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Split Pea Soup (Pressure Cooker)
October 24, 2018 Lee
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Split Pea Soup (Pressure Cooker)

Ryan Guo, Thailand.
This recipe was suggested to me by a good friend in Bangkok, who has in fact made this, with excellent results. He made this using a 9 liter (9½ quart) stove top pressure cooker. Follow the safety precautions at all times for your model of pressure cooker.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Equipment

  • Pressure Cooker

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams dry green split peas, rinsed and drained, (1 lb)
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 3 medium carrots, sliced
  • 3 ribs celery, sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
  • 2 tablespoons cooking oil
  • 1 bay leaf
  • ½ tablespoon paprika, smoked paprika if you have that
  • ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
  • 6 cups vegetable broth, fresh or from powder
  • black pepper, as desired

Instructions
 

  • Add everything to your pressure, season with black pepper as desired.
  • Add the lid and lock, add the weight (jiggler) and place on high heat until the jiggler begins to move and venting pressure, indicating full pressure. Set your time for 5 minutes, and reduce the heat to low or medium low to just keep the jiggle moving and venting pressure.
  • When 5 minutes have passed, turn off the heat and move the cooker to an unused burner and allow to release pressure naturally, meaning just let the pot sit until you have indications of zero pressure inside the vessel, about 15-20 minutes.
  • When zero pressure is inside the vessel, pull off the weight and remove the lid. Stir the soup, taste, and adjust with salt and pepper as desired.
  • Serve with thick bread. Enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,Soups, Stews, Chili - Pressure Cooker
Cowboy Soup
October 24, 2018 Lee
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Cowboy Soup

This recipe comes from a good friend in Northern Thailand, and it sounds delicious. On my to make list. This can be make with canned items or from what I call shortcuts. Links to the shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Course Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 1 can Pinto beans, drained, or 1 1/2 cups cooked if made from a Shortcut
  • 1 can tomato sauce, or 1 1/2 cups if made from a Shortcut
  • 4 slices bacon, cooked crispy and crumbled
  • 1 can diced tomatoes, or 1 can whole peeled then chopped
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • fresh parsley, chopped, as desired

Instructions
 

  • Add all ingredients to a saucepan and heat on medium heat, stir occasionally, until piping hot.
  • Serve with cornbread if desired. Enjoy.

Notes

Low cost.
Shortcuts: Pinto Beans (Pressure Cooker), Tomato Sauce.
Recipe provided by good friend, Kurt Hammerschmidt. Thailand.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI
Aush (Afghani Chili) (Slow Cooker)
October 20, 2018 Lee
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Aush (Afghani Chili) (Slow Cooker)

Adapted from an internet recipe.
This to me, sounds delicious, interesting use of ingredients. This uses the stove top, a slow cooker, and if you are cooking the chickpeas from dry, a pressure cooker may be used as well. On my to cook list. Links to the Shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours
Total Time 3 hours 15 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Afghani
Servings 6 servings

Equipment

  • Slow Cooker

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
  • 1 onion, diced large
  • 1 can whole peeled tomatoes, diced plus juice
  • 4 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
  • 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1½ tablespoons ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1½ tablespoons dried mint
  • 2 tablespoons garam masala, Shortcut
  • 1 can chickpeas, drained, (15 oz / 425 g), or 1½ cups cooked, Shortcut
  • 1 package frozen spinach, thawed, chopped, drained, (10 oz / 283 g)
  • 500 grams dry Fettuccine pasta, broken in half, (1 lb)
  • 1 cup sour cream, Shortcut

Instructions
 

  • Heat a non stick pan on medium heat and add the ground beef. Cook the beef, breaking it up with the spatula until browned and no pink remains, use a slotted spoon and remove the beef to your slow cooker. Leave the beef fat in the pan.
  • To the same pan, add the onion and cook, stirring often until golden brown, remove with a slotted spoon and add to the slow cooker. Discard the fat in the pan.
  • To the slow cooker, add the remaining ingredients except the pasta and sour cream. Stir and set on Low setting for 3-6 hours. Stir once an hour. The longer you simmer it, the longer the flavors blend together.
  • About 20 minutes before serving, cook the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water until just tender. Drain, then stir into the chili then stir in the sour cream.
  • Serve.

