Food and Cooking

I'm planning on having some leftover pasta from the batch I made yesterday (just made a post with it if you want to see). Probably won't be doing too much cooking because my wife is traveling for work a few days this week. I made a pork shoulder this weekend that I'll be eating off of though.

Vegan Burrito Bowl

Just pulled some pork chops off the smoker and tomorrow is stir fry some some spicy peppers from the garden.

Tonight is my second attempt at shaks(o)uka. Sauce was thinner than would seem right from the examples I have seen, more of a chunkier red sauce that the very chunky, less saucy examples. Eggs were a bit more done that I'd like as well but not as cooked through as the first attempt. Super super tasty either way.

Might thaw a whole chicken for chicken noodle soup but definitely doing chicken teriyaki and shrimp fried rice.

I need a thread for what I cooked last week because half of what I make depends on what is on sale/mark-down when I go shopping. For example: last week, pre-made macaroni salad was marked-down for quick sale to $3 for 2 pounds. I don't like how sharp/acidic and runny the pre-made is, but it has a pretty good flavor, so I bought that, cooked up another 8 ounces of elbows and added them in with lots of celery and some sour cream. That worked as a side and snack for the rest of the week.

I also made: hummus from dried beans (which gets eaten with bread, olives and jarred peppers), multiple salads, veggie tacos, and Sesame noodles with julienned carrots, cukes, red bell peppers, and cilantro (I didn't have green onions on hand). We also ate sandwiches and snacked on cheese & crackers with fruit (cherries, mostly).

Gonna make a tomato and tarragon salad tonight. Looking to try some of Jamie Oliver's five ingredient recipes too, not sure which though.

Saving this post to remind myself later once I've written up my list for the week! It's winter here, so might be a coq au vin or bourguinon on the cards!

Edit: okay here I am! On the list this week is a sesame beef stir fry, a loganisa breakfast sandwich, pork tacos, and pizzas. This Friday is the public holiday for Matariki in Aotearoa, a celebration of the Māori new year and a time to reflect. On Friday I’m making a big pot of boil up to celebrate!

I usually food prep on Mondays for the week and I have such a bad habit of making WAY too many different things for dinner. I can never choose just one thing and end up with a mix of what feels like a bunch of different small meals lol

So I made pizza with red pepper and almond pesto, mozzarella, heirloom tomatoes, basil, and pistachios

Then I made a salad with spinach, spring mix, tomatoes, a variety of beans, jalapeno, and cauliflower.. added some of the leftover pistachios, basil, and mozzarella and mixed it up with some olive oil and a bunch of spices.

Then I made some crispy baked sweet potato and brussel sprouts.

And I'm obsessed with the fried rice cakes from Trader Joe's, so I cooked up some of the tteok bokki they sell.

Outside of that, I got a few yogurts and some fruit for lunch (decided to try something new so got plumcots and cherry plums).

And I have a heck of a sweet tooth, so I picked up some ube mochi, chili dried mango, chili and lime rolled tortilla chips, and blueberry waffles just to have around the house.

Now that I'm reading this all over, this really does feel like a crazy amount of food lol

Everything on the grill and pickled onions.

Broke as fuck this week, made a quick cheap chili that was actually pretty good. Moving out at the end of the month, so trying to use up as many ingredients as I can.

Ground beef (12$ for 3lbs)

Chicken stock (4$)

Red kidney beans (3$)

Pickled Jalapeños (3$)

Canned tomatoes!

Cumin!

Dried guajillo and ancho peppers!

! for ingredients already in the pantry (I forgot to pickup an onion/garlic at the store but the dish turned out okay)

Prep was pleasantly simple for this one pot meal, as most ingredients were canned. Removed seeds and stems from dried chilis, toasted them dry in dutch oven, blended them with stock to create a chili flavor base. Brown ground beef, use the fat to toast spices (cumin, salt, pepper). Other spices that would work well here are paprika, garlic powder, and allspice. My spice cabinet got decimated by roaches though, so I’m stuck with the basics.

Add diced onions, garlic, and tomato paste at this point if have it. Having none of the above, I went in with my can of diced tomatoes, the beans, the jalapeños, the remaining stock, and the chili flavor base. Stir well and let simmer for a minimum of 15 minutes. Enjoy the chili in a bowl, topped with cheese (if its in your budget and you’re lactose tolerant), or over rice, or with bread, or with tortilla chips. Makes approx. 8 servings for an average of ~3$/serving.

It's so hot outside, I'm almost only making salads. Yesterday was:

• 1 cucumber, diced
• 150g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 100g feta cheese, crumbled
• 1 peach, diced
• Balsamic vinegar

Most of my days are a variation around that until things get fresher (peach can be replaced with a yellow or red pepper depending on what my veggie dealer has in stock).