Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with cooking and recipe

Substitutes for ginger

srrh — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 08:11:54 -0800

What can I substitute for ground ginger in a peanut sauce recipe? I plan on making peanut sauce tonight, using a recipe that I've used a thousand times before, but I forgot to pick up ginger. Here is the recipe I usually use:

2/3 cups peanut butter
3/4 cups water
3-4 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp.lemon juice
1 scallion, coarsely chopped
1 Tbsp. sweetener
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/3 tsp. chili powder

What can I use to substitute for the ginger? I read online that I might be able to use a combination of paprika and nutmeg. Does this seem at all feasible? What ideas do you have?

Wanted: Madhur Jaffrey's Ultimate Curry Bible

lioness — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 03:11:31 -0800

Do you have Madhur Jaffrey's Ultimate Curry Bible on your bookshelf? Could you flip through in search of a pork recipe with mustard seeds? I'm hosting a small informal dinner tonight and was planning on making one of my favourite recipes from Madhur Jaffrey's Curry bible. Alas, I can't find my book and I need to start prepping!

The recipe was on the top of a left page and the title was in the vein of 'pork with mustard spices'. It entailed making your own spice mix with the usual suspects. Frying mustard seeds, adding pork strips, the spices, curry leaves and bean sprouts. Maybe some diced tomatoes were added, I'm not sure.

Could you find it for me?

As a last resort I will head to my library, but I'm hoping on a faster response here.

Hoots mon, I'm awa tae hunt the meatless haggis.

anadem — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 11:18:54 -0800

I'm planning a haggis-centric party and will make semi-traditional haggis from this recipe. I also need to make a vegetarian version, so what would be a tasty veggie substitute for the meat (preferably using the same recipe)? The meats to replace are "chopped cooked liver and chopped cooked heart (Or stew beef, or filet mignon)" and ground lamb. I'm in California, in case that makes a difference about ingredient availability. Full recipe below, in case Geocities has closed. Here's Lloyd Bogart's West Mosby Volunteers' Haggis. I hope Mr Bogart won't mind me copying it out, but the Geocities web is due to disappear tomorrow.

WEST MOSBY VOLUNTEERS' HAGGIS - Courtesy of Lloyd Bogart .

Haggis "is typically served on Burns Night,January 25, when Scotland celebrates the birth of its greatest poet, Robert Burns, who was born in Ayrshire on that date in 1759. During the celebration, Burns poems are read, and the haggis is addressed by a member of the party, ceremonially, in the form of verses from Burns' poem, 'Address to a Haggis.' A typical meal for Burns Night would include Cock-a-Leekie, Haggis with Tattie-an'-neeps, Roastit Beef, Tipsy Laird, and Dunlop Cheese."

Oh, and did I mention that whisky is also served?

Disclaimer: If you jam 5 dowels into a haggis it kinda resembles a bagpipe, but only if you jam 5 single malts into yourself first. There, that makes this article "bagpipe related".

Here's a tried-and-true recipe for haggis -- entered in the international competition a few years back. It sounds more complex than it is -- it's really no more than equal amounts of meat mixture, oats, onions, and stock, with appropriate spices. Good Eating!

The following recipe is for a traditional sized (3-lb?) haggis. We prepare up to 12 times this amount, in double recipe batches, for our Annual Regimental Mess and Robert Burns Supper. It freezes well, and can be "revived" in a microwave.

1. Advanced preparation.

Find a source of ONLY Steel cut oats OR (if available) Scottish pin oats. Rolled oats will NOT provide the traditional texture, which is something like that of rice. Steel cut oats can be had, or can be ordered, from food stores specializing in organic foods, etc. You'll need 2 Cups of Oats, but if you have to order them, get extra "for next time".

Once you've found proper oats, you're ready to proceed. You'll need:

1 Cup of chopped cooked liver
1 Cup of chopped cooked heart (Or stew beef, or filet mignon)
2-3 Cups stock
Use Lamb if available, otherwise beef will work fine.

Cover the raw meat with salted COLD water, bring to a boil (gently, and covered) for about 1 hour. Drain, (keep the stock) Cool the meat, and remove any gristle, membranes, large vessels, then chop or grind the meat (coarse, as for hash). Refrigerate the stock, and discard any fat later, after it chills.

