Stuff to eat. Mostly around St. Louis.
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
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.
Animal Style Nachos
St. Louis is getting a Shake Shack! Woohoo! To celebrate, I decided to make ShackBurger nachos—but then I happened to see a Facebook post talking about an In N Out double-double, Animal Style, and I changed my mind. If you're somehow unaware, In N Out and Shake Shack are the two coastal fast-food burger chains that people love because they treat their staff well, they don't buy disgusting meat and produce, and their food is mighty tasty. Here in the Midwest, we've got their fat, trashy cousin, Five Guys.
The main differences that I could discern from an Animal Style burger and a ShackBurger is the mustard-coated burger patty and addition of caramelized onions. Besides that, they're both just meat, bun, lettuce, tomato, "secret sauce". I know that the idea of cooking a burger patty that's been smeared with yellow mustard sounds gross, but it's vital for an accurate taste of In N Out. Even their own website says it: "a mustard cooked beef patty." So don't argue with me.
I have to say, I was quite impressed with the end result. It tastes almost exactly like a I remember an Animal Style burger tasting. I guarantee your friends and family will like you more if you make this for them.
Animal Style Nachos
Animal Style Nachos
Yield: 4-6 | Prep: 25 hour | Cook: 5 Min | Total: 30 minutes
INGREDIENTS
CHEESE SAUCE
(ADAPTED FROM SERIOUS EATS)
8 oz American cheese
1 T corn starch
1/4 t turmeric
1/4 t paprika
HAMBURGER
4-6 hamburger patties
yellow mustard
oil
salt
pepper
CARAMELIZED ONIONS
3-5 onions, diced
1 T butter
water
SECRET SAUCE
1/2 C mayo
2 T ketchup
1 T yellow mustard
1 T pickle relish
pinch of cayenne
pickle juice
TOPPINGS
1 c tomato, diced
1 c pickles, diced
1 head of romaine, shaved
METHOD
Secret Sauce
(Make Ahead)
Combine mayo, ketchup, mustard, pickle relish, and cayenne in a bowl. Add enough pickle juice (or water) to thin it out enough for easy nacho application. Set aside.
Caramelized Onions
(Make Ahead)
Melt butter in a larger, hot pan. Add onions. Cook until fond forms on the bottom of the pan. Add some water. Continue this for 15 minutes or so until the onions have really melted down into a spectacular onion jam.
Toppings
Dice tomatoes and pickles, set aside. Cut romain into thin slices, set aside.
Putting It All Together
Burgers
Heat a pan or grill. Season both sides of the burger and place in the hot pan. On the side facing upwards, apply a schmear of yellow mustard (I know this is odd, but it’s what In N Out does). After 3 minutes, flip the burgers. Cook mustard-side down another 3 minutes. Remove from the pan and chop into bite sized pieces.
Nachos
Cover all the plates you’re going to use with chips. Put the burger pieces over the chips.
Put the shredded cheeses and cornstarch in a small pot and mix. 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 paprika and turmeric (this is just for color).
Pour the cheese sauce over the burger and chips, then top with tomatoes, pickles, caramelized onions, secret sauce, and romaine.
Nduja Nachos
Cleaning up after making my hockey game nachos, I opened the fridge door to put away the jalapenos, and I saw it. Shining bright like a diamond was a log of Salume Beddu's nduja, a fiery hot spreadable salami. It beckoned me closer and whispered, "put me in the cheese sauce." I had no choice but to obey, and into the cheese sauce went the nduja. Within seconds, the pale orange sauce turned dark with specks of red throughout. I had created liquid gold.
This cheese sauce recipe, while simple, is just outstanding. Pour it over a burger or hot dog, dip stuff in it, toss macaroni in it; the possibilities are endless!
I quickly poured the cheese over the chips, took a picture, then devoured them all.
Nduja Nacho cheese sauce
I then sent the picture to Marco, the brains behind the Beddu, and asked him how he would make the perfect Salume Beddu nachos. His answer was simple: nduja cheese sauce, crispy potatoes, radicchio slaw, roasted serrano peppers, and roasted scallions.
The resulting dish could (and should) make an appearance as one of Beddu's incredible Saturday specials. It's got heat from the cheese sauce and serranos, it's got salt and crunch from the potatoes and chips, and it has vegetables, which I hear are healthy.
For those of you unfamiliar with the Calabrian nduja (nn-do-yuh), it can be found at Larder & Cupboard, Straubs, or Salume Beddu itself. Next time you go to Pastaria, get the nduja pizza and you'll really understand just how wonderful it is.
These are, without a doubt, the most beautiful, colorful nachos I've ever made. These are the kind of nachos you can make for your girlfriend's parents to really impress them that first time they come over for dinner. Nothing says "I'm an adult man who deserves your daughter" like salami cheese sauce.
