what is your favorite meal?

[leftofthedial]

one you or someone else at your house cooks or one you eat frequently at a restaurant,

My favorite is undoubtedly chicken guacamole enchiladas smothered green.

[bertha katzenengel]

eggplant parmesan

It's made many different ways, but my favorite way is to have it in a casserole, sliced eggplant, breaded, fried lightly in olive oil, layered with tomatoes and mozzarella, smothered w/ light marinara, topped w/ more mozzarella and don't skimp on the parmesan (not kraft sprinkle cheese -- the kind from the special cheese section, hand-grated at home), baked.... serve with pasta... ooohhhhhhh, my!

[leftofthedial]

2. yumm. I just made a mushroom and red pepper lasagne

homemade tomato sauce, sauteed red peppers and onions and sauteed button and cremini mushrooms, ricotta, mozzarella, parmesiano reggiano . . .

definitely don't skimp on the parmesan! I think I could eat my weight in real parm.

I'm sitting here stuffed and you made me hungry!

[bertha katzenengel]

3. ggggghGOD, that sounds delicious!

YUM!!

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

1. Johnny Carino's Italian Pot Roast

http://www.carinos.com/default.asp

Second is Texas Land & Cattle's Mesquite Grilled Salmon. Served with the most incredible garlic mashed potatoes.

http://www.texaslandandcattle.com/men.htm

[leftofthedial]

4. there is a Johnny Carino's near here. I've never eaten there.

Now I know what to order when I do.

We don't have texaslandandcattle here, but grilled salmon and garlic mashed potatoes would be hard to beat.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

5. Chicken Kiev!!!!! Or Kreplach Soup. But Mainly Chicken Kiev :)

[leftofthedial]

8. I should know this, but what is kreplach soup?

Do you make your own Chicken Kiev?

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

10. It's A Jewish Soup. Kreplach Is Actually The Original Wonton, but with

brisket as the meat instead of pork. When made right, (which means how my mother made them) they are good as hell and blow wontons away!

Yes, I make my own chicken kiev, but not often enough. Too damn tedious.

[leftofthedial]

11. I don't know how you keep the stuffing inside the chicken

I've done other similar stuffed chicken dishes with mixed success.

I'm thinking I may do one special Sunday dinner a month on a weekend when my daughters visit and prepare a different classic dish each time. Chicken Kiev would be a great on for that.

[Texasgal]

6. Red Beans and rice....

With crusty french bread... I could eat that all day long, oh! and one MUST have a healthy splash of Lousiana hot sauce with it! YUUUUMMMM!

[leftofthedial]

9. oh yeah! that's a total classic

there used to be a restaurant near here that made killer red beans and rice

I need to make a batch.

and the crusty french bread . . . There is no good bakery near here, unless you count Whole Foods (but I'm way too poor to shop there)

I guess I'll have to take up baking too.

[Texasgal]

13. I haven't had a good batch in a long time...

Yummmmmmmmm... this thread is making me hungry! :P

[leftofthedial]

25. this is pathetic

I just pigged out on lasagne. I'm sitting here stuffed and I start a thread about food!

[LeftyMom]

14. Do you have a costco where you're at?

Around here they have many of the same breads as Whole Paycheck, but for about 1/2 the price.

[leftofthedial]

27. there's one not too far

I'll check it out. I just got my sister to switch from Sam's (I hate american workers) Club to Costco.

[GumboYaYa]

26. On Mondays, with grilled sausage.

I like chopped onions on mine too. Mmmmmm we may have to make some of those this week.

[leftofthedial]

42. chopped onions

green onions are good too

[LeftyMom]

7. Kung pao tofu over white rice

Yep, white rice. Brown rice sucks. There goes my healthy image. ;)

[leftofthedial]

15. don't worry. I still think of you as "healthy"

LOL

kung pao is yummy. do you like the peanuts kind or the cashews kind? how spicy?

[LeftyMom]

18. Flaming hot (I LOVE spicy food)

I prefer peanuts but I'll take cashews. The really important thing is that there must not be any water chestnuts- they're gross.