Notes

Low cost if using the shortcuts.
Shortcuts: Garam Masala, Chickpeas (Pressure Cooker), Sour Cream.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: AFGHANI,Soups, Stews, Chili - Slow Cooker
Cracker Jack
October 18, 2018 Lee
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Cracker Jack

This comes from a good friend in northeastern Thailand, and he makes this for the local village kids near him, and this is very popular with them now. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Cuisine American
Servings 0 a lot

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 6 tablespoons butter
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1/4 cup corn syrup, OR make from a shortcut
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 10 cups popped popcorn, make from 1 1/3 cups of kernels, salted
  • 1 cup salted peanuts

Special Equipment

  • probe thermometer

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 120 C (250 F) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Over medium high heat in a sauce pan, combine brown sugar, butter, water and corn syrup. Bring the temp up 121 C (250 F), use a probe thermometer. Remove from heat when the temp is reached.
  • Add the vanilla extract and baking soda, stir to incorporate into mixture.
  • In a large bowl, add the popped popcorn, drizzle the cooked mixture over popcorn, mix with wooden spoon or spatula, add the peanuts and stir to distribute evenly.
  • Transfer combined popcorn mixture onto the baking sheet, distribute to make an even layer.
  • Bake in oven for 1 hour, however, after 20 minutes, remove and stir popcorn mixture, then bake for an additional 20 minutes, remove and stir, then bake for the remaining 20 minutes.
  • Remove from oven and allow to cool. There, you just made Cracker Jack.
  • Once the Cracker Jack is cool, store in an airtight container or enjoy.

Notes

Low cost.
Shortcut: Corn Syrup Substitute.
Recipe and photo provide by good friend, Brian Colligan, Pleasures & Pastimes (which is a great resource for gardening seeds and other items).
Thailand.
APPETIZERS / SNACKS
Corn Syrup Substitute
October 18, 2018 Lee
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Corn Syrup Substitute

This comes from a good friend in Northeastern Thailand, and does make this often. Highly recommended.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Cuisine American
Servings 0

Equipment

  • Probe thermometer

Ingredients
  

  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar, OR citric acid
  • pinch salt

Instructions
 

  • In sauce pan, combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil.
  • Monitor temperature with a probe thermometer. Continue to boil until 115.5 C (240 F) is reached. Remove from heat.
  • When cooled, transfer to a glass container with a lid.

Notes

Used in Recipes Listed on this Site:
 
Recipe and photo provide by good friend, Brian Colligan, Pleasures & Pastimes (which is a great resource for gardening seeds and other items). Thailand.
INGREDIENTS
Beef Casserole
October 17, 2018 Lee
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Beef Casserole

The idea for this comes from a good friend in Thailand, and it turned out much better than expected, and the family loved it!
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 3 cups bowtie pasta, or any bite size pasta
  • 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • 8 small Shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced
  • 1 jar Artisan 3 Cheese Pasta Sauce, Prego, 411 gram jar
  • 2-3 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
  • panko breadcrumbs, as needed
  • salt and pepper, as desired

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 200 C (400 F). Grease a 9x13 baking dish lightly with butter.
  • Cook the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water until just tender. Drain and add pasta to the baking dish. While the pasta is cooking, heat a non stick pan and brown the ground beef, drain and add to the baking dish.
  • Add the mushrooms, peas, and cheese pasta sauce to the baking dish.
  • Mix together. Season with salt and pepper as desired.
  • Spread the mixture out evenly and sprinkle the shredded cheese on the top, use as much cheese as you like.
  • Add some panko on top of the cheese.
  • Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the casserole is bubbly and the top is golden brown.
  • Serve and enjoy.

Notes

The cheese sauce, in Thailand, is available from Lazada if you reside outside of a major city, cost is 178 Baht for a jar, which is not bad, it is a very good sauce. The Cheddar cheese will use 1 200 gram block, about 180 Baht. For 8 servings, this is about $1.36 per serving.
Recipe inspired by good friend, Kurt Hammerschmidt.
Thailand.
#1 Go-To Recipes,* Fair Value $1.01 to $1.50 per Serving,CASSEROLES,PASTA
Cowboy Stew
October 16, 2018 Lee
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Cowboy Stew

Ground beef, bacon, and baked beans, sounds delicious! I used my homemade baked beans for this but if wanting to use canned, that is stated as well. Great comfort meal. Links to the Shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 5 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 250 grams bacon, (1/2 lb)
  • 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 2 medium potatoes, scrubbed and diced
  • 4 cups baked beans, or 2 15 oz cans, (Shortcut)
  • 1/3 cup BBQ sauce, (Shortcut)
  • 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke

