Monday, August 27, 2007

MY PEASANT FOOD

I'm going to keep cooking until something good comes out, and even with near-hits and definite misses I'm really enjoying making things with my hands and then using my aforementioned hands to feed myself the aforementioned made things.

Tonight I had an onion that was about two days away from going to waste and also some leftover white rice so I decided to do something with both. I suppose certain cultures' peasant food arise out of circumstances slightly similar this one, and peasant food is my favorite kind of food (generally one-dish, hearty, meat-n-veg combos that you can eat with a spoon), so I was happy to invent my own.

Caveat if you find the tooting of horns offensive, because I'm about to toot some major horn on behalf of myself and my dinner: it was DELICIOUS! I made GOOD, SIMPLE FOOD! Also: vegetarian. But: meaters would love it.

Here is the recipe if you care to try:

Two cups leftover pre-cooked white rice
One almost rotten Vidalia onion (make sure it is NOT rotten) medium chopped (you can also use a totally fresh onion)
Two little cans of sliced mushrooms
1.5 tablespoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon hot chili oil
1 tablespoon chopped garlic (about 2, 3 cloves)
1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro (I love cilantro, some people don't. If you don't, I feel bad for you but you can sub fresh chives or dill but not basil!)
1 tablespoon butter

Okay -- heat a pan and combine the oils (but not the butter) and stir the onions in. Cook them on a medium to low flame, and let them get slick and transparent. Add the garlic, and keep the flame on the lower side. Add the mushrooms...let 'em cook. Throw the rice in there with about a half cup of water and the butter; let the water reduce out, but not so things get too dry -- you want things to be soft and mushy. Add the cilantro, or if you're a sad person who has no taste for cilantro, the chives or dill. Stir stir stir, and that's it.

This dish is TOTAL COMFORT FOOD and just SO DELICIOUS and yummy. Not to mention CHEAP AS SHIT. Even if we're lucky enough to afford better, on occasion we should all eat like peasants.