Archive for October, 2017
Drunk Monkey Garlic & Mushroom Pork Chops
This is from a good friend and I trust her recipes, and this is delicious, I made this on 14 Oct 2017. The red wine imparts a nice flavor in the chops and the sauce. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 4 pork chops, thick cut
- 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup, OR make from a shortcut
- 1-2 handfuls fresh mushrooms, chopped or sliced
- 1/4 cup red wine
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
Instructions
- You can use standard bone in or boneless pork chops for this. I used 4 thick cut (1 1/2 to 2 inches thick, 350 to 430 grams each) boneless loin chops, read Variant 1 listed below in the Recipe Notes if you want to use these.
- Place the pork chops in your slow cooker, top the chops with the mushrooms and garlic.
- Mix together the wine and soup, pour over the chops. (This photo is from about an hour into cooking.)
- Cover and cook on Low setting for 6 to 8 hours. Check for tenderness at 6 hours, if tender they are ready to be served, if not tender to your liking, continue cooking and keep checking every hour. Serve with mashed potatoes and a vegetable for a complete meal.
Notes
For the pork chops I used the thick cut loin chops, 4 of them were 200 Baht. For 4 servings, this is about $1.47 per serving.
Shortcut: Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup.
Variant: 1. Use thick cut boneless loin chops or any chops thicker than 1 inch, if you want to use these, first, pound each chop with a needle tenderizer, two, you may need to extend the cooking time for tender chops but you do risk drying them out as well, so keep checking tenderness from 6 hours on. 2. Use mushrooms you like or have available. I used Buna (brown) Shimeji, but other good choices would be White Shimeji, Shiitake, white or brown button, or even King Oyster. Regular oyster and wood ear mushrooms probably not a good idea.
Provided by Slow Cooker Kitchen and the link to this recipe is here. You have to scroll down to find this recipe.
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Breakfast Casserole II
Sounds really good, would be perfect when having house guests stay over. This is basically a make with what you have on hand recipe or if you do not like a particular ingredient, swap it out for something you like. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 10 eggs, chicken, duck, or a combination of both
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely minced
- salt and pepper, as desired
- 1 1/2 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 500 grams hash brown potatoes, OR make from a shortcut
- 150 grams frozen spinach, thawed, water squeezed out
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 cup fresh mushrooms, diced
- 1 roma tomato, diced
- 1 avocado, sliced
- 1 jalapeno pepper, diced
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 190 C. Lightly butter a 9x13 baking dish.
- Spread out the has browns in an even layer in the baking dish, then spread out the spinach over the potatoes. Next spread out the onion, mushrooms, and bell pepper evenly in the dish.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk, stir in the garlic, salt and pepper as desired, then mix in the cheese. Pour mixture into the baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour.
- Remove the dish from the oven, sprinkle on the diced tomato and jalapeno, place the avocado slices on the top.
- Serve.
Notes
The cheese is the only costly item used here, figure 170 Baht for the cheese. For 8 servings, this is about 63 cents per serving.
Shortcut: Hash Brown Potatoes.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Stephen Connell.
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Damn Good Taco Soup
This comes from a good friend, and it sounds delicious. On my to cook list for sure. Several shortcuts to use for cost savings as well as preparing dried beans. Links to the shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 500 grams ground beef
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 packet taco seasoning mix, OR make from a shortcut
- 1 packet dry ranch dressing mix, OR make from a shortcut
- 1 can toasted corn, OR 2 cups of fried corn from shortcut
- 1 can black beans, or 1 1/2 cups cooked from dry beans
- 1 can red Kidney beans, or 1 1/2 cups cooked from dry beans
- 1 cup fresh tomatoes, diced
- 2-4 green Bird's Eye chilies, chopped
- tomato juice, as needed
Instructions
- Brown the ground beef in a medium sized pot, drain the fat, then add the water and the taco seasoning and mix together.
- Drain and rinse the canned beans and if using those, add beans to the pot, plus the corn, tomatoes, chilies, ranch dressing and stir everything together.
- Adjust the soup to your desired consistency with tomato juice. Simmer until hot and everything is heated through.
- Serve.
Notes
Figure about 150 Baht for the beef. For 4 servings, this is about $1.10 per serving.
Shortcuts: Taco Seasoning, Ranch Dressing Mix, Fried Corn.
