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Rice & Peas with Poached Eggs (Rice Cooker)
June 9, 2019 Lee
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Rice & Peas with Poached Eggs (Rice Cooker)

Adapted from an internet recipe.
This is a Portuguese dish and I am going to use my small basic Cook / Warm rice cooker to prepare this and to add a fusion twist to this, I am going to add Japanese Arabiki sausage.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Portuguese
Servings 3 servings

Equipment

  • Rice Cooker

Ingredients
  

  • 1½ cups dry Jasmine rice, rinsed and drained
  • 1 cup frozen peas, do not thaw
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 4 links Arabiki sausage, sliced ¼ inch thick
  • 2 cups water
  • salt and black pepper, as desired
  • 3-4 eggs

Instructions
 

  • Add the oil, onion, garlic, rice, frozen peas, sausage, and water to your rice cooker. Stir everything everything together and season with a pinch of salt and pepper as desired. Cover and switch to Cook function.
  • When the rice cooker switches to Warm function, remove the lid, mix the rice with a rice paddle and make 3-4 indentations with the paddle and crack in an egg into each depression. Cover and leave the cooker on warm to set the egg whites and leave the yolks soft.
  • When the eggs are at your desired level of doneness, carefully scoop each egg out to a plate, fluff the rice again.
  • Spoon rice into serving bowls and top each bowl with an egg.
  • As an alternative, you can separately poach or even fry the eggs as desired, and after adding rice to the serving bowls, top each with an egg.

Notes

Low cost per serving.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: PORTUGUESE,EGGS - ALL,Eggs - Chicken,Eggs - Rice Cooker,Seasoned Rice - Rice Cooker
Tuna Bean Soup (Pressure Cooker)
June 8, 2019 Lee
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Tuna Bean Soup (Pressure Cooker)

Adapted from an internet recipe.
For clarification, this is tuna AND bean soup, no tuna beans were harmed in the making of this soup. There is two steps to this, first we are going to cook the beans in a pressure cooker, then we will add tomatoes and tuna when not on pressure. I use a stove top 9 liter (9½ quart) pressure cooker with 12 psi (80 kPa) pressure for these. Follow all safety precautions for your model of pressure cooker. This is a 2 for 1 recipe, beans for this dish plus bean broth for a soup or noodles another day.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 6 hours 25 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Equipment

  • Pressure Cooker

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams dry Great Northern beans, (1 lb)
  • water, as needed
  • 2 tablespoons cooking oil, and as needed
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 150 grams fresh mushrooms, sliced, (5 oz)
  • 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, or 2 sprigs fresh
  • 2 cups fresh tomatoes, diced
  • ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 can tuna in brine, drained
  • salt and pepper, as desired
  • fresh spring onions, sliced, for garnish

Instructions
 

  • Rinse the beans and remove any bad ones and any debris, place in a large bowl and cover with 2 inches of water. Add 2 tablespoons of salt and stir that in. Cover the bowl and let that sit for at least 6 hours. If you are going to soak these overnight, place in the fridge, this will reduce the chance of the beans fermenting.
  • After 6 hours, drain and rinse the beans and add to your pressure cooker. Add 8 cups of water, bacon, and the 2 tablespoons of cooking oil, the oil keeps the beans from foaming so do not skip the oil.
  • Place the lid on the pot, add the weight (jiggler), and bring the heat up to high. When the jiggler starts moving and releasing pressure, indicating full pressure, start timing this for 8 minutes, and turn the heat down to low or medium low to maintain the jiggler moving and releasing pressure.
  • At 8 minutes, turn off the heat and move the pressure cooker to an unused burner and allow a natural release of pressure, this takes 10-15 minutes.
  • While the pressure cooker is cooling, heat a non stick pan with 1 tablespoon of cooking oil, when hot, add the onion and mushrooms. Saute until the onion is softened and the mushrooms have released their water, cook for another minute or two evaporate the water off. Transfer the onion and mushrooms to a dish and set aside.
  • When the pressure is released, open and remove the lid and set that aside, you won't need the lid for the rest of the cooking. Pour the contents into a large strainer that is on top of a large pot. Now you have beans for this recipe and bean broth for another recipe, see, 2 for 1.
  • Return the beans to the pressure cooker pot along with 1½ cups of the bean broth. Add the tomatoes, sautéed mushrooms and onion, rosemary, salt, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to mix together and put on low heat to simmer for 15-20 minutes to cook down the tomatoes and the liquid will reduced some. Taste and season with salt and pepper as desired.
  • Stir in the drained tuna, simmer for another 5-10 minutes to heat the tuna through.
  • Ladle into bowls and garnish with sliced spring onion. Serve and enjoy.
  • Take the remainder of the bean broth and pour that into a jar and let it cool, then place in the fridge. Use as a base for a soup or noodles, use within 2-3 days.

