June 30 – July 6, 2025

Monday:               Smoky Bean Chili with Avocado

Tuesday:               Char Siu Fried Rice

Wednesday:          Pasta with Zucchini, Pancetta and Saffron

Thursday:             Tomato, Eggplant and Zucchini Casserole

Friday:                 Hot Dogs, Hamburgers, Turkey Burgers Cole Slaw with Billy and his friends Jourdan and Steve and their cute and energetic boys, Cooper and Cam and

Saturday:              Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Sunday:                Porter-Braised Short Ribs w/Salsa Verde & Wheat Beer Braised Potatoes

Stewing in Various Juices

Preface:  The ‘juices and stewing’ referred to above are the wonderful braising liquid (porter, olive oil, caramelized onions, parsnips and carrots, salt and pepper) in which that most Neanderthal-adjacent of all beef cuts – the short rib – is cooked in this week’s recipe, and also the sharp, lemony salsa verde which dresses the finished product.  And now, for the main course . . .  

The Food Network produces some fine programs and one of our favorites is  “Symon’s Suppers:  Cooking Out” in which Michael Symon cooks everything on a trio of large Weber Grills in the flower-and-herb-filled garden of his home with his wife, Liz, who is usually making cocktails and salads.

What Symon cooks always looks great and his explanations of technique, how to build two-level fires and why and when to move cooking vessels and food around the grill, when to close the grill and when to open it are worth paying for.  But the fact is that most of us don’t have the time (or just won’t take the time?) to do the things Michael does – 3 and 4-hour cooks, putting pots and skillets and Dutch ovens on the grill.  And I don’t have enough grills to keep feeding coals into a main grill to “keep the temperature at 350 F for about 3 hours”.  Nor do I have an eight-by three foot prep station outdoors, next to my grill.  By the way, if you, like Symon, do have such a set-up I would suggest getting a good tax lawyer before Zohran Mamdani becomes president.

What am I talking about?  Good question, though I do somewhat resent your slowing me down.  I am talking about adapting Symon’s techniques and cooking times by using some grill and some oven.  I have experimented, adapted, faked, undercooked, overcooked and plain just incorrectly cooked many of Symon’s recipes in order to achieve the results we like.  And I am prepared to share my adaptations with you for the low, low price of . . . wait, that’s a Ronco kitchen gadget commercial.  So here, at no charge is a guide on how to cook Symon’s Porter-Braised Short Ribs with Salsa Verde.  His Wheat Beer-Braised Potatoes are a great accompaniment  and you can look them up, or just use the Fire-Roasted Potatoes recipe you can find on our post of June 26^th:  ‘More Meat and, Especially, Fire-Roasted Potatoes’

A note about the ingredients: You can substitute a stout or an oatmeal ale or a red ale for the porter (you want something a bit sweet and bitter).  My beer distributor allows me to make up my own six-pack of specialty beers, so I didn’t have to lay in a supply of porter, which would be expensive, and I don’t want you to waste money, either.  On a related note – McCormick spices is selling a microscopic amount of saffron for $28.00 at our supermarket.  So, our Wednesday dinner – see above – of Pasta with Zucchini, Pancetta and Saffron became Pasta with Zucchini, Pancetta and Turmeric.  All of which is to say, that you can substitute ingredients freely, adapting recipes to availability and affordability.  On the other hand, if you are undaunted by the price of saffron, how about picking up an extra packet for me?

PORTER-BRAISED BEEF SHORT RIBS WITH SALSA VERDE

(adapted from Michael Symon)

Timing:                                    3 ½ hours

Ingredients:                            Serves 4 – 6

For the Short Ribs:

2 pounds bone-in English-cut beef short ribs (we used boneless short ribs)

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil – 2 cloves garlic, quartered – 1 carrot diced – 1 red onion diced

1 parsnip, diced – 2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 12-ounce bottles porter beer (more or less as needed) – 2 cups chicken stock

10 sprigs thyme – Flaky sea salt

See the recipe for salsa verde below

For the Salsa Verde:

3 cloves garlic, minced (we used ½ teaspoon garlic powder) – 3 anchovies – 1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon capers – Pinch chile flakes – ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil – 1 bunch parsley, roughly chopped

Zest and juice of one lemon – Ground black pepper

Prep:

Preheat oven to 350 F

Dice the onion, parsnip, carrot and quarter the cloves.

Gather the other ingredients for the short ribs – you can prepare and finish the salsa while the ribs are cooking.

Cook:

Put the olive oil into a large Dutch oven and heat until it is hot.  Add the short ribs to the pan fat-side down first and brown for 3 – 4 minutes per side (there are six sides!).

Remove the ribs to a plate and add the carrot, garlic, onion and parsnip with a good pinch of kosher salt.  Cook until the vegetables are lightly caramelized – maybe 8 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with the porter.  Put the ribs back into the pan, fat-side up and then add the chicken stock, pouring it around the ribs until it comes about 3/4 of the way up the side of the ribs.

Cover the Dutch oven and place in the 350 F oven and cook for 2 ½ – 3 ½ hours, until tender – checking the meat halfway through and adding liquid, if needed.

When the beef is tender, skim off any excess fat, taste the broth and correct the seasoning.  Serve the vegetables and ribs with the salsa verde and sprinkle with the sea salt.

Season the short ribs liberally with kosher salt and pepper.

Make the Salsa Verde:

Add the garlic (we used a bit of garlic powder), the anchovies (we used 5, not 3), salt, capers and chile flakes to the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times.  Now add the olive oil, parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice and black pepper and pulse until you get a loose, pourable salsa.