Ephinea Cooking Thread

This one is a bit long, because it's in three parts... One for the sauce, one for the dish itself, and a bit at the end for how to make the spice blend for the sauce from scratch if that's your preference.

Yellow Curry Sauce
26.66 ounces coconut milk (see Note 1, at bottom)
1.5 cups Curry Powder (see Note 2, at bottom)
8 ounces Tomato Paste
Water
Salt to taste


1.) In a large sauce pan, heat the coconut milk over low to medium heat until it begins to steam.
2.) Stir in the tomato paste until it has fully dissolved into the coconut milk.
3.) Using a whisk or fork, begin working in the Curry Powder 1/4 cup at a time. Fully incorporate each addition before adding the next.
(TIP: You're looking for a consistency like an Alfredo sauce. If, while adding the curry
powder, the sauce thickens to be closer to a paste, mix in small amounts of
water until it becomes thin enough again. Coconut milk is not consistent in the
water content, which is why this happens.)
4.) Remove from heat. If using immediately, cover with a lid; if made for freezing, allow to sit uncovered until cool to prevent unnecessary dilution of the sauce.


Curry Dinner
2 cups curry sauce
2 large potatoes
2 large carrots or parsnips
1 medium yellow onion
1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 lb of beef, chicken, pork, or extra-firm tofu
8 ounces of grape or cherry tomatoes, cut in half
4 ounces water (or white wine, if you want to be fancier)


(TIP: If you don't want to use meat or tofu, you can add more vegetables. Either add more of the ones in the recipe above, or experiment by adding whatever vegetables you enjoy. The less "squishy" the veggie, the better it works; cubes of squash cooked like the potatoes below are good, canned peas not so much.)

1.) Cut all vegetables, meat, and/or tofu into bite-size pieces. If using tofu, I strongly recommend pressing it thoroughly to prevent too much crumbling in the dish later on.
2.) Boil the potatoes, carrots, and/or parsnips until still firm, but you can push a fork into them. Drain and set aside.
3.)In a frying pan, over low heat, simmer the onion until it begins to become translucent.
4.) Add the meat or tofu to the onion and increase to medium heat. Cook until meat is done.
4A) If using chicken, this is the point where it has an internal temperature
of 165F/74C
4B) If using beef or pork, cooking until the meat is slightly browned will
achieve proper internal temperatures.
4C) If using tofu, simply cook until hot and some flavor from the onion
has been absorbed.
5.) Place potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and garbanzo beans into a large pot, slow cooker, or crock pot. Set to low heat.
6.) Add onions and meat or tofu to the pot.
7.) Return the frying pan used to cook the onion/meat/tofu to the heat. De-glaze, and add to pot. (see Note 3, at bottom.)
8.) Add curry sauce to the pot, gently stirring. Try to coat everything in the pot, but not break up any of your vegetables.
9.) Cover the pot and let it cook for 45 to 60 minutes.
10.) When serving, sprinkle the tomatoes across the top.

This is excellent served as-is in a bowl. To make it go further, you can also serve it over noodles or rice- both are common in several of the places around the world that curry comes from. Various breads are also quite good accompaniment: warmed naan or pita bread; focaccia, cut into 1/2" thick slices, brushed with olive oil and either grilled or toasted; a nice fluffy Italian bread with a good, chewy crust; toasted sour dough English muffins; or my personal favourite, soft sour dough pretzels (I know it's a bit weird, but it's good!)






NOTE 1: Typically, single small cans are 13.33 oz, but you can increase the total amount of coconut milk to as much as 30 ounces without hurting the rest of the measurements in the recipe.

NOTE 2: If you want, you can make your own curry powder. It's quite simple to do but it takes a lot of different spices... Though I make it from scratch for work, if I'm not trying to make a meal to impress someone I prefer to save the effort and just buy it when it's for my own personal use. Here's a basic recipe:

Curry Powder
3 teaspoons Cumin
3 teaspoons Coriander
2 teaspoons Ground Ginger
2 teaspoons Turmeric
2 teaspoons Cayenne
1 teaspoons Black Pepper
1 teaspoon Mustard Powder
1 teaspoon Ground Cardamom

1.) Put all ingredients into a spice grinder or food processor and pulse until it's all the same consistency. It'll store for months as long as it stays dry.

