I'm just beginning to realize that I really love to cook. Or...maybe I just really love to eat. Prior to January I was very much a convenience-store, frozen-food-nuker type. But not so anymore! I've decided to shape up my eating habits, so I'm looking for new things to try out! I made this topic hoping some people would share some of their favourite foods and recipes.
Personally, I'm a big fan of Italian as well as Mexican food, but lately I've been trying to cook more Japanese. The ingredients are kind of a lot cheaper. >.>; Not to mention very healthy, so excusing those moments when I can't read the labels on boxes at the supermarket, I'm trying my best. Right now I use the recipes from a site called (specializes in Japanese cooking for people outside of Japan, but since it's all English...!) a lot of the time. The webmaster's blog is interesting and well-written too. Today, I'm going to try ^_^ (a cooking wiki created by Something Awful) also has some fantastic recipes up with tons of pictures. Lots of good Italian on there!
So, what about you guys? Do you like to cook, and what do you like to eat? Please share any tips!
Cooking
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by Kevin » Mon Feb 11, 2008 7:01 am
Name: 6 Pepper Chili
My Name: Kevin Conner
Quick Description: Carne con Carne (it's for meat eaters!)
Full Description: When cooked to this recipe, 6 Pepper Chili is very hot. It is for people who like Beans, Meat, Heat and Stomache Melting Goodness. I've got an Iron Stomach and love it, but feel free to adjust the recipe as you see fit. Also, in the directions I will explain what makes heat and how you can make it lighter.
When made to this recipe it easily services 4-6 people.
Ingredients:
1 Ceranno (green, but not jalapeno)
1 Jalapeno (green, and slightly larger than cerannos)
1 Habanero (orange funky looking pepper)
1 Banana Pepper (white in color, sometimes called White Banana Pepper. Basically just looks like a Chili Pepper only white)
Red Chili Pepper :
* 1 full fresh red chili pepper
* Optional - dried chili pepper to taste (such as what you find at Pizza Hut)
* Chili Powder (it all comes from the SAME type of Pepper so I only count it once).
Black/White Ground Pepper to Taste (same type of pepper)
1 to 1 and 1/2 Pounds of Ground Beef
1/2 pound to 1 pound of Chorizo sausage
1 - 14 or 15 oz can of Kidney Beans
1 - 14 or 15 oz can of Pinto Beans
2 - 14 or 15 oz cans of Stewed Tomatoes
1 to 2 cups of mushrooms
1 cup of diced/sliced carrots
1 cup of chopped celery
1/2 to 1 cup of Onions
Rules on Substitutions and Omissions and Learners Notes:
Heat:
The heat comes primarily from the various peppers and how you prepare them. To get the highest heat possible, slice and dice the peppers so they are small chunks. Throw away the stem, but put everything else, INCLUDING the seeds into the meat at the same time as you fry the meat.
When you hear the seeds POP that means you're gonna get heat. By that time your eyes should water and you should be able to taste the peppers.
To reduce heat by one step: discard the seeds.
To reduce heat by one step: do not fry the peppers or their seeds with the meat.
To reduce heat by one step: reduce your recipe by one pepper.
To reduce heat by one step: don't use any chorizo sausage.
Remember, Fresh Chili Peppers can be pretty mild if you don't fry them up like this, so if you want to have taste of the pepper in the chili without the heat, get some mild Chili peppers and or Bell Peppers.
If you substitute Bell Peppers remember these rules: Green Bells are unripened orange/yellow/red peppers, as a result they are bitter and some people have problems digesting. All Bell Peppers have a unique taste. Red ones tend to be the sweetest.
Remember, do NOT rub your eyes after you dice peppers. Even Bell Peppers can irritate your eyes. Pepper spray's prime ingredient is the CHILI PEPPER!!!! That's how it got its name!
Also, try not to blow or rub your nose or lips after dicing peppers, you will smell it for days if you do! Wash your hands with lava (coarse soap) or dish washing soap if you really want to get the pepper out of your skin.
Onions:
Onions come in a myriad of varieties. Many people like to sautee the onions before putting them into the Chili. I've tried it and it's tasty.
How to tell which onions to use? Yellow onions are usually kind of sweet. White onions tend to be bitter. Purple Onions can go either way.
If you really want a tasty onion, then I advice you to get Pearl Onions. They are the size of your thumb. Incredibly sweet, they offer a variety of flavor to your chili! You will love eating Pearl Onions whole!
