Archive for the ‘#1 Go-To Recipes’ Category
Cheesy Chicken Pasta Skillet
This is a variant of the Cheesy Smoked Sausage Pasta Skillet, but I thought this warranted a separate recipe due to not being a one skillet dish, this one takes a little time. Lot of things to change in this to suit your taste. I made this on 8 Dec 2016, and it is delicious, I took the step by step photos and my comments below.
Ingredients
For the Chicken and Stock
- 3 chicken quarters, seperate the legs from the thighs
- 1 onion, cut in half, no need to peel
- 1-2 tablespoons peppercorns
To Prepare
- splash olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 500 grams dry spiral pasta, any bite size pasta will work
- 1 can whole peeled tomatoes, chopped, with the juice as well
- 3 cups chicken stock, you just made that
- salt and black pepper, to taste
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 2 cups Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
Instructions
For the Chicken and Stock
- Place the chicken in a large pot and fill 3/4 of the way full with water, add the onion and peppercorns, feel free to add any additional veggys you like such as carrots or celery. Place on high heat and bring to a boil and reduce to almost a simmer. Cook for about 20-30 minutes or until the meat is tender. You do not want the meat to fall off the bone.
- Remove the chicken from the pot to drain and cool for about 20 minutes so you can handle it. Turn off the heat to the pot and cover.
- Once the pieces have cooled a bit and you can handle them, use your fingers to pull the meat off the bones, do not use forks, use your hands as you can feel if there is any gristle attached to the meat, this is the reason you do not want the meat to fall off the bones, then the gristle is attached to the meat. By cooking until tender, the meat will easily pull off the bones and the gristle bits remain attached to the bone. Turn the heat back on to a simmer on the pot with the stock in it put the bones back in and continue to simmer this until needed. This photo shows the meat from 3 thighs and 3 legs. Feel to chop or pull apart to smaller pieces if you desire.
To Prepare
- Melt butter in skillet and cook the onion and garlic until tender and starting to brown, then add in the chicken meat.
- Add, salt, pepper, oregano, basil, parsley, chopped tomatoes and juice, 3 cups of the stock you just made, and the pasta and stir together. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer, and let cook uncovered, or until pasta is tender and just some of the liquid remains, about 20-30 minutes. Turn off the heat and cover.
- Juice and stock is absorbed, the pasta is perfect.
- Mix in the cheese and cover for about 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
- Serve.
Notes
My wife bought 5 quarters for 110 Baht, I used 3, so I will say 75 Baht for the chicken. The cheese is about 140 Baht for a 200 gram block, shred the whole block for 2 cups of cheese. For 6 servings, this is about $1.05 per serving.
Variants: Add fresh sliced mushrooms. Use fresh tomatoes but you will need tomato juice (just a bit) as well. Variants add cost however, but can change up the dish from one time you prepare it to the next. Add taco seasoning and use Cheddar cheese and you have a taco pasta dish.
Inspired by good friend, Lynn Batterman.
United States.
United States.
Whitefish Scampi
Sounds good and easy with only 5 ingredients. The cooking time listed for this seems long but is spot on, as I made this on 13 Sep 2017, outstanding, another big hit with the family.
Ingredients
- 4 fillets whitefish, Pangasius, Barramundi, or Tilapia, fillets cut in half as well
- 3/4 cup butter, this is 3/4 of a standard block
- 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice, or lime juice
- 8 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley
- salt and lemon pepper, as desired
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F), lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish with butter.
- In a saucepan, add the butter and the minced garlic and put on low heat to melt the butter and soften the garlic a bit.
- Arrange the fillet pieces in the baking dish in a single layer, season with a pinch of salt and lemon pepper as desired.
- Mix the lemon or lime juice into the butter and pour the butter and garlic over the fish evenly. Sprinkle the fish with the parsley and bake for 40 minutes, turning the fish over every 10 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily with a fork.
- Serve. (This was my plate, the fish shown is 3 half pieces of fillets, the last 10 minutes cook time, the pieces come apart into two pieces.)
