The 'Here's what I had for dinner last night' thread - Part II - Don't quote pics!

The Hill Billy

Folks:

We've cooked up a whopping 10,000 posts in The 'Here's what I had for dinner last night' thread - Part I!

Unfortunately, the hamsters have issues when a thread gets that big.

So, let's get cooking in Part II...



(The usual T&Cs apply - no blog pimping or pic quoting.)

Merkin

Oh go on then, I'll start! Had a Merkin special spaghetti bolognese which is chock full of red wine, smokey bacon, chorizo and lots and lots of beef stock. It's very rich and I made a big pot of it on Sunday night which furnished forth last night as well. It was ever so tasty if I do say so myself - I often wonder why food tastes even better on the second day but it does!

Loire

Ditto on that. I cooked a house-keepers cut in the slow cooker Sunday. We went to see relations who had prepared a huge amount of found so we didn't eat this meal. I re-heated the meat in the slow cooker yesterday evening for a few hours and it was falling apart. I resisted making a gravy with the stock and juices and have kept them for next week!

kenco

Nothing exciting due to the early week health eating but as this is versionII!

Stir fried pork with fresh mixed veg (and a pint of pepsi max)

Very sad since that lovely Harvest frozen stir fry mix went off the shelves (was very nice and converted me to stir fry). All cause of a little harmful nut contamination...

Toast4532

On Sunday we had steak, spuds and peas. I defrosted what I thought was two pieces of striploin steak, turned out to be one large piece, so we halved it.

Last night we had a piece of duck that was stuffed with turkey meat and herbs and grand marnier (I think). Duck was lovely, but wasn't a fan of the stuffing, then again I don't like turkey anyway.

Tonight we are having Lamb stew and I can't wait. Been craving stew all week and found some lamb in the freezer and decided tonight's the night for it.

pampootie

Tonight was sweet potato wedges, herbed beef meatballs, and an aubergine bake thing with tomatoes, garlic, breadcrumbs and cheddar. Amaretto hot chocolate for dessert.

GalwayGuy2

Falafel, flatbread, roasties and veg. Yeah, ketchup isn't a substitute for egg. It fell apart, but was delish. Definitely going to be a weekly thing.

Everything but the vegetables (frozen) were home made. I like making flat-bread.

Does anybody substitute salt for soy sauce when they're making past sauce? I think it adds a nice punch to meat.

The Sweeper

Threw together quick meatballs in tomato sauce for dinner for five last night. Very simple and straightforward and very good. I made garlic confit at the weekend and used about five of the confit cloves plus a couple of tablespoons of the oil in the meatballs, and a couple more tablespoons of the oil in the tomato sauce.

The meatballs themselves were two wholegrain rolls shredded into breadcrumbs, equal mix of beef and pork mince, an onion shredded to near-paste in the blender, the confit garlic, plus pepper and salt. So simple but honestly they were EXCELLENT - not heavy or stodgy and the flavour was really good.

hussey

Last night we had a Kris-Kringle night with my housemates, one of them made Irish chicken curry with rice and chips (We live in sydney, so this is actually a big deal)

It was amazing.

the beer revolu

I miss the old HWIHFDLN thread already. So many lovely dinners that will fade into the ether of boards that no one will see:(

Ah, well, long live the new HWIHFDLN thread:D

Last night was buffalo rib eyes with fried polenta, salsa verde and bacon fat fried cabbage.

April O Neill II

Striploin steak, broccoli, M&S potato mash (:o -lazy, I know, but soooo good) and onion gravy made with steak juices, a little water, a little Worcestershire sauce, a pinch of sugar and S&P.

Overcooked the steak.

awec

the beer revolu wrote: »

I miss the old HWIHFDLN thread already. So many lovely dinners that will fade into the ether of boards that no one will see:(

Ah, well, long live the new HWIHFDLN thread:D

Last night was buffalo rib eyes with fried polenta, salsa verde and bacon fat fried cabbage.

Holy feck! :eek:

That steak looks UNREAL.

decisions

Steak, mash and onion gravy.

No pics because it really looked like slop on the plate but it was fecking delicious

April O Neill II

Steak is flavour of the week, it seems!

NeonCookies

Chicken fillet stuffed with mozzarella and garlic, with roasted brocolli. Had some leftover bolognase sauce, so threw that on the chicken too. Delicious!

I'm finally getting into cooking after living out of home for over a year! - in my first place, the kitchen was tiny and absolutely awful so I avoided it as much as possible! Now, I have a nice kitchen

confusticated

Does it include deleted posts or something in the 10,000? Looked like there were 200 to go to me...

