What Have You Cooked Recently?

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Made a couple of new things in the crock pot over the last week. For dinner a few days, I made some smothered garlic-parmesan chicken thighs in the crock pot. Pretty much just put some cream cheese, chicken broth, salt, pepper, an Italian seasoning blend, and garlic with some bone in chicken thighs. Let it go for a few hours and served it over mashed potatoes after thickening up the sauce with some corn starch. Pretty tasty for a first attempt.

I also made an apple cobbler in my small crock pot. Diced up some apples I picked with ny family and put some brown sugar, cinnamon, cornstarch, nutmeg, and a pinch of allspice, and then topped it off with some home made cake batter. I think I added too much salt and cinnamon and nutmeg, but I put a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top and it balanced it out nicely.
 
Braised red cabbage with apples and spice blend, fries and sausage.
Very yum yum.
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I found beef neck meat in the freezer. Been there for a while, figured I should probably cook it. I've never made it before because I am not good with tough cuts. I usually make them worse. This is probably going to sound terrible but I really don't know what I'm doing in the kitchen.

I figured the crock pot was the way to go and knew soda would break down connective tissue. I cooked it for 90 minutes on the high setting in seasoned Coke (salt, black pepper, cilantro, garlic powder, onion powder).
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After 90 minutes, I dumped out the contents of the crock pot. I put water to the top of the meat, swished it around and dumped it again. I put water again about 1/2in below the top of the meat. Re-added the powder seasoning as well as 3 packets of Sazon Goya.
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Out of sheer luck, this blend smelled good so I went with it. Another 2.5 hours on high with the new concoction. It came out able to be cut with a fork. Still didn't look great but tasted good.
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Got Milk! said:
After 90 minutes, I dumped out the contents of the crock pot. I put water to the top of the meat, swished it around and dumped it again
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I'm glad it turned out tender, but I wouldn't pour off the cooking liquid and rinse (I assume it was to get rid of the coke?). I haven't done beef neck meat but have done other tough cuts, and the collagen/gelatin gives you a smooth, rich broth.

What I might do next time: salt/pepper/garlic/onion, (optional: pan sear the meat), cover meat 1/2 to 3/4 with beef or chicken stock, add a couple shakes of Worcestershire sauce or cooking wine, then just cook for 3-4 hours in crock pot (or 1 hour in instant pot).

You can skim the fat off if you prefer, or eat it as-is, and for leftovers separate the liquid, refrigerate, and skim the separated fat before reheating.
 
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JohnnyG said:
You can skim the fat off if you prefer, or eat it as-is, and for leftovers separate the liquid, refrigerate, and skim the separated fat before reheating.
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Things like necks and legs and joint meat really prefer the collagen and, if you can manage it, clarified fat and collagen from the joint. You can sift the fat off, if you want, later, but you really want the gelatinous fluid from the collagen in the finished product.

That's also how your own joints benefit from consuming the collagen from your prey.
 
Pickman's Modeling Agency said:
It is homemade because you are painfully correct: all the store-bought stocks are basically water that was briefly introduced to (x) meat before promptly forgetting its name. At my local grocery store, they sell head-on, unpeeled shrimp for about half the price of the prepped ones, so I buy those and take the time to process them and boil the shells/heads. Then, after reducing, I pour the stock into silicone ice cube trays (the chunky ones) and freeze for later use.

If anyone outside of the States has bought pre-made (unconcentrated) stock that didn't taste like slightly-off water, please let me know, because literally everything sold here at a reasonable price point is trash.
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The boxed stocks are all shit. I pretty much only use Better Than Bouillon paste when I'm not making my own stocks. They don't make a shrimp stock, but they do make a lobster base that's a pretty reasonable stand-in. I live close to the Gulf, so crazy fresh (and cheap) shrimp isn't hard to come by locally, but I still keep a jar of that lobster base for when I'm out or can't be bothered.

EDIT: Now that I think about it, I think I'm going to go get a couple of pounds of 10-15 head-on gulf shrimp, some red potatoes and a couple of ears of corn tomorrow and break out the turkey fryer to do a shrimp boil.
 
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JohnnyG said:
I'm glad it turned out tender, but I wouldn't pour off the cooking liquid and rinse (I assume it was to get rid of the coke?). I haven't done beef neck meat but have done other tough cuts, and the collagen/gelatin gives you a smooth, rich broth.

What I might do next time: salt/pepper/garlic/onion, (optional: pan sear the meat), cover meat 1/2 to 3/4 with beef or chicken stock, add a couple shakes of Worcestershire sauce or cooking wine, then just cook for 3-4 hours in crock pot (or 1 hour in instant pot).

You can skim the fat off if you prefer, or eat it as-is, and for leftovers separate the liquid, refrigerate, and skim the separated fat before reheating.
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Yeah it was definitely "I need to break down this tough shit" to "oh that's going to be horribly sweet, let's get rid of the Coke". I definitely thought I had beef broth (I know I know but it's better than water). Didn't really consider the loss of important nutrients but I do appreciate the information if I decide to again. I went back this morning and got super discount steaks that I'll probably ruin this afternoon.
 
