Category Archives: Main Dishes

Japanese Curry

02 Saturday May 2020

Posted by in Comfort Food, Main Dishes, Rice, Sauces

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I met my friend Rachel when we lived in Tokyo. Actually, we met her husband Nate first. It was our first Sunday in Tokyo and it was Nate’s, too. A senior missionary couple, the Snow’s, invited us all for dinner. Rachel came awhile later. I do feel that I have gotten to know Rachel a bit better since leaving Japan. She has a blog Lafujimama.com, but mostly I see her on Instagram. She shares many Japanese recipes and I love her recipe for Japanese Curry. It is a favorite comfort food. You might be thinking why would you need a recipe, can’t you just buy the curry block at the store? My answer is usually, I can buy a brand that doesn’t have much flavor at my favorite grocery store or I can drive across town and buy the one we do like at a different store. Right now, with the Covid 19 stay home in place neither of my stores have curry blocks on their websites for curbside pick up. That doesn’t mean they don’t have it, but I am not going in to find out. Also, Ally hasn’t found them in Montreal at all. Another reason for making your own is to avoid preservatives and gluten.  This is my adaptation of Rachel’s Vegan Japanese Curry Rice. If you want to see her original recipe go here.

Ingredients-

2-3 cooked chicken breasts, chopped (depends on how much meat you want)
1-2 large onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger (See my tip on fresh ginger below)
2 to 4 tablespoons curry powder-I tried S&B this time (Start with 2-add more to taste)
1 teaspoon salt (add more to taste at the end of cooking if needed)
4 carrots cut into chunks
2 large potatoes cut into chunks
1 cup green beans or frozen peas (add at the end of cooking)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons apricot or peach jam (I didn’t have either and used fig preserves instead)
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar (I love rice vinegar, but use white or apple cider as a sub)
2 cups chicken stock (I make mine from bouillon cubes so I can control the strength)
1-2 cups water (start with 1 and increase it until you get the consistency that you like)
1/3 cup cornstarch
Hot steamed rice for serving

Method-

Heat a large non-stick pan or wok over medium high heat and add the onions to sauté until wilted. If they start to stick add a little water. Next add the garlic and ginger and sprinkle the curry powder and salt over everything and stir.

Add 1/2 cup chicken stock, tomato paste, jam, and vinegar and stir to combine. Add the carrots, potatoes and rest of the chicken stock and the water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium.

Add the cooked chicken and peas or green beans. Simmer until the potatoes and carrots are cooked.

Put the cornstarch in a bowl and spoon some of the hot curry sauce over it. Whisk it to make a paste. Add to the pan and stir until the curry has thickened. If it is too thick add water a little at a time. Sample and add more curry powder or salt to taste. Serve over hot rice. Makes 6 servings.

Tips-
You can use any kind of vegetable you have on hand.

Ginger- Did you know that you can freeze fresh ginger? I bought a piece at the store and just popped it in a freezer bag. When a recipe calls for ginger I pull it out and grate the frozen ginger on my microplane. I don’t even peel it. The peel is not noticeable at all in whatever I am cooking. I was so glad to discover this, no more wasted fresh ginger!

Parmesan-Panko Crusted Tilapia

29 Sunday Mar 2020

Posted by in Fish, Main Dishes, Uncategorized

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This is one of the best tilapia recipes that I have found.

Ingredients-

  • 4 tilapia fillets (approximately ⅓ pounds each)
  • ½ cup unsalted butter
  • 1 tablespoon fresh Italian parsley, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, diced
  • 2½ tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • ¼ cup panko bread crumbs
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Method-

  1. Preheat the oven to 400° F.
  2. Season both sides of the tilapia fillets with salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
  3. Melt the butter and add the diced garlic, lemon juice, and chopped parsley.
  4. Place the seasoned tilapia fillets in a shallow baking pan.
  5. Spoon about ½ of the butter sauce over the fillets, making sure to coat the entire surface.
  6. Mix the panko and Parmesan cheese together, and spoon equally over each fillet.
  7. Bake until starting to turn golden grown (about 10 minutes).
  8. Randomly drizzle some of the remaining butter sauce over the fish and bake another 2 minutes or so.
  9. Remove from the oven and serve hot. You can slightly warm up any remaining butter sauce if anyone wants to add some to their fish.

