SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI | Thailand 1 Dollar Meals

Basic Chili III

October 16, 2024 Lee

Leave a comment

Basic Chili III

Lee

Another name could be Skillet Chili since I made this in a wok pan. I made this on 15 Oct 2024 with ingredients I normally keep on hand. Easy and tasty chili.

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 30

Total Time 35

Course Main Dish

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Ingredients

500 grams ground beef
3 tablespoons chili seasoning mix, (or one 1 or 1¼ oz / 28 or 35 g packet)
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained, (565 g / 20 oz)
2 cans red Kidney beans, undrained, (400 g / 14 oz each)

Instructions

Heat a non stick wok pan or pot, add the ground beef, breaking up the beef with a spatula, cook until no pink is visible, drain off most of the excess fat.
Add the chili seasoning mix.
Stir the mix into the beef.
Pour in the tomatoes and beans, mix together. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 15-20 minutes.
Serve and enjoy. Top with oyster crackers, shredded cheese, or sour cream, as desired.

Notes

Fair cost per serving.

Variants: 1. Add a diced onion and or diced green bell pepper when cooking the beef. 2. Use ground pork in place of beef. 3. Use canned pinto beans in place of red kidney beans.

#1 Go-To Recipes,* Fair Value $1.01 to $1.50 per Serving,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI

Chili Bean Chili

October 7, 2024 Lee

Leave a comment

Chili Bean Chili

Lee

I came up with this on a whim. I like chili beans and I like chili with ground beef, so I made this, and it is very good and easy, and only 5 ingredients.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 45

Total Time 50

Course Main Dish

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Ingredients

500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
1 onion, diced
2 cans chili beans, (439 g / 16 oz each)
1 can diced tomatoes, (565 g / 20 oz)
salt and pepper, as desired

Instructions

Heat a non stick pan on medium heat, add the onion and ground beef, season with black pepper as desired. Cook, breaking up the beef and mixing with the onion.
While the beef is cooking, open the chili beans and diced tomatoes, and pour into a pot.
Cook the beef until no pink remains, drain out most of the fat.
Add the beef to the pot with the tomatoes and beans.
Stir together and place on low heat and simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring often.
Serve and enjoy.

#1 Go-To Recipes,* High Cost $1.51+ per Serving,5 Ingredients or Less,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI

“Canned” Ham & Bean Soup

August 24, 2024 Lee

Leave a comment

"Canned" Ham & Bean Soup

Lee

I call this "Canned" in the title as I use canned beans and canned condensed soup. This is easy to put together, flavor is excellent! I made this on a whim to use up some frozen ham steaks I had lingering in the freezer. I made this on 23 Aug 2024, updated this on 10 Oct 2024, and when I make again, I will take photos.

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 20

Total Time 25

Course Main Dish

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Ingredients

4 cans white beans, undrained, (400 g / 14 oz each)
2 cans condensed mushroom soup, (10½ oz / 298 g each)
500 grams sliced sandwich ham, diced, (1 lb)
black pepper, as desired

Instructions

Add the beans (undrained) and the soup to a saucepan, mix together.
Dice the ham and add to the saucepan, mix together. Season with black pepper as desired.
Place on low to medium heat and simmer to heat through, stirring often.
Ladle into bowls, serve and enjoy.

Notes

Fair cost per serving.

Variants: 1. Use canned pinto beans in place of white beans, or combination of white and pinto beans. 2. Use condensed creamy mushroom chicken soup in place of mushroom soup.

Updated on 9 October 2024.

#1 Go-To Recipes,* Fair Value $1.01 to $1.50 per Serving,5 Ingredients or Less,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI

May 31, 2023 Lee

Leave a comment

Meat Ball Stew

Adapted from a recipe in the Farm Journal's Country Cookbook, page 18.

This recipe is from a cookbook titled Farm Journal's Country Cookbook, printed in 1972. With me being in Thailand, ready made meatballs are not a problem so the ingredients and instructions will reflect meatballs from scratch, Thai store bought, and US store bought. I made this on 31 May 2023 using Thai store bought meatballs.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 1 20

Total Time 1 50

Course Main Dish

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Equipment

Casserole (3 quart)
Oven

Ingredients

For Meatballs from Scratch

750 grams ground beef, (1½ lb)
1½ teaspoons salt
⅛ teaspoon pepper
1 egg
1 tablespoon minced onion
½ cup soft breadcrumbs

For Thai store bought Meatballs

750 grams beef meatballs, (1½ lb)

For US store bought Meatballs

750 grams frozen beef meatballs, thawed, Walmart or Kroger brands would be perfect, (1½ lb)

Remaining Ingredients

1 tablespoon cooking oil
3 tablespoons flour
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained, (565 g / 20 oz)
1 cup water
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon dried basil
3 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
4 small carrots, peeled and diced
1 onion, coarsely chopped
1 stalk celery, sliced

Instructions

For Meatballs from Scratch

In a mixing bowl, add the ground beef, salt, pepper, egg, onion, and breadcrumbs.
Mix together then form into balls about 3 cm (1 inch) in diameter.
Heat the oil in a large non stick pan, when hot, add meatballs, working in batches if needed, and brown the meatballs. Removed browned meatballs to a 3 quart casserole.