Notes
Pangasius runs about 120 Baht/kilo, this is about 4 fillets. To use Barramundi, you would need 2 fish and fillet yourself, 2 fish would cost about 135 Baht. For 4 servings using Pangasius, this is about 88 cents per serving.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Japanese Beef Curry
I have not had Japanese Curry in over 11 years, it is excellent! And I just happen to have a friend in Udon Thani that found Japanese Curry paste in the Tops there and I had them ship 4 packages down here to my house in Nakhon Si Thammarat. I made this last night 19 Jan 2017 as written, and wow is it good!
Ingredients
- 500 grams beef, cut into 3/4 inch cubes, (1 lb)
- pepper, to taste
- olive oil, as needed
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 2-3 potatoes, cubed
- 2 1/2 cups beef stock, fresh or from powder
- 100 grams Japanese Curry paste, this is 1/2 of a standard package
- cooked rice, for serving
Instructions
- Prepare the veggies and the meat. There is no need to add any salt to this, the curry has plenty in it already.
- Season the beef with pepper to your liking. In a pot, heat a splash of olive oil and add the beef, just brown on all sides, no need to cook through. Remove the beef from the pot.
- Same pot, add olive oil if needed and cook the onions and garlic until soft and translucent, then add the potatoes, carrot, and beef. Add the stock and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the beef is tender and the vegetables tender. I am using Thai beef so give it plenty of time to get tender.
- This is the curry I used, a well respected Japanese brand and this is a import item.
- This is half of the package, 100 grams.
- And it does in fact look like a candy bar.
- Add the curry to the pot and stir to mix in, it dissolves rather fast and simmer for 10-15 minutes and the curry will thicken.
- Serve in a bowl with a scoop of rice on the side.
Notes
The box of curry is 160 Baht, you will use half that for a cost of 80 Baht. The beef, this is local sourced, not from Tesco, can range in price from 150 to 260 Baht/kilo. 500 grams would be 75 to 130 Baht. I will use the 130 figure for this. For 6 servings, this is about $1.03 per serving. If you make this with beef you get at a lower price, this would be less than $1 per serving.
Variant: Top with chopped pecans and raisins.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Variant provided by good friend, Jerry Juliana.
United States.
United States.
Stir-Fried Pork Liver With Ginger & Spring Onion
This is an excellent dish as I love pork liver! This is an easy 2 step recipe with minimal ingredients. I made this on 8 Sep 2018 and very well liked by the family. Liver cooks fast so have everything prepped before you start. You do not want to over cook the liver, a little pink inside is perfect. This is wide open to changes to suit your taste, mushrooms come to mind.
Ingredients
- 250-500 grams pig liver, sliced thin, (½-1 lb)
- 3-5 spring onions, cut into 2 inch pieces, white and green parts
- 1 piece of ginger, thumb sized, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- dash mushroom sauce
- â…› teaspoon ground white pepper
- olive oil, as needed
Instructions
- Heat a non stick skillet, or wok, with a splash of olive oil. Fry the ginger until the sides start to turn white on the edges, then add the thicker pieces of the spring onion, onion, and garlic, cook this 30 seconds to a minute, stirring.
- Add the liver, the remaining spring onion, and the sauces, cook while stirring this until the liver has turned light brown, take this off the heat for a minute or two (the heat in the pan will cook the liver through, serve with rice on the side. For this photo, this was about 1 minute before the liver was cooked, reason you see some pink on the liver.
- Transfer to a serving plate, garnish with chopped cilantro if desired, serve.
Notes
Pork liver runs about 122 Baht/kilo, going with that, and for 500 grams the cost is 61 Baht, for 4 servings, this is about 45 cents per serving.
Coriander Pepper Pork Chops
I thought of this after I added a fried pork chop recipe using fish sauce as the base. I made this (at least a similar recipe) Coriander Pepper Pork Chops some 25 or so years ago. This is a mild marinade and gives the pork chops a nice flavor without over powering the taste of the pork.
