multi-purpose shredded beef

Today I made a big batch of shredded beef as a "base recipe" for which I'll provide various uses throughout the next week or two. This is a basic shredded beef with neutral, plain beef flavor, that will have other flavors added to it later on for each recipe. By keeping the flavor plain, I'll be able to use this is Asian recipes, Tex-Mex recipes, or with any other flavor profile.

This is super simple to make and you can do it while you're at work or even while you sleep. The shredded beef can then be frozen and quickly reheated for use in recipes any night of the week. Below I've provided cooking and freezing instructions. Shredded beef like this can be used for basic BBQ sandwiches, burritos, tacos, and more, but I'm going to post a few new ideas over the next week or two. Look for the first recipe using the shredded beef tomorrow!

Recipes Using Multi-Purpose Shredded Beef:

• BBQ Beef Stuffed Potatoes
• Hoisin Beef Tacos with Sweet & Sour Slaw
• Beef Ragout with Mashed Cauliflower
• (not) Philly Cheesesteak Sandwiches

One word on portions - as with most of my meat recipes, I use meat in small portions combined with vegetables and grains to stretch it out across many servings. I estimate that I'll use 1/3 to 1/2 cup of the shredded beef per serving in the future recipes. I'll be freezing the beef in 2 cup portions, so that I can thaw/reheat one recipe's worth at a time (or 4-6 servings of the beef).

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slow cooker jerk chicken

The slow cooker wins again! This incredibly easy recipe boasts big flavor and very, very little work. Just mix up a fragrant spice rub in your blender, slather it over the chicken, and then let the slow cooker do the rest. You will want to pop the chicken in the oven under the broiler for a few minutes at the end to get that nice, charred, crispy skin that is just not achievable in a slow cooker, but still... SO little effort!

Cooking the chicken in the slow cooker makes it juicy and fall-off-the-bone tender. I don't advocate cooking this on low because even on high it takes a while for the chicken to reach safe temperatures. So, plan this dish for a day when you'll be home and can get back to it after four hours.

This did make a LOT of chicken, but the recipe can easily be halved to fit smaller slow cooker or to feed a smaller crowd. My slow cooker is somewhere around 6 quarts and so a whole cut up chicken fit nicely. If you have a smaller slow cooker, you can buy a 2 pound pack of chicken thighs, drumsticks, or even a couple of breasts and just halve the spice rub. It's that simple.

Jerk chicken is famous for it's spicy heat, but you can eliminate the serrano pepper and still have some freaking delicious chicken. To make it extra spicy, add the serrano to the spices in the blender. For medium spicy, add the serrano sliced up to the slow cooker like I did. And for mild, just skip it all together!

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sausage & kale cassoulet

I know I've done the whole sausage-bean-kale thing numerous times, but that's because it's so good.

This might not be a traditional cassoulet, but that's the closest word I could find to describe what's going on here. It's beans slowly cooked with meat so that the rendered fat has time to soak in and give everything the most amazing flavor. I added kale, which isn't traditional in cassoulet, just so I could get some greens in there and have everything I needed in one bowl. If you're not into kale, you can add a half bunch of parsley, which is much more traditional for cassoulet.

This dish surprised me with it's deep, rich flavor. It's just a few simple ingredients, but tastes like a million bucks. I guess that's why cassoulet has been one of those classic poor mans' meals that has survived for centuries. It just works.

Serve this with some fantastic french bread to sop up the wonderful liquid in the bottom of your bowl and you'll be one happy camper.

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slow cooker chicken

Cooking a whole bird is probably my least favorite task in the kitchen. Something about it just makes me want to moan and groan and ... well, just find someone else to do it!

Until I found this method. It's SO EASY. I first saw this on Slow Cooker From Scratch, and have since been seeing it all over pinterest. So, of course, I had to try it out.

