Recipe Time Swap
ROXY’S DELISHES DISHES
“WhatthehellamImakingfuhdinnuh?” My mom stops at the red light and grumbles. It’s cold, gray and very unhappy. I’m hungry, and my mom always takes so long even when it’s not a late class night.
I know a good way to make a beef and bean burrito. I make it at my dad’s. But Mom is a vegetarian who obviously doesn’t like meat. She has beans and cheese and tofu. Maybe I should smuggle some meat next time I see dad? I also make waffles a lot.
“I’ll make dinner Mummuh” I say.
“Not until you take a shower and wash that paint off you”
“Right we have cheese?”
“We have cheese, right?” She doesn’t like my upside down order. “Yes in the back of the cheese drawer. There’s also coconut rice from other night in the saucepan”
I have some ideas:
Beef & Bean Burritos (Dad’s House):
Cook 1 pound of ground beef in a pan with a little bit of canola oil in a frying pan on the stove. Mush it down and break it with a fork, make sure there aren’t big clumps. Add half a pack of taco seasoning. Cook until it’s not raw or pink anymore. Add 1 can of Rotel tomatoes and a can of water, and then put in a can of refried beans, mix all together very well. And then add the rest of the taco pack.
Take a burrito and put it on a cutting board, in the middle put a scoop of rice, then some of the beef and bean filling, and then cheese sprinkle on top of that. Wrap the burrito tightly around the filling in the best way you can. In the frying pan, toast the burrito on each side until crunchy-toasty and the cheese is melty.
Bean & Cheese Burritos (Mom’s house): Do everything the same for Dad’s burritos except skip the beef step
To go with it Mom sometimes cuts up lettuce and puts ranch dressing on it yummah!
TW):
THIRD:
What’migunnamakefah dinner t’night? I’m demonstrating connected speech in the front of the class, the tendency to run words together when speaking fluidly.
“No really,” I break outta my teacher persona and voice “what should I make for dinner tonight? I’m taking suggestions”
They look at me like I’m a total weirdo, I’m used to it. There has to be a level of performance if you’re gonna hold the attention of 25 people of various ages and backgrounds, at various English comprehension levels.
“ ‘amburgs?”
It takes me a beat or two to realize the offered word is “hamburger”
“ Hhhhamburgers? I’m Hhhoping that they take note of my forced breath hhh’s.
Hhhhhhere’s the truth, this all was a construct in order to illustrate a point and get conversation going and flowing. I know what I’m gonna make for dinner I’ve known since I woke up this morning, surveyed my fridge as I put together my beloved morning coffee. I have leftover coconut rice, and everything springs from there. I have tofu and cauliflower. Tofu has been a hard sell to my family, but since I’ve taken a turn towards Vegetarian, I’ve been trying to balance out the menu with tofu and other plant proteins. Everything fried is good, even tofu. Especially when you come up with a nice sticky sweet spicy umami sauce to douse it with. Airfryers are the best for fries and extra firm tofu for crispy texture, no frying oil/pan necessary.
Tofu:
One block extra firm, seasoned in fine
2-3 tbsp Soy sauce
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp. cornstarch
Cooking spray oil
Slice tofu to preferred size, Press between two towels and a light weight, like a wood cutting board for 5-10 minutes.
After drained and blotted put in a medium bowl add soy sauce and rice wine vinegar. Toss well, add cornstarch to tofu slices and toss to coat evenly.
Spread out on an air fryer tray and bake at 410F for 10-12 minutes, flipping once in the middle.
Stir fry sauce:
1/4-1/2 cup sweet chili sauce
2 tbsp-4 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp. Worcershire sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 head of cauliflower or 1 lb. _____ (cruciferous veggie)
Raise flame to med-high Pour 1-2 tbsp your-preferred-cooking-oil in skillet or wok cook until sizzling. Add garlic and saute until golden brown but not charred.
Add cauliflower or ___________, and flip it around in the garlic oil until it starts to soften and becomes fragrant.
Add stir fry sauce + 1 cup water or veg stock. Toss veggies in the sauce a few rounds, and then cover lower heat and allow to cook for 10 minutes. Add tofu, cook for 5 minutes more.
