September 24, 2001

9:30 AM

Thanks to FoodTV and online recipe sources, it seems like more of us are cooking (and more of those who do cook are even cooking well)...
Inspired by that (and the popularity of the beer and liquor threads) I thought we ought to move on to food:
What's your favorite recipe?
(My ceviche inside)
posted by Jako (73 comments total)

Just to get things started... I'm really interested to see what pops up.

Jako's Fruit Ceviche

This will make A LOT... enough for at least 6 normal people... 4 if you have to feed my roommate...

Measurements are iffy at best... I cook by feel...

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lb. of super fresh fish, cubed
  It needs to have some body to it, too. For instance, I used 1 lb. of scrod and 0.5 lb of swordfish and it turned out great.
  Other options include sea bass, scallops, tuna, conch... and so on.
• 3 largish limes, juice of
• 1 large lemon, juice of
• Maybe ½ cup orange juice or better yet 1 medium orange, juice of
• 2 large cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium habañero pepper, minced
  Please! Remember the habañero is one of the hottest peppers known to mankind. WASH YOUR HANDS WELL after you handle the pepper. Alcohol helps get the capsaicin off your hands, too.
• 1 Santa Fe Grande pepper, diced
  Any pepper with some sweetness and a bit of heat is good. I've rarely seen these labeled at the grocery. They usually look like red jalepeños.
• 1 onion, diced
  The type of onion is a personal preference. I used a plain yellow onion, but a red onion or a sweet Vidalia would have been great.
• 1 mango, cubed
  
• 1 avocado, cubed (similarly)
• 3 plum tomatoes, diced
• 1 can of pineapple slices, chunked or better yet ½ of a fresh pineapple, chunked
• Salt to taste
• Dried pepper flakes to taste

Directions:

1. Place fish cubes in a large glass bowl (glass is definitely preferred, considering we're working with fish and acid), lightly salting and sprinkling with pepper flakes.


2. Add garlic and habañero, fold to distribute evenly.


3. Cover the fish with citrus juices. Stir the fish gently to make sure there aren't any dry spots / air bubbles.


4. Refrigerate and let stand for at least 4 hours.
   
   (I left mine for almost 20 hours as a matter of convenience.)


5. Strain fish in a colander. Let stand while preparing fruit, etc. to drain excess liquid.


6. Mix all other ingredients in a large bowl. Add the fish. Stir/fold gently.
   
   (The avocado will dissolve to varying degrees, depending on how ripe it is... Be gentle to keep this to a minimum.)


7. Put it back in the fridge until you're ready to serve.
   
   (Just long enough to make sure it's nice an cool is good)


8. Serve with tortilla chips (I baked my own.) and sangria.

OK, OK... I know the idea of fish being "cooked" by citrus juice may seem strange, but it really works. You'll be amazed.
posted by Jako at 9:31 AM on September 24, 2001

Beans on toast, mate. Beans. On. Toast.
posted by Jofus at 9:34 AM on September 24, 2001

My GF just got her grandma's beanpot (Yes, she's from Boston) - homemade baked beans are insanely good.
posted by Jako at 9:37 AM on September 24, 2001

Baby spinach, blue cheese, walnuts, pears, balsamic vinegar. Best dang salad ever.
posted by jennyjenny at 9:50 AM on September 24, 2001

Spinach salad reminds me of how much I love Greek Pizza from one of the Moosewood cookbooks.

mmmmmmm....spinachy.
posted by donnagirl at 9:54 AM on September 24, 2001

my classic fave: Kraft Macaroni & Cheese with peas and hot dogs (sliced up). Num num num.

my faster, non-dairy, vegetarian alternative: white rice, black beans, sauteed red pepper and fresh corn sliced off the cob. Stir together with hot sause of choice and bbq sauce. Mmmmmm.
posted by o2b at 9:55 AM on September 24, 2001

i have a feeling i'll be bookmarking this thread.
posted by o2b at 10:00 AM on September 24, 2001

Stew for Two

1/2 cubed beef stewing meat (or?)
1/2 onion, diced
4 to 6 garlic cloves, crushed
Saute in dutch oven until beef is browned, then add
4 liberal shakes of soy sauce
2 sliced carrots

2 sliced celery sticks
2 potatoes, unpeeled, cut into large cubes
2 or 3 C. water
1 beef bouillion cube
black pepper
Cover and simmer over medium low heat for about 15 mins.
Top with dumplings:
1-1/2 c. flour
1-1/2 T. baking powder
2 T. canola oil
2 dashes salt
Stir in enough water to moisten, about 1/2 C.
Drop by spoonfuls atop bubbling stew, recover and simmer for another 15 min. It's cold in the SF Bay Area today and this makes a nice cold-weather dish!
posted by Lynsey at 10:04 AM on September 24, 2001

I'm a big fan of Guinness cake. It has a wonderful combination of slight bitterness mixed with spice. Boys seem to like it, too.
posted by acornface at 10:09 AM on September 24, 2001