Southwest Pasta Salad

21 Wednesday Sep 2016

Posted by in Lunch, Main Dishes, Pasta, Salads

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Today I was looking for a yummy pasta salad to go with Lindsey’s Barbecue Chicken Sandwiches. It is so yummy!

Ingredients-

  • 2 cups mini pasta (measured when dry, I used shells but it would be great with mini bow tie pasta)
  • 1 cup frozen corn
  • 1 cup black beans
  • 3/4 cup assorted sweet bell peppers*
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1/4 cup red onion, (optional)
  • 1/4 cup packed cilantro (~1/3 a bunch), finely chopped
Dressing
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
  • 5 tablespoons squeezed fresh lime juice
  • 1 teaspoon white sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 and 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Method-

  1. Cook the pasta according to package direction. Add in the frozen corn about 1-2 minutes before the pasta is done.
  2. Drain the pasta and rinse it with cold water.
  3. Darin and rinse the black beans. Chop the peppers, I used 1/2 of a green pepper and 1/2 of a red pepper because that is what I had. Halve the cherry tomatoes. I seeded and chopped up two tomatoes because we were out of cherry tomatoes.
  4. Finely chop up the red onion and cilantro.
  5. Stir together the pasta, corn, black beans, sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes, onion, and cilantro.
  6. In a resealable jar, combine all of the dressing ingredients. Shake until combined. Pour the dressing over the pasta and vegetables. Stir to combine. (You may not want to use all the dressing – so add it slowly. I used about half and saved the rest because i know it will need to be freshened up tomorrow. Anyway, it would be good on a green salad, too).
  7. To make ahead: mix all the ingredients and the dressing separate. Store in airtight containers in the fridge and then combine when ready to eat.

Ten Minute Macaroni and Cheese

05 Saturday Sep 2015

Posted by in Comfort Food, Lunch, Main Dishes, Pasta

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Super easy and much better than the kind from the blue box!

3 T of butter
3 T of flour
1- 12-13 oz.  can of evaporated milk
1-16 oz. box of macaroni
1 cup of milk
2 cups of grated cheddar cheese
Salt & pepper to taste

Cook the macaroni according to package directions. While the macaroni is cooking, melt butter in a saucepan and once melted, add flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the can of evaporated milk and the other cup of milk. Stir occasionally until it coats the back of a spoon (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat and let sit, add salt and pepper. After a minute, add grated cheddar cheese and stir until creamy. Add to drained pasta and serve. This recipe makes the equivalent of two boxes of Kraft macaroni and cheese.

Lemon Chicken Skillet Dinner

11 Saturday Apr 2015

Posted by in Chicken, Main Dishes

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This yummy recipe is from Our Best Bites. I made a few small changes. I just found a section in their recipe index for Healthy Meals. I plan to try some of their recipes every week and post the ones that I like here so I will remember to make them. Maybe I’ll even remember to take some photographs to post with the recipes.

Today, when I made this I didn’t feel like eating green beans and so I used asparagus instead. It turned out great!

Lemon Chicken Skillet Dinner
Adapted from Cooking Light January 2015

Ingredients

12 ounces baby red potatoes, halved
1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
4 (6 ounce) chicken breast halves, pounded to 3/4-inch thickness*
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
4 ounces mushrooms, sliced
3 cloves minced garlic
1/4 cup whole milk
5 teaspoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves**
3/4 cup+ low-sodium chicken broth
6 very thin lemon slices
8 ounces trimmed fresh green beans or asparagus spears cut into 2 inch pieces

*If your chicken breasts are thick, consider slicing them in half instead of pounding.
** If you are using ground thyme, start with 1/2 teaspoon and add more to taste. I like using the Lighthouse brand that is dehydrated instead of dried. It tastes closer to fresh.

