Archive for the ‘* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving’ Category
Deviled Eggs
I love some good Deviled Eggs. I have always made the base recipe for years, everyone likes them. This recipe is not only the base recipe, but many variants are listed in the notes. No measurements given for the base recipe, this is just a play it by taste recipe.
Ingredients
- 12 hard boiled eggs, chicken or duck, peeled
- mayo
- prepared yellow mustard
- paprika
- cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Take each egg and cut in half lengthwise, remove the yolk and place in a bowl, place the egg halves on a large plate or tray.
- Using a fork, mash up the yolks then start adding mayo to the bowl, I start with about 2 heaping spoonfuls, mix that together, you are looking for a creamy consistency, not too dry, and not too wet (this is a key step here and in the variants). After that, add a squirt or two of yellow mustard and mix that in, taste, if weak on the mustard, add another squirt and mix. Add cracked black pepper to taste.
- Using 2 spoons, scoop some of the yolk mixture and place in the egg half mounding it up a little, repeat this for all the egg halves. Sprinkle lightly with paprika and chill for at least 30 minutes before serving. For all the variants listed, chill them before serving.
- Wasabi Deviled Eggs.
Notes
12 eggs at a local market will cost about 60 Baht, for 4 servings, this is about 44 cents per serving, you will more than likely get more servings than this.
Bacon & Jalapenos Deviled Eggs - This could easily be done with the large Thai red or green chilies as well. To the mashed up yolk, add 1 1/2 teaspoon rice vinegar, 3/4 teaspoon ground mustard, 1/2 teaspoon sugar, 2 Jalapenos seeded and chopped, 6 pieces of bacon cooked and crumbled, and mayo as needed. Mix that together with the yolk and spoon into the egg halves or use a bag with the corner cut off, sprinkle with paprika.
Wasabi Mayo Deviled Eggs - Same as the base recipe but make the wasabi mayo with 1 tablespoon of wasabi paste and 3 tablespoons of mayo, mix and use that as needed to get a creamy consistency with the yolks. Top each egg with a slice of green olive.
Shrimp Deviled Eggs - To the mashed up yolk, add 1 cup of small chopped shrimp, 1 tables spoon of ground mustard, 1 spring onion chopped, pinch of garlic powder, 2 tablespoons of sweet pickle relish, 1 tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley, and mayo as needed. Mix that together with the yolk and spoon into the egg halves or use a bag with the corner cut off.
Crab Deviled Eggs - To the mashed up yolk, add 1 teaspoon paprika, 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder, 1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning, 3/4 cup crab meat, drained, and mayo as needed. Mix that together with the yolk and spoon into the egg halves or use a bag with the corner cut off.
Salmon Deviled Eggs - To the mashed up yolk, add salt and pepper to taste, 1 shallot minced, 3/4 cup salmon meat that is flaked apart, and mayo as needed. Mix that together with the yolk and spoon into the egg halves or use a bag with the corner cut off.
Bacon & Cheddar Deviled Eggs - To the mashed up yolk, add 4 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled, 1 teaspoon of mustard, 3 tablespoons Cheddar cheese finely grated, and mayo as needed. Mix that together with the yolk and spoon into the egg halves or use a bag with the corner cut off.
Loaded Deviled Eggs - To the mashed up yolk, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup cooked and crumbled bacon, 1/4 finely chopped fresh chives, 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix that together with the yolk and spoon into the egg halves or use a bag with the corner cut off. Garnish each with a piece of chopped bacon and chopped chives.
Shortcuts: Perfect Hard Boiled Chicken Eggs, Perfect Hard Boiled Duck Eggs.
My base recipe I have been making for years.
Variants inspired courtesy of good friend, Mike Early.
United States.
Variants inspired courtesy of good friend, Mike Early.
United States.
Easiest Poached Eggs
I like poached eggs on toast, great breakfast with a side of bacon. I made this for breakfast this morning for my wife and I on 10 Sep 2016. On the regular rotation now, very easy, my comments below.
