The cooking thread

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

This thread deals with self created dishes.

It can include entrees, side dishes and desserts.

Actually everything you make in the kitchen.

Maybe you can inspire me with a few ideas what to cook in the future.

I have to improve my cooking skills and try out new dishes, because I'm still a newbie.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Mister IceTeaPeach

[Emeraldfox]

I'm so tired of pizzas and burgers.

This pierced my heart and made me cry blood, -sniff-

Hmmm, how about ground beef+rice with spaghetti sauce(diced tomatoes work too) and dump shredded cheese all over it.

It's simple, but I love it myself.

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

Well, I might make a pizza someday.

I guess he is only tired of pizzas in restaurant chains.

Yeah!

But I can't eat it for now.

Got it each week.

Too much!

I love noodle dishes (spaghetti, macaroni).

In general has the best kitchen.

Edited December 3, 2015 by Mister IceTeaPeach

[Naughx]

This pierced my heart and made me cry blood, -sniff-

I guess he is only tired of pizzas in restaurant chains.

Not homemade pizzas which are waaaaay better IMO.

You have way more control of what you can add as topping.

Edited December 3, 2015 by Naughx

[EricaofRenais]

How about pot pies? They are easy to make ( you can get the crust ready made at the store, or make it yourself) and you can add what ever veggies, meat and sauce you like, soup is also fairly easy to make, you just need broth, some type of pasta or rice, veggies and meat. I have lots of recipes and I have been cooking dinner for my family since I was 10, my advice would be to just keep trying new things and to look up how to make food you like online.

[Junkhead]

I cook since I was 12.

[Soledai]

Cook some meat dishes next, Herr Jules.

I'm glad you didn't fall into the pitfall of your first dish being an overcooked steak

Also, have you made a stew yet?

[Lord Tullus]

Well, there's tons of recipes for various deserts, home cooked meals, and foreign delicacies (where ever you live may not be foreign) at foodnetwork.com, allrecipes.com, and recipekey.com are all great places to start on the "big" meals. But if you want to do small stuff, the sites mentioned above may not be the best place.

Anyway, Cooking is indeed rewarding. It's even better if the end product is tastier! As for new dishes, there's something that my father learned that he calls "Frog in the hole". It's for breakfast, when you have no clue what to do with leftover taco meat.

you will need:

[for 1 serving]

1 Slice of loaf bread (wheat works best)

1 egg

leftover taco meat

spreadable butter

regular/nonstick frying pan, less than one inch (two or a similar one if you don't have a microwave)

shredded cheese of your preference [colbyjack is mine ^_^]

1 glass, cup, or any kind of small circular container (no larger than 2 inches in length, the edges of the glass/cup)

1 spatula, not metal.

directions: (assuming you have everything ready and within reach) Heat pan on high setting until pan is very hot. Butter your slice of bread on both sides. Set in pan. Immediately - With the cup, press face-down onto the bread quickly to make a hole, and set the "hole piece" aside on the pan to cook. Set cup aside or in sink. Crack the egg into the hole. If the pan is hot enough, the egg should start cooking rather fast. While the egg is cooking, have the other pan ready to heat up the leftover taco meat. If you have a microwave, microwave on high (1100 watts or more) for 1 minute and 30 seconds (re-heat later if necessary) By then, the egg should have cooked a decent amount on that side. Take off "hole peice". (y'know, like a donut hole? The side pastry?) Eat it if you like. It's not bad.

If you want to have the egg be sunny-side up, lower the heat and continue cooking on that side. Add taco meat and shredded cheese to taste.

If you want it over easy, lower the heat, and check to see if egg is cooked and white under the bread. Flip quickly. Once on the other side, add taco meat (re-heat if needed) and shredded cheese to taste. Let the egg continue to cook for about a minute: over easy is quickly prepared. Lastly, add anything else you want on it, and put it on a plate to serve. Enjoy!

Hope you like eggs over easy, or sunny side up. That's pretty much the only way this can be prepared, other than burnt eggs. :P

I always enjoy making it because It's fun to do. Tests your reflexes, and it teaches you to keep an eye on your food. It's a good experimental-starting dish, and I recommend it to anyone who can stomach anything less than fully cooked eggs.

