Nacho Cheesy Rice

I enjoy making dishes like this for work during the week. It stores well and reheats nicely in the microwave, but most importantly, it really is a tasty dish. I can eat it like a dip with tortilla chips or garnish with chili flavored corn chips for texture. The rice helps make this stretch to 3 or 4 servings and only a pound of ground beef is used.

I like to make a cheese sauce in dishes like this because it stays in a more liquid or gravy-like form after it cools. Its much easier to reheat and return to the creamy texture when eating as a left over. Just throwing shredded cheese in a dish like this is great if you're eating it hot, but it clumps back together once it cools. The sauce route is much better if left overs are part of the plan - which is the case for almost everything I make.

Eat well, cook often ...

Nacho Cheesy Rice
1 lb ground beef
2 Tbs unsalted butter
2 jalapenos, seeded, diced
1/2 onion, dice (1C)
1 Tbs chile powder
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp Mexican oregano
1 tsp garlic, minced
2 Tbs flour
2 C milk
2 C pepper jack cheese, shredded
2C cooked rice
Chili flavored corn chips for garnish

In a large pan or pot brown ground beef over medium heat. Salt and pepper to taste. Remove to paper-towel lined plate with a slotted spoon. Add butter to drippings in pan, once melted saute onion and jalepeno until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Add spices and garlic, cook until fragrant, a minute or two. Return ground beef to pan, stir into mixture. Add flour, mix in to absorb liquid, stir and cook 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in milk. Bring to simmer and let thicken slightly. Add cheese 2 tbs at a time, stir constantly and let melt completely, then add more cheese. Repeat until cheese is gone. Stir in Rice. Remove from heat, let cool slightly, then serve. Garnish with chili corn chips.

Sweet Pepper Jambalaya

This dish was intended to be a soup up until the onions and peppers were literally sauteing. It was at that moment I decided to make it a little more substantial.

I wanted this to go a little further and stick to my ribs more than a soup would. That's when I made the executive decision to turn it into a jambalaya-inspired dish. I went to the pantry and grabbed a can of tomato sauce and a cup of rice to throw in the pot. Then I added just half of the broth I was originally going to add because that's all the liquid I would need for the rice.

I call it jambalaya, but it's not really cajun or creole in the way it's spiced and it doesn't have any seafood. But this is pretty much how I would go about making jambalaya if I wanted to go that route. What I love about a dish like this is how the rice and liquid congeal to create an almost creamy texture that sees to surround all the wonderful flavors that are the real star of the show.

The end result was a hardy and delicious one pot meal. For me, it stored well and was easy to reheat and take to work for dinner. I got 4 servings out of it, so it would be perfect for a family for dinner.

This recipe started out as an attempt to get rid of sweet peppers I had bought on sale and wanted to use up before they started to wilt. I really couldn't decide what to make even as I was dicing things up, I was just going the direction of a soup and it evolved into this dish. It was fun just letting it happen. It's as if I started writing a sentence before I knew what the final words would be. I should experiment like this more in the future.

Eat well, cook often ...

SWEET PEPPER JAMBALAYA
Serves 4, 40 miniutes
1 lb Italian sausage
3 C sweet peppers, diced
1 medium onion, diced
2 Tbs garlic, minced
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 can tomato sauce (15.5 oz)
2 C vegetable broth
1 C long grain rice

In a soup pot over medium heat, brown Italian sausage 6 to 8 minutes. Remove to a paper-towel lined plate or bowl. Add sweet pepper and onion to pot and sauté in sausage drippings until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Season to taste. Stir in Italian seasonings and garlic, cook 1 to 2 minutes or until fragrant. Return sausage to pot and add tomato sauce, broth and rice. Mix well. Bring to a boil, cover and let simmer 15 minutes, turn off heat, let rest with cover on for 10 minutes more. Remove lid and fluff. Rice should have absorbed nearly all liquid and be tender. Scoop and serve.

Mexican Stir Fry

Printable version

Rice has been cultivated for more than 7,000 years. Archeologist in China have even unearthed rice-filled pots dating as far back as 8,000 B.C.

Today, it’s a dietary staple for half of the world’s population and is grown in two ways. Aquatic rice, or paddy-grown, is raised in flooded fields. Hill-grown, which yields less and is lower quality, can grow nearly anywhere in a tropical environment.

