Howdy, Howdy, Howdy!
As I sit here this late winter morning (March 11) writing April’s
column, the hillside next to my house is full of wild birds. They’re
either searching for insects and worms or enjoying the bird feed I
put out for them every day. While observing them this morning I was
struck by the fact that you can compare different species to
particular Bluegrass musicians.
For example, the Red Headed Woodpecker, pecking on the oak tree there
would obviously be the bass player. The little Junco with its quick
movements would be the mandolin player. Then the bright and flashy
Oriole could only be the fiddle player! The methodical, quick paced
Robin certainly is the rhythm guitar player. That leaves the Jaybird,
who is loud, raucous and will eat anything, to be the banjo picker!
Then, off to one side, is a flock of Doves which is obviously the
audience. The vocalist you ask? Why the Lark, of course! Yeah, yeah,
I can hear some of you now saying, "J.D’s been on that mountain by
himself too long!"
Maybe so, but a mountain man I am, and will be until I die.
Here’s a cute little poem about another bird that I copied off of the
menu at Prince’s Restaurant in Pioneer, California.
The Hen
Alas my child, where is the pen
That can do justice to the Hen?
Like royalty she goes her way
Laying foundations every day.
Though not for public buildings
Yet for Custard, Cake and Omelet.
No wonder child we prize the hen,
Whose egg is mightier than the pen!
I’ve always enjoyed this poem and thought that you folks might like
it too.
Well, a Cooper’s hawk just made a lightening fast swoop past the
window and the entire assemblage of "Bluegrass Birds" flew off to the
safety of the forest in a panic, not wanting to be Mr. Hawk’s
breakfast!
Well it’s a sunny morning here on the mountain, so come on into the
kitchen and grab a chair in the sunny spot while I pour us a big cup
of hot Cowboy Coffee, and we’ll swap some good vittle fixin’s.
In my August 2001 column I recounted how they fix Barbecue down south
in Virginia. It’s totally different from the Western style. They cook
the meat, chop it up, mix the sauce with the meat, and then serve it
in bread or a bun, as a sandwich. As a young boy, I remember my mother
used to fix barbecued beef that way, but soon got used to the western
style of barbecuing meat.
She said it was easier and faster and if there was one thing my mom
liked it was anything that made the daily cooking chores easier!
However, during a recent conversation with one of my aunts, lo and
behold, she told me she had a recipe for the old fashioned southern
style of barbecue that she got from my mom back in the 1940’s, when
she and my uncle first got married. Wow! I also got her recipe for
potato pancakes too.
So, without further ado, let’s whip up a big mess of real old-fashioned
Southern Barbecue.
Old Fashioned Southern Barbecue
1/3 cup shortening
2 lbs. Diced lean beef
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced onion
2 TBSP vinegar
1 TBSP lemon juice
2 TBSP brown sugar
1 TBSP salt
1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1-cup ketchup
1 bouillon cube dissolved in one cup boiling water
Melt shortening in a heavy skillet. Brown the meat, onions and celery.
Stir in everything else. Cover and cook on low heat or in a 325º oven
until meat is tender (1 to 1 1/2 hours). Serve on toasted buns.
Just smelling a big skillet full of this cooking nice and slow will
give you a huge case of the slobbers!
This dish sure brings back memories of my youth. Now to do this the
right way you have to serve big dill pickles with it. Southern barbecue
just ain’t complete without dill pickles. If you don’t believe me,
just ask my ol’ pickin’ buddy John Murphy. That Carolina boy is a
Southern barbecue expert!
Now for some good ol’ Arkansas Potato Pancakes. A couple of months
ago I featured one of my favorite potato pancake recipes here in the
column. However, these feature some different ingredients and have a
slightly different flavor, but boy are they yummy! A big stack of
these, along with some scrambled eggs and sourdough biscuits hot from
the oven, and you have a breakfast that even ol’ King Solomon never
had!
Southern Potato Pancakes
6 large potatoes, grated
1 large onion, grated
3 eggs, beaten
2 tsp. sugar
1 TBSP flour
1 TBSP fine cracker crumbs
1 tsp. salt
Pepper to taste
Place grated potatoes in a couple layers of cheesecloth and squeeze
out all excess water. Mix everything together well. Drop by large
spoons full into hot oil and flatten cakes. Brown well on both sides.
I can eat these for any meal, any time of the day. They’re especially
good with cream gravy slathered all over ‘em! I get the slobbers just
writing about them. (Guess what I’m having for supper?)
This next recipe is one that I’ve been cooking for about 50 years.
What I like about this one is that it’s not only easy to fix but it
comes out great every time. It’s literally fool proof, and makes
enough sauce for yer taters too!
Steak Au Jus
1 1/2 lbs. Round steak, 3/4” thick
1 tsp. salt
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. pepper
3 TBSP olive oil
3 onions, sliced
3/4-cup hot water
Chopped fresh parsley
Cut steak into portion size. Sprinkle with salt and pepper; dredge in
flour. Pound to 1/2 inch thick with tenderizing mallet. Heat the oil
in a large skillet over high heat. Brown the meat on both sides.
Reduce heat, place onions over meat and add hot water. Cover tightly
and cook in a 300º oven for 30-45 minutes. Serve with pan juices.
Zowie!
I’d be hard pressed to put a number on the times that I’ve cooked this
dish in hunting camps or for family and friends. Whether you cook it
in a Dutch Oven over a wood fire or in your oven at home, it comes out
great every time. Sometimes I’ll throw a big hunk of butter in the pan
juices, stir in some flour that I mixed in a bowl with a little hot
water and make some of the most wonderful gravy that’ll make yer
tongue slap yer brains out when you’re eating it!
Well, I am definitely ready for some good, warm spring weather so I
can fire up my outdoor barbecue and cook up some good barbecued meat!
I hope you folks enjoy this spring as much as I am. Get outside and
start cookin’ the way God intended for us to. Namely over a good wood
fire.
That’s it for the April edition of the ol’ Bluegrass Kitchen. Meet me
by the cook fire here next month and we’ll palaver over some more good
vittles.
May God grant you all peace and health and God Bless America!
Yer friend,
J.D. Rhynes
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