Stuff to eat. Mostly around St. Louis.

Spencer 4/6/16 Spencer 4/6/16

Gyro Nachos

I know what you just did—you skimmed down to the recipe itself and saw lots of text. "I'm not putting in that much work for nachos!" you say to yourself. Settle down. The nachos are almost an after thought here. The Serious Eats Greek-American Gyro recipe (link below) has been a favorite of mine since they published it. No other homemade gyro recipe has even come close. So a few weeks back, when I was in my nacho making frenzy, I realized I had leftover gyro meat and boom: gyro nachos. The first part of the recipe is how to make my variation on the Serious Eats gyro meat, which you can serve as is, or slice and freeze for future lunches and dinners. Once you add it to your recipe repertoire, it won't leave. The second part is how to take that gyro meat and make the ultimate gyro nachos, giving you all the tastes of a classic gyro wrap. Using pita chips would make them even more like the real thing, but I'm a sucker for salty corn chips.

You could also skip all the greens and chips and just cover your gyro meat with the harissa cheese sauce. I wouldn't judge.

Gyro Nachos

Yield: 4-6 | Prep: 1 hour | Cook: 5 Min | Total: 1 hour and 5 minutes

INGREDIENTS

HARISSA CHEESE SAUCE

(ADAPTED FROM SERIOUS EATS)

8 oz American cheese
1 c evaporated milk
1 T corn starch
3-4 T harissa

GYRO MEAT

(ADAPTED FROM SERIOUS EATS)

1 lb ground lamb
1 lb ground beef
3 slices bacon, diced
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
4 t kosher salt
1 t black pepper
1 t dried oregano
Pinch of dill pollen

YOGURT SAUCE

(ADAPTED FROM SERIOUS EATS)

3/4 c plain yogurt
1/4 c mayo
2 cloves garlic, minced
juice from 1 lemon
2 tablespoons parsley
water

TOPPINGS

1 c tomatoes, diced
1 c white onion, shaved
1 c mint, roughly chopped

METHOD

Make Ahead

Gyro Meat

Mix the ground lamb (Whole Foods always has it; or call Bolyard’s to order), ground beef, salt, pepper, and oregano in a bowl. Use your hands, so wash them first, you animal. Cover the bowl and put in the fridge overnight for best results.

Preheat oven to 300F. Take your meat mix out of the fridge and put it in a food processor with onion, garlic, and bacon. Blend until it becomes a meat puree.

Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with oil. Dump your meat puree (mmmm) on the sheet and form it into your favorite shape. Throw it in the oven, checking on it after about 40 minutes. The temperature of the meat should be 155F. Let cool for 15 minutes before slicing.

When you’re ready to use the meat, take it out of the fridge and slice it, then cut the slices into bite sized bits. Lay the gyro meat on a foil lined tray and broil on both sides until you’ve got your ideal level crispiness.

Yogurt Sauce

Put the yogurt, mayo, garlic, lemon juice, and parsley in a bowl and mix. It’s going to be pretty thick, like sour cream. I personally don’t like those heavy globs of sauce, so I thin mine would with water until it’s got enough viscosity that I can drizzle it off my spoon onto the nachos. Your call. You can also blend the sauce.

Toppings

Shave the onion (I use a mandolin slicer, but you can always do it by hand) and dice the tomato. Hold off on chopping the mint until just before serving.

Putting It All Together

Dice your mint so you don’t forget!

Cover all the plates you’re going to use with chips. Evenly distribute the meat onto the chips so that you get the most and everyone else gets nothing.

Put the shredded American cheese and cornstarch in a small pot and mix it up. Add the evaporated milk and cook on low, stirring with a whisk continuously. Once the cheese sauce has melted, dip a chip in and make sure that the taste of the cornstarch has cooked out. If it’s all good, add the harissa. Depending on how spicy you like things (and how spicy your harissa is—I like to use the hot Mina harissa), you can adjust the amount.

Pour the cheese sauce over the meat and chips, then put the onions, tomato, mint, and yogurt on top.

Spencer 4/16/15 Spencer 4/16/15

Salume Beddu

Update: Salume Beddu has moved into Parker's Table and no longer runs Saturday specials.

Refresh.

That's what I'm doing most Saturday mornings around 10:30 am. Sitting on Facebook, waiting for Salume Beddu to post their three Saturday specials.

I know I post about them a lot, but I like sharing what I'm eating, especially if it's delicious. Don't think of every post as a brand new review like you might see in the St. Louis Post Dispatch or Riverfront Times. Like you, I have my favorite spots that I eat at often, and it's for a good reason.

The cured plate of the day was a Smoked Spanish Paprika rubbed Berkshire Fiocchetto from Newman Farm, a sweet and tender cut with a hint of smoke. Not as buttery as other cures, but its wonderfully mellow flavor makes up for it. It was served with Red Fox ciabatta, spread with a thin layer of house-made Dulce de Membrillo, a sweetened quince paste. It's tough to see, but the back corner has Jacobs & Brichford's Everton cheese, a grassy Alpine-style cheese from Indiana, speckled with fresh pineapple verbena. Deliciously sweet bruleed pears and a lemon thyme granita finished it off.

Months ago, someone commented that when Beddu made polenta, I better get my ass over there and eat it. I listened to you, person who recommended it but whose name I can't find. Delicate pulled braised pork shank and the unctuous gravy parted the sea of creamy polenta, made with Cottonwood River cheddar. Oil poached green chickpeas and some chili flakes completed the dish. It lived up to the hype, especially on the cold winter's morning I went. I doubt this shows up too often on their spring & summer menu, but if it ever does, you should go get some.

Even for me, this was just too much for a Saturday lunch. This goes down as the first dish I haven't been able to finish at Beddu.

I had brought a Beddu newcomer, as well, so I made her get the bacon, harissa, and squash sandwich. Her life was changed that day.

Next Saturday, you need to get in your car and drive to a cafe near Beddu, like Pint Size, Comet Coffee, or La Patisserie Chouquette. Get something tasty to eat, whip out your smart phone, and start refreshing Facebook. You'll see Beddu's specials. Resistance is futile.

Salume Beddu

3467 Hampton Avenue

St. Louis, MO 63139

(314) 353-3100