Weekly Meal Planning: A Well Stocked Pantry

I'm trying to be more careful about how much I spend on groceries. Part of my problem is that I love grocery shopping, so the more I buy, the more time I get to spend shopping! It's great. But not great for my bank account, especially since I've been doing the whole independent IT contractor thing recently. Although I am happy to report that I was recently accepted as a HelloTech "Hero"! It's basically like Uber for tech support. While the pay is about half of what I make on my own, I'm hoping it will provide some more steady supplementary income. Maybe I'll at least be breaking even on my expenses instead of living off my savings! Wouldn't that be great.

So part of being careful about my grocery shopping is meal planning. I'm going to plan 3-4 meals for the week. I really don't eat that much, and a recipe usually makes way more than what I can eat in one sitting.

Hopefully this will keep my grocery bill down, eliminate waste, use more (all) of the ingredients I buy, and provide some tasty meals during the week! Consequently, I think I also get a nice little ego boost every time I look at most recipes: I'm like, pssh... 3/4 of this recipe are pantry ingredients for meeeee! I take some serious pride in having such a well-stocked pantry. That's probably one area of my life where I would have a really hard time going minimalist. I could easily go minimalist with clothes, furniture, cosmetics (I barely use any as it is) and pretty much anything else, but don't you dare try to pare down my pantry.

Here's my first meal plan for this week. I think one of the keys of planning successful meals around leftovers is using different flavors from meal to meal. My first meal centers around Mexican flavors, the second is Indian and the third is Chinese. I'm using the same base ingredient (pan seared tilapia), but avoiding repetition by varying the cuisine.

Some of the recipes call for too many servings, so I'm using this recipe servings converter to scale them down.

Meal 1 - Fish tacos with pico de gallo and chipotle cream sauce

Recipes
Pan seared tilapia (★★★★★)
Yum! I don't think something could taste bad if it has chipotle crema on it. Also, first time ever pan searing fish... success! Kenji was right, it really is foolproof. I grew up eating tacos so often that I didn't really use a recipe besides for the fish. I did forget to add the corn (I love adding corn to everything. And lime. Everything tastes better with more lime), but I think that ended up being for the better. 

Pantry

2-4 frozen tilapia fillets 

eggs 

flour 

panko breadcrumbs  

tortillas 

chipotles in adobo sauce

greek yogurt 

white vinegar 

corn 

tomatoes 

onions  

Shopping List
1 bunch of cilantro

1 head of cabbage 

2 limes 

1 box jalapenos (from TJs)/or just 1 jalapeno if you can buy singles 

Notes
1. Remove fishy taste from fish by marinating in cow's milk for no more than 20 minutes.
2. Pan sear all fillets, use 1-2 for the tacos, save leftovers for next meals.
3. Pico de gallo: mix equal parts chopped tomatoes and chopped onions; minced cilantro (to taste), minced jalapeno (to taste), juice from 1/2 of a lime and salt
4. Make a sour cream substitute for the chipotle crema by mixing 1 tsp vinegar : 1/3 cup greek yogurt
5. Make a chipotle crema to drizzle on top of tacos by mixing 1 tsp vinegar, 1/3 cup greek yogurt, 1 tsp chipotles in adobo and juice from 1/2 of a lime.
6. Assemble tacos with shredded cabbage, corn, pico de gallo (drain well before adding), fish and chipotle crema. Garnish with slices of lime.

Leftovers from this meal
1-2 pan seared tilapia fillets
5-7 jalapenos
cilantro
1/2 of an onion
cabbage

Meal 2 - Yogurt ginger curry

Recipes

Yogurt ginger curry (★☆☆☆☆)
I was so disappointed with this recipe. When I tasted the finished curry sauce, it tasted like watery yogurt. I did use powdered ginger in place of fresh, but I also added extra dried minced garlic. To fix the curry, I  fried up half an onion in ghee and a heaping tablespoon of curry powder, then added it into the curry sauce. I also added 1 tbsp of tomato paste, 1 tsp of soy sauce, 1/4 tsp of dashi granules (for some umami kick, but not enough where you could taste it specifically), and 5-6 curry leaves. It was also extremely thin, so I thickened it with cornstarch. After improvising for a good 45 minutes, I felt that it was finally passable. I garnished with chopped cilantro and a heavy squeeze of lime--the lime really helped. Instead of using the fish fillets, I used TJ's masala burgers and triangles of whole wheat pita bread. What I put on the table ended up being not bad, but what this recipe initially produced was incredibly disappointing. After all my fiddling, I'd give the final product a solid 3 stars.

