VERY novice recipes wanted

[Old farrier]

Thanks for your replies all of you 😊

So tried the slow cooker today

Carrots chopped up

Unyins chopped up

Oxo cube

Meat joint

Tin of tomatoes

Bit of water till it looked enough

 

Now there's about a tin full of fat floating on the top?

 

Bailed that out and served with potatoes and peas

Tasted ok😏Ish

So trying again tomorrow

 

Many thank

Of

[panoma1]

Thanks for your replies all of you

So tried the slow cooker today

Carrots chopped up

Unyins chopped up

Oxo cube

Meat joint

Tin of tomatoes

Bit of water till it looked enough

Now there's about a tin full of fat floating on the top?

Bailed that out and served with potatoes and peas

Tasted okIsh

So trying again tomorrow

Many thank

Of

Lean meat is not too greasy, fatty meat such as lamb and shoulder pork is.........stewing beef or shin of beef cut into 1 inch cubes and cooked slow and long with veg, much the way you did it, makes a lovely casserole.

[Danger-Mouse]

First thing, work out what you have in freezer.

 

Next work out where the cooker is, usually the dalek looking thing in the kitchen.

 

Find pan or make your own.

 

Veg - boil in newly made pan till soft or oven roast in the dalek's belly.

 

Meat (sausage/bacon/steak)- put new pan on top of dalek, add a little oil (NOT ENGINE OIL) and shallow fry for a few minutes.

 

Meat joints roast for about 20min per pound of weight.

 

These are just from my own experiences and if all else fails, the pub across the road does great food or go to the chip shop.

 

All the best mate

 

Genuine lol.

[Fuddster]

1 onion

2 carrot

1 stick celery

5 cloves garlic

chop the above and add to 2 tins chopped tomatoes-all cold into an oven proof dish.

 

lay one raw pheasant on top-add chicken stock about a pint.

 

any fresh herbs would be great-bay leaves,parlsey stalks,cover with foil.

 

into oven on 80 degrees and cook for 12 hours.

 

let it cool-remove bones.meat will be very tender.

 

chop meat/adjust seasoning.

 

will gives 6 good sized servings for pasta or use a ragu for lasagne.

 

kids love it -even non game eaters.

 

f.

[Old farrier]

1 onion

2 carrot

1 stick celery

5 cloves garlic

chop the above and add to 2 tins chopped tomatoes-all cold into an oven proof dish.

 

lay one raw pheasant on top-add chicken stock about a pint.

 

any fresh herbs would be great-bay leaves,parlsey stalks,cover with foil.

 

into oven on 80 degrees and cook for 12 hours.

 

let it cool-remove bones.meat will be very tender.

 

chop meat/adjust seasoning.

 

will gives 6 good sized servings for pasta or use a ragu for lasagne.

 

kids love it -even non game eaters.

 

f.

Thanks for your reply

I give it a try

How do you cook pasta

And what's ragu

Not very good at all this stuff yet

Many thanks

Of

[Old farrier]

Lean meat is not too greasy, fatty meat such as lamb and shoulder pork is.........stewing beef or shin of beef cut into 1 inch cubes and cooked slow and long with veg, much the way you did it, makes a lovely casserole.

Ok I'll run it through my bandsaw first 😂

How do I identify the meats ?

My big problem is that both freezers full

Not one label on anything ☹️

 

Many thanks

Of

[marsh man]

If I were you , I would go to your nearest supermarket and get a few meals for one , then follow the simple instructions and there you go , a ready meal for one person and then you can bin the tray it come in to save washing up , all sorted.

 

Or you can give your local W I lessons on punt building in exchange for cookery lessons , again all sorted , come on O F with your skills I cant you starving ...GOOD LUCK

[Old farrier]

If I were you , I would go to your nearest supermarket and get a few meals for one , then follow the simple instructions and there you go , a ready meal for one person and then you can bin the tray it come in to save washing up , all sorted.

 

Or you can give your local W I lessons on punt building in exchange for cookery lessons , again all sorted , come on O F with your skills I cant you starving ...GOOD LUCK

Thanks for your reply

I've done a bit of the ready meals stuff thanks for the suggestions

But

I need to learn to cook

The food in the freezers!!!