[claire]

dump pasta in water and put tomato sauce

[Integrity]

cooking kicks ass

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

I cook since I was 12.

jealousy

I learned it way too late and only by a sad cause.

Cook some meat dishes next, Herr Jules.

I'm glad you didn't fall into the pitfall of your first dish being an overcooked steak

Also, have you made a stew yet?

Actually I'm too lazy to make soups.

I like veggie soups, but I hate cutting all the veggies. Seriously my least favorite part of cooking.

Honestly I'm no big fan of beef anymore, because of all the burgers I ate in the past. So I'm noot going to cook a steak in the next time. Prefer fish atm.

How about pot pies? They are easy to make ( you can get the crust ready made at the store, or make it yourself) and you can add what ever veggies, meat and sauce you like, soup is also fairly easy to make, you just need broth, some type of pasta or rice, veggies and meat. I have lots of recipes and I have been cooking dinner for my family since I was 10, my advice would be to just keep trying new things and to look up how to make food you like online.

What is it?

Never heared of it, probably because it's not popular in the country I live in.

@ Tullus

Sounds delicious.

@Integrity

Yo!

[Nihilus VI]

you should try cooking orange juice.

[Soledai]

Actually I'm too lazy to make soups.

I like veggie soups, but I hate cutting all the veggies. Seriously my least favorite part of cooking.

Honestly I'm no big fan of beef anymore, because of all the burgers I ate in the past. So I'm noot going to cook a steak in the next time. Prefer fish atm.

Haha, the way I cook, soup is the lazy thing to make.

Just wait until you start cutting poultry, then again, I don't cut a lot of vegetables.

How do you prep your fish though? And what kind of fish?

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

Fried in the pan.

I've made floe, herring and trout from the market.

Everytime with potatos and veggies (pies, carottes, spinach red cabbage). Haven't made a sauce for the fish yet, because I don't know which one to make. Always used remoulade.

[Parrhesia]

i literally got this recipe from a football manager lp

(don't actually put cheese in why the fuck would you put cheese in? I can't see cheese working with this.)

Inauthentic Panissa Vercellese

makes about 4 servings, depending on whom you are serving
½ lb. carnaroli rice
½ lb. cranberry beans
1 Italian sausage, not too spicy or sweet, about ½ lb.
1 onion
¼ lb. lardo or pancetta
1 medium onion
4 bay leaves
1 ½ to 2 cups red wine
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon sage
salt and pepper
parmesan cheese

1.) Soak the beans overnight (at least 12 hours) in a pan of cold water that covers them by about one inch. Drain; discard the water (or use it for another purpose).
2.) Chop half of the lardo and heat it gently for a minute or two in a large pan; add half the onion, diced. Fry over medium heat until the onion is translucent, about two minutes. Cut up the sausage into three or four chunks. Add the beans, bay leaves, sage, nutmeg, and the sausage chunks to the pot with the onion. Add salt and pepper. Add water to cover by one-half inch. Cook for about 2 hours on low heat, until the beans are tender. If the mixture ever seems too dry, add a little more water.
3.) Drain the bean mixture, retaining the liquid.
4.) In the same pan in which you cooked the beans, put the remaininglardo and heat it gently for a minute or two; add the other half of the onion, diced. Fry over medium heat until the onion is translucent, about two minutes. Add the rice, tossing it until glossy, about two minutes. Add one-half cup of the wine, stirring; stir until the wine is completely absorbed. Continue with the rest of the wine, stirring constantly. Stop when the rice is still very al dente but looks vaguely plump. (You may not need all the wine.)
5.) Remove the sausage chunks from the bean mixture and crumble into smaller pieces. Add bean mixture and sausage to the rice, stirring to incorporate. Add one cup of the water retained from cooking the beans. Cook fifteen to twenty minutes at a simmer, stirring, until the rice is cooked. Add more of the water retained from the beans if the dish looks too dry or if you prefer a looser texture.
6.) Remove the bay leaves. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve with grated parmesan cheese.

