Home cooking

[ng_moonmoth]

Happy Thursday! Spouse and I are foodies, which means that whenever it's running, Thursday night belongs to Top Chef: the reality show where professional chefs, all high-level and some of them quite successful, square off in a weeks-long series of culinary challenges that allow them to showcase their skills across the entire range of what one needs to be a big-time, big-name chef -- and rewards the winner with the exposure and stake that they can use to do precisely that, if they wish. Many winners have indeed done so, while others have gone the media route and been successful there.

But today's post isn't about the show, other than using it as inspiration. Each season, the chefs are likely to face a challenge like, "Make the dish that convinced you to take up cooking as a career," or "recreate a treasured family recipe." And with lots more people doing lots more home cooking these days, I'd like to offer up a similar challenge.

What is/are your signature dish/dishes? Have you made any of them recently? Even if someone else in your household is the primary cook, there may be one or two things you make that are special; you are welcome to just share those. If making your best dish amounts to cutting things up, adding some flavors, and putting the result in a bowl, that totally counts, too. And, as an escape clause for those whose culinary skills include the ability to burn water, and the best thing they make in the kitchen is "reservations": pick exactly one dish from a restaurant you often order food from, that you wish you could make yourself.

Comments

Re: Got any recipes?

[naath]

Heat a finely chopped onion in (a bit of) oil until soft (evey recie starts this way no?). Add garlic, ginger, chilli, tumeric, and cumin (to taste) Add 2 ish sweet potatoes chopped up (I use pre chopped sweet potato/butternut squash mix). stir. add 250g red split lentils and 600ml veg stock. bring to boil, simmer for 20mins or until soft. Stir in 80g spinach, until wilted. then add fresh basil and/or coriander (cilantro?). I think that serves 4 with rice or naan as a meal; I guess if you have more than one dish you need less of it. Fridge and reheat and it's fine (there are 2 of us, if I make for four that's 2 meals); scales OK (I did it for 16) but you have to be careful about stiring it lots or it burns on the bottom.

[works with probably any spices, veg, greens, but roughly that sort of order of proceeding]

Re: Got any recipes?

[ng_moonmoth]

>> Heat a finely chopped onion in (a bit of) oil until soft (evey recie starts this way no?). <<

Well, maybe not *every* recipe, but it does seem standard for lots of Indian ones.

Anyway, thanks for your recipe. It's different from other ones I've seen and experimented with. I'll want to give it a try sometime.

Perhaps you can help with this. Some of the recipes I want to try call for a small amount of cream. I don't do them often enough that I won't wind up with most of a carton of cream going bad in the fridge. Do you prepare similar recipes? Do you know of/prefer a vegan substitute I could prepare at home that would work well enough? Thanks for any help you have.

Re: Got any recipes?

[naath]

So, generally I go with 'it goes off in the fridge' um, because I'm useless. MAybe a good idea is 'serve it on pudding' (crumble, pie, tart, triffle, etc. go nice with cream) or make a cream based thing - I'm sure some things like creme brulee and fools use cream (some want other kinds of dairy)

Re: Got any recipes?

[ng_moonmoth]

Tried it out last night. Took somewhat longer to cook (30-40 minutes?) until the liquid was absorbed. I diced the sweet potatoes; might try shredding them next time. We enjoyed it. I'm interested in collecting more of these; pulses are useful if kinks in the food supply develop, and tasty preparations (of which Indian food has lots) keep them from getting boring.

Re: Got any recipes?

[naath]

yay