What do you cook when you're home alone?

I'm head chef, so the meals at our joint are usually only magnificent. :rolleyes:

When SWMBO works away, then cooking alone (for me and the girls) is either a homemade Lasagne (which is a great carry over to the next night) or grilled fish - both with a fridge cleaning salad.

When SWMBO and kids are away then it's either a s-pack of coopers or a s-pack of coopers followed by a countery up at the rubbedy. :D

Arh! Breakfast..... Eggs bene done with smoked salmon on toasted turkish with a glass or sparkling shiraz. (best bit is the fact that once you open the bottle, you have to drink the lot. ;) )

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rod1949

Bakebeans on toast... yum.

---

yeh Rod!...great minds eat alike.................. the worlds best solo dinner...:)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Cliff Rogers

Arh! Breakfast..... Eggs bene done with smoked salmon on toasted turkish with a glass or sparkling shiraz. (best bit is the fact that once you open the bottle, you have to drink the lot. ;) )

---

Cliff - you're a ripper! I was wondering what to have for tea. You've just solved that dilemma. Have a greenie.

Col

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Driver

Cliff - you're a ripper! I was wondering what to have for tea. You've just solved that dilemma. Have a greenie.

Col

---

Not much nutrition in a greenie:D:D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Gra

Not much nutrition in a greenie:D:D

---

I heard they just give you the munchies

Thanks Col.

Gra, it depends what you've been sniffing; ever heard the term "breath deep, they'res vitamins in the air" :D

Nacho's A La Oz, my own creation for the kids, Corn Chips topped with baked beans and cheese, 60 seconds in the microwave, magnifico.....
Fart like a draught horse later though:eek:

The ol'baked beans seems to be a fav!

I like them with some finely chopped lamb roast meat, slice of cheese... few dollops of cream(softens the skin on the beans also lessens the flatulence), then placed on some toasted whole grain muffins!
Keep ya going till lunch time... low GI.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Harry72

slice of cheese... few dollops of cream(softens the skin on the beans also lessens the flatulence

---

I can tell you that don't work if you're allergic to dairy stuff...best flatulence I've ever had!:(

Cheers,

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ele__13

Love Making Lasagne from scratch sept i buy fresh lasagne sheets ... with either chicken seafood or beef ... if i make chicken or seafood i dodnt use tomato sauce i use a cream sauce if its beef i do a tomato and then layer the beef and cream sauce ....
or if i dodnt make that i love making warm chicken ceaser salad ... yummo but for tonite i think it might just be egg on toast that apeals and its not 2 heavy

---

Ele you can get pasta rolling machines for around $20 these days
Cup of flour 1 egg teaspoon good olive oil and a little water if necessary, (though usually not) and if doing a tomatofilling put a good handful of freshly finely chopped basil ,. once you see how easy it is to make your own pasta you will probably never buy pre-made again.

Rgds

My wife, MIL and FIL used to order chicken and corn soup in the restaurant. I don’t know why but white people love that stuff.:D I said to them why pay $4.5 a bowl when I can cook it in less then 5 minutes and it will only cost a couple of dollars.

They have never ordered soup since.

Wongo (the true iron chef:cool: )

The biggest challenge when cooking for yourself is not to overdo it. I'm regularly the cook around the place, but if it's only me, I enjoy taking extra care over something small but yummy.

A medallion of thick King Island Porterhouse, cooked on the chargrill to just rare of medium rare, with simple salad and maybe a small spud.

An Omlette with whatever filling takes my fancy from the fridge - tomato and cheese is a good standby if the cupboard is bare.

If there is no time, and supplies are low, spag bol or french toast.

Over the last year or so, I've got out of the habit of eating big meals. Sitting at a desk from dawn till dusk, no exercise, good lunch and a full-on dinner at night for 20 years is not a good recipe for health! Wakeup was on my 49th birthday. Within about a month I had cutback on the overeating and started a decent home-based exercise program. Suffice it to say that it's worked, and I'm back to the weight I should be, keeping at it, and healthier than I have been for about 25 years.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ashore

Ele you can get pasta rolling machines for around $20 these days
Cup of flour 1 egg teaspoon good olive oil and a little water if necessary, (though usually not) and if doing a tomatofilling put a good handful of freshly finely chopped basil ,. once you see how easy it is to make your own pasta you will probably never buy pre-made again.

Rgds

---

Totaly agree, have a genuine Italian job myself with a variety of cutters. One addition to Ashore's comments.

"once you taste home made pasta you will probably never buy pre-made again"

Tip: Use bakers plain flour rather than ordinary plain flour.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Termite

Tip: Use bakers plain flour rather than ordinary plain flour.

