That is one of my favorite dishes. Not my favorite to eat necessarily, though it can be pretty good. Rather, one of my favorites to make. You can pick all the ingredients precisely, or you can make it with what you have on hand. Once you know the process, you can easily vary up the ingredients. I've never made Child's version, but I've made many, many others. I tend towards white wine when I make it.
Plus, it works great in a dutch oven, which is my favorite dish to cook in.
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Made a scaled-down (portion-wise) of Julia Child's coq au vin (technically it was poule au vin) with mashed potatoes and buttered rolls. It was... good?, I guess, but I think it's overhyped.
What didn't you like about it?
I'll admit, I LOVE coq au vin -- but two things to note
- WRT the most traditional recipes, I think you have to love the particular combination of flavors involved. (Weirdly, the best I ever had was in a cheap cafeteria in France, where it was super winey and mushroomy, but not exactly high quality).
- It is culinarily similar in terms of origins as pot roast or a boiled dinner. The recipe originates as a cheap meal made in the country with pork fat and a tough old rooster (the "coq") and old wine you needed to use up and whatever you had on hand, and your braise it until it's edible. It isn't fancy French cooking, it's poor country folk stuff. Which doesn't mean it's bad of course--but I think because it's French in origin people put different expectations on coq au vin. If we talked about pot roast like it was the epitome of everything and someone had never had it before, it's possible they could be underwhelmed.(Even though pot roast is really damn good when made well.)
As for braised chicken, best I made involved just white wine, lemon, onions, garlic, and carrots.
If anyone's curious, here's Julia's recipe.
(PS: Nice to see you posting, Amby. :) )
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Made a scaled-down (portion-wise) of Julia Child's coq au vin (technically it was poule au vin) with mashed potatoes and buttered rolls. It was... good?, I guess, but I think it's overhyped.What didn't you like about it?
1) Mom (and both sides of my family) never cooked with wine or beer, so it's largely unfamiliar to my palate. This was the first time I'd ever had coq au vin.
b) I had to stop at the Total Wine store for the wine. I'd forgotten to research their online stock beforehand vs Wine Advocate/Enthusiast ratings, so I was flying blind picking out a bottle in the store. And they were super busy and understaffed on registers, so I was way overwhelmed and near panicky by the crush of people. So to me, the meal wasn't worth all the stress.
I'll admit, I LOVE coq au vin -- but two things to note
- WRT the most traditional recipes, I think you have to love the particular combination of flavors involved. (Weirdly, the best I ever had was in a cheap cafeteria in France, where it was super winey and mushroomy, but not exactly high quality).- It is culinarily similar in terms of origins as pot roast or a boiled dinner. The recipe originates as a cheap meal made in the country with pork fat and a tough old rooster (the "coq") and old wine you needed to use up and whatever you had on hand, and your braise it until it's edible. It isn't fancy French cooking, it's poor country folk stuff. Which doesn't mean it's bad of course--but I think because it's French in origin people put different expectations on coq au vin. If we talked about pot roast like it was the epitome of everything and someone had never had it before, it's possible they could be underwhelmed.(Even though pot roast is really damn good when made well.)
As for braised chicken, best I made involved just white wine, lemon, onions, garlic, and carrots.
If anyone's curious, here's Julia's recipe.
I made the Serious Eat's version. Only variation was I couldn't find pearl onions (fresh or frozen), so I used a diced yellow onion (milder than a "hot" white onion, but not "sweet" like a Vidalia) instead.
Dad really liked it though. And I'm enjoying finishing of the bottle of Chilean cabernet sauvignon.
Plus, it works great in a dutch oven, which is my favorite dish to cook in.
Yeah, I love cooking meals in my (corningware) dutch oven.
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Tonight's dinner is roasted boneless pork chops, smol baked potatoes, basic salad, and sourdough stuffing (from a box).
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All totally fair points.
(FWIW if you ever need wine again, I can find locally for about $13 a red wine called "Cantina Zaccagnini" that is made from a grape called Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. It is very easy to spot because it has a piece of grapevine tied to the bottle. It is quite tasty for its price, a dry fruity wine that is not overpowering, drinkable as well as good for cooking.)