Notes

Low cost per serving for sure.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,FISH - ALL,Fish - Tuna,Soups, Stews, Chili - Pressure Cooker
Tuna Salad Deviled Eggs
June 8, 2019 Lee
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Tuna Salad Deviled Eggs

I like deviled eggs and I like tuna salad, this sounds like a win win to me. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 6 hard boiled eggs, Shortcut
  • 1 can tuna in water or brine, drained and flaked
  • 2 tablespoons mayo
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon lime juice
  • 2 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh dill, chopped, plus more for garnish

Instructions
 

  • Peel and slice the eggs in half lengthwise. Remove the yolks to a mixing bowl and place the whites, flat side up, on a plate.
  • Mash the yolks with a fork, then add the mixing bowl, add the drained tuna, may, mustard, lime juice, garlic, and dill and mix together with the yolks.
  • Spoon the filling into the egg whites. Chill if desired.
  • Just before serving, garnish with dill. Enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.
Shortcuts: Steamed Eggs (Rice Cooker), Perfect Hard Boiled Chicken Eggs.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,APPETIZERS / SNACKS,EGGS - ALL,Eggs - Chicken
Asian Rice Noodle Soup
June 7, 2019 Lee
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Asian Rice Noodle Soup

Lee
Generic name as this does not pertain to any Asian country, rather this is a type of soup made all over Asia in various ways, this soup is just one way, and the bonus is, you can add anything you like to this soup. This recipe assumes you have hard boiled eggs on hand already, if not there is shortcuts listed.
5 from 1 vote
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Asian
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 220 grams dry flat rice noodles, (about 8 oz)
  • 3 quarts water
  • 2 tablespoons pork seasoning powder
  • 300 grams fresh Shiitake mushrooms, (about 10 oz)
  • 150 grams fresh white crab mushrooms, (about 5 oz)
  • 2-3 spring onions, chopped, or 3-4 chives
  • 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 2 slices fresh ginger
  • salt and white pepper, as desired
  • 4 hard boiled eggs, Shortcuts
  • 8 Arabiki sausages

Instructions
 

  • First thing we are going to do make the stock. Add 2 quarts of water to a medium sized pot and stir in the pork flavoring and bring to a simmer. While that is coming up to a simmer, lay the Arabiki sausages on a cutting board and prick each sausage with a fork along the length of each sausage, this prevents them from bursting open and releases some of the fat to also flavor the stock.
  • After the water comes to a simmer, add the sausage. Simmer for about 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, remove the sausage with a slotted spoon to a bowl. Set the sausage aside.
  • While the sausage is simmering, prep the remaining ingredients. For the Shiitake mushrooms, I used a Japanese cutting technique called Sogigiri, which is an angle slicing cut - remove the stems, quickly rinse the caps, place the caps stem side down, then slice each cap at a 45 degree angle, the purpose of this is to give a large surface area to provide even cooking. For the White Crab mushrooms, simple cut the root section off, quickly rinse, then chop the bundle into 3 sections.
  • After the sausage comes out of the pot, another quart of water, bring the stock to a boil and add the garlic and ginger slices. Boil for about 3-5 minutes then add the rice noodles and reduce the heat slightly as they will foam up. I used flat rice noodles, these are not known as wide noodles, just flat, wide rice noodles can be 1/2 to 1 inch wide and those are normally bought fresh, not dry.
  • When the noodle are about half cooked, you will see them expand in width and thickness, go ahead and add the mushrooms.
  • When the noodles are tender, stir in the spring onion or chives and simmer for another 2 minutes then remove from heat.
  • Cut the Arabiki sausages in half at an angle, and slice the eggs in half lengthwise.
  • Ladle soup into bowls, place 4 sausage pieces on the side (2 links), and place 2 pieces of egg, cut side up, on the side as well. Enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.
Shortcuts: Steamed Eggs (Rice Cooker), Perfect Hard Boiled Chicken Eggs.
My own creation from seeing hundreds of soups made. Lee Thayer, Thailand.
#1 Go-To Recipes,* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: CHINESE,: JAPANESE,: THAI,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI
Arabiki Sausage 101
June 2, 2019 Lee
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Arabiki Sausage 101

