Copycat Costco Chicken Bake----Eggroll Style

 I love the Costco Chicken Bake- their food court one, their frozen one and I have made it homemade numerous times too....I decided to throw it into an eggroll wrapper this time around!

1 lb Chicken Breast

Avocado Oil

2 tsp Italian Seasoning

Salt and Pepper to taste(I actually ended up using Kinder Smokehouse Salt and Pepper, which is smokey salt, pepper, onion, garlic and a touch of brown sugar so season away!)

4 oz Mozzarella, shredded*

4 oz Sharp Provolone, shredded*

2 oz Parmesan, shredded

8 oz bacon, cooked crisp and diced, (or about 1/2 cup REAL bacon bits)

1/4-1/3 cup caesar dressing

2 green onions, chopped

2 TB fresh parsley, chopped

* you can use all mozzarella if you like, or a premixed mozz/provolone shredded cheese.  (I used fresh mozz and sharp provolone** for an extra kick) 

Avocado Oil 

**I had NO idea that provolone came in "sharp" until a few weeks ago, and found that there is literally ONE store (that I rarely frequent) in my area that sells sharp provolone. My son had requested really good Italian Subs for his 22nd bday dinner, and while researching recipes with the best meats to use, one said SHARP provolone was a must......oh MY, they were absolutely right!!

Pound your chicken breasts to an even thickness, coat with avocado oil and season with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper(or your choice of seasonings)

I put mine in my airfryer at 380 for 15-20 minutes, flip halfway through. (I pull mine at 160 and let rest under foil for 10 minutes to come to 165)

You can grill, broil, bake, even instant pot yours if you like.

After it has rested, dice it pretty fine, then let it chill in the fridge for at least an hour. 

In a bowl, mix diced chicken, bacon, cheeses, parsley and green onions. Add caesar dressing until it is coated to your preference, some may want it drier, some like more sauce, but don't go OVERBOARD because you don't want to get your egg roll wrapper soggy. You can always use more caesar as a dip!

Roll the egg rolls up ,brush with avocado oil, sprinkle with italian seasoning and I did more of the kinder smokehouse salt and pepper

Airfry at 390 for 12-15 minutes, flipping halfway through 

Allow to cool a few minutes before diving in!

Pork Apple Cider Egg Rolls

 Another eggroll adventure! I found a recipe with  apple cider and ground pork, but the more I read it, it was definitely and AI created recipe, incomplete, pic didn't match etc....but I figured I could use the base and work from that! Original was sliders but I decided to make it into crispy, crunchy eggrolls!

Filling:

1 lb ground pork

1/2 cup apple cider

1/4 cup breadcrumbs

1/4 cup finely diced sweet onion

1/4 cup shredded apple*

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp ground sage

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

*the tarter the better, I used pink lady, I used about 1/4 of the apple, dunked it in lemon water to prevent browning then shredded it, dunk the rest of the apple and reserve for later

Eggroll wrappers

Extras:amounts to taste, just don't overwhelm the main filling

Sharp or Extra Sharp Cheddar, shredded (white cheddar would be great too!)

Caramelized Onions

Bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled

Reserved Apples, chopped small

Combine all filling ingredients and mix with hands until everything is just incorporated, don't over mix.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30-60 minutes to blend the flavors 

In the meantime, cook your bacon and caramelize your onions , set aside until you are ready to assemble.

Remove filling from the fridge and heat a skillet over medium high head, throw about 1 TB oil in there, (olive or avocado is the best ) and allow to heat.

Put mixture into hot pan and crumble like you would taco meat, cook through, stirring as needed, but try not to overwork it into tiny crumbles. 

Drain, allow mixture to cool, then chill for 30 minutes( or longer until you are ready to assemble!)

When it is time to assemble I prefer to just stir the cheese directly into the mixture (you want the filling chilled enough to not melt it immediately), along with the apples and bacon.

Place one eggroll wrapper and add about 2 TB filling. Top with caramelized onions (and other extras if you didn't mix the others directly in to the filling)

With damp fingers, trace some water around the edges of the wrapper and roll up starting from the bottom corner.

 

Fold in the middle corners, then continue rolling , firmly but not over tight. 

Repeat with all fillings, toppings and wrappers

Place about 1/2 inch apart and brush with olive or avocado oil. Airfry at 360 for 12-15 minutes turning once.

Cool for 3 minutes and enjoy

I made a dip with garlic aioli thinned with a touch of apple cider

Cuban Sliders

I made these a while back and loved them, but I had been having issues adding pictures to my blog. I finally made them again and got the pictures right! A little time investment but they are so delicious!!