Rice is classified commercially by its length and comes in short, medium and long grain varieties. As a general rule, shorter rice means more starch, and therefore more sticky when cooked and ready to serve.

I prefer less-sticky long grain rice because it clumps less. I usually make it plain to add to a recipe or to serve something over it. For this recipe, I wanted the rice to stand alone as a side with a Mexican flavor. To do that I create a chili-seasoned base before adding any liquid. It’s then boiled and covered. This allows the rice to drink up all of the yummy flavors while it hydrates and softens in the pot.

BEHIND THIS BITE

Mexican Stir Fry

I made the rice and featured it in the print version of my column and it ran with the introduction above. I didn’t have enough room in print for the entire stir fry recipe so I went with just the rice. I have been doing that a lot lately. I’m looking for ways to do more complex recipes for the web and using parts or simplified versions for the print column. It kills two birds with one stone.

That said ... the Mexican stir fry was a fun twist on the traditional Asian flavored classic, and it was a tasty meal. I used fresh corn that I sliced off the cob, which was a task. It was tasty and I’m glad I used it but with so many flavors in the mix, canned corn would have probably saved time without much sacrifice in flavor. Canned corn is much closer to the fresh stuff than green beans and many other canned vegetables.

The chipotle sauce I used is a go-to sauce that I get in the world food isle at the grocery. Had I been insanely ambitious with this recipe I would have made a homemade version, but sometimes you just have to say enough is enough – and I had just cut fresh corn off the cob – until the Food Network or Martha Stewart is payin' me big bucks for these recipes I'm just gonna have to use some ingredients from a can or jar!

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE

Mexican Stir Fry

Serves 6 to 8; 35 minutes
1 C Onion diced
1/2 C Jalapeño seeded, diced
1 Tbs Garlic minced
1 Tbs Chili powder
2 tsp Cumin
1 tsp Oregano
2 C Rice
4 C Water
2 lbs Chicken thighs, boneless, skinless
2 C Yellow corn
1 C Poblano pepper, seeded, chopped
1/2 C Chipotle sauce
Cilantro for garnish

Sauté vegetables
In a soup pot over medium heat sauté onion and jalapeño in a little olive oil until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Toast spices, rice
Add garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano and rice. Stir until well combined, let mixture toast for 2 minutes or until fregrant.

Finish rice
Add water, bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat. Simmer for 15 minutes, remove from heat but keep covered for 10 minutes more. Remove lid, fluff with a fork.

Make stir 
Fry While rice finishes, in a wok or skillet heated to medium-high brown chicken in a little olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste. When chicken is just cooked through, add corn, poblano and chipotle sauce. Cook until vegetables are soft, six to 8 minutes more. Adjust seasoning, serve over rice.

Cheesy Taco Rice

Printable version

Note: The taco seasoning used in this recipe is my own blend, find the recipe here.

It seems as though anytime I’m involved in some sort of gathering involving a group of people, I end up volunteering to bring something to eat. I love cooking for a crowd, but it does provide a couple of challenges that need to be overcome. Unless the gathering is in your home, it needs to be portable and most important, kept warm for serving.

This is an ideal situation for using a large crock -pot. The food can be cooked ahead of time, transported to the location and plugged in to finish and then served hot. A large crock-pot can also hold the bucket full of food needed to feed a room full of people.

For this recipe, I mix six cups of cooked rice with three pounds of ground beef, two pounds of Queso Blanco Velveeta, salsa, taco seasoning and vegetables and cook it in a crock-pot. The end result is a cheesy Mexican inspired dish that provides a serving for 12 to 15 normal people. A little more might be needed if the party you’re hosting happens to be for the local sumo wrestling club.

BEHIND THIS BITE
Over the last year I have gotten a lot of miles out of my crock-pot. I’ve been living in the Fort Wayne/Churubusco area for three years and now that I'm settled it seems like at least once a week I have somewhere to take food I have prepared.

When I first started taking food places I wasn’t documenting it. I was just throwing things together, but more and more people began asking me for the recipes. In response, I have started to photograph and publish the dishes and I’ve started to develop a nice little collection of crock-pot treasures that provide between 15 and 20 servings.

