Recipes for People Who Don’t Know How to Cook

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  • #589386
    avirachelli
    Participant

    Hi I’m newly married and I didn’t grow up in a frum home. I was never involved in the kitchen like most frum girls that are cooking and baking at the age of 12. B I really love cooking I just can’t get anything right. Anyone haand yummy recepies for me… PLEASE HELPve easy and

    #672118
    22OldGold
    Participant

    What type of recipes?

    Have this delicious dessert Chocolate Fudge Pie.

    You basically melt 6 oz of chocolate chips and 1 stick of marg.turn of the fire and put in 3 cups of icing sugar, 3 eggs, 3 tbsp of vanilla. Put it in a graham pie crust and bake for 30 min on 350. whip up a Richies and 1 tsp of coffee and 1 tsp of vanilla. Put on top freeze it. Take out before you sreve to defrost.

    Enjoy

    #672119
    oomis
    Participant

    For chicken or meat, same method:

    1 cut up chicken or 1 rost (I like to use short chuck/minute steak roast).

    Packet of onion soup mix, minced garlic or garlic powder,

    large jar of Gold’s Cantonese Duck Sauce (or any duck or rib sauce that you like). Cinnamon

    Sprinkle the onion soup and garlic over the chicken or meat, followed by the jar of duc sauce and LOTS of cinnamon to cover the sauce. You can also put cut up potatoes in the pan with the meat. Cover tightly and bake at 350 for about an hour, then check to see if a fork goes in an out of the chicken or meat easily (meat takes longer, about two hours). If it is soft, uncover the pan, turn off the heat and let it sit in the turned off oven until the chicken or meat gets browned in the leftover heat. You cannot screw this up, as long as you are certain the meat is soft. The smell in the house is heavenly. Mazel tov on getting married recently.

    #672120
    qwertyuiop
    Member

    ames: since mazal left, you would be the one to count on.$

    #672121
    amichai
    Participant

    avirachelli, first of all mazel tov! it really is worth it to purchase a cookbook, you can see many gr8 recipes with reading step by step.

    #672123
    JayMatt19
    Participant

    1st of all. Mazal Tov. 2nd of all, relax. (The following recipes are from a guy, who like to cook easy things, without the need for a massive clean-up. If you want more recipes, just ask,.

    Just posting Chicken Recipes. I have made all of these at one time or another.

    Vermont Maple Chicken

    2 1/2 lbs chicken pieces

    1/2 cup maple syrup (I just use pancake syrup, just make sure parve)

    1/2 teaspoon grated fresh lemon rind

    1/4 cup chopped almonds

    1 pinch pepper

    2 teaspoons lemon juice

    1. Over 400 F (200 C).

    2. Remove skin from chicken pieces, and discard skin.

    3. Place chicken pieces in a shallow 9 x 13 (3 litre) pan.

    4. Mix remaining ingredients and pour over chicken.

    5. Bake in 400F (200C) oven, uncovered, for 50 minutes, basting occasionally.

    _____________________________________________________________________________

    Embarrassingly Simple, Utterly Delicious Chicken With Onions

    Ingredients

    * 2 roasting chickens, cut up

    * garlic powder

    * 1 large onion, sliced thin (or two small onions, sliced thin)

    * 2 cups sweet wine

    Directions

    1.

    1

    Put the chicken in a baking pan. Sprinkle with garlic powder. (Don’t be skimpy; you can never have too much garlic on chicken!).

    2.

    2

    Lay the onion pieces atop the chicken, spreading them around.

    3.

    3

    Unceremoniously, pour the wine over the chicken.

    4.

    4

    Cover and bake at 350F for 90 minutes; then uncover and bake for another 30 minutes to get nice, crispy onions, and a lovely glazed skin.

