Archive for the ‘* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving’ Category
Clam Chowder
This is delicious, and very easy to make, and very versatile. I made this on 16 Nov 2017 and substituted oyster meat for clams, which turned out perfect. The Thai family loved this.
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon, chopped, fried crispy
- 1 carrot, halved and sliced
- 2 stalks import celery, finely diced
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 4 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock, fresh or from powder
- 1-2 cups canned chopped clams, see Step 1
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon tabasco sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
- 750 grams potatoes
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup whipping cream
- fresh cilantro, chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- The recipe calls for canned clams, chopped, with juice, not baby clams. If you have the chopped clams available in your location, very good. What I am going to do is use the small oyster meat available at Tesco here first. This is the oyster meat available at Tesco. These containers will be on ice with the fresh fish. Pour the oysters and liquid (no need to chop them as they will shrink when cooked) in a measuring cup, the amount of liquid is between 3/4 and 1 cup, I poured the liquid out to make is just 3/4 cup, and I used 3 containers for 2 1/4 cups of oysters and liquid.
- Heat a large pot on medium heat and add the bacon, cook until crispy, remove the bacon to a plate with paper towels to drain, set aside. Pour out the fat but leave 3 tablespoons in the the pot.
- Same pot, add the carrot, onion, and celery and cook on medium heat until the vegetables are starting to brown and soften, stir often. Mix in the flour and stir continuously for 1 minute, then add the broth, clams and their juice, bay leaf, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, thyme, salt, and pepper, and bring to a boil.
- Prep the potatoes now, diced, skin on or off is up to you. Add the potatoes to the soup and stir in the milk and cream, once boiling, reduce to a light simmer and cover, simmer until the potatoes are fork tender, about 20 minutes or so.
- Once the potatoes are tender, taste and adjust salt and pepper to your liking, serve with bacon and cilantro sprinkled on top of each bowl.
Notes
I used 3 containers of oyster meat with liquid, 45 Baht per container, so 135 Baht for oysters. For 8 servings, this is about 50 cents per serving.
Variants: 1. Use oyster meat in place of chopped clams for the chowder base. 2. Add peeled and deveined shrimp, crab, imitation crab, whitefish, or mushrooms.
This recipe for Clam Chowder is from Natasha's Kitchen.
Stir Fried Pork Heart with Sweet & Sour Sauce (Tim Heo Xào Chua Ngọt)
Sounds very nice. On my to cook list for sure. This may not be a main item to use for cooking, but heart is a great meat to use.
Ingredients
- 1 pork heart
- salt, as desired
- pepper, as desired
- 1 cucumber
- 1 tomato, sliced
- 1 slice pineapple, chopped into chunks
- 1 onion, sliced, and divided
- cooking oil, as needed
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon Maggi sauce, as needed
- spring onion, chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- First thing, need to clean the heart, cut in half lengthwise, remove the string parts and cut off the tubes on the top end and discard those. Wash the heart and remove any blood. Slice the heart lengthwise into strips. Add the pieces to a bowl and add salt and pepper as desired, mix well and let sit for 15 minutes.
- For the cucumber, cut in half lengthwise scoop out seeds, then cut each piece into thin slices. Prep the rest of the vegetables and fruit as stated.
- Heat a non stick pan with a splash of cooking oil, when heated, add the ½ the onion and stir fry until soft, then add the heart and stir fry until the heart is cooked through, remove the heart and onion and set aside.
- Same pan, add the remaining onion and stir fry for 2 minutes. Add the tomato, pineapple, cucumber and stir fry. Add the fish sauce, Maggi sauce, and salt as desired. Continue to stir fry to soften the cucumber and tomato.
- Add the heart back to the pan, mix, adjust seasoning to taste with fish sauce or salt, and pepper. When the heart is warmed through, remove from heat.
- Garnish with chopped spring onion, serve with rice.
Notes
I will price this when I buy a pork heart, they do sell them in town once in a while. I think this is low cost overall.
Shortcut: Pork Hearts 101.
Chicken & Mushroom Stir Fry
This is Chinese in origin as they are the masters of stir frying. This sounds good, and uses my favorite mushroom, the Straw mushrooms. For those in the States, you can use a can of Straw mushrooms, canned whole and cut in half, for those in Asia, go with fresh and halved. On my to cook list.
Ingredients
- 1 chicken breast, boneless, skinless
- 1 can Straw mushrooms, or 2 cups fresh
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon corn flour
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 red onion, sliced
- 1 inch piece of ginger, julienned
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons oyster sauce
- 1/4 cup water
- pinch salt
- cooked rice, for serving
Instructions
- Begin by slicing the chicken into thin strips, then mix in the 1 teaspoon of soy sauce and the corn flour. Let this sit for 5 to 10 minutes while you prepare the mushrooms.
