The Cooking Thread

[Captain Squee]

I never would have guessed that I would enjoy cooking as much as I do. It's actually pretty fun, and it's always interesting to throw together some random crap and try to make a decent meal, although this doesn't always end well. I've even managed to whip up a few recipes of my own, like my home-made beef stew. I'm even cooking as I type up this thread, actually. I really enjoy cooking with potatoes, since you can do so much with them. My personal favorite is to slice them into thin slices, keeping the skin on them, and cooking them in oil with seasoning. I don't do it often despite how much I like it because it's not exactly healthy.

So, do you like cooking? If so, what do you like about it? I'd also be interested in what recipes you enjoy and how you make them.

I've grown fond of playing around with seasonings and adding veggies and some meats into rice, which has been known to turn out awful, but you gotta learn somehow. Currently I have a few peppers that are getting pretty close to being inedible. I'd like to think of a way to cook them

 

[Paddy McGee]

I love to cook, whenever I get the chance. I learned a thing or two from a brother of mine(He's a trained chef, 16+ years experience).


I'm no master, by all means, but when I want to munch on something tasty, I'd prefer food that's had some work put in to make it, rather than a frozen pizza and chips.


Though, I will be honest that I haven't really invested much time into cooking for the last few months, due to budget concerns(Basically, I wasted money and had not a pot to piss in during the Summer break).

Hopefully I'll be able to sort it out for lunches though.

 

[Martel]

I'm a fussy eater, so I don't cook much. But I do love to bake...even if things have an unfortunate habit of burning/exploding/imploding/melting into an indescribable puddle of toxic death whenever I try to bake something. I suppose baking is a variation of the theme, but as far as I'm concerned, if you're putting something in the oven/microwave and heating it, you're cooking it...and this is probably why I'm not very good at these things, even when I'm following the recipe and being very careful and precise.

Making a mess is fun, though. But the cleaning up part afterwards leaves a lot to be desired...

 

[Tyler Breeze]

I've cooked a total of 0 meals in my lifetime (unless you count shit like Pop Tarts, Waffles, etc.), however I do have one of my own recipes which is an orange sauce, which I used to make to compliment the turkey on Thanksgiving. I haven't made it in 6 years though, I will be making it this holiday season because the family is coming over, and they like it. I did have a lot of fun cooking it when I made it, and I look forward to doing it again. I love putting random shit into a pot and seeing what the final result will be. xD Though I have a feeling when it's time for me to cook an actual meal, I'm gonna be terrible. xD

 

[Tucker]

I love cooking!!

Ever since I was younger I would throw dinner parties for my family and their friends. Not anything super formal, but it was really fun cooking different courses and the like. I got all the recipes from Recipezaar (which is now food.com). It's a great place for recipes

 

[Shenorai]

Since my mother is Filipina, I grew up with some interesting dishes. One of my favorites is Adobo. Meat is simmered in a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar, and bay leaves until the sauce is cooked into the meat. Beef is all right, but the Pork and Chicken variants are my favorite. This is a dish best served with white rice and veggies of your choice (I usually have it with pan-fried string beans).

Here's the family-sized chicken variant of the recipe for you adventurous folk who wouldn't mind a go at this lovely dish. Yes, you can cut it down to size for the sake of portions. The large serving is due to the Filipino culture of having large families/hosting parties:

Chicken Adobo - Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
4-5 lbs. chicken thighs
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp. black peppercorns
3 bay leaves

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a large pot.
Cover and marinate chicken for 1-3 hours.
Bring to boil, then lower heat.
Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Uncover and simmer until sauce is reduced and thickened, and chicken is tender, about 20 more minutes.
Serve with steamed rice.​

 

[Howl]

A foodie thread! Joy! 8]
I cook daily or every other day if I have a multitude of leftovers. It seems like everything under the sun makes me gassy so I'm really particular about how I eat. over the past few years I've converted from less fast food to no fast food, then to no restaurant food, and in the last few months I've converted to no packaged or processed foods. Now, I'd be a total liar if I said none of these things ever made their way into my mouth...it's just a rule of thumb that I have.

My mom bought me a pasta machine for my birthday this year so I've been making a lot of ravioli. Today I made spinach/ricotta ravioli and oatmeal/craisin/date/almond/applesauce/banana/oatmeal cookies. Tomorrow I'm making roast beef and peanut butter cookies. :]
I'm finding way too much joy in this topic...

My favorite ingredients are yogurt, nuts, bananas, coconut (oil, flour, milk etc) yams, grits...and a plethora of other things.
My favorite things to make are gumbo, curry, granola, red beans & rice, longaniza, and again, a plethora of others...

