Sloppy Joes

1 lb hamburger
1 onion, chopped (or dried onion)
1 can tomato soup (do not add water)
about 1 T. brown sugar
about 1/2 T. prepared mustard
about 1/2 T. worcestershire

Brown hamburger with onions.  Add remaining ingredients.  Heat through.  Change amounts to taste.

Serve in any of the following ways:
-on buns
-on rice
-on baked potato
-on bread or toast
-OR MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE WAY... in a tortilla with sour cream and lettuce wrapped up.  (Can also add salsa on top...but I usually don't).  Wrap up like a burrito.

Jason always likes to add cheese and mustard on his sloppy joes (on buns).

Amounts listed above would serve about 4 people 1 sloppy joe each.

French Dip Sandwiches (Au Jus)

Not one of the cheapest meals, but definitely one of the fastest!!!

Au Jus packet mix (79 cents each not on sale) ( I made 2 for 6 large buns)
Sliced Roast Beef from the Deli (about $6.99 /lb) (I needed 1 and 1/2 lbs for 6 large buns)
White cheese (mozarella, swiss, pepperjack, etc...)
Crusty Buns ($2.99 for 6 large)

Make Au Jus according to packet directions.  Add meat to Au Jus.  Bring to a boil.  Remove meat from juice and place in bun.  Place cheese on top.  Broil for a minute or so until cheese melts.  Ladle Au Jus into individual bowls.

Gauzas (Pot Stickers)

Dip in Sweet and Sour Sauce. (recipe posted separately)

We usually make these for New Years Eve with Ham Fried Rice and Sweet and sour sauce.

1 tube jummy dean hot sausage
1 bunch green onions (wash and cut off roots and ends...but leave most of the white part to be chopped up with the rest of the stalk)
1/4 head green cabbage, chopped
1 pkg wonton skins (found in the produce section)

Brown sausage.  Drain if excess fat.  Add chopped onions and cabbage to frying pan with sausage.  Cook
until cabbage starts to sweat and onions are cooked.  Remove from heat.

Place a wonton skin on counter.  Get a small bowl of water.  Get your fingers wet.  Wet down 2 adjacent (touching) edges of the wonton wrapper.  Place a small spoonfull of filling (sausage mixture) in the middle of the wonton skin.  Fold the two dry edges of the wonton skin diagonally to form a triangle.  (So the 2 dry edges will meet the two wet edges).  Fry in a small amount of oil until browned on both sides.  (Not deep frying---just a few T. in a pan).  Remove from oil and place on a plate covered with paper towels.

Sweet and Sour Sauce (Won Ton Sauce)

Great with Ham Fried Rice, or chicken strips or Gauzas.

1 (6 oz) pineapple juice
1/2 C. granulated sugar
1-2 T. Ketchup (I do 2)
1/4 C. red wine vinegar
1-3 tsp. soy sauce (I do 3)

Combine all and bring to boil.

Use a whisk to stir in mixture of...
2 T. cornstarch mixed with
1/4 C. water

Turn down heat and cook until thick.

Ham Fried Rice

This is one of my family's all time favorites.  If I am ever making a weekly menu and ask "what should I make for dinner this week"...I get a unanimous resounding "Ham Fried Rice!!!"

I got the recipe from my Mom, who got it from the Pitkins who were our next door neighbors when I was growing up.

I always serve with sweet and sour sauce (which I will post separately).  Usually when I make ham fried rice  it is a meal in and of itself.

It is also delicious with Gauzas (Pot-stickers) which I did not make this night for dinner, but I will post the recipe separately.  Also great with fried chicken strips ( as in the previous post).

Cooked and cooled White rice (8 cups cooked for a huge batch)  (This is good reheated and one of the few things I will save for leftovers)
3 eggs
soy sauce (a lot)
White sugar (a lot)
1 bunch green onions
1/2 lb ham (from the refrigerated deli by the hot dogs and cheese---not from the deli itself)



You really just have to adjust the amounts of everything to your liking.  I do a really large batch because we love it.  I usually do 8 cups of cooked white rice (which is 4 cups of uncooked rice).  You can cook it in a pot, a rice cooker or a pressure cooker or however.  Make sure it is all the way cooked and not crunchy.  Then you need to let it cool the whole way.  This is the most important step.  You can spread on a jelly roll pan and put in the fridge to speed things up(if making the same day.  Or place cooked rice in a baggie or container if making with in a few days.

Scramble 3 eggs in a little oil in a frying pan.  Remove from pan and place on a small plate or in a small bowl and set aside

Use 1/2 pkg (which is 1/2 lb) of lunchmeat ham.  We have tried it with these options...chicken, cubed ham, sliced ham from the deli...and we don't like any of them as well as good old lunchmeat.  It does not have to be smoked (as pictured) and it does not have to be this brand.  Any brand will do except buddig.

Chop the ham.




Wash  one bunch of green onions.

Chop off the roots (hairy part) but leave some of the white part and chop off the tops (they tend to be dried out).  Throw roots and tops away and chop the rest.

Saute in a frying pan with a little oil (vegetable or canola are my preference).  The ham and green onions always look like they are about equal parts to me (they are not...but they kind of look like it).

Once ham shrivels a bit and the onions are cooked through remove from frying pan and place on a small plate or in a small bowl.

I have a wok, but you can use a large pan instead.  Wok's get seasoned the more you use them (like a dutch oven or cast iron).  So the more you use it the better your food will taste.