- Prepare the mushroom, Straw mushrooms are unique in shape, cut them in half lengthwise only or they will just fall apart.
- Heat a wok or non stick wok-pan (what I will use) with the cooking oil. Add the chicken and stir fry and sear the chicken until no longer pink, do not over cook, as it will get cooked more later on. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
- Same pan, add the onion and ginger. Stir fry until fragrant then add the mushrooms and stir fry for 1 minute. Return the chicken to the pan, season with the black pepper, 2 teaspoons of soy sauce, and the oyster sauce. Cook on high heat and stir fry.
- Stir in the water and stir until well mixed. Let the water reduce to thicken it.
- Season with salt to taste, serve with rice.
Notes
Low cost.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Skillet Pasta Limone
Simply delicious, and the beauty of this, it is all cooked at one time, in one skillet or a pot, how easy is that. Serve as a main or side dish. On my to cook list.
Ingredients
- 340 grams dry spaghetti, break in half
- 2 leeks, thinly sliced, rinsed well
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 lemon juice and zest, or a lime, for serving
- 3 sprigs basil, plus more for serving
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 3/4 teaspoon black pepper, plus more for serving
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated, for serving
- 4 1/2 cups water
Instructions
- You can use a heavy walled pot or a large deep skillet for this dish, either will work well. I used my pressure cooker pot due to being thick walled.
- Slice and rinse the leeks several times, reason for this is the way leeks grow, they can have sand in between the layers as it grows.
- To a large deep, non stick skillet or pot, add the water, pasta, leeks, garlic, lemon zest, basil, salt, and pepper.
- Bring to a boil then reduce to a high simmer and cook, stirring often, until the water is nearly gone and the pasta is cooked to tender, about 15 minutes.
- Squeeze in the lemon juice and grated cheese and toss to combine.
- Serve, garnish with chopped basil and lemon zest. Serve as a main or side dish.
Notes
Low cost.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Sipo Egg II
Sipo Egg is a Filipino quail egg and shrimp recipe that originated in Pampanga, Philippines and is normally served as a side dish, however, this makes a lot, and is delicious as a main dish, just serve with rice and you have an excellent meal. This is the creamy version of this dish, and it is easy to prepare, and is delicious. Links to the shortcuts are listed in the Notes section.
Ingredients
- 500 grams fresh shrimp, pealed, deveined, tail removed, (1 lb)
- 25-30 hard boiled quail eggs, peeled, Shortcut
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 3 cups frozen mixed vegetables, peas and carrots, thawed
- ¾ cup water
- 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup, Shortcut
- ½ cup cashews, roasted
- ½ cup whipping cream
- salt and pepper, as desired, to taste
Instructions
- In a large non stick pan, add the oil and butter, when hot, the shrimp, cook the shrimp about a minute on each side, remove the shrimp and set aside.
- Same pan, add a splash of oil if the pan is dry and cook the onion and garlic until the onion is soft.
- Then add the carrots and peas and stir often and cook for 3 minutes.
- Pour in the water and bring to a boil, hold that for 1 minute then reduce to medium heat. Add the shrimp and quail eggs and stir in.
- Add the soup and cream, stir to mix well, add the cashews, season with salt and pepper. Simmer for a minute or two to heat everything through and thicken a bit.
- Serve as a side with any dish.
Notes
Figure about 20 Baht for the quail eggs, and about 75 Baht for the shrimp, both locally obtained in local markets. For 6 servings, this is about 44 cents per serving.
Shortcuts: Perfect Hard Boiled Quail Eggs, Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup.
Variants: 1. Add diced ham or spam. 2. Use 4 cups of peas and carrots instead of 3 (I used two 340 g / 12 oz steamable bags).
Sipo Egg I
Sipo Egg is a Filipino quail egg and shrimp recipe that originated in Pampanga, Philippines. This is the quick non creamy version, and it does sound good. On my to cook list for sure, and soon. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Notes section.
Ingredients
- 4 cups frozen mixed vegetables, peas, carrots, corn, thawed
- ½ cup cashews, raw or roasted, your choice
- 18-20 hard boiled quail eggs, peeled, Shortcut
- 500 grams fresh shrimp, pealed, deveined, tail removed, (1 lb)
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup chicken stock, cold
- 3 tablespoons corn starch
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- salt and white pepper, to taste
- 3 tablespoons butter
Instructions
- In a measuring cup add the cold stock and mix in the corn starch, set aside.
- In a large non stick pan, melt the butter then cook the garlic and onion until the onion is soft, add the mixed vegetables and cook, stirring often, for 3 minutes.
- Pour in the stock, add the cashews, shrimp, and quail eggs. Bring to a low simmer and cook, also stirring once in a while, for 3 minutes.