I desperately need to get a proper Dutch oven.
Dinner sounds good. I am out of the homemade chicken soup I made earlier this week, and have to make a conference call for work tonight (yuck), so I'm probably gonna keep it simple, like buttered noodles. Maybe with a meatball or two from a batch I made and froze a little while ago.
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All totally fair points.
(FWIW if you ever need wine again, I can find locally for about $13 a red wine called "Cantina Zaccagnini" that is made from a grape called Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. It is very easy to spot because it has a piece of grapevine tied to the bottle. It is quite tasty for its price, a dry fruity wine that is not overpowering, drinkable as well as good for cooking.)
I desperately need to get a proper Dutch oven.
Dinner sounds good. I am out of the homemade chicken soup I made earlier this week, and have to make a conference call for work tonight (yuck), so I'm probably gonna keep it simple, like buttered noodles. Maybe with a meatball or two from a batch I made and froze a little while ago.
PARTY AT DEATHQUAKERS
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Are you gonna bring me a dutch oven?
Last night, made country fried steak patties (from frozen), mashed potatoes, milk (& bacon drippings) gravy, and rolls (from frozen).
Dad's having lunch over at my brother's and his wife's house, so tonight's dinner is just a pot of beans and cornbread (from box mix).
1 cup dried Great Northern beans (any dried beans will do, really)
3-1/3 cups water* + 2/3 extra cup reserve
1 large onion, peeled then quartered
1 ham hock** or hunk of ham bone
kosher salt flakes to taste*** (I use 1/2 tbsp)
ground black pepper to taste (I use 1/2 tsp)
Do a quick sort through beans and discard any that are obviously bad or weirdly discolored (there's always one or three per 1 lb bag). Add everything to 2-1/2 quart pot, cover with lid, and quickly bring to boil. Once boiling, stir, then drop temperature to low simmer. Check every 30-45 minutes to stir and to add a little extra water if too much has boiled off.
Beans should be ready after simmering for 3 to 3-1/2 hours.
* You can use reduced-sodium chicken stock, but Dad prefers plain water.
** Ham hocks release more gelatin as they cook, which helps the texture/mouth feel.
*** Likewise, minced garlic, a bay leaf, and/or other spices & seasonings would also work, but Dad likes it uncomplicated. Traditional kitchen wisdom says cooking beans with salt makes the skins tougher; this is false, as the salt actually helps them hold together while also helping them become tender (besides improving the flavor).
Plus, it works great in a dutch oven, which is my favorite dish to cook in.Yeah, I love cooking meals in my (corningware) dutch oven.
I sprang for a 7.25 Le Creuset and I love it. I had to replace the top handle. The dog decided to counter surf and knocked the whole thing onto the floor. No damage, except for the plastic knob on the lid. I bought a steel replacement one. The enamel survived the fall intact.
They're very expensive. I have a cheaper spare one that was a gift from a friend, and the enamel stains, chips, and gets marked much more easily (though in all, it is still relatively durable). I'm not ultra-cautious with either, I have used metal cooking utensils (though I try to avoid them) with both.
The Le Creuset has bigger side handles and lid knob (both are easier to grab wearing oven mitts). The enamel seems to hold up better. Also, it looks prettier.
I've only had mine for 4 years, and I just turned 40 recently. Theoretically, the Le Creuset is supposed to last longer than I will, so I figure another 30-35 years of cooking with it will substantially justify the cost.
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I managed to get to Trader Joe's the one week per year they have fresh, wild-caught haddock--that's even pretty affordable! So for the first time in my life I made my gram's fish chowder.
I "tried out" (rendered) some diced bacon ends (traditionally you use salt pork/fatback but that's hard to find these days). I removed the crispy bits that remained (reserving for later), and put in a sliced onion and sauteed until softened and golden. Then I added boiling potatoes chopped into bite-sized pieces. (My grandmother would have peeled them, but I left the peels on for some extra fiber and color--I used a mix of red, white, and blue potatoes.) I covered the potatoes not QUITE all the way with water, and then laid the fish filets on top (unchopped) and seasoned with salt and pepper. I brought to a low boil, covered, and then simmered until the fish had steamed through and the potatoes were cooked (only takes 10 min tops). Then I added some milk (about 3 c), and stirred until the milk was heated through but not scalded. The fish breaks up gently with the stirring. Then I served garnished with the bacon bits.