For the Pork- Instant Pot

2lb pork roast (butt or shoulder, loin works too but might need longer cooking time to shred well)

Marinade:

1 small yellow onion, roughly chopped

1 whole bulb garlic (10-12 cloves!), chopped

3/4 cup grapefruit juice (fresh squeezed is best for the juices!)

1/2 cup lime juice

1/4 cup orange juice

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1 TB oregano

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

For the Crusty Cuban Slider Rolls:

1 1/3 cups warm water

1 TB yeast

1 1/2 tsp sugar

1 TB salt (yes TABLESPOON)

3 cups flour

Topping:

3 TB butter, melted

1 TB dijon mustard

1 tsp garlic powder

Remaining Ingredients:

Ham Slices to taste

Swiss Slices to taste

Chopped Dill Pickles

Mayo 

Dijon Mustard

Pork:

In a high power blender combine  all marinade ingredients except the olive oil

Blend until smooth, add the olive oil in a slow stream to emulsify it.

Make about 4 nice deep slices across the pork roast, not all the way through, but enough to open it up a bit.

Place it in a large bowl and cover with marinade. Allow to sit 4-8 hours or overnight if you like.

Preheat the instant pot to sear on high, add a little more olive oil. Remove pork from marinade and sear on all sides. 

Add marinade to the pot with the pork. And cook on high pressure for 50 minutes.

Natural release for 15 minutes.

Remove from the pot and allow to cool until you can shred it well.

On a foil lined pan spread out the shredded pork in a thin layer drizzle with pan dripping. 

Broil under high heat until it is nice and crispy, stirring as needed and adding more pan drippings to keep it from drying out too much

For the Cuban Slider Rolls:

In a bowl proof your yeast with the warm water and sugar

When it is bubbly add 1 1/2 cups of the flour and the salt. Mix Well

Switch to a dough hook and add remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time, Knead until it pulls away from the sides, adding a little more flour IF NEEDED.

Place it in a greased bowl and toss the dough to coat. Cover and allow to rise  in a warm spot for 1 hour.

When it has risen knead again and divide into 12 evenly sized balls. Put into a baking dish so that the are touching slightly. Allow to rise 1 hour more

Bake at 350 degrees for 60 minutes until they are nice and toasty on top

Set aside and allow to cool

When they are fully cooled , remove from pan and slices lengthwise without pulling them apart.

Assembly:

Place the bottom half of the rolls in a baking dish. Spread with Mayo and Dijon mustard to taste,  spread on shredded pork (you dont have to use it all of course), then top with ham slices, pickles and cheese. Drizzle a little more Dijon, spread another thin layer of mayo on the top half of the rolls and set on top.

Combine the topping ingredients and brush evenly over the tops 

Cover with foil and bake 45 minute.

Uncover and bake 15 minutes more.

Allow to set for 10 minutes then slice and enjoy

 

Smoked Buffalo Ranch Ritz Bits

 Tasty little snack I threw in the smoker with some other projects today!  

1- 8.8 oz box Cheese filled Ritz Bits crackers

4 TB butter, melted

2 TB Frank's RedHot sauce

1 packet dry ranch seasoning

 

Mix melted butter and hot sauce, set aside

Place the ritz bits in a pan (I used a foil roasting pan) and toss with buffalo sauce, then sprinkle on the packet of ranch and toss again.

Preheat smoker to 225 with a mild wood like cherry or apple 

Smoke for 1 hour.

Remove from smoker and allow to cool completely so they crisp back up.

ENJOY!

Hawaiian Pork Eggrolls

 YEP.....more Eggrolls!!! A spin off of my delicious Hawaiian Pork Burgers.   

1 package of Eggroll Wrappers (approx 20 wrappers)

Filling:

24 oz ground pork, crumbled and cooked, seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic powder, cooled well

4 oz Jarlsberg cheese, shredded ( or Swiss if unavailable)

3 green onions

1 TB soy sauce

1 tsp white sugar

1 tsp brown sugar

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp ginger paste (or fresh grated ginger root)

1/2 cup grated granny smith apple

3/4 cup crushed pineapple, drained

1/4 cup chopped red onion

3 TB BBQ sauce

1 TB Mayo

salt and pepper to taste

red pepper flakes to taste

Combine all filling ingredients in a bowl. 

Stir well and allow to mingle in the fridge for at least an hour.  

Place approx 3 TB on an eggroll wrapper, slightly dampen the edges of the wrapper, fold up bottom corner, 

fold in 2 side corners, 

and gently but firmly roll to the top corner, you want it somewhat tight, but not so tight they explode.

Put them in a preheated 400 degree airfryer and brush with olive or avocado oil. Fry for 5 minutes, flip v and fry 4 minutes more, working in batches as needed.

You can also deep fry these in a traditional matter if you choose, or even brush with oil and bake at 400 for 20 or so minutes, turning as needed. 

Serve with your choice of dip!