Archive for the ‘* High Cost $1.51+ per Serving’ Category
Pasta Stuffed Bell Peppers
I came up with this on a whim, as I like pasta, and I had bell peppers in the fridge as well as some Shiitake mushrooms that just wanted to be used in something. So here is what I came up with, and they are delicious. The pasta base is Parmesan Mac & Cheese with the addition of sauteed Shiitake mushrooms and diced bell pepper.
Ingredients
- 80 grams fresh Shiitake mushrooms, stems removed
- 4 bell peppers, your choice of colors
- 250 grams dry spiral pasta, or any small pasta
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, (1/2 stick)
- 1/2 cup milk
- 125 grams Parmesan cheese, store bought shredded is fine, (4 1/2 oz)
- salt and pepper, to taste, as desired
- olive oil, as needed
- 200 grams Mozzarella Cheese, shredded, for topping, (7 oz)
Instructions
- Heat a pot of salted water to boiling, then add the pasta and cook until almost tender. Reserve a cup of pasta water then drain the pasta. Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F). Get out a 7x11 baking dish.
- While the pasta is cooking, cut the tops off of the peppers, remove the stems and dice the tops. (I had an extra half a green bell pepper in the fridge so I diced that along with the tops.)
- Slice the mushrooms at a 45 degree angle, a technique called Sogigiri in Japanese, this provides a larger flat cut for even cooking.
- All the mushrooms sliced. I think there was 9 in the pack.
- Place the peppers standing up in the baking dish. If a pepper does not stand up quite right, slice a bit off the longest lobe on the bottom so the pepper stands upright, if you sliced off part of a lobe and mad a hole in the bottom, no worries, take the piece you sliced off and put that on the inside to cover the hole. (I was going to use a 9x9 dish but that would not have enough room for the extra pasta so I switched to a 7x11 dish.)
- Heat a tablespoon or two of olive oil in a large non stick pan on medium heat. When hot, add the the mushrooms.
- Saute the mushrooms until the water they let out is evaporated. Remove the mushrooms to a bowl and set them aside.
- Same pan, add another tablespoon of olive oil and add the diced peppers, saute until tender. Remove them to a bowl and set them aside.
- Same pan, add the butter and let that full melt, then whisk in the milk and season with black pepper as desired. When the milk is at a simmer, whisk in the Parmesan cheese. When the sauce is smooth, add the drained pasta and mix into the sauce. If the sauce is too thick, add some pasta water, a tablespoon at a time and mix in. Season with black pepper as desired. Remove from heat. (Yes, I know, my method is completely backwards as to how this is supposed to be done.)
- Add the mushrooms and the diced bell peppers and mix together. (The pasta at this point is actually quite good on its own.)
- Using a spoon, fill each pepper with pasta, rounded at the top is perfect and add the rest of the pasta to the dish as well. Place in the oven and back for about 30-40 minutes, depending on how crisp you like the peppers.
- Remove from the oven, sprinkle the Mozzarella cheese on the tops of the peppers and any additional pasta in the dish, place back in the oven for 5-10 minutes to melt the cheese.
- To serve, place a pepper on a plate, slice in half and enjoy as is or with sausage. (I just happened to have Japanese sausage in the fridge so I used that.) Enjoy.
Notes
The cheese is the costly part here, at Parmesan at 192 Baht per 125 grams, and Mozzarella at 181 Baht for 200 grams. For 4 servings, this is about $2.92 per serving.
I just threw this together, Lee Thayer.
Thailand.
Thailand.
Salmon Gravlax III
This recipe for Gravlax comer from a very reliable source that tests, adjusts, and tastes the dishes they prepare. Gravlax is a Scandinavian/Swedish way of preserving salmon. This is not a cooked dish, just cured. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Notes section.
