| Recipes |
| A Sampling of Suggestions for Cooking with AJ's Salt Free Seasoning |
| ***As with all recipes, use AJ's Salt Free Seasoning as liberally or as sparingly as you like. Remember, the more you sprinkle on, the more intense the flavor will be.*** |
| Lemon Baked Whole Chicken You Will Need: One whole chicken, 3-5 lbs. 1/2 white onion, diced 1/2 red bell pepper, diced 2 tbsp. garlic, minced 2 stalks celery, diced or thinly sliced Olive oil (lemon-infused olive oil is recommended for this recipe. If it is not available in your area, substitute regular extra-virgin olive oil and the juice of one lemon.) AJ's Salt Free Seasoning, to taste Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash and pat dry the whole chicken. Remove any innards if needed and discard. Coat the chicken with olive oil (and 1/2 the lemon juice if using regular olive oil) and sprinkle with AJ's Salt Free Seasoning. Combine the diced vegetables. Place a roasting rack in a metal or glass baking dish. Sprinkle about 2/3 of the vegetable mixture throughout the bottom of the baking dish. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil (and lemon juice) over the vegetables and carefully pour in about 1/4 cup water as well. Place the chicken on the roasting rack. If any of the AJ's was wiped off in placing the chicken in the pan, sprinkle those areas again. Carefully sprinkle the remaining vegetables over the chicken. Cover the pan with foil and place on center oven rack in preheated 350 degree oven. Bake, covered for 90 minutes. Uncover and baste with the juices from the pan. Bake for an additional 30 minutes uncovered. Chicken is done when meat thermometer is inserted in the center of the thickest part of the bird without touching the bone and reads at least 165 degrees. Serve with side dishes of your choice. Our family likes it served over rice (suggestion: Uncle Ben's) with a vegetable on the side. |
| Semi-Homemade Spaghetti You Will Need: 1 jar spaghetti sauce of your choice 1 package pasta of your choice 1 to 1.5 lbs. ground beef 1/2 white onion 1 tbsp. garlic, minced 1-2 serrano peppers, seeded and diced (optional) 1 small can sliced black olives (optional) AJ's Salt Free Seasoning, to taste Extra virgin olive oil, to sauté Heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Toss in onion, garlic, and serrano pepper (if you like), and sauté until softened and browning, about 5-10 minutes. Add the ground beef and sprinkle with AJ's Salt Free Seasoning. Stir until browned. Drain the fat from the meat. Add spaghetti sauce and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Add olives about 5 minutes before removing from heat. If you are in a rush, this can be simmered for about 10 minutes instead. The longer simmer just ensures a more blended flavor. Cook pasta according to package directions, and serve when ready. Add-in ideas: For more excitement, replace 1/2 lb. ground beef with ground Italian sausage and brown along with the beef. If your family likes it cheesy (like ours does), add shredded or grated Parmesan to the sauce while cooking. We also add Kraft shredded cheese (about 1/3 cup) shortly before serving. |
| More Recipes to Come in the Near Future!! |
| Carne Asada You Will Need: 2 lbs. flap meat, flank steak or skirt steak 2 lemons 1 white onion, thinly sliced 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped AJ/s Salt Free Seasoning, to taste Cover a large cooking surface with wax paper or foil. Lay out the meat in a single layer. Sometimes these cuts are fatty; if so, trim away as much excess fat as possible. Cut the lemons in half or quarters and squeeze out the juice over the layer of meat as evenly as possible. Sprinkle the meat with AJ's Salt Free Seasoning. Place the onion rings over the meat, and sprinkle the cilantro over the meat as well. For the next step you will need a glass dish or plastic bowl large enough to accommodate all the meat. Very carefully take the meat, onion and cilantro layers and place the pieces in the bowl. Once you have all the meat in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Alternatively, you can place the meat in gallon-sized zipper bags. To prepare, grill on a barbecue or in a large skillet. Serve in "steaks", or chop into chunks. Carne asada is excellent for tacos, burritos, enchiladas, or with eggs for breakfast. This recipe is great because you can make it ahead and freeze for a future gathering or home-cooked meal. |