    __________________________________________________________________________

    Peachy Chicken (posted by me on another topic)

    INGREDIENTS

    * 1 (3 1/2) pound broiler-fryer chicken, cut up

    * salt and pepper to taste

    * 1/4 cup molasses

    * 3 tablespoons lemon juice

    * 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

    * 2 tablespoons minced onion

    * 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger

    * 1 (29 ounce) can peach slices, drained

    DIRECTIONS

    1. Place chicken in a greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Broil 6 minutes per side or until lightly browned. Season with salt and pepper. Combine molasses, lemon juice, butter, onion and ginger; pour over chicken. Bake, uncovered, at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes. Add peaches; baste chicken. Return to the oven for 10 minutes or until chicken juices run clear and peaches are heated through

    _____________________________________________________________________________

    Fake Rotisserie Chicken

    Ingredients

    * 3-3 1/2 lbs chicken

    * 1 small onion (optional)

    * 1 small lemon (optional)

    * tarragon or rosemary or your favorite herbs

    * soy sauce, if desired

    Directions

    1.

    1

    Spray large crockpot with non-stick spray.

    2.

    2

    Form six pieces of aluminum foil into balls the size of a golf-ball and place in the pot.

    3.

    3

    Rinse the chicken thoroughly inside and out.

    4.

    4

    Rub your favorite seasonings both inside and out.

    5.

    5

    (I usually include a little soy for color.) Poke holes in the lemon and insert it in the cavity.

    6.

    6

    Insert the onion in the cavity.

    7.

    7

    Place the chicken on top of the foil.

    8.

    8

    Add nothing else.

    9.

    9

    Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

    ___________________________________________________________________________________

    Crock Pot Deli Chicken

    Ingredients

    * 3 lbs chicken

    * olive oil

    * Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, no substitutes

    * aluminum foil

    Directions

    1.

    1

    Clean chicken inside and out.

    2.

    2

    Spray with olive oil.

    3.

    3

    Sprinkle with seasoned salt.

    4.

    4

    Spray inside of crock pot with PAM.

    5.

    5

    Note: Don’t put any water in the crock. Roll 3 or 4 wads of foil and put them in the bottom of the crock. The chicken is going to sit on these. Put chicken in the crock on top of aluminum balls. The chicken’s breast will be on the foil. Cook on high (won’t come out the same on low) 4-6 hours. You have to use the foil to get the deli taste. This chicken tastes very close to the one you would buy precooked at the deli.

    Ingredients

    * 3 lbs chicken

    * olive oil

    * Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, no substitutes

    * aluminum foil

    Directions

    1.

    1

    Clean chicken inside and out.

    2.

    2

    Spray with olive oil.

    3.

    3

    Sprinkle with seasoned salt.

    4.

    4

    Spray inside of crock pot with PAM.

    5.

    5

    Note: Don’t put any water in the crock. Roll 3 or 4 wads of foil and put them in the bottom of the crock. The chicken is going to sit on these. Put chicken in the crock on top of aluminum balls. The chicken’s breast will be on the foil. Cook on high (won’t come out the same on low) 4-6 hours. You have to use the foil to get the deli taste. This chicken tastes very close to the one you would buy precooked at the deli.

    _______________________________________________________________________________

    Orange Chicken

    INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

    * 1 cup orange juice

    * 1 tablespoon soy sauce

    * 1 (1 ounce) envelope dry onion soup mix

    * 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, or to taste

    * 8 chicken thighs

    DIRECTIONS

    1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

    2. In a small bowl, stir together the orange juice, soy sauce, onion soup mix and garlic powder; set aside. Rinse chicken, and pat dry. Place chicken thighs into a 9×13 inch glass baking dish. Pour the orange juice mixture over.

    3. Bake, uncovered, for 1 hour and 30 minutes in the preheated oven, basting every half hour. If using boneless chicken, reduce cooking time to 1 hour.

    __________________________________________________________________________

    Oven Fried Sesame Chicken

    Ingredients

    * 6 tablespoons sesame seeds

    * 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour

    * 1/2 teaspoon pepper

    * 1/4 cup soy sauce

    * 4 bone-in chicken breasts, skin removed

    * 1/4 cup margarine, melted or olive oil

    Directions

    1.

