I am therefore starting a suitable thread listing basic, healthy (main course) recipes that are simple to prepare and easy to buy ingredients for.
Hopefully, we'll soon have enough so as not to have to repeat any meals too often!
So, I bet there are many people out there who like to cook but more often than not don't have the time or energy for something ambitious/complicated....the problem becomes compounded when creativity wanes......easy recipes get over-used and healthy options can be compromised......anyone connect with this?
Tacos and minced beef
Serves 4 – 5 people:
Cooking/preparation time 30 – 45 minutes.
Ingredients Box of 12 Taco Shells (e.g. Tex Mex - available in Coop, Migros or Volg) Packet of seasoning for guacamole 1 or 2 avocados (check for firmness) 1 red + 1 yellow bell pepper 3 -4 medium red onions 1 tin sweetcorn 1 x 200g carton/cup saurer halbrahm (sour cream) 1 aubergine/egg plant 100 – 150g cheddar (available in Coop or Migros), grated 1 iceberg lettuce 2 medium courgettes (Zucchinis) 6 or 8 ripe tomatoes, diced or sliced about 500g minced beef 220ml jar of taco sauce (hot or mild, depending on preference) (optional seasoning: salt, pepper, Lea and Perrins sauce & hot piri piri sauce) Additional option for vegetarians: 100g lentils, dried (buy in 500g packs from most stores) Method
This meal involves everyone dipping in to whatever they want, so you will need about 6 or 8 cereal bowls for serving up.
Lightly fry the vegetables separately, using minimal oil.
Pizza
Serves 1 person
Preparation time 0 minutes
Cooking time 10 minutes
Reading the instructions 30 seconds
1) Drive to the end of the road
2) Order
3) Wait <10mins for it to cook
4) Drive home
5) Eat pizza
(And in accordance with smartphone adverts - some steps have been shortened)
PB&J
self-explanatory
Pancakes with a bunch of fillings
Pancakes
Milk - 1dl per egg (you can include water in this, and it can be carbonated if you so desire)
flour (wholemeal or white) - vary amount depending on how thick/firm you want the pancakes to be
eggs - as mentioned above
pinch of baking soda - if you use too much you'll end up with sour/bitter pancakes!
Butter for frying
Pancake fillings
Berries with or without whipped cream, with or without sugar
Fruits, fresh or in compote form
Maple syrup, honey, golden syrup, jam, nutella, cream cheese...
Cheese
Deli meats
Vegetables
Lemon juice drizzles
Fruit salad
Throw together in a bowl and mix well:
Juice of 1 lemon (important to slow down browning of cut fruits)
Orange slices (blood orange ones look nice)
Mango slices
Pineapple slices
Apple chunks
Grapes
Pear chunks
Berries of all shapes and sizes (mix in carefully or you'll end up with mush)
Apricot/plum/prune chunks
Melon chunks
(...and basically any other fruit you can find )
Why? I know loads of recipes including vegetarian ones but haven't tried a vegetarian variant of the meat ones so I'd be giving an untested recipe which helps no one.
Because Hitler was a vegetarian and/or meat-eaters should be treated like smokers.
Tell you what, Tom, you can be the first exception to the rules....let's see your meaty recipe.....
Steak
Serves 1
Preparation time 30 seconds
Cooking time 5 minutes
1) Griddle pan on the cooker and turn up to max
2) Lightly oil the steak and season
3) Place steak on griddle for 2 minutes each side
4) Serve with mustard
Oi, that was mine!
I prefer to use butter.
I add a knob of butter under each steak when I turn them on the griddle.
Adding the butter at the beginning burns it too much.
You also need to rest the steaks for at least five minutes so my recipe would take twice as long as Dodgyken's.
Seafood Pasta
Serves Four.
Twenty minutes
Ingredients
1 Kg bag of quality mixed frozen seafood (Bettio in Seedam center etc). 16 CHF. Add extra shellfish etc if you want more. 2 shallots - finely chopped. Chili flakes Handful of cherry tomatoes (or any other to be honest cut to half cherry tomato size). Two sliced cloves of garlic Small handful torn or sliced up basil leaves A few chopped tarragon leaves Glass of white wine (pour one for yourself too). Some fresh lemon juice Salt/Pepper Creme fraiche (small pot) Spaghetti (not sure how much you eat - only you know that.)
Method
Put on pan of water for spaghetti. Fry shallots and garlic gently in a bit of olive oil (in another saucepan, obviously. A lid is good too. Add tomatoes and wine and turn up heat. Cook for five minutes. Meanwhile add spaghetti and salt to the boiling water and cook it. Add frozen seafood to tomato mix and cook for a few minutes. Add creme fraiche when sea food is cooked (six minutes from frozen or something like that). Add some lemon juice, sliced basil leaves, tarragon and taste. Add salt and pepper as required. Mix with drained, cooked pasta and serve immediately with a salad with lemon juice/olive oil dressing on the side.
