*** The La Cuisine 'General Discussion' Thread ***

[Spuj]

wonder if la cuisine would like a youtube cooking video thread?
so much better that GD`s thread hehe

I think this is a great idea personally. There is absolutely loads of good videos out there and I bet quite a few users here have some good recommendations for stuff they have seen. Another way to share between us all is always a good thing

 

[Spuj]

I don't dispute the pleasure and merit of having egg for breakfast, but indeed how about the time element ?, scrambled eggs are more than a minute (the first bbc 'recipe' came up with 10-15 ) and microwave=massacre ? plus scrambled egg cooking needs attention.
Poached or boiled have a bit more leeway on cooking time and ease of preparation, so can multi-task with other pre-work processes.
so what is the real world preparation time ?

you can offset the egg prep time with time savings later in the day due to reduced snacking I suppose.

Personally am able to prepare porridge in microwave at work, with pre-soak from previous day, and many colleagues have cereal+milk, but eggs would be difficult -- a bunch of engineers, but no one has been that adventurous.

For scrambled eggs I would say roughly 5-10 minutes at the most.

Stick a small pan in with a knob of butter in it on a low heat. While that is melting crack two eggs into a bowl and beat them, add a small bit of milk and salt and pepper into the bowl. By the time you have done this the butter should be melted and 'bubbling' ever so slightly. At this point put the eggs into the pan and drop some bread into the toaster. Keep moving the eggs in the pan until they are cooked to how you like them.

Only thing you have to do is keep an eye on them as they can go from perfectly done to overdone very quickly but it's easiest enough to spot. Slap them on your pieces of toast, bit of salt on pepper on top and the job is done. I haven't timed it but I reckon its no more than 5 minutes once you've done it a couple of times.

 

[randomshenans]

I personally don't think there should be a place for cereal on the table, it's a completely useless breakfast. It is just "quick"

 

[bsoltan]

I started an oxtail stew yesterday. I've only cooked down the oxtails but at the moment it is one of the best things I've tasted. (drool)



This was after about five hours at 160C in the oven. Can't wait to add the vegetables and have it as a meal.
I made a beef shin stew at end of last year but this tastes much better, maybe because of the extra beefy stock I used and the cut of beef.

 

[Spuj]

New things are happening in my kitchen this morning:

 

[Illgresi]

I'm not arguing the benefits of eggs for breakfast, I was just merely pointing out that implying people are lazy / ignorant for having cereal is a bad argument. There is a place for both of them on the table.

There certainly is merit in a more natural cereal such as muesli. Have you tried making your own? Get yourself a big clip-lock tupperware, and it's a super simple job. You get to omit the things you don't like also!

I was quite keen on muesli for a while, but I tended to have it before bed rather than in the morning, as cereal doesn't fill me up enough in the morning. Also, I had it with orange juice, grated apple, and yoghurt instead of milk. Much tastier!

 

[Kris_90]

Anyone got any quick chicken dishes that go well with rice? I want to make chicken and rice my staple dish over the next couple of months so I'm looking for a bit of variety.

I normally use jars of curry etc but I'm looking for something I can prep from scratch.

 

[ci_newman]

Marinade chicken breast with soy sauce and fresh grated ginger for an hour, then wrap in foil and bake for 20 - 25mins

 

[cheesyboy]

I make a simple garlic coriander chicken from time to time. Usually have some fresh chopped coriander in the freezer for such purposes.

This recipe, though I roughly double the liquid to give it a bit more sauce for my rice:
http://mycookinghut.com/2009/01/21/garlic-coriander-chicken/

 

[monkentage]

Anyone got any quick chicken dishes that go well with rice? I want to make chicken and rice my staple dish over the next couple of months so I'm looking for a bit of variety.

I normally use jars of curry etc but I'm looking for something I can prep from scratch.

That's pretty much the most variable combination in the universe.

I like:

bacon/sausage/chorizo, onion, bell pepper, chilli, white wine, garlic, cumin, paprika, saffron infused stock, olives, peas and coriander or parsley.

Jambalaya or a quick faux-paella is great too.
Ras El-Hanout spice is great for a North African style flavour. You can make it or just buy it in a jar, as a paste or powder. It's about £1 and will do for 2-3 dishes depending on how strong you want the flavour.

Google Arroz Con Pollo for endless combinations. You can make it risotto style or like how you would cook rice in a pan.

This also freezes and reheats very well.

 

[Jonny69]

I've got a goose breast curing in the fridge, same cure mix as for bacon. I picked up a whole goose reduced to clear and it was too good an opportunity to miss

 

[robfosters]

Guys, I have one of those cooked Matthessons sausages in the fridge that I bought last month. The use by date is 19th Jan, but its precooked, cryovacced and wrapped.

Do you think it will be safe to eat?

 

[bsoltan]

Yes.

 

[Spuj]

Yeh that will be fine to eat

 

[R.O.S.S.I]

Did a batch of food prepping on Sunday but no pics i'm afraid....

Banana protein pancakes for breakfasts.
Coronation chicken - Mrs made this so not sure on specifics but had diced dried apricot, some raisins, yoghurt and curry powder
Salt and pepper chicken bits - onion, pepper, garlic, fresh chilli, dash of soy and balsamic, salt n pepper
Beef keema - beef mince, garlic, onion, garam masala, curry powder, cumin, peas, diced carrot, chopped toms, couple fresh chilli.

Will be a mixture of dinners and teas for the following week!

 

[Spuj]

Salt and pepper chicken bits - onion, pepper, garlic, fresh chilli, dash of soy and balsamic, salt n pepper
Beef keema - beef mince, garlic, onion, garam masala, curry powder, cumin, peas, diced carrot, chopped toms, couple fresh chilli.

These two sound really good, will have to give them a bash. Is the chicken battered or coated in anyway?

 

[Regy53]

La cuisine is actually my fav part of ocuk, learned so much from here and some peoples skills are just amazing.

Its one thing we are not taught enough in school and the like Cooking with skill, fine foods i love but i have no talent or patience to do it apart from special occasions which always goes down well.

 

[new boy]

My parents never showed me how to cook. Its a pretty lame thing not to show your kid TBH. I wont make the same mistake.

 

[Tyrone1Wils]

All my cooking is self taught, mostly online. It's weird for me as I'm not passionate about anything really but cooking seems to be my thing. The other half seems to love it too as she doesn't have to cook!

I love the science of cooking so Kenji from seriouseats is pretty much my cooking god.

 

[TacticalFish]

Beef keema - beef mince, garlic, onion, garam masala, curry powder, cumin, peas, diced carrot, chopped toms, couple fresh chilli.

Interested to know how the beef keema was, last time I had it, it reminded me of an asian bolognese.

Found the following recipe on BBC Good Food, anything you did differently?

Heat 1 tsp of the oil in a large saucepan over a high heat. Add the mince, season and cook until browned, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it cooks. Remove from the pan, discarding all the fat, and set aside.

Heat the remaining oil and cook the onion, garlic and ginger with some seasoning for 8 mins until soft. Add the curry powder, potato and carrots, and cook for a few mins more. Stir in the tomato purée, 500ml water or vegetable stock, and the beef. Cook on a medium heat for 20 mins or until the potatoes are tender. Serve with basmati rice, fresh coriander, and mango or lime chutney.

(Obviously ingredients are a bit different but I'm interested if you used roughly the same order)