    1

    Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

    2.

    2

    Combine the sesame seeds, flour and pepper in a shallow bowl.

    3.

    3

    Dip the chicken in the soy sauce, dredge in the sesame seed mixture.

    4.

    4

    Arrange the chicken, bone side down, in a large shallow baking dish.

    5.

    5

    Drizzle with the margarine.

    6.

    6

    Bake for 45 minutes or until chicken is done.

    #672124
    tzippi
    Member

    Hi Avirachelli. I grew up in a frum home, but I got married knowing how to do NOTHING 😉

    There are a few angles to this. There’s making something following a recipe, and juggling all the dishes to get to or stay at the right temperature for serving. You’ll get the hang of both in due time.

    When you find a recipe, especially if you go online, you want something that’s gone through a test kitchen and is tried and true. (With the exception of the wonderful recipes people here are offering, I’m sure 😉

    What kind of a recipe are you looking for – dessert, cake, main course, etc.?

    #672125
    oomis
    Participant

    The Balabusta’s Cookbook is very good.

    In keeping with the fact that Purim is around the corner, here is my hamantashen recipe that I intended to post along with the other one, but didn’t have handy the last time. The cookie dough is a crispy one when it comes out of the oven. It softens up a bit, later. I keep it in the freezer until I am ready to serve a meal or fill my shalach manos, and by the time we are ready for dessert it’s thawed perfectly (tastes great frozen, too!) Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

    Hamantashen dough:

    2 1/2 C flour

    2 1/2 tsp baking powder

    1/2 tsp salt

    1/3 c Crisco

    1/2 c sugar

    1/4 c honey

    2 eggs

    1 TBS lemon juice

    Cream sugar and shortening, add in eggs, honey, juice, then slowly add in sifted dry ingredients, and make into a soft dough. Chill for an hour, if possible. Roll dough onto floured board to about 1/16″ thickness. Cut out hamantashen circles with a glass or cookie cutter, put a tsp. of filling in the center and using your thumb and forefinger, bring up the bottom of the circle to meet at a point on top and pinch the ends closed. Brush with beaten egg and bake at 350 for about 18 minutes. depending on the size of hamantashen, you will have about 2 dozen.

    Filling for the hamantashen:

    1 1/2 c Lekvar or any other brand of prune butter.

    1/2 c coarsely chopped walnuts

    1 tsp. lemon juice

    1/4 tsp. allspice (or can use cloves) – this is important, it adds a real zing .

    cinnamon (optional)

    OR – you can use poppy seed filling or anything else you like, but the lekvar is the best.

    #672126
    qwertyuiop
    Member

    JayMatt: wow, i think i might try some of those myself.$

    #672127
    feivel
    Participant

    ii thought this thread was for EASY recipes

    get breast deckle roast or beauty roast

    place in crockpot

    add water and onion soup mix

    cook overnight

    #672128
    JayMatt19
    Participant

    Enjoy them. Truth is, the crock pot is an excellent way to start cooking, just put everything in and come back hours later. (The crockpot bag is also an excellent tool!)

    #672129
    oomis
    Participant

    What cut of meat is a “beauty roast?”

    #672130
    asdfghjkl
    Participant

    qwertyuiop: you could cook buddy???

    #672131
    qwertyuiop
    Member

    asdfghjkl: it depends what.$

    #672133
    22OldGold
    Participant

    You could make whatever you like in a crockpot, really. My mother just throws in what she would to make a soup (plus a little more water) and goes to work. By the time dinner rolls around its ready. It does get a little thick though so if you like watery soup add lots.