Arabiki sausage is a smoked Japanese coarse pork sausage in sheep casings, the casing give it a distinctive snap when bitten into. Here in Thailand, they come plain and also with cheese. These are typically small sausages, about the size of a finger, and these have to be cooked first. Oddly, the only brand of this sausage I have ever seen is only available at none other than 7-11. These come 4 sausages to a pack, which makes a nice single serving. These can be used in many ways.
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Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Japanese
Servings 0

Ingredients
  

  • 1 package Arabiki sausage

Instructions
 

  • Here is the two types, plain smoked on the left, and with cheese on the right.
  • Heat a non stick pan and add the sausage, figure 4 sausages per serving, here I am cooking 4 packages.
  • Turn occasionally and cook until browned.
  • Serve with a potato and or vegetable side dish.
  • Now with the pan fried sausages, serve as is, or slice and add to your favorite mac & cheese, add to a pasta dish.
  • The directions on the packet are to microwave in the package (have to open the package first) for 45 seconds. Keeping them in the package prevents fat from splattering all over in your microwave, then they are ready for use.
  • Another way to prepare these is to slice in half at an angle add to a pot of broth then serve with an Asian noodle soup, then you could stretch 1 package into say 2 servings.
  • Another way to prepare these is to run onto skewers and place on a grill, turn often until nicely browned.

Notes

One package of 4 Japanese sausages is about 42 Baht. Figuring 4 sausage per serving, this is about $1.32 per serving. If adding to say a mac & cheese, you may only need to add 1 package, then the cost per serving would be less than $1 per serving.
Common preparation methods for Arabiki sausage. Lee Thayer.
Thailand. 
#1 Go-To Recipes,* Fair Value $1.01 to $1.50 per Serving,5 Ingredients or Less,: JAPANESE,Pork - Sausage
Egg & Onion Open Faced Sandwiches
June 1, 2019 Lee
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Egg & Onion Open Faced Sandwiches

This is a mix between regular egg salad and sliced egg sandwiches, on my to make and taste list. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
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Prep Time 2 minutes
Total Time 2 minutes
Course Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 2 sandwiches

Ingredients
  

  • 2 slices whole wheat bread
  • 2 hard boiled eggs, sliced thick, 4-5 slices each, Shortcut
  • Kewpie mayo, or mayo of choice, as desired
  • 1 spring onion, thinly sliced
  • salt and pepper, as desired
  • paprika, as desired

Instructions
 

  • Lay the bread on two plates, spread an ample amount of mayo on each slice, my preference is Japanese Kewpie mayo but certainly use mayo of your choice.
  • Add slices of the egg.
  • Top with a generous sprinkling of paprika, then top with spring onion, serve and enjoy. Serve as a lunch or light dinner.

Notes

Low cost.
Shortcuts: Perfect Hard Boiled Chicken Eggs, Steamed Chicken Eggs (Rice Cooker).
Adapted from an internet recipe.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,BURGERS & SANDWICHES,EGGS - ALL,Eggs - Chicken
Cheesy Fried Potatoes
June 1, 2019 Lee
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Cheesy Fried Potatoes

I love fried potatoes, and cheese and egg mixed in, sounds even better. I made this on 1 Jun 2019, and wow, are these good!
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 4 medium potatoes, cubed, peeling is optional
  • bacon fat, as needed
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded, or more to taste
  • salt and pepper, as desired

Instructions
 

  • Prep the potatoes, then add to a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are not quite fork tender, we are going to fry them soon. Drain potatoes.
  • Heat 1-2 tablespoons of bacon fat and the butter in a large non stick pan, when hot, add the onion and drained potatoes.
  • Cover and cook, turning occasionally, season with salt and pepper as desired, until tender and starting to brown.
  • Crack in the eggs and sprinkle on the cheese, mix together, cover.
  • Cook until the egg is set and the cheese is melted in.
  • Serve and enjoy with sides of your choice.