It's easy, you can season it any old way you like, and it's a great alternative to the store bought rotisserie chickens. The meat is ultra tender when done and with just a few minutes under the broiler, the skin is just as golden and crispy. You can serve this whole as a main dish or pick the meat off to use on sandwiches (say good bye to salty deli meat!), burritos, tacos, enchiladas, salads, or a million other things.

I have a fairly large slow cooker and to this day I still don't know it's official size - it's somewhere between 5 and 7 quarts. I chose a 5 pound chicken, which by the look of it, would fit nicely in my cooker. It just barely fit. So, my suggestion is to find a chicken that looks like it will fit, and then pick one that is smaller than that one ;) My chicken yielded about 6 cups of cooked meat.



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how to: make yogurt

If there's one thing that I know how to do, it's grow bacteria. After all, that's what I do 40 hours a week when I'm not making delicious food and crunching grocery numbers. I work in lab where we have big fancy incubators and special nutrient rich agar to give the bacteria the perfect environment to grow. But guess what? It's not really that complicated.

To make yogurt, you just need to complete a few simple steps:

1. Heat some milk to 180 degrees Fahrenheit to kill any rogue bacteria.
2. Let the milk cool down to a temperature that bacteria like (115 degrees Fahrenheit).
3. Inoculate the milk with the bacteria that you want (lactobacillus).
4. Let the milk incubate and a nice warm, cozy temperature while the bacteria reproduce and work their yogurt magic.

As the lactobacillus feeds on the lactose (milk sugar) it produces acid, which not only gives the yogurt it's nice tangy flavor, but it also denatures the proteins in the milk, which solidifies the mixture (just like when heat denatures the protein in egg whites and they turn solid).

There are many methods for heating, cooling, and incubating milk to make yogurt and the method I'm describing here is just one.

Some people like to heat, cool, and incubate all in their slow cooker, but that can add about 5 or 6 hours to the process, so I heated my milk on the stove top. I used the slow cooker solely as an incubator (not plugged in) because it has a nice, thick ceramic lining that holds heat well. All in all, it was super easy and I think I will be doing it again!

And does it save money? Yep! A regular six ounce cup of yogurt usually costs around $0.60 each. When I buy a 32 ounce container, that same 6 ounce portion costs me about $0.41 cents. When I make it from fresh milk, a six ounce portion costs me $0.29. Not bad!

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root beer pulled pork

It's highly unusual for me to cook with an ingredient like root beer, but I have to admit, I've been extremely curious about this recipe for quite some time. I love slow cooked pork and I couldn't wrap my head around what type of interesting flavor root beer would add to it, so I had to try it for myself.

I was blown away by the smell that wafted from my slow cooker and gently beckoned me awake in the morning. The flavor was equally amazing. In fact, I liked it so much that I've been eating it without any BBQ sauce at all. It's subtle, complex, and slightly sweet. Perfect.

Plus, I love the fact that it only requires a couple of ingredients. So, for people who are just starting out, this is a really easy introductory recipe. If you want something a little more "from scratch" or all natural, check out my original pulled pork recipe (it's still pretty easy).

The price for this recipe only includes the meat, because you can do about a million things with it. Eat it on a bun or wrap it in a soft, fluffy piece of naan like I did. I even put a little on my egg sandwich this morning for breakfast! It's great for tacos, burritos, or even for extra protein on salads.

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burritos blanco

I made these burritos last week and just finally got around to eating one today... and WOW! Love 'em! I couldn't wait to get home and post this for you. The only bad news is that I was so enamored with how picturesque the chicken piccatta was, that I forgot to get pretty photos of the burritos (cooked them the same day)!

Poor burritos, they totally got slighted. They deserve better.

Anyway, I'm calling these burritos "burritos blanco" because there isn't much color in them... but don't let that fool you about the flavor! They're super tasty. I can't tell you enough how great it is to have burritos like this stocked in your freezer. They're the ultimate grab-n-go lunch. I just take one out of the freezer, put it in a container (to catch condensation) and it's mostly thawed by lunch time. Then I just heat it up real quick in the microwave and I've got a super satisfying and filling lunch. But bring a knife and fork, these yummy things ooooooze.

