmering the ramen and tteokbokki.
- Scallions - a sprinkle of sliced scallions add freshness.
- Eggs - soft or hard boiled eggs add some protein and are so good in the sauce.
- Cheese - melted cheese is AMAZING on rabokki. Go for a classic American slice or mozzarella, something super melty for cheese pulls.
- Toasted sesame seeds - adds a nice nuttiness
- Seaweed - adds crunch and saltiness
More fun Korean inspired recipes
I hope you enjoy! I know what my next meal is… Rabokki forever, xoxo stephRabokki Recipe
Rabokki is instant noodles, rice cakes, and spicy-sweet sauce that's great when you’re craving something spicy, filling, and delicious.
- 1 tbsp gochujang
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp gochugaru
- 8 pieces tteokbokki tteok
- 1 package instant ramen (Korean brand preferred)
In a small bowl, mix together the gochujang, sugar, garlic, soy sauce, and gochugaru.
Add the sauce to a pot with 2 cups of water and bring it to a simmer. Simmer the tteokbokki until tender, about 5 minutes.
Add the ramen noodles to the pot and cook according to the time on package instructions.
Scoop everything out into a bowl and top with toasted sesame seeds and scallions. Add additional toppings as desired. Enjoy!
EASY VERSION
1 package spicy Korean instant ramen
2 pieces rice paper
In a pot, add the spice packet to 2 cups water. Bring to a simmer over medium high heat.
While the soup is coming to a simmer, make the rice cakes. Place some warm water in a shallow bowl and lightly soak the rice paper. Place the rice paper on a cutting board and roll it up tightly. Slice the rolled rice paper into 2-3 inch lengths.
When the water is boiling, add the rice paper rolls and the noodles. Cook the noodles according to the package directions.
Scoop everything out into a bowl and top with toasted sesame seeds and scallions. Add additional toppings as desired. Enjoy!
Estimated nutrition does not include instant noodles of choice.
I Am... Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken Recipe
When you're hangry and craving an easy simple meal, this Instant Pot teriyaki chicken recipe is here for you. Just 5 minutes, a handful of ingredients that you (hopefully) have in your pantry, and you're good to go.
Read More →
I Am... Smash Gyoza
If you love gyoza but don’t love folding up tiny dumpling pockets, smash gyoza are for you! All the juicy, umami flavors of a gyoza, but open-face, extra crispy, and ready to eat.
What are smash gyoza?
Smash gyoza is another way of saying deconstructed gyoza. If you’ve seen the smash Big Mac tacos floating around TikTok, smash gyoza are essentially the same idea: gyoza filling pressed onto dumpling wrappers then cooked open faced. From there, you serve them up like little tacos, folding them up around rice, kimchi, or whatever you like. Essentially they’re gyoza flavors in a new format: smash taco style.How to make smash gyoza
- Prep. Toss the chopped cabbage with a sprinkle of salt and let it sit and soften for 5-10 minutes. When soft, squeeze out any excess water. Finely chop the ginger and garlic and slice the green onions.
- Mix. In a large bowl, mix together 2 tbsp water with 1 tbsp cornstarch, then add ground meat, the prepped cabbage, ginger, garlic, green onions, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, and a bit of salt. Mix well. I like using food prep gloves to really get in there.
- Cook. Heat up a bit of oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Use a spoon or a cookie scoop (cookie scoops are great at evenly portioning out the filling) to add 1-2 tbsp of the gyoza filling to the pan, leaving space in between.
- Top. Add gyoza wrappers directly to the tops of the gyoza filling.
- Smash. Use a spatula, ramekin, or bottom of a heat proof glass to press down on the gyoza wrapper, smashing the filling onto the pan, pushing down so the filling goes to the edges of the gyoza wrapper.
- Steam. Add 1-2 tablespoons of water to the hot pan and cover to steam for 1-2 minutes. Lift the lid off and let the excess water cook off.
- Flip. Flip the smash gyoza over to crisp up the gyoza wrapper. When the gyoza wrappers are slightly golden and a bit crisp, it’s time to eat!
- Enjoy. Serve them up open-faced and enjoy dipped in soy sauce and rice vinegar OR fill them with a spoonful of rice topped off with some kimchi, then fold up like a taco and eat.
Smash gyoza ingredients
- gyoza wrappers - they sell these at the grocery store, usually in the fridge department, near the tofu, but if they don’t have them you can make your own (recipe here). You can also use wonton wrappers or even small flour tortillas.
- ground pork - I love ground pork in gyoza because it’s super flavorful, but you can use any kind of ground meat like chicken or turkey. Typically there aren’t a lot of ground beef gyoza in Japan, but feel free to try it!
- cabbage - finely chopped cabbage is going to make the filling nice and juicy. You’ll want to salt, then squeeze and drain the cabbage slightly so the gyoza filling isn’t soggy.
- ginger and garlic - finely chopped or grated ginger and garlic are going to add so much flavor to our smash gyoza. If you need to, you can substitute in ground ginger and garlic, but in this case, I really recommend fresh.
- green onions - thinly sliced green onions add a bright freshness.