Vegetarian option: Cook and eat something else instead.
Here is a typical Monday to Friday menu
Monday is fish day 1:
Cod filet with hazelnuts
400 g cod filet
50 g hazelnuts
50 g raisins
Rosmarin
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
oil/butter
Mix together the nuts, the raisins and the rosmarin in a blender.
Dip the fish in the beaten egg yolk, cover with the nut-raisin mix.
Heat oil/butter (I usually use rapeseed/canola oil), fry the fish 3 minutes on each side.
Serve with vegetables of your choosing
Tuedays is vegetarian day
Dhal (and yes, I am not Indian, this is probably not an authentic recipe)
200 red lentils
1 l water
4 cm (or more) ginger, peeled
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon salt
2-3 tablespoons oil/ghee (I use rapeseed/canola oil)
2 cloves of garlic, pressed
1 chopped onion
a pinch of asafoetida (if you have it, not important at all)
1 teaspoon of cumin powder
1 teaspoon of coriander powder
1/4 teaspoon of chili powder (or more, or less, depending on your taste and whether your kids like it spicy)
Chopped fresh coriander to garnish, if you have it (we often don't)
Bring the water with the lentils to a boil, add ginger and turmeric and let simmer until tender. My recipe says 60 minutes, but usually I let is simmer for 20-30 minutes.
In the meantime:
Heat the oil, fry the garlic and onion on medium heat for about 3 minutes, until tender. Add asafoetida, cumin, coriander and chili, fry on low heat while stirring.
Remove the ginger (unless you plan on leftovers, in which case just make sure you don't serve it), add the salt, stir inn the spiced onion mix, sprinkle with chipped coriander leaves and serve together with a salad or raw veggies.
Wednesday is more fish (did I mention my husband is Norwegian?)
Salmon with tahini sauce
80 ml of yoghurt (partial to Greek yoghurt on that recipe)
30 ml tahini
30 ml mayonnaise (don't tell the Troll)
15 ml lemon juice
1 clove of garlic, pressed
a pinch of cayenne
Mix everything together
Serve together with salmon filets, grilled/broiled or steamed and the vegetables of your choice. We tend to only eat steamed veggies as side dishes, it quicker.
Thursday is once again vegetarian day
Pasta with tomato sauce and beans
Whole grain pasta
30-45 ml olive oil
chopped onion
oregano
2-3 cloves of garlic, pressed
a can of chopped tomatoes
a can of white beans, drained and rinsed
feta/goat cheese to taste, shredded/minced
fresh basil (if you have), or dried
salt, pepper
VERY facultative: pumpkin seeds and sprouted seeds to garnish
Heat the oil, fry gently oregano, onion and garlic
Add the tomatoes, let it simmer for a few minutes
Add the basil, if dried
Add the cheese, mix well
Add the beans, mix
Add the basil if fresh, salt and pepper to taste, let simmer gently while the pasta is cooked
Mix with the pasta, sprinkle with pumpkin seeds and/or sprouted seeds (only if you are bothered to) and served with a salad.
Fridays are about melted cheese in front of the television: pizza (delivered), raclette or fondue in winter.
Hoping that helps...
Who counts the lentils out?
We had a Norwegian supper last night with smoked fish, Norwegian potato salad, beetroot salad etc .
Keeps small children busy for a few minutes.
Sorry, 200 g of lentils, not 200 lentils.
Smoked fish sounds good. I especially like varmrøkt salmon (smoked warm salmon) and smoked makrell (a bit tough to find here). But I'm way too lazy to make potatoe salad and beetroot salad from scratch on a weekday.
Two top tips:
1) melt a good lump of butter in a pan, and then pour into the pancake batter and whisk well, just before cooking;
2) with beefsteak, ditch the mustard, and have horseradish instead (mustard is better with pork and bangers).
But 1 is easy to find in Switzerland - and one isn't (And not that cream stuff that is good with smoked salmon)
Ideally I remove the steak from the heat, rest it somewhere warm and allow a small knob of butter to melt over it.
Carpaccio and Salsa Verde is too complicated for this forum (except for Tom).
This is more a less a recipe I got from here.
But I just saute the onions, garlic and a bit of grated/finely cut ginger in butter, add turmeric, cumin, garam marsala and chili flakes, together with a bit of lemon juice.
Then, I add a can of tomatoes for every cup of lentils and saute till all the liquid has evaporated.
The red lentils I cook with sliced ginger, cinnamon and bayleaf, which I remove before pouring them into the pan with the tomato-marsala.
Saute again for some minutes.
I've found that blending it greatly helps this dish.
Of course, it takes a lot longer than 20min like this - but I just make more of it and freeze the rest.
One cup of lentils results in about two full portions (if you eat nothing else).
The Thomy tube stuff is a fair substitute.