It tasted like home. I know it sounds overly simple but I really wouldn't add anything to it. It is one of those things that's wonderful as is.
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Trying a new chili recipe tonight. Thinking either corn bread or cheddar-garlic drop biscuits to go with it.
I highly recommend 1 tbsp fish sauce per 1lb of meat for chili. I add it after browning the meat, but before I add any beans and liquid (like right before).
If you aren't using meat, I'd say 1 tbsp/28oz of beans.
Second trick, if you need to add a little salt to it, use soy sauce instead. Both of these have to be done under heat though (ie, still cooking the chili). If you add them before serving, you can taste them and the experience is way different. If you add them while cooking, they essentially disappear, but make the dish more savory.
I discovered this thread late but if you are still accepting suggestions... My go to for quick and simple has always been Spanish Rice. Dice up some celery and onions. Boil them along with some oil with rice. Once the rice is done add some tomato paste. I like to add some vegetable bouillon cubes as well while boiling the rice. Takes just a few minutes and is tasty. Sometimes I get some shredded chicken from the grocery store (Safeway shreds some of their rotisserie chickens and sells it in little plastic containers) and mix that in.
Would it work if you stirred in the tomato paste with the sofrito to "warm" it a bit and then add the rice?
Yes. I often add green chile to the tomato paste. The chile taste is different but I don't think sofrito would be bad.
SOFRITOOOOOOO
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I highly recommend 1 tbsp fish sauce per 1lb of meat for chili. I add it after browning the meat, but before I add any beans and liquid (like right before).
If you aren't using meat, I'd say 1 tbsp/28oz of beans.
Second trick, if you need to add a little salt to it, use soy sauce instead. Both of these have to be done under heat though (ie, still cooking the chili). If you add them before serving, you can taste them and the experience is way different. If you add them while cooking, they essentially disappear, but make the dish more savory.
I don't usually have fish sauce (or dashi/kombu powder) on hand, but yeah, I sneak in 1/2 tbsp to 1 tbsp of soy sauce into a pot of chili (or when I slow-braise beef/pork). Adds to the umami but is unidentifiable.
Chili went well, had leftovers last night, and my sister who'd stopped by took a portion and a couple biscuits with her to work. Publix has their own brand of an excellent ground chili powder. I also used a 1/2 tbsp of Frontera guajillo adobo sauce, which has a nice more complex flavor than the usual chipotle adobo; I coulda used more, but Dad is sensitive to spicy.
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Tonight is lasagna & garlic toast. Last time I made lasagna, I made up two mini-lasagnas in bread loaf pans and froze them uncooked. Which is good, 'cause all I have to do is throw it in the oven to cook, and then throw in some frozen garlic toast toward the end.
I like to put cocoa powder (unsweetened) into chili, especially veggie chili.
I just got some sofrito.
Now to buy some beans.
Monday's dinner was leftover fried chicken, shells & cheese, potato wedges, and deviled eggs from Publix. My brother and his wife brought it over for Sunday dinner here.
Tonight was roast pork, mashed taters & gravy, and frozen corn. Enough leftover for dinner tomorrow.
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I discovered this thread late but if you are still accepting suggestions... My go to for quick and simple has always been Spanish Rice. Dice up some celery and onions. Boil them along with some oil with rice. Once the rice is done add some tomato paste. I like to add some vegetable bouillon cubes as well while boiling the rice. Takes just a few minutes and is tasty. Sometimes I get some shredded chicken from the grocery store (Safeway shreds some of their rotisserie chickens and sells it in little plastic containers) and mix that in.
That sounds good, but I can't get Dad to eat rice at all, so it'd be just me.
I don't know where your budget is for food, but have you tried Better Than Bouillon? I haven't tried their veggie flavor, but the beef and chicken ones are excellent. It's more expensive than bouillon ($3.99 here at Publix for a 3½ oz jar), but it tastes soooooo much better than bouillon cubes.
