What can you expect in the Food Thread on PF?

[nismaratwork]

Nothing! It is the holiday dish from hell, made with commercially-produced crap and packaged as a pretend "tradition". I had an aunt that used to bring that as her meager contribution to Thanksgiving meals. The people (overwhelmingly female) that cooked for those gatherings did NOT hold her in high regard, to say the least.

The idiocy continues, of course. Last night I saw a commercial that explained how you could make a "tasty" dish by pouring Campbell's chunky soup over a bed of rice, and it would only cost you about $4. I hope nobody here is desperate enough to have to resort to that, or we are doomed.

Is there nobody left in America that can actually make a pot of soup (cheap food that will last for days and days of leftovers)? The commercials (Progresso, Campbell's) imply that if you want soup, you have to open a can. I think we all know better, but there is a whole generation or two of gullible fools (or perhaps just lazy people) out there that seem to have no idea how to cook the most basic foods. If you took away their can-openers, they would have to live the rest of their lives eating Hamburger Helper and Wonder Bread.

Sorry for the food-rant. My wife and I cook everything from scratch, so it seems so alien to deal with people who get everything out of cans.

There is a growing local-grains movement, with area farmers willing to branch out and supply oats, wheat, rye, barley, etc to that market. If it continues, a home-sized grain mill could be in our future. My wife has thrown herself into bread-making in the past year or so, and that's the next logical step. She spent the day with one of my aunts yesterday, teaching her how to make traditional European breads, and we got a call last night. One of the French loaves was already gone, and one of the rye loaves was almost gone. My uncle might gain weight.

You know that the whole "string bean casserole" is a creation of Campbells? It was just one of their recipe suggestions when they made their cream of mushroom soup. It's really disgusting in my view, although you can make a casserole of green beans from scratch that's good. In my experience, you take frozen beans, canned soup, canned fried dessicated onions... and just know that the onions go on top.

Whenever I see the result of that combo, I hear 'Mother's Little Helper' playing in my head.
When it comes to green beans, I like them Almondine.

turbo: I have a friend who, without his wife, would be a grown man eating boiled eggs, canned foods, and ramen. I've offered to teach him to cook, but as you say, it's an art that's under active assault.

 

[HeLiXe]

Nothing! It is the holiday dish from hell, made with commercially-produced crap and packaged as a pretend "tradition". I had an aunt that used to bring that as her meager contribution to Thanksgiving meals. The people (overwhelmingly female) that cooked for those gatherings did NOT hold her in high regard, to say the least.

The idiocy continues, of course. Last night I saw a commercial that explained how you could make a "tasty" dish by pouring Campbell's chunky soup over a bed of rice, and it would only cost you about $4. I hope nobody here is desperate enough to have to resort to that, or we are doomed.

Is there nobody left in America that can actually make a pot of soup (cheap food that will last for days and days of leftovers)? The commercials (Progresso, Campbell's) imply that if you want soup, you have to open a can. I think we all know better, but there is a whole generation or two of gullible fools (or perhaps just lazy people) out there that seem to have no idea how to cook the most basic foods. If you took away their can-openers, they would have to live the rest of their lives eating Hamburger Helper and Wonder Bread.

Sorry for the food-rant. My wife and I cook everything from scratch, so it seems so alien to deal with people who get everything out of cans.

There is a growing local-grains movement, with area farmers willing to branch out and supply oats, wheat, rye, barley, etc to that market. If it continues, a home-sized grain mill could be in our future. My wife has thrown herself into bread-making in the past year or so, and that's the next logical step. She spent the day with one of my aunts yesterday, teaching her how to make traditional European breads, and we got a call last night. One of the French loaves was already gone, and one of the rye loaves was almost gone. My uncle might gain weight.

Thx for sharing the food rant Turbo-1. I've never tried it but it seems disgusting and stupid... it makes more sense now that you and Nismar mentioned it is a "commercial" tradition. I like string beans, and I even eat them raw, but the casserole thing seemed somewhat gross to me.

It's cool that you mentioned your wife and the breads. I actually want to start making breads and plan to do so once my frikkin wrist gets better.

 

[nismaratwork]

Thx for sharing the food rant Turbo-1. I've never tried it but it seems disgusting and stupid... it makes more sense now that you and Nismar mentioned it is a "commercial" tradition. I like string beans, and I even eat them raw, but the casserole thing seemed somewhat gross to me.

It's cool that you mentioned your wife and the breads. I actually want to start making breads and plan to do so once my frikkin wrist gets better.