Equipment
- Cheesecloth
Ingredients
For the Brine
- 1 kilo center cut salmon fillet, pin bones removed, (2 lb)
- 2 cups buttermilk, Shortcut
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
For the Dry Cure
- 2 cups fennel fronds, chopped
- 1 tablespoon dried dill
- 1 tablespoon dried tarragon
- 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 cup kosher salt
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¼ cup cognac, more or less to taste, optional
Instructions
- Using a non reactive bowl (such as glass, stainless steel, ceramic, or plastic), stir together the buttermilk and salt then add the fillet, ensure the fillet is covered with milk. Set this aside to soak for 20 to 30 minutes.
- While the fish is soaking, mix together the Dry Cure ingredients except the cognac, in a mixing bowl.
- When the fish is ready, remove from the buttermilk and rinse off the brine under running water, then pat dry with paper towels, be gentle with the fillet so as not to damage it. Discard the buttermilk brine.
- Place the large piece of cheese cloth in the bottom of a non reactive baking dish, a Pyrex or ceramic dish would be ideal for this. Pour half of the dry cure mix in the middle of the cheesecloth and spread it out to just a bit larger than the fillet you have.
- Place the fillet on to of the dry cure, skin side down. add the remaining dry cure mix on top of the fillet and spread it out evenly to totally cover the fillet, top, bottom, and sides should all be covered.
- Gently wrap the fillet with the cheesecloth, ending with the skin side down once again, in the middle of the baking dish. We'll call this a salmon package now.
- Sprinkle on the cognac if using, this is optional.
- Place a piece of plastic wrap on top of the "salmon package".
- Now place a heavy plate on top of the package and place a large canned item on the plate. The weight helps with more even curing.
- Place the baking dish, with the plate and canned item, in the fridge. At 12 hours, remove the baking dish, remove the plate with the canned item, remove the plastic wrap and discard. Flip the package over, place another piece of plastic wrap on the package and return the plate and canned item back on top of the plastic wrap. Place the baking dish back in the fridge.
- Repeat this for a minimum of 2 days, if the fillet is thick, like over 2 inches thick, continue this process for 3 days.
- Once the 2 or 3 days have passed, remove the baking dish from the fridge and place the salmon package on a cutting board, unwrap the cheesecloth and gently brush away the dry cure using a paper towel, DO NOT rinse the fish. Now you have Gravlax.
- Using a very sharp knife, slice the fillet across the grain at a 45 degree angle, then off the skin. Slice thinly, about â…› inch thick.
- Serving idea is on bagels with cream cheese, capers, red onion, and fresh dill. Or on rye bread. Or with eggs as a breakfast.
Notes
I cannot price this until I go to Makro again as that is the only store I know that carries large pieces of salmon. For now I will say High cost per serving.
Safety Note: Most times the salmon you will buy is frozen or was previously frozen, perfectly acceptable. If wanting to make this with fresh salmon, it is highly recommended you freeze the salmon first at -17° C (0° F) or colder for at least 48 hours to kill off any parasites that may be in the fish.
Shortcut: Buttermilk.
Variants: 1. Feel free to use fresh herbs instead of dried, or herbs of your choosing, such as fresh dill in place of the fresh fennel. 2. Change the sugar (white) to light brown, as long as you keep the amounts of salt and sugar the same, as that is key in the curing process for this.
Chicken Enchiladas with Cream Cheese Sauce
This is from a good friend and comes highly recommended. This takes a little bit of time to ensure you have good and juicy chicken and a nice broth to use not only in this recipe, but in other dishes as well. On my to cook list for sure.
Ingredients
- 8-10 flour tortillas
- 250 grams Cream cheese, one package, softened, (8 oz)
- 1-2 cans diced chilies, (4 oz cans)
- 3 cups cooked chicken, shredded, see Step 1 through 5
- 3 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon chili powder, if using Thai chili powder, ¼ teaspoon
- salt and pepper, as desired
- fresh cilantro, chopped for garnish
Instructions
- For the chicken, you can use thighs, legs and thighs (quarters separated), or breasts. I would lean towards the plus side and go with 3-4 quarters or 4 breasts, no one will complain if you use more chicken. Once you make this, then just make a note as to how much chicken you used. Not only are you going to make tender and juicy chicken, you are going to make the broth you need for this recipe as well. Broth can be simply starting with water, or you can flavor that up by adding a chopped up carrot, onion, celery, and some black peppercorns, any or all work fine.