Recipe and photo provided courtesy of good friend, Jerry Collins.
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Caesar Chicken
This sounds really good. For where I live, Caesar dressing is not stocked in town, only in the city, but Italian dressing is stocked and can be made into Caesar dressing, win win. Links to the shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
- 1 cup creamy Caesar salad dressing, OR make from a shortcut
- 1-1 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese, grated
- black pepper, as desired
Optional, for a thicker crust
- 1/2 cup sour cream, OR make from a shortcut
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 190 C, lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish with butter.
- Sprinkle the meat on both sides with black pepper and some of the Parmesan cheese, do not use any salt. Place the chicken in the baking dish.
- Pour 1/4 cup of salad dressing over each piece, then sprinkle remaining Parmesan on each one. Bake uncovered for 30-40 minutes or until juices run clear.
- Change the oven to broil and continue to cook the chicken for 2-4 minutes or until the chicken is nice and golden colored. Remove from the oven and cover with foil and let rest for 5 minutes.
- Serve with mashed potatoes, pasta, or rice, and a vegetable.
Optional, for a thicker crust
- Mix the sour cream into the dressing, and just follow the steps above as stated.
Notes
Figure about 70 Baht for the chicken, and 150 Baht for the Parmesan. For 4 servings, this is about $1.62 per serving.
Shortcuts: Caesar Salad Dressing, Sour Cream.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Stephen Connell.
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Chicken Curry II
This sounds very good, and will give me a chance to test out a new bottle of curry powder I recently bought. This is Indian curry powder (yellow), not Thai curry. On my to cook list.
Ingredients
- 500 grams chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, cut into strips, (1 lb)
- salt and pepper
- 2½ teaspoons curry powder, divided
- 3 tablespoons cooking oil, divided
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated, or ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon powder
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 cup frozen peas, no need to thaw
- ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Instructions
- After the chicken is sliced into strips, about ¼ inch thick or so, spread them out and sprinkle with about ¾ teaspoon of salt, ¼ teaspoon of black pepper, and 1 teaspoon of curry powder, mix together.
- Using a large non stick pan, heat 1½ tablespoons of oil on medium high heat, when hot but not smoking, add the chicken in a single layer and cook, stirring often to just lightly brown them, no need to cook all the way through, about 3 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside.
- Reduce the heat on the pan to medium and add the rest of the oil, and the onion and cook until softened and translucent, then stir in the garlic, ginger, and remaining curry powder and cook until fragrant, maybe a minute or so, stir often.
- Whisk the cornstarch, sugar, and a pinch of salt into the broth then add the broth to the pan, bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer until the sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes. Return the chicken to the pan along with the peas and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, takes just a few minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat, stir in the yogurt and cilantro, taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper if desired.
- Serve with steamed rice.
Notes
Figure about 70 Baht for the chicken. For 4 servings, this is about 52 cents per serving.
Variant: 1. Replace the chicken with beef or large prawn.
Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Green Chile
This comes from a good friend that has prepared this and his results are outstanding, that works for me so this is on my to cook list soon.
Ingredients
- 8 fresh green chilies, roasted and peeled
- 250 grams Cream cheese, softened, this is 1 standard block
- 100 grams Sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
- 3/4 cup onion, minced or shredded
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely minced
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 8 slices bacon
- 16 toothpicks
Instructions
- In a medium sized bowl, mix together the cream cheese, cheddar, onion, chili powder, and garlic. Set aside. Preheat your oven to 200 C.
- When peeling the chilies take care not to damage them. Make a slit down the length of each chili and remove the seeds. Stuff each chili with the cheese mixture.
- Use a toothpick to secure one end of a slice of bacon at the stem end, wrap the bacon around the chili, try not to overlap, and wrap towards the pointy end, secure with another toothpick.
- Place the chilies on a foil lined baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes, then switch the oven to broil (top coil for counter top ovens) and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the bacon is golden brown.
- Serve.
Notes
The cream cheese will cost 120 Baht, the bacon about 100 Baht. For 8 servings as appetizers, this is about 80 cents per serving.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Jerry Juliana.
