THE RECIPE:

Ingredients

• 2 cups dried black beans, rinsed and soaked overnight in plenty of water
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 cup brown rice
• 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 can (14 oz.) diced tomatoes
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• ½ tsp. salt
• ⅛ tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro

Directions

• Step 1
• Drain beans. Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan. Add rice; cook and stir for 3–5 minutes or until rice is fragrant. Combine in 4–5 quart slow cooker along with beans, onion, garlic, and vegetable broth. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, stirring every two hours.
• Step 2
• Then add tomatoes, cumin, salt, and pepper, stirring well. Cover and cook on low for 3 hours longer until rice and beans are tender. Add cilantro and mix. Serve hot.

What I Learned

You can ask Alexa "how many cups is one medium chopped onion." That was very cool.

I needed that as instead of buying the onion and using my food processor, I just bought it pre-chopped. This also goes for cilantro.

You also want to take the time to read the directions. I skimmed them and ended up putting everything into my Instant Pot hours before it was supposed to (this turned everything black)

When a recipe says to soak the beans overnight DO IT. I was BLOWN AWAY by how much water they soaked up. I needed up putting my two cups of beans into a giant mixing bowl (after singing them off). Do not skip that step.

Also, be sure to run water in your slow cooker (Instant pot for me) when you're done.

How it Tasted

There are different scales I need to come up with. I guess these are:

Uneditable

I ate it but won't make it again

This was good, and I'll make it again

I want to make some more now.

This recipe has a bit of zip (enough to clear your sinuses, but not enough to make a dash for a glass of milk). It doesn't taste like anything else I've made because I've never eaten this before.

I was also amazed at how full I was with one bowl (about three servings spoons).

I put the recipe into my Cronomiter software and it was 168 calories for a bowl. (The recipe serves six).

Also Mentioned In This Episode

I bought a Tavola Smart Oven. Get $100 of the oven

Check out the video

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I also had a family pack of chicken thighs with no bones or skin. This should be easy and it was.

I just opened my cupboard and whatever was there I added so this included:

• Onion flakes
• Garlic powder
• Mrs Dash for Chicken
• Liquid smoke (see episode on Liquid smoke)
• Salt and Pepper.

I dumped in one cup of water into the instapot. Put the steam rack in the bottom and add the chicken on top. Add your spices and cook 10-12 minutes (I did 12).

The chicken was amazing. I had some thighs that were pretty thick and they came out wonderful. I put the chicken into a spaghetti strainer to let the grease get off the chicken. As I pick the chicken off after it had cooled, it just fell apart it was so tender.

Tomorrow I will eat one of the thighs that had the same spices listed about but I put a dab of KC Masterpiece barbecue sauce

I Might Attempt Going Plant-Based

I'm reading the book The Vegucation of Robin: How Real Food Saved My Life by Robin Quivers (from the Howard Stern show) Robin had cancer and beat it. According to her doctor had she not previously changed her diet, she wouldn't be here.

I like the book because it's not preachy. She explains why plats are good for you, how you can get protein, and how processed food is horrible. I'm looking forward to trying some of her recipes.

The Rabbit Hole of Smart Ovens

I've been watching demos of "Smart Ovens" such as the June, Tovala Gen 2, and even Amazon has an over controlledd by Alexa.

Chime In and Be On The Show

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For me (living alone) I often make pasta or soup, and then end up eating the same thing all week. Not any more. Now I can cook up a giant batch and FREEZE the rest. Then when I want a quick meal, I pop out a cube, and microwave a great meal in a few minutes.

I ordered mine from Amazon. (aff link)

New Recipe Episode Coming

I'm going to try Bruschetta Pasta

Instructions

Cook pasta according to instruction.

Drain water.

Toss pasta and all ingredients in a large bowl.

Ingredients

1/2 box spaghetti

1 cup chopped fresh tomatoes

1/4 cup chopped basil

1.5 tablespoon olive oil

1 1/2 tablespoon nutritional yeast

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 tablespoon minced garlic

1 green onion

Serving Size

 2-3

Prep Time

20 minutes

source: https://www.happycow.net/recipes/bruschetta-pasta

IS IT SMOKELESS?

Yes. You dumb two cups of water in a drawer under the grill and turn on a fan and somehow that deters any smoke. I did end up with some steam, but that dissipates and goes away quickly.

I WANTED BIG AND I GOT BIG

The unit is 21 x 15.4 x 8.1 inches. For me, I had the shelf under my microwave open and it fits their nicely. Just realize this takes up some real estate.