And

Anything I shoot (except foxes)

It's a bit of a challenge as I'm more at home with metal and wood

However I'm sure with a few tips I shall start to get the hang of it

 

Many thanks

Of

[shoot and be safe]

 

 

It's a bit of a challenge as I'm more at home with metal and wood

 

Many thanks

Of

Cooking is more or less the same as metal and wood work...

 

Think of the meat as metal and veg as wood.

You want the meat to have a nice colour (usually golden brown) as the finished product, the same as when tampering your metal work.

The veg just needs cutting to bite size pieces and either boils till soft or roasted with a little oil drizzled over tuntil the edges go golden brown.

 

As for the unlabled food in the freezer, it won't take you long to work out what is chicken/pheasant, steak, joints of meat or fish.

 

Best of luck mate

[panoma1]

Ok I'll run it through my bandsaw first

How do I identify the meats ?

My big problem is that both freezers full

Not one label on anything ☹️

Many thanks

Of

If it's got fins on it it's likely fish Of! Lol!

 

It is difficult to tell what meat is what, especially if it has been in the freezer a long time and/or is freezer burnt! But if you do identify a particular pack of meat by type.......label it before returning it to the freezer....you have to start somewhere!

[Old farrier]

If it's got fins on it it's likely fish Of! Lol!

 

It is difficult to tell what meat is what, especially if it has been in the freezer a long time and/or is freezer burnt! But if you do identify a particular pack of meat by type.......label it before returning it to the freezer....you have to start somewhere!

I've worked out some of the fish there about 7 lb with the heads on

I shall leave them at one side until a recipe appears 🤣

Many thanks

Of

[silver pigeon69]

Re; Scrambled Eggs- I always add a knob of butter to the mix as well. (OF a knob of butter is a heaped teaspoon size portion of butter, just incase you weren't sure what a knob was!)

[Old farrier]

Re; Scrambled Eggs- I always add a knob of butter to the mix as well. (OF a knob of butter is a heaped teaspoon size portion of butter, just incase you weren't sure what a knob was!)

A knob is a lump of coal as big as your fist in my world

😃

Anyway had a casserole suprise on all day

See what that turns out like 🙃

 

Many thanks

Of

[kyska]

Out of interest why are you deciding to cook now?

 

A slow cooker seems the right thing for you, especially when the winter approaches.

 

Cooking isn't difficult, it can be simple, and you have the skill set, just not the confidence!

 

PM me your home address and I'll send you a couple of 'manuals', slow cooking and simple stuff like pasta, lasagna for example.

[Old farrier]

Out of interest why are you deciding to cook now?

 

A slow cooker seems the right thing for you, especially when the winter approaches.

 

Cooking isn't difficult, it can be simple, and you have the skill set, just not the confidence!

 

PM me your home address and I'll send you a couple of 'manuals', slow cooking and simple stuff like pasta, lasagna for example.

Other half passed away a bit suddenly

 

Got tons of books thanks just don't understand a lot of stuff in them

 

And so now I find I have to learn main problem is I know what it should look like and taste like

Haven't a clue how to get it to that point

[panoma1]

A knob is a lump of coal as big as your fist in my world

 

Anyway had a casserole suprise on all day

See what that turns out like

Many thanks

Of

Let us know how it turned out?

[Fuddster]

Thanks for your reply

I give it a try

How do you cook pasta

And what's ragu

Not very good at all this stuff yet

Many thanks

Of

ragu is any meaty/tomato based sauce and any dried pasta is a pan of boiling water and cooked til not quite soft in the mouth,drain,add a little olive oil, swirl to stop it clagging together,ragu on pasta and a little grated parmesan cheese over.

 

A whole raw rabbit can be used and comes out great.

 

I cook mine overnight, left it cool, de-bone and its a simple reheat job for dinner.

 

dead easy.go for it.

 

f.

[Walker570]

All terribly complicated.

Ask your butcher for a lamb blade. That is part of the shoulder. You will roast this wrapped in silver foil and it will take about 1hr 30mins according to the size ...tell him you do not need large.