Brown some butter in a pan, toss in sliced almonds and toast them a bit... then in go the beans, salt, pepper to taste. Serve. THAT is how you treat really good string beans.


If you have some rough beans, a stir fry is my favorite, but you can make a decent bean casserole with string beans, asparagus, and a béchamel base.

 

[turbo]

If you have some rough beans, a stir fry is my favorite, but you can make a decent bean casserole with string beans, asparagus, and a béchamel base.

We grow our own string beans, and my favorite way to prepare them is steamed, tossed with a bit of butter, salt, and pepper. Heaven!

As the beans overwhelm us in quantity, we have to freeze them or can them to keep up. Those are great in the off-season, but nothing beats fresh-picked green beans just minutes from the garden.

For those who garden, here's how to freeze your beans. Put metal trays or cookie sheets in your freezer (we have two large chest freezers, so there is no space problem) and chill them while you are picking the beans. Immediately after picking, spread the beans out on the trays so they will freeze as quickly as possible. When they are frozen, put them in large freezer-bags. Since you didn't wash the beans, there won't be any water residue, and they won't freeze together. Want to put a handful of beans in a small batch of soup? Take a colander to the freezer and grab some beans. Rinse them off, snap the stems, and toss them in the pot. Much better than commercially frozen beans.

 

[Evo]

What is so good about string bean casserole?

My mother was French and my grandmother was English, so I grew up not knowing what a "casserole" was. They both cooked from scratch, although my mother tried to add some "american" food for my brother so he'd be accepted by his friends. I got the yummy snails, liver, and odd and exotic foods.

I think I was in my 20's when I went somewhere that someone served the traditional green bean casserole from campbell's, and to be honest, it's not bad. I had never heard of it. It's not something I've ever made or would, I'm not a fan of canned green beans, but it's not what a lot of food snobs say either. (I am a food snob, btw). Growing up we only had fresh green beans cooked with salt pork, onions, and new potatoes. I thought those were the world's best until I had the green beans stir fried with sesame oil at the chinese counter at the grocery store.

 

[turbo]

As an aside, my mother (French-Canadian ancestry) insisted on lengthwise slicing (Julienne cut) when preparing raw green beens for steaming and/or canning. I remember sitting there at the table with my favorite knife (a well-worn German paring knife) slicing and slicing as we canned gallons of beans. That's not a tradition that I continue.

 

[HeLiXe]

Brown some butter in a pan, toss in sliced almonds and toast them a bit... then in go the beans, salt, pepper to taste. Serve. THAT is how you treat really good string beans.

Thx Nismar :) I'll try it.

My mother was French and my grandmother was English, so I grew up not knowing what a "casserole" was. They both cooked from scratch, although my mother tried to add some "american" food for my brother so he'd be accepted by his friends. I got the yummy snails, liver, and odd and exotic foods.

I think I was in my 20's when I went somewhere that someone served the traditional green bean casserole from campbell's, and to be honest, it's not bad. I had never heard of it. It's not something I've ever made or would, I'm not a fan of canned green beans, but it's not what a lot of food snobs say either. (I am a food snob, btw). Growing up we only had fresh green beans cooked with salt pork, onions, and new potatoes. I thought those were the world's best until I had the green beans stir fried with sesame oil at the chinese counter at the grocery store.

Thx Evo...it really looks gross to me (as I already said lol). I've never had the green beans stir fried either...actually I've never seen it on the menu anywhere, I'll have to look around, it sounds good.

 

[Evo]

actually I've never seen it on the menu anywhere, I'll have to look around, it sounds good.

I've never seen them anywhere else, they just toss fresh green beans into a wok with some garlic, maybe ginger and sesame oil and toss them for a second in the hot oil. Wonderful.

 

[turbo]

Need to throw something together last-minute for your New Year's party? Here's something that never fails.

Get out your mixer, and mix taco seasoning into cream cheese, adding enough sour cream to get a smooth dippable consistency. Spread that mix on a platter, and coat it with a nice layer of salsa. Then top that with finely chopped lettuce, tomatoes, onions, cukes - any crisp vegetables that you want. Top the vegetables with a layer of shredded Monterey Jack, cover, and slip the platter into the fridge to chill. When it's time for the party take out that platter, and set it on the table with a big bowl of Doritos or other corn chips. That stuff is always a hit! If you don't have the ingredients on-hand, you still have time to get to the corner market. I prefer hot salsa, but some "sensitive" individuals don't really dig in unless you use medium. For large groups with children, my wife uses a jar of Newman's Own medium.