How do you prepare Pearl Onions? It's pretty simple. You put them in boiling waterfor a few minutes, until either the skin begins to peel away or until they change color. Don't leave them in for more than 8 minutes.
Take them out and put them in a bowl of cold water. When they are still warm but cool enough to touch, take them out, cut off the root and tip portion of the onion, squeeze, and pop them out! Be careful and aim for a dish or a bowl. Some onions slide out easily, others go shooting off against the wall if you're not careful.
From there you can sautee the onions with the vegetables/mushrooms or just toss them into the mix! If you sautee the onions with the pearls you'll get some nice variances within the mushroom slices and the pearl onions. If you sautee the onions remember, LOW- MEDIUM HEAT. Any hotter than that and you will not only burn the butter but crisp the onions. You don't want either. You want a low - medium heat that gradually yellows the onions and deepends the mushrooms, keeping them soft and juicy.
While I do advice in leaving many pearl onions whole, then I suggest you use 1 cup of whole pearls, and dice a remaining 1/2 cup. Otherwise, the onions will just retain their juice and their flavor won't real mingle with the rest of the chili.
Meat Substitutions:
Yes you can make this a vegetarian/vegan dish by simply removing the meat. But, if you substitute meat for any OTHER kind of meat take note - chicken doesn't do too well in chili without serious altering of ingredients. Usually you'll have to boil the chicken rather than fry it, using a pepper/tomato stew like concoction. Marinate the chicken, etc...
Otherwise chicken is really really nasty bland.
Ditto for turkey.
Instructions:
Step 1
First thing to do is fry up the ground beef. If you have Pearl Onions, now's the time to fry 1/2 cup of diced onions with the meat. If you want hot chili, fry the peppers with the meat as well.
Season the meat with Chili Powder. I usually do about 4-5 good initial dashes of Chili Powder. From there, season to taste. Good thing about Chili is you can smell how hot it will taste.
Once the ground beef is half pink and half browning, add the vegetables.
Cook the ground beef until the pink is gone, but do NOT burn it to a crisp.
Step 2
Now is when you add the vegetables. Keep warm for a little more on low low heat (don't burn). This includes onions and whatever else you have.
TAKE NOTE: You may want to save the Mushrooms for the cooking pot/crock pot, otherwise they lose their juicy goodness.
Step 3
Get out your big pot, or crock pot. Fill it up with your stewed tomatoes.
Fill it up with beans, make sure you drain the bean juice OUT before you put them into the pot, otherwise the taste will overpower EVERYTHING else.
Fill one can (14 oz) of water, add to pot.
Step 4
Turn off frying pan. Drain fat from the pan if you want. If the pan is cool enough, but still warm, then you can use a wad of paper towels to soak up the fat from the beef, and then just toss it.
Be careful not to lose any of the diced peppers or their seeds. This is why I use paper towels rather than just letting the fat drain out. They're more efficient.
Step 5
Dump all in the big pan or crock pot Turn the pot to medium-high. After it boils for a bit, turn it down. Add water as needed.
Add chili powder and ground pepper to taste.
Cook down to taste.
Some people like soupy chili, some don't.
Be careful with the salt content. That means buy unsalted beans, unsalted tomatoes. Remember, you can always add more salt later, but you can't leech excess salt out of a dish without really watering it down and with it, the flavor.
I tend to use my crock pot and cook it for 4-8 hours. ^_^
My Name: Kevin Conner
Quick Description: Carne con Carne (it's for meat eaters!)
Full Description: When cooked to this recipe, 6 Pepper Chili is very hot. It is for people who like Beans, Meat, Heat and Stomache Melting Goodness. I've got an Iron Stomach and love it, but feel free to adjust the recipe as you see fit. Also, in the directions I will explain what makes heat and how you can make it lighter.
When made to this recipe it easily services 4-6 people.
Ingredients:
1 Ceranno (green, but not jalapeno)
1 Jalapeno (green, and slightly larger than cerannos)
1 Habanero (orange funky looking pepper)
1 Banana Pepper (white in color, sometimes called White Banana Pepper. Basically just looks like a Chili Pepper only white)
Red Chili Pepper :
* 1 full fresh red chili pepper
* Optional - dried chili pepper to taste (such as what you find at Pizza Hut)
* Chili Powder (it all comes from the SAME type of Pepper so I only count it once).
