Challenge: Cook your way through your freezer (part 2)

[Anna N]

@Dejah

 I may have to come and visit you for an extended period of time. 

[ninagluck]

@Anna N, I was lucky, seconds later the shank did not keep it's position ;-)

[kayb]

Pulled a five-pound chicken out of the freezer last night. Blueberry barbecued (actually roasted in the oven) chicken from Deep Run Roots today. Details later on dinner thread.

Edited May 21, 2017 by kayb
to add missing word. (log)

[Anna N]

Pulled some restaurant leftovers tonight.  Didn't make much room at all but every little helps......

[Anna N]

 

 Three sausages hardly made a dent but again every little helps.    The umami crumbs (panko & mushroom dust) did nothing for the rapini in my opinion. 

[lindag]

On ‎4‎/‎20‎/‎2017 at 5:22 PM, kayb said:

I am picking up a new (used) freezer Sunday afternoon; a 21-foot upright. Planning to sell the little one.

 

 

You may want to hold onto that small freezer and add it with the new, it's scary how fast they fill up.

[Dejah]

On 2017-05-21 at 2:57 PM, Anna N said:

@Dejah

 I may have to come and visit you for an extended period of time. 

Welcome anytime, Ann N. Then my freezer content will go down faster!

 

[Dejah]

Pulled the lost cross rib roast from the freezer and made stew. Needed soft comfort food as I had a molar pulled in the afternoon. Love lots of celery in my stew, and it was all lovely and tender. Roasted some butternut squash as a side.

                                                           

I started the stew on the stove, then slowly simmered in the oven. Made the house cozy with these crazy winds we are getting as well as smelling yummy!

[scubadoo97]

Pulled a half dozen large shrimp from the freezer.  Tortillitas de Camerones are on the menu for tonight.  Will pair with a side salad

[Dejah]

Been AWOL yet again! Went down to Irving, Texas for an Edgar Rice Burroughs gathering (Think Tarzan and John Carter of Mars author). One of the events the ladies whose spouses are ERBfanatics always have is shopping! The spouses who attend the gathering are called J.A.N.E.S - just another neglected ERB spouse. I go shopping but I am an ERBfanatic
I was glad I went this time as there is a great shopping "Main Street" in an adjacent town - Grapevine, Texas.
There are lots of interesting shops and eateries. I hit the jackpot when I found The Spice & Tea Exchange. Picked up many different spices and some familiar ones.

I had pulled a bag of lean ground beef from the freezer and made Baharat seasoned burgers. They were lovely - could really taste the spices even after the BBQ.

                                                         

 

                                                         

[Smithy]

I didn't know there was a group devoted to ERB, but I'm not surprised.  I am DELIGHTED at the J.A.N.E.S.  Somebody really had to swing to reach that one! 

 

I haven't actively tried to participate in the great freezer cleanout venture yet, but today was a step in the right direction. Earlier this year I picked up three 5-pound blocks of frozen Hatch green chiles in varying heat levels. The 'mild' and 'hot' peppers were roasted, peeled, seeded and chopped before bagging and freezing. Today was the day to begin testing the results of my great shopping spree.  I pulled the packages from the freezer and set them to thaw. In addition we had a container of frozen sweet corn from last year (5 cups' worth?). We had leftover ham that hadn't been frozen but needed to be addressed.  (Irma Rombauer is credited with defining eternity as "two people and a ham" and I'm starting to agree.) We had pasta, cheese, ripe bell peppers and a lot of onion. They were all destined to meet.

 

The mild green chiles were mild indeed; the hot green chiles had a definite kick.  Neither had the fruity and acidic heat I associate with good green chiles (NOT green bell peppers) when I began tasting the barely-thawed chiles, but I picked up more of the desired flavor as I worked.

 

 

To the left: the packages of chopped chiles, thawing.  Upper right: onions, celery, ripe bell peppers and Hatch green chile chunks sweating; bottom right: the finished dish, with cheese browning on top.

 

It needed a bit of salt, but otherwise was satisfactory to us both.  Good thing, too, because there are a lot of leftovers.  I don't think I made any gains on freezer space.

