How can rice, lentils cornbread and cheese be made to taste better?

[MERTON]

since a large bowl of this everyday makes up most of my meals i need a way to make this mixture taste better. it needs to be cheap and healthy... not necessarily super duper healthy, but the ingredients must be whole food type stuff.

[Uncle Bob]

How about a few shots of Tabasco and/or Louisiana Hot Sauce...

[MERTON]

hey... do you know of any hot sauces that don't use vinegar or salt?

[Uncle Bob]

Sorry.....I do not.

[Katie H]

You could add some sauteed onions and some red pepper flakes.

[miniman]

Use fresh herbs or spices to add a new dimension to the flavours. Herbs will also lighten the dish a little. Look to the Indian sub-continent for some ideas about lentils, they do some great spicy dishes.

Rice can also be geed up by adding veg - such as sweetcorn or peas or even some fish.

Judging from your posts, you seem to have some diet restrictions. We can help much more if we know what these are.

[MERTON]

i'm just tryin to keep it healthy and cheap. right now my daily diet is the below. i also take some vitamins. it has to stay cheap, whole and healthy.

2 bananas
1 glass of v8
a chunk of sweet potato raw
2 cups of oat meal
1 teaspoon of cod liver oil

4 ounces of cheese
1 cup brown rice
1/4 of 12 inch cake of corn bread (made with 6 tbs olive oil, 4 tsp non
aluminumized baking powder, 4 brown eggs, 4 cups of milk, 1 tsp of
garlic salt, 2/3 cups of whole wheat flour, 2 cups of whole corn meal)
1 1/2 cup of lentils

3 protein shakes

and some peanuts

[Callisto in NC]

Wait? You're drinking protein shakes but complaining about cheese? Do you have any clue how many chemicals are in a protein shake? It's 100% chemical.

Real foods, healthy foods, aren't cheap. The reason foods are cheap is because they are processed in bulk for the masses. Look at boxed pasta. Under a dollar and you can get a couple of meals, but it's all processed.

As for brown or white eggs, no difference other than the color of the chicken.

[keltin]

Originally Posted by MERTON

i'm just tryin to keep it healthy and cheap. right now my daily diet is the below. i also take some vitamins. it has to stay cheap, whole and healthy.

2 bananas
1 glass of v8
a chunk of sweet potato raw
2 cups of oat meal
1 teaspoon of cod liver oil

4 ounces of cheese
1 cup brown rice
1/4 of 12 inch cake of corn bread (made with 6 tbs olive oil, 4 tsp non
aluminumized baking powder, 4 brown eggs, 4 cups of milk, 1 tsp of
garlic salt, 2/3 cups of whole wheat flour, 2 cups of whole corn meal)
1 1/2 cup of lentils

3 protein shakes

and some peanuts

Is there a why for you doing this? This diet sounds very restrictive, almost like an athlete’s diet?

The protein is low for body-building, and the carbs are low for runners and bikers. So what are you trying to do?

Diet is what we eat.

A “diet” is the process of trying to modify that which we eat in order to lose weight.

Fact of the matter is, if you increase activity (weight training, jogging, etc), and decrease or leave diet (that which we eat) the same, you will lose weight. By changing nothing in your diet except to switch to diet drinks or un-sweetened teas you can lose weight.

The key is to use more calories (exercise or move) than you eat.

[keltin]

If you want exercise and caloric expenditure, then here is the place to go. I used to advise on this site’s forum back in the day, and they’ve only gotten better! A great place!

[ducdebrabant]

The things you can add to cornbread are many -- bacon bits, chives, shallots, tarragon, jalapeno peppers. As for lentils, I like to sautee diced onion and diced carrot in oil, then add half a cup of lentils and half a cup of brown rice and sautee them for a minute, then add a cup of wine and a cup of water, salt and seasonings. Then you cook it covered as you would rice alone, till the liquid is absorbed. It makes a nice side dish, and obviously you can change the seasoning any way you want. White pepper cuts the sweetness, for example.

[MERTON]

Originally Posted by Callisto in NC

Wait? You're drinking protein shakes but complaining about cheese? Do you have any clue how many chemicals are in a protein shake? It's 100% chemical.

Real foods, healthy foods, aren't cheap. The reason foods are cheap is because they are processed in bulk for the masses. Look at boxed pasta. Under a dollar and you can get a couple of meals, but it's all processed.

As for brown or white eggs, no difference other than the color of the chicken.

there's a difference between chemicals that are good for you such as amino acids... and chemicals that are bad for you such as some of the things used to preserve oscar meyer bologna.

