Cooking & Baking
Related: About this forumWhat's for Dinner ~ Tuesday ~ January 14th
I'm still only rarely eating a normal meal... so as usual I have nothing to post since my official "dinner" may be a handful of fruit, roasted veggies, or a bowl of cereal most days. I really just eat little meals spread out throughout the day night now, and nothing too exciting. It's easier to manage the pain, and medicine schedule, with more frequent but tiny meals. Plus our "dinnertime" is about 8 am on the morning AFTER you guys have had a proper meal. Get's confusing!
I did find two great frozen goodies at the store today - one is Gusto Bello Cafe ~ Salted Caramel Gelato. It is insanely delicious. The other is Kays Black Raspberry Ice Cream. Also wonderful. I have been being pretty good "treat-wise" lately, through necessity - not willpower, and my snack of choice has been fresh fruit, so the frozen goodies were a big splurge. If you have access to either, I really recommend them. The gelato company had about 5 other flavors AND a blood orange sorbet. We will work our way though those in the weeks ahead.
I hope you are all happy and well.
?
What's for dinner where you are?
livetohike
(22,163 posts)Lucinda
(31,170 posts)I love mushrooms but I haven't had any in quite a while. Your pizza sounds perfect! DO you make a sauce with that combo? I've fallen into the habit of making mine sauce free, with just a little olive oil and herbs. Yummy that way too.
livetohike
(22,163 posts)Lucinda
(31,170 posts)Mozarella is my last choice for pizzas these days. It's just too thick and bland for me, so I usually use a multi Italian cheese blend. I also love white cheddar and/or feta on pizzas.
cbayer
(146,218 posts)to a regular meal.
But I live with a normal person, lol.
I really don't understand the meat here and that became really obvious yesterday.
I bought what I thought was a beef roast and had the butcher cut it into 2 inch pieces. But after cooking it for awhile, it turned into something that I have never seen before.
The meat remained very tough and it had these slabs of white substance attached to them which was not bone or fat. Cartilage maybe?
I kept cooking it (in water) for another couple of hours and the white substance almost totally disappeared.
The meat, however, did not get a whole lot more tender.
This morning I chopped the meat up finely and will use it for picadillo. I think that's going to work, but I still have no idea what I am working with.
Anyone have an idea?
NJCher
(35,729 posts)RG might know. He travels to Mexico fairly frequently and is acquainted with their cuisine. I will copy and paste your post and see what he says.
I'm going out to the market to get sojme queso blanco, but that's all I need for tonight's recipe:
Squash-Stuffed Roasted Poblano Peppers
TJ's brown rice mixture to go with.
Cher
cbayer
(146,218 posts)Recipe sounds great.
One of the things I am missing (and it's a far shorter list than what I love) is a selection of cheese.
It may be that I can't really tell the difference. I go to the market and see all kinds of apparently different cheeses, but they all look the same and so far they pretty much taste the same.
I like fresh cheese, and that seems to be what is most readily available, but I see very little aged cheese.
And anything from the US is astronomically expensive.
Maybe RG has some guidance on this as well?
NJCher
(35,729 posts)Here's what he wrote:
This is an easy one.
All beef animals in Mexico are fresh killed.
Killed and eaten.
That is, the meat is not aged as in the US.
It has better flavor but can't be cooked much.
You need to like raw meat to enjoy it.
Yep, I'll ask him about the cheese, too.
Cher
cbayer
(146,218 posts)I like rare meat, but I prefer to know what part of the animal I am eating!
Anyway, I minced it for the picadillo and it seems perfect.
Thanks!
Lucinda
(31,170 posts)I love squash related anything, but that combo of flavors sounds perfect. I can't remember, have you made these before and posted about them?
First time.
Cher
greatauntoftriplets
(175,749 posts)Could it be goat?
cbayer
(146,218 posts)I have had some goat here and really liked it. But I think it was stewed for about 2 days, lol.
Anyway, I'm going to use it and today I am going to learn the names for goat, beef, pig and the various parts of a chicken.
greatauntoftriplets
(175,749 posts)I haven't liked goat at all.
Lucinda
(31,170 posts)Could be fun! lol
Picadillo sounds like a good way to go. So do food related language lessons!
She does that right here!
Yes, cbayer, it appears many of us are enjoying your dining adventures!
Cher
cbayer
(146,218 posts)pinto
(106,886 posts)cbayer
(146,218 posts)It has a deeper flavor than beef and it's working out great.