This recipe is part of that collection and it was devoured in about 20 minutes. I was happy that it went fast but I was glad I saved some for myself before going to the event, otherwise I wouldn't have gotten any. Glad I did because it's tasty!

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE
Serves 12 to 15; 2 hours, 30 minutes
3 lbs Ground beef
2 C Red pepper, diced
2 C Red onion, diced
2 Tbs Garlic, minced
2 lbs Queso Blanco Velveeta, diced
1 jar Salsa (24 oz)
6 C Rice, cooked
3 Tbs Taco seasoning
1C Tortilla strips for garnish

Brown beef
In a skillet over medium heat cook ground beef, breaking up large chunks and stirring occasionally. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook until just cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain and place in slow cooker. Reserve a tablespoon of the drippings.

Cook vegetables
Return skillet to medium-high heat, sauté onion and red pepper in reserved drippings until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Stir in garlic and cook 2 minutes more. Place mixture in the slow cooker.

Combine and cook
Add cheese, rice, salsa and seasoning to slow cooker, thoroughly mix together all ingredients. Cover and cook on high for two hours or until mixture is heated through and cheese is bubbly. Scoop into a bowl, garnish with tortilla strips and serve.

Thai Curry Chicken

Printable version

The is my first attempt at creating a Thai recipe of my own. I love chicken thighs in anything, so using them as the protein was a good start for the dish.

I used 2 tablespoons of red curry paste and a sliced and seeded jalapeño for heat. I thought that would be enough but I should have used more curry paste and left the stems and seeds in the jalapeño. I would have liked more kick, which means the spice in this recipe is probably spot on for most people because, like I have said before, mild heat to me is most people’s hell fire.

The coconut milk really does a good job of mellowing out the dish. I really like working with it because of the balance it provides. I hope to utilize it in my savory cooking more. The ginger opens up the taste buds and gives the entire dish a great aroma and flavor.

All in all, I really liked this recipe. It was good for a first attempt. In baseball terms I will call this a double into the gap, which I’ll take every time I’m at the plate. It needs a little more love before I can call it a home run though. I would like for the sauce to be a little thicker and I’ll have to experiment with how to accomplish that.

BEHIND THIS BITE

I started this recipe the day before I actually created and finished it. I was working on the ginger when a simple slip of the knife while mincing it led to a gnarly cut on my index finger. No stitches were required but, I had to quit for a while to get it cleaned up and bandaged.

Every so often that happens when you work with sharp objects. Luckily, it wasn’t bad enough to warrant a trip to the emergency room. The entire day leading up to the knife incident was a fiasco - I took the cut as a sign to give up on the cooking and instead move onto working at the computer.

Some times a change of pace is all it takes to make a bad day better, and giving up on the recipe was the right move – the rest of the day went smooth and easy. I made the Thai chicken for lunch the next afternoon and all of my fingers made it through unblemished.

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE

Serves 4; 40 minutes
1 1/2 lbs Chicken thighs, boneless, skinless, cut into chunks
1/2 C Onion diced
1 Jalapeno seeded, sliced
3 Tbs Ginger, minced
1 Tbs Garlic, minced
2 Tbs Red curry paste
1/2 C Chicken broth
1 Can Lite coconut milk
1 Tbs Fish sauce
1/2 C Cilantro, chopped
1 Jalapeño, sliced
2 C Rice
4 C Chicken broth

Brown chicken, sauté vegetables; paste
Start rice, see below. In a large pan over medium-high heat brown chicken in a little olive oil on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes. Season chicken with salt and pepper to taste.  Remove to a plate. Add some oil to pan if necessary, cook onion and jalapeño until soft, 4 to 6 minutes. Stir in ginger and garlic, cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in red curry paste cook 30 seconds.

Add liquid, finish, serve
Add chicken broth and a little of the coconut milk scrapping up any brown bits and dissolving curry paste. Stir in rest of coconut milk and fish sauce, return chicken to pan lower heat to medium and simmer until chicken is cooked through. Serve over rice, garnish with cilantro and fresh jalapeño slices.

THE RICE
In a large sauce pan over medium-high heat toast rice in a little olive oil for 2 minutes. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil, cover and remove from heat. Let sit at least 25 minutes. Remove lid and fluff rice with fork. 