 

[Evo]

I don't like any brand of salsa, it all tastes nasty when it's processed. I'll only eat freshly made salsa.

This dip is my favorite.

Tex-Mex Dip

Ingredients:

1 regular size can of Fritos brand Jalapeno bean dip
2-3 med avocados, 1/4 lemon, 1/8 tsp garlic powder, salt & pepper (or 1 can frozen Calavos guacamole)
1 8oz carton of sour cream (1 cup)
1/2 cup Hellman's Mayonaise
1 pkg taco seasoning (McCormick's or Lawry's works best)
8 oz grated colby or cheddar cheese
4-5 green onions (chopped)
1-2 tomatoes chopped and seeded
small can chopped or sliced black olives (optional)

8"x8" serving dish

1st layer: Spread one can jalepeno bean dip evenly over bottom of dish

2nd layer: In separate bowl, mash together avocadoes, lemon juice, garlic, salt & pepper to taste (or use thawed guacamole) spread evenly over bean dip layer

3rd layer: In separate bowl, mix the sour cream, 1/2 cup mayonnaise, and 1 package taco seasoning mix together. Spread evenly over guacamole layer.

4th layer: Sprinkle chopped tomato, green onions and black olives evenly over top.

5th layer: sprinkle with cheese

Here is the Holiday Food thread. https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=103694

 

[turbo]

I don't like any brand of salsa, it all tastes nasty when it's processed. I'll only eat freshly made salsa.

We make ours fresh all during the garden season with tomatoes, chilies, sweet peppers, scallions, onions (sometimes cukes) and fresh cilantro. Second-best is my home-made canned stuff. I haven't had a taste of commercially-made salsa in years. I included that recipe only as a quick-and-dirty party treat.

My wife took a big tray of that stuff to work for her team's Xmas dinner, and everybody was asking for a recipe. It's popular stuff. The important layer is the chopped vegetables - lay it on good.

 

[nismaratwork]

I have to say, I agreed with you Evo, for years... but Newman's really is delicious in my view. God... this thread is adding a day to my workout regime each week just in cooking trials and "snacking".

 

[Evo]

Is it safe to assume that everyone has their black eyed peas and greens for New Year's Day?

 

[Evo]

I have discovered Korean Kimbap. I am trying the hot dog version tonight.

http://koreanfood.about.com/od/riceandnoodlerecipes/r/kimbap.htm

 

[Ivan Seeking]

...this thread is adding a day to my workout regime each week just in cooking trials and "snacking".

I haven't been on a cooking kick lately, but I have a ton of stuff to try from this thread, including your orange beef.

 

[Evo]

OMG, hot dog sushi is da bomb! I went a bit too heavy on the wasabi, I swear flames were coming out of my nose, but oh so good!

 

[HeLiXe]

I don't like any brand of salsa, it all tastes nasty when it's processed. I'll only eat freshly made salsa.

This dip is my favorite.

Tex-Mex Dip

Ingredients:

1 regular size can of Fritos brand Jalapeno bean dip
2-3 med avocados, 1/4 lemon, 1/8 tsp garlic powder, salt & pepper (or 1 can frozen Calavos guacamole)
1 8oz carton of sour cream (1 cup)
1/2 cup Hellman's Mayonaise
1 pkg taco seasoning (McCormick's or Lawry's works best)
8 oz grated colby or cheddar cheese
4-5 green onions (chopped)
1-2 tomatoes chopped and seeded
small can chopped or sliced black olives (optional)

8"x8" serving dish

1st layer: Spread one can jalepeno bean dip evenly over bottom of dish

2nd layer: In separate bowl, mash together avocadoes, lemon juice, garlic, salt & pepper to taste (or use thawed guacamole) spread evenly over bean dip layer

3rd layer: In separate bowl, mix the sour cream, 1/2 cup mayonnaise, and 1 package taco seasoning mix together. Spread evenly over guacamole layer.

4th layer: Sprinkle chopped tomato, green onions and black olives evenly over top.

5th layer: sprinkle with cheese

Here is the Holiday Food thread. https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=103694

STOP! You had me at avocados This sounds good Evo. I like to make the basic salsa; tomatoes, red onions, cilantro, lemon juice, and I forget the culinary term for when you roast something until the outer layer is well done or burnt (is it sear) well I do that with the green peppers and rub off the skin...it comes out good.

 

[Evo]

STOP! You had me at avocados This sounds good Evo. I like to make the basic salsa; tomatoes, red onions, cilantro, lemon juice, and I forget the culinary term for when you roast something until the outer layer is well done or burnt (is it sear) well I do that with the green peppers and rub off the skin...it comes out good.

