Wednesday, November 5, 2003

Food for Thought

People call me frequently to ask questions about how to cook certain things, or for help with a recipe, or simply for an idea about what to fix for a cocktail party or dinner. I realized that my online friends may appreciate some inspiration, so I will endeavor to post more food-related entries.  My style of cooking has changed somewhat since I became a mother, because I tend to have to cook two or three different meals for each meal period, but I still love gourmet food, and indulge myself whenever I have the time or the company. 

Tonight's dinner?  One of my staples.  This is a dish that can be prepared in 5 minutes! Simply boil a package of Ramen noodles until tender, (3 minutes), then drain.  In the empty pan, mix 2 tsp. oil, 2 tsp. peanut butter, (I like chunky), a few dashes of soy sauce, about 1/3 of the seasoning packet.  Once the peanut butter is melted, add the noodles back to the pan and toss together.  That is the basic recipe.  Tonight I added a handful of frozen peas to the boiling noodles during the last minute, and added 2 tsp. of curry powder with the seasonings.  I like to add water chestnuts or julienned carrots, or whatever is on hand, depending on my mood.  This is a tasty, quick meal, and can be made low-fat by using BAKED ramen noodles, (you may have to request that your grocer stock them), and substituting water for the oil- your noodles will merely be sticky, but still delicious!  Added bonus~ This meal costs about 30 cents to make.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Whoa-Whoa-Whoa! That sounds yummy. Tell me .. which flavor of Ramen do you use? There are so many flavors out there. Do you use "original"? Tell me! I must try this recipe. (Anything with peanut butter is a huge plus to me) TVJ's breakfast most days? 2-tablespoons of peanut butter. No bread. No banana. Just peanut butter. I would KICK ASS on Big Brother when it came to living off of PBJ! HA!

Anonymous said...

TVJ- I use any and all of the flavors, but my fave is Maruchan's "Oriental" flavor. I've also been known to turn this into Pan-Fried Noodles by putting the finished mixture into a non-stick skillet and browning it. Let one side brown, then flip like a pancake to brown the other side.

Anonymous said...

You've made me hungry, and I've already eaten. *puts Ramen on grocery list*.