I decided to buy my first (and only) frying pan. It's Tefal's smallest pan available. I'm no chef by any standards. I can fry an egg. Nevertheless, I've found it's always good to invest in just a few decent cooking pans, rather than a lot of crappy ones. Teflon coating is a must... whether you just want to use less oil.. or it just makes cleaning the pans easier... it's entirely up to you... but it is a blessing. Since Teflon coating also allows you to use less oil (if any at all), you can now opt to use olive oil to give your food a different flavor. I've read somewhere that canola oil isn't very safe if you don't watch your cooking temp very carefully as it turns toxic beyond a certain temp... For those more knowledgeable in this matter, please chime in.Good brands will have longer lasting non-stick coatings, and usually last a lot longer than cheaper brands. Handles don't come loose, heat distribution is more even, and heating time is faster.
I now have just a single electric burner... it's actually a small Sanyo Travel Stove. But for my needs it's just fine. Induction would probably be a lot more efficient, but induction compatible pans are at least 3x more expensive.
I've also found decent places to get cooked meat. For just a little over the price of meat/chicken per Kg, I can have a whole roast chicken, pork chops, liempo, and lechon kawali... all cooked and just ready to be reheated. Nothing gourmet (except my tuyo)... but it's a whole lot easier, cleaner, and actually cheaper, than if I cooked my food.Brown/red rice is easy to cook, just takes a lot longer than white rice. Cooking time about 40 min, and water ratio is 2:1. Half a kilo of rice lasts me about a month. Pandan leaves are nice to put in your rice while cooking, adds a nice flavor to it.
Any other tips on cooking nice, simple meals? Or maybe recipes that can be cooked on a single frying pan! HAHAHAHA!
Oh John, don't tempt me. I will crowd this blog with hundreds of recipes :)
ReplyDeleteA simple one. Drain the oil from a canned tuna and put the contents in your frying pan on medium heat, until most of the moisture has evaporated and the tuna has turned golden brown. You can use this for pasta, salads, just as it is with tomato or cucumber (with soya and balsamic vinegar) or with my favorite spelt! Put the spelt in boiling water, cook for at least 5 minutes (depends on the kind - read the cooking instruction). Drain the water, add spinach and wait for the leaves to partly wilt, add sun-dried tomatoes, capers and the toasted tuna. Voila! Gourmet dish in less than 10 minutes :D. Cilantro works great with spelt or pasta too.
Remember to also try bulgur and couscous. I love these ... mwuah
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