[Naughx]

This place should be renamed: "The cooking recipes thread".

And maybe ask Ike to pin it.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Naughx

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

This place should be renamed: "The cooking recipes thread".

I like your idea.

And maybe ask Ike to pin it.

But Ike doesn't like sweety dishes.

This thread can also include desserts.

BTW baking a cake must be a target of mine too.

Actually making donuts or muffins would be even better...

I haven't made any desserts yet except for fruits salads with yoghurt.

[Lord Tullus]

Actually making donuts or muffins would be even better...

Well, Carrot Cake is actually a muffin. If you prepare and cook it like one, it turns out really well. Mmm.... Carrot cake...

I remember cooking some for the folks over (american) thanksgiving. If you add Ground Allspice, Nutmeg, and a pinch of salt to the cake mix, (if you are not going from scratch) it makes the flavor pop out!

Then there's the white chocolate I put in the frosting. I don't know how I did it, but it turned out well! Original recipe courtesy of Chef Alton Brown. foodnetwork.com :)

[eclipse]

If you have a slow cooker, you can do this. If you don't, go get a slow cooker, it's basically a week's worth of cooking done in eight hours.

Ingredients:

- 3 lb/1.5 kg pork shoulder (you can get something a bit bigger/smaller, but don't go nuts and get a 3 kg pork shoulder)

- 24 oz. jar of salsa (the jar will look something like this size)

Put pork shoulder in the slow cooker. Dump salsa on top of pork shoulder. Set slow cooker to low. After eight hours, take a couple of forks and pull the pork apart in the slow cooker (it should come apart relatively easily). Set the slow cooker to high and let it sit for another 30 minutes. Serve over bread/rice/pasta/whatever floats your boat. Will usually make enough for roughly a week.

[amiabletemplar]

Jasmine Mushroom Fried Rice

Generally, I make a very large amount, as it has to feed me, two other people, and get used for lunches and snacks for several days after. So the recipe below is generally doubled.

1 cup (uncooked) jasmine rice

1 tsp chicken or beef bouillion (or one crushed buillon cube, or 1 cup broth)

1 cup frozen mixed vegetables

1 cup chopped mushrooms (about 4 oz. weight)

3 large eggs

1 bundle (a few ounces) green onion, chopped

1-2 garlic cloves, finely minced

Cooking oil/butter

Sauce components (explained below)

Optionally, 0.5-1 cup of your choice of protein: cubed chicken/beef/pork, browned ground beef, cubed firm tofu, or medium/small shrimp

Sauce components:

You can, and should, make your own sauce by mixing different things together. Some people use (frex) 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1-2 tsp sugar, and 1 tbsp corn starch added to an ounce or two of water. I like to use a combination of hoisin sauce and oyster sauce (which you can find in the "asian foods" aisle of most grocery stores), roughly 1 tbsp each. You can also use teriyaki marinade, or maybe even other things--perhaps barbecue sauce or Worcestershire sauce (I've never tried either of these myself, but they might be good!)

For the rice:

It's best to initially cook the rice a full day or two before you want to make the fried rice, as you want it to chill and dry out a little before you use it. However, I've made it the same day multiple times and it's still just fine. I've gotten very good results from lightly toasting the rice before I cook it like normal--this helps keep the rice grains firm and distinct; if you do so:

1. put about 1 tbsp of oil (or butter) in a skillet and put over medium-high heat until shimmery (or melted, for butter).

2. Add rice, stirring continuously to get all the grains coated and exposed to heat.

3. Watch carefully, turning the heat down to medium or medium-low if the grains start to cook too much (turning brown or black).

4. As the rice toasts, you'll start to smell it, and the grains should begin to change from slightly translucent to completely opaque white.

5. Once most of the grains are opaque, remove the skillet from the heat. Carefully, transfer the rice from the skillet to a medium-size pot that you can put a lid on. Go to step 3 below.