Put this in the oven at 200 and then wash some new potatoes thoroughly, don't bother skinning/peeling, halve them and put them in a saucepan, sprinkle a little salt and cover with water. Put these on the heat and bring to the boil then turn the heat down and let it just bubble lightly, then open a tin of peas and tip this in another saucepan and when you have checked the meat ..... a meat thermometer here is really handy and cheap to buy .... remove the silver foil for the last ten mins. That is how long it takes to cook the peas, just simmer don't rolling boil these. Stick a sharp pointed knife in the spuds and the blade should slide straight through with no effort if cooked. Turn the heat off and drain, then put a nice big blob of butter on them and just move them around in the pan. The meat can rest a while whilst the peas finish, so no panic. You can probably buy some ready made mint sauce at your local store if you have not got that already. Slice what you fancy off the blade, along with spuds and peas and enjoy. You will probably find you have some meat left. Fine, let it cool and then it will sit in the fridge and provide you with some cold cuts or sandwich making material the following day.

 

Almost all meat, you can flash fry in a frying pan with a small amount of oil..... I add a crushed clove of garlic ... cut the meat about 1/2 inch thick then flatten it with the base of an empty bottle if you don't have a meat mallet, get the pan really sizzling and put in the meat, flipping it frequently until it is brown on the outside but still pink and juicy in the middle. Muntie and roe back straps are awesome done like this.

Most all vegetables will roast, jacket potato, simple, ready when soft to squeeze, filled with stilton cheese, chopped smoked grilled bacon and butter. Carrots, parsnips, even broad beans, sweet peppers will roast in the oven.

 

Note: if you have frozen fruit ..eg plums, then cook them directly from frozen, do not let them thaw or they go yuk. Pears, apples, cherries, raspberries the same.

Edited July 16, 2017 by Walker570

[amateur]

OK, one easy fish recipe coming up.

 

Thai Fish Curry.

 

​From the supermarket oriental food section (just ask a shelf filler where)

 

​1 jar of Thai green curry paste

​1 tin of coconut milk

​1 sachet of microwavable coconut rice

 

Grocery section

 

​1 bottle of cooking oil

 

From the fresh vegetable section

 

1 small piece of fresh ginger root

1 garlic bulb

1 packet of fresh coriander

​French beans

​Broccoli or cauliflower

​1 medium onion.

 

​From the fish counter

 

​​A piece of cod, haddock or pollack (how much is up to your appetite)

 

​Method

 

​Peel and chop the onion into small pieces (about 1/4 inch)

Peel about a thumb-size piece of the ginger, then slice it lengthways into matchstick sized pieces.

​Break out 2 pieces of garlic from the bulb, take the skin off, then with the side of a large knife, smash then chop up the pieces (called cloves)

​Chop about 1/4 inch off both ends of the beans, then cut them into about 2 inch lengths - precision not required

​Cut a few florets off the broccoli or cauliflower

​Chop the coriander into small pieces, stalks and all

​Slice the fish into 1 inch cubes

​Open the Thai curry paste and the tin of coconut milk

 

​Take a large frying pan or wok and pour about 2 tablespoons of oil into it. Put it on the cooker on a medium heat - (halfway on the dial whether gas or electric)

​Put the onion and ginger in the pan and let it fry until the onion has turned to a light tan colour. Keep stirring it with a wooden spoon - do not let it turn black.

​Add the garlic and then let it fry with the onion for another minute (no more). Keep stirring

​Put three heaped teaspoons of the curry paste in the pan and fry with the onion etc for one minute. Keep stirring

​Tip the coconut milk into the pan, stir it all together, then reduce the heat until you see a few bubbles coming up from the liquid, but not so much as it boils. (This is simmering)

​Add the beans and cauliflower and continue to simmer for about 10 minutes, giving it a stir every couple of minutes. If the curry is sticking to the pan, add a little water to loosen the mix.

After 8 minutes, take the rice sachet, knead it gently to break up the rice, so that it is fluffy and tear along the top about 1/2 inch, put in microwave and cook on full power for 2 minutes.

Whilst the rice is cooking, add the fish to the curry and cook for about 5 minutes until you can see that it is just cooked.

​Throw the coriander on top, give it a stir..

 

​Take a large bowl, carefully take the rice from the microwave, tear the top open and pour the rice into the bowl.

​Ladle the curry on top

 

​Enjoy

 

This takes about 20 minutes to do

 

​If you want to use your fish from the freezer, you will need to de-skin and de-bone it (called filleting)

​Try YouTube to show you how.

​Once filleted, then chop into bite-size pieces and use as above.

 

​Save the bones and skin and simmer in a little water in a pan on the stove, Add the strained liquid (called stock) to your curry when you put in the coconut milk. - it will enhance the flavour.

 

​You can substitute prawns or scallops for the fish above or, if you have a little chicken breast, though that needs cooking longer.