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I should cook something nutritious like lentil soup (which doesn't take THAT long). But I am probably going to have noodles. For some reason work has just been taking it out of me lately.
I discovered this thread late but if you are still accepting suggestions... My go to for quick and simple has always been Spanish Rice. Dice up some celery and onions. Boil them along with some oil with rice. Once the rice is done add some tomato paste. I like to add some vegetable bouillon cubes as well while boiling the rice. Takes just a few minutes and is tasty. Sometimes I get some shredded chicken from the grocery store (Safeway shreds some of their rotisserie chickens and sells it in little plastic containers) and mix that in.That sounds good, but I can't get Dad to eat rice at all, so it'd be just me.
I don't know where your budget is for food, but have you tried Better Than Bouillon? I haven't tried their veggie flavor, but the beef and chicken ones are excellent. It's more expensive than bouillon ($3.99 here at Publix for a 3½ oz jar), but it tastes soooooo much better than bouillon cubes.
Better Than Boullion is a staple in my household.
Last night's dinner was cheeseburgers on the grill and fritos
Tonight's was chicken alfredo (frozen chicken breasts + dry rotini + alfredo sauce from a jar + Italian seasoning + garlic + extra parm & mozz cheese), basic salad, and garlic toast (previously frozen).
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Sounds nummy! Do you cook the chicken separately or in the sauce?
I want to try this alfredo recipe some time (it's basically just butter and cheese).
I made chili last night and for the first time tried adding a spoonful of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce.
Not going back! My chili was decent before but just this one addition transformed it. Smoky, savory, picante... really good.
Note this stuff is spicy, so for those who want milder flavors, be careful--but a little goes a long way.
Now I just need to figure out what to do with the rest of the can.
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Sounds nummy! Do you cook the chicken separately or in the sauce?
I want to try this alfredo recipe some time (it's basically just butter and cheese).
1¼ cup low-sodium chicken stock or broth
1 tbsp dried parsley
1½ tsp kosher salt flakes
1 tsp Italian seasoning blend
½ tsp fresh-ground black pepper
½ tsp garlic powder
8 oz dry rotini or other pasta of preferred shape
1 tbsp olive oil
1½ lb chicken breast tenders, sliced shortwise (cross-grain) into ¾" strips
15 oz jar alfredo sauce
4 oz mozzarella cheese, grated/shredded
2 oz parmesan cheese, finely grated
4 slices frozen garlic toast (optional)
Butter bottom and sides of large (7"x11", 2 quart) Pyrex/CorningWare/heat-tempered glass casserole/baking dish, leaving leftover butter in bottom of dish. Add chicken stock, then sprinkle in parsley, salt, Italian seasoning, pepper, and garlic powder. Stir with fork to mix even-ishly, then dump in dry pasta, and use fork to spread pasta into an even layer.
While pasta is absorbing chicken stock, heat olive oil in large (14"-15") deep skillet/frying pan on medium heat, then add chicken strips. Allow chicken to cook just until mostly cooked through in middle or slightly browned on outside, turning over to brown other side. Make sure oven rack is at middle height, then preheat oven to 400F.
After the chicken has been turned over while still cooking, add jarred alfredo sauce to soaking pasta, distributing it roughly evenly. Once chicken is cooked on both sides, dump chicken and pan juices onto sauced pasta mixture. Immediately sprinkle on half of mozzarella, and use fork or large spook to mix pasta, chicken, and alfredo sauce together. Gently tap down any chicken or pasta poking up into a more or less even layer. Sprinkle on remaining mozzarella and parmesan. Cover dish with aluminum foil, bake at 400F for 35 minutes.
After 35 minutes, remove dish from oven. Increase oven temperature to 425F (or as indicated on garlic toast reheating instructions). Remove foil from chicken alfredo pasta, fold over shortwise. Slide dish back into oven all the way to back. Immediately place long foil rectangle directly on rack in front of it, and then place garlic toast slices directly on foil. Close oven and bake for another 6-7 minutes (or as indicated on garlic toast reheating instructions).
Remove garlic toast and molten chicken alfredo from oven, enjoy while burning roof of mouth. Serve with salad to convince yourself that this is a healthy meal.