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- water
- white vinegar
- 1-2 slices bread, toasted and buttered, thick sliced perferred
Instructions
- Using a small Pyrex measuring cup or a microwavable bowl, add 1/8 teaspoon of white vinegar, add to that 1/2 cup water. Crack 1 egg into the water, and gently poke the yoke with a toothpick (this keeps the yolk, you know, from exploding). Cover the measuring cup or bowl with plastic wrap but leave one edge open just a bit.
- Microwave for 1 minute and remove immediately. The egg yolk should be cooked to medium, white set, yolk a bit runny (perfect in my opinion). You may need to experiment on a few eggs as every microwave is different on power.
- Quickly remove the egg from the cup or bowl using a slotted spoon and place on a slice of toast. Repeat this again for another egg, placing each on a slice of buttered toast or two eggs on one large thick sliced piece of toast, add a side of bacon or sausage, and you have breakfast.
Notes
Minimal cost.
Inspired by Spend With Pennies and the link to this recipe is here.
United States.
United States.
Kielbasa and Potato Bake
The title may be misleading, there is very good spicy smoked sausage at Makro that is on par with Kielbasa, I use it often, it is very good. This recipe sounds great and is on my to cook list. Lot of possibilities here! Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup, OR make from a shortcut
- 1 cup milk
- 3 clove garlic, smashed and minced
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 500 grams spicy smoked sausage, sliced
- 4 large potatoes, cubed
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 190 C. Get out a 9x13 baking dish.
- In a large bowl, mix the soup, milk, garlic, and pepper, then stir in the potatoes and sausage. Once mixed, spoon this into your baking dish. Bake for 90 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Remove from oven, let rest 5 minutes, cut and serve. A green salad and vegetable on the side would make this a complete meal.
Notes
The sausage would cost about 150 Baht/500 grams (this is about 5 large links). Make the soup yourself, it takes only 5 minutes. For 8 servings, this is about 55 cents per serving. Good value.
Variants, keep in mind adding any of these, increases the per serving cost. Add cabbage. Add a chopped onion. Add some shredded cheese on the top.
Shortcut: Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Scotch Eggs I
Scotch Eggs are hard boiled eggs with sausage wrapped around them and either deep fried or baked. Excellent for a breakfast, lunch or a light dinner when served with a salad. On my to cook list. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Notes section.
Ingredients
- 500 grams pork sausage, Shortcut
- 2 teaspoons Worcherstershire sauce
- 6 eggs, hard boiled, peeled, chilled in fridge
- 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- ⅔ cup breadcrumbs, or panko breadcrumbs
- all purpose flour, just a teaspoon or so for dusting the eggs
- salt, to taste
Instructions
- In a medium size bowl, mix together the pork sausage and Worcestershire sauce. Mix together the tablespoon of flour, salt and pepper and then mix this into the sausage and refrigerate for 30 minutes or so to chill it. This will help in forming the sausage around the eggs.
- Preheat your oven to 160° C (325° F) and get out a baking sheet or shallow baking dish. Place the beaten eggs and breadcrumbs into separate dishes. Dust each egg with flour, this helps in getting the sausage formed around them.
- Divide the sausage into 6 equal parts, form each into a ball. One at a time, flatten down one ball and pat it out to make a large patty that will basically wrap around the egg, once covered, roll around between your hands to even out the sausage. Then dip the egg in the beaten egg, then roll in the breadcrumbs, then place the egg in the baking tray or on the sheet.
- When all eggs are ready, bake for 40 minutes or until the breadcrumbs turn a golden color. Remove from oven, cut in half lengthwise and serve with a mustard or horseradish sauce for dipping. 3 servings is based on 2 eggs per serving. Serve with toast for a good breakfast or with a salad for a light lunch or dinner.
Notes
Low cost per serving.
Shortcut: Sausage.
