I Fought the Slaw & the Slaw Won

In my opinion, nothing goes better with fish, ribs, and pulled pork than coleslaw.  That being said, I started shying away from slaw since many recipes are too darned boring.  You can practically get mayonnaise poisoning from many coleslaw recipes.  Not to mention, how much shredded cabbage can one person stand?  Then a thought crossed my mind; I’ll bet there’s more than one way to fix coleslaw.  Below are three different recipes for traditional coleslaw, along with four slaw variations that taste great but use little or no cabbage at all.

Man Cave Munchies Turns Ten

Image courtesy Pixabay

Woo-Hoo! Man Cave Munchies turned ten years old in January.  Thanks to all you man cave men and women out there who have viewed, liked, and commented on my videos over the years.  To make your viewing enjoyment even better, I've added some new features to the channel, I've published an interactive cookbook, and I've started a new YouTube Shorts series for 2023. Below are some new features to make the show even more man cave-friendly:

NEW PLAYLISTS

With nearly 100 videos on the channel, I thought it was high time to sort them into categories that made viewing even easier.  By scrolling down the main channel you'll now find everything from the most popular videos to playlists including Game Day, Thrill of the Grill, Italian, Best BBQ, Cajun, Cooking with Beer, The Boozy Bunch, Tex/Mex, Dessert, and Shorts.

SPEAKING OF SHORTS

I recently started a new YouTube Shorts series that features lots of new man cave-friendly recipes in a convenient 1-minute format.  Just like the original series, this season will feature some of my latest and greatest recipes that fans have never before seen that are taught step-by-step.  Unlike the original series, these videos are shot in a vertical format and are no longer than 60-seconds in duration.  Check them out and tell me what you think.

Man Cave Munchies Cookbook

What could be better than man cave cooking?  How about an interactive cookbook that showcases more than 100 man cave recipes?  The cookbook not only gives you the recipes, it also provides a QR code that leads you to the video.  How cool is that?  Chock full of cooking advice and amusing anecdotes that make it easy and enjoyable for any man cave man to make mouth-watering meals in the comfort of their own cave, the cookbook is available in both a Kindle and a paperback version.

Keep watching, liking, and commenting on all my videos.  Your feedback is appreciated.  Munch On!

South of the Border

When it comes to waking up your taste buds, cuisine with a kick does the trick every time.  That's why I long ago added south of the border dishes to my menu many moons ago.  The moment you put a forkful of  Picadillo into your mouth, your tongue realizes this ain't your mama's sloppy Joe recipe.  Over the years I've experimented with everything from Mexican and Castilian cuisine to Brazilian fare.  While all these recipes have similarities, you'll be surprised to discover how many differences there are between Spanish dishes.  I know I was.  Below are a half dozen of my favorites.  I hope you like food that is mucho caliente, amigos.

What's to Eat?

To a chef, the scariest three words in the English language are, "What's to eat?"  That's because when asked that question, a chef can feel kind of like a prisoner caught in a spotlight.  Unlike restaurants that have printed menus, when your friends or family suddenly decide that they're hunger is your responsibility and you hadn't intended to feed them, you're on the spot to come up with a tasty treat.  To keep your blood pressure from spiking when you're suddenly put to the test, I decided to dedicate this week's blog to guerrilla cooking, Man Cave Munchies Style.

Got Beer?

One thing that every red blooded American male has in his fridge is beer, right?  While you can drink it, you can also use beer to make a number of crowd-pleasing favorites that are sure to satisfy your guests.  Below are 5 of my favorites:

Is It Hot Enough For You?

While Fall fast approaches up north, here in Florida it's still as hot as blazes.  To help remedy that situation, I thought I'd focus this week's blog on recipes designed to keep you cool when it's hot outside.  Below are five of my favorite summertime treats.

Got Groceries?

Recently, a fan sent me an email to let me know that while he loved my videos, he was all thumbs
when it came to shopping for groceries.  He then requested that I take the time to tell him a little bit about the way I martial my resources when I hit the supermarket.  So, here goes.