EASE OF USE AND CLEANING

The unit goes up to 450 degrees and gets there pretty quick. I do have to grill my chicken a bit longer than my formal grill but the format cooks from both sides. This is still quicker as I would take me three grills on a format to fit all of my chicken thighs.

The Power XL Grill is actually non stick and after using it four times everything snaps apart easily, washes quickly, and is pretty "no hassle." I use a brush to first get any leftover chicken off the grill and then use a sponge. It's pretty straight forward.

While it's not a cheap item, I have no buyer's remorse as it seems to do exactly what it advertises, and I don't have to put on a winter coat to grill outside. Does it taste like the outside grill? No, but the chicken coming off this thing is still pretty yummy. Part of that is I'm using liquid smoke.

I bought a Hamilton Beach Breakfast Sandwich Maker, and was surprised how well it works. The idea is you put a muffin in the top, one in the bottom and an egg in the middle. There is a play that separates the muffins (and the surface that cooks the egg) when its ready, you gab a handle and it (more or less) pulls the rug out from under the egg and it lands on your muffin.

For me, I need my muffins toasted and while the muffin is warm, I didn't feel it was toasted. So I improvised.

It takes 3.5 minutes to warm up and 8 minutes to cook the 2 eggs solid (quicker if you use one egg).

So I use my Amazon Alexa all the time. She's very hand in the kitchen. So I will have her set a timer for four minutes. Then I know the sandwich maker is ready. I come in crack two eggs, and poke them with a fork to break the yolk. I set another time for four minutes (as it takes four minutes to make toast). When the alarm goes off, I come in and start my toast, poor myself some water, and get out the butter.

When the toast pops up, I better it and check the eggs (and by this time they are solid). I put my spatula under the egg and slide the handle to the left and egg falls on my spatula. I then plop it on to my toast, and take the second piece of toast and I'm done.

An Inexpensive Sandwich

With the bread costing $3. a loaf and $1.29 for a dozen of eggs, I get a sandwich for 52 cents.

It's about 365 calories with 20G of protein, 19 net cards, and 21 grams of fat. I also find it fairly filling, and quite yummy (I put some salt on the egg). You have one dish, and the sandwich maker is one of the few nonstick items I own that has stayed non stick.

As I live alone I use a smaller crock pot, but in looking at Amazon, it appears crock pot (the company) doesn't make that model. However, you can get it at Walmart for $10. The closest I found on Amazon is the KOOC Small Slow Cooker, 2-Quart, Free Liners Included for Easy Clean-up, Upgraded Crock Pot, which is more expensive (but it does come with free liners).

How I Messed This Up

On the back of the seasoning mix my eyes were drawn to the "slow cooker directions" where it said to mix the seasoning with water but didn't say how much. This lead me to guess and I dumped in around 3 cups of water.

Later I would look at the seasoning package again and saw where they list the ingredients at the top and mention 1 and 1/3 cup. Ooops. So I will cook this for a few hours with the lid on, and then a few with the lid off to let some of the excess water evaporate. If it taste as good as it smells I'm in for a few good meals.

Easy To Make - Not a Lot of Mess

Originally I mixes the seasoning and water in a different dish. If I do this again I will mix this up in the crock pot. While the directions say to put the beef and vegetables in the crock pot and pour over the meat and vegetable, I could save dirtying a dish and then just stir the ingredients in the slow cooker.

Cheap Food

At $10 for all the ingredients and the likelihood of getting three meals out of this, that is $3ish for a meal. Cheaper than a value meal at a fast food join.

This created a taste I had never had before, and I will be adding this to my frequently used list. It's a quick dinner, and I loved the flavor. You can get a two pack and try them both.

Make Your Sure Indoor Smokeless Grill is Smokeless

I saw the reviews on YouTube and other place on the Power XL Smokeless Grill. It looks good. Sounds fun, but the price was up there. What did I do, I started bouncing around amazon and went for the Amazon Recommends purchase of a Hamilton beach for half the price. The problem is its not a smokeless grill. With this in mind, if the goal is to by an indoor grill that is smokless, make sure it says so in the description. The Hamilton Beach is a nice grill, but just because it has a hood does not mean the smoke/steam magically disappear.

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I share some tips on grilling courtesy of Char-broil. Check out their chicken thigh recipe

SPONSOR: Save time, save money, get organized with Plan to Eat.

If you are looking for a great meal planner, recipe organizer, and grocery list creation tool, you've found it. I made today's recipe while having my app in the cooking view, and it made it so easy. Check it out at www.podclick.me/plantoeat

Make your own takeout but swap the white rice for riced cauliflower! This fried “rice” dish is packed with pea pods and carrots for color and water chestnuts for crunch. Plus, shrimp is a quick cooking protein when time is of the essence. Finish each dish with thinly sliced green onion and a sprinkle of sesame seeds for restaurant-style presentation.