I used canned green enchilada sauce but I know from past experience that many of you can't find enchilada sauce in your grocery stores. So, here is a recipe if you want to make some for yourself. I would suggest making a big batch and then freezing portions so that you only have to make it once!

Also, I used white beans that I cooked from scratch in my slow cooker with nothing but the beans and water (read: super cheap). I used this method to cook them. It's super easy and very inexpensive. This recipe uses about four cups or roughly the same amount as two 15 oz. cans of beans.

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slow cooker potato soup

I've hesitated to make potato soup for quite some time because all I could think about is how creamy and carby it must be. Surely it's not good for me to eat that every day, right? Well, that's right... unless you make it like this.

I made this super delicious, veggie packed, low fat potato soup and guess what? It's also super inexpensive! That's what I'm talkin' about. To make this soup healthier, I left the skins of the potatoes on, added celery and carrots, and used 1% milk thickened with flour rather than cream.

This soup is so delicious that not only did I gobble down two bowls as soon as I was finished making it (tsk, tsk), but I didn't even bother to add the "toppings" that I had bought for it (cheddar, green onion, parsley). For that reason, I decided not to include any toppings in the price break down. It's good enough to stand alone. Besides, there are way too many topping options and everyone will probably use something different... you can do sour cream, cheese, green onion, parsley, bacon, smoked paprika, or nothing at all because IT'S ALREADY DELICIOUS.

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slow cooker marinara

I've made a few variations of red sauce for Budget Bytes, but this one is definitely the best of the best. I don't like using my slow cooker for everything, but for a few things it works complete magic (beans and meat, for instance). The magical long, slow cooking process caramelizes the sugars in the tomatoes and creates a depth of flavor that can't be matched!

Plus, what more could you ask for than to just throw some ingredients in a pot, forget about it for 8 hours, and then come back to a rich, delicious red sauce?

The price of this recipe will depend greatly on what you're able to get your canned tomatoes for. When I made the original (non-slow cooker) version of this recipe a couple of years ago, I paid almost half what I paid for canned tomatoes today. So, the price this time around was about the same as the store bought jarred equivalent, but hey, I made it myself and it's so much tastier!

Since this recipe makes quite a bit, I pour the extra into freezer bags and freeze it for up to about 4 months. Make sure you cool it down in the refrigerator before pouring into freezer bags, though ;)

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coffee rubbed pork roast

"Huh-wha? Coffee rubbed pork?"

Yep, that's what I said. I made a killer seasoning rub out of coffee (ground to a powder), brown sugar, cayenne, and the usual suspects (salt, pepper, garlic). Slow cooked pork is pretty much good anyway you fix it, but this rub adds just a touch of that deep, smokey, aromatic flavor that coffee has... plus a 'lil sweetness from the brown sugar and a 'lil kick from the cayenne. There really is just a hint of spicy from the cayenne that I think is necessary to balance the mellow coffee so I wouldn't suggest skipping it this time.

I liked this so much that I actually made two of them this week. The first roast I bought was small and extra fatty so after I cooked it, there wasn't much left. So, I went back to the store and bought a huge boston butt (or pork shoulder) and made another. And I'm so glad I did.

Pork shoulder or Boston butt is definitely the way to go for this roast. That cut has a decent amount of meat but still enough fat to keep it tender while it cooks. You can buy and cook it with the bone in if you'd like. My roast came bone in but it was about twice the size that I wanted. So, I cut half off and used it for this recipe and then froze the rest to make BBQ pulled pork on another day. You definitely get a discount if you buy the large roast as opposed to the smaller half size, so go ahead and buy it and freeze half. But please note, pork shoulder bones are a really crazy shape and unless you're familiar, you might have a difficult time removing it.