Mix the ground up heart and liver in equal proportions. You'll need about 2 cups of this meat mixture for each haggis, but it can be prepared in larger quantities, then refrigerated or frozen for later use. For final assembly, the haggis can be completed when convenient.

2. Additional Ingredients:

1 Lb. ground lamb (for "authentic" flavor -- replaces "other stuff")
2 Cups medium to coarse-chopped onions
1 Cup vegetable oil (replaces suet)
3 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 Oz. single malt whisky (Balvenie is quite acceptable)
2 tsp. salt or beef bouillon powder
2 Tbsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. grated nutmeg

Optional: (but recommended for a "special occasion" haggis)
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground mace
2 Tbsp. Parsley Flakes
1/4 Cup currants

Casing: Reynold's Oven Cooking Bag. These are Nylon roasting bags that are available in most any grocery store. The traditional sheep's stomach or a large sausage casing may be used for a "show" haggis, but they are "old-tech". Boiling in oven cooking bags is far more convenient, if you're preparing large quantities, especially, and this process "reassures" your dinner guests.

3. Preparation

Put 2 cups of the thawed meat mixture in the oven cooking bag. Add 2 cups of (coarse) chopped onions, 2 cups of oats, and the other dry ingredients and mix well. Set the mixture aside until it is at room temperature.

In a covered saucepan or skillet, warm 2 Cups or so of the stock (Be sure any fat has been removed. -- If more liquid is needed, here or later, use bouillon or beef stock.)

Break up the ground lamb into the warmed stock; bring to a slow boil (covered) for 5 minutes or so. Remove from heat, allow to cool briefly, and be sure the lamb is in small pieces.

Add the lemon juice and vegetable oil to the lamb & stock mixture. Then combine the lamb/liquid mixture with the other ingredients in the cooking bag, and mix well.

This should produce a moist, soft mixture that will still hold together when pinched. (If it's too dry, add a small amount of stock or bouillon.)

Boil the mixture IN the cooking bag:

Close off the bag using a nylon tie, but allow room below the tie for expansion during boiling. Trim off the bag 3" above the tie, and pierce the top of the bag, below the tie, but well above the mixture, to allow steam to escape.

Use a 4 Qt. (or larger) pot with a rack at the bottom. The water around the haggis should nearly cover the bag of mixture. Periodically adjust the heat to maintain a slow boil for at least 1 1/2 hours. Add HOT water to the pot if needed.

Add 2 Oz. single malt whisky to the cook. (He/She deserves it!)

The cooking bag can be placed on a shallow pan and transferred to a preheated oven

(325 degrees F) for the last half-hour. This doesn't affect the flavor, but does add a bit of color, if desired.

The proof:

This recipe has gotten rave reviews from visiting Scots. Talk about a tough room -- Whew! I hope you'll enjoy it.

The strategy for preparing rather largish amounts is just a bit different; if you need advice on this, please contact me personally. Today I purchased 10 pounds of oats, if you catch my drift....

Cheers
Lloyd Bogart

(If anyone wants the email address which is included on Mr Bogart's web page, please mefi-mail me, though it could be inactive.)

Piece of Cake

misha — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 13:38:42 -0800

My lovely castle cake pan is sadly suffering from disuse. Help me out with your favorite bundt cake recipes and glazes. I'm especially looking for recipes that go well with seasons or themes (for example, for Fall/Halloween, maybe a pumpkin or haunted house chocolate bundt cake), but I'd enjoy anything from your favorite, easy-to-make staples to the most exotic variety. Again, don't forget to include special glazes (and yes, I have seen the top 20 on allrecipes.com).

Wok stir-fry cooking: best resources for instuctional cooking videos?

Ligament — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 15:14:29 -0800

Wok stir-fry cooking: best resources for instuctional cooking videos? Hi All,

I recently purchased a very high end cast iron wok, and a very high output outdoor wok stove (165k BTUs). Now that I have the equipment to do true high temperature wok cooking, I'm looking for online cooking videos for some great authentic recipes. I'm interested in any type of cuisine that uses a Wok as a main cooking vessel. I'm also interested in videos that try to instruct on authentic recipes as opposed to easy or watered-down for the American palette recipes.

Links, please! thanks!

Caramels Om Nom Nom.

halogen — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:20:50 -0800

Can you recommend a recipe for chocolate-coated creamy caramels (with creamy being the operative adjective)? Also, your candy-making tips. I love Fran's (Seattle, WA) gray salt caramels in dark chocolate, but at USD12 for 7 delectable pieces, I can't really justify the expense when I go shopping. Combine that with my current state of unemployment and a passion for cooking = clearly I have to make my own.

