What to do with leftover grilled meat??

Now that 4th of July has come and gone (are we really half way through the summer grilling season??) here is a great way to use up that forever leftover grilled meat. We all do this- overbuy proteins for a summer BBQ and then we are left with a plethora of deliciously grilled meats. Worry no more- this super simple recipe will kick up those leftovers and create a whole new meal! I made this recipe with leftover steak but you can add whatever protein you want in lieu of steak- chicken, sausages, pork, shrimp- whatever. It works great every time and you can eat this recipe as is, with rice, or with tortillas for fajita or taco style. It's super simple and can be ready in 20 minutes! I'm a huge fan of using leftovers and this recipe is perfect! 

Grilled Meat Makeover 

Fridge 

3-4 cups of leftover protein sliced thin or in bite size pieces - steak, chicken, shrimp, sausage, pork, etc.

1 medium green pepper, julienned 

1 medium red pepper, julienned 

3 tbs cilantro, minced 

1/2 jalapeño, deseeded and minced 

Freezer

1 cup of frozen corn- if you have fresh cooked corn- even better 

Counter

3 garlic cloves, minced 

1 cup (10-15) grape or small cherry tomatoes 

1 cup red or yellow onion, sliced thin 

Juice of 1 lime (about 3-4 tbs) 

Pantry

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp dried oregano 

1 tsp cumin 

1/2 tsp fresh pepper or to taste 

1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes or hot sauce (optional) 

2 tbs olive or canola oil 

Tools

Cutting board 

Chopping knife

Measuring cups and spoons 

Wooden spoon 

Large high-sided sauté pan or wok 

Heat your sauté pan or wok over medium high heat. Add oil and allow a minute to heat up. 

Throw the onions into the pan and allow to cool for a minute or two. Add the minced garlic and oregano and sauté for another 30 seconds before adding both colored peppers and minced jalapeño. Cook while stirring occasionally for a 3-4 minutes. 

Add the frozen or cooked fresh corn, protein of your choice, cumin, salt and pepper. Continue cooking for a couple minutes. Then take each small cherry or grape tomato and squeeze them individually into the pan before throwing them in. You want their juices to coat the dish. 

Squeeze the fresh lime juice into the pan and add the minced cilantro and hot sauce or red chili flakes if you're using. Cook for another two minutes, stirring occassionally and then remove from heat. 

Serve right away with whatever side you chose. I ate mine fajita-style with sour cream and avocado and it was delicious!! 

Enjoy! Xo

Simple BBQ Sauce

Summer is for BBQ sauce. Well for grilling really- but have you tried to grill and watch a 14-month old? I don't know if that's actually possible. 

This simple BBQ sauce recipe is my base recipe for all my BBQ sauce recipes. I use it for a marinade, to sauce up my grilled meats, for pulled pork sandwiches, for my tex-mex tacos- for whatever! You can use this base recipe and cook it with fruit to make fruit BBQ sauces. It's very versatile. 

This week I used this recipe as a marinade and to bake the kids chicken tenders in. I would have grilled the chicken but revert back to my first paragraph- not possible to grill and make sure the baby isn't diving off the couch head first. 

BBQ Sauce

Fridge:

3/4 cup ketchup 

3 tbs maple syrup

Counter:

Juice of 1/2 lemon 

1 garlic clove minced

Pantry:

2 tsp Wostershire sauce 

4 tbs brown sugar 

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar (you can substitute white vinegar)

Pinch of red pepper flakes 

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper 

Tools:

Mixing bowl

Whisk 

Add all the ingredients to the bowl and whisk together. This can keep in the fridge for a week. For a thicker sauce you can simmer this on low for 5-10 minutes until your desired thickness. 

I poured this over 1.5 lbs of chicken tenders and marinated it in the fridge for 2 hours. I poured the marinade and chicken into a casserole dish and added 1/2 of a medium yellow onion sliced. I covered the dish with aluminum foil and baked for 20 minutes covered at 350. I removed foil and cooked for another 15 minutes uncovered. 

The kids loved it!! See below: it wasn't possible for Charlie to stuff more chicken in his mouth and yes I take his shirt off for messy food.