Plain brown rice.
posted by skwm at 10:18 AM on September 24, 2001

i don't know if i can come up with an absolute favorite..but speaking of food tv, i just made some pork & ginger dumplings i found the recipe for on foodtv.com..they took forever to make (rolling out the dumpling skins by hand took a really long time, as did actually forming the dumplings) but they weren't too difficult, and they were delicious.
posted by chacal at 10:25 AM on September 24, 2001

Here's my favorite emergency, one-pot, damn-fast recipe-that-actually-tastes-like-real-food dish:

- Sliced onion in frying pan with oil.
- Add whatever fresh veggies you have in the fridge and think might work.
- Add frozen corn.
- Add can (14.5 ounces) of diced tomatoes -- best is the ones with seasoning you get from most big supermarkets.
- Add can of garbanzos (chick peas) (drained).
- Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, and/or seasoning blend.

Cook to taste -- you can eat it as soon as it's hot.

This takes like 10 minutes, if you know what you're doing, and is very satisfying, somehow.... But then, I guess I kindah like garbanzos.
posted by mattpfeff at 10:34 AM on September 24, 2001

welsh rarebit - easy style

toast 2* thick sliced bread
spread with mustard of your choice
meanwhile (i always hate it when the say that in recipes, and now i've done it myself)
fry a couple of eggs in butter, i like them with runny yokes.
grate some cheddar (monteray jack) cheese
(you'll probably want tin-foil on the grill - to catch cheese)
put the fried eggs yoke side down on the mustard-toast,
cheese ontop.
grill on a high setting until cheese at required goopiness.

eat with parsely garnish.
gestate.

undertake 1 - 2 hours of strenuous cardio-vascular excercise (optional) to remind body it can move and dislodge any newly formed blockages in arteries.

NB. this is not a jamie oliver recipe. see, anyone can do it!
posted by asok at 10:39 AM on September 24, 2001

jambalaya, jambalaya, jambalaya!

I would post a recipe, but I make it different every time. Sautee some veggies, throw in some chopped tomatoes and bouillon (chicken or veggie, depending on your lifestyle), add meat if you wish (Andouille sausage if you're goin' native), throw in some rice, and simmer. Make as hot or as mild as you want. Mmm, mmm!
posted by starvingartist at 10:42 AM on September 24, 2001

eat with parsely garnish.
gestate.

Is there something you're not telling us about the preparation/use of this particular dish?
posted by gleuschk at 10:44 AM on September 24, 2001

My favourite dish to cook - and, judging from the number of requests I get for the recipe, my guests' favourite dish of mine to eat - is

Pad Thai

Ingredients (the *'d ones are essential; the others can be relatively safely omitted)

250 g spaghetti (*)
2-3 carrots, peeled into strips
a handful of snowpeas
250 g of tofu
a handful of peanuts
3 cloves garlic (*)
1 tsp ginger (*)
6-8red hot chilli peppers (*)
sesame seeds
olive oil
vegetable oil
cilantro
3-5 green onions (*)

Sauce:
3/4 cup water or vegetable stock (*)
3 tbsp peanut butter (*)
3 tbsp soy sauce (*)
3 tbsp vinegar (*)
1 tbsp sesame oil (though olive oil is okay)

The dish:
Boil spaghetti, tofu, carrots, and snowpeas. Heat oil in frying pan and
add, in the following order: tofu (fry until browned), green onions,garlic and ginger, hot peppers and peanuts. Add the stuff that you just boiled, and add the sauce. Reduce to medium heat, and wait for the sauce to thicken. Don't boil it too long, or the sauce will become dry. Add spices. Enjoy!

It's vegan, as am I, but it gets a lot of compliments from ovo-lacto vegetarians and omnivores.
posted by isomorphisms at 10:44 AM on September 24, 2001

Heh, we actually just upgraded our crock pot and what makes it so wonderful is that most of the time you don't need a recipie to make stew, you simply throw in a mess of veggies, a mess of meat, and a quart of chicken or beef stock, and ignore it for 6-10 hours.
posted by KirkJobSluder at 10:46 AM on September 24, 2001

toasted bread with strawberry jam.
place 2 fried eggs on top.
place 2 strips of fried bacon (battered with flour/sugar mix)
Top with slice of american cheese.
Place last piece of tosted bread with jam on top.

Yummmmmm. i love homemade breakfast samwiches.....
especially when not eaten for breakfast.
posted by ewwgene at 10:56 AM on September 24, 2001

I like pancakes. Do you like pancakes?

Yeah, anyway. I'm a college student. I have neither the time nor motivation to cook. Therefore I will share with you all my favorite recipe:

Ingredients:
1 jar peanut butter
1 jar jelly
1 loaf bread

Instructions:
Select two slices of bread and set them on a plate. Now get out a butter knife (careful kids, knives can be sharp - might want to get Mom or Dad to help with this part..) and spread peanut butter liberally on one of the slices of bread. Now do the same with the jelly on the other slice of bread. Combine the two slices of bread in such a way that the peanut butter is touching the jelly (far less messy than any other way of eating it) and consume.
posted by zempf at 10:57 AM on September 24, 2001

It's all about eggs benedict, people. My super-easy-peasy hollandaise technique: throw some yolks in a saucepan, put a hunk of butter on the end of a fork. Stir yolks with the butter over low-low heat. Dash of lemon juice to taste. Voila. Heaven. Mmm. Sweet, sweet cholesterol.