1. Preheat oven to 450°.

2. Place potatoes in a medium saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil, and simmer 12 minutes or until tender. Drain.

3. Line a baking pan with foil and spray with cooking spray, set aside.  Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon oil to pan. Sprinkle chicken lightly with salt and pepper. Add chicken to pan; cook 5 minutes or until chicken is browned. Turn chicken over and cook for 1 minute.  Transfer chicken to foil-lined pan and place in oven for 10 minutes or until chicken is done.

4. While chicken is cooking, add remaining 2 teaspoons oil to skillet. Add potatoes, cut sides down to one side of the skillet, and the mushrooms and garlic to the other. Cook for 3-5 minutes or until browned, stirring mushrooms and garlic. Be careful with the garlic, it can burn easily and then it tastes bitter. Remove vegetables from pan and set on a plate to the side.

5.  Combine milk and flour in a small bowl.  Add  flour mixture, 3/4 cup of the chicken broth, thyme and sprinkle of salt and pepper to the skillet and stir until smooth.  Bring sauce to a simmer, and add beans or asparagus.  Simmer 2-3 minutes or until sauce starts to thicken. Add lemon slices, potatoes and mushrooms, and chicken.  If sauce is too thick, add small amounts of chicken broth to thin.  Reduce heat and simmer 3-4 minutes or until beans or asparagus are crisp-tender. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

Nutritional Information: 1 chicken breast and 3/4 cup potato and bean mixture: Cal: 342, Fat 8.6g, Protein: 46 g, Carb: 23g, Fiber 4g

Maddie’s Pasta Sauce- From Ally’s Italian Friend Teresa

04 Tuesday Feb 2014

Posted by in Comfort Food, Main Dishes, Pasta

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I have tried to make this healthier by leaving out the 1/4 cup of butter and 1 of the 3 tablespoons of olive oil in the original recipe. I often add more vegetables (celery and carrots) than called for in the recipe. Mushrooms are a nice addition.

Ingredients-

2 tablespoons olive oil
A good handful of chopped Italian fat leaf parsley-chopped
3 or 4 ribs of celery with leaves-finely chopped
A handful of fresh Basil-finely chopped (I use 2 tablespoons freeze dried basil, but fresh is better)
1 medium onion-chopped
2 or 3 cloves garlic-minced
2 or 3 carrots-finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1-28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes or 1-750ml bottle of Passata de Pomodoro
2-14.5 ounce cans petite diced tomatoes (you can use regular diced tomatoes, too)
1 teaspoon of salt or more to taste
Pepper to taste

Method-

Heat oil and add the onion, carrot and celery. Cook over medium heat until soft, stirring frequently. Add garlic, oregano, parsley and basil stirring constantly so the garlic does not burn, about 1 minute. Add crushed tomatoes and chopped tomatoes. Bring to a boil and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Place a lid on the pot so that it is slightly covered and simmer on low for at least 40 minutes or until sauce thickens. Serve with any pasta and parmesan.

This sauce is good kept in the refrigerator for up to three days and can also be frozen.

Kim’s Chutney Chicken

02 Thursday May 2013

Posted by in Chicken, Main Dishes

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8 pieces chicken
Juice from 4 oranges, or 1.5 cups of orange juice
3 medium onions, diced
Mixed herbs (I just do this by sight, maybe a tablespoon) – Mine are from South Africa, but I also bought some here from Pirate O’s in their British section.
1/2 cup Mrs Balls (or similar) original chutney
Flour
Salt
Pepper
Oil
Roll chicken in flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Heat some oil (I usually have to add some more oil to get all the chicken browned). Brown floured chicken in oil. Remove from pan and set chicken aside. Cook diced onions in oil until glassy. Layer chicken and onion in pan. Mix orange juice with mixed herbs and chutney. Pour over chicken/onions. Bake at 350F for 1.5 – 2 hours. Serve with rice. I think it is better made the day before and reheated, but most times don’t think that far in advance.