Creamed Eggs on Toast
Excellent dish, easy to prepare, and a filling meal! I made this on 7 Oct 2016 and took a few photos as well. My comments below.
Ingredients
- 12 eggs, hard boiled, peeled
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 3 cups milk
- 1 tablespoon powdered chicken stock
- toast, as need, 1-2 slices per serving
- salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Cut the eggs in half, Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks. Place the egg yolks into a bowl and mash with a fork, set aside. Chop the egg whites into small pieces into another bowl, and set aside.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan set over medium heat. Stir in flour until smooth. Gradually mix in the milk and chicken bouillon so that no lumps form and stir constantly until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens, reduce heat, add the egg yolks and mix until dissolved into the sauce. Stir in egg whites. Serve over toast and season with salt and white pepper.
Notes
Eggs come in 6 packs, 10 packs, 15 packs, and 30 packs, and prices vary as well. For this recipe I am just going to use 77 Baht for a 15 pack of eggs. For 6 servings, this is about 38 cents per serving. Great value.
I think a good variant would be to add cooked chopped bacon or cooked and crumbled sausage to the sauce.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Banana Pancakes
Two ingredients only. Eggs and a banana, that is it, cannot go wrong here. Sounds good and easy.
Ingredients
- 1 banana
- 2 eggs
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mash the banana with a fork. Crack in the two eggs and whisk into the banana. Heat a pan with a splash of olive oil, pour the mixture in making 2-3 smaller pancakes (or more, smaller is easier to flip). When golden brown on the bottom, flip. Remove to a place when the other side is also golden brown.
Notes
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Classic Shakshuka
This is a Middle Eastern recipe for basically "use what you have in your fridge and throw in a pan." Basically this is an onion, bell pepper, and tomato dish with eggs on top. Sounds delightful indeed! I made this on 14 Sep 2016, and it is a keeper! On the regular rotation, my comments below.
Ingredients
- 5-6 eggs
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 4 cups tomatoes, diced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- pinch red chili flakes, optional, to taste
- pinch cayenne pepper, optional, to taste
- pinch sugar, optional, to taste
- salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Cook the onion and garlic in a deep large pan until translucent. Then add the bell pepper and cook for another 5 minutes or so until the bell pepper is soft, then add the tomatoes and stir. You can at this point add in other items if you like, such as green chilies, parsley, mushrooms, spinach, etc.
- Reduce heat to a low simmer, add the tomato paste and stir until thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste, then add in chili flakes and/or paprika and/or cayenne for as much spice as you like.
- Once the mixture is thick to your liking, crack in eggs, making sure they are spread out from one another, then cover the pan and allow the mixture to cook and the eggs to set, about 8-10 minutes, depending on how you like your eggs.
- The egg on the left, broken yoke so it just sort of disappeared into the sauce. Other eggs are set but yolks are still runny, perfect.
- Serve with some toast on the side or like me, I served this with 2 Porcupine Meatballs I made another day, excellent meal.
Notes
Nothing expensive here, you might be looking at 30 cents per serving.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
In-N-Out Animal Style Fries
Although I am not a fan of fast food places, this is a homemade version of what some would call famous fries from In-N-Out Burgers. Now what the "animal" style is, I don't have a clue. These do sound good however. Links to the shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 1 kilo potatoes
- 1 large onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 1/2 tablespoons mayo
- 1 tablespoon ketchup, OR make from a shortcut
- 2 teaspoons sweet pickle relish, OR dice up a dill pickle, can make from a shortcut
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon white vinegar
- Cheddar cheese, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Slice the potatoes into 1/4 inch fries, if you wish to peel the potatoes, that is up to you. Place the fries in a bowl of cold water.
- Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a skillet over medium high heat until shimmering. Add onion and pinch of salt to skillet. Reduce heat to medium low, and cook, tossing and stirring occasionally until onions are well browned, about 15 minutes. One onions begin to sizzle heavily and appear dry, add 1 tablespoon water to skillet and stir. Continue cooking until water evaporates and onions start sizzling. Repeat process, 3 times total.