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Slow Cooker Chicken Stroganoff II
This sounds really good, on my to cook list. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, cut into strips
- 500 grams fresh Shiitake mushroom, stems removed, sliced
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1-2 packets Italian dressing mix, OR make from a shortcut
- 1-1 1/2 cups chicken stock, fresh or from powder
- 250-300 grams Cream cheese, 1 to 1 1/2 blocks, cubed, softened
Optional, for a thicker sauce
- 2-3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/3 cup cold water
Instructions
- Grease your slow cooker insert with the butter, then leave the rest of the butter in the bottom. This prevents some sticking and adds flavor.
- Add the chicken and mushrooms, pour the stock in, and sprinkle the Italian Seasoning mix over the top, use two packets for a more seasoned dish. Cover and cook on Low setting for 4 to 6 hours, no peaking until 4 hours have passed, then check the chicken for tenderness.
- 30 minutes before serving, turn the slow cooker to the High setting, cut the cream cheese into cubes and stir into the chicken and mushrooms, cover and continue on High setting for about 15 minutes, then stir again to fully combine the cheese into the mixture.
- Serve with rice, pasta, mashed potato, and a vegetable for a complete meal.
Optional, for a thicker sauce
- Mix the cornstarch and cold water in a small bowl to make a slurry, remove the cover of the slow cooker and slowly stir in the slurry. Cover and cook for another 20-30 or until the sauce thickens.
Notes
Figure about 70 Baht for the chicken, 120 Baht for the Cream cheese. For 6 servings, this is about 93 cents per serving.
Shortcut: Dry Italian Salad Dressing.
Variant: 1. Add some chopped long beans (green beans) for additional flavor.
Provided by Slow Cooker Kitchen and the link to this recipe is here.
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Avocado Egg Salad Sandwich
Sounds good, I will have to make these.
Ingredients
- 7-8 hard boiled eggs, chopped
- 1/4 cup mayo
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, minced
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- pepper, to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 ripe avocado, chopped, mash to desired consistency
- sliced bread, for serving
Instructions
- Add everything except the avocado to a medium size bowl and mix to combine. Add the avocado and mix that in.
- Spread on bread of your choice, top with another slice of bread, enjoy.
Notes
Low cost.
Shortcut: Perfect Hard Boiled Chicken Eggs.
Variant: Add a pinch of curry powder.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Stephen Connell.
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Simple Thick Cut Pork Chops
Four ingredients and very simple instructions makes for tasty thick cut pork chops. This is for 1 1/2 to 2 inch thick chops, bone in or bone out.
Ingredients
- 4 thick cut pork chops, 1 1/2 to 2 inches thick
- olive oil
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200 C.
- Rub olive oil over all sides of the pork chops, about a tablespoon or so. Generously salt both sides and pat that in well and the same with the pepper. Let the chops sit out.
- Preheat your oven to 200 C. Once the oven is hot, heat a oven proof pan, cast iron would be ideal, over high heat.
- When the pan is almost smoking, add the chops and sear for 2 minutes on each side.
- Place the pan in the oven and figure about 15 minutes for a 1 1/2 inch thick chop, 20 minutes for 2 inch thick. Internal temp should be 63 C / 145 F. Remove from oven and let rest for for 5 minutes.
- Serve with mashed potatoes and a vegetable for a complete meal.
Notes
I will price this the next time I pick up boneless pork chops. This is low cost however.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Citrus Marinated Pork Chops
This sounds really good and I have some thick pork chops I am going to try this with.
Ingredients
- juice from 2 limes
- juice from 2 oranges
- 1 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2-3 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 4 pork chops, 1 inch thick
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus 1 teaspoon
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Instructions
- In a large baking dish (glass, do not use metal), add the pork chops in a single layer, mix together the first 8 ingredients to make the marinade, pour over the pork chops and and flip them to make sure they are coated well. Place in the fridge for 6 to 8 hours, turning them once in a while.
- When you are ready to cook, heat a heavy pan on medium heat for two minutes, while the pan is heating, remove the pork chops from the marinade, set the marinade aside.
- Brush the pan with 1 teaspoon of olive oil, cook pork chops for 5 minutes on each side, pour in the marinade and reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and cook for 7 minutes, turning them once.
- Remove the pork chops and set aside. Turn the heat to medium and reduce the marinade until thickened then stir in the butter. Strain the sauce and pour over the pork chops.
- Serve with mashed potatoes and a vegetable.
Notes
I will have to price the pork chops next time I go to the store. This probably low cost.
Variant: Double the marinade for more sauce and to cover the chops better when marinating.
Adapted from an internet recipe.