Pie (by Biggs)

Today we celebrated buying a vacuum cleaner.....we celebrated large. As a result I picked up a pie from the convenience store on the stumble home. I assume it was excellent....or terrible.....who knows, much of today and this evening shall forever remain a mystery.

Dinner (by G)

Got very drunk. To drunk to easily get in the front door of our house (apparently), but not so drunk that I didn't consider that I've been eating a few too many convenience store pies while drunk recently - so I went with sandwiches (possibly also a pie... maybe also a sausage roll). I think the sandwich was ham and chicken. I don't recall how the sandwiches were - but any feelings of being unwell the next day could not reasonably be blamed on them.

Pizza (by Biggs)

A few of us decided to try out a local nano-brewery after work this afternoon. We enjoyed it, we enjoyed it so much we were still there at dinner time. Being a nano-brewery they didn't have any good on offer beyond nuts and pretzels but they did have the option of ordering pizzas to the bar - that we did. Beer and pizza - satisfying!

"Chip Butty" (by Biggs)

Beers at the pub tonight and I was very excited to see a chip butty on the menu. What was ultimately presented to me WAS NOT a chip butty. The chip butties I know and love are fat, potato chips on white bread with gravy. Not whatever the hell this is. Brioche bun? NO! Crispy chips? NO! Tomato sauce? NO! I barely ate a chip I was so disgusted. SIGH! Disappointing.

In a different circumstance I probably would have enjoyed the fries at least.

Dumplings (by Biggs)

A late night down in Geelong for work tonight which meant dinner was gathered from the supermarket at the train station back in the city. It may seem like a dubious decision to buy cold prawn dumplings from a supermarket but I've got to be honest - these were pretty terrific, perhaps just because I was so hungry.

Poverty Beef Curry (by G)

The day before payday can often be a troublesome time to have to make dinner, I was lucky this time in that I had some left over cubes of beef and the green parts of some spring onions.

It was simply a matter of browning the beef, adding the spring onion offcuts, some curry powder, a beef stock cube, some water and coconut milk powder and in a matter of minutes (actually I simmered it for about an hour so... 60 minutes) dinner is served.

I was a bit concerned about the lack of vegetables so I threw in some olives and salty Japanese pickles at the last minute. You would think the combination would be weird - but I can assure you it was filling.

Cheese and Chorizo Empanadas (by G)

I was going to make some delicious and presumably moderately healthy empanadas for dinner, then I saw a recipe for Cheese and Chorizo empanada so that idea went out the window. Not having queso fresco to hand I strained some ricotta cheese to dry it out a bit. It didn't dry out too well and my opinion of what ricotta cheese is and what the manufacturer thinks are two completely different ideas. This stuff was like sweetened clotted cream - that concerned me a little, but I added some grated Colby along with fried chorizo and onion and pushed ahead regardless.

The result was okay, the insides of the empanadas looked a bit like curdled egg - which was not too appealing. On the side was a sauce of homemade chilli, tomato and roast capsicum sauce given to me by our neighbour. I don't leave the house or talk to people, but that's before I discovered that people give you things when you do.

NMBBQ Numero Dos (by Biggs)

I was well inspired by G's BBQ last night. It's a shared happy place of ours so I decided to bring more joy to our household tonight. Nothing fancy, just steaks and salad.

It pains us to waste the coals for the following few hours it takes them to extinguish so often have a dessert meats back up plan to make the most of things. My dessert meat back up was bacon but then I couldn't resist serving some with dinner as well. The meat was somehow cooked to perfection despite the coals being approximately one million degrees but I did manage to smoke the neighbourhood out in the process.

NMBBQ Numero Uno (by G)

I had the good fortune a couple of weeks ago to pick up a BBQ box from a kitchen supply shop for the very reasonable sum of $20 - I thought, being a long weekend, it was time to put it to use. I marinated some lumps of beef in a soy, garlic, chilli sauce and pickle juice mix (I don't know what pickle juice is, I impulse bought a bottle of it some time ago - it's fermented so it's a bit pungent, not what I would have expected pickle juice to taste like)... anyway, after marinating the beef I strung them on metal skewers then barbequed. For variety I also barbecued some shitake mushrooms, par-boiled potatoes, spring onions and very expensive tart green tomatoes.

For a metal box with holes in it I though the BBQ did a good job, the base became a bit warped with the heat but that is easily bent back into shape.

Scouse (by Biggs)

It's getting a touch cold in Melbourne for us Queensland folk so the stews have begun.  I decided to do it Northern European style with a scouse, mainly because it meant I could wander round the house saying "proper scouse" in my best Liverpool accent all afternoon.