Leftovers to use
1-2 pan seared tilapia fillets or masala burgers
cilantro

Pantry
yogurt
cumin seeds
asafoetida (sub with garlic or onions if unavailable)
fresh ginger
turmeric
coriander
paprika
cayenne
rice or flatbread

Shopping List
(none)

Notes
1. Reheat fish on wire rack on baking sheet, covered with foil at 275° until they reach 125-130 internal temp (~15 minutes for 1" thick fillets)

Leftovers from this meal
3/4 cup curry sauce

Meal 3 - Black bean stir fry

Recipes
Tilapia with scallions and black bean sauce (★★★★★)
This was delicious! I mostly used the recipe for the sauce, since I already pan seared the tilapia. But I couldn't help but tinker with the sauce, as I'm wont to do. Mind you, this was before I even tasted it. But in my experience, just using the black bean sauce can be fairly overwhelming, so I added some stuff to balance it out. I added 1 tbsp sake, 1 tbsp mirin, 1/2 tsp chile garlic sauce, 1 tsp garlic paste and 1 tsp ginger paste. I stir fried carrots and mushrooms in sesame oil with some salt and pepper (white and black), then added a few pinches of chinese five spice. When the mushrooms and carrots were just about done, I threw in some shredded cabbage and put the fish in the oven to reheat it. When the vegetables were cooked, I turned the heat down (so the sauce wouldn't burn) and poured in about 2/3 of the sauce. I put it back on the heat and let it reduce down just a little. I filled a bowl with brown rice, broke up the tilapia into chunks, then scooped the saucy veggies over it. The neutral flavor but seasoned flavor of the fish balanced the strength of sauce, and the brown rice provided a warm, nutty background for it all. Overall, an excellent dish. 

Leftovers to use
cabbage

Pantry
black bean garlic sauce
oyster sauce
soy sauce
sesame oil
rice vinegar
chile sauce (e.g. sriracha)
carrots, corn, water chestnuts or other good stir fry veggies

Shopping List
1 box of mushrooms

Notes
1. Omit fillets if none left
2. Stir fry mushrooms, leftover cabbage and any other stir fry veggies in sauce
3. Serve with tilapia and rice, top with a fried egg for something heartier

Leftovers from this meal
stir fried veggies
1 tilapia fillet

Side 1 - Mason jar farro salad

Recipes

Farro salad (☆☆☆☆☆)
My barley had gone bad! It was the quick-cooking kind from TJs, so I imagine it expires more quickly than the raw kind. So I skipped this and made the coleslaw instead. 

Leftovers to use

cabbage

Pantry

green apple 

mayo 

milk

white wine vinegar

honey

mustard

poppy seeds

farro/barley

dried cranberries

nuts

Shopping List

(none) 

Notes

1. Skip if no cabbage leftover. 

Side 2 - Kenji's creamy coleslaw

Recipes

Creamy coleslaw (★★★★☆)

(Let's be real--this is a Kenji recipe, so I might as well just give it 5 stars right away. If it's anything less than 5, then I screwed up.) 
Update: Soooo... as much as I love Kenji and his recipes, this turned out just a little too dry. Granted, I did scale it down by a factor of something ridiculous like 16 because I had so little cabbage to work with, so the dryness may have happened in translation. Not to worry, because a little extra mayo made it perfect. The flavor was great, and even James ate quite a bit. It was perfect with the chili we (I) made! I think this is probably my new go-to coleslaw recipe. 