- In a small bowl add the mayo, ketchup, relish, sugar, and vinegar and stir to combine, this is the sauce, set aside.
- Remove the potatoes from the water and dry on paper towels. Heat oil to 365 degrees. Add potatoes in batches and fry for 3-4 minutes or until the fries start turning a bit whiter, then remove with slotted spoon and do the next batch. Let potatoes cool. Then refry by put frying the potatoes again in the hot oil fry a second time for 2-3 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Place fries on a large plate, cover with slices of Cheddar cheese, then the onions (or whats left of them), and the sauce. Serve.
Notes
Minimal costs overall.
Shortcut: Ketchup, Dill Pickles.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Matthew Fox.
United States.
United States.
Pork Menudo
This is a Filipino style stew that is tomato sauce based. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 500 grams pork belly, cut into bite size pieces, (1 lb)
- 250 grams pork liver, (1 lb)
- 4 hotdogs, regular size, sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, cut into squares
- 1 large potato, diced
- 1 large carrot, diced
- 1 cup peas, cooked
- 1 onion, chopped
- ½ head garlic, minced
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 1 cup tomato sauce, Shortcut
- 3 tablespoons liver paste, optional, I would just go with the liver
- ½ cup raisins
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Boil the liver for about 5-8 minutes, until cooked through, remove from water and set aside to cool.
- In a sauce pan cook the garlic and onion, add in the pork and cook for 5 minutes. Add in the soy sauce and tomato sauce, cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. Add a cup of water and bring to a boil the reduce heat to a simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until the pork is tender.
- While this is cooking, chop the liver into bite size pieces.
- Add in the potatoes and carrots and cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Add in liver spread, chopped liver, hotdog slices, sugar, and raisins and continue to cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until the potatoes and carrots are cooked and most of the liquid has evaporated. Add in the peas and bell pepper, season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer to heat everything through. Serve with hot rice.
Notes
Pork belly will cost about 65 Baht/500 grams, the liver will cost about 35 Baht/250 grams. For 4 servings, this is about 72 cents per serving. Great price for a hearty stew.
Shortcut: Tomato Sauce.
Slow Cooker Pepper Steak
Sounds really good. This would be great on pasta, rice, mashed potatoes, or even on a bun with a slice of Swiss cheese. On my to cook list.
Ingredients
- 1 kilo lean beef, cut into 2 inch strips
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 red bell pepper, large, sliced into strips
- 1 green bell pepper, large, sliced into strips
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 1 can whole peeled tomatoes, chopped, plus the juice
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon beef stock powder
- 1/4 cup hot water
- 1 tablespoon corn starch, and a bit more as needed at the end
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- olive oil, as needed
- black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a large non stick pan, heat a splash of olive oil then brown the strips of beef, no need to cook them through, just quickly brown them and then add to the slow cooker. Add the minced garlic to the slow cooker and mix into the beef strips.
- Mix the stock powder with the hot water, when mixed, add the corn starch and mix. Pour this into the slow cooker along with the black pepper, soy sauce, chopped tomatoes and juice, sugar, and onion. Slice the bell peppers and refrigerate. Set the slow cooker to Low setting for 6-8 hours or High setting for 3-4 hours. For low setting, at the 4 hour mark, add the sliced bell pepper and mix in. For high setting, at the 2 hour mark, add the sliced bell pepper and mix in, continue cooking. This keeps the bell pepper crunchy and not turning to mush.
- When the beef is tender and cooked through, mix 1 tablespoon of corn starch with just enough water to make a paste, then stir that into the pot and cook for another 10 or 15 minutes, this will thicken the sauce to a gravy like consistency. Serve over rice, pasta, mashed potatoes, or in a bun with a slice of Swiss cheese.
Notes
The beef would run about 200 Baht/kilo. For 6 servings, this comes out to about 98 cents per serving. Excellent cost.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Mike Early.
United States.
United States.
