Author Archive
Basic Tacos
Simple recipe and you can change the toppings to suit your taste. Links to the Shortcuts are listed in the Notes section.
Ingredients
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 1 packet taco seasoning, Shortcut
- water, as stated on seasoning packet or on Shortcut
- 16 corn tortillas, estimate 3-4 per serving, or as desired
- cooking oil, as needed
- tomatoes, diced
- lettuce, chopped
- cheese, shredded, Cheddar or a cheese blend
Additional Toppings - as desired
- onion, diced
- avocado, diced
- sour cream, Shortcut
Instructions
- Brown the beef in a non stick pan, when browned and no pink is visible, drain fat.
- Stir in the seasoning packet and water stated on packet or on the Shortcut. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- While the beef is simmering, heat another non stick pan with a little oil, when the oil is hot, add a 1-2 tortilla and cook for about 30 seconds then turn over and cook. Goal for this step is to make the tortillas flexible. Remove to a plate and cover with a towel to keep warm. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
- Set out the tortillas, beef, tomato, lettuce, and cheese to let everyone make their own tacos.
- For the basic taco, place beef along the center of a tortilla, add lettuce, tomato, and shredded cheese. Fold in half, enjoy. Feel free to use toppings as desired or even additional toppings.
Notes
Fair cost per serving based on where the beef, tortillas, and cheese is sourced from.
Shortcuts: Taco Seasoning, Sour Cream.
Ham & Cheese Pinwheels
Easy to assemble and delicious pinwheels. Use any cheese you prefer and as much or as little ham as you like. I made these on 7 Mar 2022 to test out with other pinwheels I made, these are approved and well liked by the family. I served these as a light main dish but these can also be appetizers.
Ingredients
- 250 grams cream cheese, softened, (8 oz)
- ¼ cup mayo
- ½ teaspoon dried dill weed
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- flour tortillas, (I used three 8 inch size)
- sliced ham
- sliced cheese, (I used cheddar)
Instructions
- Mix together the first 5 ingredients until fairly smooth consistency.
- Lay out a tortilla and spread a thin layer of cheese mixture to cover to the edges. Place ham slices, amount is up to you, to cover the width of the tortilla. (I used 4 slices of ham on each of 2 tortillas and 2 slices of ham on 1 tortilla, wanted to taste the difference, both very acceptable.)
- Place a layer of cheese slices across the ham.
- Roll up the tortilla away from you, then stick a toothpick in it.
- Repeat with more tortillas to use up all the cheese mixture. I used three 8 inch tortillas, which was perfect. Cover with foil or plastic wrap and place in the fridge to chill for 1-2 hours.
- When ready to serve, remove the toothpicks and using a very sharp knife, slice into ¾ to 1 inch slices. Serve as appetizers or as a light main dish. (I should have rolled these tighter.)
Notes
Fair cost per serving.
Slow Cooker Cocktail Sausages
Chili sauce and orange marmalade go together well, so this is a Asian twist on BBQ Little Smokies, and it is delicious! For this I use the tiny mini cocktail chicken & pork sausages, the bonus is they have no plastic 'skins' to remove first.
Equipment
- Slow Cooker (3½+ quart)
Ingredients
- 1 cup chili sauce
- ½ cup orange marmalade
- 1 kilo mini cocktail sausages, (2 lb)
Instructions
- Add the chili sauce and marmalade to your slow cooker and stir together.
- Add the sausages, mini size remove the skins first, the tiny mini may not have skins. Mix them into the sauce. Cover and set to Low setting for 2-3 hours.
- Serve right from the pot, enjoy with sides of your choice, a seasoned rice goes very well with this.
Notes
Fair cost per serving now, I have to get the exact price on the 1,000 gram packages of the tiny mini cocktail sausages.
Slow Cooker Smothered Chicken
This recipe was recommended to me and on my making today list, made on 22 Feb 2022 and was well liked by the family, this is a low cost and easy recipe for a great meal. Link to the Shortcut listed in the Notes section.
Equipment
- Slow Cooker (3½+ quart)
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, skinless, boneless
- 2 cups chicken broth, from powder or homemade
- ¼ cup dry white wine
- ¼ cup whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, Shortcut
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon corn starch, heaping
Instructions
- Prep the chicken by cutting each breast in half lengthwise, then cut each piece into 3 chunks. Set aside.
