Downtown’s Late Night Eats

OK, let’s talk turkey or maybe not. I just had to say that because apparently I have friends that have gotten a lot of humor out of last week’s column. I have had a couple of calls from them to inform me that they took my turkey. Well ha ha to you both, even though somehow I fell for one of them. If you knew Mary C, you would have fallen for it too. So anyway I appreciate the humor and the call. I am a little bit allover in this week’s column. I just could not decide what I wanted to write about. Ah, so let’s write about a couple of things.

As we get closer to the big gift day I usually am looking forward to seeing all my friends and their families, usually at food gatherings. This year I won’t be here. Instead I will be in warm weather eating Mexican and, well, anything that might look good. I will be sure to write about that too. So what I do know is that like Thanksgiving, there are so many of our kids, age group 29 – 32 (OK, young adults), coming back and hanging out Downtown. What is nice to see is that there are more places serving food after 9 p.m.  After all, I do not think that group goes out before that.
We, I think, have got or at least are getting that uptown feel in downtown Fargo. It is just a treat to go to places like Monte’s after 9 purposely for their late night menu. Mike and I were just there, and although the meatloaf sand is off the menu, they now have tasty meatballs. They even have something Mike really likes, DUCK!  YEP, they have duck quesadillas.

Then there is Dempsey’s Bar offering some of the best bar food Downtown. They even have free food on certain nights. There we enjoy the Irish stew when they have it and, of course, anything that has the word dog in it.

The average bars Downtown do offer more options for food. I like that. I like that now we can get anything from sushi to Subway.

So let the feast begin up and down Broadway and through the side streets of Downtown. We might even catch some music while we eat too. 

One of the other things that is happening is the tailgating parties. I have seen more in this last year than ever. In fact, not that long ago I drove by the Dome and was really amazed at all the people set up to do just that. OK, I am sure this is so not new. But when sports is not at the top of one’s list it really is a BIG surprise. So I have a recipe here from, yes, the food channel, Guy Fieri’s. I thought that it would be OK to make the onion straws ahead of time. Well, enjoy the recipe and enjoy all the great places to eat Downtown late at night. I know we do. 
 

Sloppy Joes with Onion Straws

Courtesy of Guy Fieri, The Food Channel
Ingredients:

For the Sloppy Joes:

1/4 cup canola oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded, deveined and diced
1 red onion, diced
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/4 cup red wine
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups tomato sauce
3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
24 slider rolls or sweet Hawaiian rolls
For the Onion Straws:

2 cups canola oil
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 sweet onion (Maui or Vidalia)
Directions

Prepare the sloppy joes: In a large saute pan over medium-high heat, combine the canola oil, bell peppers, jalapeno and onion; cook for 5 minutes. Add the beef and pork; cook thoroughly, breaking up the meat as it browns. Add the garlic. Depending on the amount of residual grease, you may need to drain some of the fat from the pan. Deglaze with the red wine, then stir in the remaining sloppy joe ingredients (except the rolls) and season with 1 tablespoon each salt and freshly ground pepper. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. If the sauce gets too thick as it simmers, add up to 1 cup water to adjust the consistency. Toast the rolls and set aside.

Meanwhile, prepare the onion straws: In a medium sauce pot, heat the oil to 350 degrees. Whisk the egg and milk in a medium bowl. Mix the flour, cayenne pepper, paprika, garlic powder, 1 tablespoon salt and 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper in another medium bowl. Cut the onion in half, then slice into -inch-thick half rings; separate into short straw-like pieces. Add to the milk mixture to soak.

Once the oil is hot enough, remove the onions from the milk mixture, shake off excess and dredge in the flour mixture, 4 or 5 pieces at a time. Add to the pot and fry until golden brown; transfer to paper towels to drain.
Serve the sloppy joes on the toasted rolls and top with onion straws.

Until next week eat well and stay safe.

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