That would be charring the skin off.

Salsa is so simple to make that if you're going to the store, why would you spend $4 on old bottled stuff? Since I'll put fresh salsa on everything (if I don't just eat it straight, right out of the bowl) it nevers lasts long enough to go bad. Fresh salsa on eggs, on baked potatoes, mmmmmmm.

 

[HeLiXe]

That would be charring the skin off.

Salsa is so simple to make that if you're going to the store, why would you spend $4 on old bottled stuff? Since I'll put fresh salsa on everything (if I don't just eat it straight, right out of the bowl) it nevers lasts long enough to go bad. Fresh salsa on eggs, on baked potatoes, mmmmmmm.

Thx for the term Evo I learned how to make it in North Africa of all places, they have a shlada that is the same as salsa lol...I think they put garlic too though. It is also really good with grilled ground beef with cumin and salt.

 

[Evo]

Thx for the term Evo I learned how to make it in North Africa of all places, they have a shlada that is the same as salsa lol...I think they put garlic too though. It is also really good with grilled ground beef with cumin and salt.

mmmmm, yes it is.

 

[DevilsAvocado]

The first time I had wasabi with sushi, I thought it was avocado...and I LOVE avocado...
...
AND I was trying to be cool about it lol with tears streaming down from my face while I was coughing..."It's alright, I'm okay"

a.k.a. devils avocado

 

[DaveC426913]

ahaha

Nice.

Have you been waiting a year for that opportunity?

 

[DevilsAvocado]

Have you been waiting a year for that opportunity?

Telepathy!? !?

()

 

[Evo]

I was looking for a twsit on black eyed peas and greens for New Year's day and found this. I'm going to try it, although not having carrots or leeks, I'll have to twist it a bit. There is no need to presoak black eyed peas for those of you that aren't familiar with them. For you food heathens that buy canned beans (shudder), you can substitute canned but, in order to cook long enough to infuse them with flavor, they'll probably be a bit mushy.

Black-eyed peas, spinach and lemon

Serves two (with rice on the side)

200g dried black-eyed peas (or beans)

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic, sliced

2 bay leaves

1 chilli, sliced

1 heaped tbsp ground cumin

1 large red onion, diced

1 heaped tbsp smoked paprika

1 stick celery, sliced

Half a leek, sliced

1 large carrot, cut lengthways, sliced

150g baby spinach, washed

Juice of a lemon

Bunch flat parsley, washed, chopped

Salt and pepper

Soak the beans overnight in cold water. Drain and put in a saucepan with twice as much fresh water than beans and a few bean friends (not from the ingredients list - just whatever you have around: onion, bay, garlic, a chilli, tomato). Cook for around an hour.

When the beans are nearly soft, warm the olive oil in a thick-bottomed pot and sizzle the garlic, bay and chilli for a few seconds on a medium heat.

Add the cumin, onion, carrot, leek, celery and paprika, then cook with lid on for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally until they begin to soften and brown.

Discard any bean friends, then add the beans and remaining cooking liquor, some salt, and, if necessary, more hot water to cover the lot.

Simmer for 20-30 minutes on a medium heat with the lid off until the liquid only coats the beans. Remove from heat, stir in the parsley, lemon juice and two-thirds of the spinach so that it wilts. Check the seasoning and serve with the rest of the spinach, a blob of yoghurt, a splash of olive oil and a wedge of lemon.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2008/apr/16/recipe.foodanddrink

 

[lisab]

I'm going to try that recipe today, Evo, it looks great.

When I first read "200g black eyed peas" I didn't see the "g" and I thought, I have to count them?!

Edit...bean friends, lol...

 

[nismaratwork]

I'm going to try that recipe today, Evo, it looks great.

When I first read "200g black eyed peas" I didn't see the "g" and I thought, I have to count them?!

Edit...bean friends, lol...

at: bolded: Right? I love that line.

Evo: Write a cookbook!

 

[Borek]

Instead of soaking the beans for a night you can put them into cold water, cook till they go up, remove from the fire, wait till they go back to the bottom, then cook as if they were soaked.

 

[Evo]

I've started mine. Got the bean friends in step one.

 

[HeLiXe]

a.k.a. devils avocado

I LOVE Devil's avocado

Guess what everyone...I made philly cheesesteak today that was edible and I took it even a step further...it tasted good!

 

[Evo]

Guess what everyone...I made philly cheesesteak today that was edible and I took it even a step further...it tasted good!

YAY!, Now you can make me an omelette AND a philly cheesesteak!