Your Signature Dish: Wüsthof Classic Ikon Chef Knife Set Giveaway

Southwest-ish Style Campfire Chicken
• Bone in, skin on chicken in individual pieces (breasts, legs, wings)
• Approx. 2 cups corn
• Approx. 1 cup diced tomato (a can of RO*TEL ® – Original or Mild can be substituted for tomatos and green chilies)
• Diced green chilies to taste
• Garlic powder (Grill Mates® Montreal Chicken Seasoning can be substituted for the seasonings)
• Pepper
• Salt
• Paprika
• Tin foil
Start a decent size camp fire. While waiting for the fire to burn down: Mix the corn, tomatoes and chilies. Lay out a square of foil for and set one of the chicken pieces on it. Sprinkle some of each seasoning all over the chicken. Add a few tablespoons or so of the corn mix to the chicken and wrap the whole mess up in the foil. Add another layer of foil. Repeat for each piece of the chicken- with smaller pieces like the legs put both legs in one foil package. The fire is probably still not ready at this point. You should be cooking with the leftover coals of the fire, and will want almost a heaping shovelful to do a whole chicken. Crack open a cold one and wait. Wait some more. You’re not very patient are you? When the fire is burned down enough, which it is not, shovel the coals into an area you can work with and throw the foil packages on top. Shovel a few coals on top for good measure. Flip the packets after about ten minutes and start checking for doneness after about twenty (ish I never really watched the time that close) Unwrap and eat right out of the foil.
This recipe was created out of necessity when I was staying out at the old family farm south of Tulsa. It was a long ways from the nearest store-and I was hungry. The water in the old farm house wasn’t working so I didn’t want to have to do dishes, but I did have a fire going. I found a whole cut up chicken someone had left in the freezer, and some canned vegetables, I’d say it turned out pretty good.

Flank steak (medium rare on grill), roasted vegetables (coat in olive oil, salt and pepper. 425 deg 25 min or so), and Chard which I pan roast the in olive oil, minced garlic, and onion until soft then add sweet vermouth and a bit of orange juice. Works well with spinach as well.

ribs from my smoker

Braised beef short ribs with slow cooker macaroni and cheese:
M&C- In slow cooker, combine: 1 beaten egg; 2 cups evaporated milk; 4 tbsp. butter; and 3.5 cups cheese (prefer sharp chedder). Follow directions on box for cooking the box of macaroni. Drain and set aside. Throw in the slow cooker and let it do its thing for 3 hours.
Ribs – Pre heat the oven to 325. Season ribs with salt and pepper, then sear in pan w/olive oil. Make sure to get them really brown. Add a couple cups of red wine (beer works too) and then toss in some garlic and onions. Toss in whatever else you want at this point (carrots, peppers, squash, or nothing at all) and let it sit for a few minutes on medium heat. Put the ribs back into the pan. Cover and throw it in the oven for 2.5 hours.

If you do the mac first, they’ll be done at about the same time and you’ll have 2.5 hours to enjoy before eating.

I make a great grilled veggies and chicken rice meal

My favorite dish is a homemade Czech recipe invented by my grandmother. It composes of sauerkraut and dumplings with schnitzel

I make the best ribs in the firehouse. It’s a good day when we can sit down and dig in.

I can make a pretty mean rack of lamb! To be honest, it’s from a recipe i found online but it comes out delicious every time i make it. The rack is seasoned and pan seared all around. Then it’s coated in a minced garlic and dijon mustard mixture and then coated in a parmesan and panko mixture. The panko gives it a great outer crust after it’s been in the oven. Medium-rare always.
Accompanied with my great mashed potatoes, skin-on, salt, pepper, butter and milk; simple and perfect. Asparagus side: olive oil, salt and pepper and into the oven. The basics can’t fail.

I do well at desserts. My specialty are dark-chocolate no-bake cookies.

Desserts are my thing. I make a mean chocolate-coffee pecan pie.

I can brew a great variety of awesome beers! My current favorite is a very hoppy American Ale, I am also fond of my Belgian Tripel. Since beer is kind of like liquid bread I figured that it would qualify. Also you should always eat with beer. I figure if it’s slower than I am…..it’s food and probably tastes good with sticky rice..:)

hello AoM my signature dish would be bacon egg and cheese with steak. what i do for this is prepare a normal bacon egg and cheese, and then and thinly sliced stack that most would find synonymous with a philly cheese steack. when this is all cooked i then put it on a roll with hashbrown.

I make a damn fine pasta carbonara. Also, I’m kind of a pork specialist. Last night I did Puerco Pibil and it was amazing.

I don’t really have a single signature dish, because I cook just about everything. One thing I love, though, that I don’t make often enough, is a wild mushroom “cobbler” from the New Vegetarian Epicure. It’s basically a ragout of mushrooms in red wine sauce topped with a Parmesan biscuit crust. Mmm…maybe I’ll make it for my love for Mother’s Day.

I make the world’s best stuffed mushrooms!

