Archive for the ‘SIDES’ Category
Copycat Rice-A-Roni
Probably not something you would expect from a recipe site based in Thailand, but this is an excellent side dish and very inexpensive to make. This is the base recipe, you can tailor this many ways. I made this on 1 Feb 2017.
Ingredients
- ½ cup dry spaghetti, broken into 1 inch pieces
- ¾ cup dry white rice
- 2½ cups chicken stock, fresh or from powder, or beef stock
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- Everything ready, I used beef stock from the powder dissolved in hot water.
- In a non stick skillet on medium heat, heat the olive oil and add the spaghetti, stirring constantly until the spaghetti starts to brown.
- Add the rice, stirring to coat the rice with the oil remaining in the pan and browning the spaghetti just a bit more, carefully pour in the stock and reduce temp to a simmer, stir then cover, and stir occasionally until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, about 20 to 30 minutes. If you run out of liquid and the rice is not quite done, just add a bit more stock as needed until the rice is tender.
- Almost done, you can still see liquid and the rice not quite tender enough. Just stir and cover, if the burner is too hot, just move the pan off the burner for a few minutes at a time.
- Perfect consistency, rice is tender, serve as a side dish with any meal.
Notes
Variants: 1. Add cooked mushrooms, garlic, onion, ginger, turmeric, diced bell pepper, chopped spring onion, parsley, chopped broccoli, etc. 2. Add 2 cups of cooked and shredded chicken. 3. Add a good shake of black pepper.
Used in Recipes Listed on this Site:
Thin Cornmeal Tortillas
I was looking through a recipe that called for Doritos as an ingredient, since those are not available where I live, I found a recipe to make Doritos, but that recipe called for corn tortillas, which are also not available here where I live. Further research revealed corn tortillas are made from masa harina, also not available here. So I did more research and found a recipe to make tortillas using all purpose flour AND cornmeal, this sounds like a win win here, the recipe states flexible and soft like a flour tortilla, and a bit of the corn taste. I will be testing this out soon, lot of possibilities if this works out as I will post recipes using these.
Ingredients
- 1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
- 2/3 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup water, +1 tablespoon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, cornmeal, salt, and oil. Gradually mix in the water. Knead briefly, just until the dough is smooth.
- Divide the dough into 10 pieces. (If you have an accurate digital scale, each piece should weigh about 1 3/8 ounces each or 38,98 grams.) Round the pieces into balls, flatten them slightly, and allow them to rest, covered with a towel for at least 30 minutes.
- Heat a large, non greased skillet over medium heat, a cast iron pan would be a good choice.
- Working with one piece of dough at a time (keeping the remaining dough balls covered), roll the balls out until they're about 8 inches in diameter. Cook each one in the hot skillet for about 30-45 seconds on each side. Stack the cooked tortillas on top of each other on a plate and cover with a towel to keep them soft and pliable.
- Serve hot using them as tacos, making small burritos, etc. Store tightly wrapped in a plastic bag at room temperature, freeze for longer storage.
Notes
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Butter Biscuits
I like biscuits and these sound really good, and easy! On my to cook list!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, this is 1/2 of a standard block of butter
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 4 teaspoons sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 3/4 cup buttermilk, see Step 3
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 230 C. Lightly grease a 8x8 baking dish with butter. Melt the butter and pour into the baking dish.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.
- Pour in the buttermilk and stir until it forms a loose sticky dough. NOTE: If using regular milk, you may need to use less so start by adding 1 cup and then more as needed to make a sticky dough. Press dough into baking dish that has melted butter in it. You will probably need to use your hands to evenly press it in. There might be butter still coming up on top of the dough-that's fine.
- Use a hot, sharp, knife to cut the dough into 9 squares. Bake for 10 minutes, rotate the pan 180 degrees and bake for an additional 10-15 or until starting to get golden brown on the top and spring back when touched. If at any point while baking the butter is bubbling and browning along the edge of the dish, just use a paper towel to dab it up.
- Serve with jam, butter, gravy, etc.
Notes
Low cost.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Mexican Rice I
I look forward to making this and trying it out. I like a good Mexican rice, best I have eaten was in Pattaya at a friend's restaurant. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 cup dry white rice
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed and finely minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup tomato sauce, OR make from a shortcut
- 2 cups chicken stock, fresh or from powder
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large non stick skillet over medium heat and add the garlic and onion, when the onion is soft, then add the rice. Cook, stirring constantly, until the rice is golden brown. While rice is cooking, sprinkle with salt and cumin.
- When the rice is golden brown, stir in the tomato sauce and chicken stock and bring to a boil, once boiling, reduce to a low simmer, cover and cook for 20 to 25 minutes. Add more chicken stock as needed to keep the rice from drying out. Fluff with a fork and serve as a side with any Mexican dish.
