Good Reads: Dietland

Dietland by Sarai Walker
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Dietland is a full length novel about personal growth and how our society casually mistreats women.

The first part of Dietland introduces us to the main character, Plum, whose life has been shaped from childhood by the mere fact that she is obese. The subtle and overt abuse against her, simply because of her size, has made her a timid recluse.

A parallel story begins after Plum is introduced about a vigilante group that pops up in the U.S., then worldwide, that punishes men that victimize women. A manhunt is on to find the groups leader, Jennifer.

Plum finds herself drawn into the vigilante drama due to accidentally being associated with one of the group members. She begins to metamorphosize from a beaten down woman to a woman confident in herself and comfortable with her body.

I found Dietland to be uplifting and incredibly cogent to what's happening in the U.S. now.

The Frugal Kitchen: Easy Generic Korean Pork

This dish is a bastardization of all Korean food, but it also uses ingredients that you can find in the average grocery store.  And it literally takes no time to make.

INGREDIENTS

2 large boneless pork chops or pork cut of your choice
1 Tbsp. mirin
2 garlic cloves finely chopped
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper, black
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 jalapeño cut into thin slices or pickled jalapeño, optional
1 Tbsp. cooking oil
Green onion sliced, optional
Sesame seeds, optional


Thinly slice the pork into bit sized pieces.  It's easier to do if the pork is still slightly frozen.  Place in a bowl with the mirin, garlic, sesame oil, sugar, salt, pepper and soy sauce.  Stir until all the pieces are covered in the marinade, cover and let sit for a half hour.

Place the cooking oil in the wok or large fry pan, when it's hot pour in the ingredients.  If your family loves hot food add the jalapeño at this time.  Stir fry until all the liquid is evaporated and the pork is nicely caramelized.

Serve over rice or noodles.  If you didn't add the jalapeño when cooking, add pickled jalapeño as a garnish.  Pickled jalapeño is not as hot.  Garnish with green onion and sesame seed if you wish.

Enjoy!

God bless,
Pam

The Frugal Kitchen: Pork in Green Sauce

I've been cooking Asian like crazy lately, but today I decided to go south of the border.  Pork in green sauce, carne de cerdo en salsa verde, is fairly easy to make, but filled with flavor.


INGREDIENTS

Boneless country style ribs
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
Crema to taste

For the sauce:

12 tomatillos
2 large garlic cloves or 3 medium
1 small onion
2 peppers with the hotness you enjoy
1 chicken bullion cube
2 Tbsp. lime juice

Place the vegetables on a greased sheet pan and roast in a 425 degree fahrenheit oven until the are brown and collapsed.  Pour the vegetables, bullion cube, lime juice,  and any leftover juices into a blender and puree.

In a skillet add olive oil, ribs cut into bite sized pieces and salt.  Brown the meat on all sides, then pour the green sauce over the top.

Wow, I really need to clean the cooktop.

Simmer covered for about 30 minutes.  The sauce should thicken, but if not take the lid off for a few minutes.

Serve over rice, with cream drizzled over the top.  You can also sprinkle cilantro over the top if your family likes it.  If your family loves cilantro add a bunch to the green sauce before you blend to a puree.

Fun fact:  The liking or disliking of cilantro is genetic.  To people that dislike cilantro it tastes like soap.

Enjoy!

God bless,
Pam

The Frugal Kitchen: Chicken Kung Pao

This is a quick stir fry recipe, so be sure you have all the ingredients prepped and ready to go before you start cooking.  I made this recipe mild for my daughter, but just add more red pepper if you like your food spicy.

INGREDIENTS

Chicken

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into 1" pieces
1Tbs.  Chinese wine or dry sherry
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. corn starch
1 tsp. or more of red pepper flakes


Sauce

3 Tbs. soy sauce
2 Tbs. rice vinegar
2 Tbs. turbinado sugar
1 tsp. corn starch
1 Tbs. Chinese wine or dry sherry
1/2 cup stock, chicken or vegetable


Other ingredients

cooking oil
2 Tbs. finely chopped garlic
2 Tbs. finely chopped ginger
green onions cut into large pieces
1/2 cup peanuts rough chopped
1 tsp. sesame oil



Put the chicken ingredients into a bowl and allow to marinate for 15 minutes.

Mix together your sauce ingredients in another bowl.

Add 1 Tbs. cooking oil into a medium hot wok.  Add chicken, toss until it is done, then remove to a bowl.  Add 1 Tbs. cooking oil into wok, add garlic and ginger, and toss until lightly browned.

Put the sauce ingredients into the wok, then add in the chicken.  Stir until sauce thickens, then add the green onions and peanuts.  Remove from the heat and stir in the sesame oil.

Serve over rice or noodles.

You can adjust this recipe to include any firm green vegetable cut into 1" cubes.  It's quite versatile and a good recipe to teach children how to cook.  Enjoy!

God bless,
Pam

Good Reads: Indian Instant Pot Cookbook

Indian Instant Pot® Cookbook: Traditional Indian Dishes Made Easy and Fast by Urvashi Pitre
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Not only is this book a great primer on using your electric pressure cooker, but the author has simplified many popular Indian recipes, so that the average person can reproduce them at home. She has pared down the number of spices used, so you don't have to buy twenty special spices and most are available at my local grocery store.

Attractive photos and easy to follow directions make this book a pleasure to read.

Cut Down That Cable Bill or Frugal Television

My husband and I sat down in December to discuss our cable bill.  It kept getting larger and larger, while the cable company kept reducing the number of stations we received.  We realized that our family was rarely turning on the television and were, instead, watching PBS, Netflix and Amazon Prime on our devices.

So, time to cut the cable and up our internet speed, which are both from the same provider.  This cut our bill in half, but left us without television.  My husband went searching and we decided to buy a flat antenna that you tape to your window and connect to the television.  We ended up paying $35 for a Weingard antenna.

First we used a website https://www.fcc.gov/media/engineering/dtvmaps or https://www.antennaweb.org/Address to see how many channels we would receive and which direction the antenna would need to be facing.

The antenna was super easy to install and we now get 65 channels.  Our house sits on top of a bluff and we receive more channels than most people.  Our reception is good and we are very happy with our "free" cable.

God Bless,
Pam

The Frugal Kitchen: Kimchi Fried Rice

Life is getting back to normal.  All medical emergencies are over and the Christmas decorations are back in the attic.  Here is an easy quick meal that can be prepped ahead and takes just minutes to toss in the wok.  All of the ingredients were purchased at my local Publix.


INGREDIENTS:

4 cups of precooked rice
1 cup kimchi
1 cup shredded carrot
any other vegetable that you enjoy, just keep the pieces small
1 Tbsp. finely chopped ginger
1 Tbsp. finely chopped garlic
1 Tbsp. oil
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
2 Tbsp. mirin, rice wine
3 eggs, beaten
1 egg per person, fried

Mix the soy sauce, sesame oil and mirin and set aside.  In a hot wok add the oil, then the garlic and ginger.  After a minute add the vegetables and toss until they are partially cooked.  Add the kimchi, mix, then drizzle half the soy sauce mixture over the top.  Add beaten egg and mix until the egg is almost done.  Add the rice, mix well, add the rest of the soy sauce mixture, and mix again.  Serve in a bowl with a fried egg on top.

Use a traditional Korean spoon to eat.

This whole process takes less than fifteen minutes and the result is delicious.  If your family isn't familiar with kimchi this is a nice way to introduce it to them.

God bless,
Pam