The Dining and Food Thread

[centex]

22 hours ago, IndyPoolPlayer said:

The problems of leftovers - since I'm in economy mode, I took some of my leftover chili and mixed it with a handful of spaghetti noodles to make my form of a chili mac. I've been eating that for my lunch at home. So today I get the chili mac out of the fridge to heat up and I find the leftover quandry - there's too much to eat all at once, but not really enough to divide into two meals.

Being in economy mode, many grocery stores have some killer deals on meat where they have re-wrapped what had been in the butcher's case.  I shop Kroger frequently and have found lots of good stuff there.  If you like pork, they also tended to have good deals on the jumbo packs of the boneless pork chops.  Pork shoulder blade is another one of the pork items frequently at a good per-pound price...it smokes up well on the pit and gives several meals at a cost of less than a dollar per person per meal. 

 

The obvious downside to such things is that pork can get old quickly and leave you looking for something else...

 

Hopefully you find something else on the employment front in a prompt fashion so that you can escape the leftovers rut. 

[IndyPoolPlayer]

3 hours ago, centex said:

Being in economy mode, many grocery stores have some killer deals on meat where they have re-wrapped what had been in the butcher's case.  I shop Kroger frequently and have found lots of good stuff there.  If you like pork, they also tended to have good deals on the jumbo packs of the boneless pork chops.  Pork shoulder blade is another one of the pork items frequently at a good per-pound price...it smokes up well on the pit and gives several meals at a cost of less than a dollar per person per meal. 

 

The obvious downside to such things is that pork can get old quickly and leave you looking for something else...

 

Hopefully you find something else on the employment front in a prompt fashion so that you can escape the leftovers rut. 

Thanks for your positive thoughts on the employment front. I hope to have some positive news next week.

 

DW and I are not big on pork besides her Jimmy Dean pork sausages for breakfast. I did buy some boneless chicken breasts on sale last summer and froze them. Might get one or two out and make some pulled chicken in the slow cooker.

 

I get 80/20 ground beef on sale at Meijer for about $2.49 to $2.69 per pound in packs of about 3.75 to 4.25 pounds each, and pick out a couple right at 4 pounds if possible. Divvy them up into 1 pound portions and use the FoodSaver before freezing. Can sometimes find it even cheaper - less than 1.99 in some cases - if I get a package on its expiration date and can vacuum and freeze it right away. Works out nicely for my slow cooker chili and hamburger helpers.

 

I also get store brand 14" frozen pizzas for $1.99 each, and on sale I can get them for 99 cents. In the oven with a metal pizza pan its not that good but when I use a pizza stone on the gas grill they come out excellent.

 

[centex]

1 hour ago, IndyPoolPlayer said:

I get 80/20 ground beef on sale at Meijer for about $2.49 to $2.69 per pound in packs of about 3.75 to 4.25 pounds each, and pick out a couple right at 4 pounds if possible. Divvy them up into 1 pound portions and use the FoodSaver before freezing. Can sometimes find it even cheaper - less than 1.99 in some cases - if I get a package on its expiration date and can vacuum and freeze it right away. Works out nicely for my slow cooker chili and hamburger helpers.

 

I also get store brand 14" frozen pizzas for $1.99 each, and on sale I can get them for 99 cents. In the oven with a metal pizza pan its not that good but when I use a pizza stone on the gas grill they come out excellent.

 

Good tip on the pizza...had not thought about trying that method.  I've done plenty of those cheap ones as quick snacks while watching games through the years though. 

 

On beef, one other thing is to look at when they do the specials by the pound on the uncut chunks.  We used to get them and would have some just cut at 1 1/2" thick steaks, but would also have them grind some and package it.  Worked out to be even less than the ground beef in the wrapper that was out amongst the other packaged beef. 

[IndyPoolPlayer]

14 hours ago, centex said:

Good tip on the pizza...had not thought about trying that method.

With my trial-and-error, reading the Weber books and watching some YouTube videos, I found that the important factor in using a stone with a "cheap" pizza is getting the stone really hot, like 550 to 600F hot. By the time you lift the lid, put the pizza on, close the lid, and turn down the heat the stone will be at 450-500F. About 7 minutes, and after 3 1/2 minutes give the pizza a quick quarter turn. Crust turns out nice and crispy, and the toppings are good. Just don't leave it in too much past 7 minutes as the toppings will burn quickly after that.