Ingredients
- 4 pork chops, about 1 inch thick
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander, OR 1 tablespoon of coriander seeds crushed
- olive oil, as needed
Instructions
- Mix together the garlic, brown sugar, soy saucer, pepper, and coriander in a small bowl. Using a sturdy fork or a needle tenderizer, poke holes all over in the meat part of the chop and place them in a baking dish in one layer. Pour the marinade over the top of the chops and flip them to coat. Marinate for 30 minutes to overnight, flipping the chops occasionally.
- Remove the chops from the baking dish and discard the marinade.
- Heat a large non stick pan to medium high heat with a splash of olive oil, once heated, place the chops in (cooking in batches).
- Fry for 4-5 minutes each side, the juices should run clear to indicate cooked through. Remove from the pan and cover with foil, let rest for 10 minutes to allow the juices to soak back into the chops.
- Serve the chops with a baked potato and salad or sides of your choice.
Notes
For the pork, all I can price this with for now is pork loin. Pork loin is about 118 Baht/kilo, going with that in order to cut thick steaks from, for 4 servings, this is about 87 cents per serving.
My recipe from many years ago, Lee Thayer.
Thailand.
Thailand.
Grilled Oysters
I am putting this out here for those that have never experienced this. This can be a zero cost meal if you can find oysters on your own, except for Phuket Province, sorry I would never try this there nor would I ever eat oysters from Phuket. Now for those along either coast, if you have seen oysters while out swimming, here is the perfect chance to try this. Most people are familiar with oysters on the half shell, deep fried oysters, and many recipes one can make from the oyster meat from Tesco. No sauces or lime juice are listed unless you prefer that, simple salt and pepper works.
Ingredients
- fresh oysters, these should be tighly closed
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- First thing you have to do is get the oysters, two easy ways, one is to harvest yourself while swimming, and the other way is to get from local vendors in an open fresh market. For either choice you want the oysters to be tightly closed. There is no need to wash or scrub them, just a good rinse of any dirt is fine.
- For portions, a general guide is 6 large oysters per serving or 12 medium oysters per serving.
- Fire up your grill and let the coals get good and hot and spread those out. If you only have one of the small clay pots, you can use that as well.
- Place some oysters on the grill and after 5-10 minutes, sometimes as long as 15 minutes, the oysters will open and will be cooked, rather warmed through.
- Open the shell completely, add salt and pepper to your liking, and using a fork, scoop the oyster into your mouth and enjoy. It is as simple as that.
Notes
If you source the oysters from swimming, you have a free meal, well done! You should be able to get these from the open fresh markets, while not free, I do not know what the price would be per kilo.
Family makes these several times a year.
Sardine Sandwich II
I love sardines in olive oil and since they are not available at my location, I make them using a slow cooker with small mackerel the fish of choice. This recipe is based on using homemade sardines in olive oil. If you use tinned sardines in olive oil, figure 1 tin per sandwich. I made this yesterday, 7 Apr 2017, and I will certainly say this is a good combination of the Cream cheese and sardines, excellent flavor. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 3 pieces homemade sardines, or 1 tin in olive oil
- 2 slices wheat sandwich bread, toasted is optional
- Cream cheese, softened, or thinly sliced
- 2 lettuce leaves
- mayo, optional
Instructions
- Lay toast on a plate, spread softened Cream cheese on each slice, place the lettuce leaves on one piece of toast, split the pieces of sardines in half to make them thinner and lay on the lettuce in a single layer, top with the other slice of toast, enjoy as lunch or dinner.
- An optional way to prepare this is spread mayo on each toasted slice of bread, lay the lettuce on once slice, top the lettuce with thinly sliced Cream cheese, I used a homemade sandwich roll.
- Top the cheese with the split sardines, place the other slice of bread on the top. I used tinned sardines as they are now available here now.
- Enjoy.
Notes
Low cost if using homemade sardines. I make sardines using small mackerel which is sold per fish anywhere from 10 to 25 Baht each, so about 29 to 74 cents per sandwich. (I cut each fish into 3 pieces when making sardines.)
If using tinned sardines, figure 1 tin per sandwich at 59 Baht, this is about $1.74 per sandwich.