I'd previously bought a 48 oz bag of Aldi's frozen raw chicken tenders on sale, but the last time I made them, I'd left them whole when cooking (with a pan sauce, not alfredo) and they came out too chewy/too much connective tissue. Cutting them cross-grain into short strips this time helped immensely.
Oh, nice! I dig the almost one-pan-ness of this. I may try this for a potluck sometime.
Oh, nice! I dig the almost one-pan-ness of this. I may try this for a potluck sometime.
I thought of that, but my big skillet pan isn't quite deep enough or I'd have tried it. Also considered using the slow cooker, but didn't want to have to clean it afterward.
Tonight was prepared dinner night: (jarred) marinara + (dried, bagged) penne rigate + (from frozen) meatballs, and (from frozen) garlic butter breadsticks.
The marinara and pasta were Rao's, which I'd picked up on sale a while back. The marinara was probably the best jarred sauce I'd ever had, but I've made better (and cheaper) from the usual basic recipe of standard canned plum/San Marzano tomatoes, maybe some blistered cherry tomatoes, roasted red bell peppers, fresh garlic & onions & fresh herbs, and a decent olive oil. Yeah, if you're short on time to make dinner, Rao's is probably worth it. If you're used to making your own and have the time, stick with that instead.
The frozen meatballs were Aldi's store brand, and were really very good. They're about the size of a quarter, and came out moist and well-seasoned. They didn't taste or mouth-feel like they were full of fillers to stretch out the beef. They're so easy and affordable I think I prefer them over making my own from scratch.
Tonight's dinner: Slow cooker salisbury steak patties (ground chuck + envelope of mushroom & onion gravy mix), gravy (au jus mix + chicken broth + dried minced onions), garlic mashed potatoes (instant + milk + butter), and green beans (canned)
Tomorrow is probably leftovers
Tonight's dinner: Reheated fried chicken (frozen, from deli), baked beans (canned), and cornbread muffins.
Tomorrow is either roast pork loin or tilapia baked in parchment.
Yeah, there are the things I'll eat and then there's the things Dad will eat. He's almost as inflexible in what he'll eat as pre-K little kids.
Tonight's dinner: Slow cooker "Mediterranean" marinated (from a bottle) pork loin, baked potatoes, spinach (from frozen), and leftover cornbread muffins
Don't particularly care for this marinade flavor, probably won't buy again.
I'd love to make stock and lots of other stuff from scratch, but I'm often short on time and low on energy/spoons. Dad is also used to a lot of the stuff like powdered gravy and seasonings from pouches, because that's what my Mom used many times in her decades as home chef/cook. I've tried making the healthier scratch versions and most times he doesn't eat it as well, so I'd rather have him regularly then not enough. (he eats small portions most meals.)
Stuff like frozen vegetables and canned tomatoes I definitely prefer over the fresh because they keep better and they're picked & frozen/canned at their ripest/in season. Just gotta try different brands to see which you like, which have the minimal/no preservatives & additives, and watch weekly ads for when they go on sale and stock up. Having a 7 cubic foot chest/deep freezer and dedicated shelves for a decent pantry also makes it possible.
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The only real recommendation I've got for meals for 1 & 2 is making a larger batch, then portioning it out, and freezing the leftover portions. Again, having room in the chest freezer makes it possible for me. It's usually cheaper per serving, it takes the same amount of time to make a bigger/full-sized batch as a scaled-down recipe, and it's great to have a premade (often precooked) meal portions frozen that you only need to warm up.
For example, I like our recipes for homemade meatballs and lasagna, but I hate the hours of prep time needed to make them. So I'll try to make up a 3lbs of meatballs at once, then keep them frozen until needed. When I make lasagna, I split up the regular-size recipe into 3 bread loaf pans and keep them assembled & frozen, ready to throw into an oven later. The local supermarkets offer a better price on "family packs" (3lbs or bigger) of ground chuck, chicken breasts, and pork chops. So I buy the big packs, split them up, and freeze. I make the ground chuck into 1/3lb hamburger patties before I freeze them, so I can make burgers or make a ground beef/chuck recipe knowing 3 patties equals a pound.