I have a really strategically thought out shopping regiment which includes Walmart/Costco, Swanson's Vitamins, and Azure Standard.

 

[Captain Squee]

Well, I was just given a ton of carrots and apples fresh from the farm the day prior that couldn't sell, so I'll be needing to use those. Apply pie is a given, but I need to do more than that, or I'll be splitting 3 pies between me and my girlfriend, which is a bit much. Anyone have any good apple recipes or ideas of what to do with the carrots? Also, look at the size of this @!$%& carrot!

Spoiler

That's bigger than big around where I live. Don't even know how I'm going to cook that beast

 

[Shenorai]

Halloween is coming up. I'm sure you can find Caramel/Candy Apple Kits out there in the stores. I have even seen a variant of Caramel Apples where the apples are cut in half, the cores are spooned out, and caramel is poured into the center. This is then set into the fridge for awhile before being cut up into wedges and served.

Ohhhh, but you know what is an amazing breakfast dish? Crepes! I can't quite find the recipe that my Dad makes, so I don't have the exact measurements. But this is basically what he does:

Ingredients:
- Thinned Pancake Batter (Bisquick Mix is preferred)
- Cored and sliced Apples
- Cinnamon, sugar, water
- Powdered Sugar

Directions:
With the watered-down batter, make a series of thin pancakes. Take great care when flipping them, for they tear easy.

Combine the apples, water, cinnamon, and sugar in a saucepan. Cook on medium heat until the apples are caramelized.

Once both items are cooked, carefully spoon the caramelized apples along the center of the pancakes. Wrap the apples and top the crepes with powdered sugar as desired. Devour.​

As for those carrots, sure, you can make yourself some Carrot Cake or dice them up for soups/stew or even roast them for a tasty side-dish. Juicing comes to mind as well, but that's an acquired taste.

Or, if you want to be ridiculous with your larger carrots, you can be this guy:

He even has full instructions on his channel on how to make them.

 

[Howl]

Anyone have any good apple recipes or ideas of what to do with the carrots?

If you have dogs, apples and carrots make great treats. Apples also make really yummy chips/crisps. I make apple crisps with cinnamon in my dehydrator, or in the oven. You can make fresh apple sauce to mix in with homemade granola in the place of honey/molasses/sorghum. I sometimes use apple slices in my pot roast. As for the carrots...the only other thing that's coming to mind is coleslaw. I use lots of carrots in my coleslaw. 8]

 

[LanguageSponge]

I used to avoid cooking proper food, ironically until I got to uni, when everyone else starts living on rice and noodles! I went completely the other way when I started studying. Assignments and exams would stress me out a lot, and I'd just started horse riding and fencing up again so I needed to eat properly. So I went onto the net and got a load of recipes for whatever I could think of. I realised that I could use cooking as a way to practise my languages, by cooking from foreign recipes, so I made various Italian dishes, various kinds of tapas (which is not generally healthy, I know) and Russian dishes following foreign recipes. When it started I was absolutely useless and I ended up eating warmed up soup for dinner after trashing what I'd attempted to cook instead. But now I love it and when I've got the time it's difficult to get me out of the kitchen.

 

[Dee]

I haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaate cooking, but I have to do it because I live alone and no one else will cook for me. And I know I can't eat out all the time, so my only other option is to cook. However, I have made some very nice chicken with this recipe:

Chicken breasts or anything of the sort do really well. You lightly flour each side of the piece of chicken and season it to your preference. Sear each piece on both sides for one or two minutes, and then turn the heat down to low. Place a top on the pan and let it cook for 10 minutes. When the time is up, turn the heat off completely and let it cook for 10 more minutes with just the steam. Every single time I've done this, I've had the juiciest chicken ever.

Other than that, I tend to cook pasta, rice, veggies, fish, and that's the majority of it. I'd like to be able to cook a pork chop or some kind of other red meat, but I'm terrified of screwing it up and making myself sick.

 

[Shenorai]

Porkchop, chicken and fish are meats that MUST be cooked thoroughly lest you risk salmonella. Beef is the meat that is (relatively) safe to eat while the meat is still red within.

 

[Yaoi Master Gavin]

Actually, the bit on beef is only true when it's a solid cut steak. If it's ground beef, you can still wind up with salmonella and whatever else.

 

[Shu]

I only like cooking for others. I do quite a bit though when it comes to cooking and always add my own touch. One thing I try to stay away from is too much salt/sodium.