I was impressed that the stew only involved lamb, onion, potato, carrot, stock and worcestershire sauce. Nothing else. In fact the recipe warned against adding any fresh herbs or seasoning beyond salt and pepper otherwise it wouldn't be "proper scouse".

Well, it was proper scouse and was pretty great!

Roast Chicken Rolls with Roti Sauce (by G)

Nothing says, "I'm not going to make any effort making dinner on a Friday afternoon" more than store bough BBQ chicken on a roll. I even got some store bought roasted vegetables to go on the rolls.  Some effort was made on my part to make the roti sauce, fried onion, potato, curry powder, star anise and a clove simmered in stock and coconut milk then blitzed.


The result was quite pleasing to the palate - though the roti sauce was still not as good as the first time I made it.

Sausages (by Biggs)

I don't know why I chose sausages on rolls for dinner. Perhaps because it's super cheap suiting my current budget. Or, because it's a great rainy day meal suiting the current weather. Or, because it's a bit of a comfort dish suiting my current mood. G thinks I chose it because sausages are the most awesome thing in the world.

Nothing fancy. White bread rolls, slow cooked onions, fried sausages, condiments galore. Very satisfying.

Wings, wings, wings (by G)

At the market on the weekend I couldn't resist getting a kilo of wings (just the fleshy bits). Wings are the best thing ever so $6 did not seem too high a price for eternal happiness.

I didn't go to too much effort to prepare these wings, just a 24 hour brining then a couple of hours in the oven at varying temperatures (low - too slow; high - too quick; medium - just right). Once the wings were brown, tender and not raw I dusted them with a blend of finely ground salt, pepper, msg, and hot paprika.

I had intended to get some carrots and celery to have as sticks on the side, but forgot to buy any. I did find a celery nub in the fridge which I salvaged a few sad looking sticks from. I also served the wings with a store bought roasted garlic mayonnaise type thing that I added some grated parmesan to - as a dipping sauce.

Eternal happiness achieved - at least for a day.

Beef Tortillas (by Biggs)

I decided to go traditional with the tortillas tonight. And, when I say traditional I mean Tex Mex. Onion, various chilis, coriander, beef mince, corn and Tex Mex taco mix served with lettuce, tomato and super doughy homemade tortillas.

I'm happy I'm back making tortillas from scratch now I just need to move onto making good tortillas from scratch.

Chicken Rice (by G)

I had half a chicken and a lot of chicken broth left over from making bog chicken the other night, and nothing says 'easy Monday night dinner' like chicken rice.

Cook some rice in one lot of stock while reheating the poached chicken in another lot. Then serve the rice, top with chicken and serve some broth in a bowl with finely sliced spring onion - I even went to the trouble of dicing up some side cucumbers.
I should admit that the rice came out a bit bland (I think a lot of the fat stuck to the containers I stored it in) so I added some non-bacon bacon powder for extra body.  Served with soy sauce and chilli garlic sauce and a beer nothing beats chicken rice.

Crisps (by Biggs)

This evening was spent drinking beer by the ocean. It started at midday and I seem to recall, at 4pm saying, "This is going to be my last beer then I'm heading home to make dinner". Somehow or other I was still drinking at 8 and eating crisps at the pub for dinner.

Bog Chicken (by G)

I came across this delightfully named meal in a book of food writing.

There's surprisingly little to it, no fried onions - or indeed any vegetables. First I split a number 9 chicken in half then poached it in water with a bay leaf, clove of garlic and some celery tops. Then stripped the meat off one half of the chicken and boiled some rice using the chicken poaching liquor.  After that the shredded chicken went into the rice with some chorizo and hot sauce. The recipe called for my favourite hot sauce - I narrowed it down to two: the rooster brand chilli garlic sauce and the savoury Koon Yick Wan Kee sauce. Oh, the recipe also called for liquid smoke (which I don't have at the moment) so I used some 'tastes like bacon' seasoning. Delicious.

Note pickles in top right of plate are home pickled shallots and chilli.

Steak Sandwich (by G)

I tried to make an effort. I baked my own bread... I wanted a flattish roll to serve the sandwich on but got a bit enthusiastic and managed to knock all the air out of the dough and ended up with large hardtack biscuits. I topped the rolls with some pre-sliced gouda, griddled minute steak and some slow cooked onions with added chilli garlic sauce.

Tasty... but the rolls cut my gums up pretty bad.

Gnocchi (by Biggs)

I was properly inducted to Melbourne tonight with a trip to the AFL. We met some friends before hand who have a pre-game dinner tradition at an Italian restaurant near the stadium. And, when I say nearby I mean literally at gate three on the concorse of Etihad Stadium.

Yes, yes, I know I ordered the exact same dinner as last night but I really like gnocchi and am clearly in the mood this weekend. Dinner was great. This gnocchi came with a pork rage....delicious.

