Sweet And Spicy Sausage Ragu Nachos With Pickled Onions Recipes

SWEET AND SPICY ONION RELISH

Steps:

• Peel the onions, cut in half and slice into 1-inch pieces. Add the onions and the vegetable oil to a large saucepan, over medium-low heat, and saute until soft. Stir in the black pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, garlic and brown sugar until incorporated. Add half of the root beer and let reduce until starting to get thick. Stir in the remaining root beer and continue to reduce until the liquid is almost completely evaporated.
• Serve on top of good quality, natural casing hot dogs with a good brown mustard and a little mayonnaise, to taste.

SPICY SAUSAGE RAGU NACHOS WITH PICKLED ONIONS

Steps:

• Make the ragu: Put the garlic, celery, onions and fennel in a food processor and puree to make a coarse paste. Coat a wide, deep pan with the olive oil and put over medium-high heat. Add the pureed veggies and season with salt; cook until all the liquid has evaporated and the veggies begin to stick to the pan-you want to brown the crap out of these guys until crud starts to form on the bottom of the pan. Stir occasionally to scrape up the browned bits, then let the crud form again. Be patient here and don't rush it: This is where the big flavor develops; it will take up to 30 minutes.
• When the lovely brown crud has formed and been scraped down a couple of times, stir in the tomato paste. Let it start to brown a little, stirring, 2 to 3 minutes. There's not much liquid at this point to keep things from burning, so move fast: Add the wine, stir to combine and scrape up any remaining browned bits. Cook until about half of the wine has evaporated, 4 to 5 minutes.
• Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until browned, 10 to 15 minutes. (This is where another round of big flavor is formed, so take your time.)
• Add enough water to cover the meat by about 1/2 inch. Stir to combine well, then add the bay leaves and thyme bundle. Taste, season with salt and taste again; it's by no means done, but it should taste good. Bring the sauce to a boil (BTB) and reduce to a simmer (RTS). Continue cooking for 3 hours, tasting, seasoning and adding more water as needed. Discard the bay leaves and thyme.
• Meanwhile, make the pickled onions: Combine the vinegar, 1/2 cup cold water, the sugar, 1 tablespoon salt and the hot sauce in a bowl. Add the sliced onion and let sit, at least 1 hour. Drain.
• Assemble the nachos: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread a layer of tortilla chips on an ovenproof platter. Top with a layer of the ragu and cover with the parmigiano and fontina cheeses. Bake until the cheeses melt, 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the chopped chipotle, adobo sauce and mascarpone in a bowl. Sprinkle the arugula over the nachos and finish with dollops of the chipotle mascarpone and the pickled onions. A gooey cheesy treat. Delish.

SALMON SASHIMI WITH PICKLED ONIONS

Steps:

• In a saute pan, over high heat, add the sugar, onions and water, and cook until the sugar has dissolved. Reduce the heat to medium, add the ginger, salt, balsamic, and red and rice wine vinegars. Cook until the liquid has reduced by 80 percent (1/4 cup), about 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from the heat to a bowl and stir in the wasabi paste. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours, allowing flavors to combine.
• Put the salmon on a flat surface, and drizzle with grapeseed oil. Combine the ginger, panko, and salt and pepper, to taste, in a small bowl. Generously sprinkle the tops of the salmon with the panko crust, spreading evenly. Add the remaining grapeseed oil to a large saute pan and when smoking, put the salmon into pan, crusted side down. Turn the heat off and allow the crust to brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the salmon from the pan to a cutting board.
• With a sharp knife, slice the salmon from top to bottom on a bias, 20 degree angle, then portion pickled onion onto serving plates. Top with sliced salmon and garnish with chives.

SWEET AND SPICY SAUSAGE RAGU NACHOS WITH PICKLED ONIONS

Steps:

• For the ragu: Put the garlic, celery, onions and fennel in a food processor and puree to a coarse paste.
• Coat a wide, deep pan with olive oil. Add the pureed veggies, season with salt and bring to medium-high heat. Cook the veggies until all the liquid has evaporated and they begin to stick to the pan - you want to brown the crap out of these guys until crud starts to form on the bottom of the pan. Stir occasionally to scrape up the brown bits, and then let the crud form again. Be patient here and don't rush it, this is where the big flavor develops; it will take up to 30 minutes.
• When the lovely brown crud has formed and been scraped down a couple of times, add the tomato paste, stirring to combine. Let it start to brown a little and continue stirring for 2 to 3 minutes. There's not much liquid at this point to keep things from burning, so be careful and move fast. Add the wine, stir to combine and scrape up any remaining brown bits. Cook until about half the wine has evaporated, 4 to 5 minutes.
• Add both the spicy and sweet sausage and, using a spoon to break it up, cook until the meat is brown (this is where another round of big brown flavors is formed, so take your time), 10 to 15 minutes.
• Add enough water to the pan to cover the meat by about 1/2-inch. Stir to combine well, and then add the bay leaves and thyme bundle. Taste, season with salt and taste again; it's by no means done, but it should taste good. Bring the sauce to a boil (BTB) and reduce to a simmer (RTS). Continue cooking, checking occasionally, for 3 hours, tasting, seasoning and adding more water as needed.
• For the pickled onions: In a medium bowl, combine the red wine vinegar with 1/2 cup cold tap water. Stir in the sugar, salt and hot sauce.
• Add the sliced onions and let sit for at least 1 hour. To assemble: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. On a large platter, spread out a layer of tortilla chips. Spoon a layer of the ragu over the chips. Cover with a layer of Parmigianino and fontina cheeses. Place in the oven until the cheese melts, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Remove from the oven, sprinkle a layer of arugula over the top and finish with a large dollop of mascarpone cheese. A gooey cheesy treat. Delish.