Monday, February 13, 2017

Rice Three Ways

A few weeks back, I was making something with rice, and thought I was going to be short. DH picked up rice among other things, buying a massive 5 pound bag. Because of storage, I normally buy  two pound bags, as a mishap with a large bag turned me off the bulk savings. I hadn't opened it, as I ended up with just the right amount still in my rice jar, so it sat unopened, flat, on a shelf until yesterday. With trying to stretch my grocery and household budget under $350, my goal to the end of the month is to stay within $103 for groceries, borrowing from the grocery side for the household items still needed. It was time to put the massive rice purchase to work.

Cheesy vegetable soup over rice: I had  loads of carrots and onions, and some celery that needed to be cooked up. I threw two onions, four wilted and smallish celery, and six carrots, all diced, in the crock pot with my last 6 bullion cubes, and 6 cups water, lots of black pepper, and garlic powder. When almost done, in went four smallish peeled and diced potatoes. One third of the mixture was taken out, pureed, and put back to thicken up the soup, along with the last cup of Colby-Monterrey jack cheese.. I served this, ladled over bowls of rice, for a hearty vegetarian soup, that didn't get sticky since I cooked the rice separately. I'll eat this a few days at work. I know it is carb rich, and lacks much protein, but we"ll eat with fruit and have enough servings of protein for other meals.

Rice Pilaf with vegetables: To go with some Italian meatballs, tonight I'll saute an onion in a few tablespoons of butter, then add 1 cup of rice, two teaspoons of garlic powder, 2 teaspoons of Italian seasoning,stirring until the rice starts getting a little toasted. I'll add two cups of water,  a couple teaspoons of salt, half a bag of mixed vegetables, bring to a  boil, stir, turn down to low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes. 

Chicken, broccoli, and cheese hot dish: I'll make this dish ahead for Wednesday,Three cups of prepared rice, 1 cup of diced chicken, 16 ounces bag of frozen broccoli, 1 can cream of something soup (I think I have cream of mushroom), 1 can milk, salt, and pepper, and the last of the mozzarella cheese, all mixed together, then baked, covered, for 45 minutes to heat through. The moisture from the broccoli as it thaws and covering keeps it from drying out. If it does, I can make a quick white sauce to pour over. (I'll reserve a little rice for a rice crust quiche for Friday)

This will stretch our groceries for this week, and let em get to the weekend with a decent balance to do a medium shop for the last of the month, reserving a bit for milk, eggs, bread, and fruit for the last week. One week eating a higher amount of rice than usual might be dull, but hopefully the variation is enough to look like entirely different foods. I plan to make a batch of chili this month, and will serve with a heaping side of rice to stretch a bit farther later in the month. It's also time to give my daughters tomato risotto another try. Do you use rice in your cooking? Are there any favorites I should give a try this month? 

 




10 comments:

  1. We're having a creamy paprika chicken risotto tonight.. Jx

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    1. That sounds very delicious. My daughter is much better at risotto than I am-she gets it really silky and creamy.

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  2. I do risotto and kedgeree with rice. You look like you've got it sussed. I've had peppers stuffed with rice before, but not made by me.
    Arilx

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    1. You just reminded me of one of my favorites-stuffed peppers, though they are really expensive right now. Perhaps a deconstructed stuffed pepper, with the filling, and a few chopped peppers to bring the taste out. Thanks for the idea.

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  3. Great ideas for rice - I have a container in the fridge already cooked! Last week I made a big batch of veggie chilli and stretched it by using some on baked potatoes - it was soooooo goooooood! Then we also had taco salads like the ones Wendys used to make: heat up some chilli in a bowl, grate some cheddar over it, then add romaine topped with a dollop of sour cream and salsa. Again so good!

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    1. Leftover rice is a nice thing to have on a busy night. Easy fried rice, Spanish rice, then stuffed in a tortilla, mixed in a brothy soup (like I did) to bulk it up.

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  4. I keep cooked rice in the fridge just about all the time to add to whatever needs adding to. It really helps right now since I am still doing Whole 30. I can make whatever works for me, take my portion out and dump rice in for TheHubs. (Glad he loves rice)

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    1. It really is versatile. If I start better attempts at new foods, I can always supplement with rice as everyone likes it here too.

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  5. We buy big bags of rice in Louisiana and I always get Rice grown in Louisiana. I love gumbo, jambalaya, ettouffe. Then there are all the gravies, brown, red and white. I have a fancy "fuzzy logic" rice cooker on my counter.

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    1. I really should look up some Louisiana recipe's. I bet there are many my family would like. great suggestions.

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