Gnocchi (by Biggs)

Some friends were in town this weekend and hanking for good Italian. We did heaps of research, received various different recommendations, attempted many a reservation, failed many a reservation attempt and ended up at Meatballs. I don't know why I've been avoiding this place....people, even people I respect, have always said it's great.

Turns out it really really is. The food was incredible. I ordered the gnocchi. Given the place is called Meatballs it's hard to avoid meatballs....a pretty happy problem.....but I instead just went with one giant meatball of beef and pork. Good stuff.

There was also a charcuterie entree.

Ham and Cheese Bagels (by G)

I decided on a simple Friday night dinner. Bagels with ham and cheese with a little Dijon mustard.

Everything was pre-sliced (except the bagels and the mustard, which if you look at it is half the ingredients) I just piled them up and toasted them in the griddle pan.

The store bought bagels turned out to be nothing like bagels. They had a hole in them so I guess there was some resemblance. Still, a good meal for so little effort.

Bolognese Pasta (by G)

Brussel Sprout and Potato Hash (by Biggs)

All I knew about dinner was that I wanted it to be vegetarian and I wanted to use up my left over brussel sprouts. I found a super naff recipe on using the burssel sprouts as the buns of mini tofu and onion sliders which I, as the day progressed, I decided was a stupid idea.

So, hash with an egg it was. Onion, brussel sprouts and potato charred to perfection with an egg on top. Not terrible.

Catered Nibbles (by Biggs)

Tonight I went to a Women in Development panel discussion that a friend's organisation was hosting. I knew there would be some nibbles but I was blown away by both the quality and quantity of catering. From sketchy memory (because the booze was also generously catered) there were dumplings and dolmates and samosas and pancakes and, ummm.... many many other good things. I regret not getting in early as things disappeared quite quickly as people got increasingly boozed. The panel discussion was of equal quality.

Giant Tostada (by G)

This is not the elegant tortilla meal I had planned to make, but I could not locate coriander and I forgot to buy tortillas and I sure as hell wasn't in the mood for making them, so once again I turned to the pita bread in our freezer as a substitute.

Topping the pita bread is a layer of melted cheese and some pork mince cooked with tomato paste, garlic, onions and hot paprika.  I've bought hot paprika in the past and wondered why they call it 'hot' because it seems pretty much like regular paprika - not so the stuff I bought recently. It would have been good to know before I dumped about a tablespoon of the stuff in my mince - it had the equivalent heat of cayenne pepper and made the mince quite spicy (to say the least).  I had to water down the heat with a selection of the chilli sauces I had to hand.

Verdict: The flavour was good - a little heavy on the spice. A+ for presentation.

Steak and Beans (by Biggs)

I had an elegant vegetarian bean meal planned which somehow turned into steak served with beans and bacon. I had some brussel sprouts to use too so shredded them into dinner.

It was all a but disappointingly plain but I blame that on not really knowing what I wanted to cook or eat for dinner despite my initial plan.

Cook bored, tastes boring. That's how it goes.

Saturday Night Takeaway (by Biggs)

G and I had quite the adventure out and about all over town today. It was a fun day but late afternoon beers turned into a late afternoon nap and despite having many opportunities to buy groceries today, I did not.

Instead, for dinner, I ordered takeaway from our local Thai restaurant. I didn't even bother to walk down and pick it up. Instead a lovely man delivered us chicken satay skewers, fried rice and a Thai fish cake salad.

It was all fine. Much better than anything I was capable of concocting tonight. G was particularly impressed with the tart salad dressing.

Minestrone Stew (by G)

I was reading a collection of food writing during the week and came across an article extolling the glory of dried beans, I was so inspired went out and bought some dried fagiolis to make into a minestrone soup.

The difficulty, I found, was that the beans were extraordinarily reluctant to become hydrated again. I soaked them for 24+ hours, tipped off the icky water then simmered them for hours in fresh water with some carrot, onion, fennel, garlic, parsley and celery. They were not in the least bit tender by bedtime so I stuck them in the fridge overnight to continue the process the next day. About 2 hours before dinner I brought them up to the simmer again and let them go... by dinner time they still had quite a bit of bite to them - but they were edible so I went with that. To the beans I added some leftover lamb shank braising liquid from the other day, a couple of super-salty smoked pork ribs that we couldn't get through on Thursday and some pasta. I also had 1/3 of a bag of coleslaw so I dropped that in as well.

The result was not so much the soup I was hoping for, more a thick stew. I could have added some water but I was pretty happy with the consistency so I just shaved some parmesan on the top and ate it.  Troublesome but Delicious.