I think they call it chivo here because the goats they eat are the "kids".
Wish I could send you an empanada!
pinto
(106,886 posts)Have an empanada for me. Good stuff.
fizzgig
(24,146 posts)i usually only cook cook on the weekend, but that might change as husband and i are now on similar schedules. as for dinner tonight, i have no idea.
Lucinda
(31,170 posts)it really seem to cause me much less trouble eating that way. I am still getting used to our weird hours...it's almost 5 pm, and I am just now thinking about breakfast.
greatauntoftriplets
(175,749 posts)Yellow beans on the side.
Lucinda
(31,170 posts)with a big chunk of garlic bread when we cook spaghetti, but it sounds really good today!
greatauntoftriplets
(175,749 posts)I agree that it's a good night for it.
Lucinda
(31,170 posts)I'm either going to have a big pile of fruit, or a hot sandwich for "breakfast" in a few minutes. Bill picked up pastrami and corned beef earlier today, so I'm thinking Reubens will be on the menu soon.
greatauntoftriplets
(175,749 posts)Enjoy it!
Lucinda
(31,170 posts)and then just trying to ignore the pain and fatigue much as possible. LOL
I'm really trying to focus more on what I CAN do rather than what I can't.
It helps that I've finally got the tools that I need to be able to work creatively anywhere in the house, so if it's a bad day, I can still design, write, or read with my tablet, while curled up on the couch or in bed.
pinto
(106,886 posts)It'll be good for a hot bowl or the drained bean mix cold for snacks later. That blood orange sorbet would be a great finish.
Lucinda
(31,170 posts)it will be awesome sorbet. Rice and beans sounds really good to me. Haven't made that in a while! I have definite food envy.
B2G
(9,766 posts)will probably boil up some spaghetti too and serve with cheddar, sour cream & chopped onion.
I love chili mac...the kid, not so much. More for me. Lol.
Lucinda
(31,170 posts)Two of my favorite make ahead options. I've never added spaghetti to chili but i've seen it done a lot. Sounds like perfect comfort food!
Galileo126
(2,016 posts)pinto
(106,886 posts)Mine often turns out so so.
Galileo126
(2,016 posts)The basics are thinly sliced beef (I use tri tip roast), marinating in sherry, soy sauce, with a Tbsn of corn starch (makes everything stick). I do this an hour before I'm ready to cook.
The sauce: 2 T oyster sauce, 2 T hoisin sauce, 2 T soy sauce, 1 t sesame oil, 1 t minced garlic, 1 t minced prepared ginger.
4 or 5 green onions, sliced in 1-1.5 inch segments. Reserve white parts for the sautee.
Get the wok going on high, add a few T's of oil (I use the brand 'House of Tseng' flavored wok oil, which has garlic and coriander, but any high temp oil will do, like grapeseed.) Add the white parts of the reserved onions to the wok. Add as many dried chilis to the wok as you like. I break mine in 1/2 to releases the seeds. (Also, I use extra diced onions if I have them on hand, because I'm an onion addict.) I also add mushrooms at this point. Stir fry away until the onions and chilis until the onions just begin to brown.
[Note: mongolian beef is just that - onions, chilis and beef. I like to add broccoli and mushrooms to get my veggie fix.]
Add the marinated beef, but don't add any liquid from the marinade bowl. Stir fry like crazy, because the corn starch will make the beef stick to the wok. Add more oil if necessary.
When your happy the beef is done to your liking, add the green onions. Stir baby stir. at this point, I fold in some defrosted broccoli. If using fresh, add it during the onion/mushroom/chili phase above.
OK, now add the prepared sauce. Stir, baby, stir, for about 1 minute.
Serve over rice!
Hope you like it... it's my version of a traditional dish that has been augmented over the years.
pinto
(106,886 posts)There's always a 'Happy Beef' on every Chinese restaurant's menu.
The Mongolian beef recipe I noted was inspired from a place in Riverside, CA about 20 yrs ago when I was working in that city. Most Mongolian beef recipes I've had since are dry, dry, dry. (Lack of any sauce.) But the one in Riverside served it with a similar sauce, and over a bed of crispy & sweet rice noodles (sorry, forgot the name of them noodles).
Also too, tonight I'm doubling the sauce ingredients because I'm in the mood to have the rice soak up the sauce (won't double the sesame oil though, because that is some strong stuff!).
hobbit709
(41,694 posts)Red rice noodles, onion, garlic, straw mushrooms, bird peppers and shrimp.