 

[cv91915]

On 9/30/2017 at 5:04 PM, cv91915 said:

My mom just got back from their summer house, so I took her with me when I did some errands today.

 

For lunch we went to Harbor Town Pub, one of my favorite neighborhood places anywhere in San Diego. They have my very favorite burrito anywhere, and it's far from what you'd expect:

 

 

Mom ordered the Pho-King Amazing:

 

 

We split both, and both were outstanding.

 

 

 

The bulgogi burrito:

 

Today I took my parents to Harbor Town Pub for lunch, except it was 12:15 when we arrived and they only have a breakfast menu until 1 pm on Saturdays.

 

So I had a kimchi bulgogi hash with two eggs and sriracha.  I could wake up like this every day.  👍🏼

Edited January 27 by cv91915

[cv91915]

I'm enjoying my coffee with half and half, which I almost never do.

 

I'm leaving in a couple of hours and won't be back for about a month.  It didn't make sense to open a new carton of almond milk to leave behind in the refrigerator ... right before pouring this half and half down the drain.

 

[TheVig]

Pizza Hut.

 

My intestinal tract is seeking revenge.

[IndyPoolPlayer]

1 hour ago, TheVig said:

Pizza Hut.

 

My intestinal tract is seeking revenge.

Should have gone with the racist pizza

[GreenDragonLady]

On 1/23/2019 at 3:05 PM, IndyPoolPlayer said:

DW and I are not big on pork besides her Jimmy Dean pork sausages for breakfast.

Do you guys like shepherd's pie?

 

If so, make shepherd's pie using Jimmy Dean sausage instead of beef (I know lamb is traditional English, but I'm talking the bloody yanks here).  I make just a little bit of gravy with some of the fat so it's moist.  Add your corn (I prefer green giant niblets) and top with your mashed taters.  Sometimes I put cheese between the meat/corn layer and the taters.

[minnie aubre]

Has anyone tried doing freezer meals? Where you make a bunch over the weekend for the next week or two. Do they turn out soggy and gross? I've been thinking about doing this. Sometimes I'm too lazy to cook after work. So it's either a hard boiled egg and apple (or something as stupid) or Uber Eats.

[cv91915]

7 hours ago, minnie aubre said:

Has anyone tried doing freezer meals? Where you make a bunch over the weekend for the next week or two. Do they turn out soggy and gross? I've been thinking about doing this. Sometimes I'm too lazy to cook after work. So it's either a hard boiled egg and apple (or something as stupid) or Uber Eats.

You mean cooking ~30 days worth of food at once and freezing it in individual-serving containers?

 

I tried this once with my aunt about a year after my uncle died.  Goal was to create ~6 servings for each of us of ~5 different dishes, packed in single-serving foil containers that were oven-ready.

 

This worked much better on the selections that were designed to be single-dish meals (think lasagna) rather than a main protein with sides (think fish with mashed potatoes and green beans). 

 

In the latter case it was impossible to reheat the dish so everything was the desired temperature... fish and beans would be petrified but the potatoes would still be cold in the center. 

 

I suppose reheating at a lower temperature for a longer period of time would help... but who wants to wait an hour for convenience food?

 

From planning and shopping to cooking and cleaning up, to packaging and freezing, to reheating, it seems like it was more work than just creating 30 separate simple meals. 

 

Plus about halfway through the month you're staring at a freezer full of things you've already had but can't bring yourself to eat yet again.

[minnie aubre]

4 hours ago, cv91915 said:

You mean cooking ~30 days worth of food at once and freezing it in individual-serving containers?

 

I tried this once with my aunt about a year after my uncle died.  Goal was to create ~6 servings for each of us of ~5 different dishes, packed in single-serving foil containers that were oven-ready.

 

This worked much better on the selections that were designed to be single-dish meals (think lasagna) rather than a main protein with sides (think fish with mashed potatoes and green beans). 

 

In the latter case it was impossible to reheat the dish so everything was the desired temperature... fish and beans would be petrified but the potatoes would still be cold in the center. 

 

I suppose reheating at a lower temperature for a longer period of time would help... but who wants to wait an hour for convenience food?

 

From planning and shopping to cooking and cleaning up, to packaging and freezing, to reheating, it seems like it was more work than just creating 30 separate simple meals. 

 

Plus about halfway through the month you're staring at a freezer full of things you've already had but can't bring yourself to eat yet again.