For Thai store bought Meatballs

These are refrigerated and not cooked when bought, follow these steps for preparing these meatballs.
Heat a saucepan of water to boiling, when boiling add the meatballs and cook until cooked through, about 8-10 minutes. Drain meatballs.
To give the meatballs a little color, heat the oil in a large non stick pan, when hot, add the meatballs, and brown them. Removed browned meatballs to a 3 quart casserole.

For US store bought Meatballs

Kroger and Walmart Great Value Brands would be perfect for this. These come fully cooked and frozen. Just thaw and heat through in a hot pan with a little oil then drain and place in a 3 quart casserole.

Rest of the Instructions

While you are browning or cooking the meatballs, go ahead and prep the vegetables. I was out of celery so I just omitted that.
Once all the meatballs are browned and removed, drain off all but 3 tablespoons of fat, if using the store bought meatballs, just melt in some butter to make the 3 tablespoons of fat. Stir in the flour.
Add the rest of the Remaining Ingredients, bring mixture to a boil then lower heat to just a simmer and cook 10 minutes, adding additional water as needed. While mixture is simmering, preheat your oven to 180° C (350° F), place a sheet of foil or a foil lined baking sheet on the bottom rack to catch any spills.
Carefully pour the mixture into the casserole with the meatballs. Carefully mix the meatballs into the mixture.
Cover and place on the middle rack in the oven, bake for 1 hour or until vegetables are tender. Carefully remove the cover and give the stew a stir.
Serve and enjoy.

Notes

Fair cost per serving based on the use of beef.

Updated on 31 May 2023.

#1 Go-To Recipes,* Fair Value $1.01 to $1.50 per Serving,BEEF,MEATBALLS,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI

Tofu & Beef Meatball Soup

October 7, 2022 Lee

Leave a comment

Tofu & Beef Meatball Soup

China Sichuan Food, Elaine, China. (For her original recipe.)

This recipe was inspired from a friend in Sichuan, China and this version uses store bought beef meatballs. These are not meatballs you can buy in Walmart or Kroger, you need to get these from an Asian market, different consistency.

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Course Soup

Cuisine Chinese

Servings servings

Ingredients

2 quarts water, (8 cups)
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
2 spring onions, white parts sliced, green parts cut ½ inch long
500 grams beef meatballs, In Thailand I use MR Meatballs brand, frozen - thawed, from Makro, these are not pre-cooked,, (1 lb)
1 slice fresh ginger
800 grams firm tofu, cut into cubes, (28 oz)
20 grams nori seaweed, or less as desired, (¾ oz)
½ tablespoon sesame oil
salt, to taste

Instructions

Add the the water, light soy sauce, and spring onion to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil then turn down to a simmer.
Add the meatballs and ginger. Simmer for about 8-10 minutes to cook the meatballs through.
Add the tofu and nori, simmer for another 5 minutes.
Stir in the sesame oil, taste and season with salt and or additional sesame oil as desired.
Serve and enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.

* Fair Value $1.01 to $1.50 per Serving,: CHINESE,BEEF,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI

Tofu & Meatball Soup

October 2, 2022 Lee

Leave a comment

Tofu & Meatball Soup

China Sichuan Food, Elaine, China.

This comes from a friend in Sichuan, China and it sounds very good! I look forward to preparing this.

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Course Soup

Cuisine Chinese

Servings servings

Equipment

Food Processor / Blender , with S blade

Ingredients

Ingredients for the Pork Balls

300 grams ground pork, (11 oz)
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
2 spring onions, chopped, white part only
3 slices fresh ginger
1 egg
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Ingredients for the Soup

6 cups water, (I will verify the amount when I prepare this)
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 spring onion, sliced, green part - from the pork ball ingredients
1 slice fresh ginger
½ box firm tofu, cut into cubes, (I will verify amount when I prepare this)
20 grams nori , sliced, (dried seaweed), (¾ oz)
½ tablespoon sesame oil
salt, to taste