My favorite is a chili con carne. It’s not that spicy because some friends don’t like it that hot and who wants to eat alone?
Sometimes I add different vegetables to try new flavors.

My favorite dinner I make is Chicken Tikka Masala, Chole Palak, Naan and for desert, Gulab Jamun. It’s definitely a meal that takes a great deal of time to prepare but well worth it!

Breakfast Potatoes…
- Thickly slice or dice several spuds.
- Wash and microwave for 6-8 mins to soften
- fry in skillet while adding green pepper and sweet onion
- not much oil necessary to brown
- add steak seasoning (or favorite spices) to taste.

I’ve perfected my pan-seared tilapia filet. Fresh lemon juice, dill, capers, a dash of freshly ground pepper, and sea salt. The lemons are sliced and used as a garnish.

Chicken enchiladas! I make a BUNCH of them, give a couple dozen away, keep a dozen for the family, then freeze another couple dozen for meals in the coming weeks.

We do the same with EXCELLENT homemade meatballs.

I had a set of Wusthoff knives we got 11 years ago for our wedding… And then there was an “incident.” (A visiting friend taking care of our kids used my chef’s knife as a screwdriver…)

I make lightly fried pumpkin donuts. Damn fine.

My signature dish is pasta with fresh veggies and a homemade sauce.

I make a mean veal parmigiana. I start out with making the sauce. I chop up shallots, garlic, parsley, and some italian peppers and saute in a sauce pan with some olive oil. Then I add pureed plum tomatoes, tomato paste, a bay leaf, and a can of crushed tomatoes and bring to a soft boil for about 30 minutes. While the sauce is cooking I put the veal cutlets between two sheets of wax paper, and pound them out until very thin. I trim off the excess, then dip in flour, egg, then panko breadcrumbs. I then fry up the cutlets in some olive oil and put them on a baking sheet with some fresh thinly sliced mozzarella draped on top. I then cover the veal with sauce and bake for 10 minutes at 400 degress. It’s delicious, not too difficult to make, and will make a woman swoon more than Chuck Norris with his shirt off…feel free to try it out.

When the kids were growing up I was always the pancake and waffle maker. I’m not pretty much the official griller of all things. I am also my wife’s assistant chef in charge of “cutting things up”…works for me!!

i pride myself on making some pretty great tin foil dinners. . .
chicken breast
chopped red peppers
quartered red baby potatoes
chopped baby carrots
half a jar of alfredo sauce
seasonings

combine ingredients in three layers of tin foil and place on coals in campfire or on charcoal grill. cook each side for at least 25 minutes.

i could use some new knives for all that chopping. . .

My signature is definitely my fried rice. A very nice woman from Tokyo showed me how to make it a few years ago, and I make it at every opportunity. The keys are to use short-grain rice and sesame oil; without them, it’s just not the same. I start by cooking the rice, and while that’s going, I chop up my vegetables; usually carrots, fresh garlic, scallions, and onions. Then I cook that (minus the scallions) and the meat (which usually includes a few strips of chopped up bacon) in a frying pan or wok while the rice finishes cooking – high temperatures and fast cooking is the key. Then I add the rice and some frozen peas and season liberally with soy sauce and sesame oil. Once the rice has a nice golden-brown color to it, I add in the scallions and serve. It makes a large batch and is always popular with the family.

Sausage and peppers over pasta. It’s simple, tasty, and nutritious.

Skirt steak tacos, baby!

My signature dish would have to be my grilled chicken; I’ve got several different seasoning I’ll regularly use for a nice rotation of flavor, and have come fairly close to perfecting my marinade, leaving my chicken flavorful and tender.

My wife would tell you that I make a delicious Green Curry with Chicken and Veg.

BBQ ribs, once had a guy build a roof over my bar for a gallon of my home made BBQ sauce

My signature dish is a mild sweet potatoe curry soup with a side of jasmine rice.

I make chili… but my wife won’t let me touch much in the kitchen after some of the messes I have made :-(

Chicken alfredo.

My signature dish is lasagna – just like my grandma used to make!

Bacon wrapped filet mignons, pan fried with shallots.

Pork loin. Served with a mushroom pilaf and braised cabbage.

Pork chops with a blueberry sriracha sauce….zingggggg

Penne Rosa pasta with chicken.

French Onion Soup is one of the things I like to make. People seem to frequently order it at restauraunts. I like it at home. So does my family.

My wife would probably rave to you about my meatloaf or my omelettes.

I think my specialty is my shrimp scampi.

DW hates seafood, even when her former professional cook makes it.

Here in South Carolina, the dish of choice is Low Country Boil. Rice, potatoes, cabbage, onion, smoked sausage, crab, and shrimp all boiled together with Old Bay is simple, yet fantastic.

Chicken fettuccine alfredo!

I really enjoy, and think I am quite good at, searing/roasting a good rib eye with some baby red mashed potatoes and asparagus. My wife recently broke one of my knives so I could really use a nice set!