Thank you for the insights.  Yes, this is what I was talking about, but on a smaller scale.  More like a week at a time.  It would be meals more like lasagna, some sort of casserole, or soup.  So, yes, single-dish meals.  I suppose if I just want to do a week at a time, maybe freezing would not be necessary.  I wonder if I did all the prep on Sunday for my meals, if it would still stay fresh tasting through the week.  For example, washing and cutting all the produce and having the ingredients measured in containers.  What I hate most is the prep, so if I can get this out of the way all at once, I may be able to survive the week.

[cv91915]

2 hours ago, minnie aubre said:

Thank you for the insights.  Yes, this is what I was talking about, but on a smaller scale.  More like a week at a time.  It would be meals more like lasagna, some sort of casserole, or soup.  So, yes, single-dish meals.  I suppose if I just want to do a week at a time, maybe freezing would not be necessary.  I wonder if I did all the prep on Sunday for my meals, if it would still stay fresh tasting through the week.  For example, washing and cutting all the produce and having the ingredients measured in containers.  What I hate most is the prep, so if I can get this out of the way all at once, I may be able to survive the week.

Do you have a Crock Pot?  That might be the best place to start.

[Pam]

We do a lot of meal prep on the weekends (Sunday evenings) for the week.  We mostly do the main dishes and then prepare things like the veggies for the sides while the main dish heats up.  Dinner prep time goes from like an hour to about 20 mins.  Esp if you get the veggie steamer bags.  We do crockpot stuff too, and that you can generally do most of a couple of days in advance, depending on what you're making.

 

I've also done the freezer stuff but not in single servings.  Like lasagna, casseroles, soups.  This doesn't work as well for us because mostly, we forget to take things out of the freezer to be ready for dinner.  

 

We had to try a couple of different ways, though, before we figured out what works for us.

[minnie aubre]

Thank you, both. I have an Instant Pot, so I can do slow cooking or pressure cooking. Actually, I have two, but that's a different story. If I could get organized, I would have everything prepped then throw it in on the slow cooker setting during work. Or, so the same after work if using the pressure cooker. I'm going to plan my menu during the week and then do the prep over the weekend. I really appreciate the comments.

[TheVig]

19 hours ago, IndyPoolPlayer said:

Should have gone with the racist pizza

It would have done the same thing. 

[cv91915]

I have a bottle of sweet chili sauce in the refrigerator, left over from when I made this:

 

https://iowagirleats.com/2016/04/25/bacon-and-goat-cheese-stuffed-sweet-pepper-poppers/

 

(which was very good)

 

I have some chicken breast tenders marinading in the sauce now, and they're about to go into the oven to be served with salad and bread for dinner.

 

I could do without salad, but if I don't take swift action all of the produce TAD bought before I got here will end up in the compost bin.

[TheVig]

Ribeye steaks tonight.

[GreenDragonLady]

My daughter is making beef stiry-fry.

[IndyPoolPlayer]

I had a reheated chicken parm lunch sandwich from Olive Garden. DW's boss treated the office to OG on Friday, and the sandwich was her leftover. I don't think I'll get that the next time I ever go to an Olive Garden.

[cv91915]

8 hours ago, IndyPoolPlayer said:

I had a reheated chicken parm lunch sandwich from Olive Garden. DW's boss treated the office to OG on Friday, and the sandwich was her leftover. I don't think I'll get that the next time I ever go to an Olive Garden.

NEXT TIME?

[IndyPoolPlayer]

8 hours ago, cv91915 said:

NEXT TIME?

Yeah. Relatives seem to always get us OG gift cards at the year end Winter solstice holidays. Some years we have regifted them, but some years we do go because DW loves their gnocchi soup.

[cv91915]

1 hour ago, IndyPoolPlayer said:

Yeah. Relatives seem to always get us OG gift cards at the year end Winter solstice holidays. Some years we have regifted them, but some years we do go because DW loves their gnocchi soup.

Give this a try.

 

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/262966/restaurant-style-chicken-and-gnocchi-soup/?internalSource=hub recipe&referringContentType=Search

[cv91915]

I've never been a big fan of pesto, but I had some tonight.

 

Now I remember why I hate it.  

 

Two hours later and I can't get the taste of lawn clippings out of my mouth.

 

 

[TheVig]

Dinner with the Patels. They own the Quality Inn I'm staying at. I'll report back later.