Food/recipe journal
 

I'm going to write down some of the better stuff that I cook so that I can refer back to it. I'll try to put recipes down also. Hopefully it will give other people some ideas/inspiration in the kitchen. Half of the actual meals that I cook are stir fries...just a heads up.

Okra & sausage stir fry

1 lean turkey hot italian sausage link (cut into 1/2" pieces)
1 cup of chopped okra
1/4 cup onion
1/2 cup mushrooms
1 clove chopped garlic
pepper & salt
italian seasoning
olive oil for cooking

I gave the sausage a 3-4 minute head start (med high). Then turned it up to high and threw in the rest of the veggies. With most italian sausage stir fries, you don't need to add much seasoning. The sausage will season the entire dish...so add other spices sparingly. I'm a huge fan of okra...it's very versatile. It sets off a lot of foods and compliments others very well. It's one of the most overlooked vegetables IMO.

I never liked okra till I spent some time down south, but your right it works with a lot of foods. The only way I dont like it is boiled ... it gest slimy and the texture puts me off ... I love it fried, but you cant have that too often.

good idea on the food journal ross ...

Tuna Steaks

1/4 cup lite soy sauce
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1 clove crushed or chopped garlic
2 tbsp red wine
3 tbsp olive oil

Mix all of that up, then throw in the tuna. Only marinate for 30-60 minutes. Turn the tuna over once while it's marinating. Any more than 30-60 min and the tuna will absorb too much of the marinade and will lose it's natural flavor. Bake in preheated oven set to broil directly on a baking rack. Or grill. But just until the outside turns brown or changes color so you still get a very rare, tender, flavorful piece of tuna.

i have always wanted to try fresh tuna steaks...instead of the canned shit. might have to now :)

You should. When the sashimi grade tuna is on sale, I buy a few lbs. And eat it raw. I just add a little soy sauce. Good stuff. There's nothing like getting home from the gym, having a shake, then going to the fridge and taking out a raw piece of meat...and devouring it uncooked. :) That has to give you big muscles, right? :D

it should...that's why rocky drank raw eggs. :)

Bears eat raw fish and look at the size of them!!!:biglaugh:

:biglaugh:

Paella

Saffron rice
Meat
1/2 cup of cherry tomatoes (halves)
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup green & red bell peppers
salt & pepper
dash of cumin
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp paprika (for paella w/out chorizo)
1/4 cup mushrooms
1/4 cup chopped onions

Meat: There are many, many different combinations of meat that you can go with here. I like the seafood paella. That's what I ate today. It had pieces of pork tenderloin, clams, and shrimp. Sometimes I do chorizo & pork. I'm sure you could do some variation of paella with chicken. I cut pork tenderloin into cubes and I take chorizo links and cut them into 1/2" pieces.

Rice: I buy the cheap saffron rice at the grocery store. They also sell paella mixes and kits, etc. in the ethnic foods section. Saffron is very, very expensive, so I just buy the saffron rice mix for 89 cents. I am eventually going to try this dish with brown rice. I'll let you know how it goes.

Brown the chorizo & pork over medium heat in olive oil for 2-3 minutes. (If you're using seafood, then cook it before hand and set aside. Add to the dish during the last 2-3 minutes of cooking.) Then turn to high and add onions, peppers, mushrooms, garlic, and more olive oil. Cook 2-3 additional minutes, then add the tomatoes and rice.

Stir everything to coat the rice and to mix it up well. Pour in a cup of chicken broth and stir one last time. Then DO NOT STIR FOR THE REMAINDER OF COOKING. Cover the pan. Reduce heat to a simmer, then cook for about 20 minutes until the rice is done. I always have to add an additional can of chicken broth while the rice is cooking...and sometimes some extra water. Shake the pan once or twice while the rice is cooking to keep it from sticking to the bottom. That's an approximate 20 minutes btw...uncooked rice sucks, so make sure it's done.

Paella is the national dish of Spain. Every region has its own variation. I love the stuff. Paella is supposed to be cooking in a paella pan, but I don't know anyone that has one. So I use the biggest frying pan that I have (it's big). I just lay aluminum foil over the top to act as a lid. This is definitely a dish that you can be creative with. My buddy who is a gourmet chef ate with me today and he added lots of other stuff to it that I didn't mention. He added lemon juice, lemon zest, bay seasoning for the shrimp, and he most likely tossed in a few other things behind my back.