NOTE 3: Sorry if this is already in your skill set, I put it in just in case you're not familiar... The practice of de-glazing a pan is when you add a little bit of liquid to a hot pan you've already cooked with (and may be actively cooking in) and scrape the bottom with a spatula or spoon. The short version of why is that this loosens small bits from the bottom of the pan which mix with the liquid, creating a small amount of liquid with a lot of flavor in it to enhance the dish.
 
For some reason, mew can't remember ever trying Anything "Curry" related. Really need to get on this Curry train~! =3
 
While wandering inside the fridge today, mew had noticed leftover diced onions from her night of making chicken fried rice and almost panicked remembering diced/sliced onions go bad fast if not used quickly! So little wheels started turning in her head trying to think of all the stuff she could use the excuse for using up all the onions in one go... Hmmmmm...chicken....shredded three cheeses...soft taco shells....AHA!!!! Mini kitty Quesadillas!!! =320200326_194649.jpg
 
While wandering inside the fridge today, mew had noticed leftover diced onions from her night of making chicken fried rice and almost panicked remembering diced/sliced onions go bad fast if not used quickly! So little wheels started turning in her head trying to think of all the stuff she could use the excuse for using up all the onions in one go... Hmmmmm...chicken....shredded three cheeses...soft taco shells....AHA!!!! Mini kitty Quesadillas!!! =3View attachment 13436
Where's mine :(
 
Things I have made and eaten in isolation

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Puerco

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Cumin carrots w yogurt + tehina

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Romano beans w miso & sage

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pumkin brown butter vichyssoise
 
My wife had a terrible day at work yesterday- she works in the local hospital system and had LOADS of bad patients come through lately- so I made total comfort food for dinner last night: nachos!

Layer upon layer upon layer upon layer of warm yellow corn tortilla chips piled high with cheddar cheese, diced tomato, jack cheese, diced onion, fontina cheese, sliced jalapenos, havarti cheese, black beans, pepperjack cheese, ground beef, blue cheese, salsa, smoked gouda cheese, black olives, and diced bacon, baked in the oven until gooey, and served with a big dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of chopped cilantro.

They were delicious, and the smile on my wife's face (she didn't know what was for dinner) when I walked out of the kitchen with a giant plate of gooey, steaming nachos was worth the two or so hours it took to make. More than worth it. (Yeah, I'm still a sap, even after ten years of marriage, lol. And quite happy that way, thanks! :D )

To answer some questions I know are likely to come up after sharing the ingredient list:

1.) Yes, I did, in fact, use all of those cheeses, just small amounts of each one.
2.)No, that was not, in fact, every cheese in the house; I didn't use the asiago, habanero-pineapple blue, gorgonzola, parmesan, romano, applewood-smoked cheddar, or swiss- some because they're too expensive, some because they don't melt well enough, and some because they were bought for very specific meals.
3.)Yes, it was in fact necessary to use so much cheese.
4.) Because cheese, that's why.
 
My wife had a terrible day at work yesterday- she works in the local hospital system and had LOADS of bad patients come through lately- so I made total comfort food for dinner last night: nachos!

Layer upon layer upon layer upon layer of warm yellow corn tortilla chips piled high with cheddar cheese, diced tomato, jack cheese, diced onion, fontina cheese, sliced jalapenos, havarti cheese, black beans, pepperjack cheese, ground beef, blue cheese, salsa, smoked gouda cheese, black olives, and diced bacon, baked in the oven until gooey, and served with a big dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of chopped cilantro.

They were delicious, and the smile on my wife's face (she didn't know what was for dinner) when I walked out of the kitchen with a giant plate of gooey, steaming nachos was worth the two or so hours it took to make. More than worth it. (Yeah, I'm still a sap, even after ten years of marriage, lol. And quite happy that way, thanks! :D )

To answer some questions I know are likely to come up after sharing the ingredient list:

1.) Yes, I did, in fact, use all of those cheeses, just small amounts of each one.
2.)No, that was not, in fact, every cheese in the house; I didn't use the asiago, habanero-pineapple blue, gorgonzola, parmesan, romano, applewood-smoked cheddar, or swiss- some because they're too expensive, some because they don't melt well enough, and some because they were bought for very specific meals.
3.)Yes, it was in fact necessary to use so much cheese.
4.) Because cheese, that's why.
You're a KEEPER Dammit~! =3
 
We have PLENTY of cheese in the house, but, it's all mild cheddar. I mean, sure, cheddar is great and all, but there are some things it just can't do.