- In a large pot, add the chicken pieces. Add about 6 cups of water. Bring the pot to a boil, then reduce to a medium simmer until the chicken is just cooked through, about 20-30 minutes. Cut into a piece to check.
- When the chicken is cooked, simply turn off the heat and move the pot to an unused burner AND leave the chicken in the pot. The chicken will continue to cook a bit until the broth cools off, so a nearly done piece of chicken will be tender and juicy.
- Once the broth is at room temperature, remove the chicken and shred that. Goal is 3 cups shredded, if you are a little over that, perfectly fine.
- Pour the broth through a strainer, reserve 2 cups of broth for this recipe, and store the rest in the fridge for other uses, such as making rice.
- Preheat your oven to 180° C (350° F) and get out a 9x13 or 7x11 baking dish. I will clarify the size when I make this.
- In a mixing bowl, add the cream cheese, chicken, 1 cup of shredded cheese, lime juice, cumin, and chili powder. Mix together until combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste and as desired.
- Lay a tortilla on the counter, add 2-3 tablespoons of the chicken mixture, roll and place seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat until all the chicken mixture is used.
- In a pan, melt the butter then whisk in the flour, continue whisking until the roux turns golden brown, about 2-3 minutes, and season with salt and pepper as desired.
- Slowly whisk in the chicken broth the other half of the cream cheese, and the diced chilies. Continue to whisk until the sauce is thickened.
- Remove the sauce from the heat and pour evenly over the enchiladas.
- Top with the remaining Cheddar cheese and bake for 22-25 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes. Top with chopped cilantro.
- Serve with side dishes of your choice (refried beans and rice will be my choice).
Notes
Cheddar cheese will run about 270 Baht for 1½ blocks. The Cream cheese is about 140 Baht. The chicken, figure 1 kilo of quarters at 52 Baht. For 4 servings, this is about $3.61 per serving.
Dill Pickle Cream Cheese Sandwich
This is from a good friend, and it is delicious! I make my own dill pickles, grow dill, and cream cheese is easily available, perfect. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 250 grams Cream cheese, softened, (8 oz)
- 1/3 cup dill pickles, finely diced, (Shortcut)
- 1 tablespoon dill pickle juice
- 1 tablespoon fresh dill, minced
- salt, to taste
- red pepper flakes, as desired
- 4 slices bread
- lettuce leaves, as desired
Instructions
- Add the cream cheese to a mixing bowl, left soften, use a fork to mash to make it nice and soft, clean off the fork with a spoon. Photo shows the cream cheese mashed, my homemade fridge pickles, and 1/3 cup of the pickles chopped. The dill is not in the photo but that is from my yard.
- Use a sturdy spoon and fold in the pickles, juice, and dill until combined, season with salt and red pepper flakes as desired.
- Lay out two slices of bread, places lettuce slices on one slice as desired, spoon cream cheese, generously, on lettuce and spread out, top with remaining slices of bread. Enjoy.
Notes
Caroline Cream cheese is about 120 Baht. For two sandwiches, this is about $1.90 per sandwich.
Shortcut: Fridge Dill Pickles.
Variants: 1. Serve on toast. 2. Use bagels in place of sliced bread.
Recipe provided by good friend, Patti Stone, and her recipe is here.
United States.
United States.
Salmon Loaf I
To me, this sounds good. This is a a steamed dish and there is also a sauce listed for this as well. On my to cook list. Links to the Shortcuts are listed in the Notes section.
Equipment
- Steamer
Ingredients
For the Salmon Loaf
- 2 cups cooked salmon, fresh or canned, Shortcut
- 4 eggs, lightly beaten
- ¼ cup butter, melted but not hot
- ½ cup breadcrumbs, Shortcut
- salt and pepper, to taste
- fresh parsley, chopped
For the Sauce
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 tablespoon butter, softened
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
Prepare the Salmon Loaf
- If using canned salmon, drain the liquid into a small bowl and set the bowl aside. If using fresh cooked, after you remove the salmon from the steamer, just set the steamer aside, some liquid in the pot may be used in the sauce.