Got Milk! said:
Yeah it was definitely "I need to break down this tough shit" to "oh that's going to be horribly sweet, let's get rid of the Coke". I definitely thought I had beef broth (I know I know but it's better than water). Didn't really consider the loss of important nutrients but I do appreciate the information if I decide to again. I went back this morning and got super discount steaks that I'll probably ruin this afternoon.
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Maybe the better chefs can tell us if it's blasphemy, but I've used chicken stock for beef & pork without issue...should just be a little lighter and more neutral. If you want an acid to help tenderize tough cuts, you can do a splash of wine, red wine vinegar, orange juice, etc and it shouldn't overpower things.

For the cheap steak cuts, if they're super thin or lack marbling, they tend to be good for things like fajitas/tacos, ramen, or stews. Quick sear in a hot pan, erring on the side of underdone, then cut into strips or cubes and if they're too raw toss them back in the pan like a stir fry. Same pan can quick fry an egg or two and you have a pretty good ramen meal.
 
Chicha Drinker said:
What do yall cook for yourselves for a box lunch? I want to make myself something thats low effort, doesnt get gross between packing and lunch, and isnt beholden to what i ate the night before (leftovers).
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Sandwiches and wraps are my lazy go-to. If you have wet ingredients, pack them separately and put the sandwich together when you're ready. Grown-up lunchables are another option: crackers, salami/turkey/whatever meat slices, cheese slices, maybe some olives or mini pickles. If you have some of those sectioned storage dishes, those are ideal. If not, bento boxes have become a lot more widely available in stores on the shelves with their other lunchboxes. If you're willing to do meal prep, there's tons of ways you can throw rice, meat, and veggies into a bowl and heat-and-eat.
Chicha Drinker said:
I've just been gifted a wood cutting board by a friend who does woodworking, he says its already been treated with foodsafe oils, how do i maintain it so it doesnt fall apart?
Obviously handwash only and light soap usage, but im totally out of my element for things like what wax to use and how to do it. Wood is oak if that matters.
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I received a cutting board from a friend about 8 years ago, and it's still going strong with minimal maintenance. Pick up some food-safe mineral oil if you don't already have some. If you notice the oily coating has worn thin or away, wipe it down and let it sit overnight. YouTube video might be your best resource if you need to see an example of what properly coated looks like.
 
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I have been on a quest for the perfect cake. It started off as a lemon layer cake with raspberry filling and lemon frosting, but it has since morphed as I refine what I really like about it. As it stands now, it's a lemon pound cake base layer with a raspberry cream pie topper and lemon pudding frosting.
Nailing down the thickness of the pound cake has been a real issue; most of the time it's way too much cake. Since last year I have officially had it with store bought raspberries, all the raspberries for the cake come out of my garden. The cream pie top isn't solid enough to apply frosting to, so I'm trying to really chill it in the freezer this time before applying. Maybe, eventually, I'll perfect it.
 
AnOminous said:
I use this stuff a lot but it's excessively salty. It's good when they have low sodium varieties, but I'd say any time you use this stuff, cut out all other added sources of sodium. It is definitely second only to stock you made yourself, though.
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Yeah - it's pretty salty. Even the 'low-sodium' varieties have a fair bit of salt to them (likely as a preservative measure) and recipes need to be adjusted accordingly for sure. For some recipes (stuff that gets reduced heavily, mostly), BtB is a no-go, but it's definitely worth having in the fridge more often than not.
 
JohnnyG said:
For the cheap steak cuts, if they're super thin or lack marbling, they tend to be good for things like fajitas/tacos, ramen, or stews. Quick sear in a hot pan, erring on the side of underdone, then cut into strips or cubes and if they're too raw toss them back in the pan like a stir fry. Same pan can quick fry an egg or two and you have a pretty good ramen meal.
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Yeah I actually precube cheap cuts before cooking and then cook them like big ground beef for tacos and burritos. These weren't the cheapest cuts, not the most expensive so I opted for the grill.

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Boneless ribeye (top)
Chuck steak (bottom)

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Pork steaks after I had started in on them

I know a lot of people would look down on Chuck steak but the nice fat content makes it hard for me to mess it up. And I buy it for less than ground beef costs so I could always turn it into that as well and save money.
 
Sorry, no photos but Adam Ragusea's Shepard's Pie. This is a staple around my house in the cooler months and now that fall is truly in the air, it's time for this dishes' return. I don't have as many mouths to feed as he does, so I roughly halve the recipe and use a smaller cast iron pan, and still end up with plenty of leftovers.
 
I made some homemade Wedgecut double fried french fries, some breaded cod, and some Mint Mushy peas. Had a right propah meal that's right that's right! Pretty good simple as.
Sidenote Mushy peas surprisingly pretty good
 
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