Creamy Mushroom Risotto

Printable version

The key to making risotto is patience. Lots of patience. I had never made it before I made this recipe. I’ve watched several Food Network stars make it. Paula Dean, Giada De Laurentiis, Tyler Flourence - the list goes on. And it looks a whole lot easier on the tube. They conveniently edit out the 30 minutes of stirring and pouring that it takes to make a batch. I personally think that someone else did the stirring for them during the taping - by the time I was done, I was half bent over the stove and board out of my mind waiting for the rice to soften just to the point of al dente! Had I not given up beer for Lent then I’m sure I would have downed a six pack with one hand as I stirred with the other. I didn’t see all that labor on any of the TV shows while risotto was being made. Come to think of it, I never see them doing any dishes either!

In all seriousness, I really did enjoy making this. The starch from the rice is slowly absorbed into the chicken stock and forms a creamy gravy. The process takes longer than I thought it would but the end result was a tasty dish that I’m going to try again. It’s cool to see it come together.

BEHIND THIS BITE
I think this could be a real knockout dish for those times when you want to impress someone. I want to try it with a protein like chicken or maybe roasted red peppers. The potential for a great dish is limitless. I think that a great dessert could be made from this also, it’s just a matter of finding the right balances.

When I originally started to make this dish I had to postpone the shoot because I realized that I needed a short grain rice to make a good risotto. The shorter grains are starchier and work better to make the creamy gravy that really makes the dish. I settled on arborio rice, which worked fine in the end.

I made this on Friday and thought I was doing the right thing for Lent - no meat on Fridays. It wasn’t until I had eaten a bowl that I realized that I used chicken broth in the recipe! Technically I didn’t make a meat dish, but at least one chicken had to die for me to have this yummy supper. Once again I was foiled, it really is tougher than one would think to give up meat on Fridays for lent - especially when you’re a carnivore like myself.

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE

Serves 6; 50 minutes
1/2 lb Mushrooms, sliced
1/2 C Onion, diced
1 Tbs Garlic, minced
5 C Chicken broth (simmering)
1 1/2 C Arborio rice 2 tsp Fresh thyme

Cook mushrooms; heat broth
In a sauté pan over medium heat sauté mushroom and onion in a little olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook until mushrooms release water and onions are soft, 5 to 6 minutes. Add garlic and cook another 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside, wipe pan clean. In a pot or sauce pan, bring broth to a simmer over medium heat.

Toast rice, add stock, finish
Add a little more oil to empty sauté pan then add rice, stir to coat and let rice toast 2 to 3 minutes. Add a cup of broth to rice, stir constantly until broth is absorbed. Repeat until broth is gone, stirring continuously, 30 to 35 minutes. Once rice is cooked and creamy add thyme, reserved mushrooms and vegetables and heat through, 3 to 4 minutes more. Then serve.

Spanish Rice with Chorizo

Printable version

This dish features a pound of fresh chorizo, a pork sausage with heavy seasoning. Chorizo has two different forms - Mexican and Spanish. Both are loaded with spices native to their regions and it comes raw and cured.

For this recipe, I use a raw Spanish version of chorizo that needs cooked. It's joined by red pepper and onion and the three form the base of the recipe. Once the that gets going garlic, smoked paprika, oregano and long grained rice is tossed in. The rice is toasted and allowed to soak up a little flavor before the chicken broth is added.

The mixture is then covered, heat reduced and simmered for twenty minutes, then removed from heat. It’s important to keep the cover on at this point - the steamy environment inside the pot allows the rice to absorb all of the moisture and fully cook through, removing the lid stops this process and the dish will not finish properly. After ten minutes the cover is removed, the rice is fluffed and the feast of Spanish rice with chorizo can begin!

BEHIND THIS BITE
I have started something new. The first 200-words or so of a post are now going to be detailed descriptions of the cooking process involved in the recipe. This won’t always be needed, especially with pizza or burgers, but I will start doing this whenever applicable. It is just a small refinement in presentation, the first in a long time that is meant to improve the writing.

I have made many tweeks and changes to the design and photography and thought it was time to try and enhance the narrative in each post. I came to this conclusion while looking through my blog recently. Each dish is put together in its own unique way and I thought a detailed description of that process would be a nice addition to the overall narrative. Describing the cooking process also gives me a unique story for each recipe because each recipe is one-of-a-kind.

