Need cooking advice

Post by **[xeno]Julios** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:32 pm

Ok, this is what i have:

tomatoes
mushrooms
onions
garlic
ginger
avocado
chicken breast

Want to make something relatively easy that incorporates as much of this stuff as possible (avocado not a big deal, can eat that on the side).

I can also can pick up more ingredients between now and the time i'm cooking - could use something with carbs (got the protein and micronutrients all sorted with the current ingredients).

Any ideas?

Post by **R00k** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:36 pm

Add penne pasta and some cheese, and you've got baked chicken parmesean. It won't be breaded, but should still be good.

Post by **Don Carlos** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:41 pm

get some pasta and you could have a might fine pasta bake sir !!!

Post by **MKJ** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:42 pm

you know, if you could get some pasta you can bake the chicken and add it to the pasta and itll be great!

Post by **MKJ** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:43 pm

seriously, get pasta

Post by **Don Carlos** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:45 pm

amazing idea MKJ!!!

Post by **[xeno]Julios** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:46 pm

Ok - so what do i do with the pasta and the rest of ingredients?

here's my thinking:

boil pasta

fry onions, garlic, chicken, tomatoes, mushrooms

pour fried stuff onto pasta?

i'm a real newb at this stuff...

Post by **Don Carlos** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:48 pm

[xeno]Julios wrote:Ok - so what do i do with the pasta and the rest of ingredients?

here's my thinking:

boil pasta

fry onions, garlic, chicken, tomatoes, mushrooms

pour fried stuff onto pasta?

i'm a real newb at this stuff...

Yes, then place in the oven for 20 mins
Then sprinkle grated cheese on top and leave in oven for another 5 mins until cheese is melted!

Post by **MKJ** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:50 pm

leave it in a bit longer and youll get a nice cheesecrust. let it cool for a few mins though so there wont be all kinds of moisture sitting on the top.

you could also mash the tomatoes and add it to the sauce. could make the whole thing a bit less stale.
add some oregano if you have it.

great, now my stomach growls

[edit] typos-r-us [/edit]

Post by **R00k** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:52 pm

Take the onions, garlic and ginger, and mix them in with some Italian dressing and mustard if you have it. If you don't have those, mix them with olive oil. Let the chicken marinade in it for an hour if you can.

Mix the tomato sauce in with the rest of the garlic and onions, along with other spices if you have them.

Boil the pasta.

Two ways to do it from here:

1) Cut the chicken into small pieces. Put pasta in bottom of casserole dish (put olive oil or butter in bottom first so it won't stick). Pour tomato sauce mix on top of pasta. Spread chicken chunks evenly across. Spread shredded cheese all over. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.

2)

Post by **MKJ** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:54 pm

if you dont have the italian dressing but you do have mustard, add a bit of sugar to the mustard. it sounds weird but it makes the taste very fresh afterwards

Post by **Don Carlos** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:55 pm

yeh good call on the cutting of the chicken rook, forgot to mention that !!

And yes mash the tomatos so you get a nice sauce

Post by **[xeno]Julios** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:59 pm

wow, thanks for your help everyone

R00k wrote:Take the onions, garlic and ginger, and mix them in with some Italian dressing and mustard if you have it. If you don't have those, mix them with olive oil. Let the chicken marinade in it for an hour if you can.

Mix the tomato sauce in with the rest of the garlic and onions, along with other spices if you have them.

Boil the pasta.

Two ways to do it from here:

1) Cut the chicken into small pieces. Put pasta in bottom of casserole dish (put olive oil or butter in bottom first so it won't stick). Pour tomato sauce mix on top of pasta. Spread chicken chunks evenly across. Spread shredded cheese all over. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.

2)

this looks good. So I need to get sauce for pasta? How would I make my own sauce?

Also, this part:

Mix the tomato sauce in with the rest of the garlic and onions, along with other spices if you have them.

Should I fry this stuff? Then what do I do with it after fried?

I need step by step explicit instructions - i'm really dumb when it comes to these things.

Also, should I boil pasta to an edible state before baking it?

Post by **Don Carlos** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:04 pm

Juls - boil the pasta so its edible

fry the :
mushrooms
onions
garlic
ginger

together until all is cooked. also fry the chicken in small strips.

cut the tomatos up into chunks and also fry them
if you have peppers do the same
find some tomato pasta sauce and heat through.
Mix the fried stuff with the tomato sauce
Then tip over and stir into cooked pasta

slap in over for 20 mins, grate cheese over the top and then put back in oven for 5 mins!!

Post by **[xeno]Julios** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:07 pm

tx donny - not gonna go with the cheese.

what's the point of baking it all if the stuff is already cooked though?

also, should i fry the chicken separately? What about the tomatoes?

if frying together, what should i add first? Doesn't chicken take longest to fry? If so, shouldn't i add chicken first?

i'm a COMPLETE newbie here - keep that in mind.

I don't wanna buy pre-made sauce - rather make it myself with organic healthy ingredients, so should i get some tomato paste or something?

Post by **Don Carlos** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:09 pm

fry the chicken on its own
fry the chopped tomatoes with the onions and stuff

And you bake it because it would be too "runny" otherwise

Post by **R00k** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:09 pm

[xeno]Julios wrote: this looks good. So I need to get sauce for pasta? How would I make my own sauce?

Also, this part:

Mix the tomato sauce in with the rest of the garlic and onions, along with other spices if you have them.
Should I fry this stuff? Then what do I do with it after fried?

I need step by step explicit instructions - i'm really dumb when it comes to these things.

Also, should I boil pasta to an edible state before baking it?

You can make your own pasta sauce by mixing the tomato sauce(with chunks of diced tomatoes, preferably) with your other ingredients. Then simmer it over medium-high heat for 15 mins or so to boil it down and mix everything.

And yes, you should boil the pasta to get it wet, soft and sticky (i.e. al dente) before baking it.

edit: Yes, you will fry the chunks of chicken right after you marinate them. Make sure they cook until they are white all the way through - no pink in the middle!
Sorry, I forgot to mention that part.

Also, the baking everything afterwards is to meld it all into a single baked dish, as opposed to having a pile of sauce, noodles and chicken on your plate. Since you are making your own sauce, this will make it taste better and go down easier - buying sauce at the store would taste better than making your own, but if you do this quite a few times you'll be able to make your own sauce the way you like it.

Post by **Dark Metal** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:09 pm

I disagree with all of your suggestions.

1. Chop some garlic, the onion and the tomato
2. Mix together.
3. Add balsamic vinegar
4. Get some feta and crumble it in.
5. Add a small amount of olive oil

Chicken:

rub with salt, ginger, rosemary and garlic.

Drizzle a small amount of olive oil.

Bake at 400 for approx 20 mins.

P.S. Save some ginger. Halve the avacado, remove the "meat". Mix it up with grated ginger, and return it to the empty avacado halves. For extra sweetness, add a small amount of honey or maple syrup to the mix.

For your carbs I suggest wild rice. It takes about 45 mins but it's real fucking good.

Post by **Don Carlos** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:09 pm

yes tomatoe paste is good sir !!!

Post by **MKJ** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:10 pm

not going with the cheese? every pasta dish should have either 1) tomatoes or 2) cheese. cheese has priority over the tomatoes

Post by **Fury** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:11 pm

MKJ wrote:not going with the cheese? every pasta dish should have either 1) tomatoes or 2) cheese. cheese has priority over the tomatoes

unless you're lactose fucking intolerant god damnit.

Post by **Dark Metal** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:11 pm

Sorry a bit of oregano would also be quite good in the Tomato salad.

Post by **R00k** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:14 pm

And yes Jules, if you're going to bake it, you really should put cheese on top of the dish before you throw it in the oven. Otherwise you may as well not bake it. The cheese is the key that holds the thing together, and there's nothing like a baked cheese crust on top of a pasta dish.

Post by **[xeno]Julios** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:15 pm

i like your avocado idea DM. Gonna incorporate that.

Post by **MKJ** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:15 pm

Fury wrote:
MKJ wrote:not going with the cheese? every pasta dish should have either 1) tomatoes or 2) cheese. cheese has priority over the tomatoes
unless you're lactose fucking intolerant god damnit.

theres cheese for the lactose intolerant.

oh and i already mentioned the oregano, dm. he didnt listen though