Funky Cholent Food

FUNKY CHOLENT

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat; cook and stir the onion and garlic until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the beef stew meat, and quickly brown the pieces on all sides. Stir in the potatoes, sweet potato, baked beans, ketchup, barbecue sauce, mustard, onion soup mix, seasoned salt, and steak seasoning, and pour in enough water to cover. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook on low heat until the beef is tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
• Stir in the pearl barley, and transfer the stew to a slow cooker set on Low until the barley is tender, about 12 hours.

CLASSIC CHOLENT

Steps:

• 1. Place the onions and potatoes in the bottom of the slow cooker. 2. Top with the beef stew meat and marrow bones. Sprinkle the meat with salt and pepper. Add the barley and kidney beans, then sprinkle on the paprika, cumin, turmeric and chili powder. 3. Drizzle the top of the cholent with honey, top with the kishka, then pour the water over the top to cover the beans. Cover the slow cooker and cook on low heat overnight, or for at least 8 hours.

CHOLENT

Steps:

• Place the beans in a medium bowl and cover with a few inches of water. Refrigerate at least 8 hours.
• Using the sear feature of your slow cooker, or a heavy pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Season the beef on both sides with salt and pepper. Sear the beef until deep golden brown on one side, 6 to 8 minutes. Turn and sear other side until golden brown, 4 to 6 more minutes. Remove the beef and set aside. Remove and discard excess oil. Add 1/4 cup of the red wine and scrape the bottom of the pan. Cook until mostly reduced, about 30 seconds.
• If searing in the slow cooker, add the onions in one layer. Top with the potatoes, then the seared beef. If searing in a separate pan, place the onions in one layer on the bottom of the slow cooker. Top with the potatoes, then the beef, then pour in the reduced wine.
• Top with the drained beans, then the carrots, garlic and barley. Whisk together the remaining 1/4 cup red wine, tomato paste and honey in a large glass measuring cup and add 2 cups water. Add the water mixture and the beef broth to the cooker. Cover and cook on low for 10 hours.
• Stir in the vinegar and season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with parsley and serve.

HEARTY AND DELICIOUS CHOLENT FOR A CROWD

Steps:

• In an 18 qt electric roaster, layer ingredients in order listed.
• Cover with water (plus an extra inch or two), cover pot, and cook at 250F for about a day and a half. (We put it up on Thursday night, and check the water levels again on Friday morning and Friday afternoon.).
• Eat with lots of pickles, and a good shot (or 2? or more?) of vodka.
• Shabbat Shalom!

BEST CHOLENT EVER

Steps:

• You will need a 5.5 gallon pot you can put in the oven (i.e. no plastic parts). Cook the spaghetti in a different pot with the tumeric (for color).
• While it cooks, heat the oil in the pot over a large flame and add the chicken and ground beef. Stir as necessary so they are browned on all sides.
• In the meantime, slice the potatoes into 1/2" discs.
• When the meat is browned, take out the chicken pieces and the beef, but leave the oil and shmaltz in the pot. Add the onion slices to the pot to form the first layer--the onion layer. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
• Add the potato slices to form the potato layer. Sprinkle with the chicken soup powder and pepper to taste.
• Add the chicken drumsticks, squeezing them together to make a nice tight chicken layer. Sprinkle with the paprika and add salt and pepper--you know the drill.
• Strain the spaghetti, rinse it off and add it to the pot to form the spaghetti layer, salt and pepper as usual.
• Add the ground beef--it will not be a layer, it's just there for flavor.
• Cut a cooking bag open so you have a sheet. Place it on top of the layers and add 1 Tbsp of oil and 1/2 c of water. Make sure they stay in the center of the cooking sheet and don't spill over into the cholent--they will fill your hermetically sealed pot with the steam necessary to cook your cholent without it drying out as it waits 16 hours in the oven for you to eat it!
• Cover the pot and wrap it on all sides with aluminum foil. Put it in a 180 degree Celsius (medium temperature) oven for 40-60 minutes, then switch the oven over to the hot plate setting, or move it to a hot plate with a box around it to make sure heat is even on all sides. From experience, putting it on a regular hot plate means the bottom layers burn and the top layers are kind of anemic looking, without all the delicious sauce.

FUNKY CHOLENT

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat; cook and stir the onion and garlic until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the beef stew meat, and quickly brown the pieces on all sides. Stir in the potatoes, sweet potato, baked beans, ketchup, barbecue sauce, mustard, onion soup mix, seasoned salt, and steak seasoning, and pour in enough water to cover. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook on low heat until the beef is tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
• Stir in the pearl barley, and transfer the stew to a slow cooker set on Low until the barley is tender, about 12 hours.