I started this earlier with my grilled loin recipe. I am not always going to do this, but I will when applicable. For those of you here for more than just the cool graphics and are still reading at this point, I hope you enjoy the changes!

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE
Serves 4; 45 minutes
1 lb Chorizo fresh
1 C Red pepper, diced
1 C Onion diced
1 Tbs Garlic diced
1 tsp Smoked paprika
2 tsp Oregano
1 1/2 C Rice
3 C Chicken broth
Cilantro for garnish

Brown chorizo, sauté vegetables
In a large skillet over medium heat add chorizo, onion and red pepper. Cook until chorizo is browned and vegetables are soft, 5 to 6 minutes.

Add garlic, spices, rice; finish
Stir in garlic, spices and rice, cook until garlic is fragrant and rice is slightly toasted 2 to 3 minutes. Add broth, cover and simmer on low for 20 minutes. Remove from heat, keep lid on tight. Let rest for 10 minutes more. Remove cover, fluff with a fork and serve. Garnish with cilantro (optional).

Pork Fried Rice

Printable version

The Thai Pavilion in Astoria, Queens has the best pork fried rice I have ever eaten. I used to eat buckets of the stuff at their 30th Avenue location which is now closed and moved to another spot in the neighborhood.

Whenever I eat pork fried rice I compare it to the Pavilion. It has become my standard barer of all things fried rice. A single order would cost $9, which is a bit expensive, but it was enough for two people. The only bad thing about the price was that I had to get two orders for them to deliver because they required a minimum purchase of $10 to bring it to your door. (It is now a $15 minimum) It was light and spicy and perfectly prepared every time. Even cold leftovers directly from the fridge were good and didn’t clump up.

This recipe is my attempt at recreating the pork fried rice bliss of the Pavilion. The dish turned out delicious but I still think the Thai Pavilion has magic in their woks.

BEHIND THIS BITE
I took my Dad to eat at the Thai Pavilion during one of his visits and he agreed that the pork fried rice was outstanding. I was glad I got to take him to a nice restaurant that serves Asian cuisine. The majority of the Asian themed restaurants here in Fort Wayne are just run of the mill take-out joints or an all-you-can-eat buffet.

A good stir fry should come right out of a wok, to me, scooping beef and broccoli out of a hotel pan that has been on a buffet for two hours is low budget. Much like having a wine and cheese party with government cheese. It tastes ok but there is much better quality out there.

The best Asian restaurant experience that I’ve ever had was in Philadelphia. I don’t remember the name of the place but the beef chow fun I order was the best single Asian dish I have ever eaten and probably a top five meal of all-time on my list. I highly recommend finding a high-end Asian-style restaurant for special occasions - and I’m not talking about the Panda Express.

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE
Serves 4; 25 minutes
6 Tbs Vegetable oil, divided
1/2 C Green onions, sliced
1/2 C Carrot, shredded
2 tsp Ginger, minced
1 Tbs Garlic, minced
1 lb Pork, diced
2 Eggs, beaten
2 C Leftover rice, cold
2 Tbs Soy sauce
1 Tbs Sriracha sauce

Sauté vegetables
In a wok or large fry pan heat oil over medium high heat, add onions, carrot and ginger saute until soft 2 to 3 minutes, season to taste, remove from pan and wipe clean.

Cook pork
Add oil to pan and let it get hot, 1 to 2 minutes add garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute. Add pork, season to taste and cook through, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from pan and wipe clean.

Cook Egg, rice, finish
Add remaining oil to pan, add eggs and scramble, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in rice, cook until browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Add soy sauce, sriracha, return pork and vegetables to pan and combine. Heat through, then serve.

Spicy Black Beans and Rice

Printable version

When I set out to make this dish I was looking to create a spicy side. The batch was large enough for an alternative use though - burrito filling. So I decided to present it as both.

What I love most about this dish is how the rice absorbs the flavors. I have been cooking rice in chicken broth rather than water for years, it ads a ton a flavor. The rice here has not only chicken broth but chipotle, cayenne and a nice vegetable base as well.

I start the dish off with what I call my a southwestern mirepoix, which consists of onion, poblano pepper and garlic. It's a great flavor base that creates nice depth in the finished dish.

I have to say, I enjoyed this more in a burrito rather than by itself as a side. I like how the sour cream and avocado provided a cool balance to the spicy heat in the rice.