Anyway, tonight was Thai red curry with garlic croutons (cos they were in the press in front of the rice) and crusty bread. Really good, bit oily though.

The Sweeper

Went out for dinner last night - had 1/2 crispy duck in quarters, with a side of stir fried greens in soy sauce and a bowl of jasmine rice. It was feckin AWESOME.

The Hill Billy

confusticated wrote: »

Does it include deleted posts or something in the 10,000? Looked like there were 200 to go to me...

Anyway, tonight was Thai red curry with garlic croutons (cos they were in the press in front of the rice) and crusty bread. Really good, bit oily though.

Deleted posts also count too. Allegedly. The hamsters don't say too much about their trade sekrits.

The Hill Billy

Defrosted a steak, grilled, then thinly sliced. Fried an onion. Then lashed the lot into a crispy roll with some hot sauce & a couple of slices of Gouda. Magic!

fiddlechic

I have been lurking on this thread for weeks - drooling every few days when I check in.
First post, which is only because I took a photo (when I nearly had it demolished) to send to my sister who lives with me who was out at a fancy dinner to tease her. Went to Lidl after work: starving and aimlessly bought mackerel, salad, Camembert and their low GI bread. Left the mackerel and salad in the fridge.
Baked Camembert with some rosemary and garlic. Oozy deliciousness ensued.

MissFlitworth

Camembert with some rosemary and garlic. Oozy deliciousness ensued.

Holy cheesus. Wow. I could eat two of those right now

fiddlechic

MissFlitworth wrote: »

Holy cheesus. Wow. I could eat two of those right now

I said I would only eat half of cheese and then have some salad. Then I had all of it. And then ate passionfruit curd from the jar with a spoon. And another glass of wine. And tonight was supposed to be my light mackerel salad to counteract the excesses of the season. Maybe next year!

iwantmydinner

fiddlechic wrote: »

I have been lurking on this thread for weeks - drooling every few days when I check in.
First post, which is only because I took a photo (when I nearly had it demolished) to send to my sister who lives with me who was out at a fancy dinner to tease her. Went to Lidl after work: starving and aimlessly bought mackerel, salad, Camembert and their low GI bread. Left the mackerel and salad in the fridge.
Baked Camembert with some rosemary and garlic. Oozy deliciousness ensued.

I saw Lorraine Pascale on TV doing that recently, but she added garlic cloves baked in honey. I was nearly licking the TV screen.

IvyTheTerrible

iwantmydinner wrote: »

I saw Lorraine Pascale on TV doing that recently, but she added garlic cloves baked in honey. I was nearly licking the TV screen.

Oh that sounds delicious!

Ok this might sound gross but I love garlic confit, I always get a few cloves when I buy my olives (the best olives EVERY at this market in a village in the middle of nowhere). But I only eat them when I know I don't have to go out in public for the rest of the day!

Mrs Fox

This came out of the oven. While the rest will have them with creamy mash, carrots & broccoli tenderstems, I will have it with rice, chilli condiment and cucumber slices.

decisions

Mrs Fox wrote: »

This came out of the oven. While the rest will have them with creamy mash, carrots & broccoli tenderstems, I will have it with rice, chilli condiment and cucumber slices.

That looks seriously delicious.

I had fajitas tonight with lots of avocado and cheese on lettuce wraps.

Minder

Curried goat, basmati rice. First meal at home in what seems like ages. Really was only a couple of days. Christmas party overload.

Dizzyblonde

We had chicken stew tonight, it was lovely but I always find I'm starving a couple of hours after eating it.

fussyonion

Sorry for the photo, I know it looks really messy but I wanted to mix it all up so it looked saucy.

Home-made meatballs with spaghetti in home-made tomato sauce.
Delicious!

Toast4532

Yesterday we had lunch and dinner rolled into one.

We were in Dublin so we went to the Elephant and Castle.

For starter we shared chicken wings with their blue cheese/garlic dip, tehy were scrumptious, really, really delicious.

For mains I had a burger with cheese and bacon and fries, it was lovely, but way too much in one portion.

My boyfriend had the lime and coriander chicken. He also got the Herb Frites with Sage and Rosemary which were lovely.

We then said we'd share the murder by chocolate desert which was very rich and heavy for me, so he ended up eating that alone.

the beer revolu

Grilled (greedy portions) fillets of hake, Thai rice, sweetheart cabbage with lemon zest and a little beer, bacon fat fried kale with garlic.