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slow cooker baked beans

***Many readers have reported that their beans have not softened after over 8 hours of cooking. This seems to only be a problem with this particular slow cooker/bean recipe so I suspect the sugar is the issue. Not everyone is experiencing this problem, so proceed with caution!***

So, you know how I love to cook beans in the slow cooker, right? Right. Well, this week I was craving some good 'ol home cookin' so I decided to whip up a batch of baked beans in my slow cooker. I threw all of the ingredients into the slow cooker at night before I went to bed and in the morning, the sweet and savory scent of baked beans was beckoning me out of dreamland.

FYI, baked beans are REALLY good for breakfast. ;)

Did I mention that you don't have to soak the beans? Yep, you just toss them in there dry.


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(not) refried beans

Have you ever had refried beans that were so good that you wanted to just eat them plain out of a bowl? If you've been getting them out of a can, I'm gonna guess not.

These beans are just that. They have an incredible, complex flavor thanks to the jalapeno, chili, and other spices... and they're completely GUILT FREE. Actually, you should not only feel guilt free, you should feel proud. You deserve to wear a little gold star pin that says "Winner!" on it just for eating these beans. Beans are full of fiber, protein, and antioxidants... and I promise you'll want to come back for more.

My batch was just a tad on the spicy side and I know that many of you can't go there for various reasons. So, I would suggest using half of a jalapeno and half of the chili powder. Both the jalapeno and the chili powder bring a lot of flavor along with their heat so I wouldn't suggest nixing them all together. When preparing the jalapeno just be sure to remove ALL of the seeds and white ribs on the inside because this is where most of the heat lives.

This recipe makes about the same amount as three standard sized cans of refried beans. The left overs can be frozen so don't worry about the volume. I used mine in a recipe (stay tuned) but you can also eat it as a dip, fill up some burritos, or even stuff them into tacos. Refried beans are all-purpose, which is probably why they come as a side to every single entree at Mexican restaurants! Well, that and they're cheap.

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taco chicken bowls

This recipe is definitely "slow-cooker 101". It's probably one of the first recipes that most people learn to make in their slow-cooker. In fact, some version of it is probably included in that little mini recipe book that comes with the slow-cooker when you buy it. BUT, I had to post it because I know there are probably a lot of you who haven't made it yet and I can't bear the thought of you missing out.

This recipe is great for bachelors, students, or the chronically busy because it's a "dump and heat" recipe. All you do is dump all of the ingredients together in a pot, and let it cook. Of course you'll need to make the rice separate but even if you're one of those people who can never get rice right, there is hope. Just stuff the chicken mixture inside of a tortilla with cheese for a quick burrito or fold it over in a tortilla and crisp it up in a skillet like a quesadilla. Presto. Easy, delicious, cheap food.

I'm a black bean lover so next time I'm going to use two cans (or two can's worth of homemade) beans and extend the recipe even further.

Oh, also, this freezes well. Cheese and all. Then just nuke and stir for a couple minutes until hot. Instant freezer meal!

Okay, one more thing. If you for some strange reason need this recipe to be even easier or you don't have a well stocked spice cabinet, just substitute a packet of taco seasoning for all of the spices and herbs that I used below.


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ham & bean soup

Have you ever seen those bags of 16 bean soup mix in the dry bean aisle at the grocery store? Well, they're kinda like the ramen of the bean world. They come with their own packet of "flavoring" that you're supposed to boil with the beans to yield a delicious hearty soup. Well, beans, salt and MSG doesn't sound too appetizing so I made my *own* seasoning.

Something special happens when you boil meat, bones and all of the connective tissue into a broth. It might seem frightening at first and it certainly doesn't look very appetizing but I promise you that every soup you've eaten that has that certain "je ne sais quois" has this magic broth. From homemade chicken noodle soup to Vietnamese pho, they've all got the boiled bones and slow-cooked gelatinized tissues. So, please over look the unsightly ham hocks and believe me when I tell you they *make* this soup. You can use smoked turkey wings instead if you'd like. They'll still give you great flavor and they have less fat but they're also more expensive.