    #672134
    Belev Echad
    Participant

    k, dumb question, requires not-so-dumb answer: how do u know what kind of chicken is what? ( roasting chicken, broiler fryer chicken…)

    #672135
    oomis
    Participant

    Fryers are usually smaller and younger chickens, and roasters are generally larger, older chickens. What makes one better for a specific type of cooking method is that as frying is a shorter cooking time, it is easier to fry small pieces of chicken, which also cook more quickly. Large hens toughen with age, so they are best for stewing, making chicken soup, or roasting in a bit of liquid, (better still if marinated first for a few hours), to soften the tougher parts.

    #672136
    feivel
    Participant

    oomis

    i dont know

    #672137
    asdfghjkl
    Participant

    qwertyuiop: so like what could ya cook???

    #672138
    qwertyuiop
    Member

    asdfghjkl: kugel, cake, chulent, and i think that’s it.$

    #672139
    asdfghjkl
    Participant

    qwertyuiop: wow impressive!!! and you could make cake, wow!!!

    #672140
    qwertyuiop
    Member

    asdfghjkl: thanx, oh and anything that you can put in the microwave.$

    #672141
    SJSinNYC
    Member

    Here is the easiest recipe I have:

    Chicken with rice and veggies:

    Take a 9X13 pan (or any size based on the people you are cooking for)

    Put 1 cup of raw rice on the bottom of the pan.

    Sprinkle on spices*

    put a cut vegetable in the pan (you can do almost anything – onions, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, string beans or anything but cucumbers**)

    Pour 3 cups of water into the pan

    Place pieces of cut up chicken on top

    Sprinkle spices* on top of the chicken

    Bake covered at 375 for 45 minutes and then uncovered for about 30 minutes.

    *spices – this is how this dish changes all the time – sometimes you can sprinkle garlic, pepper and salt. Other times lemon pepper or cajun spice or turmeric or curry etc. We eat this all the time and never get bored. Its not a diet dish though.

    **if you use potatoes, I would leave out the rice and roast the potatoes alone for about 15-20 minutes before putting the chicken on. Its so yummy.

    #672142
    anonowriter
    Participant

    i make pies which are pretty similar but taste totally different. no bake, no cook, yes easy.

    lemon cream pie – 1 can lemon pie filling; 1 container pre-whipped whip. mix together. pour into graham cracker crust. sprinkle with coconut. freeze.

    cherry-vanilla pie – 1 can cherry pie filling (good quality); 1/2 packet instant vanilla pudding; 1/2 cup parve milk; 1 container pre-whipped whip. mix together. pour into graham cracker crust. sprinkle with mini white choc. chips. freeze.

    chocolate pb mud pie – 1 packet instant chocolate pudding; 3/4 cup parve milk; 1 container prewhipped whip – mix together. split in half. mix 1/4 cup peanut butter, first warmed in microwave, into half the mixture. spread pb mixture in graham cracker pie crust. spread chocolate mixture on top. (fluff up choc. mixture so looks like mud.) freeze.

    apple cream pie – 1 can apple pie filling; 1 container pre-whipped whip. mix together. add cinnamon to taste. pour into graham cracker crust. sprinkle with roasted chopped nuts (sweetened or not). freeze.

    i’ll get to main dishes and side dishes later.

    #672143
    Phyllis
    Member

    When I got married I did not how to fry an egg or saute an onion! Not that i grew up spoiled but my Mom had a “Keep out of the kitchen” policy. It’s really not hard to learn. I will suggest a cookbook , that has all the basic recipes and very easy to follow.

    Neitra Ladies cookbook. It does have the fanfare, and fancy pictures of some other cookbooks, but uses all the basic ing. and has every basic recipe. its great for beginners!!

    #672144
    asdfghjkl
    Participant

    qwertyuiop: ha yeah the microwave is an awesome invention!!!

    #672146
    anuran
    Participant

    Get a copy of Raymond Sokolov’s How To Cook. Not all the recipes are kosher. Just ignore them. It’s the skills and techniques you’re looking for. And he lays them out very nicely.

