Archive for the ‘5 Ingredients or Less’ Category
Teriyaki Chicken (Slow Cooker)
I found this recipe on the internet and modified it to use real teriyaki sauce, no garlic or ginger in this recipe, hence the Japanese label on this dish. Easy and delicious dish with only 5 ingredients. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 cup Teriyaki sauce, (Shortcut)
- 1 fresh spring onion, green part, sliced, for garnish
Instructions
- Place the chicken breast in your slow cooker, sprinkle with the pepper and add the diced onion.
- Pour in the teriyaki sauce. Cover, and set to High and let cook for 4 hours.
- Remove the lid, shred the chicken with two forks, stir into the sauce.
- Serve over rice with some of the sauce added, garnish with chopped green onion greens. Enjoy.
Notes
Tomato & Dill Grilled Cream Cheese Sandwich
My odd creation, since cream cheese goes well with tomatoes, and dill goes well with cream cheese, and tomatoes are the star of any grilled sandwich, so I put all together in a grilled sandwich.
Ingredients
- 2 slices bread, of your choice
- Cream cheese, softened, as needed
- tomato slices, as needed
- fresh dill, chopped
- butter, as needed
Instructions
- Spread a generous amount of softened cream cheese on each bread slice.
- On one slice of bread, add a layer of tomato slices, top that with a good sprinkling of chopped fresh dill.
- Place the other slice of bread on top, cream cheese side down. Butter on the top slice of bread.
- Heat a non stick pan with a tablespoon of butter, when melted and hot, pick the sandwich up and set down in the butter.
- When the bottom is golden brown, carefully flip the sandwich over and cook the other side until golden brown.
- Remove from the pan, slice in half, serve with sides of your choice, enjoy.
Notes
Low cost.
I just winged this, turned out great, Lee Thayer.
Thailand.
Thailand.
Fried Egg Tofu
This is a new one for me as I have only seen egg tofu used in is soups, so I look forward to testing this out.
Ingredients
- 2 small tubes egg tofu, 105-120 gram tubes, (3.5-4 oz)
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- sweet chili sauce, as desired
- 1 spring onion, green part only, sliced
Instructions
- Cut off the end of the tofu tube that looks like a spout (that is actually where the tube is filled), gently squeeze the other end of the tube the tofu will slide right out. Cut into 1 inch thick slices, and slice a bit off the blunt end to make it flat as well. Repeat with the other tube.
- Place the slices on several paper towels to drain off some of the moisture. Leave on the paper towels for about 10 minutes. Then dry the side facing up with a paper towel, and dry the outer edge as well.
- Heat the oil in a non stick pan on medium high heat. Place the cornstarch in a small bowl, coat each slice on the flat sides with cornstarch.
- Add about 2 or so tablespoons of sweet chili sauce to a serving plate and spread it around a bit, sprinkle some of the sliced spring onion greens on top of the sauce.
- Fry the slices for 1-2 minutes on each side or until nicely browned.
- Place the slices on the serving tray, drizzle with additional sweet chili sauce, and sprinkle on the remaining spring onion greens.
- Serve as a appetizer or as a side dish.
Notes
Low cost per serving, one tube of egg tofu is about 10 Baht.
Fried Zucchini
Yep, basic recipe, more or less for my own reference.
Ingredients
- 2 medium zucchini, sliced 1/4 inch thick or a bit thinner if you like
- 1 medium onion, sliced and separated into rings
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon extra light olive oil
- black pepper, as desired
Instructions
- Slice the zucchini and onion, onion is just out of view in this photo.
- Heat a non stick pan with the olive oil and butter, when hot, add the zucchini and onion.
- Season with black pepper as desired, and cook, stirring often, until tender.
- Serve as a side with any dish.
Notes
Low cost per serving.
Variant: 1. Leave out the butter and you have a vegetarian dish.
Just something I remembered from my childhood, Lee Thayer.
Thailand.
Thailand.