SPONSOR: PLAN TO EAT

If you are looking for a great meal planner, recipe organizer, and grocery list creation tool, you've found it. I made today's recipe while having my app in the cooking view, and it made it so easy. Check it out at www.podclick.me/plantoeat

Testing the New Shrimp Cauliflower Dish

I had to be sesame oil (which isn't cheap) and shrimp (also not cheap), and the rest I could find in the produce section (so dicing the garlic and ginger were done).

I bought carrot sticks and just broke them up. Super easy meal prep. You mix the sesame oil and garlic and (more or less) end up cooking everything in it. 

In the DUH! department, upon first eating it - it didn't taste like anything else I had ever eaten. Maybe because I had never eaten this dish...

It didn't take long to cook, and didn't create much of a mess. I bought frozen cauliflower rice (which was about $2 cheaper than the nonfrozen). 

I Think There is An Easier Way

I think if I make this again, instead of buying the carrots and peas you can buy frozen cauliflower rice and peas already in it. I might mix in some sesame oil after cooking the rice in the microwave. 

Then cook the egg in the sesame oil and add the salt and pepper. The other thing I would do (as I live alone) is I might not use the full bag of shrimp. It makes a LOT with the rice, veggies, and shrimp.

If I cook this again I'm going to buy the rice with the veggies in it, and only use whatever I feel is "one serving of shrimp." I ate this meal the next day for lunch and the shrimp had turned somewhat gray, and I felt like I was pressing my luck. By only mixing in one serving of shrimp, I lower the cost, and enable myself to eat it again without the worry. If you're feeding more than one, you won't have this issue. 

I feel I could've fed about four people with the full bad of shrimp, cauliflower, veggies, and veggies. The dish also has some "Zip" to it due to the pepper I believe so I might cut back on that as well (if you don't like too much zip in your meal).

All in all I liked this dish. It was easy to make, not too messy, and pretty filling. 

Check out the recipe at https://www.plantoeat.com/recipes/24785286

Try Plan to Eat for free go to www.podclick.me/plantoeat

Amazon gives a full year free to the Food network. I checked it out and its cool because:

• You can see what people are doing
• Cool search feature
• No commericals
• You can watch what someone is doing so if they mince some garlic and you are "You did what to what?" now you can see. It's like free cooking classes.

This is where an Amazon show can come in handy. I just purchased an Amazon show 8. It's on sale for $89.

Finding and Organizing Recipes

The one thing I thought was missing was (unless I missed it) an easy way to get a recipe of what I just watched. I searched for the "Delicious Miss Brown" and the name of the recipe and google did the rest. I then imported all of that information into my plan to eat app which then makes my shopping list along with my meal plan.

I found this very cool, and a HUGE time saver.

Here is the video

I cut up some carrots and put them in for 10 but they were not "mushy." These are probably 2-3 inche pieces (not like the slices you get normally). Also I left the skin on (but washed them carrot) and I love the texture and this will give you more fiber.

SPONSOR: Plan to Eat

A great app to create, organize and use recipes. You can drag a recipe on to the calendar which then adds it to your shopping list. I love it.

Here is my recipe for "not chipotle" https://www.plantoeat.com/recipes/24547340/

Mentioned In This Episode

Roysili Spice Rack Magnetic Spice Rack Durable Magnetic Shelves For Refrigerator Easy To Use 2 Pack (White) Lifetime Guarantee

Plan To Eat - A Great app that helps you organize your recipes, plan your trips to the store, and save you a ton of time.

Full Show Description at newtocookingshow.com/5

Organize your recipes using the Plan to Eat website and app.

What I needed to create this

Mixing Bowl

Muffin Pan

Digital meat thermometer

What I Learned

That a digital meat thermometer is good to have to make sure your meat is done.

I also have to press the "On/Start" button after dialing in the temperature on my oven. (Yep... that's true). I also continue to say the best tool so far is my Silicone Grilling Gloves

Sponsor: Plan to Eat

By providing tools that streamline the meal planning process the Plan to Eat app and website equips households to eat better food, eat together, save money at the grocery store, and have a less stressful cooking experience in the kitchen.

Check it out for free at www.newtocookingshow.com/plantoeat

The New Cooks Mentality

I haven't really created anything (I've been at this a whole two weeks) that has had me go WOW - I need to make another pot of that NOW.

Don't get discouraged if this is you as well. Just trying things in my instant pot I found a bit frustrating. You might be like Goldilocks and the three bears. The first time you cook something, it's not done. The second time you cook you burn it. The third time is just right.