- To your slow cooker, add all ingredients except the chicken and corn starch. Whisk to combine and there is no lumps.
- Add the chicken, stir everything together, cover, and place on High setting for 3 hours.
- At 3 hours, leave cooker on High, uncover and remove chicken with a slotted spoon.
- Sprinkle the corn starch into the pot, whisk to mix in well. Leave the cooker on High and return chicken to the pot and mix in. Leave uncovered and simmer for 20-30 minutes, stir often to slightly thicken sauce.
- Spoon over hot cooked rice or mashed potatoes, spoon sauce over the chicken and rice as desired, enjoy.
Notes
Low cost per serving.
Shortcut: Italian Seasoning.
This recipe was awarded a Blue Ribbon on the Just A Pinch Recipe Club.
Cake Donuts
Donuts or Doughnuts, these are easy to prepare, and they are delicious! Amount made will depend on the size of your donut cutter. I made 14 donuts using a 3¼ inch donut cutter, and the last bit of dough I just made some extra holes. I made these on 17 Feb 2022 and I, my wife, and several relatives tasted these and everyone says these are excellent.
Equipment
- Deep Fryer
- Donut Cutter or two different sized biscuit cutters.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- â…› teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- ½ cup milk
- 1 egg
- oil, for deep frying
Instructions
- Heat the oil in your deep fryer to 190° C (375° F).
- Add the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg to a mixing bowl. Whisk together. Add the egg to a measuring cup and add the milk, whisk together with a fork. Melt the butter.
- Stir in the butter and mix until crumbly.
- Stir in the beaten egg and milk until mixture is smooth, if dough seems too thin, sprinkle in a tablespoon of flour. The dough is very sticky but do not let that concern you.
- Place dough on a well floured work surface and roll out with a well floured pin to about ¼ inch thickness.
- Using a donut cutter or different sized biscuit cutters, cut dough into rings.
- Carefully place 2-3 rings, plus the holes, in the deep fryer depending on the size of the fryer, use of the basket is your preference. Fry for about 2-3 minutes, turning when the bottom is golden brown. The holes basically turn themselves over. I cooked two donuts at a time, plus their holes. The basket is in the fryer but I placed the donuts in with my hands and used chop sticks to turn them and remove them.
- Drain the cooked donuts on paper towels, let the oil reach the cooking temp again, and continue until all batches are fried. Serve and enjoy.
Creamy Mushroom Rice (Rice Cooker)
I came across this doing a search for mushroom rice dishes, and the use of cream in this interested me. I made this on 4 Feb 2022, my wife and I had two servings each of this, one without the cream added at the end, and one with the cream, and we actually preferred the one without the cream. This is an excellent side dish and will be a regular now.
Equipment
- Rice Cooker
Ingredients
- ½ small red onion, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1 cup fresh mushrooms, chopped
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 cups dry Jasmine rice, rinsed
- 2½ cups beef broth, (I used 3 OXO cubes)
Optional for the Creamy Version
- ½ cup half and half cream
- 1 teaspoon sour cream
Instructions
- Prep the onion, bell pepper, mushrooms, and garlic, add to the rice cooker pot. (I used two large Swiss Brown (cremini) mushrooms to make 1 cup chopped.)
- Then add the oil, rice, and broth to the rice cooker pot. Cover and set to Cook.
- When cooker switches to Warm, fluff with a rice paddle. At this point this is ready to be served or you can proceed with the next steps to make it the creamy version.
Optional for the Creamy Version
- Whisk together the half and half cream and sour cream. Stir mixture into the rice.
- Cover and set to Warm setting for 10 minutes, then fluff and serve.
Notes
Variant: 1. Use brown rice in place of Jasmine.
Bobby's Macaroni & Tomatoes
This is from a friend in the Just a Pinch Recipe Club, and is slightly modified from his original based on items available here in Thailand. Lot of possibilities here. I made this again on 25 Mar 2022 and used a variant, I added browned ground beef and green bell pepper, delicious! And family approved.
Ingredients
- 250 grams dry elbow macaroni, (8 oz)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 can diced tomatoes, (565 g / 20 oz)
- 1½ teaspoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
- salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Cook the macaroni in a pot of salted boiling water until tender, then drain.
- Return the macaroni to the same pot and stir in the butter. Then add all remaining ingredients.
- Stir everything together and place on medium low heat, and simmer for 15-20 minutes to allow the flavors to mix.