My latest love is this recipe from Epicurious: ginger scones. I like to cut the scones into cute shapes, like hearts and flowers and stuff. Something about baking unleashes my inner domestic goddess.
posted by kittyb at 11:07 AM on September 24, 2001

Lynsey Being Dutch I'm a bit curious about the dutch oven. What on earth is it?
And what's 1/2 C ?
posted by ginz at 11:20 AM on September 24, 2001

A dutch oven is a deep cast iron pan, usually with a lid, that you can put in an oven safely. 1/2C is one half cup.
posted by starvingartist at 11:24 AM on September 24, 2001

My Mom's BBQ Sauce:

All of these ingredient amounts are approximate, I usually just "eyeball" it. They are listed in order of quantity from most to least, so they all can be adjusted to suit your taste.

2 Cups Ketchup
1 Small Onion Diced (about 1/2 Cup)
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Tablespoon Mustard
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice

Diced garlic, Tabasco, or Cheyenne pepper are also optional ingredients that can be added to taste, but be careful. I have found adding them in combination can produce "spurious" results.

Add this to a few cans of baked beans (drain them first) and bake in an oven (to get the gooey crust, perfect for dipping chips) to make the world's best baked beans.
posted by internal at 11:26 AM on September 24, 2001

I like going to Epicurious and typing in things I have in the fridge into the search box and seeing if it comes up with any recipes to use those ingredients. It's amazing what you can find doing searches on your favorite herbs, meats, etc. I especially like reading the comments at the bottom of the Epicurious recipes; it helps fine tune the results. My favorite latest recipe was lemon bars. Very yummy and I made them tart (pucker up!) rather than sweet and added lemon zest to the crust mixture. We also just made a batch of crystallized ginger (from the too lengthy Joy of Cooking recipe) so I'll have to try those aforementioned ginger scones!
posted by girlhacker at 11:27 AM on September 24, 2001

I hope it's not this kind of Dutch Oven, which often follows the consumption of stew rather than assisting in the cooking process.
posted by Sinner at 11:40 AM on September 24, 2001

And what's 1/2 C ?

about a hundred and fifty million meters each second, in a vacuum.

my favorite recipe is still ramen noodles. fell in love with them in college. i still have them two or three times a week.
posted by tolkhan at 12:05 PM on September 24, 2001

Ginz... a little more help on the dutch oven idea: it varies, but most people identify dutch ovens as deep (15 cm or so) cast iron pots, with a lid that has a tall rim on it. The pots are often used in camping, where they're used to cook all sorts of good food. They're put into a fire, and coals are piled on top (that's where the tall rim on the lid comes in) to heat from all sides -- hence its "oven" status. Check out the offering of dutch ovens over at REI.
posted by silusGROK at 12:40 PM on September 24, 2001

I love to make bread... and it's really not as hard as a lot of people think. I just made this recipe lately, and it's some of the best bread I've ever had. It makes a lot, too, so you can freeze some of it for later or give it away to a friend.

Pugliese:

13 cups (1.5 kg) unbleached white flour
1 tbs salt (2 tbs if you use coarse or kosher)
2 pkgs dry yeast (about 1.2 oz fresh)
2 tbs sugar if using dry yeast
2/3 cup olive oil
3 1/3 - 4 cups lukewarm water

Mix 3-4 tbs of the water, the yeast, and the sugar in a small bowl. Stir until smooth and let sit for 10-15 minutes, until yeast is frothy.

In a (very) large bowl, mix the flour and salt. Make a well in the center. Pour the frothy yeast into the well and add most of the water. Mix with a spoon or your clean hands until the dough is well mixed and a little sticky. Add the oil. Continue to mix, adding small amounts of water or flour as needed until the dough is smooth, elastic, and not sticky at all. Turn it out onto a floured surface and knead for about 15 minutes. Wash, dry, and oil the bowl. Form the dough into a rough ball, put it in the bowl, turn it so it is well-oiled, and cover with a damp cloth. Let rise in draft-free area for 3 1/2 - 4 hours, or until doubled in size.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface again. Gently pull the edges out and fold them under, forming a rough pillow shape. DO NOT punch it down or knead it! Gently fold the edges under about 6-8 times, then put the pillow on a floured baking sheet, cover with the damp cloth, and let rise again for 1 - 1 1/2 hours, or until doubled in size. During the final 15 minutes of rising, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

When the dough is risen, dust it lightly with flour and put it in the oven. Bake at 450 F for 12 minutes, then turn the heat down to 375 F and bake for another 25 - 35 minutes. It is done when it is well browned and it sounds hollow when you knock on the underside. Note: This loaf will be huge! It might behoove you to bake it for the full 35 minutes. When I made it I took it out after about 28 minutes, and even though it sounded and looked done, it was a little doughy in the middle.