| Hot Wings You Will Need: 2 lbs. chicken wings (you can use party wings if you like, which are already in "hot wing" style pieces) Cooking oil for frying (optional) 1 12 oz. bottle of hot sauce of your choice (we recommend Frank's Red Hot) AJ's Salt Free Seasoning, to taste If you chose to buy party wings, you can skip ahead to the next step. For those that bought regular chicken wings, you will need to "separate" the segments. This requires a very sharp knife and some brute strength. There are three parts to the chicken wing. Ultimately you will only be keeping the larger two pieces and discard the little part as it contains little to no meat. When cutting apart the segments, be careful to place the knife in between the bones or you will end up ruining your knife. A sawing motion is easier for cutting rather than trying to chop them (speaking from experience). Wash and pat dry the wing segments. The easiest way to season the wings at this point is to alternate layers of chicken and AJ's Salt Free Seasoning either into a large bowl or plastic zipper bag. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to marinate in the seasoning for at least 10 minutes, preferably 30 minutes. There are two excellent ways to prepare the wings for eating. If you are a fan of a crispier wing, fry them in cooking oil (we recommend corn oil) heated at 325 degrees for 15-18 minutes, depending on the size of the wing segments. Larger pieces of chicken will require more frying time to be fully cooked. If you are looking for a healthier version of the wing, spray a large baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Bake the wings in a single layer in a preheated, 350-degree oven for 60-75 minutes. Regardless of whether you baked or fried your wings, once cooked, toss them to coat in a large bowl with your choice of hot sauce. For a variation, you can toss them to coat in barbecue sauce. Serve with chilled ranch or bleu cheese dressing, and celery and carrot sticks. |
| Low Sodium Cream of Chicken Soup You Will Need: 1/2 c. unsalted butter 1 medium Spanish onion, chopped 2 stalks celery, with leaves, chopped 3 medium carrots, chopped 1/2 c. plus 1 tbsp. flour 7 cups chicken broth, homemade or low-sodium canned (see recipe on this page!) 3 sprigs parsley 3 sprigs fresh thyme 1 bay leaf 2 3/4 c. cooked, diced chicken 1/2 c. dry sherry 2 tbsp. AJ's Salt Free Seasoning (or more, to taste) 2 tbsp. chopped flat-leaf parsley Melt the butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and carrots and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 12 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, for two minutes more. Pour in the broth and bring to a boil while whisking constantly. Tie the parsley sprigs, thyme and bay leaf together with a piece of kitchen twine and add it to the soup. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in the chicken and bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Whisk the heavy cream, sherry, and AJ's Salt Free Seasoning into the soup to taste. Remove and discard the herb bundle. If serving as a standalone soup, sprinkle the tops of portioned soup with the chopped parsley. If using in another recipe, allow flavors to blend, preferably overnight. Soup can also be frozen for future use. |
| Very Low Sodium Chicken Broth You Will Need: 10 c. water 1 lb. chicken backs (use chicken backs or necks with the skin on since you will skim the fat off later) 3 stalks celery 2 carrots 1 onion 1/4 tsp. celery seed 1 tsp. lemon juice 1/2 c. parsley, chopped 1 tbsp. AJ's Salt Free Seasoning (or more, to taste) Put the chicken backs in a pot of water. Add vegetables and AJ's Salt Free Seasoning and lemon juice. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Allow to simmer for 45 minutes. Allow to cool for 15 minutes. Pour the mixture through a sieve into another pot. Pull any usable meat from the bones to use it in a soup or another dish, if you like. Put the broth in the refrigerator for at least two hours until the fat rises and solidifies. Spoon off all visible fat and what is left is delicious, low fat, low sodium chicken broth. Heat and drink as a broth, or use in other recipes calling for broth. Make ahead of time and freeze to use for later convenience! |
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