Edited July 16, 2017 by amateur

[Old farrier]

ragu is any meaty/tomato based sauce and any dried pasta is a pan of boiling water and cooked til not quite soft in the mouth,drain,add a little olive oil, swirl to stop it clagging together,ragu on pasta and a little grated parmesan cheese over.

 

A whole raw rabbit can be used and comes out great.

 

I cook mine overnight, left it cool, de-bone and its a simple reheat job for dinner.

 

dead easy.go for it.

 

f.

Thank you

I give it a try and thanks for the simple easy reply

 

Many thanks

Of

[Old farrier]

OK, one easy fish recipe coming up.

 

Thai Fish Curry.

 

​From the supermarket oriental food section (just ask a shelf filler where)

 

​1 jar of Thai green curry paste

​1 tin of coconut milk

​1 sachet of microwavable coconut rice

 

Grocery section

 

​1 bottle of cooking oil

 

From the fresh vegetable section

 

1 small piece of fresh ginger root

1 garlic bulb

1 packet of fresh coriander

​French beans

​Broccoli or cauliflower

​1 medium onion.

 

​From the fish counter

 

​​A piece of cod, haddock or pollack (how much is up to your appetite)

 

​Method

 

​Peel and chop the onion into small pieces (about 1/4 inch)

Peel about a thumb-size piece of the ginger, then slice it lengthways into matchstick sized pieces.

​Break out 2 pieces of garlic from the bulb, take the skin off, then with the side of a large knife, smash then chop up the pieces (called cloves)

​Chop about 1/4 inch off both ends of the beans, then cut them into about 2 inch lengths - precision not required

​Cut a few florets off the broccoli or cauliflower

​Chop the coriander into small pieces, stalks and all

​Slice the fish into 1 inch cubes

​Open the Thai curry paste and the tin of coconut milk

 

​Take a large frying pan or wok and pour about 2 tablespoons of oil into it. Put it on the cooker on a medium heat - (halfway on the dial whether gas or electric)

​Put the onion and ginger in the pan and let it fry until the onion has turned to a light tan colour. Keep stirring it with a wooden spoon - do not let it turn black.

​Add the garlic and then let it fry with the onion for another minute (no more). Keep stirring

​Put three heaped teaspoons of the curry paste in the pan and fry with the onion etc for one minute. Keep stirring

​Tip the coconut milk into the pan, stir it all together, then reduce the heat until you see a few bubbles coming up from the liquid, but not so much as it boils. (This is simmering)

​Add the beans and cauliflower and continue to simmer for about 10 minutes, giving it a stir every couple of minutes. If the curry is sticking to the pan, add a little water to loosen the mix.

After 8 minutes, take the rice sachet, knead it gently to break up the rice, so that it is fluffy and tear along the top about 1/2 inch, put in microwave and cook on full power for 2 minutes.

Whilst the rice is cooking, add the fish to the curry and cook for about 5 minutes until you can see that it is just cooked.

​Throw the coriander on top, give it a stir..

 

​Take a large bowl, carefully take the rice from the microwave, tear the top open and pour the rice into the bowl.

​Ladle the curry on top

 

​Enjoy

 

This takes about 20 minutes to do

 

​If you want to use your fish from the freezer, you will need to de-skin and de-bone it (called filleting)

​Try YouTube to show you how.

​Once filleted, then chop into bite-size pieces and use as above.

 

​Save the bones and skin and simmer in a little water in a pan on the stove, Add the strained liquid (called stock) to your curry when you put in the coconut milk. - it will enhance the flavour.

 

​You can substitute prawns or scallops for the fish above or, if you have a little chicken breast, though that needs cooking longer.

Thanks for your reply very comprehensive I can fillet and bone out a fish

And will try out your recipe

Catch most of my fish mostly plaice sole bass skate these proberably be ok ?

 

Many thanks

Of

[Old farrier]

All terribly complicated.

Ask your butcher for a lamb blade. That is part of the shoulder. You will roast this wrapped in silver foil and it will take about 1hr 30mins according to the size ...tell him you do not need large.