- Mix in the sesame oil and season with salt and white pepper powder, serve as a side dish or a light main dish.
Notes
Figure about 20 Baht for the quail eggs, and about 75 Baht for the shrimp, both locally obtained in local markets. For 6 servings, this is about 44 cents per serving.
Shortcut: Perfect Hard Boiled Quail Eggs.
Pasta with Sand
This sounds like a easy and nice light pasta dish to enjoy with a green salad. This is a base recipe. On my to cook list. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 250 grams pasta, angel hair, spaghetti, fettucine
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- red pepper flakes, to taste
- salt, to taste
- 1 cup breadcrumbs, OR make from a shortcut
- butter, as needed
- Parmesan cheese, for serving
Instructions
- Cook the pasta in a pot of salted water until just tender, drain well and place in a large serving bowl.
- Before the pasta is done, heat a non stick pan with the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add and cook the garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds, add the red pepper flakes and salt to desired preference then add the breadcrumbs and mix well ensuring the breadcrumbs are saturated with the oil, if they look a bit dry, add a tablespoon of butter at a time and mix in to get the desired consistency.
- Pour the breadcrumb mixture into the pasta and toss to mix together.
- Serve with Parmesan cheese available for topping. A green salad as a side would make this a light meal.
Notes
Low cost.
Shortcut: Breadcrumbs.
Variant: 1. Add a few anchovies when cooking the garlic.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Beef Stew Gratin
Sounds very good, on my to cook list. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 500 grams beef, cubed
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- olive oil, as needed
- 1 onion, diced
- 1-2 carrots, diced
- 2 stalks import celery, diced
- 2 tablespoons tomato puree
- pinch dried rosemary
- 200 grams tomatoes, chopped
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 1 1/4 cups beef stock, fresh or from powder
- 2 potatoes, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- salt, pepper, thyme, as need and to taste
- 50 grams Gruyere cheese, or Swiss cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C. You will need a deep oven proof pan with a oven proof lid, if no lid, just use foil.
- Add salt and pepper to the flour and coat the cubed beef. Brown the beef in the deep ovenproof pan with a splash of olive oil. Remove the beef from pan.
- Add a bit more oil to the same pan and cook the onions until translucent, then add the carrots and celery and cook for another 3-5 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes more.
- Add in the tomato puree and rosemary and stir in, cook for a further 2-3 minutes. Add the chopped tomato and cook for 2 minutes. Add the red wine, simmer to reduce slightly. Add the beef stock and allow to reduce for about 10 minutes.
- Cover the pot with a lid and place in the oven for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
- Remove from the oven and remove the lid or foil. Give the stew a quick mix, smooth out the stew and cover with thinly-chopped peeled potatoes, arranged so they are overlapping slightly. Drizzle with the butter, and season to taste with salt, pepper, and dried thyme.
- Increase the oven temp to 200 C, leave the pan uncovered and place in the oven again and bake for another 45 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.
- Remove from the oven, sprinkle the Gruyere cheese over the potatoes. Place the oven again for 5 to 10 minutes on until the cheese is bubbly.
- Serve.
Notes
Figure about 100 Baht for the beef, the cheese in minimal. For 6 servings, this is about 50 cents per serving.
Shortcut: Tenderizing Beef with Tomatoes.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Stephen Connell.
United States.
United States.
Old-Fashioned Sweet Cornbread Cake
Sounds really good and is an interest way to use cornmeal as I have never heard of this before. On my to cook list.
Ingredients
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/3 cups sugar
- 2 tablespoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 4 eggs, beaten
- 2 1/2 cups milk
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C, and grease a 9x13 baking dish with butter.
- In a mixing bowl, stir together the dry ingredients, then add all of the liquid ingredients and stir just to moisten.
- Pour the batter into the baking dish and place in the oven and bake for 30 to 45 minutes or until the top is starting to brown and starting to show some cracks.
- Serve as a side, a dessert, breakfast, etc.
Notes
Low cost.
Slow Cooker Potato Soup II
Sounds really good, simple and common ingredients, and cooked in a slow cooker, bonus. On my to cook list. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 1-1 1/2 kilos potatoes, cubed
- 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, OR make from a shortcut
- 1 onion, diced
- 6 cups chicken broth, fresh or from powder
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Add everything to your slow cooker crock, stir to mix together. Cover and cook on Low setting for 8 to 10 hours. or until the potatoes are fork tender.
- Mash the potatoes while they are in the slow cooker to the cooker to the consistency you prefer.
- Serve.
Notes
Low cost. With some planning, plan on a chicken dish that uses boiled shredded chicken, then you can make the stock for this by simply adding trinity when boiling the chicken, and use several tablespoons of the chopped chicken to make the soup with a shortcut.
Shortcut: Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Stephen Connell.
United States.
United States.