Instructions
 

  • In a large pot (I like to use my pressure cooker pot) add the baked beans. I used homemade and they were quite thick so I added 1 cup of water as well. Bring that to a simmer.
  • In a pot add the diced potatoes and cover with water by 2 inches, bring to a boil and cook the potatoes until just fork tender. Drain, and add to the baked beans.
  • While the potatoes are cooking, in a large non stick pan, cook the bacon until near crispy. Remove the bacon and drain on paper towels. When cooled, chop into bite size pieces and add the bacon to the baked beans.
  • For the bacon fat in the pan, drain off most of it, then add the ground beef and onion. Cook the beef until no longer pink and the onion is soft. Drain and add to the baked beans.
  • Add the BBQ sauce and liquid smoke to the pot and stir into the beans, bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer.
  • Simmer the stew for 10-15 minutes. While simmering consider making some biscuits to ladle the stew over or heating some nice dinner rolls to go with this. Corn bread muffins would be perfect as a side as well as fried corn.
  • Serve and enjoy.

Notes

Low cost.
Shortcuts: Slow Cooker Baked Beans, BBQ Sauce.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
#1 Go-To Recipes,* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,BEEF
Brian’s Great Pizza Dough
October 15, 2018 Lee
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Brian's Great Pizza Dough

Brian Colligan, Thailand.
This recipe comes my good friend in northeastern Thailand and sounds like a winner as well. This makes enough pizza dough for four 8 inch pizzas.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Cuisine American
Servings 4 8 inch pizza crusts

Ingredients
  

  • 2½ teaspoons yeast
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • 1 cup lukewarm water, (¼ cup plus ¾ cup divided)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus as needed
  • 3 cups bread flour, use per the instructions

Instructions
 

  • In a medium bowl, add yeast, honey and ¼ cup of the lukewarm water and stir. Let this sit for 10 minutes.
  • Add the salt, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and 1 cup of the flour and ¾ cup of the lukewarm water, stir with a wooden spoon.
  • Now add another 1 cup of flour, stir with a wooden spoon or with floured hands.
  • Now add another ½ of the flour and mix in until a sticky ball of dough forms, add additional flour as needed, 1 tablespoon at a time.
  • Once a sticky ball has formed, remove from the bowl and place on a floured surface.
  • Kneed for 5 minutes adding flour as needed to have a have a surface on the dough that is a bit tacky.
  • Form a dough ball and place dough in bowl with olive oil, roll ball in olive oil to cover surface, cover with cloth and let rise for 30-40 minutes
  • Deflate the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface, cut the ball into 4 pieces and form each piece into a ball.
  • Cover with a damp cloth and let rise for another 20-30 minutes.
  • Now you can use immediately or wrap balls separately in plastic wrap and store in the fridge until use.
  • Each ball will make one 8 inch pizza. If you want larger pizzas, adjust the number of balls accordingly.
  • Use your preferred method for preparing the crust.

Notes

Low cost.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,INGREDIENTS,PIZZA
Crab Rangoon Spring Rolls
October 14, 2018 Lee
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Crab Rangoon Spring Rolls

Adapted from an internet recipe.
Crab Rangoon is not Chinese in origin, it as American. This recipe uses imitation crab which is left whole, not chopped, and simply rolled in spring roll wrappers. The dipping sauce in combination with the fried spring rolls = Crab Rangoon Spring Rolls. Feel free to use dipping sauces of your choice and simply call these Crab Stick Spring Rolls.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients
  

For the Dipping Sauce

  • 250 grams Cream cheese, 1 package, room temperature, (8 oz)
  • 1-2 tablespoons mayo, and as needed
  • 1 tablespoon Sriracha Chili Garlic sauce
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 spring onion, finely sliced, white and green parts

For the Spring Rolls

  • 500 grams imitation crab, (1 lb)
  • 1 package spring roll wrappers, thawed, you will have leftovers from this
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch
  • lard, or cooking oil, for frying

Instructions
 

For the Dipping Sauce

  • Add the cream cheese to a bowl and mash with a sturdy fork, add the Sriracha, spring onion, mayo, and soy sauce.
  • Mash with the fork, adding more mayo as needed to achieve the consistency you want. Set this aside.

