I don’t know why everyone thinks they have to barbecue on July Fourth?
Why not break the stereotype and make a delicious meal that allows you to enjoy your guests instead of standing over a very hot grill.
The following menu is easy to prepare, but requires a slow cooker (you can even plug the slow cooker in outside, if you have access to an outlet) and the rice is made in a rice cooker.(I plug my rice cooker in my outdoor outlet too.)
See the June 23 article in The Island Now for more information on cooking rice in a rice cooker.
The rest of the meal just requires washing and assembly.
Finish off this easy meal with store-bought ice cream and you have a new tradition for the Fourth of July.
No one will ever miss the hamburgers and hot dogs.
And, you will not miss sweating over the fire. Trust me!
Menu
Serves 8
Slow Cooker Beef or
Chicken in Lettuce Wraps
Rice*
Carrots, Spiralized
Cucumbers, Sliced*
Seaweed Salad*
Chili Dipping Sauce*
Soy and Sesame Dipping
Sauce
*Recipe Not Given
(NOTE: Seaweed Salad and
Chili Dipping Sauce are
available at Asian Supermar-
kets, like Shin Nippon in
Roslyn, H-Mart at various
locations or North Shore
Farms, various locations)
Slow Cooker Beef or
Chicken Lettuce Wraps
(You may easily make this
with chicken or beef, I made
chicken and beef to offer a
choice to my guests)
Cooking Spray
1 large onion, cut into
1/2-inch slices
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 (2-lb) boneless chuck roast
or eye round roast, trimmed
or 2 lbs. boneless skinless
chicken breasts
1/2 cup unsalted beef stock
1/4 cup lower-sodium soy sauce
2 tblsp Freshly ground pepper
2 tblsp brown sugar
2 tblsp unsalted tomato paste
1 tblsp white miso
1-2 heads of fresh lettuce
cups, cleaned and dried
1. In a large ziploc bag, place brown sugar, soy sauce and pepper. Add meat, and massage. Place in refrigerator and marinate for up to 36 hours.
2. Spray sides of a 6-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Layer onion slices in bottom of slow cooker; top with garlic. Place beef on top, and accumulated juices from the ziploc bag. Add beef stock, tomato paste and miso. Set cooker to high and cook for 6 hours.
3. Just before serving, shred beef with 2 forks and serve.
Carrots, Spiralized
4 Carrots peeled
1. Either using a spiralizer or a julienne peeler, cut the carrots into strips. Place in a bowl and serve with another bowl of spiralized or sliced cucumbers, and a platter of fresh lettuce cups
Soy and Sesame
Dipping Sauce
1/4 cup lower sodium
soy sauce
1/8 cup rice wine vinegar
1/8 cup canola oil
1/8 cup sesame oil
1 scallion, green part only
sliced thinly
2 tbls brown sugar
1. Place all ingredients in an empty jar with a tight fitting lid. Shake vigorously.
2. Serve alongside your meat and veggie accompaniments.
Alexandra Troy is owner of Culinary Architect Catering, a 33-year old Greenvale-based company, specializing in private, corporate and promotional parties. For more photos and presentation follow Culinary Architect Catering on Facebook.
