Innie or Outie

This “hungry man’s” meal from a new eatery in the area that offers Tex-Mex influenced dishes included red rice, refried beans, tortilla-wrapped shredded chicken and a large bean-stuffed tortilla (both smothered with melted cheese), and a shredded-beef soft shell taco.

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We recently had a birthday celebration for our youngest dog, Jaco, and I came-up with this Asian-influenced twist on one of our family’s favorite cooking methods, Grilled Miso-Sake Steak Dinner:

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This meal consisted of grilled steak in a red miso, sake, powdered red chili pepper, powdered cumin, powdered marjoram,and olive oil marinade; chicken in an apple cider vinegar, sesame oil, minced ginger paste, powdered thyme, and white pepper marinade; foil-wrapped canned button mushrooms slices and frozen bean mix with butter, olive oil, chopped fresh parsley, and butter; sliced carrot, bell pepper, white onion, and garlic skewers; and a mixed mini-pasta salad with mayonnaise, wasabi, soy sauce, crushed senbei, and dry ochazuke.

Here’s a flavorful meal idea for one of those cookouts, Mustard-Steak & Ginger-Chicken BBQ Dinner:

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This meal included steak marinated in whole grain mustard, soy sauce, white pepper, and olive oil; sliced onion-garlic skewers; chicken marinated in ketchup, oyster sauce, sesame oil, minced ginger paste, sage, and coriander; foil-wrapped frozen asparagus with butter. lemon juice, powdered lemon peel, diced bacon, and cracked black sesame seeds; and a chilled mini-penne, minced hard-boiled egg and white onion, mayonnaise, balsamic vinegar, and dill weed salad.

Here’s another original home cooked meal idea, Leek Stuffed-Pork Cutlet Curry-Ramen Dinner:

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This twist on two very popular dishes in the local cuisine included pan fried leek-stuffed pork cutlet medallions; instant ramen with a curry powder/one-half packaged ramen bouillon broth; leftover crockpot curry; a spiced dried-seaweed sheet garnish; and a chilled brocolli/cherry tomato in dill weed with apple cider vinegar tsukemono.

Here’s another tasty home cooking idea with a twist, Crockpot-Curry & Cold Bean Salad Dinner:

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The meal consisted of minced carrot, bell pepper, and white onion with ground beef, two powdered curries, clove, cinnamon, minced ginger paste, minced garlic paste, and beef bouillon cooked in a crockette; ladled over a spicy pork sausage on a slice of bread;and garnished with a sliced, spiced, seaweed sheet; accompanied by deep-fried potato croquettes of ground whole potatoes with skins, crockpot curry, and dried bread crumbs then coated in panko; and a cold salad of shredded iceberg lettuce with bean mix sautéed in olive oil, butter, minced garlic paste, soy sauce, dried parsley flakes,and white pepper; chilled, then drizzled with olive oil; and garnished with parmesan cheese.

Sometimes hubby just feels like a good steak ‘n taters meal, Papa’s Here’s-the-Beef Dinner:

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The meal consisted of steak sautéed in olive oil and smothered in a red wine, garlic, white pepper, and ginger sauce; baked potato with a dollop of sour cream; frozen mixed veggies and frozen karashina sautéed in butter; and a side salad of arugula, iceberg lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and kaiware radish with creamy cheese dressing drizzled on top.

This is a tasty and different way to serve beef with noodles, Crockpot-Beef & Pasta Dinner:

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This meal consisted of crocketted (mini crockpot) beef roast with powdered allspice, nutmeg, and white pepper; brown sugar, fresh ginger, sesame oil, white onion, and minced garlic paste; dried red chili pepper, parsley, oregano, and thyme flakes on a bed of pasta; surrounded by steamed frozen broccoli and sprinkled with grated parmesan cheese; with whole wheat dinner roll slices on the side.

Here are the specifics:

Equipment and All Ingredients Needed

1 Crockette 1 Knife 1 Cutting board
1 Medium pot 1 Stovetop burner 1 Strainer

1 Pound beef roast

½ White onion

2 Cups frozen broccoli

¼ Cup sesame oil

1 Tablespoon minced garlic paste

1 Tablespoon white pepper

1 Tablespoon dried oregano flakes

1 Teaspoon brown sugar

1 Teaspoon dried parsley flakes

1 Teaspoon fresh ginger

½ Teaspoon dried thyme flakes

½ Teaspoon dried red chili pepper flakes

½ Teaspoon powdered allspice

¼ Teaspoon powdered nutmeg

Pasta of choice

Whole wheat dinner rolls

Grated parmesan cheese

View brief video with further details.

This past week has been a busy one and we haven’t had much time for getting creative in the kitchen. Finding a free moment (due to a rainy day), hubby finally had a chance to give stew meat a bit of a twist, Papa’ s Beef ‘n Taters:

For the meal, hubby tenderized, sliced, and sautéed stewing beef in olive oil; added whole grain mustard, classic mustard, red wine, white pepper, minced garlic paste, and canned mushrooms; then simmered until sauce was reduced. The potatoes were sliced, microwaved, then sautéed with olive oil and fresh chopped chives; a bit of spinach and a small salad of iceberg lettuce, quartered cherry tomatoes, sliced cucumber, scallion, creamy cheese dressing and dried oregano flakes completed the meal.

Hubby’s back in his experimentation mood with these crispy edibles, Papa’s Double Roll & Rice:

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For one version of spring rolls, hubby used beef, pork, Shitake mushrooms, bean sprouts, carrot, white pepper, minced ginger paste, and minced garlic paste; for the other, cheddar cheese and spicy pork sausage. The dipping sauce was a mixture of ketchup, Tobasco sauce, and Mirin. The basic meatless-fried rice consisted of leftover precooked rice with sliced white onion, soy sauce, white pepper, and minced garlic paste quick-fried in sesame oil.

Hubby is back in the western-style phase and came up with this meal,

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For the meal hubby smothered sautéed beef strips in leftover demi-glase sauce with minced garlic paste; then added steamed fresh asparagus, baked potato with sour cream. a whole wheat dinner roll, and a small salad of iceberg lettuce, arugula, scallion, bacon bits, and hubby’s homegrown cherry tomatoes topped with a creamy cheese dressing.