Also, if you don't have a slow cooker, you cane make this on the stove top in a pot. Just let it simmer with a lid in place until the beans are soft (2-4 hours).


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easy dulce de leche

Oh boy, I may have done a bad thing when I made this... I may have opened Pandora's box. Now I want this delicious dulce de leche on everything. I've been sneaking spoonfuls out of the fridge just to get a "fix" all week.

Dulce de leche, which translates to "milk candy", is a delicious caramel like dip. It is usually made by slowly cooking milk and sugar until the moisture boils off and the sugars caramelize leaving you with a thick, rich, creamy sauce.

Although it is printed clearly on every can of sweetened condensed milk NOT to heat the cans unopened, one of the most common ways to make dulce de leche is to boil the unopened cans in a pot full of water on the stove for 3-4 hours. Now, that method is very dangerous because the temperature is difficult to control and if too much water boils away the internal temp of the can will keep rising until it explodes. I've seen this happen. It's not pretty and caramel is nearly impossible to clean off of the ceiling and walls.

Using a slow cooker is much, much safer (although, the danger still exists). A slow cooker will maintain a fairly constant temperature (and a much lower temperature), the lid will prevent the water from boiling off and most lids secure into place with a clamp which would help stifle an explosion. BUT, the can still warns against heating unopened cans... so... follow this recipe at your own risk.

Okay, so if you haven't been scared off, this recipe is so super easy that it's almost unfair. Not to mention, you can make a batch of it for about $1.50 which is far less than the bottles of caramel ice cream topping or dip that you'd buy at the store. What can you use it for? Dipping fruit, topping desserts or stir it into your coffee drinks. It tastes exactly like those little square caramel candies that you can buy around Halloween time.


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slow cooker bbq ribs

Somebody brought some BBQ ribs into the break room at work last week and I was instantly like, "Oh yeah, I definitely know what I'm cooking this weekend..." There was just no doubt about it, I WANTED RIBS!

So most people cook ribs on an actual grill but I don't have one of those right now. Most people who don't have a grill cook them slow and low (heat) in the oven. I didn't want my oven eating up gas for three hours so I opted for the slow cooker. Sure, the slow cooker needs to run for a good 8 hours but it is so much smaller than my oven that I figured (or hoped) that it was the more energy efficient option. Plus, it's just so SO easy. Just put everything in the pot and let 'er rip.

For the slow cooker to transfer heat to your food properly, you want to fill the cooker at least half way and use plenty of liquid. This is the slow cooker I used, it's 5 quarts and my rack of ribs and onion filled it about half way. For liquid, I ended up using some apple sauce and a little water (the apple sauce wasn't quite as liquidy as I had anticipated). I wanted to use Guinness Stout as my liquid but, of course, I happened to be shopping the day after St. Patty's day and they were out of Guinness singles. You can also use apple juice, orange juice or broth. Just make sure there is enough liquid to fill in all of the spaces between the meat. The liquid is the heat transfer medium. Very important.

Anyway, the end result of this slow cooker process are ribs so succulent, juicy and tender that you're likely to eat the entire rack if you don't exercise extreme restraint. I cut my ribs into portions of two ribs prior to cooking. This also helped them fit nicely in the slow cooker. Yeah, two ribs is a pretty small portion but if you beef up your meal with lots of inexpensive and healthy sides (like beans, greens and mashed potatoes), two ends up being plenty. If you do decide that four ribs is a more realistic serving size, it's still only $3.66 per serving... way less than in a restaurant for sure, which only makes them taste that much BETTER!


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spicy black beans & tomatoes

I've been on a bean kick lately, can you tell? They really are the most fantastic food. Beans are super nutritious, delicious and one of the most inexpensive food items out there. For some reason there are still people out there who do not like them. Well, I'm convinced that those people just haven't had good beans yet. So, it is my New Years resolution to turn at least one person from a bean hater into a bean lover. No, no, make that a legume lover (because I gotta include lentils in all of this).