Put this in the oven at 200 and then wash some new potatoes thoroughly, don't bother skinning/peeling, halve them and put them in a saucepan, sprinkle a little salt and cover with water. Put these on the heat and bring to the boil then turn the heat down and let it just bubble lightly, then open a tin of peas and tip this in another saucepan and when you have checked the meat ..... a meat thermometer here is really handy and cheap to buy .... remove the silver foil for the last ten mins. That is how long it takes to cook the peas, just simmer don't rolling boil these. Stick a sharp pointed knife in the spuds and the blade should slide straight through with no effort if cooked. Turn the heat off and drain, then put a nice big blob of butter on them and just move them around in the pan. The meat can rest a while whilst the peas finish, so no panic. You can probably buy some ready made mint sauce at your local store if you have not got that already. Slice what you fancy off the blade, along with spuds and peas and enjoy. You will probably find you have some meat left. Fine, let it cool and then it will sit in the fridge and provide you with some cold cuts or sandwich making material the following day.

 

Almost all meat, you can flash fry in a frying pan with a small amount of oil..... I add a crushed clove of garlic ... cut the meat about 1/2 inch thick then flatten it with the base of an empty bottle if you don't have a meat mallet, get the pan really sizzling and put in the meat, flipping it frequently until it is brown on the outside but still pink and juicy in the middle. Muntie and roe back straps are awesome done like this.

Most all vegetables will roast, jacket potato, simple, ready when soft to squeeze, filled with stilton cheese, chopped smoked grilled bacon and butter. Carrots, parsnips, even broad beans, sweet peppers will roast in the oven.

 

Note: if you have frozen fruit ..eg plums, then cook them directly from frozen, do not let them thaw or they go yuk. Pears, apples, cherries, raspberries the same.

Thanks for your reply

And you're time sorry but too advanced for me maybe when I've learned a bit more it'll seem simpler

 

Many thanks

Of

[Old farrier]

Let us know how it turned out?

Edible this time thanks for asking 😊

All the best

Of

[amateur]

Thanks for your reply very comprehensive I can fillet and bone out a fish

And will try out your recipe

Catch most of my fish mostly plaice sole bass skate these proberably be ok ?

Many thanks

Of

Any white fish (or indeed shellfish) will work with this.

You could leave small fillets whole.

Just simmer in the curry until they just start flaking

 

I forgot to say, shake the coconut milk tin vigorously before you open it. The coconut cream separates out and it is otherwise a faff scraping it out from the tin and stirring it into the sauce.

If you like them, you can thinly slice some mushrooms and add them with the vegetables.

Edited July 17, 2017 by amateur

[amateur]

Here is a doddle of a pasta recipe

 

Fusilli with bacon and pesto sauce

 

Ingredients

 

​2 rashers of streaky bacon

​4 mushrooms

Olive oil

​Pack of dry fusilli pasta (this is the corkscrew shaped pasta - you could use macaroni instead)

​A small pot of greek yoghurt (you could use plain yoghurt instead, but it is less creamy)

​A jar of green pesto sauce.

​A pack of ready-grated cheddar cheese and/or grated Parmesan cheese.

​2 cloves of garlic

 

​Method

 

​Put a saucepan of water on the stove to boil. When is boiling, back the heat off slightly so that you get a "rolling boil".

 

​Meanwhile slice the bacon into 1/4 inch squares or strips.

​Slice the mushrooms thinly

Peel , crush and slice the garlic.

 

​When the water is boiling, toss a good handful of the pasta into it and adjust the heat to maintain a rolling boil.

 

​Take a small frying pan, put in a tablespoon of olive oil and fry the bacon over a medium heat until the bacon is crispy, adding the mushrooms and garlic just as the bacon begins to crisp. Fry the mix for another two minutes, adding more oil if necessary because the mushrooms soak up a lot.

 

​Put about 3 heaped tablespoons of the yoghurt into a mixing bowl with 3 dessert spoons of the pesto and a good handful of the grated Cheddar cheese.

​Mix well.

 

​Meanwhile the pasta should be about cooked. Test it by fishing a piece out with a fork and bite it - it should be soft, but with a slight resistance to the bite ("al dente"). If it is too hard, let it boil a little longer. If it is very squishy, you have overcooked it, but only purists would give a stuff.

 

​Drain the water out of the pan and add the yoghurt/cheese/pesto mixture and stir to combine. Add the crispy bacon/mushroom/garlic mixture and stir to combine.

 

​Serve immediately with a little grated parmesan and fresh parsley if you have it.

 

​If you have vegetarian guests, this can be varied by substituting sliced courgettes for the bacon.

 

This is another 20 minute recipe