- soy sauce and toasted sesame oil - these are our main flavorings, along with a bit of salt. Toasted sesame oil adds nuttiness and flavor.
- cornstarch - a little bit of cornstarch is going to bind our filling together and make it super smooth and easy to smash.
What are gyoza?
Gyoza are Japanese dumplings: ground pork, cabbage, and seasonings wrapped up in a thin noodle-y like wrapper. Dumplings are one of my all time favorite foods ever and gyoza is one of those perfect iterations. Read more about gyoza here.How do you eat smash gyoza?
You can eat them open-faced, dipping them in your favorite dumping sauce, or you can top them with a bit of rice and some kimchi and fold them up like a taco. Really, there’s no wrong way to eat smash gyoza. As long as they get in your mouth, you’re good to go!Who invented smash gyoza?
The first instance of smash gyoza was on Instagram from @cooking_with_kiara10. They’re a mash up of gyoza and big mac smash tacos. She jumped on the smash taco trend but gyoza-fied it. She doesn’t have any specific recipe, but it’s a basic gyoza filling smashed onto a gyoza wrapper, fried, then steamed. Genius!Gyoza dipping sauce
Gyoza aren’t gyoza without a dipping sauce. The standard mix is soy sauce, rice vinegar, and Japanese chili oil aka rayu. To start, try 1 tbsp rice vinegar mixed with 2 tsp soy sauce and chili oil to taste. That being said, go ahead and play with the proportions and mix it to taste. Another traditional dipping sauce is rice vinegar, soy, and red miso. It's a big Kobe thing and we enjoy it everywhere in Japan.What to serve with smash gyoza
Happy smashing! xoxo Steph PS - If you have a blackstone grill, these guys are AMAZING on it. Smash away!Smash Gyoza
All the juicy, umami flavors of a gyoza, but open-face, extra crispy, and ready to eat.
- 1.5 cup cabbage (finely chopped)
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tbsp ginger (minced)
- 1 tbsp garlic (minced)
- 1/2 cup green onions (sliced)
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1.5 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 40 gyoza wrappers
Toss the chopped cabbage with a pinch of salt in a large bowl and mix well. Let rest for 10 to 15 minutes, the squeeze out and drain as much of the extra water as possible.
Mix together 2 tbsp water with the cornstarch add to the ground pork. Add the ginger, garlic, green onions, soy sauce, sesame oil, salt, and prepped cabbage. Mix until incorporated.
Heat up a bit of oil in a large, non-stick frying pan (one that has a lid) over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, use a spoon (or cookie scoop) to add 1-2 tbsp balls of gyoza filling into the pan.
Immediately add gyoza wrappers on top of the filling and smash, using a ramekin, glass, or flipper to press down on the gyoza wrapper to smash the filling flat onto the pan.
Cook until the meat is slightly golden, about 1-2 minutes, then add 1-2 tablespoons of water to the pan, cover and steam for 1-2 minutes.
Lift the lid off the pan and flip the gyoza over to crisp the other side of the dumpling wrapper. When golden and crisp, remove from the pan and enjoy folded with rice and kimchi!
I Am... Homemade Clotted Cream
I love clotted cream. If you haven't had it, it's kind of like a mix between whipped cream and whipped butter, but with a deeper flavor. It's thick, it's creamy, and it's absolutely dreamy on scones warm from the oven. Clotted cream and scones have always been my favorite part of afternoon tea. I'm obsessed with it.
What is clotted cream?
Clotted cream sounds kind of funny, but really, it’s SO delicious. It’s also called Devonshire cream or Cornish cream, so if you’re not so fond of the word “clotted,” you can think of it like that. Really, clotted is just another word for thick, so just think of it as thick cream! It's thick, spreadable form of heavy cream first invented way back in the day by dairy farmers in Devon as a way to preserve milk.Clotted cream ingredients
- Cream. All you need to make clotted cream is heavy whipping cream. That’s it! You’ll need to make sure the milk fat percentage is 35% or higher and that it’s not ultra pasteurized and you’ll be good to go.
How to make clotted cream
- Bake. Pour your cream into an oven safe dish and bake it in a very low oven for 10 to 12 hours, or overnight.
- Cool. Let it cool down to room temp then place the dish in the fridge to firm and chill up.
- Skim. The slightly golden, thickened layer of cream at the top of the dish is clotted cream! Skim it off then enjoy.
What does it taste like?
Clotted cream tastes rich and, well, creamy. It’s not particularly sweet because it’s made from just cream. It’s fairly neutral like whipped cream and is the perfect compliment to jam. It has a smooth, rich texture that just melts in your mouth. It has a very slight hint of sweetness, kind of similar to how a really good butter tastes a bit sweet.What do you eat it with?
Clotted cream is essential with a batch of scones. Trust me when I say you haven’t lived until you’ve eaten a fresh scone slathered with Devonshire cream and jam. It’s divine. It's standard when you have British tea and scones. You can pretty much also eat it on anything where you would have butter. I love it on toast and I’ve been known to eat it with slices of banana bread too. You can also have a smoosh alongside cake.What kind of cream?