Instructions

Add the first 8 ingredients for the Pork Balls to a food processor, mix for 15 seconds.
Now add the egg and cornstarch and mix for about 30 seconds, goal is a very smooth and fluffy mixture.
Add the the water, 1 tablespoon light soy sauce, spring onion (green part) to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil then turn off the heat but leave on same burner.
Now to make the pork balls, use one hand and grab a handful of pork mixture, form a circle with your index finger and thumb, squeeze your hand to force the mixture from the circle, then use a spoon and scoop off a meat ball and place the meat ball in the hot water.
Repeat until all the mixture is used and in the pot, average about 20-24 pork balls. Turn on the heat, add the 1 slice of ginger, and bring to a simmer, skim off any foam that forms on top. Simmer for 8-10 minutes.
Add the tofu and nori, simmer for another 5 minutes.
Stir in the sesame oil, taste and season with salt and additional sesame oil as desired.
Serve and enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.

* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: CHINESE,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI

Creamy Ham & Potato Soup

June 15, 2022 Lee

Leave a comment

Creamy Ham & Potato Soup

Lee

This recipe was inspired from a recipe on the Just a Pinch Recipe Club that was a ham and bean soup. My wife suggested potatoes instead of the beans, and it worked perfectly! I made this on 27 Jun 2022 and it was devoured by the 5 of us.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 30

Total Time 50

Course Main Dish, Soup

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Ingredients

800 grams potatoes, peeled and cubed, (1¾ lb)
water, as needed
1 onion, diced
500 grams sliced sandwich ham, cubed, (1 lb)
2 cans condensed cream of mushroom soup, (10½ oz / 298 g each)
500 grams Cheddar cheese, shredded, (1 lb)
salt and pepper, as desired

Instructions

Add the potatoes and onion to a large pot.
Add water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch. Set on medium high heat. Cook until the potatoes are fork tender, stirring occasionally.
While the potatoes are cooking, take the sliced ham and set the entire stack on a cutting board, then cut into ½ strips. Once you have the stack cut into strips, just turn the cutting board 90 degrees then then cut the strips crosswise into ½ inch cubes, there, the stack of ham is now diced. Using sliced ham allows more ham to be distributed throughout the soup.
When the potatoes are tender, reduce heat to low. Scoop out some of the water so the water is just at the top of the potatoes, reserve the water to add if needed if you want a thinner consistency. Now add the soup, ham, and cheese, stir together.
Simmer until the cheese is melted and the soup and cheese is mixed in well. Season with salt and pepper as desired. Stir in some of the reserved potato water if you want thinner soup.
Ladle into bowls, serve, and enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.

#1 Go-To Recipes,* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,PORK,POTATOES,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI

Creamy Ham & Beans

June 14, 2022 Lee

Leave a comment

Creamy Ham & Beans

Just a Pinch Recipe Club, Joey Wolf, United States.

This recipe comes from the Just a Pinch Recipe Club and sounds delicious! Original recipe was for stove top cooked beans, and I will also include instructions to make using stove top pressure cooker.

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 4

Passive Time 6

Total Time 10 20

Course Main Dish

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Equipment

Pressure Cooker , if preparing the beans with that.
Stock Pot , if preparing the beans with that.

Ingredients

2 quarts water
500 grams dry Great Northern beans, (1 lb)
2 tablespoons cooking oil, required only if using a pressure cooker
1 onion, diced
500 grams ham, cubed, (1 lb)
2 cans condensed cream of mushroom soup, (10½ oz / 298 g each)
500 grams Cheddar cheese, shredded, (1 lb)

Instructions

Rinse the dry beans, removing any bad beans or debris, place in a large bowl and cover with water and set aside to soak for at least 6 hours or even overnight. This step applies to Stock Pot or Pressure Cooker methods.

To use a Stock Pot

Add the 2 quarts of water to a large stock pot and place on high heat. Drain and rinse the soaked beans and add to the water. Stir occasionally. Cook the beans until softened to where you can mash with a fork. Adding additional water as needed.
Add the ham and onion, reduce heat to a low boil, and continue cooking, stirring occasionally until the ham and onion are cooked.
Reduce the heat to medium or medium low, add the soup and cheese, and stir together. Stir often until the cheese is melted and mixed into the beans.
Ladle into bowls, serve and enjoy.