Post-party Wine (by Biggs)

Today I went to a lunchtime party out West. It was very very fun. I ate and drank many many things and had a most excellent time.

It seems, perhaps as a result of the day's events, I forgot to have dinner but did remember to have an evening wine or two. Does that count?

Chicken from a Box and Packet Salad (by Biggs)

Another day, another day in Geelong so knew I was going to get back too late for dinner. Instead I just picked up a few things from the supermarket at the train station to tide me over for the night.

One of my secret shames is that I really don't mind a bit of processed chicken. Gross right? I should really visit a processed chicken farm and factory to put me off for life. But, for now, I'm going to stick with it. This particular processes chicken had been stuffed with surprisingly generous amounts of garlic butter. I also tried to make it a touch more healthy with a salad made of grains I've never heard of.

Pretty tasty for what it was.

Not Dry Aged Steak (by G)

My plan was to go to the market and pick up some seasonal vegetables and some dry aged steak to make a nice simple dinner. I saw fresh peas the other day, so I had my mind set on those. Unfortunately when I went before work I couldn't locate the peas so I got some baby carrots and Nicola potatoes thinking I would come back for peas when I got the steak in the afternoon.  Turns out that even though the market is technically open until 5pm the meat sellers haul ass some time around 4pm, so I couldn't get my steak.

I substituted for some spicy Italian sausages (they were spicy) and some fresh frozen peas and corn. It was okay, but not what I had envisioned.

Burger (by Biggs)

I was working down in Geelong today but was desperate to get home in time to meet my friends at the pub. Rushed a training session, ran to the train and was back in time to scarf a burger down and was a the pub before the band started. Look how greasy this thing looks....how do you make the bun greasy?!

Noodles and "Lobster" Balls (by G)

Nearing the end of the week and cooking for myself I figured it was a good time to use up some stuff. Mixing boiled 'lobster' balls and serving them with noodles and packet salad is an excellent way of using stuff up.

Pretty much anything is good if served with rooster brand chilli and garlic paste.



Smoked Ribs and Noodles (by G)

It was a bit of a wet, cold and miserable day in the old town so I decided smoked pork ribs and pot noddles would lift our mood (also, I had bought some smoked pork ribs at the market on the weekend and was rapidly accumulating a collection of instant noodles from my various visits to Asian supermarkets so it was kind of convenient).

Pot noodles are pretty simple normally, just add water. Biggs complicated the process a little by requesting the Artificial Beef Flavoured flavourings with the broad noodles of my Sour Tomato Flavoured noodles... but I was up to the task and did the old switcheroo.

The ribs I just cut up, wrapped in foil and baked in the oven for an hour.

My noodles were excellent - the ribs less so... too salty...

Crappy Noodles (by Biggs)

Today was weird. I don't really want to talk about it. It wasn't helped at all with these crappy noodles. Cold gloppy barely cooked noodles with odd chicken bits and raw broccoli in a very very strange gelatinous broth. Did I mention - I don't really want to talk about today.

Pork Rasher Tortillas (by G)

I had some difficulty with getting tortillas done today. I went a supermarket hoping to get a steak or pork loin that I could slice and elegantly present on tortillas, but the place didn't have either so I settled on some pork rashers. They also only had jumbo tortillas so I decided on slightly smaller pita bread thinking that I could just split them to make them less bready - I couldn't.

To go with the pork rashers I also got a packet of shaved stir fry vegetables as a fresh element to offset the fatty pork.

I grilled the pork then stuck it in the oven with an improvised sauce of garlic, bbq sauce and chilli sauce. Pretty good, but very bready.



Shanks (by G)

I decided to get a jump on dinner the day before and simmered some lamb shanks for many hours in a mix of onion, garlic, celery, carrot, capsicum, tinned tomatoes, rosemary, a but load of red wine and beef stock with a bay leaf thrown in for good luck.

Come serving time I just reheated the shanks and reduced some of the sauce with an Asian green thrown in for greenness and served the lot with some very, very buttery mashed potatoes. The potatoes were not as buttery as I'd hoped but I ran out of butter so they were just very, very buttery.

Mediterranean Chicken Bake (by Biggs)

Oh boy, G and I got drunk today. Very, very drunk. I had this delightful meal planned thanks to the Hairy Bikers. It was meant to be a simple chicken bake with delicious Mediterranean flavours of olives, red onions, capsicum and the like. I was too drunk to piece it all together effectively and instead it turned out like this.

I do recall dinner was very late due to a) drunkeness and b) the fact the potatoes just wouldn't fucking cook. They never did so I just picked them out in the end and served up. I don't think either G or I even ate this. Would you? It looks more like something that should be on that Someone Ate This website.

Sweet Vinegar Ribs (by G)

Korean (by G)