Shortcut: Sardines in Olive Oil.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Sardine Sandwich I
I love sardines in olive oil and since they are not available at my location, I make them using a slow cooker with small mackerel the fish of choice. This recipe is based on using homemade sardines in olive oil. If you use tinned sardines in olive oil, figure 1 tin per sandwich. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 3 pieces homemade sardines
- 2 slices sandwich bread
- prepared yellow mustard, as needed
- 2 lettuce leaves
Instructions
- Lay bread on a plate, spread some yellow mustard on each slice, top one slice with two lettuce leaves. Split the pieces of sardines in half to make them thinner and lay on top of the lettuce in a single layer, top with the other slice of bread, enjoy as lunch, or for me, I make two of these for dinner.
Notes
Low cost if using homemade sardines. I make sardines using small mackerel which is sold per fish anywhere from 10 to 25 Baht each, so about 29 to 74 cents per sandwich. (I cut each fish into 3 pieces when making sardines.)
If using tinned sardines, figure 1 tin per sandwich at 59 Baht, this is about $1.74 per sandwich.
Shortcut: Sardines in Olive Oil.
Homemade Stove Top Stuffing
The name is familiar to any American. If you are paying for the boxed kind in Thailand, you are paying too much, this is so easy to make. This is a good side dish with not only turkey, but chicken, meatloaf, etc. I made this on 13 Oct 2017 and this is now going to be a regular item on our table.
Equipment
- Baking Sheet
- Parchment Paper
- Oven
Ingredients
- 12 slices sandwich bread, slice into ¾ inch cubes
- 4 teaspoons dried rubbed sage
- 4 teaspoons dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt, or ¼ teaspoon table salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 tablespoons butter, (1/4 block or 1/2 stick)
- 1â…“ cups chicken stock, or broth, fresh or from powder
- 1-3 stalks celery, diced
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180° C (350° F). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, add the bread cubes spread them out in a layer. If you have a small baking sheet like me, work in batches.
- Bake for about 10 minutes, and gently toss them part way through and bake for another 5 minutes. You are looking for even toasting on most of the cubes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
- Toss the bread cubes with the sage, thyme, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. (If making this to use another recipe calling for a box of stuffing, use at this point.)
- Melt butter in a large non stick pan and add the celery and cook for a few minutes until soft. Then pour in the chicken stock and heat until simmering, add the bread cubes and stir, the bread will soak up the stock in just seconds, add additional stock as needed to your liking. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for 5 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy.
Notes
Minimal cost.
Shortcut: Quick Chicken Broth.
Variant: 1. Use beef stock in place of chicken stock.
Used in Recipes Listed on this Site:
- Broccoli, Chicken & Rice Casserole, made it, GO-TO recipe.Â
- Sinfully Delicious Chicken Casserole, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Chicken & Stuffing Casserole.
- Bruschetta Chicken Bake.
- Stuffing Casserole, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Chicken & Dressing II (Slow Cooker).
- Chicken & Dressing I.
Baked Salmon
This is wonderful! I made this on 22 Nov 2016 and was an instant two thumbs up from my Thai wife. Excellent marinade as written, recipe followed as written, no changes needed, and after baking, spoon the oil on some pasta for a great meal.
Equipment
- Baking Pan
- Oven
Ingredients
- 4 salmon fillets, (140-160 gram / 5-6 oz each)
- 3 clove garlic, minced
- 5 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1-2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- In a bowl, add the olive oil, garlic, basil, parsley, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Mix to make the marinade. Place the salmon fillets in a shallow flat dish, pour marinade over the top of them and place in the fridge, turning the fillets occasionally. Marinate for 1 hour.
- Preheat your broiler, or if using a counter top oven use the top coil and heat to 230° C (450° F).
- Using a baking dish, glass would be perfect, place fillets in the dish and pour the marinade over the fish.
- Broil for 5-7 minutes then flip fillets over, when the fish flakes with a fork easily, it is done.
- Serve. A salad, pasta, or vegetables on the side would be perfect side dishes.
Notes
I bought 4 fillets, Norwegian import, 69 Baht for 140 to 160 gram fillets. I figured the servings as 1 fillet per serving. For 69 Baht per fillet, this is about $2.03 per serving. High cost but great for a once in a while meal.