One of the recipes I've found is this one, but it uses condensed milk. Fran lists cream as the first ingredient in her caramels, and since I usually have cream at home but not condensed milk, I'd like to adapt the recipe to omit the condensed milk somehow. Can you help with that? If that's a bad idea, can you recommend a different recipe for soft, buttery caramels?

Furthermore, I've never made any sort of candy (as opposed to, say, pastries). Do you have any secret tips or ideas on how to deal with the sticky caramel mess? I'm fully prepared to deal with the frustration (assuming it's anything at all like working with sushi rice), but surely people have figured out ways to simplify the process? Please share.

Bonus points if I can use our meat thermometer that only goes up to 220°F/105°C: obviously this is a bad time for me to invest in a candy thermometer.

please help me become the maple syrup plum fairy

mustcatchmooseandsquirrel — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:28:34 -0800

I want to bake/roast/broil plums in a sauce of maple syrup and/or red wine. Will this work? Have you done this? Does a recipe exist? Plums = slightly underripe.
Wine = Shiraz
Maple syrup = delicious

Other potentially useful ingredients I have: cinnamon, brown sugar, ginger, vanilla extract. I could probably get some other stuff, but I'd prefer not to.

September dinner party ideas

rossination — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:33:44 -0800

Late summer dinner party ideas? We are planning a dinner party for mid-late September and I'm trying to come up with some ideas for a menu. As much as I love to cook with fresh (local) fruits and vegetables, I don't usually give much thought to seasonal cooking, so I thought it would be fun to try to highlight foods that really capture the end-of-summer vibe (something like this squash and chickpea stew).

Some details:
-- Vegetarian meals preferred, although some meat/fish is definitely OK (we will have one non meat eater). Either way, we tend to prefer meat as an accent/seasoning, as opposed to the main course.
-- We don't have a grill, but we do have a broiler.
-- Other than the meat thing, we're a pretty adventurous bunch, and I'm willing to source weird ingredients if the recipe is worth it.
-- Dessert ideas are also welcome, as are wine/beer/spirits pairings.

Summertime and the livin' is easy but damn that weather is changeable.

Mutant — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 02:49:08 -0800

Since London's fickle summer is in full swing, I need recipes for dishes that can be eaten either hot or cold. I do all the cooking at home and have a few stock recipes which adapt well to changeable weather; in other words, dishes that can be eaten either directly out of the oven or chilled then consumed, as ambient dictates.

At times its too damn hot to eat warm food, but then its not uncommon for the evenings to get so chill we need to get warmed up a little (it went down to 9C at night a couple times last week). Trouble is, I tend to plan out the meals a week in advance and would rather not have diet and my kitchen time dictated by London's changeable weather.

So I'm looking for dishes we can eat as we like. Today, for example, I'm making baked beans for dinner which is very suitable - bake for four hours, then since its a little humid and gross, chill for later. I've also got a couple of macaroni casseroles in my repertoire but am looking for other dishes.

Veggie preferred, but if they contain meat we'd rather this was a fractional additive like the ham in baked beans.

Help me serve a great lunch, quickly.

availablelight — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 19:38:55 -0800

Great (summer-friendly) lunch menus. Difficulty: can be mostly or wholly made beforehand. I know how to cook to impress for dinner or brunch guests, but what are some good recipes--that require minimal to no prep at the time of serving--for lunch?

--I can spend as much time as necessary prepping the day before, or the morning of.

--I'll be serving out of a kitchen, so food safety is not a concern and I'll have the ability to reheat, sautee quickly, etc. if need be. I'd like to not spend more than 15 minutes total preparing the meal right before serving it.

--I've got some cooking skills and an interest in doing something a bit more impressive/tasty than just sandwiches or basic pasta salad.

Help me clone a Hamburger Helper recipe.

kingjoeshmoe — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 11:56:59 -0800

Help me recreate the flavor of discontinued Hamburger Helper (either Pizza Pasta or the original Cheesy Italian Shells, before they reworked and ruined it)! Never have I been so tempted to ask a question anonymously. I really liked these two flavors of Hamburger Helper (they're very similar to each other), and they're completely unlike anything I have made using actual, real ingredients. I have no idea how to even begin recreating the flavor I want.