Notes
Corn on the Cob
I will have to give this a try, sounds good. We are fortunate to have sweet corn grown right here around the village.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, this 1/2 standard block
- 1 cup milk
- fresh corn on the cob, amount is up to you
Instructions
- Fill your large pot about 3/4 full with water, add the butter and milk, bring to a rapid boil then place the corn in the pot and turn heat down to a simmer. Cook for 10-15 minutes, serve as a side.
Notes
Low cost.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Cooked Beets
Beets make a great side dish needing no gravy or butter as they have a lot of flavor. Beets a number of years ago were imported, and not cheap. Now they are grown in Thailand and you can get 4 decent sized beets for less than a $1.
Ingredients
- 2-3 beets
Instructions
- Wash the beets, put in a pot of water with water about 2-3 inches over the beets, and bring to a boil, then reduce to high simmer. When the beets are fork tender, remove from the water, let cool a little bit then cut off the root end, and peel off the skin and slice and serve as a side.
Notes
Low cost.
I have been doing this for years.
Deep Fried Eggplant & Pasta
This is the large purple eggplant, this used to be imported but are now grown in Thailand. This sounds really good as side dish, an appetizer, or even served on pasta with a tomato sauce. This is easy to prepare and low cost. I cannot price this until I buy more eggplant. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 1 purple eggplant, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
- all purpose flour, as needed
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons water
- all purpose flour, as needed, see Step 2
- Parmesan cheese, grated, as needed, see Step 2
- pasta, for serving
- tomato pasta sauce, for serving, OR make from a shortcut
Instructions
- Heat your deep fryer.
- Place some flour on a plate or shallow dish and season with salt and pepper to your liking, mix and set aside. In a shallow bowl add the egg and 2 tablespoons of water and beat slightly, place that next to the plate of seasoned flour. In another plate, add equal amounts of flour and Parmesan cheese and mix together, place that next to the egg wash plate.
- When the oil in the deep fryer is hot, take a slice of eggplant and coat with the seasoned flour, then dip into the egg wash to coat, then into the flour and cheese mixture, then into the deep deep fryer. Repeat the steps for the all the slices but do not overload the deep fryer. Cook until golden brown then place on a plate lined with paper towels to drain.
- Serve on pasta with tomato sauce as a light main dish or simply with a bowl of tomato sauce for dipping as a side or appetizer.
Notes
Low cost side dish.
Shortcut: Tomato Sauce.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Garland Davis, US Navy Cook (Ret).
United States.
United States.
Eggplant, Crab, and Cheese Bake
This is the large purple eggplant, this used to be imported but are now grown in Thailand. This recipe was given to me by a good friend in the US, and it does sound tasty! I cannot price this until I buy more eggplant.
Ingredients
- 1 purple eggplant, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
- all purpose flour, as needed
- salt and pepper, to taste
- olive oil, for frying
- cheese, shredded, Mozzarella would be good
- crab meat, real crab meat, not imitation
Instructions
- Heat a pan on medium heat and add a splash of olive oil.
- Place some flour on a plate or shallow dish and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Coat the eggplant slices in the flour and place in the hot pan, cooking these in batches. After a minute or two, check the bottom of the slices, if golden brown, flip them over, when the bottom is golden brown, remove from the pan and place on a baking sheet in a single layer. Add more olive oil as needed and heat that up before adding another batch.
- When all the eggplant has been fried and on the baking sheet, sprinkle some crab meat on each slice of eggplant, then top each slice with some shredded cheese. Place in the oven until the cheese melts and just starts to brown up. Remove from oven and serve as a side with any main course of your choosing.
Notes
Low cost side dish.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Chuck Ruth.
United States.
United States.
Pan Fried Eggplant
This is the large purple eggplant, this used to be imported but are now grown in Thailand. This is a great side dish, easy to prepare, and is low cost. I cannot price this until I buy more eggplant, I made this a few days ago and did not take any photos, which is rare for me.
Ingredients
- 1 purple eggplant, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
- all purpose flour, as needed
- salt and pepper, to taste
- olive oil, for frying
Instructions
- Heat a pan on medium heat and add a splash of olive oil.
- Place some flour on a plate or shallow dish and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Coat the eggplant slices in the flour and place in the hot pan, cooking these in batches. After a minute or two, check the bottom of the slices, if golden brown, flip them over, when the bottom is golden brown, remove from the pan to a paper towel lined plate. Add more olive oil as needed and heat that up before adding another batch. Done. Serve as a side with steaks, meatloaf, etc.
Notes
Low cost side dish.
Family recipe taught to me when I was a child, I have made this many many times.
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)
- 1⅓ 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.
- 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.