---

What's the difference :confused:

Yes, you barstewards, you've corrupted me. Dammit, not only will I be doing home made bread but I'll be doing homemade pasta as well (the bread machine is dead and I am suffering the purity of doing it all by hand. At this rate, I'll be growing me own wheat by the end of the year - I'm not allowed to grow chooks for the table because 'she who I hope will become her indoors' can't bear the thought of eating pets. Why not? If I had a decent recipe the cat'd be history:mad: )

Richard

I'm not mad - that's just a rumour started by people who don't understand the interesting contradictions of my character :D

http://www.ooze.com/ooze13/cats.html

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Daddles

What's the difference :confused: [/I]

---

Bakers unbleached flour is a tougher flour more suited to breads, and great for pasta. The ideal flour for pasta is Durrum Wheat flour which is better again but a bit hard to come by.

Ordinary plain flour (or general purpose flour as bakers call it) is more suited to cakes and quite often is not a real good quality flour.

Its the old story"Flours aint Flours Sol".

Wait until I swing you over to Sourdough Richard, then you will be eating Real bread. I nearly choke on supermarket cotton wool.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Andy Mac

I can tell you that don't work if you're allergic to dairy stuff...best flatulence I've ever had!:(

Cheers,

---

Throw in a litre (or two!) of Guiness: just don't light any matches :eek:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Daddles

Why not? If I had a decent recipe the cat'd be history

---

Remove head tail paws , gut , stuff with wild rice, fennel, sliced carrot , quartered spring onions and a touch of margoram but only a touch or you will ruin the flavor
Slice firmly into the flesh at 2" intervals along its length and pour in 1 part olive oil and 2 parts lemon juice into these cuts
Wrap in clay and cook under the coals in a fire pit for 45 minutes per kilogram weight

When you remove clay the fur should come away with the clay
For crisp skin cut into 6 - 8 pieces and deep fry for 2 minutes

serve with a sharp hunter verdello and crisp greens

( havent tried this with cat but it works a treat with koalas) :D


Rgds

Ashore;

That sounds like an old Aboringine recipe that has been modified. :rolleyes: :eek: :) :D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jow104

Ashore;

That sounds like an old Aboringine recipe that has been modified. :rolleyes: :eek: :) :D

---

I don't think so, unless they cook cats differently to other critters. I was present for a Kangaroo hunt in the far north east of SA a few years ago, and witnessed traditional cooking methods:

1. Shoot the roo
2. Dig trench about 300x300mm in the dirt, a bit longer than the roo.
3. Add dry firewood plenty of it over the length of the trench. Light it up.
4. Once things are well alight, chuck the roo on.
5. After the fur has singed off, turn him over.
6. Remove roo. Kick the now steadily buring wood into the bottom of the trench, put roo back on.
7. Cook until done, tuning once. For a full sized red like we had, 20 minutes. (It was very rare!)

No preparation other than the trench. The animal was cooked whole and gutted afterwards. Internal organs are eaten, including the intestines (not the contents though)

8. Barter with the white fellas for a portion. We managed to negotiate up from the tail (inedible) to a leg, took it back to camp and cooked it to what we would consider a rare roast. Beautiful!

woodbe.

Whats the difference between a possum and an American 'coon' which we hear about????

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Iain

Whats the difference between a possum and an American 'coon' which we hear about????

---

Possum a term of greating used by dame Edna ? Hello Possums ? :rolleyes:

But what ever you do
Do not ask this question on a basketball court in harlem, cause they hate possums. :D :D



Rgds

Why, bean soup, of course

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by imdusty

Why, bean soup, of course

---

Theres beans & then theres beans.... do you have a recipe?
What sort of beans?

Was on me own last night (golf trip away for SWMBO). I had eye fillet seared and sealed then rested in the oven for 5 minutes plus roast potatos and carrots. Dijon mustard on the side.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by silentC

Was on me own last night (golf trip away for SWMBO). I had eye fillet seared and sealed then rested in the oven for 5 minutes plus roast potatos and carrots. Dijon mustard on the side.

---

Just showed your post to SWMBO to prove that I'm not the only idiot who slathers his steak with Dijon mustard.

Where did you pick up the habit, I first tried it in the Phillipines when I was keeping company with a very friendly lass from the French embasy. She also introduced me to croissants with honey, served in bed, and we will halt the story there thank you. :D Ah, memories ;)

I can't remember when I first tried it. I used to eat in French restaurants fairly often about 15-20 years ago, so might have picked it up in one of them.

Can't beat a rare fillet steak with Dijon mustard ;)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by silentC

Can't beat a rare fillet steak with Dijon mustard ;)

---

Can't beat a rare French honey either. ;)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Iain

Whats the difference between a possum and an American 'coon' which we hear about????

---

Well, a Possum is a Marsupial, whilst a Raccoon is a Mammal... I think they both have a similar relationship to humans though, and are quite capable of making complete pests of themselves in suburban areas regardless of how cute their young are :)

Err, strictly speaking, a possum is also a mammal.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by silentC

Err, strictly speaking, a possum is also a mammal.

---

....and tasty too. Coons are from the states and are only available in cans, definitely inferior.