Place it on a wire rack to cool or just turn off the oven and leave the door a little open. When it is completely cool you can slice and eat, wrap it, or freeze it. It'll keep for about a month frozen, about 4 or 5 days wrapped up.
posted by starvingartist at 12:41 PM on September 24, 2001

Ginz... a little more help on the dutch oven idea: it varies, but most people identify dutch ovens as deep (15 cm or so) cast iron pots, with a lid that has a tall rim on it. The pots are often used in camping, where they're used to cook all sorts of good food. They're put into a fire, and coals are piled on top (that's where the tall rim on the lid comes in) to heat from all sides -- hence its "oven" status. Check out the offering of dutch ovens over at REI.
posted by silusGROK at 12:42 PM on September 24, 2001

I like pancakes. Do you like pancakes?

I sure do! Here's an extensive page of pancake recipes.
posted by kindall at 12:42 PM on September 24, 2001

There's a guy called CeeDub (as in C.W.) who has a show about camp cooking with Dutch Ovens... It's something else.
posted by Jako at 12:42 PM on September 24, 2001

Kraft macaroni and cheese. Cheap, plentiful, and with a retina-searing day-glo orange color to boot. Can't beat it!

Presumably you can improve the taste by adding ground beef or vegetables or the like. 'Course, if I was willing to go through the effort of browning beef or acquiring vegetables, I'd probably be eating something classier than Kraft macaroni and cheese in the first place.
posted by youhas at 12:49 PM on September 24, 2001

Having recently discovered a love of cooking (most likely due to the acquisition of cable, thus FoodTV), one of the best meals I have made to date is Pepper Steak with Port Wine Sauce. It is remarkably easy, mostly just searing a pepper steak and then doing a reduction for the sauce, and it is relatively quick to make.
posted by TractorInc at 12:52 PM on September 24, 2001

Don't have a recipe to share, but I can recommend a cookbook I just bought: The Minimalist Cooks at Home. Based on the author's NYTimes column. Great, simple recipes.
posted by lbergstr at 1:14 PM on September 24, 2001

MetaFilter = MeatTrifle

(just in case you never noticed)
posted by briank at 1:14 PM on September 24, 2001

Okay... now here are two recipes:

Salmon with Fruit Chutney and Peaches Shanghai.


SALMON with FRUIT CHUTNEY

SALMON:
Salmon Steaks
Mint (1/2 cup/steak)
Garlic (2 cloves/steak)
Salt and Pepper (to-taste)
Olive oil

Chose thick, fresh, salmon steaks... avoid chum. It's slimy. Combine other ingredients in blender, adding enough olive oil to make a paste. Salt and pepper both sides of the steak. Slather mint paste on top of steak... place steaks on rack over water under the broiler. The paste will blacken, but do not remove until flesh has cooked through.

CHUTNEY: - enough for about 4 steaks.
Raspberries (4 cups - sort well, raspberries tend to mold quickly)
Whole Black Peppercorns (2 tbl sp, or to-taste)
Mango (4 cups, cubed)

Combine half of raspberries and peppercorns in blender, purree, strain. Crack remaining peppercorns and combine with mango, raspberries, and raspberry coolee. Let macerate for as long as possible for pepper flavor to permeate.

Remove steaks from under broiler, brush mint paste from flesh (gingerly), serve on bed of jasmine rice, with chutney on top as a side.


PEACHES SHANGHAI

Sliced Peaches Canned in Heavy Syrup
Balsamic Vinegar
Won Ton Wrappers (or similar)
Castor Sugar
No-Salt Butter

Drain peaches thoroughly. Set aside. Take syrup adding water to double volume. Combine syrup with balsamic vinegar in a 10:1 ratio. Taste for balance, adding water, sugar, or vinegar to-taste. Reduce by half.

Take drained peaches and wrap individually in won ton wrappers, moisten edges with butter to seal. Brown wrapped peaches in butter, remove... sprinkle with sugar and drizzle with balsamic/peach syrup.

Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream.
posted by silusGROK at 1:24 PM on September 24, 2001

(The chutney is for 6 steaks... my bad.)
posted by silusGROK at 1:28 PM on September 24, 2001

Speaking of Cookbooks, I just bought "The Best Recipe," which is Cook's Illustrated's master cookbook. If you're not familiar with them, the Cook's Illustrated schtick is that they try cooking things every which way in their test kitchen, arriving at definitive conclusions on such contested issues as:

Should you soak beans before you cook them?

Should you add salt to water for pasta? How about oil?