[MERTON]

Originally Posted by keltin

Is there a why for you doing this? This diet sounds very restrictive, almost like an athlete’s diet?

The protein is low for body-building, and the carbs are low for runners and bikers. So what are you trying to do?

Diet is what we eat.

A “diet” is the process of trying to modify that which we eat in order to lose weight.

Fact of the matter is, if you increase activity (weight training, jogging, etc), and decrease or leave diet (that which we eat) the same, you will lose weight. By changing nothing in your diet except to switch to diet drinks or un-sweetened teas you can lose weight.

The key is to use more calories (exercise or move) than you eat.

actually i'm getting around 120 gram of protein or so a day which should be plenty. and i've started olympic style lifting. and the carbs are high. do you have any nutritional knowledge at all? the lentils alone give me around 45 grams of protein.

[Michael in FtW]

Well, MERTON - I do know something about nutrition and sports nutrition in particular. Although your diet sounds a little strange ... not knowing the specifics on your protein shakes ... I ran the numbers and you're within the ballpark of a basic sports diet of 3,500-4,500 calories with 40% of those calories from carbs, 40% from protein, and 20% from fats. With some questions (2 cups uncooked oat meal or cooked, what kind of cheese, and by sweet potato raw do you mean uncooked or without adornment, etc.) you're looking at roughly about 4,000 calories per day with a distribution of about 56% carbs, 29% protein, 19% fat - before adjusting for the protein shakes.

I do find it rather odd that with your emphasis on "whole foods" that you don't try to obtain more nutrition from vegetables and fruit - rather than a vitamin pill.

Oh, as Callisto noted - there is NO nutritional difference in the eggs based on the color of the shells - the difference is in the breed of chicken that laid them (and even among the same breed there can be differences - you can tell the color of the shell by the color of their ears ... yes chickens have ears). There are some minor differences based on diet - but you can't determine that by color.

Various vegetables and herbs will spice up your rice and lentils - without blowing your diet or budget.

For your lentils, for example - get a smoked turkey wing or leg (or a smoked ham hock), a yellow onion and a carrott. Put your smoked meat choice in a sauce pan and cover with COLD water, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and simmer for 30-60 minutes (the longer the better). While you're making your stock - peel and dice your onion and carrott.

When done, remove the meat to a plate to cool. Then remove the meat from the bone and dice. Measure out the amount of smokey broth you need for your lentils and save the rest (in the refrigerator). You can also save 1/2 the meat in the broth if you wish.

Now, heat another sauce pan large enough to cook your lentils, then add 1 Tbsp olive oil, onion and carrott and saute for 4-5 minutes. Add your chopped meat, lentils and broth ... and cook like normally do except you want the lentils to cook down to a mush.

Now ... to serve ... split a wedge of cornbread in half (horizontally) and toast under the broiler until golden brown (to your liking) and spread with a pat of butter if you wish. Then spoon on your lentil "mush".

For your rice ... again it's about the flavors you add to it - onion, peas, carrotts, herbs, etc. A broth adds more flavor than plain water.

And, the sweet potato ... why a chunk of raw 'tater? Use a whole one, wash it, poke a few holes in it, wrap loosely in plastic wrap and microwave on hi for 7 minutes ... and let it rest for about 2 minutes. Then split open like a baked potato - add some butter if you wish, salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a slice of cornbread - that's a complete meal!

I understand the "living on the cheap" thing ... I was in college once, too. But, you don't have to live on such a restricked diet .... you can add some variety ... and for not much, if any, more $$$.

[MERTON]

Originally Posted by Michael in FtW

Well, MERTON - I do know something about nutrition and sports nutrition in particular. Although your diet sounds a little strange ... not knowing the specifics on your protein shakes ... I ran the numbers and you're within the ballpark of a basic sports diet of 3,500-4,500 calories with 40% of those calories from carbs, 40% from protein, and 20% from fats. With some questions (2 cups uncooked oat meal or cooked, what kind of cheese, and by sweet potato raw do you mean uncooked or without adornment, etc.) you're looking at roughly about 4,000 calories per day with a distribution of about 56% carbs, 29% protein, 19% fat - before adjusting for the protein shakes.

I do find it rather odd that with your emphasis on "whole foods" that you don't try to obtain more nutrition from vegetables and fruit - rather than a vitamin pill.

Oh, as Callisto noted - there is NO nutritional difference in the eggs based on the color of the shells - the difference is in the breed of chicken that laid them (and even among the same breed there can be differences - you can tell the color of the shell by the color of their ears ... yes chickens have ears). There are some minor differences based on diet - but you can't determine that by color.