However their milk makes good cheese. :rolleyes:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by silentC

Err, strictly speaking, a possum is also a mammal.

---

Sure, but we were looking for differences, I thought. All marsupials are mammals, but the reverse is not the case.

Coons have funny faces too.

Michael

OK, well a Raccoon is a Carnivora and a possum is a Marsupialia. Or you could say that a possum is a marsupial and a raccoon is not ;)

possum and raccoon, the yanks also have something called an opossum. As you can see the coon is a bank robber.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Iain

Warm chicken salad made with pieces of breast meat marinated in sambal oelek, dark soy, sesame oil, lemon juice and dry sherry then stir fried, served with a salad of lettuce, cucumber, tomato and fried potato cubes and topped woth sesame seeds or fried shallots, or if we are in a hurry a simple salad made from layers of cos lettuce, celery, cucumber, red pepper, kidney beans, grated cheese topped with salsa then avocado slices, sour cream and topped with crushed corn chips.

---

you're such a showoff Iain!

My main contribitions are VERY good curries, and cauliflower cheese.
I also do a fair bit of French dishes. Not so much in to stir frys (eg Thai, Chinese - rather pay for a takeaway) these days, but I do like tabasco and chilli in a chopped tomato base with anything I can find to put in it.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by havenoideaatall

you're such a showoff Iain!

---

Not really, I enjoy cooking and those two are sooooooooooo easy and quick, I also like a good curry and make them from the ground up, eg: no Clive of India curry powder around here, just dry fry the spice and grind as required, not really that hard and the difference is absolutely outstanding.
Unfortunately the only takeaway here is the fish and chip shop and the pub counter meals are bloody awful, even Macca's is luxury in comparison:eek:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Iain

no Clive of India curry powder around here, just dry fry the spice and grind as required, not really that hard and the difference is absolutely outstanding.
:eek:

---

Couldn't agree more. Listen, the best way of making a curry is this (forget all the spices and quantities you see in books). It's considered to be the 'secret' behind the curries you get in English restaurants.

Use a lot of ginger, garlic and 1 big chopped onion and fry the lot in oil slowly for 15 mins. The cooked starches give a sweet taste that will make your curries taste fantastic.

Add a TEAspoon of coriander, cumin and the other spices you fancy etc and fry for 5. Chilli to taste.

Liquidise the lot with a can of tomatoes.

Cook for 30mins. This is the basis of the sauce. You can add yoghurt for a karma, more onions for a Dopiaza, more chilli if its for the boys etc.

I can guarantee you will never rely on huge amounts of spices again, its the onions that do the trick.

Cheers

I'm off to dig out more old threads.

Have

With a slight twist with Charmaine Solomons books:
Fry onion rings quickly until golden, remove, then add the chopped onion, garlic ginger and cook slowly for about 15 minutes, slow cooking makes a better curry.
Yep, if she says it, it must be true, that is for the 100 almond chicken, one of our favourites, except we use fresh tomatoes and sweat them with fresh mint or coriander (funny how they both taste the same when cooked this way but completely different raw) over the base of slow cooked onions until they turn to a liquidy pulp, then add chicken etc etc etc.
A bit fiddly but well worth the wait, and enough left over to freeze for a few quick meals over the next week or two.
If you want the recipe I will email it to you, bloody curry powder indeed, I do have a jar of garam masala on hand though (home made).
Coupled with a couple of my home made dark hopped ales, what a wonderful night.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Iain

With a slight twist with Charmaine Solomons books:
Fry onion rings quickly until golden, remove, then add the chopped onion, garlic ginger and cook slowly for about 15 minutes, slow cooking makes a better curry.
Yep, if she says it, it must be true, that is for the 100 almond chicken, one of our favourites, except we use fresh tomatoes and sweat them with fresh mint or coriander (funny how they both taste the same when cooked this way but completely different raw) over the base of slow cooked onions until they turn to a liquidy pulp, then add chicken etc etc etc.
A bit fiddly but well worth the wait, and enough left over to freeze for a few quick meals over the next week or two.
If you want the recipe I will email it to you, bloody curry powder indeed, I do have a jar of garam masala on hand though (home made).
Coupled with a couple of my home made dark hopped ales, what a wonderful night.

---

Thanks Iain - email address to follow.

Here's another 'dish' - and here's the thing - it's great for dinner nights as it's dead simple, scrubs up in the presentation department, and can be mass made in minutes to the admiration of guests. (Not that we err have 'dinner nights' but you get the idea).

Chicken fillets. Halved.

White wine. A jar of green pesto. A few tubs of Philadelphia cheese (or equivalent - number of hungry mouths dependant).

Cook the fillets. Mix the pesto with the cheese and white wine (which also stops it from drying out).

Smear the chicken liberally with the mix. Bake in an oven for 15 mins.

Serve with boiled potatoes and beans and it looks good but simple.