Another.
[quote]Varqanir wrote:
[quote]magick wrote:
On-topic- McD is great when you’re short on time and need to eat something quickly. If I could carry around cartons of boiled eggs and containers of salt/pepper easily then I would. But I can’t, so I have to eat McD instead.[/quote]
I carry around cartons of raw eggs and either boil them as needed, or else crack a few into a glass, stir them up, and add boiling water, milk, butter and dark chocolate.[/quote]
I love eggs. My favourite is the Japanese slow cooked at low temperature egg dishes like Onsen tamago. They get such a lovely, silky texture when they’re slow cooked. I developed the taste as a kid with soft boiled eggs and “soldiers” - sticks of toast to dip in the soft egg. And there are a lot of nice puddings and desserts based upon eggs like custard and meringue and so on.
[quote]SexMachine wrote:
The classic split pea and ham hock recipe can be googled but I’m sure it works out cheaper than McDonalds. A ham hock, a couple of carrots and onions, stock or stock cube, a couple of cups of dried split peas soaked in water overnight. That will feed six people with seconds. And it’s probably under ten bucks if you do it right.
Another thing that’s cheap and tasty Is lambs fry. Just don’t ask what’s in it. But lambs fry is a big pile of tasty offal and lamb fat - add bread crumbs, fried onions, mashed potato, peas, corn etc. Very cheap.
You can make a vegetable quiche cheaply with some frozen pastry(or without), a few eggs, cheese vegetables(I like pre-roasted vegetables in quiches)
You plan your meals ahead and buy in bulk from specialist outfits like ALDI and save a lot of money too. And go to local seafood and produce markets to cut out the middle men. You could probably feed a family of four on two thousand dollars or halve that if you were really stretching it. [/quote]
Soups are my go-to for cheap, healthy meals, particularly when I’m looking to cut a bit. Vegetable beef soup probably costs me around $12 to make, and provides at least 10 servings. I use round steak. Better meat is too tender. Chicken soup is probably even more cost-effective.
I think a main key to eating very well on a budget is menu planning. Everything gets used when you know that you’re going to use the celery for today’s soup and Wednesday’s stir-fry, a head of lettuce for tomorrow’s blue cheese wedge and Thursday’s taco salad.
[quote]EmilyQ wrote:
[quote]SexMachine wrote:
The classic split pea and ham hock recipe can be googled but I’m sure it works out cheaper than McDonalds. A ham hock, a couple of carrots and onions, stock or stock cube, a couple of cups of dried split peas soaked in water overnight. That will feed six people with seconds. And it’s probably under ten bucks if you do it right.
Another thing that’s cheap and tasty Is lambs fry. Just don’t ask what’s in it. But lambs fry is a big pile of tasty offal and lamb fat - add bread crumbs, fried onions, mashed potato, peas, corn etc. Very cheap.
You can make a vegetable quiche cheaply with some frozen pastry(or without), a few eggs, cheese vegetables(I like pre-roasted vegetables in quiches)
You plan your meals ahead and buy in bulk from specialist outfits like ALDI and save a lot of money too. And go to local seafood and produce markets to cut out the middle men. You could probably feed a family of four on two thousand dollars or halve that if you were really stretching it. [/quote]
Soups are my go-to for cheap, healthy meals, particularly when I’m looking to cut a bit. Vegetable beef soup probably costs me around $12 to make, and provides at least 10 servings. I use round steak. Better meat is too tender. Chicken soup is probably even more cost-effective.
I think a main key to eating very well on a budget is menu planning. Everything gets used when you know that you’re going to use the celery for today’s soup and Wednesday’s stir-fry, a head of lettuce for tomorrow’s blue cheese wedge and Thursday’s taco salad.[/quote]
Yes, I love soups. Great seasonal food and the hardiest soups are a meal unto themselves. We grew up on pumpkin soup which is pretty cheap and we also had minestrone often too. All homemade of course. If you don’t have freshly baked bread for your soup you can add croutons or make croutons with unfresh breadcrumbs toasted in a little olive oil. I also like creamed soups, particularly asparagus, potato and leek, cauliflower. There’s a brand of tinned tomato soup that’s not too bad as well.