Notes

Low cost per serving.
Variants: 1. Fry up some bacon, crumble, and add that. 2. Use a 4 cheese blend in place of Cheddar.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
#1 Go-To Recipes,* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,POTATOES
Shrimp & Crab Salad
May 24, 2019 Lee
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Shrimp & Crab Salad

Lee
This is a basic salad I put together on a whim and it is delicious. I use imitation crab because I like it and it is economical.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Passive Time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 25 minutes
Course Lunch, Main Dish, Side
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 250 grams imitation crab, aka crab sticks, (8 oz)
  • 250 grams medium shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails removed, (8 oz)
  • 1 onion, diced
  • ½ teaspoon lemon pepper
  • ½ cup Kewpie mayo, or mayo of your choice, and as needed
  • handful fresh dill, chopped
  • lettuce, for serving

Instructions
 

  • First thing to do is cook the shrimp, you can boil them or saute them, either way, when they are pink they are done, don't overcook the shrimp. I sauteed them, simply heat a non stick pan with a tablespoon or two of extra light olive oil, when hot, add all the shrimp at one time, stir fry, the shrimp release water as well, stir fry until all the shrimp are pink then dump them in a strainer to remove the water and any oil, run under cold water to cool them, and allow them to drain while you continue.
  • For the crab, feel free to use lump crab meat if you prefer. To prepare the imitation crab, simply remove the wrappers and slice into ½ inch pieces and place in a mixing bowl.
  • To the bowl, add the shrimp, onion, lemon pepper, mayo, and most of the dill, keep some for garnish when serving.
  • Mix everything together, if the salad is too dry, mix in a few more tablespoons of mayo until you get the consistency you like. Cover and place in the fridge 2-3 hours before serving.
  • To serve, tear up some lettuce leaves, scoop some salad on top of the leaves, garnish with some dill. Serve as a main dish or as a side. Enjoy.

Notes

The package of imitation crab was 52 Baht, the shrimp cost me 140 Baht. For 6 servings, this is about $1 per serving.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,SEAFOOD - ALL,Seafood - Crab,Seafood - Crab - Imitation,Seafood - Shrimp/Prawn,Sides - Salads
Thai Fried Potatoes
May 22, 2019 Lee
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Thai Fried Potatoes

I just thought this was kind of unique so I am adding it as a recipe. Thais love french fries, you can see this is any grocery store, there will be 2-3 refer units with nothing but different brands of french fries, shoe string cut, crinkle cut, wedges, American fries, etc, really odd since most Thais normally eat regular potatoes just boiled, unless there is fries. This recipe is what my wife made, basically fried potatoes that taste like french fries. She made these on a whim to use up some potatoes I had on hand before they spoiled, and here is her creation.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 20 minutes
Course Appetizer, Side
Cuisine American, Thai
Servings 3 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 5 medium potatoes, whole, skin on
  • cooking oil, as needed
  • sea salt, as desired

Instructions
 

  • Wash and scrub the potatoes, place potatoes in a large pot and cover with about 2 inches of water. Turn on the heat to high. When the water is boiling, let boil for about 5 minutes, then turn off the heat, cover the pot and allow to cool to room temp, about 2 hours or so.
  • Once the pot has cooled to room temp, remove the potatoes from the water, discard the water. Cut the potatoes into large dice, nice bite size pieces.
  • In a large non stick pan (we use a wok pan) add about 1/2 to 3/4 inch of cooking oil and heat until hot but not smoking, you are going to shallow fry the potatoes. When the oil is hot, add all the potatoes, stir them around a bit and fry, stirring often, goal is golden brown without burning or charring the potatoes.
  • When all the potatoes are golden brown, remove to a strainer to drain oil.
  • Place on paper towels to absorb oil as well. Season with sea salt, serve as a snack or side dish as you would french fries. And there you go, fried potatoes that taste very much like french fries. Enjoy.