Nduja Nachos
Nduja Nachos
YIELD: 4-6 | PREP: 1 HOUR | COOK: 5 MIN | TOTAL: 1 HOUR AND 5 MINUTES
INGREDIENTS
NDUJA CHEESE SAUCE (ADAPTED FROM SERIOUS EATS)
4 oz American cheese, shredded
4 oz cheddar cheese, shredded
1 T corn starch
1 c evaporated milk
2-4 oz nduja
SLAW
1/2 head radicchio
1 lemon, juiced
CRISPY POTATOES
1 russet potato, diced
salt
pepper
canola oil
SLAW
1/2 head radicchio
1 lemon, juiced
ROASTED SCALLIONS
4 large scallions, whole
olive oil
ROASTED PEPPERS
4-6 serrano peppers, whole
olive oil
METHOD
Note: I recommend buying blocks of cheese and shredding them yourself instead of buying pre-shredded cheese.
Crispy Potatoes
Fill a small pot with water. Add salt. Bring to a boil.
Dice the potatoes, then blanch in the boiling water for about 3 minutes. Remove the potatoes and set them in a colander to dry.
Once dry, you can cook them one of two ways: you can toss them in oil then roast in a 450F degree oven until crispy (about 20 min.), or you can put them in a hot cast iron pan with oil. You pick! After they’re done, toss them with some salt and pepper, then set aside.
Slaw
Chop the radicchio up into thin strips. Toss with lemon juice. Set aside.
Toppings
Put foil on baking sheet and spray with cooking spray. Place whole scallions on the sheet, then drizzle with olive oil. Roast at 450F until they start browning (5 min. or less).
Remove scallions from the tray and roughly chop. Set aside.
Turn the oven to broil. Put serrano peppers on the sheet and broil, rotating every few minutes, until the skin is mostly charred. Remove from the oven and put in a plastic bag for 5 minutes to steam. Peel the skins and remove the seeds. Chop, then set aside.
Putting It All Together
Cover all the plates you’re going to use with chips. Put the crispy potato over the chips.
Put the shredded cheeses and cornstarch in a small pot and mix. Add the evaporated milk and cook on low, continuously stirring with a whisk. Once the cheese 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 nduja. Prepare yourself for a foodgasm. Keep adding nduja until it has the spice level and texture you’re looking for.
Pour the cheese sauce over the potatoes and chips, then scatter the scallions, peppers, and slaw on top.
Nduja Nachos macro
An Ode To Nachos
For as long as I can remember, there have been two foods that have held a very special place in my heart: pizza and nachos. They both offer a level of customization rarely found in other foods, they're both eaten with your hands, and they're both cheesy. So cheesy. Plus, both have the range of going from very classy (Pizzeria Mozza) to borderline disgusting (Sbarro), much like myself. In my young chunkster days, the pinnacle of my nacho eating was at the Blues games. Those salty, kind of stale chips; the plastic, neon orange cheese sauce; the world's crappiest pickled jalapenos. I loved it then and I love it now. I know that the KielSavvis Scottrade Center has fancy nacho stands now with gourmet offerings like BBQ meats and olives, but I have no interest in those. I want the crappiest $10 nachos I can get.
I got a craving for these nachos the other day, and deep in the recesses of my mind, I recalled seeing a Serious Eats recipe for nacho cheese sauce. I knew that once I started making cheese sauce, I would never stop, but resistance was futile. Recipe in hand, I headed to Schnuck's.
I grabbed the first bag of chips I saw, a jar of generic pickled jalapenos, evaporated milk, then headed to the deli counter to get cheese. I asked for roughly half a block of American cheese, to the horror of the man behind the counter. He made me repeat what I was asking for 2 more times before he finally, hesitantly, chopped it. I also grabbed about 1/4 of a block of sharp cheddar, just in case I decided to class things up a bit.
I followed Kenji's recipe and was quite pleased with the result. My American cheese lacked the neon orange color of Scottrade Center's cheese, which was fine. The texture and flavor was much more reminiscent of Shake Shack's cheese sauce, if you're familiar with that. Thinner and milkier than the plastic cheese.
As I sat there, munching away on my nachos, I started to get ideas. Crazy ideas. Wild ideas. Genius ideas?
I will make a series of out-of-the-box nacho recipes that are sure to blow minds. I've been in the nacho lab for days now, and I gotta say, there are some awesome things coming your way. Prepare yourselves. These will be perfect as the Blues march into the 1st round of the playoffs (and blow it) or for some summer time get togethers.
I advise you start playing around with Kenji's recipe, as it will serve as the basis for almost every cheese sauce I make in the coming weeks. In the mean time, if you have any genius nacho ideas, leave me a comment below. Blow my mind. Things like banh mi nachos.