I’ll have to agree with Eric who posted on May 4, 2011 at 1:35 pm. “I never intended it to become my signature dish, but my family and friends keep requesting it.” That’s the first sign of a signature dish. Not that you love it or think that it’s great, but that your circle of friends and family can’t get enough of it. The second is that it elevates the ingredients to a level above their original that people just can’t believe.
Now, every man on here should good steak recipe, considering it the most manly of meals. But I propose a different sort of manliness. Just because you’re a dude doesn’t mean that your culinary adventures need to be based on Fred Flintstone or Epic Meal Time.

Art of manliness brings back the essence of man – where he is a provider, creating what everyone enjoys, not showing off for ego. I don’t know about you, but I married a quasi-vegetarian. No red meat for her. And there are lots of men with families like that out there.

So in designing any dish, I considered four qualities:
1. It has to be original.
2. It has to taste fantastic to everyone.
3. It has to be done cheaply with ingredients easily found anywhere.
4. People have to enjoy eating it.
I can make fancy stuff (butternut squash and lobster bisque) I can make powerful, flavorful stuff (I make a mean vindaloo), but to me nothing is a satisfying as something that is simple, clean, flavorful and fresh.

My signature dish is fish. Fish Tacos.
Don’t laugh. It’s tasty and it’s versatile. It plays equally well with girls and guys. Kids love it too. It’s fun for a group or just for two. It’s healthy. And when I was single, it always impressed the girl’s family. That’s my first point of the signature dish.
As a Navy man, I’ve always lived on the coast where fish is easily attainable, but I’ve found out when visiting friends I can make this anywhere. It’s minimal fuss and always works. This dish takes ten minutes to cook. I start usually the prep 30 minutes before cooking.
I start with the cheapest FRESH white fish I can find that day. Here in Hawaii – it’s usually Mahi-mahi or swordfish. If you are lucky enough you can get it off the docks, like I can here; however, the supermarket stuff works just as well. I’ll taylor this recipe for two and get a little over half a pound. Cut the fish into small bite size strips. Check thoroughly for bones, but if you have made friends with your fish-monger you shouldn’t have this problem.
In a small (1 quart) bowl, briefly marinate the fish. Don’t let it sit too long. You don’t want to overpower the fresh fish. I squeeze the juice of 1 lime (or 1 tablespoon lime juice) and add 1 tablespoon of gold tequila (I prefer 1800 as that’s what my honey likes in her drinks). Chop 2 cloves garlic, 1 shallot, and 1 side of a green pepper (not one half – approximately the amount you can fit on the blade of a chef’s knife). Now I measure seasoning by impact on color (maybe 4 shakes of the bottle each), adding cayenne, cumin, smoked paprika, and garlic powder. I add half of that of crushed red pepper and sea salt (the coarser, the better). Zest two sides of a lemon into the bowl. Mix by hand. Let sit for 20 minutes.
Remember that as to flavors, moderation is the key. Let’s go back to our second point of a signature dish. When you add an ingredient, you shouldn’t just make the food taste like that ingredient. It should make it taste better.

Now, the cooking. FIRE! I first learned to cook as an outdoor skills counselor at Camp Yawgoog – a boy scout camp. So like many good men skilled on the open flame, I always turn to my trusty old friend – cast iron. Nothing cooks like cast iron for the price and it works just as well in the kitchen. Also means I can cook this over a campfire or a beachside bonfire just as easily as a stove.
Place a 12 inch skillet on the burner. Add I tablespoon of canola oil and heat for 1 minute at 6/10 (med high). Remember, this varies from oven to oven and cast iron transfers heat better than your Teflon, so watch for burning. Cook the fish watching for it to turn that nice white color. After about 5 minute, I turn down the heat 3/10. Continue cooking until tender and white. (Test it! It’s worth it and allows a free check on flavors).
Serve with taco shells, shredded CABOT cheese, chopped onions, tomatoes and shredded greens. I recommend spinach for the nutritional value. This is complimented by my gal’s homemade guacamole. Always a winner.
Anyway, that’s my recipe. I hope you enjoyed. I hope I win too. Those knifes will be put to good use and it’ll help prove to me that I can write well enough to start my own blog. Thanks.

Steak. Salt. Pepper. Cast iron.

If it’s grilled, it’s a signature: Steak, barbecue chicken, even lobstah.

I am pretty proud of my poached eggs! We normally use them for Eggs Benedict.

Personal favorite is chicken breasts, drizzled with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, in the slow cooker for about 6 hours. Add coarse ground sea salt and italian spices to taste. Pretty basic, but comes out perfectly moist and easy to pull apart for topping on salads or putting together for chicken gyros.

My signature dish is my Grilled Spanish Mustard Steak. Skirt steak marinated in Dijon mustard, Spanish sherry, olive oil, garlic powder, and smoked paprika. This is served up with grilled sweet onions and grilled bell peppers and served on a warm, handmade corn tortilla. Also gets a slice of avocado when in season and goes great with a Negra Modelo.