[leftofthedial]

21. onion, garlic, red peppers

and maybe some green onions?

hmmm I have a wok I never use

[LeftyMom]

23. zucchini's pretty good in there, too

:9

[leftofthedial]

24. maybe even some celery

[LeftyMom]

30. Tha wouldn't be bad either

I ought to get my mother's kung pao chicken recipe and see if I can veganize it. (She makes the best kung pao ever, which is a little strange since she's Italian. Mom's a hell of a cook.)

[leftofthedial]

36. the chicken is probably the only thing to change

the rest is usually just veggie stuff anyway.

now where did I leave that wok . . .

[LeftyMom]

39. Well I think she uses a little sugar

(I haven't watched her make it in 10 years, so I may be thinking of something else) so I'd have to swap that out for a vegan sugar, but there shouldn't be any other significant alterations. The level of spiciness may need to be adjusted to lend flavor to the tofu.

[leftofthedial]

41. do you do anything to your tofu in advance to flavor it?

i'm not vegan, but I do cook for vegan friends fairly often.

[LeftyMom]

43. Generally not when I stir fry

I just let it soak up the liquids before the heat seals it. I do press the water out so the texture improves, which makes for very thirsty tofu.

[leftofthedial]

47. I think I may just give kung pao tofu a try next time my friends are over

:thumbsup:

[u4ic]

17. I don't like the long grain brown rice

but I find the short grain positively delicious. :)

[leftofthedial]

50. I need to get more familiar with rice

It seems the local grocery store has a limited selection.

I'll have to try short-grain brown.

[u4ic]

53. Lundberg has a great selection of rice blends

This one is positively scrummy: http://www.lundberg.com/products/rice_nf_wildblend.shtml

[leftofthedial]

57. man, this thread is gonna keep me cooking for awhile

lots of new things to try.

[u4ic]

60. Just remember to call

when it's ready...I'm getting hungry. :rofl:

[leftofthedial]

61. maybe we can have a potluck

[KitchenWitch]

12. Tortellini Straw and Hay

Cheese tortellini in Alfredo sauce with peas and proscuitto.

[leftofthedial]

19. oh man. I have about half a pound of killer good prosciutto

that I need to use within the next week or so.

do you make your own tortellini? if not, what kind do you buy?

I'm thinking along the lines of making a crab-stuffed tortellini because I also have about a pound of crab legs and claws in the freezer.

I saw Good Eats one time when Alton Brown made all sorts of ravioli and tortellini. He used an ironing board to roll out ravioli pasta.

I don't do ironing.

[KitchenWitch]

20. I usually buy a bag of frozen tortellini!

I know...cheating, but oh well, the alfredo sauce is homemade.

[leftofthedial]

28. that's not cheating. judging from the good eats episode

tortellini looks like a pain to make

but it might be a good use for my crab . . . .

[KitchenWitch]

32. Ravioli would be easier!

[leftofthedial]

34. you are right

crab ravioli it is.

the prosciutto and peas . . .

it's working for me.

[KitchenWitch]

35. Sounds heavenly!

[Redstone]

16. Too many to pick just one. Mrs R is a helluva cook.

Redstone

[leftofthedial]

29. any favorite "genre" ?

Ethnic? Seafood?

[Redstone]

46. No seafood. I'm allergic to shellfish. Horribly so.

And it's hard to pick a "genre." She cooks Italian food better than any Italian woman I've known, Mexican better than Mexicans, and so on.

Though, if you forced me to pick one type of food that I had to eat for the rest of my life and be happy with it, it would have to be Mediterranean / Middle Eastern.

Maybe an odd choice for a born and bred New Englander, but there it is.

Redstone

[leftofthedial]

52. an odd but delicious choice

plus, it has so many complex and interesting flavors that it's a wise choice for the "rest of your life" menu.

[u4ic]

22. Shoulder lamb chops,

in my own special marinade, broiled or BBQed, served with garlic/rosemary roast potatoes (in 1/2 butter, 1/2 olive oil), baby green salad (homemade creamy garlic dressing) and steamed veggies (preferably brussel sprouts or asparagus). :bounce:

Anything chocolate for dessert. :7
Or bison, cheese, spinach and roast green, red, yellow pepper and onion quesadillas. :bounce:

Again, with anything chocolate for dessert. :7

[leftofthedial]

33. now that's a menu!