- Heat your steamer, either a pot with water and a trivet or as I am going to use, a rice cooker with a steamer tray. Butter the heat proof dish you are going to use. (Make sure your dish fits the steamer method you are going to use.)
- Chop fine either the fresh cooked or canned salmon. Mix the butter into the fish.
- Mix together eggs, breadcrumbs, parsley, and salt and pepper as desired.
- Mix the egg mixture into the fish, then add the mixture to your dish and when the steamer is hot, place the dish in the steamer for 1 hour. During this time, make sure you keep sufficient water in the steamer.
Prepare the Sauce
- Prepare the sauce about 10 minutes before the loaf is done steaming.
- In a small sauce pan, heat the milk to a boil. While the milk is heating, mix together the butter and corn starch in a small bowl. When the milk is at a boil, whisk in the butter mixture. Then whisk in a 1-2 tablespoons of the liquid from the salmon can or 1-2 tablespoons of liquid the fresh salmon was steamed on.
- Whisk in the beaten egg, sprinkle in a pinch of black pepper. Remove from heat.
- When the loaf is done, remove the dish from the steamer, pour off any water from a corner of the dish, then cover the dish with a plate and carefully invert the plate and dish together and lift off the dish leaving the loaf on the plate.
- Slice the loaf and pour the sauce over the slices, serve and enjoy.
Notes
I will price this when I get salmon and determine how many fillets I need to make 2 cups cooked salmon. I will say High cost per serving for now.
Shortcuts: Steamed Salmon, Breadcrumbs.
Honey Butter Baked Salmon
This sounds incredibly good and comes from a good friend here in Thailand. Common ingredients easily available. This is written for using a half of a salmon fillet, about 1.2 kilos or about 2 1/2 pounds. You can certainly use the smaller fillets (individual portions from Tesco), just use the Serving box under the Ingredients list to change to the desired servings you would like and the ingredients will be recalculated for you.
Equipment
- Baking Sheet
- Oven
Ingredients
- 1 salmon fillet, about 1.2 kilos, (2½ lbs)
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- â…“ cup honey
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- sea salt and black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons lemon or lime juice
- lemon or lime, slices
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 190° C (375° F), position the rack in the middle of the oven. Line a large baking sheet or baking pan (9x13) with foil large enough to fold over the fillet and seal.
- Melt the butter in a small sauce pan, then add the honey, garlic, and lemon/lime juice and whisk to combine.
- Place the fillet (or the smaller individual portion fillets) on the foil in the baking dish or on the sheet, brush the fillet or fillets with the honey butter mixture.
- Sprinkle with a good amount of sea salt and black pepper.
- Fold the foil over the fillet and seal completely, raise up the edges so it does not leak.
- Place in the oven and bake for 15-18 minutes or until cooked through. Carefully open the foil, use mitts as the steam will be very hot, and fold the foil back to expose the the fillet or fillets. Broil for a few minutes until the fillet is nicely caramelized on the top.
- Remove from oven, sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve with lemon/lime slices as desired.
Notes
I will price this when I get 4 individual serving fillets from Tesco, for now I will say High cost per serving.
Spinach, Cheese & Rice Casserole
Sounds great, on my to cook list for sure.
Ingredients
- 280 grams frozen spinach, thawed, chopped, squeezed dry, (10 oz)
- 2 cups cooked rice
- 1/3 cup butter, melted
- 2 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated, divided
- 2-3 spring onions, sliced, white and green parts
- 1 clove garlic, smashed and minced
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 3/4 cup milk
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1-2 cups Mozzarella Cheese, shredded, optional
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F) and grease with butter a 7x11 baking dish.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the rice, butter, spinach, Cheddar cheese, 3/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, spring onion, garlic, milk, and eggs, season with salt and pepper as desired.
- Pour into the baking dish and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan cheese.
- Bake for 25 minutes, uncovered, then optionally top with Mozzarella cheese and bake for 5 more minutes.
