(mis)Adventures in Cooking

[AnonTet]

My grandfather used to say, "it's in the plate you have to eat it". Never quite understood him :D

 

[StevOz]

My grandfather used to say, "it's in the plate you have to eat it". Never quite understood him :D

I left the bones for grandfather...

 

[StevOz]

No cooking for me last night just the adventure of riding down the road to collect my order. Meal Deal #2, fish n chips with crab stick and two squid rings...

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

No cooking for me last night just the adventure of riding down the road to collect my order. Meal Deal #2, fish n chips with crab stick and two squid rings...

Oh, rabbits!
Squid rings, really...!

 

[xenonph]

Oh, rabbits!
Squid rings, really...!

Sounds like something you would find in an Ecco the Dolphin game!
To advance to next level, go through the Squid Rings! lol

 

[StevOz]

Squid rings, really...!

Perhaps you prefer calamari?

Squid vs. Calamari: Are Squid and Calamari Different? - 2024 - MasterClass

You may have heard the terms “squid” and “calamari” used interchangeably but remain unsure about their proper usage. Find out the difference between these two terms, and learn how to prepare calamari in different ways.

www.masterclass.com

*edit... raw squid rings pic attached...

 

[StevOz]

Air fryer version tonight, wedges and beer battered hoki fillets.

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

Ooh, I got some questions, Steve-O--

Do you still make your own beer?

Do you fish?

If yes, can you properly dress it?
(i.e. eviscerate it properly for cooking purposes)

***

Part of the reason I ask above is because I'm a vegetarian lightweight who'd no doubt barf his guts out trying to dress a kill. A total failure to his ancestors, as it were.

 

[StevOz]

Have not done the home brew for many years and could not keep all the equipment needed when my life at the time became transient.

Sure I do go fishing, and can scale, gut and clean any fish worth keeping, father taught me how, it's almost ritual, the blooding...sister also knows.

This undersize pink snapper went back though...

 

[StevOz]

I'm a vegetarian lightweight

Then maybe eggplant, don't mind it myself, used to get a killer eggplant curry at the Indian takeaway many moons ago.

Air Fryer Eggplant

Elevate your culinary repertoire with our gourmet air fryer eggplant recipe, a delightful fusion of flavors and textures that brings together the wholesome goodness of eggplant with the convenience…

yummlyrecipes.us

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

Then maybe eggplant, don't mind it myself, used to get a killer eggplant curry at the Indian takeaway many moons ago.

Air Fryer Eggplant

Elevate your culinary repertoire with our gourmet air fryer eggplant recipe, a delightful fusion of flavors and textures that brings together the wholesome goodness of eggplant with the convenience…

yummlyrecipes.us

Funny you should mention eggplant.
It's pretty much the one veggie (altho technically a fruit I think) which always turns out pants no matter how I try to cook it.

Just like that last little chunk of evil from Time Bandits.

 

[StevOz]

Ah ha...found the eggplant curry recipe, not sure if I could handle the spice these days though now I am hungry...

Eggplant Curry - South Indian Brinjal Curry

South Indian Eggplant Curry - roasted eggplant simmered in a strongly spiced curry sauce so it soaks up flavour and collapses into a delicious mush. SO GOOD!

www.recipetineats.com

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

Very good, @StevOz, I'll see if I can attempt it this weekend.

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

Oh snap, I finally started up this recipe today, only to realise I don't have cardamom & coriander spices.

Welp, back to the store...

 

[StevOz]

Welp, back to the store...

Google just fed me another eggplant curry recipe, so here it is...

Eggplant Curry – Bec's Table

Eggplant curry is a great vegan side dish that works well with Indian style main meals. Requires an Air Fryer AND Thermomix.

becs-table.com.au

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

Google just fed me another eggplant curry recipe, so here it is...

Eggplant Curry – Bec's Table

Eggplant curry is a great vegan side dish that works well with Indian style main meals. Requires an Air Fryer AND Thermomix.

becs-table.com.au

On the positive tip, that one doesn't require curry leaves, something I've never seen on sale before in the States. Or have I? I've been to a couple Indian specialty stores, but still don't remember the leaves.

Are they indeed on sale in your area, Steve?

Anyway, I was thinking about substituting Basil leaves before seeing this second recipe.

 

[StevOz]

Are they indeed on sale in your area, Steve

You can get curry leaves here, though I use to get mine from the curry leaf tree growing at my parents place.

There is no substitute, it imparts an enhanced curry flavour, so if you don't have it nothing can replace it and I guess you won't notice, though if you do find and use some, you will always have to use it...

Curry tree - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

Yeah, I'm not expecting any miracles, just wanted to add something slightly similar with a nice aroma.

I also tend to make my dishes blazing hot, and I think this one might pair nicely with a basil-greek yogurt sauce to offset the heat.

Meanwhile, I notice that the evil empire of Amazon does have dried curry leaves for sale. Something to think about, anyway.

 

[StevOz]

New Vegemite use discovery, strong stuff!

How Vegemite can help break down your old computers, phones and TV sets - ABC News

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-03-18/beer-yeast-fore-waste/103587324

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

And.. I'm finally attempting the dish right now, so...

SHUT UP, MATE!

 

[StevOz]

I'm finally attempting the dish right now, so...

If all else fails, a teaspoon of Vegemite fix it...

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

I got kind of overwhelmed with the complexity of the ingredients, so didn't finish the cooking until today.

Unfortunately the local store didn't have cardamom or coriander, but I tried to offset that a bit by combining the two recipes. And then, instead of curry leaves I used a mix of basil and cilantro.

One thing I was somewhat surprised by is that the cooking times didn't seem enough to thoroughly cook everything in to a proper stew. I suspect a slow cooker might be the way if I try this again. Or maybe blending some of the ingredients at some point via food processor.

Just after I was all done I had a portion over some greek yogurt, and found it 'okay.' A couple hours later and it unsurprisingly tastes a lot better because of the spices having time to express themselves more. Another issue is that most of my spices weren't all that fresh, so it's likely I needed to use more.

Another idea would be to add some kind of meat, like chicken or lamb. There's something intriguing about this dish, but the version I'm doing needs adjustments.

 

[StevOz]

Reads interesting @Isaac Sauvage

Maybe the half this and that recipe, could perhaps be the catalyst to the lesser result...

On a side note, got a kg of spinach and ricotta puff pasties on special for 50% off here, $6 Oz dollaroos...

First time air fried 6+6 minutes, ok, a bit doughy, they need twice that for the full puff and bake...

Life is like a recipe...

 

[StevOz]

Yeah baby....

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

Breaded fish cutlets?

Maybe the half this and that recipe, could perhaps be the catalyst to the lesser result...

I need to pay closer attention to the original recipe. It was really good about recommending best substitutions, but I got kind of overwhelmed and missed some of them.

Biggest issue at the moment is that I need to pre-bake the aubergines more thoroughly, use less water in the recipe, and maybe double the spice levels. The taste is very good a day later, the stew just isn't blended well enough.


Btw, I notice the AF grill gets really dirty with almost zero effort. The big culprits are the little bits of food that flake away and quickly turn black, becoming carcinogenic from what I've read. So I've started using parchment liners and custom-shaped aluminum pans (like for pies) that I can temporarily place down there, then remove and easily clean. By contrast, the default grill has all those little slots that make it almost impossible to clean without a good soak and then lots of scrubbing with a bristle brush.