    After that, I recommend Claudia Roden’s The Book of Jewish Food and The New Book of Middle Eastern Food. There’s a lot of variety. The food is wonderful. It’s mostly very easy to prepare. And they are wonderful reading. You’ll learn a lot about Jewish cooking from all over the world including very interesting things about the history like the Jewish roots of foie gras and exactly why Sephardic and Ashkenazi matzoh are different.

    #672147
    oomis
    Participant

    Jamie Geller wrote a book for the Bride who knowws nothing about cooking. Great.

    #672148
    working
    Member

    Hey SjSinNYC!!! Welcome back -glad to see you here!!! we missed you over here.

    #672149
    bombmaniac
    Participant

    two words: MEAL MART!!! lol

    #672150
    says who
    Member

    The Nitra cookbook is excellent for beginners its full of basic easy recipies. My wife used it in the begining and it was very helpful.

    #672151
    NY Mom
    Member

    working: If you look closely, SJS’s post was from 10 months ago.

    #672152
    tzippi
    Member

    I really like the Nitra cookbook too. I got it as a chasuna gift years ago. But note to the novice cook who tries to make compote: 1 gl. water does NOT mean 1 GALLON of water, it means 1 (who knows what ounce size) GLASS.

    #672153
    charliehall
    Participant

    Lemon dill salmon. Perfect cold or hot for Shabat lunch.

    Go to the kosher fish market and get a nice fresh piece of salmon. (If you don’t have a kosher fish market you may be able to rely on the opinions that say that all fish with red flesh may be presumed kosher.)

    After washing it with cold water, marinate it overnight (or at least four hours) with lemon juice and olive oil in a plastic zip bag.

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

    Remove the fish from the bag and place it skin side down on one of the disposable aluminum broiler pans you can buy in most kosher stores or general supermarkets. Dispose of the lemon juice/oil. Sprinkle dried dill over the entire exposed surface. Dill is a strong spice so don’t overdo it. One flake every 1/16 inch to 1/8 inch is probably ok. Trial and error will get this perfect after a few tries.

    Cover the broiler pan with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees. The length of time depends on the size of the fish. For a one pound fillet I’ve found a half hour works pretty well, but ovens vary. Fortunately, salmon is pretty robust to being mildly overcooked, but don’t overdo it.

    Remover the fish from the oven and let cool sufficiently to be put in the refrigerator. Before doing so, drain any liquid from the pan. This way you can heat the re-heat the fish on Shabat according to the opinion of Rov Soloveitchik. The fish also tastes great cold. It is the marinating that makes the difference: It prevents the fish from drying out.

    The marinate and seasonings also work well with other types of fish; I recommend salmon as a first try because it is more robust to the errors of novice chefs!

    Enjoy! You may never serve gefilte fish again ;).

    #672154
    oomis
    Participant

    SJS, how are you doing? You have been missed. (Yes, we noticed).

    #672155
    tzippi
    Member

    SJS might be too busy with the baby (let’s hope, and happily 😉

    #672156
    SJSinNYC
    Member

    Thanks for the love everyone!

    BH my life is full of blessings right now. My baby is adorable and growing well kh. I think every day of life gets better and better!

    #672157
    A600KiloBear
    Participant

    BS”D

    Recipes for those who can’t cook?

    Here is a real money saver:

    1) Apply for food stamps under an assumed name.

    2) Find a hymishe take out that accepts them for prepared food.

    3) Buy a chulent, a kigel, a galle

    4) Reheat and eat

    Steps 1 and 2 are optional outside of Creedmoorer circles.

    #672158
    jphone
    Member

    Real easy recipe. always worked for me in the dorm.

    Fill pot with water. Place in eggs. Bring to boil. Turn off after 5 minutes.

    Peel. Mashed, sliced or eaten whole with a pinch of salt and perhaps some mayo. Cant mess it up.

    #672159
    A600KiloBear
    Participant

    BS”D

    Last time I did that, jphone, I had five premature chicks chirping and screeching in my apartment!

    #672160
    smartcookie
    Member

    ATT MODS: Can we please have the title of this thread spelled correctly?

