What's cooking? part 4

i used to eat quinoa for breakfast. i cooked it normally, then added butter and milk and some jam or fruit. better texture than oatmeal but less filling. i'm making barbacoa.

iirc, quinoa got its big boost in the US from Diet For a Small Planet, Frances Lappe's book that emphasized the idea of maximizing plant-based protein by balancing the amino acids present in a meal. Turns out that one of the amino acids (lysine?) is hardest to get from plant sources, but quinoa is stellar at providing it. Before that, quinoa was almost unheard of in the USA. Afterward there was a growing demand and health food stores started to stock it regularly. Now it's popular.

Cmon, I didn't say 'what is quinoa' I said 'Why prefer quinoa to oatmeal as a breakfast fuel'
Geez

p much any whole grain is going to give you some complex carbs, so purely considered as fuel, one's about as good as another. there's some minor distinctions among them in terms of protein and fiber, but nothing major. after that it's just personal taste.

btw, I didn't think you'd asked 'what is quinoa'? that whole 'lysine powerhouse' aspect is about the only thing that sets quinoa apart, imo, and that only applies if you're doing the complementary amino acid thingie. sorry if I offended, tho.

not offended! i think i'm allergic to people comparing the minutiae of scientific attributes of food and that is totes my problem.

oooh LL kumquats are interesting! you eat them whole; the fruit is sour and the peel has a zesty, perfumey sweetness to it. They were expensive enough to be an occasional rare treat before I had this bush; now I can't figure out how to use them. If the marmalade turns out, I will mail you some. I have never made jam before but I guess kumquat seeds provide their own pectin so you don't need to add it in! My mom, who makes the world's best preserves, knew that before I told her because she knows everything.

We had a really good conversation about how to make preserves; she made it seem easy as hell.

ME: I am intimidated by everything I read about canning because they all make it seem like –
MOM: – it will kill you?
ME: Yes!

She got VERY intrigued by kumquat abundance and kind of went down a pinterest rabbit hole while I was talking to her, just exhaling "oh how cute" between long pauses. At the end she said, "If it works, out, it WOULD make the best gifts. You know EVERYONE would appreciate and love it," and I was like, "You know I'll mail you some, Mom!" So I learned all my non-asking from her.

the woman who writes that blog is unusually/unconventionally thin and gets a lot of nasty comments and/or concern-trolling over it xps

well no one deserves that
her oatmeal cupcakes are tasty and effective at delivering energy, that much i can say for sure

If the marmalade turns out, I will mail you some. I have never made jam before but I guess kumquat seeds provide their own pectin so you don't need to add it in!

I still owe you a package!! Maybe someday I will get around to doing that. Sorry!! The only jam-like thing I've ever made is cranberry sauce -- are kumquats like that? I bet the jam is going to be delicious!!

Oh no worries whatsoever. In fact I always have felt embarrassed about that facebook thread because of my friend so blithely being like 'hey mail me some too.' Such bad manners imo but I did not want to be rude and call her out, either; instead I have spent a year just feeling privately very embarrassed and transitively gauche the rare times I think of it.

haha, me too!! every time i eat rose petal jam i simultaneously am like "uuuuuuugh this is so good/why did i not send this to crabbits yet what's her address oh yeah she probably moved oh well maybe later mmmmmmmm"
so selfish! no harm done, amiga. we'll exchange jams when the jams need to be exchanged and we'll know when that moment comes. i forgot about your friend, who i never intended to send anything to tbh.

barbacoa came out awesome in the crockpot. i got a food saver so i can freeze half of it. i used this recipe incl the oxtails http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012/04/tender-beef-barbacoa-chipotle-tacos-recipe.html

I think I wayyy overcooked this marmalade. I accidentally "caramelized" it a little – accidentally burning things a little easier, I think, with no sense of smell. Also far too thick. It is practically gummi bear texture. !!!

Somehow, though, fucking up a type of food the first time I prepare it makes me REALLY obsessed with getting it right. And then once I do get it right, I get obsessed with making it often.

harbl, that's my fave barbacoa recipe too!!! Unbelievably good even tho I don't do my peppers the complicated way he does, and I use a bottle of beer for the braising liquid. Glug of apple cider vinegar in the end stage suits my tastes too.

It freezes perfectly btw. I'll make a 5-lb brisket and eat it for ages.

I'm so tired and I have two days off and a bag of chicken breasts and very little money. What's good to do with chicken, I need something new...I like garlic, salt, tomatoes, saucy things, soupy curries, citrus... Not to make ilx do my work of thinking about how to put food in my mouth but I'm just tired of everything.

Actually let me narrow that down even. I think I want to make some kind of pulled chicken that will freeze for TACOS. What is best way?

Do you have a crockpot?

Indeed!

I'm starting to not have a great relationship with food and cooking. I don't want to be nauseated and bloated, working on my feet and needing to be physically able doesn't give me time to go to bed when I have stomach pains or reflux or feel fatigued, and I'm trying to be really economical without eating legumes or dairy or wheat.

Defaulting to apple wedges dipped in peanut butter for about 4 meals a week tbh.