Various vegetables and herbs will spice up your rice and lentils - without blowing your diet or budget.

For your lentils, for example - get a smoked turkey wing or leg (or a smoked ham hock), a yellow onion and a carrott. Put your smoked meat choice in a sauce pan and cover with COLD water, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and simmer for 30-60 minutes (the longer the better). While you're making your stock - peel and dice your onion and carrott.

When done, remove the meat to a plate to cool. Then remove the meat from the bone and dice. Measure out the amount of smokey broth you need for your lentils and save the rest (in the refrigerator). You can also save 1/2 the meat in the broth if you wish.

Now, heat another sauce pan large enough to cook your lentils, then add 1 Tbsp olive oil, onion and carrott and saute for 4-5 minutes. Add your chopped meat, lentils and broth ... and cook like normally do except you want the lentils to cook down to a mush.

Now ... to serve ... split a wedge of cornbread in half (horizontally) and toast under the broiler until golden brown (to your liking) and spread with a pat of butter if you wish. Then spoon on your lentil "mush".

For your rice ... again it's about the flavors you add to it - onion, peas, carrotts, herbs, etc. A broth adds more flavor than plain water.

And, the sweet potato ... why a chunk of raw 'tater? Use a whole one, wash it, poke a few holes in it, wrap loosely in plastic wrap and microwave on hi for 7 minutes ... and let it rest for about 2 minutes. Then split open like a baked potato - add some butter if you wish, salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a slice of cornbread - that's a complete meal!

I understand the "living on the cheap" thing ... I was in college once, too. But, you don't have to live on such a restricked diet .... you can add some variety ... and for not much, if any, more $$$.

vegetables are actually kind of expensive, i think i will try to include some more. the meat would be way too expensive and time consuming to handle everyday. also, sweet potatoes aren't that cheap. i don't know why people say they are.


yeah! that's it! pan fry some veggies real quick! and add them in. i would be frying them in olive oil. does frying them destroy their nutritional value? i wouldn't be frying them to make them crispy... but just to change the flavor a bit.

and do you know what spices indians (from india) use to spice lentils? my ex room mates always made really good lentils... attracted hundreds of cockroaches into the kitchen every night... but made great lentils!


and i hadn't realized my diet was THAT on track... i knew i was feeling better for a reason! getting off that processed food REALLY makes a difference! it takes a while for it to take effect... but i might actually be able to squat 3 times a week for the first time ever soon!

[Bilby]

Cardamon pods and cumin are big features in Indian cuisine.

Certain vegetables are best steamed to trap the nutrition in but some like tomatoes actually benefit from the canning process. Something like liptocaines (sp??) are increased which are a good cancer preventative I believe, but am prepared to be corrected. Rather than frying the veges, try steaming in the microwave with some garlic or honey and balsamic vinegar. Chinese five spice is a good one for veges too. Stir frying is a good alternative too.

Grow some bean sprouts or mung beans - super cheap, super easy and grow in jars in the cupboard. They'll give you some crunch in your diet and can eat them raw.

Oh and I know nothing at all about sporting diets!!

[GB]

Originally Posted by MERTON

vegetables are actually kind of expensive

Have you considered frozen veggies? They are just as nutritious, if not more so, than fresh as they are harvested and frozen in their prime as opposed to fresh which sits around for a long time before it gets to your table. They are usually much less expensive than fresh.

[YT2095]

Originally Posted by MERTON

hey... do you know of any hot sauces that don't use vinegar or salt?

yes, Chili Oil.

I discovered this in a large Chinese food warehouse, but it`s SO! easy to make it yourself

you already use Olive oil, so why not put some in a pan, add dried chili flakes (or crush your own dried chilis) and then heat this on a LOW heat for 20 mins, turn off the fire and leave it stand for 24 hours, then filter off the oil into a bottle.

that will add a little *ZING* to plain foods

[Caine]

Originally Posted by Michael in FtW

you can tell the color of the shell by the color of their ears ... yes chickens have ears).

But, does a chicken have lips?

You could crumble up some crispy fried bacon over top of any or all of the items listed. Bacon makes EVERYTHING taste better!

[Callisto in NC]

Originally Posted by MERTON

there's a difference between chemicals that are good for you such as amino acids... and chemicals that are bad for you such as some of the things used to preserve oscar meyer bologna.

No one mentioned bologna. We know that's bad. But you were complaining about cheese before that is essentially just scientificly named ingredients where as a protein shake is complete chemicals. Not the best way to get your protein and it's hard on your body in the long run.