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For the past 2+ months my partner and I have been trying a new system of dinner recommended to me by a stranger at an early Christmas party - and it’s been very fun! Basically - we switch off weeks cooking dinner and strive to impress - leaving no room for “what are we eating?”, “what do we have?”, “who’s cooking?”, etc.
It makes for a nice Sunday morning activity for the cook - who gets to collect recipes, make a list, and order groceries for the week to ensure there won’t be any “no rice” emergencies. The non-cook, or the cleaner, gets to sit back and look forward to a week of sparkling countertops and slow evenings. (In November we moved into a home with stainless steel restaurant-style counters - and while they show every tiny streak or sauce mark, I think they're a net positive in that they've subtley inspired us to do better in the kitchen.)
Typically I like to plan for 3-4 easy ones, and if I’m feeling ambitious I’ll try to throw in a showstopper. A disclaimer that none of these recipes are culinary marvels, especially well-photographed, or original in any sense! This is really just a fun exercise in documenting and sharing.
1. Tofu Makhni
Basically butter chicken (tofu) - loads of butter, coconut milk, garam masala for days. It was pretty tasty, easy to throw on a stove and serve over rice with cilantro! I think more time would have deepened the flavor, but generally it felt pretty indulgent and made for great leftovers.
2. Spicy Creamy Tomato Beans w/ Lemony Arugula
This was deceptively long-winded. Mostly a lot of chopping, toasting panko, and then melding of flavors once the tomato paste and beans were added. However - it was delicious. It would maybe be too heavy if not for the lemony, crunchy arugula salad on top (but likely not for me: a creamy dish freak). It also made for an incredible “toast topper” lunch the next day - one of my favorite types of snacky lunches that involves simply plopping leftovers on toast. Highly recommend, if you’re alright with a large amount of prep and you aren’t counting calories.
3. Ram-Don! (AKA the Parasite Noodles)
The irony is not lost on me how absolutely viral this dish went after Parasite came out. The noodles, which were demanded by the female antagonist(?) of the film from the backseat of a town car, set off cravings worldwide. This isn’t strictly ram-don - which I’ve since learned is typically a combination of two types of Korean instant noodles with fancy steak cubed in it, but rather - a similar invention. It’s actually my favorite (and all of South Korea’s) instant noodles Shin Ramyun (only one pack of the seasoning so as not to be too spicy), with steak that I cubed, and tossed in soy sauce, mirin, sesame oil, and S&P before frying. I pour out most of the water to make it thicker, and then make sure to scrape all the pan juices from the steak to the noodle pot. I add a bit more soy sauce, and typically green onions. It takes absolutely no time and it’s very, very tasty.
4. Gyoza w/ Peanut Sauce and Smashed Cucumber Salad
Another easy-peasy - using frozen gyoza, and pantry staples for the sauce. It’s mostly peanut butter, with soy sauce, some other typical Japanese sauces and loaadss of Lao Gan Ma chili crisp. Smashing cucumbers is always fun, albeit a bit messy, and I allowed the proper time for them to drain salty so they weren’t too watery this time. Generously topped with more chili crisp and cilantro - I really recommend this dish for a 30 minute meal, but next time would add noodles or rice, as we both needed hearty snacks an hour or so after.
5. Spiced chickpeas and squash w/ Yogurt Dressing
Squash and chickpeas are wintertime heavy hitters for me. It’s mostly garlic, cumin, and garam masala, a touch of cinnamon on a tray bake, with a lemony yogurt dressing and some lil’ pomegranate seeds, pickled red onions, and cilantro to bring it home bright. Fin!