Clotted cream is made from heavy cream or whipping cream. Heavy cream is the high-fat layer that skimmed off of milk before homogenization. It’s kind of like that saying, “the cream always rises.” Because cream has so much fat in it, it rises to the top of milk and is skimmed off. We’re going to take heavy cream and concentrate it even more. Since you only need one ingredient, it’s best to use the highest quality cream you can find: local, organic, grass fed. Essentially, you want the stuff that tastes really good because your end product will taste like the cream you buy.What is heavy cream?
Heavy cream is just another name for whipping cream. It’s also sometimes labeled as heavy whipping cream. As long as the label says 35% fat or higher, you can make clotted cream with it.What is ultra pasteurized heavy cream?
Ultra pasteurized cream is cream that’s been heated to 280°F so that the cream is more shelf stable. Unfortunately you can’t use ultra pasteurized heavy cream to make clotted cream. I’m not too sure on the science of it but ultra pasteurized heavy cream won’t clot as much as regular pasteurized cream.Can I make clotted cream in an Instant Pot?
Yes! Just place the heavy cream in your Instant Pot and choose the yogurt setting until it hits boil. When the Instant Pot beeps to let you know that it’s come to temp, press keep warm. Let the cream cook for 8-10 hours. Turn the Instant Pot off and let cool down completely then place the insert in the fridge for at least 12 hours to chill and firm up. Scoop off the top layer of thickened cream - that’s the clotted cream.Slow cooker clotted cream
Yes, but it depends on your slow cooker settings. You’ll want to add the cream to the slow cooker and keep it on warm – the cream needs to stay between 165-180°F so read your manual to see which setting that is. It should probably just be warm, but it might also be the low setting, so double check. Once your cream is in the slow cooker and the temp is right, cover it with the lid and let cook for 8-10 hours or until a light golden crust starts to form. Turn the slow cooker off and let cool to room temp before chilling in the fridge completely, then just skim off the top thickened layer.Or even a rice cooker?!
Yup, as lot as your rice cooker has a keep warm setting that keeps things warm from 165-180°F. You can test your rice cooker with water and an instant read thermometer. Just pour 4 cups of water, set it on keep warm and after 30 minutes or so, check the temp of the water. If it reaches 165-180°F, you can make clotted cream in it. Simply pour the cream into the bowl and set the keep warm for 8-10 hours. Double check every so often to make sure your rice cooker hasn’t turned off. When it’s done, let it cool to room temp then pop it in the fridge to cool completely before skimming off the clotted cream that has formed on the top.Why is there a crust on my clotted cream?
The crust is the part that you want - it’s the cream that has been clotted. Most people skim off the top most layer that is the thickest. Underneath the thickest layer there may be another layer that is a bit more loose. You can skim this out too and use it to loosen your cream if you like a looser, more flowy clotted cream. Underneath that layer will be liquid, which is the leftover whey (the liquid that is left over after making cheese or butter). You can use the whey in baked goods.What can I do with the left over liquid?
After you skim off the lovely layer of clotted cream, you’ll notice some whey at the bottom of your dish. You can use this in any baked good that calls for milk. You could use it to make scones, muffins, and cakes. xoxo steph PS - This last shot is pink because I used a bit of powdered strawberries and gold flecks!What to spread it on
Clotted Cream Recipe
Homemade clotted cream – thick, rich, and perfect for spreading onto cream scones (or toast!) for afternoon tea.
- casserole dish with glass cover
- 1 qt whipping cream (35% MF or higher, NOT ultra pasteurized)
Heat your oven to 170°F. Pour the cream into a deep casserole dish that has a cover that can go into the oven. You’re aiming for a deep dish so that the cream is about 2 to 2.5 inches deep when poured in. I used a casserole dish with a glass cover, kind of like an old school pyrex type thing. Cover the dish and place in the 170°F oven for 10 to 12 hours, or overnight, which is what I did.
The next day (or 10 to 12 hours later), remove the casserole from the oven and let cool to room temperature before placing in the fridge for a minimum of 8 hours, or overnight.
Skim off the top, slightly golden, thickened layer. This is your clotted cream! There will be another layer under the slightly yellow layer that is creamy and thick like sour cream – this is clotted as well, but with a bit more moisture in it. Skim that off as well. Use as is, both the thickened creams are considered clotted. Some people mix the two and some people just use the top layer. Or, you could use a stand or hand mixer/a spoon and mix up the the two kinds of cream until thick, but this is not traditional at all. Serve chilled and enjoy! I love it on scones, toast (SO GOOD), cake, basically anything or everything!
via Rock Recipes
The clotted cream should keep in the fridge for up to 5 days, covered.
Be sure that your cream isn’t ultra pasteurized – double check while you’re buying the cream. If it is ultra pasteurized, it’ll say on the carton/bottle.
The original recipe just stirred the cream together, which I think would work as well, but I wanted a more smooth, whipped consistency. Whipping the top two layers together is NOT traditional.