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Tonight I'm trying white chicken chili (seasoning pouch, frozen precooked chicken strips we got from the food bank/pantry, canned low-sodium organic cannellini beans), cole slaw (seasoning pouch and pre-shredded slaw mix), and rolled buttermilk biscuits (from frozen).
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Tonight I'm trying white chicken chili (seasoning pouch, frozen precooked chicken strips we got from the food bank/pantry, canned low-sodium organic cannellini beans), cole slaw (seasoning pouch and pre-shredded slaw mix), and rolled buttermilk biscuits (from frozen).
The white chicken chili turned out pretty good, but it's a bit too black pepper-y for Dad's tastes. Biscuits turned out to be a smart call; they were great for soaking up the gravy/juice. It'd be a great meal on cold rainy (or snowy) days.
We still have pounds of frozen unbreaded chicken breast patties and frozen chicken strips from the food pantry, so I was going to make a chicken & pasta dish in the slow cooker. Turns out that neither of the two local supermarkets I went to this morning had the premixed chicken seasoning packet the recipe called for though. I think I figured out a pretty close approximation, but I decided to postpone that experiment recipe for another day.
So for tonight's dinner, I'm going to instead make a different chicken & pasta recipe in the slow cooker. If it works out and Dad likes it, I'll post the recipe here.
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Ooh, I wished I noticed this sooner.
America's Test Kitchen has a giant cookbook called "The Complete Cooking for Two." Not only are there a lot of good recipes in there (I make the dal recipe often), but the front section has excellent advice on shopping, prep, and kitchen gear useful cooking for two. Most of the recipes I've tried turn out decent two-portion meals, though some of them a super hungry person might eat all of. I use them to eat a meal then and then have one meal's worth of leftovers to eat the next day. PS: I have found it for cheaper at Barnes and Noble bookstores than the Amazon price I linked to.
I love occasionally roasting a whole chicken like you did, Mark Hoover 330. I usually roast with vegetables and rice or mashed potatoes, eat one breast, set aside the breast and leftover veggies for another meal, and then pick off the rest of the chicken, which gets recycled through the rest of the week into a casserole and/or chicken salad and/or quick chicken tacos. If I want to freeze the meat, I'll bake it into a casserole first and then freeze the casserole in one person servings. I will throw away the carcass if I am certain I am not going to do anything with it anytime soon, but I sometimes will also toss it in a freezer bag with other scraps to make stock another time. (But I only do that if I know I have time to do it in the next few weeks because otherwise it just ends up taking space in my freezer forever.)
I'm trying to rethink meals... a new medication is making my acid reflux act up. Hopefully I will get all under control soon... but until then I have to make sure I eat less tomatoes (my favorite "veggie"/savory fruit) and citrus (my favorite fruits) and garlic (my favorite allium). And I have already given up coffee. *sigh* I keep defaulting to just eating eggs or plain pasta which is not a well-rounded diet and not going to help my digestion any in the long term.
I've got some cabbage and beets I am not sure what to do with. I usually make slaw with cabbage but I think I'd like to cook it.
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And I have already given up coffee. *sigh*
*pours one out for DQ*
*But then pours another mug and takes a sip*
Anyway, just wanted to say that that looks like a good cookbook to have, maybe. We're a family of four, but two of us are small, picky eaters whose enjoyment of my cooking seems inverse to the amount of effort I've put into it. So, properly cooking for two and then whipping up a plate of spaghetti or chicken nuggets could be a good option.
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I really enjoy the cookbook a lot and recommend it.
It also has a nice "dessert for two" section for smaller cakes, pies, and other things (and halving/reducing larger baking recipes is hard) which is nice if you want to make a treat but not have huge leftovers.
Ooh, I wished I noticed this sooner.
America's Test Kitchen has a giant cookbook called "The Complete Cooking for Two." Not only are there a lot of good recipes in there (I make the dal recipe often), but the front section has excellent advice on shopping, prep, and kitchen gear useful cooking for two. Most of the recipes I've tried turn out decent two-portion meals, though some of them a super hungry person might eat all of. I use them to eat a meal then and then have one meal's worth of leftovers to eat the next day. PS: I have found it for cheaper at Barnes and Noble bookstores than the Amazon price I linked to.