Etc, etc. Good stuff, and the best easy Vietnamese Pho recipe ever!
posted by preguicoso at 1:55 PM on September 24, 2001

And here's a dessert favorite (you have to be able to handle habanero peppers for this one) -

Take one habanero pepper. Halve and seed it. Take two large bananas. Peel and halve them. Melt about 2-4 tbs butter (according to taste) in a saucepan over medium heat. Saute the habanero halves for a minute or two, then add the bananas. Flip the bananas once or twice so they soak up the peppered butter, and make sure that you push the habanero around the bananas so the heat of the pepper is distributed evenly. Remove the bananas and serve with ice cream. A good flavor is Edy's Black Raspberry Avalanche. Mmm mmm.
posted by starvingartist at 1:57 PM on September 24, 2001

bean and corn chili
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 green or red bell pepper, cored, seeded and diced
2 large cloves garlice, slivered
3½ cups cooked red kidney, black, or pinto beans or 2(15-ounce) cans beans, drained (rinsed if nonorganic)
1(14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chilies or Mexican-style stewed tomatoes with chipotles, coarsely chopped
1½ to 2 teaspoons mild chili powder
¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste
1½ cups fresh or frozen corn (no need to defrost)
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
in a large saucepan, heat the oil. sauté the onion, bell pepper, and garlic over medium heat, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. add the beans, tomatoes, chili powder, and salt. bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 7 minutes.

stir in the corn and continue cooking until the corn is tender, about 1 more minute. stir in the cilantro and serve.
from lorna sass's short-cut vegetarian, page 88
This is really fast and really good. I used to skip the cilantro (because I could only get it in large bunches that rot before I can use it all) but it makes all the difference. There's more here.
posted by PlasticBoy at 2:37 PM on September 24, 2001

I've ahem never seen *that* dutch oven before, Sinner. You Brits are some wacky folks. Mine is a deep, say about 3 1/2" to 4" frying/baking pan with a long handle. It's made of cast aluminum, teflon coated with a glass lid. I like it because you can saute and simmer in the same pan and have enough room for dumplings on the top. Seriously, don't you ever read recipes that a C. stands for Cup, T. is for Tablespoon and t. is for teaspoon, you all?
posted by Lynsey at 2:45 PM on September 24, 2001

***Warning - the recipe linked to does not adequately express what happens when you pour rum into a hot saute pan***

I've cooked a lot of meals during my days as a professional chef, and I would have died to have a computer in the kitchen to turn to as a source of recipes. But those days were before the web was born...

Now, you can get recipes directly from the restaurants that made them famous. Here's one that I remember seeing on TV when I was little - Banana's Foster. All I can say about it is that it's too sweet.

***End of warning - try this at home - but be careful***
posted by bragadocchio at 2:57 PM on September 24, 2001

carpaccio...unfortunately most people don't have paper thin filet sitting in the fridge, but the best substitute i've found is the herbed turkey breast from whole foods sliced as thin as it will go.

Ingredients:
.thinly sliced meat (filet is best but hard to find, thus high quality turkey will do good. as mentioned above, fresh herbed turkey breast from whole foods is primo.)
.1 lemon
.2 tbls olive oil
.shredded or paper thin parmesan cheese
.4-5 arugula leaves
.capers

Instructions:
.Take one large, flat, plate and evenly distribute slices of the meat across the surface. (overlapping some of the slices is a given)
.evenly distribute lemon juice, olive oil, and parmesan cheese across meat
.arugula leaves and capers are optional, but generally complete the package
.salt and pepper to your delight
posted by physics at 3:34 PM on September 24, 2001

By nature I'm the type of person who will eat a whole roast chicken with no sides, with my thumbs, viking style. *Raar!* But I live with Holloway, who is a vegetarian, so I don't get to eat much meat nowadays.
I find I have to put a lot more thought into making vege meals, my favourite is baked lasagne with layers of spinach and pumpkin, cottage cheese and those canned red kidney beans that come in a chili sauce. With rennet-free cheddar on top, of course.
posted by Catch at 4:16 PM on September 24, 2001

I highly recommend a cookbook called The Back of the Box Gourmet. It has all the classics: Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies, Rice Crispy Squares, Heinz Ketchup Red Magic Meatloaf, and so on. Especially helpful when you buy a plainwrap brand and it doesn't have the recipe on the box!
posted by JParker at 4:24 PM on September 24, 2001

Risotto. Heat a pan of good vegetable stock; in another pan, saute some onions and garlic in butter; add rice, and stir until coated and glistening; then add a glass of white wine or vermouth, and the stock a ladle-ful at a time. Stir until it's absorbed, repeat for the next 20 minutes or so until the rice is tender. Add vegetables (and/or, if you're a carnivore, chicken/fish): peas and asparagus are my faves, but use what's nice and seasonal. Finish by letting some tasty cheese melt in, such as a Bleu de Bresse...

And serve with a nice salad.
posted by holgate at 4:27 PM on September 24, 2001

Hmm.. I love my curries but tend to freestyle with amounts when making them.. I'll try and type up some recipes for people who wanna bookmark this thread =)

Top Secret Recipes is a good site as well - famous food made easy =)

Ooh, there was one recipe I've been looking for but can't find anywhere - I don't suppose anyone can point me to somewhere I could find out how to make a Kashmiri dish known as Yakni (sp?)? I'm stumped how to make it and have been teased by my friend about it, any ideas?
posted by Mossy at 4:49 PM on September 24, 2001

Mossy: can you describe it? The name sounds familiar-ish.
posted by Catch at 4:57 PM on September 24, 2001

Tuna Stuff (as in 'What do you feel like for dinner tonight?' 'How about that tuna stuff?')