What combination of ingredients can get you the "cheese topping"? I know it uses milk, and probably lots of sugar, but not much beyond that. Some kind of actual cheese, I assume? What spices make their "tomato" sauce work? More sugar I'm guessing, but what else?

Can you help me?

What to make when supplies are short?

BusyBusyBusy — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 05:48:52 -0800

Are there some tasty dessert recipes I can make that don't require baking or any of the things I have trouble getting in Ghana? I love desserts, and would like to make some for my lovely hosts here in Kumasi. I probably could find some ingredients if I really searched, but I'd prefer to make things using what is readily available. I cannot use an oven or a microwave, but can cook on a stove top.

Things that are available are... oatmeal, sugar, peanut butter, cocoa, margarine, digestive cookies, condensed milk... I also brought with me a few boxes of chocolate instant pudding.

Things that are available, but inconvenient to get are... butter, milk, breakfast cereals (rice krispies, special k), flour (I have about 2 cups).

Things I cannot find are... chocolate chips (though I could get chocolate bars), flavorings like vanilla or almond extract, marshmallows, corn syrup, brown sugar, cream cheese.

I've had some trouble finding recipes on the internet that fit this strange criteria. So far I've made oatmeal no-bake cookies, which I loooove, but I would like to make something different this time. Thank you so much for your ideas and help!

Simple bread recipe for kids?

swrittenb — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 11:40:36 -0800

Anyone have a good recipe for a safe, tasty, and digestible "first bread" for an infant? I love making breads, and look forward to the day when my little boy can really start mowing down on a lot of tasty treats. However right now, he's a seven month old still working on getting those teeth to erupt. He's working through the solid food list, and is getting more and more curious about semi-solid foods that he can play with while eating. The soft inside of a fresh loaf of bread seems like a good option (small pieces that aren't a choking hazard, obviously)

Has anyone made bread for little kiddos, and could you share a recipe? Is a good plain white loaf acceptable, and at what age did you start giving things like whole wheat flour? Are there things we should be concerned with, or reasons to wait? We're not in any huge rush, but it would be fun to help him explore new treats.

Many, many delicious calories

Captain Rayford Steele, Tribulation Force — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:12:40 -0800

Please give me your best long-distance hiking / bicycle touring / <insert other adventurous endurance activity> food recipes! The watchwords here: densely caloric, easy to prepare (ideally in a single pot over a white gas cookstove), delicious and made from ingredients that are readily available in small, out-of-the-way groceries. Bonus points for recipes featuring lightweight, easily luggable ingredients.

What flavours go with bananas?

dirtynumbangelboy — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:04:45 -0800

Twofer: whipped cream and bananas. Yes, this is SFW. I am making a banana mousse (amongst other things) in a few weeks for my sister's housewarming. It's a very simple recipe: whip cream, fold in pureed bananas, chill. I'm serving it with a little salted star anise caramel (brown sugar, star-anise infused butter, sea salt) which cuts nicely through the sweetness, and a sliver of banana wrapped in a wonton with black pepper and fried until crispy, which also helps cut the sweetness.

My problem is the richness. I would like to infuse the cream with something to counteract the richness of the dish (particularly since it's late July), but I have two questions:

1) The only method I know for reliably infusing cream is to bring the cream to just before a simmer with whatever is being infused into it. Will cream still whip properly if I do that and then chill before whipping? If not, is there another way to infuse cream that will work? Bear in mind I will not have access to a professional kitchen or professional-grade equipment, though shopping for unusual ingredients/additives is possible.

2) What flavour should I use? I'm usually good at flavour combinations, but this is eluding me because--no matter how much I love them--bananas do taste kind of weird.

The biscuit shall rise again!

hal_c_on — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 09:48:31 -0800

How do I make fantastic southern-type biscuits? There are only a few ingredients (I think), and people regularly produce them...but my Cali-Yank pedigree will not allow me to make them? I'm referring to savory soft biscuits, not the cookie-tin biscuits, of course.

I've done tons of recipes but nothing turns out like I've tasted. Water, flour, baking powder, crisco/shortening, baking soda, butter, and (butter)milk are all the ingredients I need (right)?

I've seen people using lard, but I don't eat lard...and the restaurants/individuals who have made biscuits I ate told me that besides dairy, there are no animal products in the recipe.

How do I make fantastic biscuits...and the hell with cutting calories/fat. I just want good biscuits.