    DONE

    #672161
    smartcookie
    Member

    I usually spell it recipes and not recEpies.Am I crazy or something?

    #672162
    A600KiloBear
    Participant

    Recepies for Poeple Who Don’t Know HOW to COOK

    BS”D

    Ah, siz very git you iz lernink git how to write af-Englisch fin mir. Hatzlooche in besires toives fin der new English editor af YWN, Lipa Schmeltzer!

    That’s it, i can’t keep fixing all these errors.

    #672163
    smartcookie
    Member

    This is making me nervous….recepies??????

    Am I getting better?

    #672164
    smartcookie
    Member

    Alright. Which mod are you? We gotta talk to the boss…

    #672165
    mybat
    Member

    Resippees??????

    #672166
    oomis
    Participant

    recipe(s) is the correct spelling.

    #672167
    smartcookie
    Member

    Thank you mod!!! Good job!!! I do take payment though if you’d like me to spellcheck for you…

    Yure welkum, doant knead no spilchekur thoe

    #672168
    koma
    Member

    more recipes and clues from a guy (with no patience for, or specific dyslexia for written recipes: First rule: Plain foods plainly prepared, or simply, keep it simple. Second rule, dont be afraid, and if you are creative, let it flow.

    Chicken Easy. Skin the bird, trim fat, sprinkle crushed dry basil, paprika and garlic, and bake in oven at 350 or so for @1 hour. Crushed garlic is nice, but powdered will do.

    Any large fish fillet has enough fat in it to ease its cooking. No liquids need to be added. Lay fillet skin down in a pyrex pan (lots of things cook better in pyrex or cast iron pans because of the thermal mass) and spice with pepper/ and or onion flakes,and or ground corriander and or tarragon, and in a pinch, Montreal steak seasoning will do. 30 or 40 minutes at 350 is enough cooking, and often the skin will stick to the pan, giving you easy skinless fillet. The pan will need some soaking and metal spatula scraping to clean of the baked on skin, but not too terrible

    Acorn or similar hollow neckless squash: Cut a small plug out of the top with the stem. With a spoon and flushing scoop out the seeds and the strings. Stuff with prunes/rasins/nuts. Add a touch of honey, brown sugar, or molasses and some water to plump the dried fruit. Dont overstuff, take into account the expansion of the fruit. Reset the plug in the top and pin in with toothpicks. Place in a pan (pyrex best) with a half to inch of water and lighly cover.The squash should stand up, so as not to spill. Bake till you can dent the hardened skin with a finger,40 to an hour depending on the bulk of the squash. Serve in longitudinal slices with a dollop of the stuffing. For people who like squash, this one is “oleh al shulchan melochim

    Greenbeans. Trim, break into thirds. Steam lightly, or cook with very little water at the bottom. They should still be relatively bright green when you let them cool. Drain. Toss in pot with oil enough to make them slightly greasy. Toss again with sesame/ saute’d onion/ coarse salt and hot paprika. Done. serve warm.

    A pot of rice (how to cook on the back of the bag) and a pan full of saute’d onion is a yummy thing that pleases most.

    A pot of rice, smothered with minced dill, a pinch of turmeric for color. There is a Persian variety of this which is refried in a tall pot, but first try the plain mix. If you can get dried vegetable flakes, or natural pilaf mixes, or have patience to dice fine beans peppers, peeled split pistacios — all these things make rice into a marvelous main dish. The dry additives go in toward the end of the simmering of the rice. Mix and match and enjoy.

    My easy to clean yummy vegetarian cholent appeared in the “how to clean a cholent pot” post.

    #672169
    anuran
    Participant

    One of my milchig favorites (courtesy of George R. R. Martin):

    Take big beefsteak tomatoes

    Wrap in puff pastry

    Hollow them out.

    Fill with Gryuere cheese.

    Cover with breadcrumbs.

    Bake.

    beefsteak tomatoes and cheese!?

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