by
Joan Taylor
Hello! I'm the "Opinionated Cook", and this is the first of what I hope can become a "once-in-a-while" series of "road"recipes for RVers who want good food without having to spend a lot of time or effort preparing and/or cooking it after a long day of travel and/or sightseeing. I'll also include tips, ideas, and information on cooking utensils and techniques, food items and products, and whatever else strikes me as useful or interesting - that's where some of the "opinionated" part comes in!
I come from a long line of "scratch cooks and good feeders" who believe(d) that "real food" was love made visible on the table and a well-seasoned iron frying pan was an heirloom. I've cooked for 1 to 140 over, in, and on everything from campfires to commercial stoves, and would still - after a lot of years - rather cook than do almost anything else. I'm happy to answer food and cooking questions, and would appreciate hearing your comments if you use any of the recipes; just e-mail me.
I rarely cook from a recipe, but for this Rvers Online segment, I've tried to put what's in my head into more specific measurements; please let me know if my attempt to quantify my usual "dump-it-in" techniques needs more work! I also may specify a particular item or brand - part of that "opinionated" thing again - because I think it's better for one reason or another. I'm not a food "nut" - I readily confess to being far too partial to fats and starches - but I avoid cooking with "processed" foods because they're loaded with salt, additives and preservatives; one label-reading trip through the grocery store brings an awareness of what most folks are really eating!
Most "fast" cooking, restaurant or home-style, is based on sautÈ cooking; this is a fancy name for "frying". I use a heavy 10" cast aluminum "skillet" with a non-stick coating because it heats evenly and is easy to clean when wiped out with a paper towel (keeping as much guck out of the grey tank as possible) before washing. (I also use my ancient 9" Lodge iron frying pan, but most people probably prefer a non-stick surface.) A sheet of aluminum foil serves as a lid, if needed; these recipes don't require long cooking times. I use unsalted butter (it's a lot more fresh than the salted kind), corn oil or olive oil (extra-virgin preferred; isn't that a silly name?) depending on the recipe; the fat used does affect the taste of the final product. Use whatever you prefer/are used to. (Vegetable/olive oils shouldn't be refrigerated; they cloud up and thicken.)
This is a good flavor combination...
SWEET POTATO FRY-UP
Peel sweet potatoes, onion and apples and cut into about 1/2" "cubes". Melt butter in skillet just until it starts to brown. Add potatoes and onion and saute over medium heat, "stirring up" with a spatula or wooden spoon, for about 5-7 minutes or until potatoes are lightly browned. Add apple, cinnamon, and brown sugar and sautÈ another 5 minutes or so. Cover loosely with foil, reduce heat to low and cook until potatoes and apples are just tender; this takes less than 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste, squeeze lemon over, stir up and serve. VARIATION: Cut 6 (or more) link pork "breakfast" sausages (preferably without additives if you can get them that way) into bite-size pieces. Fry these in a dry skillet until done, remove from the pan, drain the grease well, and cook up the potatoes/onion/apples in the sausage drippings. Stir in the sausage pieces before serving. (Taste before adding salt if you use the sausage.) A green salad and/or "steamed" broccoli is good with this.
*Sweet potatoes are usually marketed as "yams"; the best are the reddish/purplish skinned, orange-flesh varieties Jewel and Garnet.
MAMA'S HAMBURGER "GRAVY"
I give both variations here; this is #1...
1/2 lb. lean ground beef (or more; if you use more ground beef, adjust the other ingredients accordingly, including the tomato sauce - 8 or 15 oz. cans are what's available)
Peel and slice onion crosswise; cut slices in half. Peel and finely chop garlic. Wash peppers, remove membranes, seeds, and cut into strips about a "little finger" wide. (or narrower, depending on whose fingers you use to measure.)
Brown ground beef (depending on leanness of beef, no additional fat is needed) over medium high heat, breaking up the meat into small "chunks". (If you use more than 1/2 pound of beef, you may want to cook it in two batches as crowding the pan causes the meat to "stew" rather than brown.) When browned, remove beef to a plate, drain any acculmulated grease. Return pan to medium heat and sautÈ peppers/onion/garlic until "wilted" and lightly browned. Return meat to pan, add rest of ingredients, including "rinsing" out the tomato sauce can with about 1/2 cup of red wine. Stir up and cook until "sauce" thickens. Taste, add salt and pepper and "correct" seasoning, f necessary. (I serve both "gravies" over noodles or microwaved "baked" potatoes; just peel, mash up, and spoon "gravy" over. A green or vegetable salad goes well.
