Food - Your favorite kinds etc...

[hemiram]

Since I hate everything I hate, here is the stuff I make...

Favorite thing to cook: Shrimp stir fry, with Pea Pods, Broccolli, Bean sprouts, rice, and a whole lot of garlic. I have it, and sometimes the same with with beef instead of shrimp. Both are great.

Burgers, of course. I've been lazy this year, and only fired up the grill a couple of times, so I've been broiling them in the oven most of the time.

Catfish. I use some coating and bake it in the oven, to keep the calories and grease down. Catfish is my favorite fish, along with Walleye, and Perch. I have no use for Tuna, Salmon, Trout, etc.

Meat, rice, and peas. I started making this, without the peas, when my dog got sick and couldn't keep much else down, and I just ate it too once and it wasn't bad. A pouch of Green Giant peas with butter sauce, and a lot of garlic make it complete, and it only takes 20 minutes to make. Just brown some ground meat, and add the rice and water to the pan and cook it until the water is gone. Sometimes I put onions in it, but most of the time, it's just peas and a lot of garlic.

The dog that had to eat it for a while is long gone, but all the dogs I've had since then love it. One of my present dogs likes it to the point I have to feed the other one to keep him from giving her the "Evil eye" to try to make her leave it for him.

 

[johndoe]

Favorite dish to cook:
What I love to cook:
Favorite Food:
Favorite type of food to eat out:
What got me into cooking:

1. Maybe Mexican ceviche, though it's not "cooked"
2. I love firing up the grill and cook for family and friends. I'm a nut for Mexican food, so I usually make steak tacos and stuff like that. Here in Chicago we have some of the best corn tortillas around.
3. So many. I love seafood
4. Thai, sushi, chinese.
5. It looked like fun. The funny thing is my two sisters don't cook much, neither does my mom, my brother owns a restaurant, and I cook regularly.

So, Avaserfi, how was your trip to Chicago? did you visit any of the joints I recommended?

 

[avaserfi]

So, Avaserfi, how was your trip to Chicago? did you visit any of the joints I recommended?

The trip was a blast. We didn't have enough time to go to the planned restaurants except for one recommended by a friend who also lives there, we met him there for lunch. We just ended up at restaurants that were close by and smelled good and still had no bad food . My girlfriend knows the names of where we ate, I walked away with new recipes in my head .

 

[jake5717]

I love BBQs Baby Back ribs!! My dad and I flew to Memphis a few months ago for a weekend just to hit all the rib joints there.

I don't really cook very often only because I find that its more expensive for me to make foods then it would for me to go out restaurants.

When I do cook it’s bbq, vegetables and chicken or steak. If I have friends coming over I’ll wake up early and get the fire going and grill up some ribs or if I’m being lazy I’ll do some Beer Brats.

 

[Buckeye_Nut]

I do a lot of grilling, and my grilling season is all year. I'm not one of those fair weather cooks who only grills when the weather is nice...LOL

Yesterday, I grilled some BBQ pork steaks...yummy.

When I cook indoors, it's typically something that is a pre-prepared meal. IE.... shrimp/seafood dishes where all you have to do is pop it in the skillet. I also like the veggie dishes like Skillet Sensations.....& stuff like that. I'm also a sucker for Progresso soup with saltine crackers. We don't do a lot of junk food in our house, with one major exception........ Friday night is a regularly scheduled Pizza & movie family night in the Buckeye theater

When eating out, I can't say that I have a favorite because I tend to order all sorts of things. I often, but not always, steer towards the more healthy dishes.

 

[avaserfi]

I don't know how many people are into reading cooking related books but if anyone watches Iron chef here regularly there is a judge that often makes apperances: Jeffrey Steingarten. He is an amature chef and amazing food writer. I would strongly suggest his books to any foody who is looking for a good laugh and interesting points of view on certain subject along with a few good recipes. These are some of my favorite books for their humor and knowledge plus the way he argues his points is pretty interesting as well.

Man Who Ate Everything

It Must've Been Something I Ate

 

[stratman]

I don't know how many people are into reading cooking related books but if anyone watches Iron chef here regularly there is a judge that often makes apperances: Jeffrey Steingarten. He is an amature chef and amazing food writer. I would strongly suggest his books to any foody who is looking for a good laugh and interesting points of view on certain subject along with a few good recipes. These are some of my favorite books for their humor and knowledge plus the way he argues his points is pretty interesting as well.

Man Who Ate Everything

It Must've Been Something I Ate

If you like Mexican, any of the books by Rick Bayless, really authentic.

 

[avaserfi]

If you like Mexican, any of the books by Rick Bayless, really authentic.

I was in Chicago not too long ago and didn't have a chance to check out his restaurant, a little disappointing, but his recipes sure are great. I would say he is one of the Chefs on the forefront of bringing authentic Mexican to America.

 

[stratman]

I was in Chicago not too long ago and didn't have a chance to check out his restaurant, a little disappointing, but his recipes sure are great. I would say he is one of the Chefs on the forefront of bringing authentic Mexican to America.

Yeah, his restaurant is called Frontera (border), I think he went up against Bobby Flay on Iron Chef, I don't recall if he won. I've stopped watching the food channel it really stinks now. I've got my eye on it whenever I get to Chicago.

 

[avaserfi]

Yeah, his restaurant is called Frontera (border), I think he went up against Bobby Flay on Iron Chef, I don't recall if he won. I've stopped watching the food channel it really stinks now. I've got my eye on it whenever I get to Chicago.