#TrueStory

Cheddar, in all its varieties, is tasty and has many uses... But there's a LOT that can be done with other cheeses, things that cheddar just isn't anywhere nearly as good at. My biggest complaint is that the only cheddars that melt really well are young ones with less flavor; an aged, sharp cheddar is where the flavor is at, but you can't get a smooth melt from it worth a damn without a LOT of work- plus added ingredients. In our house cheddar is either on a sandwich or sliced to serve with fruit/crackers/etc. Unless it's mixed with other cheese, of course... Mild cheddar is great at providing bulk in a cheese sauce, where something with strong flavor will be carrying the day- I love a nice smoked Gouda in my mac'n'cheese, for example, but half the cheese will be a very mild cheddar (usually a bit of Blue or Parmesan will go in too, to add a bit more funk without raising more smoke flavor- the Gouda, some paprika, and often a bit of diced ham cover that already.)
 
This recipe is for some really nice peanut butter cookies. They are also Vegan, though that's not exactly the point, lol. The two key things about these cookies is that (1) they are very simple to make, and (2) if you look at the ingredients, you'll see they are all shelf-stable- that is, they don't need refrigeration to keep them from spoiling. That means that the cookie dough is also shelf-stable; you can make a big batch and it won't go bad just sitting on the counter. (Well, not so long as it's in a sealed container to prevent it from drying out, that is.)

These are great if you have kids... You can make a project out of making up a big batch on Monday, and let them "earn" the baking of more cookies all week long with chores or other good behaviour- and since the dough is sitting on the counter in plain view, they have a constant reminder, lol!


Peanut Butter Cookies


Wet Ingredients:

2.5 cups shortening

2.5 cups crunchy peanut butter

1/4 cup vanilla extract

1 cup white sugar

1 cup light brown sugar

4 tablespoons molasses


Dry Ingredients:
6 cups flour

4 teaspoons salt

4 teaspoons baking soda


Prep:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cover two cookie sheets in parchment paper.




Directions:
1.) Sift together (or stir vigorously with a fork) all Dry Ingredients in a medium bowl. Set aside.

2.) Thoroughly mix all Wet Ingredients in a bowl, preferably with a Hand Mixer or Stand Mixer.

3.) In a either a Stand Mixer bowl or a large mixing bowl, add Dry Ingredients to Wet Ingredients. Blend until thoroughly integrated.

4.) Separate dough into portions of 2 ounces (1 heaping tablespoon.) Form into a disc, roughly 1/2" thich and 1.5" across, and place onto prepared cookie sheets with 2" between each dough ball.

5.) When both sheets are full, place in oven and bake for 8 minutes; then rotate 90 degrees and bake for another 8 minutes.

6.) Remove from oven . Cookies will be fragile and crumble easily while warm, so you should cool completely before trying to remove them from the baking sheet.



Options:
You can do a lot with this dough; it takes additions pretty well. I like adding 1.25 cups of dried cranberries and the zest of one large orange (do this as Wet Ingredients.) I've got a friend that likes to press some shredded coconut into the tops of his cookies right before putting them in the oven, so that it toasts while the cookies bake. I know several people who like to add chocolate- either chips or chunks in the dough before baking, or dipping the top after baking to form a chocolate shell.

Another option I rather enjoy is adding the uncooked dough to ice cream. (No eggs here, so cooking is entirely optional! :D ) You can drop bits into a bowl of ice cream, or get fancy and mix the whole container's worth. Here's the easy way to do that:
1.) Buy your favourite flavor of ice cream; any type can work, but soft-serve is easiest to work with.
2.) Chill a sheet pan in your freezer for 30+ minutes.
3.) Roll up the desired amount of cookie dough into small pellets. Try to keep them smaller than marbles, or they'll be too hard to bite through later.
4.) Using a sturdy spoon or spatula, spread the ice cream across the sheet pan.
5.) Sprinkle the cookie dough pellets across the ice cream.
6.) Using a spatula or pancake turner, fold the ice cream across itself several times, then shove it back into the container.

