Topic: COOKING RECOMMENDATIONS

[Mooning Freddy]

Growing up and living alone away from your parents leaves you with two options: Either eat out / eat ready-made food, which is either too expensive for people living on a budget or simply unhealthy, or... Learn how to cook.

So I chose the second option, and since the start of the year I'm trying different recipes and experiment with real cooking (making spaghetti is not real cooking, sorry guys).
I'm especially fond of stews, since they're tasty and I'm a man who can't live off bloody salads. I walk a lot and need my fat, protein and carbohydrates.
Some of my favorite recipes that I learned this year are the simple but delicious Chili con carne, and this rural, colorful, welsh cawl.

So do you know any dishes that you'd recommend? You don't have to know how to cook them, the only condition that they are out of the ordinary (not your average fries / hamburger / pasta stuff). I am especially fond of dishes that give you a combination of tastes: sour, sweet, spicy, with unusual vegetable/sauces/spices. As long as it's not boring, tell me about it!

[Jorge D. Fuentes]

Learn Chicken Tikka Masala!
It's so good! I hear you can just set-it-and-forget-it if you have a CrockPot.

If you're a pick-up-and-reheat kinda guy, you can always make some kickass Chili and pack it away in the freezer for when you need something on the quick.

[Jazz Paladin Productions]

Here are a couple that I use to impress tongues.

Chipotle Cream Carnitas (Advice, don't skip getting the cojita cheese, it's essential)
http://hostthetoast.com/crock-pot-carnita-tacos-chipotle-cream/


Molé sauce for chicken and mexican dishes : http://www.food.com/recipe/mole-mo-lay-sauce-35659

[Mooning Freddy]

Oh yeah, while I'm in London, gotta check all of that indian food thoroughly, all them curries and masalas...

Definitely gonna try those Carnitas as well (already learned how to make burritos. super easy)

[zangetsu468]

I recommend Thai green curry. it's delicious and you can add almost anything to it.
The only thing I never did was make my own paste from scratch, I always used Valcom jarred paste.

It's simple:
- Put some oil in a pot on low heat for 2 mins
- Heat as much paste as you like (1/2 jar recommended)and stir around on low-med heat until fragrant
- Add 400ml (1 can) of coconut milk, and add your meat ingredient if applicable (eg 500g chicken thigh cut up into cubes)
- Simmer it so the dish is on the edge of boiling i.e. cooking the meat and keeping it tender
- Once done add vegetables to your liking and 200-400ml more coconut milk (depending on how thick you like the sauce)
- Bring to the boil (so the veges are still just crisp on the outside) and serve atop of white rice, brown rice, cous cous, etc.

Chicken thighs aren't super cheap, but say they're $8 per kg you can make 2 of these curries - one costs you $4
Half a tin of paste = $3
Vegetables = $2
Coconut Milk = $2.50
Oil = basically nothing
Rice (in bulk) = 50 cents

If you eat more rice with it, you can eat this meal over 2 days i.e. $12/ 2 = $6 per day

Prices are in AUD, produce should be cheaper overseas.

[Dracula9]

Curry. Anything curry. Preferably with chutney.

Also burgoo.

[X]

I myself enjoy a good stew. I would recommend you try adding curry into a stew. It kicks things up a notch or two. And it doesn't need to be a spicy curry either. Once I tried stew with curry added I never looked back.

[Shiroi Koumori]

I am partial to Italian cuisine and watching cooking shows help out a lot.

I love these: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/hungarian-beef-stew-goulash-recipe.html
http://www.itv.com/ginositalianescape/recipes/pollo-allaceto-balsamico-chicken-with-pancetta-garlic-thyme-and-balsamic-vinegar

Both of these can be kept in the fridge and reheated. You can ignore the salad in the second recipe, haha.

I also make a lot of Japanese style curry. The secret is the instant roux that Japanese stores sell in boxes. 

Remember the old recipe thread? Here it is: http://castlevaniadungeon.net/forums/index.php/topic,5294.0.html

[Laina]

Cheeseburger Soup. You sit a bowl of that on top o' your head & your tongue'll beat your brains out tryin' ta get to it.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/cheeseburger-soup

[Mooning Freddy]

Cheeseburger Soup. You sit a bowl of that on top o' your head & your tongue'll beat your brains out tryin' ta get to it.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/cheeseburger-soup

[Dracula9]

Cheeseburger Soup. You sit a bowl of that on top o' your head & your tongue'll beat your brains out tryin' ta get to it.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/cheeseburger-soup

[Mooning Freddy]

I made the soup yesterday. Good stuff. 

[TatteredSeraph]

Home made pizza is wonderful.  If you struggle with or don't have time to make the dough, baguette or ciabatta pizza is a great cheat.  The trick is with pizza (or any Italian food tbh) to not go overboard.  Use high quality ingredients that can speak for themselves.  Make a very simple ragu sauce - blitzed/smoothed tomatoes, a bit of garlic, a few herbs such as oregano, bay, etc, maybe a small touch of very very finely chopped onion if you want.  Use proper mozzarella that hasn't been pre grated etc, it loses a lot of flavour.  Use whatever other toppings you want pretty much, but keeping it simple is usually best. 

For hearty stews, I recommend the ultimate meat and potato stew that I developed in my student days, which other veg could easily be added into.  I use a packet of good quality diced beef, six chopped up thin Cumberland sausages, and six rashers of streaky smoked bacon.  Seal the beef in a big saucepan, then add the sausage and bacon.  To this once the meat's all been sealed, add three good sized potatoes that have been choppeup in a mix of very small bits and bigger chunks.  The reason for this is to let most of the potato dissolve into the broth.  Cover the meat and potatoes with boiling water, and add a chicken stock cube (yes, chicken stock).  Season with garlic in whatever is your preferred form (even garlic granules is ok), and a mix of herbs (I like oregano and rosemary).  Leave to simmer on the stove on a low heat for about two hours, adding extra water if necessary.  I can get three large bowls of stew from these quantites. 

[Las]

I once made beef teriyaki stir fry with bread crumbs. I put alot of bread crumbs and made sure they were well cooked(like they would be on veil or chiken patties) then added stir fry and cooked that with it. I believe i added in a touch of Sazonador and walla! All i can say is awesome!! One reason is i let it sit their cooking for a whle..probably like 10 min or 12 min after the initial bread crumb cooking.

[Jazz Paladin Productions]

Oooh, I love homemade pizzas! Mine come out good, and yes, the key is good quality ingredients. I also recommend finding a good dough recipe, but in general I use 2 cups flour, mixed with 1 tsp salt, and then 1 tsp yeast/1 tsp sugar/1 cup water that has been sitting 10 mins or so.

here's what I do for sauce

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/17319/exquisite-pizza-sauce/