This can easily be made vegetarian by replacing the chicken broth with vegetable broth - making it great for those who choose not to savor the yummy goodness created when heat is applied to parts of animals who are now grazing in the great pastures above.

BEHIND THIS BITE
When I originally made this dish I had to much cayenne pepper. The first batch was blow your mind hot, I needed a little sour cream on top to eat it as a side dish, so I dialed it back to a quarter teaspoon.

I learned a lot about rice creating this recipe. I love how it absorbs the flavors in the liquid it's cooked in. It was really my first attempt at a Spanish rice-type dish. In the future, I’m going to play with different flavors in the liquid for different styles of rice. I think it would be easy to make a Cajun-style or Italian-style rice, it would just be about finding the right combo of vegetables and spices to give it an ethnic flare.

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE
Side for 8 to 10; 45 minutes
1 C Onion, diced
1 Tbs Garlic, minced
1 C Poblano, cleaned, chopped
1 Can Black beans, (14.5 oz) rinsed
3 C Chicken broth
1 Tbs Chipotle chili powder
2 tsp Cumin
1/4 tsp Cayenne
1 1/2 C Rice
1/4 C Cilantro, chopped

Sauté Vegetables
In a soup pot over medium heat, sauté onion and garlic in a little olive oil until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes add Poblano, season with salt and pepper, cook until soft, 3 to 4 minutes more. 

Add broth, beans, seasonings and rice
Add chicken broth, black beans, chipotle chili powder, cumin, cayenne pepper and rice. Bring mixture to a boil. Cover, remove from heat. Let sit 25 minutes. Do not remove lid. 

Remove cover, fluff, add cilantro
Uncover pot, fluff mixture with a fork and stir in cilantro. Adjust seasonings, then serve.

FOR BURRITOS
Makes 8 burritos
8 Flour tortillas
4 C Rice and beans
2 Avocados, sliced
2 Tomatoes, sliced
2 Tomatoes, sliced
1/2 C Sour cream

On a burrito sized flour tortilla place spicy rice and beans, avocado slices, tomato slices and sour cream. Fold in sides, roll shut, slice in half and serve.

Spicy Chicken Stir Fry, Anytime!

It’s 5:10 p.m., I’m at the grocery store and looking for something to make for dinner. This scenario plays out ever day in America – What am I going to make for supper? Most of the time, I start by looking for meat and fresh vegetables that are on sale.

This time, I find a special on boneless chicken breast and decide to make a stir fry. I opt for a $2 bag of frozen vegetables to get a nice variety for a fraction of the cost of fresh ones. I then grab some fresh ginger on the way to the check-out. That is all I need at the store.

For this recipe, all other ingredients that will turn this into an Asian stir fry are at home in the pantry. At any time, I can turn meats and vegetables into a Mexican, Italian or Asian treat just by keeping a few items around in the fridge or cupboard. When I run out of a pantry item, I put it on the list just like bread or milk. All these items at once can be costly, but by planning and understanding the right ingredients to suit your taste, it is relatively easy to make a semi-gourmet meal like this whenever the urge hits.


BEHIND THIS BITE
I had made an entirely different recipe for this week's column when I was at the store getting the chicken, vegetables and ginger for the stir fry. On the way home it hit me – what I was doing at the moment – is what millions were doing at the same time. I love to make gourmet meals, but I don't cook like that every time I eat. Most of the time, I'm looking to make something quick, affordable, somewhat healthy and tasty.

I always have the pantry ingredients that are listed in this recipe. The hoisin sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar and soy sauce help make a yummy stir fry – and I make it a lot. I also use this combination of ingredients to make a barbecue sauce. (find recipe here)

Building a well stocked pantry is expensive initially. It becomes cost effective over time, because the hoisin and soy sauce go in the fridge, like ketchup, and the rice vinegar and sesame oil go in the cupboard. The next time you make stir fry, these ingredients are ready – and should last for a while. For me, The hoisin sauce runs out first, but a 9 ounce bottle should last for a few meals at least.

From time to time, I am going to do more of these "stock the pantry" recipes. It's more about practical cooking rather than the newest take on mango-wango fondu. (Which is fun to create also) With these simple ingredients you can make an endless amount of meals with a delicious Asian inspired flavor.

Eat well, cook often ...