Notes

Low cost.
My wife's creation for the method. Rrayada Thayer.
Thailand.
#1 Go-To Recipes,* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,5 Ingredients or Less,APPETIZERS / SNACKS,POTATOES,SIDES
Creamy Seafood Pasta
May 18, 2019 Lee
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Creamy Seafood Pasta

Adapted from an internet recipe.
This sounds tasty but there is some prep work involved to get all the seafood ready. This can be tailored to suit your taste.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

For the Seafood

  • 1 cup shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails removed
  • 1 cup squid, cut into rings
  • 1 cup mussel meat, grass removed, fresh preferred, frozen will work
  • 1 cup crab meat, or imitation crab (crab sticks), chopped
  • butter, or olive oil, as needed
  • salt and pepper, as desired

For the Pasta

  • 500 grams dry pasta, bite size or spaghetti, (1 lb)
  • 3 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
  • 1 handful fresh mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 stalk celery, chopped
  • ½ onion, diced
  • 1 leek, sliced
  • ¾ cup whipping cream, and as needed
  • ¼ teaspoon dried oregano

Instructions
 

To Prepare the Seafood

  • Shrimp can be fresh, frozen raw, or frozen cooked. For fresh shrimp, peel, devein, and remove the tails, heat a non stick pan with a tablespoon or two of butter or olive oil, when hot add the shrimp, stir them around and turn them, cook until pink, remove from the pan. For frozen raw, thaw them and saute them as you would fresh. For frozen cooked, thaw them and check for any shell still attached. Now the shrimp is ready.
  • Squid will normally be fresh, pull off the head end, remove the skin, the clear bone (called a pen), and insides. you can turn them inside out to facilitate cleaning the inside. Slice the body into ½ inch rings. Cut the tentacles off past the beak, discard the head. Heat a non stick pan with a tablespoon or two of butter or olive oil, when hot add the shrimp, stir them around and turn them, cook for about 2-3 minutes, season with salt and pepper as desired. Remove from the pan. Now the squid is cooked.
  • Mussels can be frozen cooked, or fresh raw. For frozen, simply thaw, check for and remove any beards. For fresh, clean the shells, remove visible beards outside of the shell, and discard any open or cracked shells, steam the mussels until the shells open, about 6-8 minutes, allow to cool to handle, discard any shells that did not open, remove the mussel meat from each shell, and again, check for and remove any beards. Now the mussels are read.
  • Crab can be canned, frozen, or imitation. For canned crab meat, just drain and check for any shell fragments. For frozen, thaw and check for any shell fragments. For imitation, simply unwrap the crab sticks and slice at an angle, about ¼ inch slices. Now the crab is ready.

To Prepare the Pasta

  • Heat a pot of salted water to boiling, then add the pasta and cook until just tender. Drain.
  • While the water is heating, heat a large non stick pan on medium heat with 1-2 tablespoons of butter or olive oil, when hot, add the garlic, mushrooms, celery, onion, and leek.
  • Saute until the onion and leak are tender, season with salt and pepper as desired.
  • Lower the heat to low and pour in the whipping cream, feel free to add another tablespoon or two, and mix with well.
  • The pasta should be done now, drain it well, then add the pasta to the pan and mix together.
  • Add the seafood to the pan and toss with the pasta, simmer for just a minute or two to heat the seafood through.
  • Serve and enjoy.

Notes

I will price this after I source all the seafood. For now, I will say High cost per serving.
Variants: 1. Replace or reduce an item of seafood and add some poached whitefish or salmon. 2. Replace a seafood item with an equal amount of a favored item. 3. Reduce a seafood item and add cooked oyster meat.
* High Cost $1.51+ per Serving,PASTA,SEAFOOD - ALL,Seafood - Crab,Seafood - Crab - Imitation,Seafood - Mussels,Seafood - Oysters,Seafood - Shrimp/Prawn,Seafood - Squid