Making beans delicious is all about the seasoning. I first started experimenting with some canned black beans last year. This is still a great side dish solution if you're short on time but lately, I've been cooking dried beans in my slow cooker to save even more money. Up until now, I've cooked them plain so that I could season them later according to whatever dish I was using them in.

The black beans I cooked this week, although seasoned, will still work with a variety of dishes. They are an excellent side dish (I ate them along side my fajitas), you can stuff them into burritos or you can turn them into a quick soup. This makes a pretty big batch but the beans can be frozen for later use. I usually freeze at least half of the batch right away.

NOTE: You can't see the tomatoes in the end product but they do give a fantastic depth of flavor.


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black-eyed peas

In hope of good luck and prosperity in the new year, I cooked up a pot of black-eyed peas yesterday. Eating black-eyed peas, collard greens and cornbread on the first day of the new year has been a tradition in the Southeast United States for generations. Heck, even if they don't bring me good luck and prosperity, they have certainly brought me happy taste buds, a full stomach and tons of good nutrition. Read more about the tradition here. For my collard green recipe, click here.

Both the black-eyed peas and collards greens can be prepared with or without a ham hock. I've made the collard greens both ways and tend to cook them without the hock just because it's one less step, less money and every bit as scrumptious. Although I intended to make the black-eyed peas with a ham hock, I forgot to buy one and therefore made it without. I was far far far from disappointed. These beans are freaking delicious!

I made my peas in slow cooker so that I could just throw it all in there and forget about it while I cooked other things but they can also be made on the stove top. To prepare them on the stove, just saute the onions and garlic in a large pot with the olive oil until soft, add the rest of the ingredients and then let everything simmer on low (with a lid) until the peas are cooked through. Super easy.


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how to: kick the can (of beans)

I know many of you Budget Byters already cook your own beans but I wanted to make this post for all of the newbies out there. Beans are one of the most economical and nutritious foods available so I try to use them in recipes as often as possible. Canned beans are quick and convenient but with a little planning ahead, dry beans can be just as easy and HALF the cost of canned.

Many people (including myself) shy away from cooking dry beans because it seems like such a daunting chore with the overnight soaking and hours of cooking. What I've discovered is that cooking beans can be as easy as "setting it and forgetting it" and, thanks to Kalyn's recent post, I now know that presoaking is not even necessary! If you cook a large batch, the beans can be divided up into two cup containers, frozen and then pulled out of the freezer as needed. Taking frozen beans out of the freezer is just as convenient as opening up a can!

Last night, I cooked up a batch of black beans for today's soup. The final cost for one can equivalent of dry beans was $0.40 cents. Compare that to a store bought can which usually runs me about $0.79 and I've cut the cost in half. Plus, I've eliminated salt, preservatives and a lot of wasted packaging. Have I convinced you yet?



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teriyaki pork sandwiches

Hindsight is 20/20.

One of the main ingredients in this mouth-watering teriyaki pulled pork is the teriyaki sauce. The entire ten minutes that I stood in the Asian foods aisle trying to decide which teriyaki sauce to buy, not once did it occur to me that I had ALL of the ingredients to make teriyaki sauce at home, for pennies on the dollar. Ouch. It's finals week, I'm distracted, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

Anyway, this recipe is ridiculously easy, almost guilt-inducingly delicious and has summer written all over it. Just load the slow-cooker up before you head out to work in the morning and let machine do it's magic. Even the smell is enough to impress anyone who might walk into your house.

This recipe makes a ton but it freezes really well. I like to spoon single sandwich sized portions into freezer bags so that I can make one sandwich at a time later. Just be sure to label and date the bags so they don't get lost and go to waste! The frozen meat/gravy mixture thaws easily in the microwave. Even left over buns can be frozen and thawed in the toaster when ready to eat!


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