Leftovers to use

cabbage 

Pantry

carrots 

fresh parsley (from herb garden)

white sugar

kosher salt

mayo

apple cider vinegar

dijon mustard

sugar 

Shopping List

(none)

Notes

(none)

Side 3 - Pickled jalapenos

Recipes

Pickled jalapenos (★★★★★)
Good, but spicy! I'm such a wimp when it comes to spicy. I did not add any additional spiciness to this recipe, but I still find them quite hot. They actually tasted pretty good as a garnish to the curry though. My friend--who has a much greater spice tolerance than I do--reported that they were extremely tasty, and both of my sisters love this recipe, so I'm going give it five stars on the merit of their judgment. It's not the recipe's fault I can't do spicy. But I am looking forward to putting these into cornbread muffins with a dollop of cream cheese and eating them with chili! 

Leftovers to use

5-7 jalapenos 

Pantry

white balsamic vinegar (for best flavor; champagne works well too)

sugar

salt

fresh garlic

Shopping List

(none)

Notes

1. Skip if no jalapenos leftover.

Cashew and Cauliflower Curry with Homemade Paneer

I went on a library book spree recently. I finally got some library cards for Orange County. Yes, cards, plural. Just two though. It's rather odd but Santa Ana's library is not a part of the Orange County Public Libraries, so I had to get a separate card.

It's been awhile since I've been in a library, sadly. I thoroughly enjoyed visiting the Mesa Verde branch. It's nothing fancy to look at, inside or out, but it feels just like a library should. It has this awesome little upstairs alcove in the middle of the library that looks down on the rest of the library. It's also slightly warmer up there, lending it all a very cozy feeling. I checked out multiple cookbooks, which is a wonderful alternative to subscribing to magazines (of which I will only use a few recipes) or buying cookbooks, I also got a couple of "fundamentals" cookbooks: How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman and The Elements of Cooking by Michael Ruhlman. I also discovered a cookbook by Lukas Volger, whom I had come across one day when I was food-blog crawling. The below recipes are adapted straight from his book; in fact they're almost exactly identical to his, I just made a few changes based on what I had on hand.

Making homemade paneer for the first time was great! Cheesemaking always sounded like some difficult and complicated thing, but it's surprisingly easy (although I'm sure it can be difficult and complicated in the case of some cheeses).

When I told my coworkers that I made my own cheese, and then they subsequently found out I also make my own vegetable broth and have saved food scraps for composting, they called me "domesticated" and "organic." I found that amusing, as I consider myself neither, just practical, frugal and adverse to waste.


Cashew and Cauliflower Curry with Homemade Paneer
Serves 4

Update: After eating this curry for a week, I got a bit sick of it. It ends up being too thick for my liking--I prefer a more soupy curry than stew-y curry. A leftover frozen portion was greatly improved by mixing with another leftover frozen portion of paripu hodi (lentil curry) Some recommendations, then: add a 1/2 to 1 can of coconut milk in step 3, along with the broth. Don't simmer all the liquid away in step 4, but simmer until it is the consistency you like. Don't bring to a boil otherwise you'll curdle the coconut milk.

Honestly, this dish is best served alongside others, not as the main course. Eat it Sri Lankan style, with at least 3-4 other curries to keep it company on your plate. My ami (Sri Lankan host mother) was always apologetic when she couldn't put more than 3 curries on the table, which was funny because I would have been happy eating paripu hodi with pol roti for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Ingredients
2 medium white potatoes (8 oz, 230 g)
1 small cauliflower (1 lb, 450 g)
3 tbsp coconut oil (or neutral oil)
2 tsp curry powder
2 tsp black mustard seeds (optional)
5-10 curry leaves (optional)
1 bay leaf
1 large onion, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1.5 tsp turmeric
1/2 cup water, broth or whey
1.5 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp plain, unsweetened yogurt
1/2 cup roasted, unsalted cashews
rice, for serving
paneer (Optional, but you can easily make paneer alongside this recipe without taking too much extra time if you have the ingredients. This is not really a paneer curry, but who doesn't like cheese!)
8 cups of milk (2% or whole)
2-4 tbsp lemon juice
cheesecloth, large mixing bowl (heat-resistant, preferably metal or glass), 2 large glass jars for leftover whey


Instructions
(P) Bring the 8 cups of milk to a boil. While waiting for it to boil, line the large mixing bowl with cheesecloth, and then proceed with prepping the vegetables for the curry.