- Serve and enjoy.
- Here I made the recipe as stated then I browned ground beef (500 grams/1 lb) along with a diced green bell pepper and mixed that, it takes this dish up a notch, delicious! This will be my preferred way to prepare this from now on.
Notes
Low cost per serving with original recipe, adding the variants can make this a fair cost per serving dish.
Variants: 1. Add sliced hot dogs, cubed ham, sliced and sautéed sausage, cooked shrimp, browned ground beef or pork (brown the meat with an onion or bell pepper for additional flavor).
Shrimp & Corn Soup
This is excellent soup, common ingredients and it goes together quickly. I made this on 10 Feb 2022 and the family absolutely loved this. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Notes section.
Ingredients
- 750 grams shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails removed, (1½ lb)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 2 stalks import celery, diced
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cans whole kernel corn, drained, (410 g/15 oz each)
- 1 can creamed corn, (565 g/20 oz)
- 113 grams cream cheese, cubed, (4 oz)
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 1½ cups milk
- 2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning, Shortcut
- ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
- fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Prep the vegetables.
- Prep the shrimp.
- Heat the butter and oil in the a large saucepan, when hot, add the onion, celery, and bell pepper. Sauté until tender.
- To the pan, add the shrimp, stir into the vegetables.
- Cook the shrimp until just pink.
- Add the corn, cream, milk, and Cajun seasoning. Stir together.
- Cook on low heat until the cream cheese is melted and mixed in.
- Ladle into serving bowls, sprinkle with parley as desired. Serve and enjoy.
Notes
Fair cost per serving based on the cost of the shrimp, really depends where you can source good fresh shrimp.
Shortcut: Cajun Seasoning Mix.
Updated on 10 February 2022.
Salmon Salad II
I figured canned tuna makes a nice salad for a sandwich, so why not canned salmon? This is not low cost in Thailand however. My wife is not a fan of canned fish so I experimented and made this for my dinner. This is the second version I came up with and made this on 19 Jan 2022, and it is delicious.
Ingredients
- ½ can salmon, drained, (15 oz / 425 g can)
- ¼ medium onion, diced
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- â…› teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon cappers, drained
- mayo, about 2 heaping tablespoons, or as desired
- 4 slices bread, plain or toasted and buttered, totally up to you
Instructions
- First thing I did was dice the onion and put in a storage dish, then drained the salmon and added that and sort of flaked it up with a fork. (I was making 2 different salmon dishes at the same time, and I left the skin on and bones in the fish.)
- Add the mustard, black pepper, and capers, and add about a heaping tablespoon of mayo. (I took the photo before adding the capers, my mistake.)
- Mix together and add mayo as needed for your desired consistency. Cover, and place in the fridge for about an hour or two to chill.
- Using bread of your choice, toasted and buttered is up to you. Add some salad to 2 slices of bread, top with remaining slices. Enjoy.
Notes
High cost based on the lowest price I can find for canned salmon is about $5/can, and from the photos, that is a small can, about 7 oz or so.
Variant: 1. Add a chopped hard boiled egg.
Salmon Salad I
I figured canned tuna makes a nice salad for a sandwich, so why not canned salmon? This is not low cost in Thailand however. My wife is not a fan of canned fish or yellow curry powder, so I got to experiment with this. This is the first version I came up with, made on 19 Jan 2022, and this is tasty!
Ingredients
- ½ can salmon, drained, (15 oz / 425 g can)
- ¼ medium onion, diced
- ½ teaspoon yellow curry powder
- â…› teaspoon garlic powder
- mayo, about 2 heaping tablespoons, or as desired
- 4 slices bread, plain or toasted and buttered, totally up to you
Instructions
- First thing I did was dice the onion and put in a storage dish, then drained the salmon and added that and sort of flaked it up with a fork. (I was making 2 different salmon dishes at the same time, and I left the skin on and bones in the fish.)
- Add the curry powder and garlic powder, and add about a heaping tablespoon of mayo.
- Mix together and add mayo as needed for your desired consistency. Cover, and place in the fridge for about an hour or two to chill.
- Using bread of your choice, toasted and buttered is up to you. Add some salad to 2 slices of bread, top with remaining slices. Enjoy.
Notes
High cost based on the lowest price I can find for canned salmon is about $5/can, and from the photos, that is a small can, about 7 oz or so.
Variant: 1. Add a chopped hard boiled egg.
