cook more

Recently made: spring rolls, chicken empanadas, more pico de gallo, sauteed zucchini with garlic, sauteed broccoli with onion, more kimchi fried rice, stir fry, more tomato salad, shrimp and cheese stuffed shells, and a cucumber-onion-tomato salad with italian dressing.

I finally found a store that sells Lock&Lock containers, so I picked up two to bring lunch in.

Within the last week I’ve made roasted vegetables (again), onion-broccoli-cheese quesadillas, and mushroom barley pilaf.

I also made a salad from a list of 101 easy salads that I found on msn.com… Halved cherry tomatoes with soy sauce, sesame oil, and basil. Making baked tofu will be a more involved process than I originally thought since it involves pressing the tofu overnight and then marinating before I can bake it. I’ll have to attempt that one on a weekend.

This week I’ve made roasted red potatoes, garlic couscous with peas and tomatoes, jalapeno poppers, kimchi fried rice, Mexican rice, and onion and cheese omelets.

I like packing couscous for lunch because it still tastes great cold, but I need to find something protein-rich to pack with it. Maybe baked tofu?

The homemade kimchi turned out decent, but I’d only make it again if I have an excess of cabbage. Recently I’ve made cinnamon-honey baked yams and garlic-ginger couscous. Both were delicious, but I thought the couscous could be extra fantastic with sauteed onion (unfortunately I had none).

Yesterday I made roast vegetables with red potato, sweet potato, yellow squash, zucchini, onions, and garlic. I was skeptical that plainly roasted vegetables would taste good, so I went overboard with spices. Now I’ve learned my lesson… the vegetables turn out wonderful all on their own so I don’t think I’ll add any spice next time. I also made cilantro-lime rice, but it was too bland for my tastes.

I’m in the process of making homemade kimchi right now, and my next goal is to start packing lunches for work so I don’t have to starve all day. The first step to this is invest in some decent airtight containers.

I made vegetarian dumplings and spring rolls, but neither turned out how I expected. The dumplings were delicious, but I tried to freeze the excess and they all stuck together. Next time I have to remember to freeze them in a single layer on waxed paper, then transfer the frozen dumplings to a ziploc.

The spring rolls were also good, but I tried them with satay sauce for the first time and thought the sauce was terrible. I’ll stay on the lookout for a good sweet chili sauce recipe instead.

Next I need to cook something involving yellow squash, zucchini, and potatoes.

So I ran into a rough spot after moving since I didn’t have access to a kitchen for a bit. I’m getting back into cooking now though. Recently I’ve made pico de gallo, ambrosia, and vegetarian chili. Next up is vegetarian potstickers if I can figure out how to fold the wrapper.

I’ve never taken pictures of food I’ve made, but maybe I should start?

If I can cook all my meals through the end of August, I’ll check this off as complete. So far everything is still going well… I made fried tofu and vegetable fried rice on Thursday, then learned how to make spring rolls.

I plan to eventually learn to make croquettes/korokke, homemade tortillas, a vegetarian adaptation of my chili recipe, homemade pierogies, vegetable soup and vegetarian potstickers.

The more I cook the more cooking tips I remember. Unfortunately I always remember after I make the mistake. A couple weeks back I made congee, but didn’t properly skim the stock as it was cooking :( Maybe I should write down tips as I remember them so I don’t have to relearn again.

Other tips:
-When making yogurt, make sure the starter is completely mixed and don’t disturb the yogurt while incubating.
-Add a pinch of baking soda to sour spaghetti sauce if you don’t want to use sugar.
-Substitute mashed banana or applesauce for an egg while baking.
-Always start stock with cold water.

Today I made pan-fried gnocchi with garlic, tomato, and spinach :)

For the last two months I have only spent money on basic groceries with the exception of a fruit salad I bought from a food cart. I’ve made homemade yogurt, sweet and sour chicken, peanut ginger chicken, and puttanesca at various times this month, but I still mainly eat oatmeal and stir fried vegetables due to time constraints.

I chose to cut out processed carbs like cereal, pasta, and bread, so I look forward to the challenge of creating meals with mainly meats and veggies. I haven’t completely cut out rice yet, but that’s next.