 

"You wrote down everything you did, right?" asked my darling.  Of course I did.  In the Journal of Irreproducible Results.

[Anna N]

29 minutes ago, Smithy said:

"You wrote down everything you did, right?" asked my darling.  Of course I did.  In the Journal of Irreproducible Results.

 Nice to meet someone else who keeps one of these journals.  

[Thanks for the Crepes]

I did not know about the ERB group either, but I devoured a lot of his fantasy novels from the library in the late 80's to the early nineties. Have you seen the estimated $250 million dollar budget "John Carter"? I think it's overestimated, but not out of line of how much it takes to bring his stories to the screen. I've grown out of my interest in his writing, but as a younger person, it was very entertaining.  I also devoured Piers Anthony novels at that time and have grown away from them too. 

 

These days, I am putting stuff in the freezer as much as pulling it out. I waste more than I would like to, but a lot of it goes to my wildlife. I recently put a portion of vegetable curry and two portions of chicken cacciatore into the freezer. These will get eaten in the next couple of months, because my fridge freezers really do not do a good job of preserving food quality.

 

I'm still occasionally cooking something for the wildlife that has outlived its usefulness for human consumption to clear the freezer 

out. It would be a lot easier to just put it all in the garbage bin on the day the city comes to haul it away, but that would just be wrong, in my mind.

 

I'm learning not to freeze anything I'm not sure I will eat in a couple of months, because that is all my freezers will do any justice to. I'm very sensitive to "freezer taste".

 

I did surprise myself with some bacon I cooked after I cooked the bacon I had intended to eat for the wildlife. It had been stored for a year! but at the bottom of the freezer, so I cooked it after I cooked my eating bacon for the wildlife. I tasted a little piece after cooking, and it was just fine. That went into a BLT. Sorry, raccoons. They did get the grease over some stale bread.

[Dejah]

19 hours ago, Thanks for the Crepes said:

I did not know about the ERB group either, but I devoured a lot of his fantasy novels from the library in the late 80's to the early nineties. Have you seen the estimated $250 million dollar budget "John Carter"? I think it's overestimated, but not out of line of how much it takes to bring his stories to the screen. I've grown out of my interest in his writing, but as a younger person, it was very entertaining.  I also devoured Piers Anthony novels at that time and have grown away from them too.

The group's been going for many many years. Hubby was always the fan, so much so that he created a website devoted to ERB, and the company in Tarzana, Calif liked it so much they hired him. Thru' that, we have been invited to premieres, including John Carter in L.A.. Loved the movie!
Continuing with the freezer saga, I had made a HUGE batch of hot 'n' sour soup a couple of weeks ago, not intentionally, but the broth was SO spicy I had to keep adding chicken stock! That resulted in several containers for the freezer as well as gifting to friends.

This morning was our annual Chinese community Ching Ming, and it was followed by a big luncheon at a local Chinese buffet which included traditional dishes: fun see, Chinese mushrooms in oyster sauce, siu jook, etc.

We stuffed ourselves at lunch, so by supper time, I really didn't feel like cooking from scratch, especially after working in the garden all afternoon.

So, it was hot'n'sour soup for supper. The base included all the vegetarian ingredients. I added chicken breast, shrimp, and char siu from the freezer. Thickened with a bit of cornstarch slurry, and a scoop of rice for hubby, tofu in both, we were satisfied.

Really, there was broth in the bowl!

                                                              

 

[scubadoo97]

On 6/25/2017 at 2:28 AM, Anna N said:

 Nice to meet someone else who keeps one of these journals.  

One of the main reasons I save photos of my food is to remind me what I made and from the picture I may have an inkling of what I did.   