Black/White Ground Pepper to Taste (same type of pepper)
1 to 1 and 1/2 Pounds of Ground Beef
1/2 pound to 1 pound of Chorizo sausage
1 - 14 or 15 oz can of Kidney Beans
1 - 14 or 15 oz can of Pinto Beans
2 - 14 or 15 oz cans of Stewed Tomatoes
1 to 2 cups of mushrooms
1 cup of diced/sliced carrots
1 cup of chopped celery
1/2 to 1 cup of Onions
Rules on Substitutions and Omissions and Learners Notes:
Heat:
The heat comes primarily from the various peppers and how you prepare them. To get the highest heat possible, slice and dice the peppers so they are small chunks. Throw away the stem, but put everything else, INCLUDING the seeds into the meat at the same time as you fry the meat.
When you hear the seeds POP that means you're gonna get heat. By that time your eyes should water and you should be able to taste the peppers.
To reduce heat by one step: discard the seeds.
To reduce heat by one step: do not fry the peppers or their seeds with the meat.
To reduce heat by one step: reduce your recipe by one pepper.
To reduce heat by one step: don't use any chorizo sausage.
Remember, Fresh Chili Peppers can be pretty mild if you don't fry them up like this, so if you want to have taste of the pepper in the chili without the heat, get some mild Chili peppers and or Bell Peppers.
If you substitute Bell Peppers remember these rules: Green Bells are unripened orange/yellow/red peppers, as a result they are bitter and some people have problems digesting. All Bell Peppers have a unique taste. Red ones tend to be the sweetest.
Remember, do NOT rub your eyes after you dice peppers. Even Bell Peppers can irritate your eyes. Pepper spray's prime ingredient is the CHILI PEPPER!!!! That's how it got its name!
Also, try not to blow or rub your nose or lips after dicing peppers, you will smell it for days if you do! Wash your hands with lava (coarse soap) or dish washing soap if you really want to get the pepper out of your skin.
Onions:
Onions come in a myriad of varieties. Many people like to sautee the onions before putting them into the Chili. I've tried it and it's tasty.
How to tell which onions to use? Yellow onions are usually kind of sweet. White onions tend to be bitter. Purple Onions can go either way.
If you really want a tasty onion, then I advice you to get Pearl Onions. They are the size of your thumb. Incredibly sweet, they offer a variety of flavor to your chili! You will love eating Pearl Onions whole!
How do you prepare Pearl Onions? It's pretty simple. You put them in boiling waterfor a few minutes, until either the skin begins to peel away or until they change color. Don't leave them in for more than 8 minutes.
Take them out and put them in a bowl of cold water. When they are still warm but cool enough to touch, take them out, cut off the root and tip portion of the onion, squeeze, and pop them out! Be careful and aim for a dish or a bowl. Some onions slide out easily, others go shooting off against the wall if you're not careful.
From there you can sautee the onions with the vegetables/mushrooms or just toss them into the mix! If you sautee the onions with the pearls you'll get some nice variances within the mushroom slices and the pearl onions. If you sautee the onions remember, LOW- MEDIUM HEAT. Any hotter than that and you will not only burn the butter but crisp the onions. You don't want either. You want a low - medium heat that gradually yellows the onions and deepends the mushrooms, keeping them soft and juicy.
While I do advice in leaving many pearl onions whole, then I suggest you use 1 cup of whole pearls, and dice a remaining 1/2 cup. Otherwise, the onions will just retain their juice and their flavor won't real mingle with the rest of the chili.
Meat Substitutions:
Yes you can make this a vegetarian/vegan dish by simply removing the meat. But, if you substitute meat for any OTHER kind of meat take note - chicken doesn't do too well in chili without serious altering of ingredients. Usually you'll have to boil the chicken rather than fry it, using a pepper/tomato stew like concoction. Marinate the chicken, etc...
Otherwise chicken is really really nasty bland.
Ditto for turkey.
Instructions:
Step 1
First thing to do is fry up the ground beef. If you have Pearl Onions, now's the time to fry 1/2 cup of diced onions with the meat. If you want hot chili, fry the peppers with the meat as well.
Season the meat with Chili Powder. I usually do about 4-5 good initial dashes of Chili Powder. From there, season to taste. Good thing about Chili is you can smell how hot it will taste.
Once the ground beef is half pink and half browning, add the vegetables.
Cook the ground beef until the pink is gone, but do NOT burn it to a crisp.
Step 2
Now is when you add the vegetables. Keep warm for a little more on low low heat (don't burn). This includes onions and whatever else you have.