 

French Laundry Inspired Lasagna

09 Saturday Mar 2013

Posted by in Comfort Food, Main Dishes, Pasta

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Ingredients

Sauce-
1/2 cup olive oil
1 1/2 cups minced yellow onions
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 cup tomato paste
8 cups cut-up peeled tomatoes (about 12-14 medium tomatoes, cut into rough 1 inch pieces) or 4- 15 ounce cans of diced tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped oregano
1/4 tablespoons chopped basil

Filling-
1 1/2 pounds ricotta
3 large eggs
1/2 cup chopped parsley
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1 pound lasagna noodles
1/2 pound mozzarella, grated
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Method
For the sauce-
Heat the oil in a large heavy pot. Add the onions and garlic and cook gently until translucent. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently. Add the tomatoes and stir to combine. The sauce can be completed on the stove top or in the oven. (I think a crockpot would work, too. The idea behind the oven method is that it requires less attention. For the stove top method simmer gently for 1 1/2 to 2 hours stirring well every 10 minutes so it doesn’t scorch. For the oven method, cover the pot and cook at 325 degrees for 3 to 4 hours. When the sauce is done it should be thick and chunky and there should be about 4 cups.  Add the oregano and basil and allow sauce to cool.

For the filling-
In a large bowl, whisk the ricotta and eggs together until blended. Add the parsley and salt and pepper to taste and mix well. Refrigerate until you are ready to assemble the lasagna.

Cook the noodles in a large pot of boiling water according to package directions. Drain the noodles and allow them to cool a bit. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

To assemble the lasagna-
Spread a thin layer of sauce in the bottom of a 9 X 13 baking pan. Place a layer of noodles in the pan, slightly overlapping them. Spread half ricotta mixture evenly over the noodles and top with another layer of noodles. Reserve 1 cup of the sauce and spread the rest over the noodles, completely covering them. Arrange another layer of noodles on top and cover with the remaining ricotta mixture. Top with a final layer of noodles and spoon the reserved sauce over them. Toss the reserved mozzarella with salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle it   over the top.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until the mozzarella is spotted golden brown and the lasagna is hot throughout.

 

 

Rachel Ray’s Parmesan Crusted Tilapia

20 Thursday Sep 2012

Posted by in Fish, Main Dishes

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This is a yummy, quick and easy way to prepare tilapia from Rachel Ray

Ingredients-

3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon flat leafed parsley, chopped
4 tilapia fillets (about 1 pound total)
1 lemon cut into wedges

Method-

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees . In a shallow dish, combine the cheese with the paprika and parsley and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the fish with olive oil and dredge in the cheese mixture. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake until the fish is opaque in the thickest part, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve the fish with the lemon wedges.

*I always have a bag of tilapia in my freezer and I usually have everything but the parsley. I have never made it with the parsley and it is still delicious.

Herbed Lemon Garlic Chicken

19 Wednesday Sep 2012

Posted by in Chicken, Main Dishes

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1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon fine lemon zest
juice of one large lemon
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 shallot finely chopped
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt and pepper
4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup water

In a large bowl combine all ingredients except the chicken and water. Whisk until well blended. Taste and adjust the seasonings.  Add the chicken and turn to coat evenly. cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2-4 hours.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Remove the chicken from the marinade, reserving the marinade, and place on the rack of a roasting pan. pour the one cup of water into the pan. Roast basting occasionally with the reserved marinade up to the last 10 minutes of cooking,  until golden brown and juices run clear. about 35-45 minutes. An instant read thermometer should register 180 degrees F.