I Am... Tiktok Baked Feta Pasta
Baked feta pasta has it all, big bold flavors, creamy comfort, and carbs! Baked feta pasta is the perfect summer food: it’s creamy, bright and tomato-y, and SO damn delicious. It’s probably the simplest pasta dish you’ll make this month and the reward is so high for an incredibly low effort.
What is tiktok pasta?
It’s super simple: cherry tomatoes are tossed with olive oil and placed in a baking dish with a block of feta. Everything gets baked up until the tomatoes burst, releasing their sweet and jammy flavors. The feta gets melty and oozy. You mix it all up into a quick sauce, toss in minced garlic, basil, crushed red pepper, and pasta. Boom, dinner is done!Tiktok pasta is so good and easy
Sometimes the best kind of cooking is the kind that takes no time at all so you can spend more time with loved ones enjoying the food. I love that the prep time for this dish is so low and the actual hands on time is super low. If you can stir, you can make this dish. The dominant flavors of this pasta are feta and tomatoes, it’s practically a two ingredient pasta. If you’re not a huge feta fan, you can definitely use another cheese – baked brie, cream cheese, or ricotta would be amazing.How to make tiktok pasta
- Toss: In a baking dish, toss cherry tomatoes with olive oil. Place a block of feta in the middle and drizzle some oil on top.
- Bake: Bake the tomatoes and feta in the oven until the tomatoes burst and the cheese is melty.
- Cook: While the feta is in the oven, cook the pasta.
- Stir: When the tomatoes and feta are done, stir in some minced garlic, some crushed red pepper flakes, and the pasta, loosening with some pasta water if needed. Finish with fresh basil.
- Eat: That’s it! Scoop it up an enjoy a bowl of pure cheesy carby comfort.
Tiktok pasta ingredients
- cherry tomatoes - the sweeter the better! There are so many types of mini tomatoes these days, from strawberry to grape to on the vine to heirloom. I used one package of classic cherry tomatoes and one package of cherry tomatoes on the vine.
- feta - you’ll want to get a nice higher quality Greek feta since it’s the main flavor of the dish. Grab a block of feta, the kind that comes in a brine, not the crumbles. If you want a milder, creamier feta, try French feta, it’s less tart than Greek.
- olive oil - most of the recipes I’ve seen call from anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 cup of olive oil. I went with 1/3 cup, you want enough to coat the tomatoes and feta while having a bit of oil pool at the bottom of your baking dish so the tomatoes are essentially doing a tomato confit type thing. Too little olive oil and your tomatoes will end up drying out.
- pasta - you can use any shape you like, we went with casarecce the first time and rotini the second time and both were great.
- garlic - a couple cloves of minced garlic are mixed in and the residual heat of the tomatoes mellows the sharpness out while still giving you a huge hit of garlicky goodness.
- basil - fresh basil and tomatoes are perfect pairing. Slice some up to stir in and keep some extra leaves whole to garnish with!
Tomatoes
It’s tomato season and summer is the perfect time to make Tiktok baked feta pasta. There are so many sweet tomatoes out there right now and they’ll all add a nice seasonal twist to this comfort classic. Even if you aren’t a tomato fan, fresh, ripe, in-season tomatoes just hit different, so give them a try! Just remember to keep your tomatoes on the countertop until you cut them. Refrigerated tomatoes won't taste as good as room temp ones.Don't just stick with cherry, try these:
- roma tomatoes
- grape tomatoes
- beefsteak tomatoes
- cocktail tomatoes
- heirloom tomatoes
Not a tomatoer?
If you’re really not a fan of tomatoes, try these no tomato baked feta pastas:- Zucchini and peppers - chop up 1-2 zucchinis and 1 red pepper in place of the tomatoes.
- Broccoli and lemon - chop up 1 head of broccoli in place of the tomatoes and finish with lemon zest.
How to choose the best feta
Choose a feta that is made from sheep’s milk! Feta made from cow’s milk or goat milk is more crumby. If you want a smooth and creamy feta, sheep’s milk feta is the way to go. Also, younger fetas are more milky and creamy and aged fetas tend to be more complex and intense.Greek feta vs French feta
If you’re not a huge fan of feta but you want to try this pasta, try using French feta. Greek feta tends to be saltier, more crumbly, and tangy which can lead to your sauce being grainy. If you’re Greek feta fan, go for feta that has more sheep’s milk rather than goat. French feta is made with only sheep’s milk and is mild and creamy compared to Greek feta. Bulgarian feta is very similar to French feta: it’s made with 100% sheep’s milk and is not aged as long so it’s a lot creamier and not as tangy.Adding protein
If you’re looking to add some protein to your Tiktok baked feta pasta, it’s super easy, barely an inconvenience. Since the pasta bakes at 400°F for 30 minutes, you can add just about any protein to the baking dish and it’ll crisp up and cook in the oven while the tomatoes are roasting.Pancetta
For a twist, add cubes of pancetta, they’ll crisp up into little nuggets of rich, porky deliciousness.Chicken
You can add chicken to the pan, raw and cubed before you roast the feta and tomatoes. They’ll cook up while the tomatoes are roasting. If you have leftover chicken in the fridge, you can also just stir it into the sauce when you stirring in the pasta.Tofu
If you’re vegetarian, pressed tofu cubed up will add some extra lean protein. Some of the cubes with stay intact and some of them will stir into the sauce making it extra creamy.Help, my baked feta pasta is too tart!