[quote]SexMachine wrote:
[quote]EmilyQ wrote:
[quote]SexMachine wrote:
The classic split pea and ham hock recipe can be googled but I’m sure it works out cheaper than McDonalds. A ham hock, a couple of carrots and onions, stock or stock cube, a couple of cups of dried split peas soaked in water overnight. That will feed six people with seconds. And it’s probably under ten bucks if you do it right.
Another thing that’s cheap and tasty Is lambs fry. Just don’t ask what’s in it. But lambs fry is a big pile of tasty offal and lamb fat - add bread crumbs, fried onions, mashed potato, peas, corn etc. Very cheap.
You can make a vegetable quiche cheaply with some frozen pastry(or without), a few eggs, cheese vegetables(I like pre-roasted vegetables in quiches)
You plan your meals ahead and buy in bulk from specialist outfits like ALDI and save a lot of money too. And go to local seafood and produce markets to cut out the middle men. You could probably feed a family of four on two thousand dollars or halve that if you were really stretching it. [/quote]
Soups are my go-to for cheap, healthy meals, particularly when I’m looking to cut a bit. Vegetable beef soup probably costs me around $12 to make, and provides at least 10 servings. I use round steak. Better meat is too tender. Chicken soup is probably even more cost-effective.
I think a main key to eating very well on a budget is menu planning. Everything gets used when you know that you’re going to use the celery for today’s soup and Wednesday’s stir-fry, a head of lettuce for tomorrow’s blue cheese wedge and Thursday’s taco salad.[/quote]
Yes, I love soups. Great seasonal food and the hardiest soups are a meal unto themselves. We grew up on pumpkin soup which is pretty cheap and we also had minestrone often too. All homemade of course. If you don’t have freshly baked bread for your soup you can add croutons or make croutons with unfresh breadcrumbs toasted in a little olive oil. I also like creamed soups, particularly asparagus, potato and leek, cauliflower. There’s a brand of tinned tomato soup that’s not too bad as well.[/quote]
I like broth- or tomato-based soup just as much in the summer as a light, easy meal.
[quote]SexMachine wrote:
[quote]Varqanir wrote:
[quote]magick wrote:
On-topic- McD is great when you’re short on time and need to eat something quickly. If I could carry around cartons of boiled eggs and containers of salt/pepper easily then I would. But I can’t, so I have to eat McD instead.[/quote]
I carry around cartons of raw eggs and either boil them as needed, or else crack a few into a glass, stir them up, and add boiling water, milk, butter and dark chocolate.[/quote]
I love eggs. My favourite is the Japanese slow cooked at low temperature egg dishes like Onsen tamago. They get such a lovely, silky texture when they’re slow cooked. I developed the taste as a kid with soft boiled eggs and “soldiers” - sticks of toast to dip in the soft egg. And there are a lot of nice puddings and desserts based upon eggs like custard and meringue and so on.[/quote]
A resounding yes to all of the above.
I make my onsen tamago in my electric tea kettle. Fill kettle with water, put washed raw eggs into kettle, and boil. Pour off water for tea, allow eggs to cool. Eat while still warm. Perfect texture.
I’m also a big fan of savoury custards like chawan mushi, but when I’m in a hurry I’ll just crack a half dozen eggs into a hot (not boiling) pot of soup and just stir until they’ve suitably congealed. And because protein powder is so expensive in Japan, I’ll just make a pot of banana chocolate pudding with five or six eggs before my morning workout, stick it in a steel bottle, and by the time I’m done with my deadlifts, the pudding is cool enough for consumption.