Actually Bayless has two restaurants in Chicago. One is a little more upscale (and pricier) than the other.

The pricier place is called Topolobampo while the less expensive is called Frontera Grill.

Here is a link to the two and their menus:

http://www.rickbayless.com/menu/

 

[johndoe]

Actually Bayless has two restaurants in Chicago. One is a little more upscale (and pricier) than the other.

The pricier place is called Topolobampo while the less expensive is called Frontera Grill.

Here is a link to the two and their menus:

http://www.rickbayless.com/menu/

That's correct. They're side by side, they actually share the kitchen. There are several spin-off restaurants by former Bayless's disciples, some of them very good and easier to get into. Still, Bayless's show on pbs is very good, informative, and fun. He started going to Mexico as an anthropologist, then he switched careers, thank God for that.
An interesting factoid is that one of the best French restaurants in the Chicago area is called Carlos. Carlos is a Mexican chef, cooking French food in the Chicago burbs. That's globalization

 

[avaserfi]

Now that we have taken care of the snobbish foody factor I figured I would go for the "fun" part. Guilty food pleasures that make no sense, or are at least silly. Mine would probably be that I actually enjoy eating Ramen Soup occasionally !!!

When I was little my parents worked quiet a bit and it was one of the first things I ever "cooked" for myself and occasionally I still get the hankering for it so I have a secret stash of Beef Ramen at my place . I have literally gone from eating seared rib eye with caramelized onions and a port sauce for dinner one day to Ramen the next .

What is your guilty pleasure in the food world?

 

[jake5717]

Ummmm Raman! I really like that stuff and the price is right.

I like eating cold hot dogs straight out of the pack! All my friends think its gross but I love it!

 

[avaserfi]

Ummmm Raman! I really like that stuff and the price is right.

I like eating cold hot dogs straight out of the pack! All my friends think its gross but I love it!

I do that occasionally, but I generally try to keep it to only beef hot dogs as cold I think they taste far better than mixed. I am the ultimate oxymoron for "food snob" i guess .

 

[stratman]

Krispy Kreme doughnuts, once a year though.

 

[Alamar]

Wow after looking over the thread I feel like your average American slob when it comes to food.

1. My favorite meal to cook is a good old-style breakfast ... Fried eggs, Fried kiebasa sausage, Fried "taters", sausage gravy, and buttermilk biscuits.

2. My favorite thing to cook are burgers on the grill. The combination of decent meat + fire & smoke is hard to beat

3. My favorite fast food place is Chick-fil-A. Waffle fries and their traditional chicken sandwich hits the spot.

4. My favorite food to eat out is seafood. Mostly fish & scallops are my thing. The only time I've ever had good lobster was at a 100$/plate place and I haven't had anything even close since.

5. What got me into cooking? .... Moving out of my parent's house

6. I don't have set specific favorite food / meal / etc. It all depends on what mood I'm in. I will almost never shy away from a good burger, chili, or any breakfast food though. My favorite sweet swings between chewy oatmeal cookies and frozen custard with bits of snickers in it.

7. My guilty pleasure are Little Debby "Nutty Buddy" snacks.

The bad [or good depending on your POV] thing is that I only get samples of the above about once or twice a year.

 

[avaserfi]

My favorite thing to cook are burgers on the grill. The combination of decent meat + fire & smoke is hard to beat

Here is a trick for a quick gourmet burger that I do all the time. Lets say for example you make 1/2lb burgers on the grill. Instead of making a single patty make 2 1/4lbs and place cheese (I prefer blue or a aged sharp cheddar) on the top of one patty and then put the other patty on top of the cheese. This gets the cheese melted inside the meat so you get some in every bite. I remember the first time I did that instead of putting it on the top, it was way better .

 

[Alamar]

Here is a trick for a quick gourmet burger that I do all the time. Lets say for example you make 1/2lb burgers on the grill. Instead of making a single patty make 2 1/4lbs and place cheese (I prefer blue or a aged sharp cheddar) on the top of one patty and then put the other patty on top of the cheese. This gets the cheese melted inside the meat so you get some in every bite. I remember the first time I did that instead of putting it on the top, it was way better .

I saw that on some misc. hamburger cooking competition [Travel Channel, Food Network, ???] where they did that but honestly I never tried it myself. I'm glad to hear that worked well. I'll try it next time!

BTW: I tried a red wine onion burger from the competition and I hated it. Of course hating red wine really didn't help my chances

Have you got any other suggestions for grilling burgers? [Ingredients, fat content, buns to use {when my wife doesn't make them from scratch ... oh those are gooood}, cooking temp/time, etc.] I'm not too ashamed to admit that I can learn.

 

[jake5717]

Like the cheese between the patties I throw in grilled onions. Usually I take the corners of the cheese and fold them into the center so it doesn’t hang over the burger and drip off.

 

[avaserfi]

Like the cheese between the patties I throw in grilled onions. Usually I take the corners of the cheese and fold them into the center so it doesn’t hang over the burger and drip off.

If you like grilled onions you should try caramelizing them too . It takes a while but is so worth it in the end! Caramelized onions give a nice sweet flavor while still maintaining that onion flavor. It isn't too hard to do but you should be patient and it can't be done on a grill.

If anyone interested in how shoot me a pm .