Saffron Curry Rice
This recipe comes from a good friend who has made curry rice and saffron rice on many occasions, he decided to combine the two. His results is great curry rice with a subtle flavor and body from the saffron. Here is his original recipe. Two methods are listed for this, Stovetop and Rice Cooker. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Equipment
- Rice Cooker
Ingredients
- 1½ cups dry Jasmine rice, rinsed and drained
- 2 cups chicken broth, fresh or from powder, Shortcut
- 1 pinch saffron threads, (6-8 threads)
- 1 tablespoon madras curry paste, or 1½ teaspoons of yellow curry powder
Instructions
Stovetop Method
- In a saucepan, add all the ingredients and stir together.
- Heat the saucepan to boiling, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low and cover for 10 minutes.
- Remove from heat, fluff rice, serve as a side dish with any Asian dish.
Rice Cooker Method
- Add the rinsed rice, curry powder, and saffron to your rice cooker.
- Add the broth and stir together.
- Cover and set the cooker to Cook setting and let it complete the cook cycle and automatically switch to Warm setting.
- Unplug the cooker and fluff rice with a rice paddle. Serve as a side dish.
- Serve as a side dish, enjoy.
Notes
Shortcut: Chicken Broth (Pressure Cooker).
Variant: 1. Use yellow curry powder in place of the madras paste, excellent curry flavor with a bit less heat.
Bak Kuet Teh (Teochew)
This is a pork rib soup of possible Chinese origin, and this is the Teochew (Malaysian) version. This soup is garlic and white pepper based and the broth is generally light. I look forward to testing out this version, and soon.
Equipment
- Draw String Tea Bag
Ingredients
- 2 kilos pork ribs, (4 lb)
- 4 heads garlic, cloves peeled
- 50 grams white peppercorns, (1¾ oz)
- salt, as desired
- 1 draw string tea bag
Instructions
- In a dry pan, add the white peppercorns and put on low heat, stirring often until fragrant. Remove the peppercorns from the pan and allow to cool.
- Place peppercorns in a mortar and lightly crush, if no mortar, than just put a zip lock bag and lightly pound with a meat tenderizer or rolling pin.
- Place the peppercorns in the draw string tea bag.
- Rinse and cut ribs into 1 bone sections. Place the ribs, garlic, and tea bag with the pepper, in a large pot.
- Add water to the pot to cover the ribs, bring to a boil for 5 minutes then reduce to a simmer and cook for 1 hour, taste the broth after about 30 minutes of simmering and season with salt as desired and remove the tea bag with the peppercorns if desired.
- If adding daikon, hard boiled eggs, or mushrooms, add those and simmer for 15-30 minutes more.
- Serve with rice on the side.
Notes
Th pork ribs are about 115 Baht/kilo. For 4 servings, this is about $1.80 per serving.
Variants: 1. Lamb, beef, and ox tail can be used instead of pork, increase simmering time. 2. Add daikon or carrot, sliced. 3. Add hard boiled chicken or quail eggs. 4. Add whole stemmed Shiitake or button mushrooms.
Homemade Tahini (Sesame Paste)
Tahini is Arabic in origin and sesame paste is used in Eastern Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, North African, and Asian cuisines.
Ingredients
- 250 grams white sesame seeds, (8.8 oz)
- 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- food processor
Instructions
- In a dry pan, toast the sesame seeds on low heat, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Toast until golden brown. Pour seeds onto a plate and allow to cool.
- When the seeds have cooled, place seeds in your food processor. Blend until the seeds are a fine texture, then slowly add the olive oil to make a smooth paste.
- Pour the paste into jar and store in the fridge for up to several weeks. Use in recipes calling for tahini (sesame paste).
Notes
Used in Recipe Listed on this site:
Inspired by Peng's Kitchen and the link to this recipe is here. Singapore.
Inspired by Peng's Kitchen and the link to this recipe is here. Singapore.
Pork Rib Soup with Winter Melon
This is a Thai, non spicy soup, that is common in the rural areas due to the melon being very common and low cost. It is delicious yet so simple to make. There is many ways to make pork rib soup, this one uses winter melon. The melon, called Fock in Thai, is often grown in peoples yards, and readily available in local markets for low cost, so the only items to purchase are large shallots and pork ribs.
Ingredients
- 1 kilo pork ribs, (2 lbs)
- 1 large winter melon
- 2 large shallots
- salt, to taste, as desired
Instructions
- Rinse the strip of ribs and cut between each bone.
