Jim’s Sauces
( I put recipes here on my website mainly to REMIND myself to prepare them. This following is so simple that it’ll sound stupid but it turned out to be so GOOD that I’m putting it here. I’ll take a picture for it next time we fix it. )
Just create a mound of hot mashed potatoes (we used Hungry Jack -- the instant stuff ) with a pool of melted butter or margarine in the center and then shake some Cross and Blackwell Mint Sauce over the butter and potatoes. If it wasn’t INCREDIBLY TASTY I wouldn’t have put it here.
Bearnaise Sauce (a quick version)
In small saucepan at LOW heat:
Melt: 1/8th of a pound of Butter (about
4 Tbsp. )
Add while whisking:
2 or 3 egg Yolks
1 or 2 Tbsp. Tarragon Vinegar
(this is made by putting dried Tarragon in a bottle of vinegar and letting it sit for several days to flavor the vinegar.)
½ tsp. Chicken Bouillon
IF the sauce curdles, add a tiny amount -- maybe 1 tsp. -- hot water, and whisk. IF the sauce is not thick enough, add while whisking, another egg yolk.
OPTION 1: instead of above and for more BEEF flavor add:
1 tsp. Knorrs AuJus powder
1 tsp. Dijon Mustard
OPTION 2: a slightly sweet taste that goes well with mild fish like Dover Sole is to add:
1 tsp. Current Jelly
1/4 tsp. Ground Cloves.
Krauterbutter (German herb butter)
1/2 pound butter or margarine
1 Tbsp. finely ground fresh or dried parsley
1/2 Tbsp. dried Dillweed
1/2 tsp. ground dried Tarragon
1 Tbsp. finely chopped shallots
1-1/2 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt
At room temperature, mix ingredients. Good on steaks,
bagels, baked potato.
Krauterbutter - More TARRAGON version
1/2 pound butter or margarine
1 Tbsp. finely ground fresh or dried parsley
1/4 Tbsp. dried Dillweed
1 Tbsp. ground dried Tarragon
1 Tbsp. finely chopped shallots
1 Tbsp. TARRAGON vinegar
1/4 tsp. salt
We like this version very much because we are crazy about TARRAGON -- Estragon in German. Note that salt and Dillweed are lessened to let the tarragon flavor through.
Jim Martin’s “Kitchen” Burger Sauce
In the 1940's and '50's Fitz's A&W was THE place to get a hamburger in St. Louis and Clayton. Fitz's was at the corner of Brentwood Blvd. and Clayton Road. Their hamburgers were kind of thin and overcooked and if they did not have this sauce they would have been completely forgettable.
Fitz's struggled to maintain their "C" rating -- it was a delightfully filthy place -- but their frosted thick root beer glasses, and the heavy clip-on car tables that would almost tip over a small car, the surly waiters, and the gravel driveway that we did donuts in were all part of the charm.
BUT -- they had the sauce that we all knew to ask for as "KITCHEN". This incredible sauce made Fitz's hamburger the ultimate hamburger! And I have just discovered how this sauce is made!!
"Kitchen" Sauce
NEW EASIER WAY TO MAKE IT (makes about 2 cups)
Put all the following into a blander and puree smooth:
1/2 Cup (8 Tbsp) Hellman's Mayonnaise
1/2 Cup (8 Tbsp) Chili Sauce (use Heinz only)
3 Tbsp French's Mustard
2 tsp Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce
1/3 Cup (6 Tbsp) Chopped up Green Bell Pepper
1/3 Cup (6 Tbsp) Chopped up Green Onion
2 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
Season to taste with about 20 "shakes" of the downward facing bottle of Tobasco Sauce
Then stir in -- don’t run blender:
1/4 Cup (4 Tbsp) Sour Cream
SMALLER QUANTITY: ONE CUP JIM'S "KITCHEN" BURGER SAUCE:
NEW EASIER WAY TO MAKE IT:
Put all the following into blender and puree smooth:
4 Tbsp Hellman's Mayonnaise
4 Tbsp Chili Sauce (use Heinz only)
1-1/2 Tbsp French's Mustard
1 tsp Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce
These next two items must be PUREED in a blender.
3 Tbsp Chopped up Green Bell Pepper
3 Tbsp Chopped up Green Onion
1 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
Season to taste with about 10 "shakes" of the downward facing bottle of Tobasco Sauce
Then stir in -- don’t run blender:
2 Tbsp Sour Cream
Dipping Sauce for Sticky Rice
"Sushi Rice" -- the kind that is sticky and holds its form on a fork -- is wonderful when dipped into a flavorful sauce. The usual sauce in Japanese restaurants would be the sushi mixture of wasabi and soy sauce, but here's a sauce that is much tastier. Put a couple of tablespoons of this sauce into a sushi sauce cup and lower the bottom of your fork that has a small bite of sticky sushi rice on top and let the rice soak up a bit of this sauce.
In small saucepan:
add:
1 Cup Chicken or Beef stock,
1 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
2 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce
2 Tbsp. Tarragon Vinegar
1/2 tsp. Sugar
2 tsp. Chicken or Beef Bouillon
2 level tsp. Corn Starch
(to thicken)
Stir well, then bring to boil
and remove from heat and serve.
Fresh Basil Substitute
You can't grow basil in the winter and sometimes the big leafed basil is even hard to grow in the summer, but I've got a solution. We grow a lot of basil -- both the big leaf type and the smaller type that has a harder leaf. The latter is often called Cinnamon Basil.
During the summer while these basil plants are growing we harvest the leaves frequently and put them into a blender with some olive oil. We puree the basil with the olive oil and then store it in flattened Ziploc Freezer Bags. We carefully push the air out of the bags when we freeze the pureed mixture and we have used these purees that are seven years old.