The kale was a revelation for me. We have it growing in the garden and Mrs. Beer loves it but I always struggled to like it so I was looking for a way of cooking it that might appeal to me more. I fried it in a very hot wok with lots of garlic and I couldn't get enough of it! Very slow growing at this time of year, though:mad:.

GrahamThomas

Chicken biryani and a Peshwari naan from Bombay Pantry in Clonskeagh - Definitely the tastiest Indian takeaway I've ever had!

MissFlitworth

I wanted bibimbap but I could no more get dressed and leave the house than I could sprout wings and fly so I made do with stuff at home to mimic it a little. Was nice but way, way too much. It's not obvious from the photo but this dish is bucket sized

bluecherry74

I always make curries from scratch, but so many people rave about the Aldi curry sauces that I thought I'd give one a try. I did the Dopiaz with chicken, mixed peppers and onion. Holy cow. It's the best jarred curry I've ever had. It won't ever replace my homemade curries, but I'd definitely buy it again.

Minder

Yesterday the Mammy arrived on a roll-a-coaster flight from Dublin and the catering begins. Not that I mind. Last night we had slow cooked duck leg - in the waterbath for 8 hours. Had crispy roast potatoes made with dripping (experimenting with fats for roasties). Also had stem broccoli and a jus made from the duck in a bag.

Dizzyblonde

Tonight we had sausages, beans and mash. Comforting, and quick and easy because I'm worn out from Christmas shopping...

GalwayGuy2

Chicken Cacciatore

ibarelycare

Lamb jalfrezi from Spice n Rice with pilau rice and garlic naan.

Their rice is amazing! Too full...

The Hill Billy

Mrs Billy & The Kids welcomed me home for Christmas with a beautiful Steak & Kidney pie.

Official handover of command of the kitchen takes place at approx 09:00 tomorrow morning after I'm brought a cup of tea in bed. Then the kitchen is mine for the next 2 weeks. Yippee!

GalwayGuy2

Mrs Billy & The Kids welcomed me home for Christmas with a beautiful Steak & Kidney pie.

I thought your username was Dizzyblonde. For a second I thought it was an christmas cooking club get together :P

Mrs Fox

the beer revolu wrote: »

The kale was a revelation for me. We have it growing in the garden and Mrs. Beer loves it but I always struggled to like it so I was looking for a way of cooking it that might appeal to me more. I fried it in a very hot wok with lots of garlic and I couldn't get enough of it!

Have you tried crispy kale chips? Quite addictive.

the beer revolu

Mrs Fox wrote: »

Have you tried crispy kale chips?

Nope but we had kale again last night - this time from Aldi - not as nice as from the garden. Would I need a deep fat fryer to do kale chips?

We had an early small dinner in Iyer's , then a few hours later we had grilled chicken thighs with lots of kale fried in bacon fat and garlic. Yumm. No pic.

decisions

the beer revolu wrote: »

Nope but we had kale again last night - this time from Aldi - not as nice as from the garden. Would I need a deep fat fryer to do kale chips?

We had an early small dinner in Iyer's , then a few hours later we had grilled chicken thighs with lots of kale fried in bacon fat and garlic. Yumm. No pic.

No, you just need to wash them, cut the kale up dry it in a salad spinner (you really need them bone dry). Then just spread them out on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, spray with a little oil and season with some salt and black pepper.

They need about 10 min at 180.

finix

Minder wrote: »

Yesterday the Mammy arrived on a roll-a-coaster flight from Dublin and the catering begins. Not that I mind. Last night we had slow cooked duck leg - in the waterbath for 8 hours. Had crispy roast potatoes made with dripping (experimenting with fats for roasties). Also had stem broccoli and a jus made from the duck in a bag.

A Waterbath ! ! I have seen them on Masterchef but did not think they were common Boardsies things ! Do many have them on here ? :eek:

dipdip

Am I really the first to have the pleasure of listing what we had for dinner? :pac:

Melon and smoked salmon with caviar on brown bread to start, followed by spiced beef (my first taste, yum), turkey, ham, gravy, bread sauce, cranberry sauce, mash, buttered carrots, celery, 2 kinds of sausagemeat stuffing and incredible brussels sprouts with bacon and toasted almonds. It was traditional, but perfect.

Dessert was pudding, custard, strawberry sponge sherry trifle and banoffee, with coffee and chocolates.

Oh and lashings of cava.

Merry Christmas all.

fussyonion

Had sausages, rashers, pudding, fried egg, orange juice and tea for breakfast.