You Don't Have to Be a Famous Chef to Cook Fabulous Food

One of the reasons I started Man Cave Munchies back in 2012 was due to the fact that most of my
buddies didn't know how to cook.  This meant they routinely trooped over to my house for meals.  What was even funnier was that most of them loved to regale me with what Emeril or Alton Brown had whipped up on TV that week.  My response to this was usually, "Believe it or not, cooking isn't supposed to be a spectator sport.  Instead of getting mad, I decided to get even by creating a video channel dedicated to showing my buddies how to make delicious meals step-be-step.  To make the videos even more appealing, I instituted two rules:

1. The dishes had to be simple to prepare.
2. At least 35% of them had to contain beer as an ingredient.

Season 7 Highlights

You may have noticed that after a 2-year hiatus, I've started posting new Man Cave Munchies blogs and videos.  That's because during the last couple of years the traffic coming to my website has gotten to the point where I could no longer ignore it.  Nor could I ignore all my viewers and readers who have been clamoring for me to add more man cave meals, not to mention put together a cookbook that features all my recipes. So, I listened to all you loyal subscribers and decided to resume production of Season 7 starting September 1.

How to Build a Better Burger

By Carl Weiss

ManCaveMunchies.com

It shocks me to see someone order a hamburger in a restaurant.  That's because most restaurants
charge anywhere from $9.99-$14.99 for one these days.  What's even worse is that most of those fifteen dollar burgers aren't anything to write home about.  So too are prepackaged grocery store burgers and fast food burgers that look as though they've been run over by a steam roller.   The bottom line is that one of the cornerstones of North American cuisine has gotten to the point where hardly anybody knows how to make a mouth-watering, stick-to-your-ribs All-American hamburger anymore.

When Life Gives You Lemons

By Carl Weiss

Image courtesy needpix

You're no doubt familiar with the  adage, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade."  Well, I'd like to make an amendment to that sad old saw.  Because when I have a half dozen lemons, what I like to do is make something much tastier than lemonade.  What I'm going to show you below is how to use both the rind and the juice from six lemons to make a creamy Italian liqueur and a fabulous icebox pie that's guaranteed to keep you cool when it's hot outside.

Is One the Loneliest Number When it Comes to Cooking

By Carl Weiss

Image courtesy Man Cave Munchies

I started Man Cave Munchies to help teach my bachelor buddies how to cook some tasty, basic meals that didn't require a lot of exotic ingredients.  Most of their refrigerator were either stuffed with half-eaten takeout containers or their freezers looked like the frozen food aisle at the Wynn Dixie.  In short, their idea of cooking was to nuke something out of a box when they came home from work.  When I asked them why they did this, their usual excuse was that it was too much trouble to cook for one.  My response was always, "Well, do you plan on eating for one?"

Who Says There's No Substitute for Success?

By Carl Weiss

Image courtesy Man Cave Munchies

While I've pointed out in past episodes that no recipe is chiseled in stone, what foils many chefs is coming to the realization that they don't have the necessary ingredients to complete a dish.  While there might be time enough to hop on down to the grocery store or spice shop if you've yet to begin cooking, when you're smack in the middle of preparing a meal only to realize that you're missing a vital ingredient, many chefs tend to panic.  Having been a man cave man all my adult life, I've learned that when push comes to shove, you can sometimes substitute one ingredient for another without anyone being the wiser.  Hell, improvisation is part and parcel of the man cave mantra.  Below you'll find my down and dirty list of substitutes that can save the day when you're midway through food preparation only to realize that you forgot something.

What's Cooking at Man Cave Munchies?

By Carl Weiss

Image courtesy Man Cave Munchies

After taking a 2-year hiatus from the show, I thought it was high time to finish what I started.  When I began production 7-years ago, I wanted to provide viewers with the one thing that I couldn't find on TV: a cooking show for guys.  With that in mind, I came up with a format that every guy could get behind.  Each episode would demonstrate how to prepare meals that were easy to make and that didn't require a lot of expensive equipment.  The other rule was that at least a quarter of the episodes were required to use the one thing that every guy has in his fridge: Beer.  Since the start of the show back in 2013, I've produced 70 webisodes that ran the gamut from burgers and barbecue, to Cajun, Italian and all-American favorites, including homemade liqueurs and mouth watering desserts.

