Super Bowl eats: Recipes for a Southern classic and a taco twist from Denver

Important question: Has your stomach pledged a Super Bowl allegiance yet?

Here’s a good way to find out. We asked chefs from the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers home states to give us their best party recipes before their teams go head-to-head this weekend.

From the Carolinas, we turned to foodie mecca Charleston’s The Lot for Country Captain Chicken — a dish that weaves in curry with traditional southern chicken and rice, highlights the myriad cultural influences that the south has seen throughout its history.

“The story goes that it was a fusion of food that was brought over from ship captains,” explains Chef RJ Dye.

The Southern native says he goes the extra mile when he makes this dish, but offered this simpler DIY version for those who want to focus on the game rather than cooking.

And in Colorado, they brought us the beef — of course. Chefs Jeremy Kittelson and Daniel Asher of Linger in Denver sent us their Sesame BBQ Tacos tacos, made with slow-cooked Korean short ribs and topped with a simple slaw.

They utilize their plentiful surroundings (beef from Callicrate Farm and tortillas made from Abbondaza Farm corn), but adapted their recipe so we could make it at home.

Chefs Jeremy Kittelson and Daniel Asher’s Super Bowl Tacos
From Linger in Denver, Co.

Ingredients

5 lbs. beef short ribs

2 dozen 5” corn tortillas

Korean BBQ sauce (see below)

Cabbage, shredded

4 avocados

3 limes

Korean BBQ Sauce
Yield: Approximately 1 quart

1 ¼ cups Tamari (or soy sauce)
1 ¼ cups pineapple juice
3 tablespoons mirin
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup white sugar
1 teaspoon black pepper, ground
½ teapsoon Szechuan pepper, ground
1 anise star, ground
3 tablespoons sesame oil
4 large cloves garlic, peeled
1 medium shallot
1 knuckle fresh ginger peeled

Directions

1. Place shallots, garlic and ginger in a blender with the pineapple juice and Tamari and blend until smooth. Stir together all the ingredients until the sugars dissolve.

2. Marinate the beef short rib in the Korean BBQ Sauce for 2 days. Dice the marinated short rib to be ½” by ½”.

3. Put a large pan on the stove and get it very hot. Add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan, then put the diced short rib into the pan. Allow it to caramelize nicely while stirring it from time to time. Once it has a nice rich color, add the Korean BBQ Sauce to the pan and bring it to a simmer.

4. Allow it to simmer for 3-4 hours, or until the beef is tender. Stir it from time to time and add more Korean BBQ sauce as necessary to keep the beef covered. If you run out of sauce, use water.

Taco Assembly

Cut the avocados into slices and lightly salt them. Lightly dress fresh shredded cabbage with lime juice, salt and extra virgin olive oil. Fill the tortillas with the taco filling. Place a scoop of the cabbage and an avocado slice on each taco. Serve with lime wedges.

Chef RJ Dye’s Chicken Country Captain
From The Lot in Charleston, S.C.

Ingredients

6 skin-on chicken thighs
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
3 celery stalks, chopped
2 green bell peppers (cored, seeded and chopped)
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 (28-oz.) can crushed tomatoes
2 cups of chicken stock
3 tablespoons curry powder
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1⁄4 cup of golden raisins and/or currants
2 cups steamed white rice, for serving
2 bay leaves (to be cooked in the rice)
1/2 cup of toasted, slivered almonds

Directions

1. Sauté onion and garlic together in a couple tablespoons of canola or olive oil. When they get soft and translucent, add green peppers and celery.

2. Continue to cook on a low flame for 4 to 5 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes and simmer for an hour. Add chicken stock as the stew becomes thick to keep it nice and loose – silky is what you’re going for.

3. While sauce is cooking, sear chicken thighs skin side down in a hot pan with 4 tablespoons of canola oil. Rotate chickens in the pan after a few minutes to get an even sear on the skin. Transfer chickens skin side up into a 400-degree oven to finish cooking for approximately 10 minutes.

4. After 1 hour of low simmering, add raisins and/or currants and curry powder. Cook until fruit is plump, approximately 5 minutes, then stir in butter. Serve over white rice and garnish with almonds.