[Dejah]

A couple of meals this week -

Smallish chicken from my past. This one was at the bottom of the freezer. I saw it's skinny legs sticking up. Rubbed with African Township Spice Blend and cooked in the Big Easy. Eaten with cheesy broccoli (frozen veg)   

                                                                 

 

A rack of lamb - from DEC. 2016! Again, it was from Safeway at 50% off. It was cryovac and stashed in the fridge freezer. I think it had dropped on my toes a few times, so MUST be eaten...NOW! Just added Montreal Steak Spice and grilled on stove top.
Had a half bag of spinach, left over from salads on the weekend. Love spinach , even sauteed. Boiled little taters, buttered and eaten with chopped fresh mint.
                                                                 

 

[Thanks for the Crepes]

Chicken cacciatore from the freezer, served over thin spaghetti. I made this batch of Chix Cach last month and ate two portions. I ate the first one the night I cooked it, then ate another a few days later that was stashed in the fridge. I froze two more, so now there is one left.

 

It sure is challenging cooking for one. I bought the smallest package of chicken thighs on offer: four. I do love this dish, though, so I will definitely not let that last portion go to waste.

[Anna N]

@Dejah,

I don't know what I admire the most – – your meals or your photographs of your meals!   Either way I must remind myself not to lick my screen.

[Dejah]

@Anna N : Thanks for the compliment! Much appreciated coming from you.
Don't really have photo skills - just my point and shoot, nor specific cooking skills. BUT, Oh...How I love to eat and feed!

Will be pulling out a small slab of pork belly (to make salt pork), several packages of Chinese sausages, bags of dried baby shrimp, to host a joongzi workshop on the 15th for a couple of relatives who want to learn - for our freezers! It's late for joongzi making time, which is usually in May, but is it EVER too late to make joongzi?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

10 hours ago, Thanks for the Crepes said:

Chicken cacciatore from the freezer, served over thin spaghetti. I made this batch of Chix Cach last month and ate two portions. I ate the first one the night I cooked it, then ate another a few days later that was stashed in the fridge. I froze two more, so now there is one left.

 

It sure is challenging cooking for one. I bought the smallest package of chicken thighs on offer: four. I do love this dish, though, so I will definitely not let that last portion go to waste.

 

I'd love to be able to buy a package of four thighs!  Actually chicken cacciatore is on my menu for tonight...with legs instead of thighs for some reason.  I'm trying to decide whether to go with my usual recipe or try a chicken cacciatore recipe from Bugialli.

 

Either way, no freezer points for me.

[lindag]

I have taken to buying a whole chicken then cctting out the backbone then halving the chicken.

Roast one half in the CSO and the other half goes into the freezer.

Trying to master cooking for one.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

1 hour ago, lindag said:

I have taken to buying a whole chicken then cctting out the backbone then halving the chicken.

Roast one half in the CSO and the other half goes into the freezer.

Trying to master cooking for one.

 

I do that with Cornish game hens...problem is Cornish game hens are sold only in packages of two.

 

[scubadoo97]

a 5 lb chuck roast went from freezer to smoker.   Made darn good smoked and pulled meat for the 4th

Edited July 4, 2017 by scubadoo97 (log)

[Okanagancook]

I seem to be going backwards.  Garden produce is already exceeding what we can eat so the freezer is the depository for said spinach, zucchini and cucumber so far.

 

I am also getting bad vibes from my ten year old chest freezer.  If that baby were to conk out I would have a hard time getting a 21 cu ft replacement within a day here where you have to order ahead.  I have a lot invested in that freezer and would be devasted should I lose it.  So, we will receive a 'spare' to sit in waiting and I will rest much easier.  I know, go ahead and call me 'paranoid', 'a worry wart' and/or 'a horriblizer'

[lindag]

17 minutes ago, Okanagancook said:

I seem to be going backwards.  Garden produce is already exceeding what we can eat so the freezer is the depository for said spinach, zucchini and cucumber so far.

 

I am also getting bad vibes from my ten year old chest freezer.  If that baby were to conk out I would have a hard time getting a 21 cu ft replacement within a day here where you have to order ahead.  I have a lot invested in that freezer and would be devasted should I lose it.  So, we will receive a 'spare' to sit in waiting and I will rest much easier.  I know, go ahead and call me 'paranoid', 'a worry wart' and/or 'a horriblizer'

 

I don't think you're paranoid at all...with the kind of investment you have stored away, it seems prudent at the very least.

And, it's exactly what I'd do.