Chop a bunch of each of mint, parsley, basil and a couple of bunches of rocket (arugula) in a bowl. Add four roughly chopped medium tomatoes, a few chopped cloves of garlic, a can of tuna in oil (undrained), plenty of salt and pepper (more...and some more...come on, you've got to add a couple of pounds of plain pasta to this yet), a handful of toasted pinenuts and a tonne of extra virgin olive oil. Squeeze in a big juicy lemon. Dump in a load of fresh pasta (I use a 500g bag of fettucine) and stir to combine. Top with shavings of fresh parmagiano.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 4:58 PM on September 24, 2001

If you love food and cooking (or not, even), The Man Who Ate Everything is a wonderful, hilarious, fascinating book by Jeffery Steingarten - food critic for Vogue. Yep, Vogue. One of my all-time favorite books.
posted by cakeman at 5:01 PM on September 24, 2001

Mossy - I think you mean this.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 5:08 PM on September 24, 2001

Mossy: Here's a link to Nedar and Haaq in Yakni. Looks pretty tasty. I found this same recipe listed at more than a couple of different sites, so I hope it's the one your searching for.

Of course, if you weren't looking for the vegetarian dish, here's another link to Yakni Pullao, which also looks plenty good.
posted by bragadocchio at 5:12 PM on September 24, 2001

Tasty Fish, for those who tend to overcook fish, this will at least keep it moist.

In a small bowl add the following:
1 cup sake or white wine
1 cup soy sauce
2 cloves garlic
A fair amount of fresh julianed ginger
A few pinches of powdered wasabi

Mix it up and throw in whatever fish filet you have (I like salmon or golden trout)

In a large wok heat up some olive oil with crushed garlic and some tomatos, the tomates and some thickness and subtles flavor when you reduce the sauce.

When the oil is hot dump in the contents of the bowl and simmer the fish until the sauce reduces. I keep in at medium to medium high heat. Cooking time depends on the thickness of the fish.

The julianed ginger is great because it gets softened during the simmering and is nice to bite into. The sauce is also great over rice, if you want to impress your girlfriend with this simple overcook proof recipe, make some rice and salad and you'll have a winner!
posted by jonah at 5:12 PM on September 24, 2001

Bling! Bling! Bling!
Yakhni recipe for Mossy.
Love that illustration, mm-mmm, tempting.
posted by Catch at 5:21 PM on September 24, 2001

chocolate cake: the primal food. You can find this recipe all over the place under names like "crazy cake" and "impossible cake". From the ingredients list you'd think it would just make a cocoa-flavored brick, but you get a really satisfying, moist, fudgy cake. You'll never make chocolate cake from a box again.

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups cold water

Stir all the dry ingredients together in one bowl and all the wet ingredients in another. Pour the wet into the dry and stir until smooth. Pour into a 9x13 cake pan (or make cupcakes, or a couple 9-inch round layers). Bake at 350 for 30 - 40 minutes until toothpick comes out clean (times will be different for cupcakes or layers). Frost or not. Since this is made with cocoa it will taste more chocolatey the second day.
posted by cakeman at 5:22 PM on September 24, 2001 [1 favorite]

I'm sure this has been posted on MeFi before, but I think it's appropriate to add a link to this thread for the Gallery of Regrettable Food. My personal favorite is Meat! Meat! Meat!, but THIS may just put you off your feed for the next week.
posted by cakeman at 5:33 PM on September 24, 2001

jonah - your fish recipe sounds really good, but are you sure the "1 cup soy sauce" wasn't a type-o? Sounds awfully strong, especially since it gets reduced. How much fish is this good for?
posted by cakeman at 5:40 PM on September 24, 2001

Thanx go out to Catch, obiwanwasabi and bragadocchio for their kind help - time to go and impress a certain lovely Kashmiri lady with a romantic dinner I do believe..

Thanx guys!! =)
posted by Mossy at 6:23 PM on September 24, 2001

Oooooh.....

Well, I'm just going to self-link right here to my recipe for my favorite food ever -- chili! I have directions for both vegetarian and carnivore, so take your pick! (I just bought some "Ro-tel" down in North Carolina -- we don't get it in New York -- so those recipes may be altered soon...)

Oh, and if you love soup, I would suggest the "Daily Soup" cookbook -- I've made their spicy corn chowder many times and it totally rocks.
posted by metrocake at 7:34 PM on September 24, 2001

Mossy,

You're just a loving kind of guy. The world needs more romance. Glad to help.