Do Real Men Bake Quiche?

By Carl Weiss

It used to be said that real men don't eat quiche.  At least that was Bruce Feinstein's opinion back in 1982 when he penned a satirical book with that title.  It was written to poke fun at American macho stereotypes.  Bruce's definition of a quiche-eater referred to a male that might enjoy eating a piece of quiche, but would never think of making one, since that would be considered "women's work."  How the times have changed during the past 35 years.  Not only do real men now unabashedly eat quiche, they bake it with gusto.

Stew Crazy

By Carl Weiss

Image courtesy of Man Cave Munchies

You're familiar with the term Stir Crazy.  This week I went a little stew crazy when I decided to make 3 different kinds of stews: fish, beef and chicken.  The good news about stews is that they are not only real crowd pleasers, but they are extremely easy to prepare.  They can be made in a stockpot or a crockpot.  Last but not least, they can feed an army.  With winter right around the corner, you might want to bone up on some of these recipes that will keep you warm when it is cold outside.

Thanksgiving Leftovers

by Carl Weiss

Image courtesy of flickr

Thanksgiving isn't really over until you can't stand the site of turkey for another year.  At least, that's my opinion.  That being said, you want to come up with a few creative ways to doctor up those leftovers so you won't be forced to eat the same thing a half dozen times.  In the spirit of the holidays, I thought I would devote this week's blog to giving you some creative ways to convert those leftovers into something you will love to gobble up.

Don't Be a Turkey

By Carl Weiss

Image from Public Domain Pictures

With Thanksgiving only a week away, I thought I'd give you my take on the holiday.  If you are saddled with cooking the traditional holiday feast, you need 3 things:  A plan, patience and a whole lot of alcohol.  Seriously, cooking Thanksgiving dinner isn't all that difficult if you do it in stages.  By that I mean anything you can prepare ahead of time is a blessing.  This can include soup, sides and dessert.  This way you'll only have to contend with the turkey, the mashed potatoes and the stuffing on the big day.  Below are some of my Thanksgiving favorites.

The Boozy Bunch

By Carl Weiss

A funny thing happened when I was perusing the 63 videos on my YouTube channel.  I noticed that 2 of the top-10 videos on Man Cave Munchies were homemade liqueurs: Irish Cream and Double Dutch Chocolate.  At that moment it hit me...My audience REALLY likes recipes with booze.  So, I decided to up the ante by devoting the month of November to booze-infused recipes.  For a starter, I decided to give you guys yet another favorite homemade hooch of mine: Amaretto for $5 a pitcher.  (see the video at right) The great thing about making homemade liqueurs is that you can use the cheapest booze on the shelf, since the alcohol is more about function than form.  You can also control the flavor, since you are in charge of that as well. Add a pinch of this or a double dash of that and you will wind up with a whole new taste sensation.

White Guy Thai

By Carl Weiss

Pad Thai courtesy of Man Cave Munchies

One thing my friends have discovered about me over the years is that I am no one-hit wonder when it comes to cooking.  I don't know if that's due to the fact that I have lived in so many places in my life, or if it's simply due to the fact that my taste buds are fickle.  By fickle, I mean my palate gets bored if it isn't stimulated on a regular basis.  As a consequence, I can cook everything from Southern barbecue and classic American dishes, to Cajun cuisine along with Italian, German and Greek food.  But by far, the thing that causes my tongue to take a trip far afield, is when I add Asian elements to my repertoire.

Recipes That Are So Easy, They’re SCARY!

By Carl Weiss

Image courtesy of Pixabay

With Halloween right around the corner I thought I would share some recipes that are so easy to make, they’re scary.  By that, I mean that there are some recipes that require little in the way of cooking prowess.  These are no-trick recipes where as long as you combine the right ingredients in the correct amounts, you wind up with a homemade treat.