Lamb chops! Mmmmm.

any hints about your special marinade?

I used to love brussel sprouts, but the last couple of times I had them they were very bitter.

and anything chocolate sounds delicious!

[u4ic]

38. I'll give a bit of a hint

just for you ;-)

LOTS of Montreal Steak Spice, and at least 6-8 cloves of garlic. And just a dash of regular BBQ sauce. Along with the olive oil, lemon juice and rosemary.



:D

[leftofthedial]

44. wow

thanks! that sounds quite delicious. I'll have to track down a good Montreal Steak Spice.

[u4ic]

49. You're welcome! Enjoy!

I leave it to marinate at least 24 hours; 48 is even better.

This is the Montreal Steak Spice I use...I don't know if it's available in the US: http://www.clubhouse-canada.com/productdetail.cfm?ID=10324

On the rare occasion I have roast beef, I roll it so it's coated in the spice. It's great on chicken and salmon steaks, too. :hi:

[leftofthedial]

51. I have a jar of something billed as montreal steak spice

(or something similar), but I don't think it's really the right stuff at all. My BIL carries lots of spices, rubs and sauces at his market. I'll ask my sister if they have anything like that. Sounds like a great dry rub.

Thank you!

[PittPoliSci]

31. General Tso's (anything) with steamed rice.

[leftofthedial]

40. I tried cooking General Tso's chicken once a few years ago

it was okay, but it just wasn't quite right. There was a place not far from our house that made killer General Tso's Chicken, so I never tried cooking it again. I'll have to dig up a recipe.

[PittPoliSci]

45. i ruined my poor mother's expensive skillet trying to cook it

total grease fire. i'm just glad I didn't burn the house down. i still haven't replaced it, i feel bad, but I will eventually.

[MadAsHellNewYorker]

37. breakfast any time - eggs, omelettes, pancakes sometimes

:9

[leftofthedial]

48. ahhh, waffle house

three a.m.

I believe that breakfast is a state of mind, not a time of day.

[MadAsHellNewYorker]

56. right on

:yourock:

we have the 24 hour diners here in NY :9

[leftofthedial]

58. I've been a musician for a long time

that means probably a thousand post-gig breakfasts . . .

[Common Sense Party]

54. Brazilian barbecue nt

[leftofthedial]

55. tell me about Brazilian barbeque

how is it different or similar to various American styles of barbeque?

[Common Sense Party]

63. A lot of it is the atmosphere, and how the food is served. But...

At a Brazilian steakhouse (like Rodizio's--in Salt Lake, Denver, Houston, I think), the food is roasted on spits or swords over open flame. The main item is different cuts of beef, but they also barbecue chicken, turkey wrapped in bacon, sausage, ham, pineapple, vegetables, sometimes even exotic cuts like snake.

Then the servers take one of the swords off the fire and circulate around the restaurant. They bring it right to your table, and if you'd like some, they slice it off for you. So it's always hot and fresh off the fire. The meat is tender, juicy, lightly seasoned with salt and garlic...

Sorry, I'm salivating right now.

You eat as much as you want. You have a little marker on the table. When you have the green side up, the servers will keep coming to your table. When you're stuffed--or when you're focusing on the excellent salad bar--you turn the marker to red and the servers don't bother you with more cuts.

So, unlike Texas-style barbecue, it doesn't rely on lots of thick BBQ sauce. Unlike Tennessee-style, it's not pulled pork, etc. with vinegar-based sauce. The meat is the star. Usually you don't need to put a thing on the beef, because it's so good as is. (Don't get me wrong, I like the Texas and Southern-styles, but I like Brazilian better.)

[lpbk2713]

59. Ham & eggs, sunny side with home fries and

an English muffin. Coffee and V-8 juice.

[RushIsRot]

62. ONE of my all time favorites is---

Turkey pot pie and tossed salad with Wishbone Italian dressing...

Astounding taste at a small cost.