Use a little oil and a paper towel to rub off the old oil.  Whenever you get done using your wok you rub it down with oil to season and protect it.  Then before you use it you use a little oil to clean the old oil off and get it primed for using.

Place a small amount of oil (maybe 1 T) in pan.  Add fully cooled rice.  Remember the cooling is the most important part.  Reheat rice on Medium heat.  If it starts to stick turn down heat and add a little oil.

Stir occasionally.Once rice is heated through add ham and onion mixture (DO NOT ADD EGGS AT THIS TIME).

Add soy sauce and white sugar to taste.  This is the hard part to explain because it is to taste, not measured out.  This is the way I do soy sauce...I pour it on until the pan starts to sizzle (the soy sauce hitting the bottom  of the pan).  Sugar...I'm guessing start with 1/3 C. Stir those both in.  Almost every single time it needs more soy and more sugar (maybe even up to a total of 2/3 C. sugar---just guessing). The soy sauce will also turn the rice into a pretty brown color.

 It should taste really good before adding the eggs, then once you add the eggs it just puts it over the top.

This night I served it with fried chicken strips and sweet and sour sauce on top of chicken and rice.

Fried Chicken

Ingredients:

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

White flour

Garlic Salt Pepper

Vegetable or Canola Oil

You can do this method with either strips or whole breasts.  (obviously this time was strips).

Start with fresh (non-frozen) boneless skinless chicken breasts or thaw by placing in hot tap water (not boiling) in a bowl or water pitcher.  Replace hot water every few minutes until thawed.

If making into strips (instead of whole breasts) cut them up now.

Place chicken breasts or strips in flour (either on a plate or in a baggie).

Coat each piece with flour.

Heat a little oil in a frying pan (either non-stick or not non-stick pan---either one works--I am using an electric skillet, but you can do on the stove also).  You know the oil is hot enough when you get your fingers wet and fling a few drops of water into pan and the water sizzles.  Then add flour coated chicken.

Sprinkle tops with garlic salt and pepper.

At all times while cooking you should be able to lift pan up and when shaking pan side to side the chicken pieces should slide back and forth.  It they are stuck then loosen with a spatula and add a little more oil.

Once the bottoms start to brown flip over each piece with tongs.  Sprinkle tops (that were previously the bottoms) with garlic salt and pepper.

Once both sides are cooked and browned check for doneness by cutting one open or using a meat thermometer.  Remove from pan and place on a plate covered with paper towels to absorb any extra oil (there shouldn't be a lot of oil).

This particular night I served with Ham Fried Rice and Sweet and Sour Sauce.  (I will post those recipes separately). I could have added some frozen stir-fry veggies (but didn't think ahead---oh well).

Omelets

My Dad was the omelet maker in my family.  My mom would make us scrambled eggs and she knew how to make other kinds of eggs, but she didn't do it very often because she doesn't like eggs.  So that left it to my Dad to be the egg cooker.

I'm sure there are different was to do omelets and different tips and tricks.  So let us know how you do it!!! I will  tell you how I do it and I will include a lot of photos because it's really something you learn by watching and doing, not necessarily from a recipe.

First get everything ready...
Stainless steel (not non-stick) frying pan  (mine is 10.5 inch diameter--but you could probably use a 9 inch up to an 11 inch---I'm guessing?!?!)  (Maybe you can do it with a non-stick coating...but I'm just telling you how I do mine!)

Stick of Butter (margarine doesn't work as well, and definitely not tub butter)  ( I have used margarine before--but do not use a light margarine--I just think butter keeps it from sticking as much as with margarine)

Spatula or 2

Salt

Pepper (I like coarse)

Eggs (I do 3 egg omelets, unless I'm watching my calories, then I do 2 egg whites and 1 whole egg)  (for kids sometimes I do 2 egg omelets)

Toppings:  Grated cheese, chopped ham, green peppers, mushrooms, onions, bacon, sausage, etc...)  (Have them all chopped and grated before you start.

The chopped/grated ham/cheese below would be for 1 omelet.  It is a medium sized fistful of each.

If doing veggies...saute them in 1/2 T. of butter until softened, cooked and browned.
1st pic below is mushrooms, green peppers and onions
2nd pic below is just onions

Remove sauteed veggies from frying pans and place in small bowls to use later.

Wash out and dry frying pan if using same frying pan to cook the omelets in.


Break 3 eggs into a small bowl.

Whisk them (Beat with a fork) for a few seconds until fairly well blended.

Put about 1/2-1 T. of butter in frying pan over med-high heat.

Once butter is melted...swish the butter around the pan and up the sides just a bit so the eggs won't stick to the sides of the pan.

Pour the beaten eggs into the frying pan.

Salt and Pepper fairly liberally.

They cook quite quickly.  Once it cooks just a bit...it will still be a little runny on top...place toppings on 1/2 of the omelet.

A few seconds later (almost not runny at all now--just a tiny tiny bit) lift up all of the edges on the half without toppings.  Then fold over the half without toppings.  Sometimes this step takes 2 spatulas.

Almost immediately flip the omelet over once more to seal the omelet all together.  The one in the pic is cooked just a tad longer than I like it...but still good!)

Carefully remove omelet to plate (sometimes it takes 2 spatulas).



Then immediately rinse your hot pan and spatula.

Scrub out all the eggs with a metal scrubber.

Rinse and dry your frying pan and spatula.

Start over with more butter for your next omelet.

It takes some practice.  You can do it.  It's not as hard as it seems!  Give it a try!

Omelets are best served hot...I serve mine as they come out of the pan...so this is one dinner we don't necessarily eat all at the same time.