I love occasionally roasting a whole chicken like you did, Mark Hoover 330. I usually roast with vegetables and rice or mashed potatoes, eat one breast, set aside the breast and leftover veggies for another meal, and then pick off the rest of the chicken, which gets recycled through the rest of the week into a casserole and/or chicken salad and/or quick chicken tacos. If I want to freeze the meat, I'll bake it into a casserole first and then freeze the casserole in one person servings. I will throw away the carcass if I am certain I am not going to do anything with it anytime soon, but I sometimes will also toss it in a freezer bag with other scraps to make stock another time. (But I only do that if I know I have time to do it in the next few weeks because otherwise it just ends up taking space in my freezer forever.)
I'm trying to rethink meals... a new medication is making my acid reflux act up. Hopefully I will get all under control soon... but until then I have to make sure I eat less tomatoes (my favorite "veggie"/savory fruit) and citrus (my favorite fruits) and garlic (my favorite allium). And I have already given up coffee. *sigh* I keep defaulting to just eating eggs or plain pasta which is not a well-rounded diet and not going to help my digestion...
Chicken & pasta turned out ok, but it lacked "ummph", dunno what. I only made two ingredient additions, and they added flavor. Oh well.
I'm trying to rethink meals... a new medication is making my acid reflux act up. Hopefully I will get all under control soon... but until then I have to make sure I eat less tomatoes (my favorite "veggie"/savory fruit) and citrus (my favorite fruits) and garlic (my favorite allium). And I have already given up coffee. *sigh* I keep defaulting to just eating eggs or plain pasta which is not a well-rounded diet and not going to help my digestion any in the long term.
Ugh. You have my sympathies. Acidity seems to bother my stomach now more than it used to as well, but clearly not as bad as it's affecting you.
* I have to drink my oj now with meals instead of as a stand-alone beverage.
* I found that that tomato-based products -- with me it was pasta sauce and pizza sauce -- would hit with bad heartburn. I'd blamed it on the acidity until I tried a more premium pasta sauce just because it was new and on sale. Not only did it taste better, I was happy to discover no heartburn afterward. It was made with a short list of natural ingredients and no artificial additives, so I tried I tried a couple different premium-ish brands with no artificial additives... and still no heartburn. I used to buy the more affordable sauces on sale, then add fresh ingredients to make them better, but something(s) in the artificial ingredients was hurting me. I keep a couple emergency jars now for days I'm running short on time/energy, but otherwise I make those tomato sauces from scratch.
* I do know that onion powder sets off my heartburn. Premium vs store brand makes no difference, it always triggers a flare-up. Dried minced onion doesn't trigger it though.
* Dark roast coffee is supposed to be lower in acidity, as is cold brew coffee vs hot press/brew/drip. I tried it and it seemed to work, but Dad won't drink cold brew, so I gave up making it. I can get away with my coffee first thing in the morning as long as I eat a little something substantial with it, then drink half-caffeinated iced tea throughout the day through dinner. (With coffee and tea, I've always swung both ways. Just putting that in there to see if Freehold is still reading.)
Chicken & pasta turned out ok, but it lacked "ummph", dunno what. I only made two ingredient additions, and they added flavor. Oh well.
I'm trying to rethink meals... a new medication is making my acid reflux act up. Hopefully I will get all under control soon... but until then I have to make sure I eat less tomatoes (my favorite "veggie"/savory fruit) and citrus (my favorite fruits) and garlic (my favorite allium). And I have already given up coffee. *sigh* I keep defaulting to just eating eggs or plain pasta which is not a well-rounded diet and not going to help my digestion any in the long term.Ugh. You have my sympathies. Acidity seems to bother my stomach now more than it used to as well, but clearly not as bad as it's affecting you.
* I have to drink my oj now with meals instead of as a stand-alone beverage.
* I found that that tomato-based products -- with me it was pasta sauce and pizza sauce -- would hit with bad heartburn. I'd blamed it on the acidity until I tried a more premium pasta sauce just because it was new and on sale. Not only did it taste better, I was happy to discover no heartburn afterward. It was made with a short list of natural ingredients and no artificial additives, so I tried I tried a couple different premium-ish brands with no artificial additives... and still no heartburn. I used to buy the more affordable sauces on sale, then add fresh ingredients to make them better, but something(s) in the artificial ingredients was hurting me. I keep a couple emergency jars now for days I'm running short on time/energy, but otherwise I make those tomato sauces from scratch.