To use a Pressure Cooker

I use my 9 liter (9½ quart) stove top pressure cooker with a pressure of 80 kPa (12 psi), so this will work equally well with electric pressure cookers. Follow all safety precautions for your model of pressure cooker.
Drain and rinse the beans, add to you pressure cooker. Add the 2 quarts of water AND the 2 tablespoons cooking oil. The oil prevents the beans from foaming, DO NOT skip the oil.
Place the lid on the cooker and lock in place, add the weight, place on high heat. When the weight (jiggler) starts to move and vent pressure, reduce heat to low to just keep the jiggler moving. Start your timer for 8 minutes.
When 8 minutes have passed, turn off the heat and carefully move the pressure cooker to an unused burner. Allow the cooker to do a natural pressure release, meaning just let it set there until you have indications of zero pressure inside, normally a lid lock will drop to indicate this, can take 15-20 minutes.
When you have indications of zero pressure, remove the weight from the lid and carefully open the cooker. Now you have cooked beans and bean broth.
Drain the beans, and keep the broth. Return just the beans back to the pressure cooker pot (now we are going to use the cooker as just a pot, no lid needed now). Add the bean broth to just cover the beans by ½ to 1 inch. Place on medium heat.
Add the ham and onion, simmer until the onion is good and tender, stirring occasionally. Add more broth as needed for the consistency you desire.
Add the soup and cheese and stir together. Stir often until the cheese and soup are fully mixed into the beans.
Ladle into bowls, serve and enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.

* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,PORK,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI,Soups, Stews, Chili - Pressure Cooker

Thai Chicken & Potato Soup

May 11, 2022 Lee

Leave a comment

Thai Chicken & Potato Soup

Rrayada Thayer, Thailand.

My wife and niece make this soup often, and it is delicious! I was intrigued when I first saw this made as I have rarely seen Thais use potatoes. This is a basic non spicy soup made with fresh and common ingredients. This is normally served with rice on the side but can certainly be enjoyed as is.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 40

Course Main Dish, Soup

Cuisine Thai

Servings servings

Ingredients

2 quarts water
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 kilo chicken wing sticks, (drumettes), (2 lb)
1 cube chicken stock
4 potatoes, peeled, cut into chunks
3 onions, peeled, cut into wedges
4-5 plum tomatoes, cut into wedges
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon MSG, optional
2 tablespoons thin soy sauce, (light soy sauce)
2-3 bunches Chinese celery
2-3 spring onions
hot cooked rice, for serving, optional

Instructions

Prep the wings. These were cut from full wings.
Prep the potatoes and onion.
Prep the tomatoes, and more onions were prepped as well.
Chinese celery is quite thin, the stalks and leaves are used. The celery has the roots in this photo on right, two bunches were used. The coriander underneath was used in another recipe.
Cut the celery and spring onion (white and green parts) into 2 inch pieces.
Add the water and garlic to a large pot, bring to a boil.
After a few minutes, add the stock cube and the wing sticks. Let the pot come to boil, and occasionally skim any foam off the top. Cook until the wings are just cooked through.
Now add the potatoes and let the pot come to a boil again, cook until the potatoes are just fork tender.
Then add the onions and tomatoes, reduce heat to medium low and cook until the onion is tender.
Once the onion is tender, add the salt, MSG (if using), and soy sauce, stir and taste, adding salt as desired. Then turn off the heat, leaving pot on the same burner, and add the celery and spring onion.
Once the celery and spring onion is wilted, give the soup a stir.
Ladle into serving bowls, enjoy. Serve as is or with rice on the side.

Notes

Low cost per serving.

#1 Go-To Recipes,* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: THAI,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI

Chicken & Mushroom Soup

April 22, 2022 Lee

Leave a comment

Chicken & Mushroom Soup

Spend with Pennies, Holly, Canada.

This recipe comes from a friend, and it is delicious! I made this on 21 Apr 2022 and tailored it to our liking here.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 30

Total Time 50

Course Main Dish, Soup

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 stalk celery, diced
250 grams mushrooms, brown or white button, sliced, (8 oz)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt, and as needed
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon ground sage
⅛ teaspoon black pepper
6 cups chicken broth, I used OXO cubes
3 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
¾ cup dry Jasmine rice

Instructions

In a large pot, melt the butter, when hot, add the onion, celery, carrots, and mushrooms. Stir oftern and cook until the onion softens. (I used Shiitake mushrooms - stems removed, and did not have celery on hand so just skipped that.)
Stir in the garlic, salt, parsley, thyme, sage, and pepper. Cook for just a minute or two until the garlic is fragrant.
Add the chicken breasts, rice, and broth. Stir together and heat to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Then remove the chicken to a cutting board and chop, and set aside. Let to soup continue to simmer.
When the rice is tender, about 10-15 minutes after you took the chicken out, return the chicken to the chicken to the pot and simmer for another 5-10 minutes to heat the chicken through. Taste and add salt as desired.
Ladle into bowls, serve, and enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.

Variants: 1. Use Shiitake mushrooms with stems removed, and sliced in place of button mushrooms. 2. Use Straw mushrooms sliced in half in place of button mushrooms.

#1 Go-To Recipes,* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,CHICKEN & TURKEY,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI