Cooking Ideas?!


Question:

Cooking Ideas?

Help! My mom's a horrible cook. She cooks these things that have no flavor to them and calls it lunch, dinner, whatever meal it is. I need to take over cooking pronto. Any suggestions for beginner cooks that does not require me to go to the supermarket and get like 100 things I don't understand?


Answers:
Quick and Easy Spaghetti Dinner

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1/4 cup chopped
pinch ground hot pepper
1 teaspoon dried leaf basil, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon dried leaf oregano, crumbled
2 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups marinara sauce or your favorite spaghetti sauce
12 ounces spaghetti, broken in half
freshly ground black pepper
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

PREPARATION:
In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, combine the ground beef, onion, cayenne pepper, basil, and oregano. Cook, stirring to break up meat, until browned, about 5 minutes. Drain off any excess grease.
Add 2 1/2 cups water, the spaghetti sauce, and spaghetti; bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook, stirring frequently, until the spaghetti is just tender and most of the liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.
Turn off the heat and let pan stand, covered, 5 minutes. Season with pepper to taste and serve sprinkled with the cheese.
******************************...

Cod with Zucchini and Tomatoes

INGREDIENTS:
4 cod fillets
4 small zucchini
3 tomatoes
3 Tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled
flat leaf parsley
salt and freshly ground pepper

PREPARATION:
1. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Cut a small x on the bottom of each tomato. Using a slotted spoon, dip the tomatoes into the boiling water.

2. Remove, drain and rinse under cold water. Peel the tomatoes. Cut in half, gently squeeze out some of the seeds and then dice.

3. Wash the zucchini and slice them into rounds.

4. In a large pot or dutch oven, heat the olive oil. Add the garlic and cook for a minute or two. DO NOT let it brown.

5. Add the zucchini, tomatoes and parsley. Stir and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

6. While the zucchini is cooking. Prepare a steam basket. Place the fish in the basket and steam for about 12 minutes.
To serve:
Divide the zucchini/tomato mixture among 4 plates. Place a cod fillet on top. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Quick, easy and fast recipes:

http://www.razzledazzlerecipes.com/quick...

Cheap and easy"

http://www.cheapcooking.com/

If you live near a big market/flea market....that is a great place to pick up quality cookware, storage kitchen supplies for just a few bucks!

Try growing your own herbs for flavor:
http://gardening.about.com/od/vegetablep...

Eating Healthy:
http://health.howstuffworks.com/eating-h...

How to stock your pantry economically:
http://www.debtsmart.com/pages/article_k...

http://life.familyeducation.com/foods/nu...

Initially I would set aside $20 each pay, if that isn't too much for you, to stock up on spices and supplies (Sam's Club is great!) Lemon Pepper, Lime Pepper, Cajun Spice.

Places Like BigLots and Save-A-Lot often have brand name seasonings and spices etc.

Worchestershire, Balsalmic Vinegar, Olive Oil, Flour, Sugar, Brown Sugar, Corn Starch, Baking Soda, Baking Powder, Vanilla Extract, Frozen Veggies. I have even found Ghiaradelli Chocolate chips at Big Lots. This is a great place to find fancy items at reasonable prices that you may want to try, but may be hesitant to spend alot of $$ on.


Good Luck!! How Exciting for you!

Get a couple cook books to start. Just basic reading nothing fancy.
Then start experimenting.
If you know what you like you'll be cooking like a pro in no time.
Having a love of good food always helps.
Practice Practice Practice!

I have shared alot of recipes on my site, mostly tried and tested, some my own creation. I didnt start cooking till few years ago, the only diff between my mom and yours is that my mother was a very good cook and so our tastebud has pretty high standards :). You can also download a free chicken cookbook that has 300 chicken recipes here:

http://www.mycookery.com/blog

Pasta is the best.. and easiest..
there are quick and easy recipes out there that doesnt take more than 5 steps..




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