- Let casserole rest for 5 minutes (there is a lot of hot cheese in there), then serve as a light main dish or as a side dish with say, chicken or fish. Enjoy.
Notes
Figure 180 Baht for the Cheddar, 90 Baht for the Parmesan, and 90 Baht for the Mozzarella. For 6 servings, this is about $1.88 per serving.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Cheesy Chicken with Mushrooms
This sounds really good! Chicken and cheese, perfect! On my to cook list. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 1 kilo chicken breasts, (2 lb)
- 250 grams Mozzarella Cheese, shredded, (8 oz)
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 cup Italian bread crumbs, OR make from a shortcut
- 500 grams fresh mushrooms, Shiitake would be perfect, stems removed, sliced
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup chicken broth, fresh or from powder
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F), get out a 9x13 baking dish. Spread half of the sliced mushrooms in the bottom of the dish.
- Place the eggs and breadcrumbs in two separate bowls, you are making an assembly line for the chicken.
- Heat a large non stick and 2 tablespoons of the butter. Now place a chicken breast in the egg, then into the breadcrumbs patting them on as well, add the chicken to the hot pan and cook to golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes, not looking to cook the chicken through, just good and golden brown. Work in batches until all the chicken is browned, using additional butter as needed.
- As the chicken is browned, place on top of the mushrooms in the baking dish. Add the remaining mushrooms on top of the chicken, then top with the cheese.
- Pour the broth into the pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is melted and starting to brown up and the chicken cooked through.
- Remove from the oven and let rest for about 5 minutes, serve and enjoy.
Notes
One kilo of chicken breasts will cost about 60 Baht. The cheese will cost about 180 Baht for 250 grams. For 4 servings, this is about $1.90 per serving.
Shortcut: Italian Bread Crumbs.
This recipe is for Cheesy Chicken with Mushrooms is provided by Brown Eyed Baker.
"I Don't Care" Casserole
Have you ever been willing to cook for your family and asked what would you like? Normally if the response is "I don't care" then I cook something for myself and let the rest fend for themselves. This recipe seems like a good alternative and sounds tasty as well. Original recipe listed Velvetta cheese, which is basically plastic, I changed this up to use real cheese. On my to cook list. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 4-6 cups cooked rice
- 750 grams ham, cubed (1 1/2 lbs)
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 can whole peeled tomatoes, chopped, drained and juice retained
- 2 cups fresh broccoli, chopped into bite size pieces, plus stem
- 250 grams Cheddar cheese, cubed
- 1 can condensed Cheddar cheese soup, OR make from a shortcut
- 1 green Bird's Eye Chili, seeded and minced
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F), get out a baking dish (I will verify the size when I make this).
- In a large mixing bowl, add all the ingredients, pour into your baking dish.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the top is starting to brown.
- Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes, serve to your ungrateful family 😉
- Maybe next time when you ask, they will be more specific. Now if you ask what would you like for dinner and the family says "Kobe beef, Maine lobsters, and King crab" then fix this casserole, they will learn 😉
Notes
I will price this when I get ham again, right now I will say high cost and will calculate this after I gather the supplies.
Shortcut: Condensed Cheese Soup.
Variants: 1. Substitute ham for cooked and cubed chicken or turkey. 2. Omit the meat and just make a vegetable casserole.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Ham Loaf
This sounds interesting, next time in the city, if I get over to Makro I will pick up some ham to make this with.
Ingredients
- 1 kilo ground ham
- 750 grams ground pork
- 2 eggs, chicken or duck
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon mustard powder
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F) and lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the pork, ham, eggs, bread crumbs, milk, salt, and pepper. Mix together well then place into the prepared baking dish and shape into a loaf.
- Bake for 90 minutes.
- While the ham loaf is baking, go ahead and mix together the topping. In a bowl, add the brown sugar, mustard, and vinegar and mix well. During the last 15 minutes of baking, pour the topping over the loaf and continue baking for the remainder of the time.
- Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes before slicing, serve.
Notes
I will price this next time I pick up some ham in the city. I will say high cost for now.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