1. Peel the potatoes (save peels for scrappy vegetable stock) and then cut into 1/4 inch cubes. Break cauliflower into small florets. Set aside potatoes and cauliflower (same bowl is ok). Mince the onion.

(P) As soon as the milk boils, remove from heat, and stir in 2 tbsp lemon juice. The curds should begin separating from the whey within a couple minutes. If not, add up to 2 more tbsp of lemon juice. Set aside while it separates and cools. 

2. Heat the 3 tbsp of oil in a large, wide pot over medium heat. Add onion, 2 tsp curry powder, 1 bay leaf and (if using) 2 tsp mustard seeds and 5-10 curry leaves. Stir every now and then to keep from burning, but cook about 10-12 minutes until onions are deeply colored, almost burned.

(P) Pour the curds and whey into the large bowl lined with the cheesecloth. Pull the cheesecloth out of the liquid, squeezing (if it's not too hot) any excess liquid from the curds. Situate the cheesecloth somewhere so it can drip any excess liquid freely (e.g. place in a sieve that's over a bowl/measuring cup, or colander over a bowl--just make sure the cheesecloth isn't sitting in the liquid as it collects). Pour the liquid whey into the glass jars and set aside to cool. 

3. Add the 3 cloves garlic and 2 tsp grated ginger, saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add cauliflower and potatoes, gently stirring just a few times to coat in the yellow spices. Add 1.5 tsp of turmeric and 1/2 cup of liquid (water, whey, broth). Cover and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

(P) Squeeze any more excess liquid from the curds, then shape curds (still in the cheesecloth) into a flat rectangle. Place on a clean, dry, flat surface (like a large cutting board), then place another cutting board on top and weigh it down with a few heavy items (e.g. cans, or fill the pot you used to boil the milk with water and place on top--good for soaking any dirty dishes thus far!)

4. Uncover the pot and let the liquid reduce until almost gone, 1-2 minutes. Test the cauliflower and potatoes for doneness; if necessary, add a little more liquid and cook longer.

5. Once the potatoes and cauliflower are tender, remove from heat and add the 1.5 tsp garam masala, 1/2 tsp salt, 4 tbsp yogurt and 1/2 cup of cashews. Stir gently until incorporated.

(P) Remove paneer from the cheesecloth. Cut into 1 inch cubes, then pan fry in ghee for a nice, crispy exterior. Add to top of curry and serve with rice or chapati. 


Notes
* If you want to take the extra time to use whole spices instead of curry powder: Heat oil, then add 8 black peppercorns, 5 whole cloves, 3 smashed cardamom pods, 1 smashed cinnamon stick, 1 bay leaf, 5-10 curry leaves, 1 dried chile pepper (or chili flakes, to taste), and let sizzle until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Then add 2 tsp cumin seeds and 2 tsp black mustard seeds, let sizzle about 10 seconds, then add the onion. Continue with directions in step 2.

* Only fry the paneer you're going to eat. Freeze any unfried paneer, then fry right before you eat. Paneer will also keep for a few days in the refrigerator, stored in water (change water daily)

* The liquid whey leftover from the paneer is acidic whey. It can be used instead of water to make a rich vegetable broth or as a base instead of water in a soup. It can be added to soaking water for pulses or as a cooking liquid or pasta, rice, etc. Add it or use in place of other liquids in smoothies or shakes. Use it in place of water/milk in baked goods. Use it instead of milk for bechamel. It cannot be used to make ricotta or other whey-cheese because the milk was boiled before the acid was added. 


Credit: Recipe for curry and paneer adapted from Vegetarian Entrees That Won't Leave You Hungry by Lukas Volger (p. 104-105, 2011).