All suggestions welcome! We all try to cut costs, yet eat a healthy diet. I’ll start out with what I’m eating this week. Since I live alone, what I prepare usually lasts for at least three meals.
I made a chopped salad for lunch, which included Boston lettuce, cucumber, tomato, sliced olives, chopped marinated artichokes, red onion, some ham chunks, some swiss cheese chunks. Sometimes I add chickpeas, but not today. Made a dressing with mayo, sour cream, vinegar and herbs. Not as healthy as the plain vinegar and oil that I normally make. I’ve been making chopped salads more lately after having tasting a delicious one at a restaurant my daughter and I went to for a lunch a couple of weeks ago.
I had a Cara Cara orange for dessert.
This evening I had a baked potato topped with homemade turkey/black bean chili and a dollop of sour cream. Leftover chili is so versatile, as it is also good with rice or pasta. Although it’s not always the same, here are the ingredients that went into my chili today. I’m not including the instructions, as I assume you all know how to make chili.
Ingredients:
1# ground turkey (mine is the higher fat version, store brand frozen)
1/2 Spanish onion, chopped
3 Cloves of garlic, chopped
1 orange bell pepper, chopped
1/2 Chopped green bell pepper (leftover in the freezer)
1/2# chopped mushrooms
2 TB chili powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp oregano leaves
1 tsp ground cumin
Ground black pepper and salt (easy on that!)
1 Chipotle chile (from the can, in adobo sauce)
2 TB tomato paste
3/4 Cup turkey stock (left over in the frig)
1 can (15 oz) black beans. I left the liquid in.
Liquid from 1 large can whole tomatoes
Whole tomatoes chopped (cut with scissors)
3/4 Cup frozen corn
I always have leftover chipotle chiles and tomato paste, so I freeze them for later use in meal-size portions.
Tomorrow or Wednesday I will be making something new – Char Siu (Chinese BBQ Pork)
While I’m not sure exactly how healthy this is (higher in fat), I’m pretty sure it will be delicious. I’ll try to watch my portion size, and fill up on vegetables! As the author points out, this dish can be frozen and portions used for later dishes. If you are interested in the recipe, here’s the link:
What recipes do you prepare that are inexpensive, filling and/or healthy?
Stella's Place 
Most Chinese BBQ pork portions sold from restaurants or kitchens are heavily laced with MSG. Have you had any health problem with that?
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Nope on the MSG. Anyway, I will be making this myself, and may add some MSG (Accent).
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The recipe I linked doesn’t call for MSG.
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Many don’t, it’s added as a flavor enhancer, gently added ad a taste after each addition. I actually have a bottle and a bag I refill the bottle from.
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I have a container of Accent, which is the same thing. I mentioned that the recipe didn’t contain it because of the question to me about sensitivity to MSG.
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MSG’s in a lot of stuff, processed commercial food (especially flavored chips) would be dead without it. You can find it referred to as referred to under one of its ‘glutamate’ pseudonyms or autolyzed yeast and hydrolyzed protein. I have a package of dried Japanese mushrooms they sell as umami powder that’s basically natural MSG.
We know people with a MSG sensitivity but it’s generally rare and it’s probably addictive as I love it.
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So I’ll give you a Salad tip from my Sicilian GrandMother just a little something to add a bit more flavor to any Salad you whip up…
Make your Salad
Drizzle any type of Oil and Vinegar you like on your Salad
I grew up on Red Wine Vinegar
Then drizzle Honey over the Salad and top off with Sprinkled Sesame Seeds
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Red wine vinegar is my fav too.
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Real, aged Moderno balsamic and rice vinegar are right up there on my list.
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I received some aged balsamic from Modena as a Christmas gift, along with some nice olive oil. I think I have about ten different kinds of vinegar in my kitchen.
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Yeah, I have white vinegar for cleaning, that’s about my only use for it. I like the cider and citrus flavored rice wines too and I’m thinking about infusing a rice wine with mango…just thinking at this point.
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I have two kinds of cider, sherry, white balsamic, aged balsamic, red wine, white wine, rice wine and white vinegar (that’s what I remember without looking). 5% white vinegar is often used in canning.
ADD: I also have regular cheap red balsamic.
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Beans. Traditional NO red beans and rice, andouille sausage and pickled meat, with French bread on washday Monday. Cuban black beans with rice and pieces of pork as a soup. Cajun white beans with tasso and smoked sausage over rice. Pinto beans with ham hock on Saturday, with sweet cornbread (Mama cooked them while we cleaned house. She also put Spam in.). 7, 12, amd 15 bean soups. Out west they have Anasazi beans, which are more colorful pinto beans, slightly different flavor. Central Americans have round, red beans. Pidgeon peas and turtle beans from the Caribbean islands. Love me some beans!
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I love beans too! I expected to be criticized for adding black beans to my chili, but instead I got your lovely tribute to the bean.
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No one, except av real Mexican cook, should fault you for adding beans. Even then the Mexican cook should not have a cause unless you’re calling it ‘Mexican’ instead of Tex-Mex chili. Mexican chili generally doesn’t have beans.
The issue of beans is what differs Mex from Tex-Mex, I’m told the beans were added to stretch the chili and ended up adding more protein and fiber. Pinto beans were used as they were there centuries before Europeans arrived and were a staple. If you want to try a n original bedan that predates the Europeans go to Amazon and buy Anasazi Beans. They used to be grown on hundreds of acres in deep SE Utahn area, they were a staple, and supported the Indians there for centuries. A few farmers still grow and sell them but they’re nowhere as common as they once were.
Black beans are another Mexican, Central America, Caribbean staple and, when it comes to it, nowhere does it say that you MUST use any particular bean, or meat, in chili. Go for it and ask any detractors for written proof you’re wrong in your choice.
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I used canned black beans because they were in the pantry. I have pinto beans, but they were dry and I didn’t want to wait for them to cook! I’m with you on chili – I make it the way I feel like doing it and based on what I have in the house.
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Damn right, as I say: “If you don’t like my cooking there’s a bunch of restaurants down the street. It’s my house and my recipe.
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I love black beans in my chili! Also black bean soup and refried black beans with any Mexican meal.
We eat a lot of beans and cornbread. I grew up eating it, and DH has grown to love it as well. He grew up eating a lot of green slit peas with bread soaked in dripping! I know, it sounds gross, but he grew up in a poor part of the UK. He says cornbread is definitely a lot better!
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I like split peas in soup, but I prefer the yellow ones to the green ones. He’s right about the cornbread! I have grown to like lentils too, but mostly in soup.
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In the International Market in Kenner (suburb of NO), they have several colors of lentils, each slightly different. Asian Indian food uses them.
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I always add black beans to my chili. I started cooking with black beans when I was anemic, found out I love them.
Like czarina, I used to use beans a lot to stretch my food budget. When my boys were growing up we had pintos and cornbread, usually with mashed potatoes several times a week.
One of my sisters in law is planning to give up meat for Lent and is looking for recipes. I sent her a link for a black bean bowl with rice, avocados, tomatoes. Also we talked about cowboy caviar which is just one of my favorite things, but my husband does not eat it because he won’t eat black eyed peas unless he has to.
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Cook some black-eyed peas or rinse a can of them. Add your favorite chunky salsa and chopped red onion. Chill. I love black-eyed peas.
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I love making myself a good pasta salad. Great post! 🙂
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Tri-color rotini cooked and cooled. Add chopped onions and celery, and hard bolied egg, mayo and a touch of mustard, salt and pepper. Now get fancy with chopped colored bell peppers, black olives, and boiled shrimp or crab, or fake crab. Correct seasonings.
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