- Place ribs in a pot and cover with about 2 inches of water and bring to a boil then reduce heat to a low boil. Cook the ribs for about 30 to 40 minutes. Use a large spoon and skim off any foam. You are making a basic pork broth and the ribs will be nice and tender.
- While the ribs are cooking, prep the winter melon by peeling it first. slice off each end. Cut the melon in half lengthwise, use a spoon and scrape out the seeds, then cut each half into 2-3 long slices as well. Chop the long slices into about 1 inch pieces.
- This is what a winter melon looks like, you will want to peel it before you cut it apart. Winter melon is also known as wax melon and ash gourd.
- Prep the large shallots, trim of each end, peel, then quarter. Use a heavy pestle, rolling pin, or meat tenderizer and smash the quarters, this does two things, releases the liquid in the shallots, and keeps the pieces large, as a diced shallot would simply disappear in the soup during cooking. This photo shows our tool of choice for this, a 3 lb granite pestle.
- Add the shallot to the pot between 30 and 40 minutes into cooking, leave on a low boil for another 5-10 minutes. Taste the broth and season with salt as desired.
- Add the winter melon and cook on a low boil for about 20 minutes or until the melon is tender. Taste the broth and season with salt as desired.
- Typically served family style in a large serving bowl in the center of the table, and people have a bowl of rice, they scoop out some ribs, melon, and broth over their rice.
Notes
Low cost per serving.
Recipe provided and cooked by my wife, Rrayada Thayer.
Thailand.
Thailand.
Tako (Octopus) Sausages
Now for the name, these are Japanese pork sausages, NOT octopus sausages, although octopus sausage does sound intriguing, but I don't think I will be making that. When I lived in Japan (13 years), I absolutely loved Japanese sausage. This comes from a good friend who is Japanese. These are typically made for bento (lunch) boxes, but for this, think of these as a side to a good pasta dish. Oddly enough, we buy these in local 7-11's in town, never seen them in the large grocery stores like Tesco or Tops in the city.
Ingredients
- 4-6 links Japanese sausage
- cooking oil, as needed
Instructions
- Japanese sausage is typically about 3 inches long in a natural sheep gut casing. To prep, first thing is to make a cut halfway down the sausage, straight through to the other side, this results in '2 legs'.
- Rotate the sausage 90 degrees, and make another cut through the sausage to the other side, this results in '4 legs'.
- Optionally, you cut each 'leg' in half, resulting in '8 legs' but I found 4 legs to be perfect. Now we can cook them.
- Heat some cooking oil in a non stick pan on medium heat, when hot, add the sausages, as the sausages cook, the 'legs' will open and curl.
- Cook until the sausage is cooked through, keep in mind these are raw pork sausages so they must me cooked through.
- Drain on paper towels, serve as a side with any pasta or rice dish or as a snack or appetizer. Enjoy.
Notes
One package of 4 Japanese sausage is about 42 Baht. Figuring 2 per serving, this is about an additional 66 cents per serving for a side dish, if serving with a pasta, the overall dish will be less than $1 per serving.
This recipe for Tako (Octopus) Sausage inspired by Just One Cookbook.
Onion Rice (Rice Cooker)
I made this on 27 Apr 2022, and it is so good, my wife and I enjoyed nearly the whole cooker! Easy and flavorful rice. I used my basic 1 liter (1 quart) Cook and Warm rice cooker. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Equipment
- Rice Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry Jasmine rice
- 2 cups chicken broth, fresh or from powder, Shortcut
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, or vegetable oil
- 1 large red onion, diced, use two if they are small
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Onion is prepped. I used two small onions as well.
- Add the oil to your rice cooker and set to the Cook setting to heat the oil, when hot, add the onion and cook, stirring often, until almost softened.
- Add the rice and stir to coat the rice with oil. Cook, stirring often, until the onion is tender and the rice is just starting to lightly brown.
- Season with the pepper then stir in the chicken broth. Cover and let the Cook cycle complete, as indicated by the cooker switching to Warm setting.
- Remove the cover and fluff with a rice paddle.
- Serve as a side with any main dish. Enjoy.
Notes
Shortcut: Chicken Broth (Pressure Cooker).