Why? Well think about it, if you have to add salt to anything, I would assume you are doing it wrong. There is savory and there is salty, then there is .. too much. It's like adding steak sauce or ketchup or mayonaise or ranch to everything you eat.

For grilling:

My specialties are the following:

1) Ribs - Slow cooked for 6 hours.

Ingredients:

Dry Rub - Brown Sugar, Cheyenne Pepper, Paprika, Garlic salt, Onion salt, (special season)

Hydration Spray (every 30 minutes) - Apple Juice and White Whine Vinegar

If you choose to eat them wet - Ketchup, Brown Sugar (Heavy), Garlic Powder, Vinegar, Touch of worcestershire, Touch of Orange Juice, Touch of Lime Juice.

2) Steak - Nothing special except, keep it hydrated. I do go nuts with Marinades and made people come back for seconds.

Non Grilling:

Lasagna - Don't care to list the recipe, but all to do with layering and cheese and the time to cook. I also think what you season the meat with, is huge too.
Pasta Dishes - Fettuccine Alfredo w/ Chicken, Pasta Salad with Pepperoni slices, Pad Thai w/ cajun chicken
Spin offs: Home made Guacamole

My best thing is my breakfast making skills. I won't go into the details, but french toast... or blueberry pancakes .

 

[Howl]

Non Grilling:

Lasagna - Don't care to list the recipe, but all to do with layering and cheese and the time to cook. I also think what you season the meat with, is huge too.
Pasta Dishes - Fettuccine Alfredo w/ Chicken, Pasta Salad with Pepperoni slices, Pad Thai w/ cajun chicken
Spin offs: Home made Guacamole

My best thing is my breakfast making skills. I won't go into the details, but french toast... or blueberry pancakes .

Oooo, lasagna is one of my favorites. It happens at my house at least once a month.
My mom bought me a pasta machine for my birthday this year so I've been churning out and drying my own pasta. The best thing about it so far has been making lasagna with fresh pasta. My secret to lasagna is adding chorizo sausage to the bolognese mix. :]

Kudos for home made guacamole! I eat avocados right off the tree. :3
They're so easy to grow from pits, too! I have a few trees that are almost three years old! I can't wait to see if they produce fruits in a few years!!!

As for the pancakes, I'll say that banana pancakes are much better. <__< >__>
:]

 

[Shenorai]

Sometimes, I like experimenting with eggs. Although I learned that poached eggs are outright disgusting, I've found ways to make Egg Drop Soup (the key: bring a mixture of water, chicken stock, chicken bullion, and a few drops of soy sauce to a boil, take the mixture off of the heat, and use a fork as a strainer to slowly drop in a beaten egg!), boiling an egg and setting it aside for Ramen is fantastic, just a bit of milk, butter, and cheese make for a good scrambled egg (as long as it's cooked on medium heat), and although eating eggs with chicken is potentially eating the bird and its period, it's still pretty damn good.

 

[IlluminaChaos]

Nice thread! I am always cooking up different food as it is my occupation and how I make a living for myself.When Im at home I cook most of the time, because its like no effort at all to cook up something even if it takes a while to prepare,I get into a zen state while doing it,Especially grilling outdoors.Favorite dish I like to make,pork chops and rice Maranara.Heres my recipe,

Get a clear pyrex dish ,the size depends on how big you wanna go with it,I typicaly cook about 6 pork chops when I make it,I use a 12x8 pyrex.
Season the pork chops to your own tastes,I recommend using garlic powder,rosemary and just a bit of black pepper,for my recipe.
1 cup of rice,minute rice is preffered here.
1 cup of water
add the rice evenly throughout the dish with the seasoned pork chops.Then add the water,sparingly so you dont wash off the seasoning from the chops.
Dice up a half of a green pepper,and half of one onion and add evenly throughout the dish,add 1 can of marinara sauce or spaghetti sauce over your rice and chops,season it with oregano and finish off with garlic powder.And as an optional topping ad some sharp cheddar over the top of everything.Then cover the dish with foil,leaving a corner loose enough for venting.
Preheat the oven to 375,set for 55 minutes.When done,remove foil and let sit for 10 min or so,it comes out really hot!
And there you have it,my fav home recipe for Marinara chops and rice.

 

[The Witch]

I make a mean grilled cheese and fried ramen noodle

other then that, i do not cook at all. i am terrible at it. i'd really like to learn though. i love food so it only makes sense that i learn to be great at it.

 

[caroleinne]

I hate cooking - even tho I'm a girl and will soon leaving for uni and live on my own, UGH - and hate it even more after reading about the salmonella thingy above >_>
I think I should stick with tofu...or vegetables...only...