Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Everyone has made countless versions of this. A.K.A. Bolognese sauce, to do a "proper" version usually requires browning meat and simmering for several hours.  However, families in a rush for their supper on a Tuesday night don't have 2-3 hours for this. You could open a can of Hunt's or whatever, but we don't have to stoop that low. You can get away without browning for starters. It does add a depth of flavour but you can (somewhat) substitute some minced bacon. As for the multiple hours of cooking, that is partly to fully release all the flavours blah blah, and partly to soften the meat which you probably just charred up during the browning process. Why not just omit the browning and simmer for 15 minutes? Works pretty darn well actually.

Meat sauce simmering away

Another secret to quick flavour here is sticking the veggies in the food processor. Once they are almost mushy, it will saute in no time flat. So two pots, 5 minutes of prep, and maybe 15 minutes cooking and you are done.

Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Next Time: Well there is always the using fresh pasta thing.

Me: 8/10
SO: 8/10
SSO: 4/10

Easy Sunday Afternoon in-the-oven Ribs

I was a bit wary when SO suggested ribs for Sunday. She has all the good ideas in the family, but our track record for ribs lately hasn't been stellar.  Well we had a few disastrous mishaps in any case.  Oh well, let's try again. At our local grocery I got 2 large racks of side ribs for around $20, not too bad. We actually had the slow cooker out when she suggested doing them in the oven before leaving for the day to traipse around to the musem and the movies with SSO and his "date". A girl. Not a date he insists, but a "birthday present" since he missed her birthday party the week before. How does a 7 year old even know what a date is anyway? Anyhoo. So oven it will be.  Let's just wing it, how bad could it be?

Easy Ribs in the oven

Well you know, it actually turned out awesome! I had trouble removing them from the roaster because they were falling apart like crazy. I decided to try and do them with as little work as possible, partly because I wanted to see if they'd turn out ok that way, and partly because it was supposed to be my do-nothing-because-it's-Father's-Day day. Nevermind that Father's Day was last Sunday. Things get delayed for camping, is all.  So instead of cutting up onions, mixing up fancy spices and bbq sauces, basting every 20 minutes like some recipes would have you do, it was a stick in big roasting pan with a bottle of bbq sauce and cook for 5 hours. Not much else. I ended up mixing the bbq sauce with a bit of water, some ketchup, some Sriracha hot sauce and the rest of another bottle of bbq sauce I had in the fridge. A little fresh vegetable medley of whatever I had in the fridge, plus some 10 minute rice, and that's it. Sometimes the whole KISS principle actually works, and I'm not refering to Rock and Rolling all night...

Next time: Not much different, actually. Maybe I'd try making a fully home-made bbq sauce.

Me: 8/10
SO: 9/10
SSO: 5/10

Chicken with Cabbage and Hot Sauce

Summer is so busy, there hasn't been a lot of time for cooking. Between weekends away camping or at someone's cottage, and ball games, and festivals, and friends or family visiting, it seems like we haven't cooked anything for a long time. Truth is we probably cook just as much, but just no time for anything elaborate or new.

This dish isn't really elaborate or new either, but the smell and taste drove me to write about it. SO did it all on the fly, and it was great. I think without the hot sauce(s) it would been an everyday sort of thing but man that Sriracha (Rooster) sauce is awesome. They not only have their own FB page, but I also found a comic tribute page on The Oatmeal (a little NSFW).

Chicken and Cabbage Stirfry

So this is your basic stirfry, but there are a few things that make it super easy. Skinless boneless chicken thighs are cheaper and delicious, and a bag of pre-washed coleslaw (basically shredded cabbage and carrot) makes it happen in no time flat. Throw in some onion, any other random vegetable (green beans in our case), hot sauce, and half a can of coconut milk, and Bob's your Uncle.

Next Time: would try different veggies; more hot sauce

Me: 8/10
SO: 6/10
SSO: n/a (would not have eaten it as-is with the hot sauce)