[quote]Varqanir wrote:
[quote]SexMachine wrote:
[quote]Varqanir wrote:
[quote]magick wrote:
On-topic- McD is great when you’re short on time and need to eat something quickly. If I could carry around cartons of boiled eggs and containers of salt/pepper easily then I would. But I can’t, so I have to eat McD instead.[/quote]
I carry around cartons of raw eggs and either boil them as needed, or else crack a few into a glass, stir them up, and add boiling water, milk, butter and dark chocolate.[/quote]
I love eggs. My favourite is the Japanese slow cooked at low temperature egg dishes like Onsen tamago. They get such a lovely, silky texture when they’re slow cooked. I developed the taste as a kid with soft boiled eggs and “soldiers” - sticks of toast to dip in the soft egg. And there are a lot of nice puddings and desserts based upon eggs like custard and meringue and so on.[/quote]
A resounding yes to all of the above.
I make my onsen tamago in my electric tea kettle. Fill kettle with water, put washed raw eggs into kettle, and boil. Pour off water for tea, allow eggs to cool. Eat while still warm. Perfect texture.
I’m also a big fan of savoury custards like chawan mushi, but when I’m in a hurry I’ll just crack a half dozen eggs into a hot (not boiling) pot of soup and just stir until they’ve suitably congealed. And because protein powder is so expensive in Japan, I’ll just make a pot of banana chocolate pudding with five or six eggs before my morning workout, stick it in a steel bottle, and by the time I’m done with my deadlifts, the pudding is cool enough for consumption. [/quote]
I’ve made Onsen tomago at home and experimented a lot. Often I just slow cook eggs at a very low temperature and monitor the temperature with a “candy thermometer” to maintain a constant, even temperature. When I do it I need to take it off the heat regularly so the temperature doesn’t get too high but you can keep it off the temp entirely and maintain temperature by insulating the eggs.
But the temp begins to drop after ten minutes or so depending on how much water and level of insulation so I put it back on the heat periodically and try to keep the temperature exactly right the whole time. It’s an art form. Lemon delicious is my favourite egg based pudding. I love that sweet and citrus tart flavour you get from fresh lemon and lemon rind. You whip the egg white separately till it forms peaks and then fold it into the pudding mix - that’s what makes it so light and fluffy. You can make mini ones in ramekins too.
We eat free-range eggs from a farm literally next door.
I like 'em raw, or fried in butter VERY over easy, then whipped up so it’s like an egg soup ? the runny yolks acting as a broth for the solid white chunks. Mmm!
[quote]CLUNK wrote:
We eat free-range eggs from a farm literally next door.
I like 'em raw, or fried in butter VERY over easy, then whipped up so it’s like an egg soup ? the runny yolks acting as a broth for the solid white chunks. Mmm![/quote]
I used to eat lots of raw eggs, until I realised that the raw whites make it impossible for the body to absorb biotin. So now I heat them just enough to turn them opaque. I’ll still eat the yolks raw, though.
Made a couple soups over the past week.
After making some basic Chinese soup stock with both a young chicken and a hen, the hen tastes significantly better. Boil the meat for a couple minutes to let all the foam rise, then drain and rinse. Then bring to a boil with a bit of Shaoxing rice wine, the white parts of a few scallions, and a couple chunks of ginger and simmer for a few hours. Skim the fat. Season with salt and white pepper.
First soup, above, is that chicken broth + a mix of dark and light meat from the chicken + a bit of cooking oil, sesame oil, white pepper, green parts of scallions + noodles + over easy egg + slices of good tomato (which cooks in the broth). After breaking the yolk, it thickens up and adds another layer of depth to the broth.
The second soup was made with that chicken broth + beef chuck + white parts of scallions, star anise, ginger + sweet fermented wheat paste + doubanjiang (fermented chili bean paste) + Shaoxing rice wine + tofu skin + bamboo shoots.
Using the two fermented pastes, as well as slow cooking the beef in the chicken broth, made this amazingly rich and flavorful. This was by far one of the best soups I’ve ever had. I really think fermented ingredients are underrated in Western cuisine.