Cooking Notes
These notes are really just for me, though maybe you'll find a useful tidbit here and there.
Taco Salad Fixings
Taco meat, cheese, red bell pepper, jalapeno pepper, avocado, mild & spicy salsas, sour cream or yogurt, lettuce, chips, cilantro, diced tomatoes
Pork Tenderloin
Costco sells 4 tenderloins to a 2-pack (2 per pack). Each tenderloin is 1 to 1 1/4 lbs and will feed 4 to 6 people. Cook roughly 20 to 40 minutes per pound uncovered in the 350 to 400 range. Can use convection. Remove at 140 internal temp and let rest 10 to 15 minutes before cutting. Internal temp will rise 5 to 10 degrees while resting.
Roasted potatoes
One 9"x13" pan (single layer) of diced potatoes serves 5 people
Cooking Temps
Good meals for very large groups
Pesto pasta with grilled veggies and apple sausage (pesto and sausage from Costco)
Taco salad
Fish tacos
Grilled burgers and dogs with sides
Indian (chicken tika, yellow rice, cilantro chutney, rita, maybe, dal, yellow cauliflower, green beans)
Pulled pork (gets hard to make for very large crowds)
Pasta salad (good dressing, cubes of roasted veggies and cheese)
Yams from t-day
strawberry spinach salad
short grain brown rice, rice pilaf
panipuri
pork tenderloins
Changes to website
Oven roasted sweet potato chips
Slice lengthwise on thin setting of mandolin. Lightly rub with veggie oil and lay out on tray and sprinkle with salt. I’ve cooked these several ways. Big oven broiler doesn’t work, it burns too quickly and they come out bitter when burnt. Big oven bake at 450 with slices on a rack over a tray for 10 to 15 worked ok but I think a lower temp with a longer time would work better. Try 350 for 20 minutes or so next time. Might need a longer time than this even. Toaster oven at 450 on convection works ok but it’s way too few at a time. Next time: prep two sheet pans with racks and cook together at 350 for 30 minutes. Don’t need to flip since they are on a rack.
Crispy Kale
Did the last batch in the big oven for 15 minutes at 400. Carefully laid out the pieces on two baking sheets so that they were in a single layer. I didn’t flip them. They came out VERY crispy. I like them this way but Heather likes them a bit less crispy. Try the same thing but only 10 minutes next time. Note, I was careful to spin them very dry before cooking. I coated them with olive oil on the pans and lightly salted the top side after laying them out.
Learn to Make / Things to Make
mung bean thing that charu made
elote corn thing
Pasta out of squash (maybe butternut) - mix with pesto or red sauce.
Stir Fry (a really good version)
Food for a Thai Feast
Appetizers
chicken satay with Cucumber Salad and peanut sauce
shrimp lemongrass soup
Meal
Cabbage and Sprouts with Cilantro and Lime
Fiery Beans and Pork (can make them mild and just the beans?)
coconut curry (buy the paste) with white rice
pad thai (Daniel Thrall has a good version, might have been cook's illustrated)
Dessert
Sweet Sticky Rice with Mango
Coconut ice cream
Feast Ideas
Moroccan
Southwestern (did this once)
Indian or Thai (have done both of these)
Middle Eastern (lamb & veggie kabobs, saffron rice, hummus, rice pilaf)
Drinks to try
Classic Mai Tai
2oz dark Jamaican rum
1/2 oz orange curacao
3/4 oz lime juice
1/2 oz Orgeat syrup
maybe add 1 or 2 oz fresh OJ
Shake lightly with ice and serve on crushed ice with a straw. Or Shake longer and serve on whole ice. Garnish with lime wheel and mint optional.
Pisco Sour
3 oz. pisco (Chilean Pisco probably better than Peruvian)
3/4 oz. simple syrup (1:1) or 2 tsp. sugar
1 oz. lemon juice, fresh-squeezed
1 fresh egg white
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Shake and strain the 1st set into a chilled glass then dash with bitters.
Poquito Picante
6 to 8 cilantro leafs
2 slices cucumber with skin
3 slices seedless jalapeno
2 oz lemon juice
1.5 oz gin
½ oz Cointreau or other triple sec
1/2 oz simple syrup
Tear the cilantro into ¼ inch pieces. Dice the cucumber and jalapeno into ¼ inch pieces. Muddle first set in a shaker. Add the rest along with one drinks portion of ice and shake. Pour everything into a glass and serve. If you’d rather have a clean drink you can strain this and serve it up or on fresh ice. I like having the vegetable bits in the final drink. You can garnished with a dried red chili or a fresh Thai bird chili (red or green). Note: Proportions were updated on 5/21/15 to reflect the Contigo recipe. Elizabeth watched them make the drink. At Contigo, the drink ends up rather spicy, which I like.
Taco Salad Fixings
Taco meat, cheese, red bell pepper, jalapeno pepper, avocado, mild & spicy salsas, sour cream or yogurt, lettuce, chips, cilantro, diced tomatoes
Pork Tenderloin
Costco sells 4 tenderloins to a 2-pack (2 per pack). Each tenderloin is 1 to 1 1/4 lbs and will feed 4 to 6 people. Cook roughly 20 to 40 minutes per pound uncovered in the 350 to 400 range. Can use convection. Remove at 140 internal temp and let rest 10 to 15 minutes before cutting. Internal temp will rise 5 to 10 degrees while resting.