Chop onion coarsely. Chop garlic finely. (or put through a press directly into the pan when you add cook the onion/flour, etc.) Brown "hamburger" over medium-high heat; remove from pan. Drain excess fat or add some, depending on how much fat beef contains. Put onion and garlic into the pan, cook over medium heat until lightly browned. Sprinkle flour over the onion/garlic, stir up well, and stir/cook, for about 3-4 minutes. Add milk (it mixes better if it's warmed for about a minute in the microwave before adding to the pan) slowly, stirring or "whisking" quickly to break up any lumps. Cook, stirring, until thickened and smooth. Add beef and cook for a few minutes more. Season to taste. (This second version is "right fillin' " and good if you can work it off after by plowing or pulling stumps or bucking hay bales.)
The vegetables in this stir-fry take a little time to prepare, but the cooking time is pretty short. Read the recipe through first so the extra "touch" with the sauce doesn't take you by surprise at the last minute.....
STIR-FRY CHICKEN AND VEGETABLES
"Teriyaki" sauce (recipe follows)
Skin, rinse and pat the chicken breast(s) dry with paper towels. (Buying boned chicken breasts is convenient, but a lot more expensive; your choice.) Cut into bite-size pieces and put on a plate or piece of plastic wrap or waxed paper. Wash all knives, cutting boards, plates that contact raw chicken in hot, soapy water (lower temperature for your hands, of course) before using them for the rest of the ingredients. Wash broccoli, peppers, celery (if used) snow peas, and chard/bok choy. Cut broccoli into "florets" (cut in half if still large), peel and slice onion into (about) 1/4" slices, then halve these, peel and slice carrots thinly on the diagonal, cut peppers into thin strips, remove ends and strings from peas, and cut chard/bok choy into strips about 1" wide; use as much of the stem as you want.
Heat pan over medium-high to high heat, then put about 1 tablespoon of oil in the hot pan (corn or other vegetable oil is fine) , heat oil until it "shimmers", then add the chicken pieces and cook until browned. Remove from the pan and put on a plate (don't put the cooked chicken on to the same plate that the raw chicken was on without washing the plate). Add onion, pepper, celery (if used) and carrot to the pan (still HOT), and stir-fry for about 2 minutes. Add the pea pods, bok choy/chard, and chicken, stir to combine well; the bok choy or chard will cook down pretty quickly. Add about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of the sauce with 2 teaspoons cornstarch stirred into it until smooth to the pan, cover with a foil "lid" and cook just until the chard is done and the sauce is thickened; about 3-4 minutes. Stir up, serve over rice with a few cashews or almonds sprinkled on top. (Other vegetables, such as asparagus, fresh bean sprouts, etc. can be used also).
TERIYAKI SAUCE ( I make this and store it a tightly-covered glass canning jar, pint size; don't store in a plastic container as it absorbs the taste of the plastic. It keeps well about a month or so in the refrigerator. Try it (without the cornstarch) brushed over any meat when broiling or barbecuing. Anything with soy sauce is heavy on the sodium, so use as little as you can and still enjoy the taste.
Mix the soy sauce, sherry, and sugar in a saucepan. Put the garlic through a press into the mix. Peel and grate the ginger into the pan, and heat just until the teriyaki comes to a boil. Taste and add more sugar, garlic, (whatever) if you want to. Remove from heat, cool, and refrigerate, tightly covered, in glass or stainless steel container.
EASY CHICKEN MARINADE (This marinade works for a whole chicken's worth of parts, so use any combination you like. Barbecue or broil the chicken.)
Skin chicken pieces, if desired, rinse well and pat dry with paper towels. Shake well and pour one small bottle - I think it's about 8 oz. - of Newman's Own Balsamic Vinaigrette into a small bowl. Add the strained, fresh juice of 2 large (or 3 medium) oranges; this should be about 3/4 cup or so. (You'll end up with somewhat less than 2 cups of marinade.) Whisk this together until combined. Arrange chicken in a flat glass dish (or see comments below) and pour marinade over. Marinate for 2-3 hours (no longer), turning chicken about every hour. Remove chicken and put marinade into a sauce pan - heat and boil for at least one minute before using as a baste. (Easiest of all is to pour the marinade - after whisking well to combine - into a heavy zip-lock bag and turn it over about every hour until you're ready to barbecue.)
Until next time, remember.....never trust a skinny cook!