I’ve never been much of a cook, but it’s something I’d love to try and get better at. I’ve got a growing family and as much as freezer food is serving them now, when they’re older I’d like to be able to cook them something genuinely nice.
I’ve never been much of a cook, but it’s something I’d love to try and get better at. I’ve got a growing family and as much as freezer food is serving them now, when they’re older I’d like to be able to cook them something genuinely nice.
Make rice, but use chicken broth instead of water.
Take a large pan, and heat it on medium with a bit of oil in it until it’s hot and the oil kinda shimmers or ripples (past flows like water, before it smokes)
While it heats, cover some chicken breasts in salt and pepper. Slice an onion into discs.
Turn the heat up a bit, wait a few moments and then put the chicken in the pan. Turn the heat back down in a few moments. (You’re compensating for the chicken dropping the pan temperature. When the pan gets cold it makes the meat stick more, but you also don’t want things to be too hot, lest you have burnt on the outside and raw in the middle) Cook on both sides until it’s browned (a mild tan color with places that are a little darker). Don’t flip it too much, and it should take something like 5 minutes per side.
Dump a can of diced tomatoes into the pan. It’s going to sizzle a lot. If it’s a pre seasoned can that’s cool, otherwise add a bunch of oregano, pepper and some salt.
In the gaps around the chicken put the onion slices and pepper them generously. Put a lot on the pan to hold the steam.
Gently stir occasionally to keep the tomatoes from going funny, and flip the chicken.
Something like ten minutes later, the chicken should be done and you can check it with a thermometer. The onions should be edible. This recipe is generous to overcooking so try not to, but don’t stress.
Once the chicken is done, put a bit of butter on it, a little on each of the onion slices, and some more in the tomatoes. Replace the lid to melt the butter, call it ten seconds.
Remove the chicken and plate. Leave the lid on the give the onion a few more minutes to sit.
Put the rice in the plate.
Return to the pan and serve the onion.
Stir the tomato to incorporate the butter, and portion it out over the chicken and rice or whatever looks good.
All told, maybe half an hour and it looks fancier than the work that went in. Steamed broccoli also goes well.
Another good one is to cut chicken into thirds, and put in a bowl. Coat in oil. Coat in pepper, salt, and whatever seasoning powder you have on hand. Let sit for a few. Bake at 400 for like, 20 minutes or until it temps. Serve with anything, but a blend of butter, water, and whatever seasoning you put on the chicken makes a good sauce. You’ll need to really whisk it to make it incorporate, a little electric whisk is a good idea.
Get premade Greek flatbreads (small, like for a gyro), put a few spoonfuls of pizza sauce on them, cheese, garlic powder, pepper and some toppings (sparingly for plant toppings, generous for pepperoni and friends because of the moisture). Bake at 400 for 10 minutes for four, eight for two, and you’ve got super easy personal pizzas.