The basil puree can be used in the place of fresh basil in salads, salad dressings, sauces, pesto sauce and in the oil and vinegar dip that we use to dip French Bread into.
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Pesto (we LIVE on this stuff)
(to serve 2 to 4 people as the sauce on spaghetti):
All measurements are approximate. Taste this as you go and you decide what you like.
Thaw some -- maybe 1/4 Cup -- of the frozen basil/oil in a blender and add:
1 garlic clove
3/4 Cup grated Parmesan cheese (Kraft good)
1/4 Cup Pine Nuts
and as much Olive Oil as it takes to make the blended stuff the consistency you like.
IMPORTANT FOR MAXIMUM FLAVOR: when you run this in your blender get it to be absolutely free of any particles -- get it as close to the texture of grease as you can.
“Deglaze” Sauces for Pan-fried Fish or Chicken
Deglaze sauces are just what the name suggests: they are a way to deglaze -- clean -- the frying pan after the meat or fish has been fried in the pan. The sauces pick up all the good flavor that has been concentrated in the bottom of the pan and combine them into a great sauce.
Pour the deglaze sauces over the meat and the side item like mashed potatoes or sticky rice as in the pictures here to give yourself more good stuff to eat with these incredible sauces on them.
Tarragon Deglaze sauce for Chicken:
1 cup hot water
2 tsp. Dried Tarragon Leaves (crushed)
1 tsp. Chicken Bouillon
1 tsp. Dijon Mustard
1/2 tsp. Corn Starch
1/2 tsp. Sugar
1 Tbsp. Juice from a Lemon
Cavender’s Deglaze Sauce for Chicken or Fish:
1 cup hot water
2 tsp. Cavender’s Greek Seasoning
1 tsp. Chicken Bouillon
1 tsp. Dijon Mustard
1/2 tsp. Corn Starch
1/2 tsp. Sugar
1 Tbsp. Juice from a Lemon
Dill Deglaze Sauce for Chicken or Fish:
1 cup hot water
1 Tbsp. Dried Dill Leaf
2 tsp. Chicken Bouillon
1 tsp. Dijon Mustard
1/2 tsp. Corn Starch
1/2 tsp. Sugar
2 Tbsp. Juice from a Lemon
For all sauces use hot water so the Chicken Bouillon will quickly dissolve in the water. Then add all other ingredients and stir well.
Reserve the Deglaze sauce until the chicken or fish has been fried and removed from the pan, then pour the sauce into the hot pan and allow the sauce to boil. Stir the sauce in the pan and when it tastes wonderful then pour it on the meat and the side item.
Tzatziki Sauce
What is this Greek sauce
NOT good on? Well,
probably waffles, but on
darn near everything else
it is terrific.
If I had only looked up the English translation for “Tzatziki” I would have immediately understood how to make this sauce. Why? Because Tzatziki translated into English means: “Sauce made by standing on your chopped up cucumber while it’s in a cheesecloth to remove all the water.”
The biggest problem in making Tzatziki is getting the sauce to be thick instead of too watery. I take care of this problem by following the instruction inherent in the the name Tzatziki and by NOT putting the cucumber into the blender but after peeling it and cutting out the seeds, I just CHOP it up on a cutting board and then I wrap the diced pieces in a cheese cloth and then I put the cheesecloth “bag” of cucumber between two cutting boards and then I STAND on the top board and SQUEEZE all the water out of the cucumber. So,
Put into a blender:
1 chopped and dried cucumber
1 (5 to 8 ounce) container plain Greek yogurt try to find the least watery
type.)
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. sugar (deepens the flavor)
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill, or dried dill.
1 large clove garlic, peeled
Process in the blender until well-combined. Transfer to a refrigerator container, cover and refrigerate for at least one hour for best flavor. Flavor improves with storage.
Mint Sauce on Mashed Potatoes
JoAnne’s BAR B QUE SAUCE
1 cup white vinegar
2 cups ketchup
4 tbs. A-1 Sauce
4 tbs. Worcestershire sauce
2 tbs. Tobasco sauce
1 tbs. garlic powder
1/2 cup water
1 stick of butter,
or margarine
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
4 tsp. (1 tbs. + 1
tsp) cornstarch
1 cup. chicken broth, cooled
This is experimental right now. Copied from Google source. I had this at Cajun Steamer on sauteed fish and it was awesome (if this is the same thing). JM
Prep time: 8 minutes. Serves 4
I can not describe how tasty this
is as a dip for bread.
1 Cup Firmly packed fresh flat-leaf
parsley. Remove thick stems.
3-4 Garlic Cloves
2 Tbsp. fresh Oregano leaves, or
2 tsp. dried Oregano
1/3 Cup Olive Oil
2 Tbsp. red or white Wine Vinegar
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground Black
Pepper
1/4 tsp. Red Pepper flakes
Creole Butter SAUCE
Chimichurri Dipping Sauce
Jim’s All-Natural Turkey Gravy
Prep time: 5 minutes. Your guests will compliment you for using ONLY natural ingredients in this.
1 Package McCormick’s Turkey
Gravy
1 Cup Water
1/4 Cup Cabernet Wine.
Stir with whisk in small pot until well mixed, then boil until gravy thickens and alcohol evaporates.
Horseradish Sauce for Tenderloin
Ingredients:
3 Tbsp Prepared Horseradish
1/4 Cup Sour Cream
1 tsp Dijon Mustard
1 Tbsp Mayonnaise
1 Tbsp Chopped Chives or Greens of Green Onion