It’s winter right now and there’s no escaping the fact that the cherry tomatoes out there aren’t the sweetest. Because this feta pasta doesn’t really have much sugar in it, the sauce can end up pretty tart or tangy depending on your tomatoes. The easy fix is adding a bit of sugar but if you don’t want to do that, the best thing to do is add some thinly sliced onions or shallots to the baking dish when you’re roasting the feta and tomatoes. The onions will caramelize in the oil and add a jammy sweetness.What is baked feta pasta?
Baked feta pasta is a pasta dish that’s currently going viral on TikTok right now because it’s incredibly easy to make, tasty, and it looks good. It’s based off of a Greek appetizer, baked feta. The first mention of mixing baked feta with pasta was popularized by Finnish blogger Jenni Häyrinen. She called it uunifetapasta or baked feta pasta. Apparently feta pasta is incredibly popular in Finland because a couple of other bloggers also blogged about it as well.Tiktok pasta FAQ
What if I don’t like feta?
If you don’t like feta, try using French feta which has a bit of a milder flavor or even a different kind of cheese. This pasta recipe will also work with brie, ricotta, fresh mozzarella, or even cream cheese.Do I have to use cherry tomatoes for tiktok pasta?
If you don’t have cherry tomatoes, literally any tomato will work, you want about 1 lb. If you use larger tomatoes, quarter them before baking.What kind of pasta should I use for feta baked pasta?
Any kind at all! I ended up using casarecce which is a cute pasta that’s shaped like an “S.” You can use penne, rotini, macaroni, rigatoni, or even long pastas like spaghetti or fettuccine.What kind of baking dish should I use?
It’s better to use a baking dish that’s not too large – a medium baking dish will help keep all the tomatoes close together and in the olive oil so they don’t dry out too much. We want the tomatoes jammy and soft, not oven dried.I don’t like raw garlic, does the garlic need to be raw?
When you add the raw garlic to the hot tomatoes, the residual heat of the tomatoes and feta will gently warm up the garlic and take off the raw edge while leaving a huge hit of garlicky flavor. If you really don’t want to use raw garlic, you can add it to the pan before you roast the tomatoes, but make sure they are covered in oil so they don’t get burnt.Tips on making Tiktok pasta taste EVEN BETTER
- Add everything to the pan. The original recipe has you stir in raw garlic after the tomatoes and feta are baked in the oven. For an even more delicious pasta, add crushed or smashed garlic directly to the pan when you add the tomatoes. Other aromatics will work too: quarter some onions or shallots for a sweet onion-y addition, or even ginger for a warming touch.
- Think about other herbs. Everyone knows basil and tomatoes go together, but get creative! Add some thyme sprigs, scallions, chives, oregano, parsley, or rosemary. Maybe sprinkle on some everything bagel spice or use Italian seasoning for even more flavor.
- Try a mix of cheeses. Go for half feta and half cream cheese for the ultimate in creamy, cheesy goodness.
Recipes similar to this Tiktok pasta
Did you enjoy making super delicious and easy pasta with under 5 ingredients? You can try these other ones too:- 2 Ingredient Creamy Herby Garlicky Pasta
- Everything Bagel Spice Aglio E Olio Pasta
- Sour Cream and Onion Pasta
- 2 Ingredient Alfredo Sauce
Baked feta pasta
This baked feta pasta has it all, big bold flavors, creamy comfort, and carbs!
- 2 pints cherry tomatoes (or any other tomatoes )
- 1/3 cup olive oil (the good stuff)
- 8 oz feta cheese (1 block)
- 9 oz pasta (of choice)
- 2 cloves garlic (crushed)
- fresh basil (chopped, to finish)
Preheat the oven to 400°F. In a baking dish, toss the tomatoes with the olive oil and place the feta in the middle, turning it to coat it in oil. Season everything with salt and pepper and bake for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, turn the heat up to 450°F and roast until the feta is golden brown 10-15 minutes.
While the feta is baking, cook the pasta according to the package directions. Save 1-2 cups of the pasta water, then drain well.
When the feta and tomatoes are done, remove from the oven and immediately add the garlic and crushed red pepper, if using. Stir everything together until the tomatoes and feta combine into a creamy sauce.
Stir in the drained pasta until well coated and creamy, adding in a bit of pasta water to loosen if too thick. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Stir in some chopped basil and finish with crushed red pepper. Enjoy!
This version inspired by Grilled Cheese Social.
Serves 2 hungry eaters generously with leftovers, or 3 for lunch.
Estimated nutrition is for 3 servings (3oz pasta per person).
