Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Bring on the Buffalo!

I'm a sucker for all things buffalo chicken flavored, so when I saw Rachael Ray's recipe for buffalo-flavored Sloppy Joes, I was hooked.

Sloppy Buffalo Joes Serves 8 (I halved everything when I cooked it - but still ended up with 5 servings!)
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) (I only used a couple of teaspoons so I could have some healthy oil)
  • 2 pounds ground chicken or turkey breast (I used turkey)
  • 1 carrot, peeled and chopped or grated (I used shredded carrots - I think I put an entire carrot's worth in there, but they were yummy!)
  • 2 stalks celery, chopped
  • 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
  • 2-3 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4-1/3 cup hot sauce, such as Frank's Red Hot brand (I used way more sauce than this - I like things spicy)
  • 1 cup tomato sauce
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 8 good quality burger rolls, split and toasted
  • 1 cup blue cheese crumbles (I just sprinkled a little -maybe 2 teaspoons)
  • 2 large dill pickles, chopped (This added a lot to the joes - surprisingly!)

Heat a large skillet with the EVOO over medium-high heat. Add the meat and break it up with wooden spoon, then cook for 5-6 minutes. Add in the carrots, celery, onions and garlic, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then cook for 7-8 minutes more.

In a bowl, combine the vinegar, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, tomato sauce and stock. Pour into the pan and stir to combine. Simmer a few minutes more. Pile the sloppy Buffalo filling onto the buns and top with blue cheese and chopped pickles.

The Verdict

If I had a regular recipe rotation, this would go into it! If you prepare it exactly as written, it's a mild, spicy-sweet flavor. I like things to be much hotter so I overloaded the hot sauce. I also upped the vegetables.

Prepared as is, it's a little soupy. I was busy running around and left it cooking longer than I probably should have. However, that was the perfect thing to do because the sauce thickened up and it was a terrific sandwich consistency!

Also, this is a boy-friendly recipe, as I served it to a boy and he had seconds. Leftovers...I swear it was better the next day!

1 comment:

Alise said...

Sounds fabulous! I'm going to have to try this one out soon.