For the Spring Rolls

  • The only prep work is unwrapping each crab stick. Unwrap the sticks from the entire package. I ended up with 38 sticks (a cat stole 1 and there was one left over, quick snack for me). You will use all the sticks, you won't use all the wrappers. Place the sticks in a bowl, and in a small bowl, mix together the water and cornstarch to make a slurry.
  • Two people is very handy to do this step, one to pull the the pastry apart and the other rolling the spring rolls. Spring roll wrappers are very thin pastry, and if doing this by yourself, place a damp towel on the unused sheets while you roll, if they start to dry, they will be hard to pull apart and will tear. This will actually go by rather quickly now.
    Note: Spring roll wrappers come in two sizes, 8½ x 8½ inches and 5½ x 5½ inches. If using the larger sheets, which is show here, use 3 crab sticks, if using the smaller size use 2 crab sticks.
  • Open the package of spring roll sheets. Carefully pull off one sheet and place smooth side down on a clean counter with one corner of the sheet facing you. Use two fingers and dip into the slurry then rub your fingers the two sides of the pastry that are farthest from you. Place 3 crab sticks near the corner nearest you.
  • Fold the corner of the pastry onto the crab sticks.
  • Tightly roll the sticks up to just before you get to the widest part of the pastry.
  • Now fold the the left and right corners towards the middle.
  • Continue to roll, place on a plate. Repeat for as crab sticks you have. I made 12.
  • Heat a large pan with about 1/2 inch of lard or cooking oil.
  • When hot but not smoking, fry the spring rolls for about 1-2 minutes on each side or until golden brown (shallow deep fry). Remove to paper towels to drain, continue frying, working in batches until all the spring rolls are fried. Repackage the unused spring roll wrappers and return to the freezer.
  • Serve and enjoy.

Notes

Tesco brand crab sticks, which taste perfectly acceptable, will cost about 95 Baht for 500 grams. Cream cheese will cost about 120 Baht (Caroline brand). I made 12 spring rolls, figure 2 spring rolls per serving as a snack or appetizer, or 6 servings. This is about $1.08 per serving.
#1 Go-To Recipes,* Fair Value $1.01 to $1.50 per Serving,APPETIZERS / SNACKS,SEAFOOD - ALL,Seafood - Crab - Imitation
Basic Crab Salad
October 13, 2018 Lee
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Basic Crab Salad

Lee
I use imitation crab for this for this for several reasons, 1. I like it, 2. good sized black crabs are hard to get as nearly all are sold to restaurants. Crab salad is commonly called 'Seafood Salad' which I would say is incorrect as the only seafood is the crab, or in my case, fish that tastes like crab (yes, imitation crab is just fish). So Crab Salad it is, sounds much better than "Fish Flavored Like Crab Salad." You can make this many ways so it is different each time. This is just a common salad I put together. Enjoy.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Course Appetizer, Lunch, Main Dish, Side
Cuisine American
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams imitation crab, (1 lb)
  • 1 red onion, finely diced
  • ½ cup celery, finely diced
  • ½ cup mayo, start with less and use as needed
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • ½ teaspoon dill
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper

Instructions
 

  • Unwrap the crab sticks and slice them at an angle, add to mixing bowl.
  • Dice the onion and celery and add to the bowl. (Chopped cilantro works well if no celery on hand, which is what I used.)
  • Add remaining ingredients, but for the mayo, start with less than 1/2 cup. Gently mix everything together until all is coated with mayo, adding mayo as needed but not trying to make it dripping with mayo as well.
  • Cover and place in the fridge for 1-2 hours before serving. (Once I put the salad in a container for the fridge, I added some halved cherry tomatoes and mixed those in.)
  • When serving, gently mix the salad again. then serve. Serving options can be just as a side, on a bed of lettuce, or in a sandwich. Enjoy.

Notes

Tesco brand crab sticks, which taste perfectly acceptable, will cost about 95 Baht for 500 grams. For 4 servings this is about 68 cents per serving.
Variants: 1. Add halved cherry tomatoes. 2. No celery on hand? No problem, add ½ teaspoon of celery seed if you have that or use chopped cilantro. 4. Add ¼ cup sliced black olives. 5. Add ½ cup grated or cubed Cheddar cheese.
#1 Go-To Recipes,* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,BURGERS & SANDWICHES,SEAFOOD - ALL,Seafood - Crab - Imitation,Sides - Salads