* I do know that onion powder sets off my heartburn. Premium vs store brand makes no difference, it always triggers a flare-up. Dried minced onion doesn't trigger it though.
* Dark roast coffee is supposed to be lower in acidity, as is cold brew coffee over hot press or drip. I tried it and it seemed to work, but Dad won't drink cold brew, so I gave up making it. I can...
coffee tea mixes were great at the tea house...
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sends ships filled with tea into the inner harbor
Thanks, I made some iced today. Technically it can trigger reactions too (the tannins in black tea especially but it still is gentler than coffee).
Ugh. You have my sympathies. Acidity seems to bother my stomach now more than it used to as well, but clearly not as bad as it's affecting you.
I have been given permission to reduce the dosage of the medication possibly contributing to it (although that's asthma medication and if I start getting regularly wheezy then we'll have to find another solution) and waiting for a test result; hopefully if all is well after the test result I can go on PPIs for a couple weeks which should calm everything down. I'll have to still watch my diet but it's been years since I had a flareup and for years I could eat most things okay as long as I didn't go entirely crazy. So hopefully once everything calms down I'll be back to that.
* I have to drink my oj now with meals instead of as a stand-alone beverage.
I can't drink OJ at all right now, sadly. Or cranberry juice.
* I found that that tomato-based products -- with me it was pasta sauce and pizza sauce -- would hit with bad heartburn. I'd blamed it on the acidity until I tried a more premium pasta sauce just because it was new and on sale. Not only did it taste better, I was happy to discover no heartburn afterward. It was made with a short list of natural ingredients and no artificial additives, so I tried I tried a couple different premium-ish brands with no artificial additives... and still no heartburn. I used to buy the more affordable sauces on sale, then add fresh ingredients to make them better, but something(s) in the artificial ingredients was hurting me. I keep a couple emergency jars now for days I'm running short on time/energy, but otherwise I make those tomato sauces from scratch.
Properly ripe tomatoes cooked are okay for me in moderation. Ripe fresh tomatoes (as in garden fresh) are fine in very small quantities. But I reaallly have to watch it right now. Pasta sauce is too much, even if fresh. Definitely there are other additives I think that makes it worse.
* I do know that onion powder sets off my heartburn. Premium vs store brand makes no difference, it always triggers a flare-up. Dried minced onion doesn't trigger it though.
Might be the anticaking agent often found in onion powder rather than the onion powder itself. could also be why the cheap pasta sauce didn't go right, some kind of phosphate or something your body didn't like.
* Dark roast coffee is supposed to be lower in acidity, as is cold brew coffee over hot press or drip. I tried it and it seemed to work, but Dad won't drink cold brew, so I gave up making it. I can get away with my coffee first thing in the morning as long as I eat a little something substantial with it, then drink half-caffeinated iced tea throughout the day through dinner.
I always make cold brew which definitely is kinder on the stomach--apparently it actually doesn't have, chemically speaking, less acid, but the cold brew process extracts less oil from the bean, so I'm guessing that's what makes it gentler. But caffeine itself is also an issue on top of the coffee, so lower acid & caffeine containing tea is better for me right now.
I am saying this in part for the benefit of other readers, but in case you or others are not aware, cold brew references the means of infusion, not the way you have to drink it. It is a concentrate if made properly, and so when you drink it, you have to dilute it with water or milk. If you heat that hot water or milk and then mix it with your cold brew concentrate, then you have hot coffee (my favorite local cafe makes a gorgeous cafe au lait with cold brewed coffee). Alternately you can dilute the cold brew with your liquid of choice and then microwave until hot. I wonder how your dad would know the difference.
(With coffee and tea, I've always swung both ways. Just putting that in there to see if Freehold is still reading.)
I also swing both ways in that regard, but I swing both ways on many subjects.
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I also swing both ways in that regard, but I swing both ways on many subjects.
This is a great day.