This makes you truly appreciate good food - but have faith. You can do this and continue to save money, save time, and be healthier.

Today I share my first experience along with my first recipe, and we learn how to Saute.

See newtocookingshow.com/3

Sponsor: Plan to Eat makes finding, organizing, and using recipes a breeze. I could share my BBQ chicken recipe on Plan to Eat with my friends. see www.newcookingshow.com/plantoeat

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Home Hero Kitchen Utensil Set

BEST VALUE FOR MONEY AROUND - this fully comprehensive high quality utensil set is available at an incredibly low price.

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This has all the measuring cups, peeler, spatual, spoons, and more.

Digital Scale

If the recipe calls for 1.5 lbs of something, this comes in handy

https://amzn.to/36rBgIG

Silicone Grilling Gloves

I LOVE MINE. I feel so much safer. Unlike oven mits, these help me grip the pots and pans I'm holding and yet, I'm safe from being burned.

https://amzn.to/2LR884m

Ninja Food Chopper Express Chop  

I love mine. It chops things soooo fast.

https://amzn.to/2WZzj32

What About Spices?

Spices can get expensive. It seems frustrating as you pay $5 for a jar the size of your palm that you end up using once. I visited the Dollar General / Family Dollar stores and picked up some of the spices in the recipes I was creating (more on that in the next episode).

Storing Spices

In many cases the spice jars all look the same, and are the same size. This means looking in your cabinet its hard to take inventory of what you have (so you don't buy a spice that you already have).

If you've got counter space, there are spice racks, and some rotate.

In my case I have a very short short and very narrow (9" x 9"). So some of these great lazy Susan (spinning shelves) don't fit,

The cabinet caddy can help you easily pull out shelves of spices (or food) and put them back. Again, it makes it easy to take inventory.

I like the idea of these Spice Grippers that you stick the back of your kitchen cabinet door and then hang the spice there. These are also inexpensive. I am a little worried about the jars falling out. I'm going to order these and give them a test.

Sponsor:

Plan to eat is a great recipe organizer, meal planner, and shopping list creator. Right now you can try plan to eat for 30 days free - you don't even enter a credit card - and if you decide to subscribe its only $5 a month or $39 a year. Plan to eat makes meal planning a breeze. Check it out at newtocookingshow.com/plantoeat

Welcome to this the very first episode my name is Dave Jackson. I'm currently in my fifties. Here is the history of me and food. 

Growing up as a small kid my Mom would feed me like any normal kid. I would eventually learn how to heat up some spaghettios in a pan. 

In my twenties I ate alot of cereal, pop tarts, and when I moved in with my brother one night I went to make a hamburger on a grill. The patty was super thick, the grill was super hot, and I ended up with a charred brick on a bun. 

Later I would enjoy some chocolate pudding with an RC Cola. 

In my thirties I graduated to thinks in a box. I consumed rice dishes, hamburger helper, mac and cheese. I was still eating cereal. 

I also ate out alot. This lasted through my forties where most of my meals were fast food, restaurants, and anything at home was a box dinner, frozen dinner, or spaghetti. 

Well now I'm in my fifties and trying to get healthy. As I look at myself I could lose about 35 lbs right now, and I want to really start paying attention to what I eat. 

Everything I read about eating a home cooked meal at home says its better for me, less expensive, and actually takes about the same amount of time. 

There is only one problem. I'm not a fan of cooking and by that I mean I hate cooking. As I get older and wiser it has dawned on my that I didn't like tying my shoes when I first tried. I fell off my bike the first time. 

So maybe the the reason I hate cooking is cause I never really do REAL COOKING. . My goal is to get into this headache free. 

Making Your Kitchen Efficient

1. Consumables zone: The area used to store most of your food. This may actually be split into two zones: one for your refrigerator (fresh food) and one for your pantry or food cabinets (dry goods, oils, etc.).

2. Non-consumables zone: The area used to store everyday dishes, including plates, bowls, glasses, and silverware.

3. Cleaning zone: The area that contains the sink and dishwasher (if you have one).

4. Preparation zone: The area where most of your kitchen prep happens. This may be a stretch of counter top, or a kitchen island.

5. Cooking zone: The area that contains the stove top, oven, or range, and possibly the microwave.

Full Article

For me, it makes no sense that the dishes are far away from the dishwasher. The counter tops near the stove are covered in gadgets. I'm going to move those off the counters to make food prep easier and keep the counters easier to clean.

Resource:

Plan to eat app available on PC, iOS and Android. Gathering around a home-cooked meal has never been so simple.

Check it out at newtocookingshow.com/plantoeat