in an effort to save both of us money (and gastro-intestinal distress), i’ve been trying to cook more meals at home for christopher and i instead of our eating out or ordering in so much. it’s been kind of stressful for me because i’m really not used to cooking for anyone other than myself or, historically, my mom. it’s been a real stretch for me to think up meal-like things to prepare. although he’s not yet complained about anything i’ve given him to eat, i’m sure none of the dishes has been anything he’d clamour to have me make him again. thank goodness he’s a food trooper and will eat pretty much anything but liver.
yesterday, i broke new ground by leaving the slow-cooker slow-cooking a stew while i was at work. i’m a stew novice when i cook it live and in person, so this whole leaving it to its own devices while i was twenty-five kilometres away was positively nerve-racking. it turned out not-entirely-awful, but i will note for next time to add a few more veggies, lots more liquid (read: beer) and a little less worcestershire sauce before putting the lid on it for the day.
i guess what i’m looking for are quick, easy meal ideas which can be made in a relatively short amount of time, using as few pots & utensils as possible and for the smallest monetary investment. maybe even just tips on how to cook things i’ve never cooked before such as pot roast (or roasted anything, for that matter: pork, chicken, etc) or non-creamy casseroles. seriously, any suggestions are welcome. i just need a little culinary inspiration before i get dumped for someone who can really cook.
or maybe you could tell me to stop being so boring and post more damn pictures.
what you need are some cookbook bibles:
the new joy of cooking (not the old one, which tells you how to skin squirrels – with diagrams even) but the new one – it’ll tell you how to roast, broil, and anything you can think of… it’s like a food encyclopedia.
any james barber cookbook – the man uses measurements like “hunks” and “squirbles” and uses alcohol liberally (deserts like oranges and vodka – cut up oranges, douse in vodka…voila!)
donna hay cookbooks (flavours is good) – beautiful photos and lets you cook on a flavour theme… ginger or garlic or chocolate etc.
the moosewood cookbook – the original. sure it’s veggie, but there’s nothing stopping you from throwing some chicken into that stirfry or some beef into that delicious arabian casserole.
and there’s always allrecipes.com – good stuff!
Or I could suggest you tell Christopher to do half the cooking. ;-)
I love All Recipes (www.allrecipes.com) because between the ratings and the comments, it’s easy to judge a recipe. The comments left are especially helpful, giving suggestions for modifications, timing, etc. I stick to the highly rated recipes and have always had requests for the same dish to be made again no matter where it was served. I only share my secret source with those I really like. :-)
Well, darn, I’ll have to type quicker next time. ;-)
i think soups and stews are the right track..in terms of time and clean up. making a stirfry is always easy to do and tasty! and my ultimate favourite, making my own pizza. very little clean up and so many tasty things to put on.
mm i’m hungry. when are you going to make *me* something? :)
I’ll echo what’s been said already re: Joy of Cooking and All Recipes dot com.
Then I’ll add the rebar cookbook (as in the veggie restaurant in Victoria) as a great resource for some tasty basics like a great soup stock & a dead easy foccacia bread recipe (does double duty as pizza crust).
Also nice for summer – the boy and I have taken to creating impromptu salads almost nightly. Some fresh greens and whatever else looks good in the produce section that night, a crumbly cheese on it and a bit of oil and vinegar. Accompany with a loaf of crusty bread to soak up the excess dressing – taaaaaasty.
I’m like you … I don’t mind cooking but I like things that are quick, easy, and tasty. I have some recipes in a set on my flickr account. Check them out, hopefully you’ll like at least one. Good luck!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/halo969/sets/1128982/
I like epicurious.com and have made probably 50 recipes from that site, at least. Great search feature and rating scales to tell you what is worth trying. Pasta dishes are my faves – and are reasonably ecomomical; as are soups, stews as you said.
Roasts are really, really easy – and can also be done in your slow cooker (google for a recipe).
And: best roast chicken ever (its a Martha Stewart one):
Line roasting pan with white onion ‘medalion slices’. In chicken cavity (removed of giblits, if any) stuff with 2 halved lemons, 4 whole cloves of peeled garlic, lots of sprigs of fresh thyme (I use a whole container you get at the supermarket); liberally coat chicken skin with butter or even olive oil, generously s&p. Bake at 350 oven for about an hour or until juices run clear. Baste ever 15 mins or so. Sooo tender and amazing. For gravy – remove onions and skin fat from juices; place on element over high. when boiling, add a bit of flour; then whisk in chicken stock and some yummy white wine. Simmer until thick!
Oh man I gotta make me some of that now.
a few years back, for a couple of years, i worked verihard on discovering things that were teh awesome and could be made with three minute nooldes, and altogether in under ten minutes, but would seem gourmet and maybe get me laid. was working on a three minute noodle cookbook. if you’d like a copy…..ummmm….check by the wayside, ’cause that’s where that whole project ended up.
i invented a fair number of good things. many of which didn’t need the noodles at all to make them whole. also, i discovered much more expensive, but uberbetter south korean noodles. i think i might toss a recipe out in my blog day after next or before, or maybe a day or two after.
Best crock pot recipe ever, for pot roast. Throw a pot roast in the slow cooker, add about an inch and a half of water so it won’t dry out, throw in onion soup mix in the little packet, and let ‘er rip for about 10 hours. The meat practically falls apart, and you can do two meals out of it – regular ol roast beef, (throw in veggies, too, if yer so inclined) – and if you throw some BBQ sauce in the meat, you’ve got BBQ. Really tasty. I do that one all the time when I’m in need of something really good and effortless.
Magazines! My favourites are Martha’s Everyday Food (the little one), and Cooking Light.
Go vegetarian.