Now you've got ice cream with peanut butter cookie dough in it for later. I like doing this with French Vanilla, Butter Pecan, or Chocolate, but you are of course free to add it to anything you like.

One last thing to try: tiny balls of this can be a tasty addition to spicy chicken stir fry. I know it sounds weird, but you end up with a texture you don't usually get in stir fry, and if it's properly spicy you get a sort of Thai peanut sauce flavor thing going on.
 
So, it has come to my attention that this thread is a thing that exists, so this is what I've been subsisting on for the last few days.

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Canton-Style Stir-Fried Beef

* Flank Steak: 1-2 lbs.
* Corn Starch: 1 Tbsp./lb. of meat
* Soy Sauce: 1 Tbsp./lb. of meat (I prefer Low Sodium)
* Dry Sherry/ Dry Rice Wine: 1 Tbsp./lb. of meat
* Cooking Oil (I prefer Peanut, since you can get it hotter before it starts to smoke, but Canola works just as well)
* Oyster Sauce (I recommend Lee Kum Kee, if you can get it, but the important thing is that Oyster Extract be high on the ingredient list, specifically higher than sugar)
* Vegetables to Preference (The Batch Pictured used an Onion, two Carrots, and a bag of Broccoli Florets)
* Salt, Black Pepper, and Garlic/Garlic Powder to taste.
* White Rice

  1. Start a pot of white rice. Be ready to quickly fluff it once it's done cooking.
  2. Cut the flank steak in half lengthwise, then slice it across the grain into strips. No need to get it paper-thin, but it'll help it cook quickly if you can get it relatively thin. Put the strips into a bowl.
  3. Sprinkle the meat with one tablespoon each per pound of beef: Corn Starch, Soy Sauce, and Dry Sherry/Dry Rice Wine (feel free to go a little heavier on the wine). Toss the meat so that the marinade mixes, and coats the strips evenly (be particularly careful about strips getting stuck together with the starch). Let this sit for between 30 minutes and an hour while you prep the veggies.
  4. Slice up the vegetables as you prefer. I recommend at least an Onion (white or yellow is fine), as it'll add to the flavor, but I also recommend Broccoli, and a carrot or two, depending on the size.
  5. Pour 1-2 tablespoons of oil (you don't need to be precise) in either a wok or broad nonstick saucepan. Turn the heat to medium-high, and watch the oil for ripples and traces of smoke/vapor.
  6. Throw in the vegetables and a spoonful of chopped garlic (the latter is optional, if you prefer to use garlic powder). Sprinkle them with salt, pepper, and garlic powder (in lieu of chopped garlic) to taste, and stir until they begin to soften (the onion in particular will turn translucent.
  7. Remove the vegetables into a bowl or second pot that can be covered. Optionally, wipe down the wok/frying pan with a paper towel (using the spoon/spatula, not your hand), to remove excess oil/residue.
  8. Turn the heat up to high, and add about a tablespoon of oil. Once again, wait for the smokepoint, then add a small handful of the marinated beef. You don't want to crowd the wok too much, as vigorously stirring is important here. Stir until the you've just cooked the pink out.
  9. Remove the meat and add to the vegetable pot. Continue cooking the meat in batches, adding another tablespoon-ish of oil for each, and optionally cleaning the wok in between, depending on the buildup of charred marinade.
  10. Once the last batch of meat has been cooked, drop the heat to medium and empty everything back into the wok.
  11. Take the bowl the meat marinaded in, and add a little water to dissolve the remaining starch (if there are any bits of meat still left, pick them out and toss them). Swirl the water to collect as much of the starch as possible, then add it to the wok.
  12. Stir until the water comes to a boil, then stir in Oyster Sauce, to taste (4 tablespoons is recommended per pound of food, meat and veggies included, though I tend to go a bit heavier).
  13. Serve over the rice.
BONUS: This recipe works with different kinds of meat, such as Chicken Breast and Center-cut pork chop.

EXTRA BONUS: This marinade works great for Steak and Cheese subs.
 
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