Most of these recipes are favorites of the posters. But what would you all make for a meal for that special someone (or that special someone to be), and why?
posted by bragadocchio at 7:48 PM on September 24, 2001

My favorite chicken dish:


CHICKEN-CUTLET PARMESAN
Serves 6 to 8


3 large whole boneless skinless
chicken breasts (about 3 pounds
total), split and trimmed
2 cups milk
4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
6 large eggs, beaten
Pinch of coarse salt
6 cups unseasoned dry bread
crumbs
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups Traditional Italian Tomato
Sauce (recipe follows), warmed
1/2 pound fresh mozzarella cheese,
thinly sliced

1. Using a meat tenderizer or a heavy
skillet, pound the chicken breasts
between two sheets of plastic wrap
until flat, about 1/4 inch in thickness.
Place the milk, flour, eggs, and bread
crumbs in separate shallow baking
dishes. Season the eggs with a pinch
of salt. Dip each breast in the
following order; milk, flour (shake off
excess), eggs, and bread crumbs
(press down firmly while coating with
bread crumbs).

2. In a large skillet, melt the butter
with the olive oil over medium-high
heat until sizzling. Arrange the chicken
breasts in the pan without crowding,
cooking in batches if necessary.
Reduce the heat, and cook the
chicken until golden brown and the
juices run clear when poked with a
sharp fork, 3 to 5 minutes per side.
Remove to a baking sheet lined with
paper towels; pat off excess oil.

3. Place 1/2 cup of the warm tomato
sauce in the bottom of a
9-by-13-by-2-inch baking dish. Add 3
of the cooked breasts to the baking
dish; cover with 1/2 cup of the warm
tomato sauce and half the sliced
mozzarella. Repeat with the remaining
chicken breasts and sauce, and top
with mozzarella. Transfer to broiler,
and broil until the cheese is melted
and golden brown, about 5 minutes.
Remove from broiler, and serve
immediately.
posted by bjgeiger at 8:26 PM on September 24, 2001

But what would you all make for a meal for that special someone (or that special someone to be), and why?

Finger food on a blanket in the park. Fresh dates. Olives. Bocconcini. Slices of warm pide to dip in olive oil. Ripe figs drizzled with honey. Orange wedges.

Mashed potato. Lots of butter, lots of salt, lots of double cream, a little fresh horseradish. A big bowl, more butter and fresh black pepper on top, a few shavings of parmesan.

Spaghetti. Olives, tomatoes, basil, garlic, salt, pepper and lots of olive oil. Too much Frascati.

A bucket of vanilla icecream, a spoon, a bag of Maltesers, the couch, a fire.

Why? The look on her face :)
posted by obiwanwasabi at 8:29 PM on September 24, 2001

Favorite recipe? Ever? Urr... Ok. The Great American Seafood Cookbook (Susan Herrman Loomis) Barbeque Alaska Salmon. Bare with me, it's really fantastic. Really. Perfect for one last fall BBQ if you can find the fish. Keta or Coho should be fine too.

BBQ prep:
soak 1 c. mesquite chips, soaked for at least 20 min. Optional, reccomended.

Fish
2-3 lbs king salmon fresh
salt
1 clove garlic
1/3 minced onion

Marinade
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp Tobasco
1 tsp Worscestershire sauce
1 Tbl dry white wine
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
2 Tbls soy sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp sake
1 tsp fresh minced ginger
2 cloves garlic

Sauce
4 Tbls unsalted butter
1/3 c. packed brown sugar
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp dry white wine
1 large clove garlic
1/4 tsp tobasco
pinch cayenne pepper
1/3 c. chopped onion
salt

Garnish
thinly sliced (very) lemon and onion

Start 3 hours ahead of time to allow marinade to work.

1. Prep fish
Rinse, dry and de-bone salmon. Sprinkle lightly with salt. Rub fillet with garlic and sprinkel with onion. Put it in the fridge. It's probably worth while dividing the fillet into several pieces of similar thickness (1 piece thicker, 1 piece thinner).

2. Mix Marinade ingreds together. Pour over salmon. Play frisbee for 2.5-3 hours while salmon marinades.

(When you get tired, light the briquettes probably about 40 min before your fish should go on)

3. Make sauce: Melt butter, add brown sugar. Add everything else. keep warm so it doesn't harden.

4. Add wood chips.

5. Fashion little alluminum foil boats or boxes to put the salmon fillets in. They should be just larger than the fillet. I do mine with the salmon on the foil, then fold up the edges.

6. Put yer fish on the grill. Pour any left over marinade over it. Cook for around 5 min.

7. Pour 1/2 of the sauce over the salmon, cook for around 5 min. Check for done-ness (Most fish starts to feel firm when it's approaching cooked, touch is a good way to check. Also, you may want to 'open' a fillet with a knife to see if the interior is as pink as the exterior. If the interior is still reddish, you're a ways off.)

8. Add remaining sauce. Cook for around 2 minutes. Or, until the fish is done. (Don't want to poison your friends now, do you?).

9. Garnish if you like

10. Eat incredibly good fish.
posted by daver at 8:57 PM on September 24, 2001

Hey Holgate, have you tried a pressure cooker? I got one about 2 years ago, it makes making Risotto a snap. After adding the arborio, I'm usually done in about 7 min, with about 3 min of stirring. Highly recommended -- it's my favorite kitchen tool.