I Am... Easy 7 Ingredient Homemade Al Pastor
By far the best taco filling you can make at home, in only 7 ingredients. Your local Mexican place is always going to have the best tacos, but for those times you can’t (or don't want to) go out, this al pastor recipe is so good you’ll feel like you’re back wherever your taco heart belongs. It's so easy to make this smoky spicy and juicy pork you'll even use it for more than just tacos. Best of all, this recipe only requires 7 ingredients that you can get at any supermarket.
What is al pastor
Al pastor is a Mexican dish with pork that's been slow roasted on a vertical spit. Vertical spits are often associated with middle eastern food and this is no exception: legend says that Lebanese immigrants brought the cooking method to Mexico, where they paired it with traditional adobada to make the genius known as al pastor. It’s served in all kinds of dishes, in tortas/sandwiches, pizzas, and even on rice, but the most celebrated way to serve it is in tacos al pastor. The crisp smoky pork is sliced-to-order with a razor sharp knife as it's flame crisped by the vertical spit. The meat falls right into each taco and topped with a flourish of slow-roasted pineapple. It’s heaven in a tiny tortilla. Because you probably don't have a flame powered vertical spit at home, you can't replicate it 100% perfectly. But that doesn’t mean you can’t have an amazing, just-as-good version at home too, especially if you are far away from Mexico right now.The best homemade al pastor
Why this is the best homemade al pastor recipe: it’s smoky, sweet, and super easy. I’ve tried a lot of recipes on the internet and none of them really come close to what I love about al pastor - the smoky finish and the crisp edges. More importantly, a recipe that starts with "get your vertical spit" or "slice your pork with a commercial meat slicer" is a no go for me. This recipe has been in my back pocket for a long time now. It’s our go-to for taco nights, but I’ve never put it up until now because I always thought the ingredients were a little hard to come by. It’s worth it though, this recipe is simple, tasty, and comes really close to the real street-side deal.How to make al pastor
- Soak your chiles. Guajillos come dried and soaking them makes them pliable and easy to deseed.
- Slice and season your pork. I try to go for as thin of a slice as possible, so that there’s more surface area to absorb the marinade.
- Make the marinade. Blend the guajillos together with garlic, sugar, achiote, adobo, and pineapple juice until smooth.
- Marinate. Marinate your pork for at least 30 minutes, but better yet, overnight.
- Roast. You probably don’t have a vertical spit at home, so the best way to achieve that combination of soft supple insides and crispy, smoky edges is to lay out the pork in a single layer and broil at 500ºF until cooked. Don’t forget to roast your pineapples as well (on a separate baking sheet).
How to make tacos al pastor
- Prep your toppings. Dice your onions, chop your cilantro, slice your jalapenos, and portion out your salsas.
- Chop it up. Roughly chop your pork so that the majority of the pieces are about 1/2" x 1/2".
- Crisp up your al pastor. Frying it is optional but really intensifies the flavors, not to mention gets it nice and piping hot.
- Prep your tortillas. If you’re using flour tortillas, you should cook them now. If corn, cover 10-12 at a time with a damp paper towel and microwave for 30 seconds (or use a tortilla warmer like we do), then let sit another 30 seconds to steam before you build.
- Build and enjoy! Top with roast pineapples and all the other toppings you love.
Al pastor ingredients
Guajillo chilies
Guajillo are dried mirasol chiles that are sweet, smoky, and not very spicy. One of the most common chiles for Mexican food and one of our favorites. I’ve found the easiest way to buy the best quality chiles is online, where it’s far superior to anything outside of a good Mexican grocery store.Achiote paste
A blend of spices featuring annatto that goes great in everything. Not at all spicy, just deeply flavorful. My favorite brand is El Yucateco. From a staining perspective, annatto is just as bad as turmeric, so be careful not to get any on your clothes or white porous surfaces.Chipotle chilies in adobo
These are smoky spicy dried chipotle chiles (chipotle is smoked jalapeno) in adobo sauce - a sweet blend of tomatoes, vinegar, and spices. This recipe uses a whole can. Most people won’t find chipotle in adobo very spicy, but if you don’t prefer the spice level of jalapeno, it might be best to skip one or two of the pepper pods inside the can - the adobo part is a must however.Canned pineapple
Al pastor is traditionally served with roasted pineapple cut from the top of the vertical spit. This recipe needs pineapple juice anyway, so I prefer to use canned chunk pineapple and roast them, rather than deal with a whole pineapple. Most 398ml/13.5oz cans will yield exactly 1/2 cup of juice, which is what is called for in this recipe.Corn or flour tortillas
A lot of people prefer corn but if you live in the Southwest, you know (fresh) flour is awesome. When I’m not near really good flour tortillas, I try to buy locally made corn tortillas, but sometimes you're just in a food desert and don't have a lot of options other than national brands. In those cases, Mission is my go-to, both for corn and flour. Look for a street taco size.Spice level
This is not a spicy dish, but if you’re the kind of person where black pepper is just on the edge of spicy to you, then you might want to leave out a chipotle chile or two from the can. If you really, really hate spice, you’ll also want to deseed the guajillos. We use them for smoky flavor in this recipe, so you can remove all the seeds if you want to. The larger peppers are easier to deseed. Once softened, just turn them upside down and remove the stem, and 80-90% of them should fall right out.Grilling at the table
For taco nights, we like to do the last warming part at the table with a small tabletop griddle. You can warm your tortillas and the al pastor all at once, and it makes for a really fun night. Just prep all your toppings in little communal bowls, grab some drinks, and taco the night away.What to serve with tacos al pastor
- Other taco meats for an awesome taco night such as barbacoa, carnitas, adovada, and birria
- Tomatoey Mexican rice
- Homemade Salsa Verde
- Cilantro Lime Rice
Al Pastor Recipe
Smoky, sweet, and super easy crispy edged roast pork tacos topped with broiled pineapples.