Dinner was the most amazingly moist turkey (Gordon Ramsay recipe: garlic butter infused with chopped thyme and parsley, rubbed under the skin on the breast), rubbed with butter on the outside, roasted on a tray of carrots, celery, onions, garlic and lemons.
Completely covered the tray in tinfoil and didn't open the oven til it was cooked. (Took the foil off in the last half an hour)

Served with smoked ham, mashed potatoes, roast potatoes, croquettes, sprouts, carrots, stuffing and gravy.
We had two glasses of white wine with that.

Then we had home-made tiramisu which was a bit heavy but delicious.
Had a nap and then had a few Roses and a slice of turkey.
Stuffed now!

Toast4532

Myself and my boyfriend ended up staying at my house for Christmas, even though we'd planned to spend it together in his house, alone.

Anyway we didn't bother with starters or deserts, so for our dinner we had turkey, Aldi's four bird roast, potato stuffing, chestnut stuffing, brussels sprouts, carrots and mashed potatoes.

Been nibbling on biscuits, ice cream, crisps and sweets throughout the day too. Only had two drinks too, so no hangover tomorrow

IvyTheTerrible

We had oysters to start (that's a big tradition here), one set from the Mediterranean and one set from the Atlantic, both lovely but very different tastes. Yum!
Then a cepe tart.
Then for the main, guinea fowl with dauphin potatoes and green beans and gravy.
Then salad, and loads of lovely cheeses.
Then the 13 desserts (also a French tradition), so trifle, chocolate and chestnut log, coconut kisses, Christmas cookies, almond biscotti (all those were homemade), walnuts, almonds, two different sets of chocolates, clementines, figs, dates, and a pineapple.
And champagne!

Minder

Christmas Day dinner for 21. Boned and rolled the turkey legs, stuffed with cranberry and chestnut stuffing and cooked in the waterbath for 2 and a half hours, then browned in the oven. Breast meat was simply cooked in waterbath with a tbsp of goose fat. All turkey was brined before cooking. Trimmings included roast spuds, carrots and parsnips, cauliflower and cheese, braised red cabbage, bread sauce, cranberry sauce and gallons of gravy.

In the evening we had dyett bread with cheeses, pressed ox tongue, then sweet pastries including apple and frangipane slice with caramel sauce, poached pear and frangipane tart, Bakewell tart.

Loire

What a marathon!

Breakfast: spiced beef with homemade bread, with a pot of Barry's

Kir Roylaes at 12pm

Starter #1 at 2ish - a big lump of crabmeat in the middle, smoked salmon wrapped around this with tiger prawns circled around the salmon. A fine big juicy scallop then on top of the crabmeat

Starter #2 - wild mushroom and chestnut soup. I followed Nevin Maguire recipe (which also includes smoked duck, which I couldn't get my hands on). The soup was out of this world.

We took a break at this stage and played with the kids. Mrs Loire then produced ab-fab belinis which we quaffed with delight!

Mains:
The turkey was superb and easily my best effort yet. It stook proud.
The ham was a disaster - it tasted really good, but about 45mins into the boiling process it split right down the middle. This meant I was left with "2" hams and couldn't glaze. It's a pity as it tasted great. No idea why it split but hey!
Roast potatoes, mash (topped with cheese and cooked in the over for 30 mins), roasted carrots, parsnips and stuffing balls.

Herself made a lovely lemon drizzle cake. I have a Christmas cake in a tin but by that stage we were all getting dizzy!

A few whiskeys later on and we called it a night.

Apart from the ham I'm delighted with what I turned out. Thanks to all here who are so generous of their time and experience.

Have a super 2014

Loire.

ps: Santa came and I'm going to MacNean's for a 1 day cooking course next summer!!!!

Mrs Fox

Everything turned out great, but a big feck up with the turkey -- I was playing scrabble with my FIL while prepping, didn't realise the turkey had to be taken out 20 min earlier. So despite the two-day brining, the turkey ended up dryish . I didn't get the chance to buy the beeping probing thermometer as per Sparks, really wished I had.
But everything else now, wonderful
SIL made a seriously delicious smoked salmon terrine & salad.
The gravy from Jamie's make-ahead stock was great.
The roast and mashed spuds and carrots, two thumbs up.
Gordon's cranberry sauce was well complimented.
Sausage nut stuffing as always, a hit.
But the star of them all was actually the roasted brussels sprouts -- so simple yet so good I managed to convert three sprout-haters. Thanks Barefoot Contessa.
My SIL also made Mary Berry's Sherry Trifle, which deserved a standing ovation. I've never been a trifle person, but I went back for seconds.

We had a fabulous evening, not too late too, with last guests left the gaff at 1am.
I must say, and Mr Fox agrees, it was the best Christmas we've ever had, but I shall stick to goose and duck for years to come.