In general I like to cook, not bake , but my favorite method is braising. I really enjoy the entire process, from getting a good foundation by browning the meat well, suateeing the onions, peppers, garlic, etc., deglazing with wine. Letting the meat braise in the liquid for hours and then eating a peice of fork tender, fall off the bone meat with a gravy/sauce that can only come from hours of simmering, yum! I love to do lamb shanks, pork shanks or even beef short ribs, rich, silky goodness!

Lately it's roasting, primarily vegetables.

Btw, I DO love to bake from scratch.

Generally anything I can do on top of the stove.
Slow cooker meals can't be beat.
And I do love enchiladas, lasagna, and my baked sweets.



So...all of the above. LOL

I don't care whether it's to be baked, braised, nuked, roasted, toasted, slow-cooked, broiled or boiled. What determines how I cook is how much time I have that day and how hot or cold it is outside.

The one thing I don't do is smoking/bbq/grilling outdoors. Too messy; too hot. I do love my indoor George Foreman grill, tho.

quote:

Originally posted by aychihuahua:...I do love my indoor George Foreman grill, tho.

I use mine, too - usually for salmon fillets or chicken breasts. Very easy.

So lately, I've been preparing a lot of stove top type of meals - sauted dishes, soups, sauces, etc. If I'm rushed I'll generally roast poultry with veggies.

Currently, my favorite method of cooking is telephoning.

Grilling steaks, usually is my favorite. Adding a fresh cut salad rounds out my fav meal.

Perhaps next summer I'll learn to grill more than just steaks. The grill is my next challenge.

My most prized cooking pot is my small pressure cooker. I brown in the pot floured chunks of beef with sliced onion, garlic, S&P, and once browned and lots of goodies sticking to the bottom of the pot, I just barely cover with water and pressure cook for 20 - 25 minutes. Fork tender, concentrated juices, fast. Once, I forgot to stop the cooking soon enough but just before it started to scorch -- was the Best! Made its own thick gravy and so tender and tasty.

Ditto aychihuahua's comments--all except the George Foreman grill. I'm ready to get rid of it because I don't really use it. What do you and Ricearoni make. The only thing I like on it is the salmon recipe I use. If I remember correctly, my boneless/skinless chicken breasts came out rubbery.

quote:

Originally posted by CA Lori:
Ditto aychihuahua's comments--all except the George Foreman grill. I'm ready to get rid of it because I don't really use it. What do you and Ricearoni make. The only thing I like on it is the salmon recipe I use. If I remember correctly, my boneless/skinless chicken breasts came out rubbery.

I do ribeye steaks; exactly 4 minutes for medium rare for a 13-16 oz. steak. Remember that the Foreman grill cooks on both sides, so generally you can halve the cooking time for good results. It's easy to overcook proteins, especially lean ones, on this grill.

I also use the Foreman grill for making salmon filets, panini sandwiches, and grilling portabellas for a meatless hamburger. Among other things.

quote:

Originally posted by aychihuahua:

I also use the Foreman grill for making salmon filets, panini sandwiches, and grilling portabellas for a meatless hamburger. Among other things.

How is the Foreman grill for cleaning? Do you have to really scrub to get it clean?

quote:

Originally posted by Spanish Revival:

How is the Foreman grill for cleaning? Do you have to really scrub to get it clean?

Not at all. If you have the kind with the removable grill plates, cleaning is a breeze.

Two tricks: 1) Before heating the grill, take a paper towel and lightly coat the grill plates with vegetable oil to keep food from sticking. (Don't use butter; it will brown and stick like glue.)

2) As soon as your dish is cooked, run the little plastic Foreman scrapers over the grills while they are still hot to remove as much gunk as possible into the fat drip trays.
When the plates are cool enough to remove, place them in hot soapy water to soak for a few minutes. At that point, nearly all the gunk will be off. A few swishes with a plastic scrubby, rinse, air dry and that's it.

I don't like to put them in the dishwasher unless absolutely necessary.

That is good to know...that some Foreman grills now have removable grill surfaces for easier cleaning.

I had one of the early versions that I only used a couple of times...absolute pain to clean. Got rid of it fast.

Yeah, tell me about it. Mine aren't removable either!

While I found the grids weren't that difficult to clean, I didn't realize that grease was accumulating underneath the unit when I cooked lamb chops in it. I discovered it because of the armies of marching ants!!!!!!!! Grrrrrrrr.

I cleaned the unit up real good, got rid of the ants (bug spray company, $80/bi-monthly!!!!), and never used the grill again.

I've never had a pannini sandwich. How do you make it and what do you put in it? We're always in need of something different to have for lunch.

I'm one of those who can't figure out a GF grill. You've got no-stick surface on bottom and top. Sure the food cooks on both sides at the same time, but you can do basically that same thing with a non-stick skillet or even (my favorite) a cast iron skillet.

Same thing with a making panini...just top with another smaller cast iron skillet. The GF grill is just something else to store.

A few years back DM had to have one...I told her why I couldn't figure out why it was much better. She bought one...used it a couple of times. It wound up in her last garage sale. She told me I was right. Now THAT did not happen very often.

I don't have a favorite method of cooking because it depends on WHAT I'm cooking -- if steak, then it's grilling; if it's something that is better when braised, then braising; if it's a whole chicken, then roasting! And occasionally, there are the times when frying is the only way to cook something!

I've never had a George Foreman although I've known people who did and really liked it.


And I think the proper cookware for what you're doing is important as well.

Martha