If you don't toast the rice (less initial work, lower fat, but stickier and harder to work with):

1. Put the rice into a medium-sized pot that you can put a lid on.

2. Add water to about one inch above the level of the rice. With one hand, stir the rice and water to remove the excess starch on the outside of the rice. Carefully pour off the water without letting the rice escape. Do this once more. The water should look milky the first time, and just slightly whitened the second time.

3. Add the bouillon and one cup water (if using actual broth, ONLY add the broth, do not add extra water). If you prefer wetter rice, add an additional half cup of water, but no more--you want this rice to be slightly on the dry side.

4. Bring the rice and liquid to a boil, stirring occasionally (especially if you used powdered/cube bouillon).

5. When the liquid has come to a good boil, cover the pot and turn the heat down to the lowest possible setting. Cook for 20 minutes. DO NOT REMOVE THE LID. The rice won't cook properly if you do.

6. Remove the pot from the heat. Keeping the lid on, let the pot rest for another 5-10 minutes. Again, DON'T remove the lid. This will prevent the rice at the bottom of the pot from being stuck and dry.

7. Take off the lid, and fluff the rice with a fork, making sure to separate all the grains, even those at the bottom of the pot.

8. Allow the rice to cool in the pot, stirring occasionally.

9. If you plan to make the fried rice later on, you can just cover the cooled rice back up and put it in the refrigerator for a day or two. If you want the fried rice immediately, consider spreading the rice on a glass baking sheet to cool and dry slightly before you use it.

Preparing the other ingredients for the fried rice:

1. Take out the frozen vegetables. Using a colander, rinse them with warm or room-temperature water to thaw. If you want to retain the most nutrients, let the vegetables thaw naturally (or defrost them slightly in the microwave).

2. Scramble the eggs in your preferred way, setting them aside in a large mixing bowl.

3. Put a large skillet (or wok, if you have it) on high heat, adding about 1 tbsp oil. When the oil is very hot, add garlic and onion, stirring quickly.

4. 10-15 seconds later, add the mushrooms, continuously stirring. They should release some liquid.

5. 30-60 seconds later, add your thawed vegetables, again continuously stirring.

6. If you're using any additional protein, add it 30-40 seconds after the vegetables. It should be pre-cooked, so this is only done to heat it up.

7. Remove the mixture from heat. Set the vegetable mixture aside in the same bowl as the eggs. Try to capture any liquid at the bottom--it will make a great addition to your sauce.

8. Wipe out the oil and detritus from the skillet/wok, then return it to the heat with another tablespoon of oil.

9. When the oil is hot, add the cooked, chilled rice. Stir quickly and well, to prevent sticking and to coat all of the rice with the oil.

10. When the rice is heated up, pour your sauce over the top, then mix in the vegetables/protein/egg. Serve immediately.

If you want to add some extra kick, consider adding or substituting other fresh vegetables with the mushrooms, such as chopped peppers, red or white onions, or celery. You can also add spices (e.g. ground pepper, tarragon, rosemary) or sauces (e.g. soy sauce, oyster sauce) to the eggs, or use unconventional proteins (perhaps crab, or barbecued steak), or make a "tex-mex" variation by adding beans and tomatoes.

Although the overall preparation can take a while, particularly since you want to have the rice and meat pre-cooked and you need to chop up any vegetables you add, except the frozen veggies which are already pre-cut, the rice will keep in the fridge for a good week or two if you store it quickly and keep it in a sealed container in the refrigerator. This also makes a great companion for any Asian-style meal; I often prepare the rice to go alongside a stir fry of some kind.

Edited December 6, 2015 by amiabletemplar

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

^ Nice recipes.

Tried out sth. new today: Past bake Hawaii (spiral noodles, cheese, ham, oregano and ananas)

Was delicious.

In general I'm a fast cooker. When I'm back from the uni, I'm hungry and want to lunch pretty soon. Cooking shall not take more than about 45 min.

I must think about sth. for christmas, but I think we're going to do fondue like almost each year.

No big fan of making duck or goose, because it takes tons of time and effort.

Edited December 6, 2015 by Mister IceTeaPeach