Nah girl you're gonna need to feed your body (and soul!) beyond that.

Tep had a great vinegar chicken recipe that I did in a crock pot and would be great for tacos and other applications (add rice, add beans, add pasta, add potatoes and change up the spicing with whatever you have onhand). I'll try to dig it up! Really tender and tasty chicken that you could apply in different ways over the week.

This post has a good default slow cooker chicken breast technique: http://www.theclothesmakethegirl.com/2012/02/03/buffalo-chicken-chopped-salad-other-super-bowl-recipes/
Put taco seasonings in (cumin, Mexican oregano, cayenne, garlic, etc).

Just throw the chicken in there with something flavorful (cheap BBQ sauce + sriracha makes a pretty good combo ime) and wait 6-7 hrs, then you'll have chicken to shred and eat.

You need to eat more than apples! You know that.

I know, and I'm probably being a big PMSy baby about it right now, but my diet has gotten pretty samey due to a bunch of things, incl the problems with getting groceries in winter when I can't afford the home delivery and I can't bike anywhere.

One of the few ways boneless skinless chicken breasts are edible to me anymore is to load the crockpot full of them (thighs too), and add cream of mushroom soup, half an onion, and a twig or two of fresh rosemary. The chicken shrinks down to tiny nubs but they shred great and the mushroom-rosemary gravy is good with whatever starch I feel like that day.

MASHED POTATOES.

Okay leaving the house, will return and put Mexican chicken recipe into crockpot.

http://www.goodlifeeats.com/2010/09/crock-pot-mexican-chicken.html

I mean "Mexican."

My local vegetable store had avocados on sale!!! Two for $3, now I have 4.

It's been...almost 4 hours? The chicken is cooked through and kind of tough--I know with red meat it gets tender and falls apart only at the very end, but does chicken do the same, or is it now overdone?

Sadly, it's probably overdone.

With breasts, prob. overdone. Thighs or a whole chick with all the bones will get fall-aparty in a crock pot.

Just chop 'em up real fine and eat with lots of avocado! Still yum.

^^ avocado solves everything.

LL, those oatmeal muffins from that embarrassing website are a hit. Housemates have already swiped a few. I made half the amount - next time I'll do the whole amount and freeze.

Well luckily since I shredded them up and chicken shreds finely, it didn't matter that the individual fibers weren't tender! I simmered down the cooking liquid and put the chx back in. Tacos were delicious.

i made this delicious thai basil stir fry last week - her photos make it look bland and sauceless, but i dusted my tofu in cornflour before frying in a little oil so it browned up way more, and the dish looked a lot saucier.

also this veggie-laden red lentil stew with caramelized onions was decent.

and this nicoise salad sandwich was a hit (i left out the artichokes tho).

this week i've made a weird chickpea curry with orange juice and tons of veggies, and this salad of butternut, lentils, kale, roasted tomatoes, spicy pumpkin seeds and tahini dressing. i hate tahini so it was not a favourite of mine.

i've also been eating way too many afghan cookies (...mostly the uncooked dough...):

2 sticks of butter creamed with
3 oz sugar in the food processor then add
a good handful of cornflakes (roasted peanuts work great too) and pulse before adding
6 oz flour and
1 oz good cocoa
blend and then eat with a spoon or
freeze and eat like fudge squares or
bake as cookies at 350f for about 15mins

i made fried rice!

it was awesome, i didn't make enough, now i want more

Tomorrow I'd like to make a noodle salad bowl, resembling something I ate at a thai restaurant. So far I have lemongrass, radishes, chicken, and rice vermicelli. Should I use beef or chicken stock? Or maybe make a vegetable ginger stock? Any ideas on other ingredients?

chicken imo since you are using chicken

Lime and cilantro and peanuts

And fish sauce!

not that i think most of you need this, but if you need a *meal to impress* that isn't a ton of work, this is good:

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014/02/pappardelle-with-duck-ragu-from-robertas.html

i bought the fresh pasta but if you have the simmer time the sauce is a breeze. when i was finishing it i was like "eh this doesn't look that cool" and then i whisked in the chocolate and it was one of the most beautiful transformations i've seen cooking in a while.

i made this for dinner & i accidentally overcooked the potatoes so it was like guacamole mashed potatoes

so good

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/cilantro-avocado-potato-salad-recipe.html#!

made this simple veggie-quinoa salad with a super mustardy dressing

and the tofu for this sandwich came out spectacularly well - probably the best tofu i've ever eaten

this butternut salad with shallot dressing was decent

I made a lentil ragu a few days ago that was really good. That duck ragu sounds really good. I'm thinking of making chili with cubed turkey breast?

Is that a bad idea, consistency wise? I'm afraid either the turkey and sauce ratio will be too wide or that the turkey will overcook and become stringy?

i think ground turkey might be a better idea, if that's an option? ground meat is what i usually see in chili (but maybe there's some cool new way to make it that everyone is doing that i don't know about because i live in a bubble)

well you can make chili with cubed stew beef but with turkey i think i would def go with ground