- 8 dried guajillo peppers
- 2 lb pork shoulder/butt (cut into~ 1/4" slices, boneless)
- 8 cloves garlic (peeled)
- 7 oz chipotle peppers in adobo (1 can)
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp achiote paste (1.75oz/half package)
- 13.5 oz pineapple chunks (fruit and juice separated, 1 can)
- corn or flour tortillas (warmed, as needed)
Soak the guajillos in a small bowl filled with hot tap water for 15 mins. You can either remove the stems and seeds beforehand, or wait til the peppers are soft and pliable, hold them by the tip, upside down, over the sink, and cut the stems off. The seeds should fall right out.
Meanwhile, season the pork generously with salt.
Add guajillos, garlic, chipotle in adobo, sugar, achiote paste, and 1/2 cup pineapple juice to a blender and blend into a smooth marinade.
Marinate the pork for at least 30 mins and up to 24 hours in the fridge.
Preheat your oven to 500°F. Arrange the pork in a single layer on another baking sheet. Broil the pork until the edges and corners start to char, about 20 minutes.
While you wait for your pork to finish, arrange drained pineapple chunks in a single layer on a foil lined baking sheet. Remove the pork and broil pineapples until charred, another 15 minutes.
Slice meats, fry up, and make tacos.
Makes roughly 16 tacos (2oz per taco). Serves 8 when paired with other food, or 4 for taco nights. Estimated nutrition doesn't include tortillas, toppings, or sauces (if any).
I Am... Green Chile Cheeseburger
This spicy, crispy, cheesy smash green chile cheeseburger is probably the best you’ll ever eat. The cheese is melt-y and almost queso-y, the fire roasted hatch green chiles are fire, and the smashed patties are charred and juicy. Seriously amazing. If you’ve had the chance to travel to New Mexico, you’ll know that the state slogan really rings true. New Mexico is the land of enchantment. Enchantment and green chile cheeseburgers. Green chile cheeseburgers, if you haven’t had the pleasure of trying them, are amazing. Fire roasted chopped green chile on top of a perfectly juicy burger with cheese in a buttery toasted bun – ugh, they just hit different. We're turning the last of last year's frozen green chiles into GCCs this week. I'm already getting hyped for next year's release.
What is a green chile cheeseburger?
If you’re eating burgers in New Mexico and you order a burger, you’ll get the question: do you want chile on that? By chile (chile with an “e” by the way, never chili, which is chili con carne), they mean fire roasted and chopped green chiles. They have them year round but come late summer and fall, the hatch chiles start getting harvested and everything smells smoky and delicious from all of the fire roasting going on at all the grocery stores. By the way, if they ask you if you want chile on it, the answer should always be yes. We were at a burger place and someone answered no and I swear I saw the server physically recoil as if it was absolutely the wrong answer.What kind of peppers for green chile cheeseburgers?
Hatch green chile of course! If you don’t have a batch stored in your freezer, you can also substitute in another variety of green chile like Anaheim or jalapeño if needed. You can also go with jarred green chile if you’re no where near New Mexico and you don’t want to roast Anaheims or jalapeños.What are hatch chiles?
Hatch chiles are a green chile pepper grown in the Hatch Valley of New Mexico. They’re sweet, smoky, long green peppers that taste amazing fresh and even more delicious when roasted. Hatch chiles come in both red and green. The red Hatch chiles are chiles that have been left to ripen longer than the younger green chiles. They come in mild, medium, spicy, and x-hot varieties. Hatch chile season is one of the most magical seasons of all. The little green chile that could comes from New Mexico and is the backbone of so many wonderful New Mexican and Southwestern dishes. Hatch season starts at the end of summer and goes into the beginning of fall and if you’ve ever visited the Southwest, you’ve definitely seen the well deserved love for Hatch green chiles.Why are Hatch chiles special?
Hatch chiles are a surprisingly famous pepper considering how small the growing season and region is. They’re just like the Champagne region in France – if the grapes aren’t grown in Champagne, what you make from them isn’t really champagne, it’s just sparkling wine. Similarly, you can grow Hatch chiles elsewhere but if they’re not grown in the Hatch Valley of New Mexico, they’re not real Hatch chiles and they won’t taste quite the same.What do Hatch chiles taste like?
They’re earthy, crisp, spicy, and have a bit of onion when eaten raw. When they’re roasted, they’re smoky, rich, and slightly buttery. Green chiles tend to be spicier and the red ones slightly sweeter. They have the ideal balance between heat and sweet. When they’re roasted they’re smoky, delicious heaven.Are Hatch chiles spicy?