Roasted potatoes
One 9"x13" pan (single layer) of diced potatoes serves 5 people
Cooking Temps
- Salmon - Remove fillets at 105 to 110. Serving around 110 to 115. If baked in a moist environment with stuffing and/or sauce can be pulled out in the 115 range.
- Tilapia fillet and similar: Remove fillets at 120 to 130 range. Fish should flake apart.
- Lamb - eat at 130-135 for medium rare so remove 5 to 10 degrees lower depending on size of what you are cooking. I tend to pull kebobs off the grill at 130. Larger roasts will have more carryover heat so best to remove at 125.
- Pork tenderloin - remove at 140, eat at 14.
- Turkey FDA now states 165 but the thigh is better at 175. I typically take it out when the breast is 160 and the thigh is 170.
- Burgers - remove at 120 to 125 for rare. Will be warm and raw in the center. Remove at 130 for medium rare. Will be very pink in the middle. Remove at 135 for medium, 140 to 145 for medium-well, and 150+ for well. 80% to 90% lean work good for burgers. For medium-well to well done burgers Cook’s Illustrated recommends using “80% lean ground chuck” and adding a panade (bread + milk) to keep it moist. In general, “ground chuck” is the preferred cut over “ground round” or simply “ground meat”. “Ground sirloin” is ok but typically dryer due to the 90%+ lean range.
Good meals for very large groups
Pesto pasta with grilled veggies and apple sausage (pesto and sausage from Costco)
Taco salad
Fish tacos
Grilled burgers and dogs with sides
Indian (chicken tika, yellow rice, cilantro chutney, rita, maybe, dal, yellow cauliflower, green beans)
Pulled pork (gets hard to make for very large crowds)
Pasta salad (good dressing, cubes of roasted veggies and cheese)
Yams from t-day
strawberry spinach salad
short grain brown rice, rice pilaf
panipuri
pork tenderloins
Changes to website
Oven roasted sweet potato chips
Slice lengthwise on thin setting of mandolin. Lightly rub with veggie oil and lay out on tray and sprinkle with salt. I’ve cooked these several ways. Big oven broiler doesn’t work, it burns too quickly and they come out bitter when burnt. Big oven bake at 450 with slices on a rack over a tray for 10 to 15 worked ok but I think a lower temp with a longer time would work better. Try 350 for 20 minutes or so next time. Might need a longer time than this even. Toaster oven at 450 on convection works ok but it’s way too few at a time. Next time: prep two sheet pans with racks and cook together at 350 for 30 minutes. Don’t need to flip since they are on a rack.
Crispy Kale
Did the last batch in the big oven for 15 minutes at 400. Carefully laid out the pieces on two baking sheets so that they were in a single layer. I didn’t flip them. They came out VERY crispy. I like them this way but Heather likes them a bit less crispy. Try the same thing but only 10 minutes next time. Note, I was careful to spin them very dry before cooking. I coated them with olive oil on the pans and lightly salted the top side after laying them out.
Learn to Make / Things to Make
mung bean thing that charu made
elote corn thing
Pasta out of squash (maybe butternut) - mix with pesto or red sauce.
Stir Fry (a really good version)
- 1/2 onion caramelized with ½ pack of minced baby bells or small portabellas, cooked down for a while with onions.
- remove and fry rainbow chard bottoms, zucchini, red bell pepper
- remove and fry shredded carrots and chard tops
- remove and fry snow peas, bean sprouts
- remove and fry cubed chicken thighs
- teriyaki sauce over brown rice, added sauce to each fry set before removing.
Food for a Thai Feast
Appetizers
chicken satay with Cucumber Salad and peanut sauce
shrimp lemongrass soup
Meal
Cabbage and Sprouts with Cilantro and Lime
Fiery Beans and Pork (can make them mild and just the beans?)
coconut curry (buy the paste) with white rice
pad thai (Daniel Thrall has a good version, might have been cook's illustrated)
Dessert
Sweet Sticky Rice with Mango
Coconut ice cream
Feast Ideas
Moroccan
Southwestern (did this once)
Indian or Thai (have done both of these)
Middle Eastern (lamb & veggie kabobs, saffron rice, hummus, rice pilaf)
Drinks to try
Classic Mai Tai
2oz dark Jamaican rum
1/2 oz orange curacao
3/4 oz lime juice
1/2 oz Orgeat syrup
maybe add 1 or 2 oz fresh OJ
Shake lightly with ice and serve on crushed ice with a straw. Or Shake longer and serve on whole ice. Garnish with lime wheel and mint optional.
Pisco Sour
3 oz. pisco (Chilean Pisco probably better than Peruvian)
3/4 oz. simple syrup (1:1) or 2 tsp. sugar
1 oz. lemon juice, fresh-squeezed
1 fresh egg white
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Shake and strain the 1st set into a chilled glass then dash with bitters.
Poquito Picante
6 to 8 cilantro leafs
2 slices cucumber with skin
3 slices seedless jalapeno
2 oz lemon juice
1.5 oz gin
½ oz Cointreau or other triple sec
1/2 oz simple syrup
Tear the cilantro into ¼ inch pieces. Dice the cucumber and jalapeno into ¼ inch pieces. Muddle first set in a shaker. Add the rest along with one drinks portion of ice and shake. Pour everything into a glass and serve. If you’d rather have a clean drink you can strain this and serve it up or on fresh ice. I like having the vegetable bits in the final drink. You can garnished with a dried red chili or a fresh Thai bird chili (red or green). Note: Proportions were updated on 5/21/15 to reflect the Contigo recipe. Elizabeth watched them make the drink. At Contigo, the drink ends up rather spicy, which I like.