Funkadelic Chili Mac Food

MAK KIMCHI

Steps:

• Brining: Slice the cabbage lengthwise into quarters. Cut out and discard the core. Cut each quarter crosswise into 2-inch pieces.
• Combine the water and salt in a large bowl and stir to dissolve. Add the cabbage and toss well to coat with brine. Leave for 4 hours, tossing every hour.
• Drain the cabbage well, then spread the cabbage out on a baking sheet and gently pat dry with paper towels.
• Pasting (optional): While the cabbage is brining, make the sweet rice flour paste. In a small saucepan, combine the rice flour with a cup of cold water and whisk vigorously to fully dissolve the flour. Gently heat to a simmer over medium-low heat, stirring frequently. (Be sure to scrape the bottom of the saucepan, as the rice flour has a tendency to settle there.) Simmer until the mixture thickens and becomes glossy and gelatinous, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Saucing: Pulse the garlic and ginger in a blender. Add the apple, onion, fish sauce, salted shrimp and sugar and puree until everything is well broken down--no need to overdo it.
• Empty the contents of the blender into a large bowl. (If you're using the rice paste, add it now and stir well, to fully incorporate.) Add the gochugaru to the bowl and mix well.
• This is the point at which things get messy. Suit up with a pair of clean latex gloves. (Dish gloves-well-washed, of course-will do perfectly well.) Add the scallion and carrot to the bowl and, with your gloved hands, work it all together to coat the vegetables with sauce. Do the same with the cabbage, gently massaging sauce into cabbage.
• Firmly pack the cabbage mixture into clean, quart-size mason jars, pressing as you go to remove any air pockets. Leave 1 inch of headroom in the jars to allow for expansion during fermentation. Press a small sheet of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the cabbage and seal the jars tightly.
• Fermenting: Refrigerate the jars, set on a plate to catch leaks. In a week, the kimchi will be fresh, very lightly fermented and pretty darn tasty. In two weeks, as the fermentation really kicks into gear, the kimchi will ascend to a whole other plane of awesome. Kimchi keeps for months, getting increasingly pungent over time. Dig in and enjoy it every step of the way.

CHEESY CHILI MAC

Steps:

• In large saucepan, over medium heat, crumble and cook sausage, onion and green peppers until sausage is browned. Stir in tomato sauce, tomatoes, water, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder and Italian seasoning. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Add elbow macaroni and stir well. Recover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until macaroni is tender. Serve topped with Cheddar cheese.;

CHILI MAC

Steps:

• In a large pot, boil pasta until al dente.
• Meanwhile, in a big, deep pot, brown beef in oil over medium high heat. Add onions, peppers, and garlic. Season meat mixture with chili powder, cumin, cayenne, and salt. Cook together 5 minutes, stir in beer or broth, and reduce liquid by half, 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Drain pasta. Add hot pasta to chili pot and stir to coat pasta evenly. Remove from heat and garnish big bowlfuls of chili mac with chopped scallions.

CHILI MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add some salt and then the macaroni. Cook to al dente according to the package directions. Drain and hold until the cheese sauce is ready.
• Heat the oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the red onions and cook, covered, until soft, a couple of minutes. Add the garlic and bell peppers and cook an additional 2 to 5 minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic. Add the ground beef and sprinkle with salt and pepper; cook until browned, stirring to break up the beef into small pieces. Add the chili powder, cumin, paprika and oregano, and cook until the spices are fragrant. Add the beans and their liquid, the tomatoes and their juices, and the tomato paste; simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
• In a separate saucepot, melt the butter over low heat. Add the flour and cook, whisking, for 1 minute. Whisk in the milk, raise the heat to high, and bring the mixture to a boil; cook, whisking, until thickened. Removing from the heat and whisk in the cream cheese, Cheddar, mustard, Worcestershire and some salt and pepper. Pour the pasta into the cheese sauce and stir to combine.
• Mix the chili into the macaroni and cheese. Transfer to a serving bowl and top with additional Cheddar and the green onions. Serve with corn chips.