Hatch chiles come in mild, medium, hot, and xtra hot. They go from milder than a jalapeño to pretty darn spicy.Where to buy Hatch chiles
When they’re in season, during August and September, they sell and ship fresh chiles online. There are also whole dried hatch chiles, jarred, or canned that are available at most grocery stores or online. Sometimes they even sell them fresh for a really short window at Whole Foods or other specialty food stores. If you’re lucky enough to live in Southern California, Colorado, or Texas, you’ll probably easily find them in your local grocery store. You can also get Hatch chile powder in both red and green.How to roast green chiles
Wash and dry your chiles then roast them however you like:- In the oven Place the chiles on a foil lined pan and broil, directly under the element for 10-15 minutes, flipping as needed until the skin chars and blisters.
- On the grill Place the chiles over direct high heat, flipping every couple of minutes until the skin chars and blisters.
- In the air fryer Add the chiles to the air fryer and air fry at the highest temp, for 15 minutes, or until the skin chars and blisters, flipping halfway.
- On the stove Char the chiles directly on the flame or element, flipping as needed, until the skin chars and blisters.
How to make a green chile cheeseburger
If you can’t make it to New Mexico, it’s relatively simple to make a green chile cheeseburger at home. Pick up some long green peppers – hatch is preferable but Anaheim works too. Lightly oil and roast them in the oven, then skin, seed, and chop them up. Go about your usual cheeseburger making and just before you put the cheese on to melt, add a generous amount of chopped chilies.What kind of cheese for green chile cheeseburgers?
If you’re going for a classic burger, you can’t beat the melt and creaminess of American cheese. If you want something with more flavor, try pepper jack!Cheese on top or underneath the chiles?
There’s a bit of a debate on whether the green chiles should be on top of the cheese or under a blanket of melted cheese. Both Mike and I agree that underneath melted cheese is better for eating because the cheese blanket holds everything together. That being said, for this post we went with the green chiles on top because we wanted everyone to be able to see the green chiles. It’s up to you what you prefer green chile wise. We’ve seen plenty of both in New Mexico, so go with your gut.Other ways to enjoy Hatch chiles
You can enjoy Hatch chiles raw or once they’re roasted you can use them in stews, chile relleno, enchiladas, salsas, sauces, dips, on tacos, as pizza toppings, on burgers, with eggs, or with noodles. They’re incredibly versatile and add smoke, flavor, and spice. Happy hatch chile burger-ing! xoxo steph PS - If you love hatch green chile cheeseburgers please check out our search for the best one in New Mexico.The Ultimate Double Double Hatch Green Chile Cheeseburger
A deluxe double patty cheeseburger with plenty of smoky and spicy fire roasted green chiles.
- 1 - 2 Hatch green chiles
- neutral oil
- 1 tbsp butter (room temp)
- 1 brioche burger bun
- 1/3 lbs ground beef chuck
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 slices American cheese
- 1 slice tomato
- 1 leaf green leaf lettuce
- 1-2 thin slices onion
- mustard (to taste)
- mayo (to taste)
Lightly coat the chiles with the tiniest bit of oil and roast under the broiler until deeply golden, almost black, about 10-12 minutes, flipping once.
When roasted, place in a paper or plastic bag, close, and let peppers steam for 10 minutes. Skin, seed, and stem the peppers, then chop.
Divide the meat into 2 equal portions and gently form very thin patties larger than your bun. Season both sides with salt and pepper.
Butter and lightly toast the bun in a dry pan over medium heat. Remove from the pan and set aside, keeping warm in a low oven if desired.
Heat up a large pan over medium high-heat and add a bit of oil to the pan. When hot, add the patties and cook, without moving for 2 to 3 minutes, or until caramelized, pressing down. Flip and cook for another minute or so.
When the patties are just about done cooking, immediately with a slice of American cheese and a generous amount of the roasted Hatch green chiles.
Build the burger: the bottom bun gets mayo and mustard to taste, then lettuce, tomato, and onion. Top with the two melty, green chile patties and the top bun. Enjoy immediately.
Notes: If you can’t get your hands on Hatch green chiles, you can roast any other long green chile in the same way. You can also use jarred or canned roasted green chiles, you’ll want about 1/4 cup.
Latest Comment
“Cafe & Pancake Gram has three locations in Tokyo: Harajuku, Kichijoji, and Kudanshita. The Harajuku location is clos...”ILAN on Tokyo Food Guide: Where to Eat Fluffy Japanese Pancakes in TokyoPopular
2015 Holiday Giveaway 
One-Pot Lemon Scallop Pea Spaghetti 
Beer Battered Onion Rings, Jalapeno Aioli 
2014 Holiday Gift Guide and a Giveaway 
Easy Gourmet Hot Wings and a Giveaway! 
The Ultimate Veggie Sandwich 
Vegan(!) Creamy Corn Soup Recipe 
Sunday Brunch: Grilled Cheese Eggs Benny