Don't leave the theatre yet...

niccolo — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 10:33:23 -0800

Here's a tough question! I'm looking for two examples of films/tv shows that have recipes (for cooking) in the on screen credits. Apparently Spaceballs is one (in the closing credits, the recipe for fudge brownies appears).
I need two more examples!

What do I do with this ghee?

odinsdream — Sun, 24 May 2009 19:47:10 -0800

So I made ghee. Now what? I've made ghee as described in that link. I'd like to know what I could do with it now. I already plan on using it in place of butter when frying eggs or pancakes. What other recipes can I use it in?

Whats you best Italian recipe?

knockoutking — Wed, 20 May 2009 04:54:35 -0800

italiancookingfilter: give me your best Italian recipe - can be authentic Italian or Italian-American...doesn't matter one way or another! just looking for good Italian recipes -- already have some in my repitore but as much as i enjoy cooking and enjoy Italian food i want to expand my horizons -- so hit me with your best recipe!

side note, can include just about anything (located in DC so i can find it) -- also i do cook a fair amount so pretty much anything you can think of, and that you enjoy, i can make and enjoy myself!

Calling all chefs!

Anonymous — Sun, 17 May 2009 07:30:27 -0800

Calling all chefs! I would like to make this recipe for dinner tonight. Can I make the bacon/vinegar/cream sauce a couple hours ahead and reconstitute it right before I serve the dish, or will it end up lumpy and weird?

Anon because it's a surprise for someone who might read AskMe.

Feel the Side Burn

rouftop — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 18:11:25 -0800

What should I make with my grill's side burner? My uncle went in with me to buy a very nice, highly rated natural gas barbecue. It's fantastic. And it comes with this handy side burner that I can use for... umm... well, I have no clue.

What do you do with a side burner on a barbecue? What makes it better than going inside and using my stove?

make my lasagna taste less like a backyard

Señor Pantalones — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 11:46:03 -0800

how can i rescue my broccoli lasagna? we made a vegetarian broccoli lasagna using pureed broccoli (blender) mixed with ricotta and egg, garlic, and spices, then alternating layers of marinara and chopped carrots. the broccoli makes it tastes like lawn grass. no amount of salt or pepper is remedying this. can anyone offer a way to salvage our dish?

More Cheshire than I know what to do with

aramaic — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 08:35:42 -0800

What do I do with all of this Cheshire cheese? Due to a miscommunication with my cheesemonger, I find myself in possession of half of their remaining Appleby's Cheshire (rather than half a pound)!

So, err, now what? I'd intended it for the usual wine/cheese/fruit sort of use, but I've got far more than I need for that. Obviously I can just use it like a generic cheese, but I'm wondering if anyone has ideas that work especially well with Cheshire, rather than just treating it like generic cheapo cheddar.

Unusual ideas are also welcomed.

Why do I always lose everything important?

soleiluna — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 10:41:34 -0800

Recipe filter: mushroom and scallop pot pie recipe. Dinner party rapidly approaching, and boyfriend or I managed to lose the recipe. Help! My friend (who is co-hosting this party) clipped this recipe from a magazine or newspaper quite awhile ago (probably at least 10 years ago). I cannot find the clipping for the life of me, and my google-fu is failing me. Friend will be quite mad if I did indeed manage to lose this recipe two days before our dinner party. Do you have this recipe, or something similar?

What I can remember about the mushroom and scallop pot pie recipe:

It definitely included scallops, morel mushrooms (fresh i think), mixed wild mushrooms (fresh), puff pastry, and herbs (thyme?). There were probably shallots or onion, and since it was a creamy white sauce there was a massive amount of dairy in it, perhaps white wine. No extraneous veggies - no peppers, peas, carrots, etc at all. There could possibly be other pantry/fridge staple ingredients involved, but nothing big.

We made the recipe once, and it was VERY tasty. That's why I'm reluctant to use an altered imperfect google-found substitute (ie the Emeril scallop recipe, etc). Do you have my missing recipe, or something very similar?

I know this is kind a shot in the dark, but I've seen metafilter answer equally random questions, so it's worth a try!

Pasta for Passover

Joe in Australia — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 19:31:39 -0800

Passover is coming, hurray. Is there a way to make noodles, gnocchi or other pasta without using wheat, rice or beans? I've seen commercial potato noodles for sale but I'd rather make my own.