TAKE NOTE: You may want to save the Mushrooms for the cooking pot/crock pot, otherwise they lose their juicy goodness.
Step 3
Get out your big pot, or crock pot. Fill it up with your stewed tomatoes.
Fill it up with beans, make sure you drain the bean juice OUT before you put them into the pot, otherwise the taste will overpower EVERYTHING else.
Fill one can (14 oz) of water, add to pot.
Step 4
Turn off frying pan. Drain fat from the pan if you want. If the pan is cool enough, but still warm, then you can use a wad of paper towels to soak up the fat from the beef, and then just toss it.
Be careful not to lose any of the diced peppers or their seeds. This is why I use paper towels rather than just letting the fat drain out. They're more efficient.
Step 5
Dump all in the big pan or crock pot Turn the pot to medium-high. After it boils for a bit, turn it down. Add water as needed.
Add chili powder and ground pepper to taste.
Cook down to taste.
Some people like soupy chili, some don't.
Be careful with the salt content. That means buy unsalted beans, unsalted tomatoes. Remember, you can always add more salt later, but you can't leech excess salt out of a dish without really watering it down and with it, the flavor.
I tend to use my crock pot and cook it for 4-8 hours. ^_^
-
Kevin
- All Tezuka all the time...
- Posts: 1606
- Joined: Thu Feb 15, 2007 7:22 am
by Kuririn » Mon Feb 11, 2008 7:36 am
Wow, that sounds absolutely amazing! And I love chili...mmm...
Update: The soup turned out really well, other than burning myself during a taste-test.
Update: The soup turned out really well, other than burning myself during a taste-test.
"Or the momentwhen you know it's over and the nothing which you
have to say is falling all around you, lavishly,
pouring its heart out." -Don McKay
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Kuririn
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by Potato » Mon Feb 11, 2008 8:50 pm
i did something stupid last night. -_- i turned the oven on the wrong setting. >.<
Katara: Sokka, You're a genius!
Aang: Did the definition of genius change in the last 100 years?
-Avatar: The last Airbender
Aang: Did the definition of genius change in the last 100 years?
-Avatar: The last Airbender
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Potato
- All Tezuka all the time...
- Posts: 1210
- Joined: Wed Jun 13, 2007 8:42 am
- Location: Australia. Descriptive enough?
by Princess Sapphire » Tue Feb 12, 2008 12:46 am
Oh dear. I hope no harm was done.
When some friends accidentally turned on the wrong element when making a cup of tea or coffee at our old house in Biloela town, it completely scorched the decorative stove ring cover that Mum had bought.
Anyway Kuririn, I am not a fancy cook by any means. Though I did learn how to cook standard things such as sausages.
If I come across any fancy recipes though I'll be sure to post them here.
When some friends accidentally turned on the wrong element when making a cup of tea or coffee at our old house in Biloela town, it completely scorched the decorative stove ring cover that Mum had bought.
Anyway Kuririn, I am not a fancy cook by any means. Though I did learn how to cook standard things such as sausages.
If I come across any fancy recipes though I'll be sure to post them here.
Osamu Tezuka is Japan's greatest story teller
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Princess Sapphire
- Tezuka Veteran
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- Joined: Fri Jan 11, 2008 1:44 pm
- Location: Australia
by Kuririn » Tue Feb 12, 2008 2:22 am
No need for them to be fancy, just delicious. 
"Or the momentwhen you know it's over and the nothing which you
have to say is falling all around you, lavishly,
pouring its heart out." -Don McKay
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Kuririn
- Tezuka Nut
- Posts: 147
- Joined: Fri Jan 25, 2008 5:15 pm
- Location: Osaka
by Potato » Tue Feb 12, 2008 3:41 am
Oh jeez... dudes you gotta try apple fudge... it's the best, honestly.
anywho, i overheated my lunch in the school microwaves today and it exploded.
Well at least the microwave smells nice.
anywho, i overheated my lunch in the school microwaves today and it exploded.
Well at least the microwave smells nice.
Katara: Sokka, You're a genius!
Aang: Did the definition of genius change in the last 100 years?
-Avatar: The last Airbender
Aang: Did the definition of genius change in the last 100 years?
-Avatar: The last Airbender
-
Potato
- All Tezuka all the time...
- Posts: 1210
- Joined: Wed Jun 13, 2007 8:42 am
- Location: Australia. Descriptive enough?
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