Did anybody else read the "Toque Envy" article by Nicholas Lemann in the New Yorker (sept 24 issue)? Interesting article on lay chefs....
posted by daver at 9:04 PM on September 24, 2001

obiwanwasabi,

That's not just a recipe for a fine date...that's a recipe for life.
posted by bragadocchio at 9:38 PM on September 24, 2001

Bare with me, it's really fantastic. Really.

You promise it'll improve the flavour, Daver?
posted by flowerdale at 11:16 PM on September 24, 2001

Oh boy a new recipe for pad thai!! Thanks isomorphisms.

For those into the dessert thing, I`ve had some success with homemade caramels (this is especially for those of you living in the northern hemisphere and just entering fall, with drier weather making things easier).

I`d provide a recipe, but they`re not hard to find on the web and it really is a matter of practice as opposed to a given recipe.

Advice: if they`re too soft, next time add a little honey and/or cook them a little longer (high temperature.)

As a side note, has anybody tried using wasabi and honey as a marinade/sauce? I`ve found that it makes a great stirfry base with some garlic. Most of my friends think it`s crazy.
posted by chiheisen at 1:17 AM on September 25, 2001

Here's a very simple recipe for pasta sauce that can be made with either chorizo sausage (spanish, with paprika) or bacon. It's the first thing I cooked my girlfriend 6 years ago and she still demands it every week. She demands the pasta sauce too. Ha ha!

pasta sauce

chorizo sausage, cubed (about 1.5cm cubes) or smoked bacon, chopped into strips
one large onion, thinly sliced
two cans peeled plum tomatoes (not chopped)
one rounded teaspoon dried crushed chillis
olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper

1. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a pan.
2. Add the cubed chorizo and fry gently until slightly browned; this should take about 10 minutes.
3. Add the sliced onion and fry gently until soft and golden.
4. Add the tomatoes, chilli, sugar and bayleaf, and season. Stir the tomatoes in but don't break them up - they'll break up by themselves during cooking.
5. Simmer, covered, on a low heat for an hour (or less if you think it looks done).
6. Mix with some freshly cooked pasta and eat it.

When I cook the bacon version I usually grate some chedder cheese into the pasta/sauce mix, which is absolutely delicious.

I'm starving now. What I'd really like is a recipe for meatloaf - nothing fancy, just the kind that Mom would have used to make, if I didn't grow up in East Anglia, UK. Can anyone oblige?
posted by mudskunk at 3:04 AM on September 25, 2001

Mudskunk: Here's an absolutely delicious-looking meatloaf recipe I caught on the Food Network a few days ago and have been itching to try out. Hope you've got a lot of hungry people around you, though, as the thing turns out huge.
posted by toddshot at 3:19 AM on September 25, 2001

This is the meatloaf my mom taught me to make:

1 egg, beaten
1 C. uncooked rolled oats
1/2 onion, diced
4-6 garlic cloves, crushed
4 good hearty shakes of soy sauce
1/2 t. black pepper
1 t. oregano
1 lb. lean ground beef (or less, ground beef is $2.49/lb. in my neck of the woods right now)

Mix all ingredients by squishing them together with your hands. Place in greased large loaf pan, 4x9in. Top with 1/2 C. ketchup mixed with 3 T. brown sugar. Bake in 375 degree oven for 1/2 hr. or until you can stick a fork in the middle and see no pink. Cut into thick slices and serve with veggies of choice. Chill any leftovers - makes excellent meatloaf sandwiches.
posted by Lynsey at 9:30 AM on September 25, 2001

cakeman- to tell you the truth, I don't know the exact amount of soy, but I use alot. The amounts listed are good for around a pound of thick fillets like salmon and probably more if you use trout. I also cut fillets in half to cook faster. It's definitely a 'by feel' recipe using those basic ingredients and there is a ton of room for additions. Let me know if you have some ideas!
posted by jonah at 11:17 AM on September 25, 2001

How to make an apple tart, French style. easy and tasty.

250g flour
1g egg
80g sugar
125g butter
pinch salt
apples

break egg into mixing bowl, add sugar and salt, mix vigorously wiht a fork or whisk until white (but not foamy) then progressively add flour. when spoon doesn't work, use hands to mix. when all flour is all there, crumble
with your hands until mixture is like coarse sand (make sure all large chunks are well broken up into a fine mixture).
cut butter into small pieces,then add to mixture. work into a homogenous mixture.

rest one hour in the refrigerator

take out, then work a little to soften, and then roll out and line shallow tart dish (9 in).

peel apples (tart-tasting. Jonathan, roma but never red delicious) and quarter, removing core. slice each quarter in half, then half again, making thin slices. layer these slices in a circular spiral pattern. Sprinkle lightly with a mixture of cinnamon and sugar.

bake for about 30 minutes at about 400f When apples are soft and crust is nice and brown, it's probably done.

This recipe is a bit vague, since my husband tuaght it to me and he's french, and i'm not, so I've made a bunch of guetimations. and yet it's always delicious and it impresses people when you make it. you can also use the crust as cookie dough. it's yummy.
posted by christina at 9:13 AM on September 30, 2001