Ordering Meals on Line Via Munchery.com

Last month, I started ordering meals on line through Munchery.com. So far I am very satisfied with the meals that I have ordered. I particularly like their salmon dishes. The meals are delivered cool and ready to heat and so far it has always been on time.

Yesterday, I ordered the Macaroni and Cheese with Lobster a new dish. It was delicious. I have ordered shrimp dishes as well as the Spaghetti with meat balls. My wife enjoyed very much the spaghetti and meat balls dish. I love their shrimp tacos and grilled salmon dishes.

If you are lazy to cook and can not drive to a restaurant, munchery.com is an excellent alternative to enjoy quality meals for a reasonable price. The meals are price from $8 to $12. Their is a delivery charge of $2.95 and an optional tip( $1 to 4) for the driver. If you sign up for membership of $85 per year, you will save from $2 to $4 every time you order.

The following article describes munchery.com that started servicing the Sacramento area last May.

http://www.sacbee.com/news/business/biz-columns-blogs/bob-shallit/article79901842.html

Lazy to Cook? Use the Telephone!

In my previous posting, I mentioned that after Macrine ( my spouse of 59 years) was diagnosed with Parkinson Disease in 2013, I was forced by circumstance to take over as the cook in the family. At first, I did not like it, but after one week, I started enjoying it. I even become creative in my recipes. I also based our menu what is on sale, so we save a few dollars in our Food budget. The savings in our Food budget we add to our once a week Dining and Slots machine Escapade in our local Indian Casino. However there are days when I do not feel like cooking. On these days, I have several options where to buy our dinner.

Option #1: If we feel like eating Chinese food- I used the telephone and in 30 minutes, we have food delivered in our door steps. Once in a while if the restaurant is busy, the wait is about 45 minutes but had never exceeded to one hour. For free delivery, there is a minimum of $20. Our favorite dishes are Pan Fried Whole Fish, Walnut Shrimps, Won Ton soup and their Combination Chow Mein.

Option #2: If we feel like eating seafood, The Red Lobster Restaurant is only one mile from our residence. Red Lobster do not deliver so you have to pick it up. To avoid waiting order ahead. The wait is usually from 30 to 45 minutes. Our favorite dishes are The Ultimate Feast, Shrimps Scampi and Crab Cakes. For dessert we order their cheese cake.

Option #3: If we feel like eating Italian dishes, Olive Garden is also one mile from our residence. Olive Garden do not deliver. But again order ahead to avoid waiting and long lines. Our favorite dishes are their shrimp dishes and pasta dishes. Sometimes the restaurant has a buy one get one free promotion on certain dishes.

Option #4: If we feel like eating steaks, Black Angus Steak House is only about half a mile from us. Again they do not deliver, and to avoid waiting order 30 minutes ahead.

Option #5: There are several fast food restaurants within one mile from our residence. We have eaten at Fish and Chips, Panera House, Burgers Houses, Kentucky fried Chicken and for Mexican Dishes, we order at El Tapacio. My favorite Mexican dish is Chile Relleno made from fresh chiles ( not canned). El Tapacio cooked their Chile Relleno using fresh Chile peppers. Other Mexican restaurants used canned peppers.

Option #6: The deli section of Raleigh, Safeway, Trader's Joe and Sprouts Super Markets offers several dishes that we like. The Honey Baked Ham store is also near us. We order Honey bake ham on holidays ( Thanksgiving and Christmas).

Last but not least, Option #7: If we have a longing for Pinoy dishes, the nearest Pinoy Restaurant and Take Out is about 20 minutes drive from our residence in the neighborhood of McCleland Air Force Base. Our favorite dishes are Dinuguan- Barbecue pork, pancit and a tripe dish.

So, above our my seven options if I do not feel like cooking. This feeling occurs at least one or two days day in a week.

Grilled Pompano Fish

Yesterday, my sister-in-law (JM) from the East Bay visited us since it was her day off. As usual, she always bring us Pinoy delicacy and goodies that she purchased on her way to our residence. Her favorite store is the Grill City Restaurant in Seafood City in Concord. Yesterday, she brought us barbecued pork and chicken, tinola and her favorite dish grilled whole pompano fish. The fish was stuffed with onions and tomatoes and cooked to perfection. Macrine and I enjoyed the fish with my favorite vinegar sauce. Again, JM thanks a million for the food and your visit. Because of the this visit, I searched for recipes on grilled pompano. The following is a video of grilled fillet pompano for your viewing pleasure.

Simple but Delicious Breakfast All Year Round

Today, I decided to cook polish sausage ( Kielbasa) with scrambled eggs with vidalia sweet onions and home grown and ripened tomatoes from my garden. It turn out delicious and moist, because I did not overcooked the onions and eggs, and the kielbasa. Along with the dish I have steamed rice, Batangas coffee and mango slices for dessert.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb Polish sausage ( Kielbasa)
1/2 sliced sweet onion ( Vidalia)
1/2 sliced and diced Tomato( over riped)
oil and or butter
Garlic and Salt to taste

Cooked the kielbasa in one cup of water. Boil the sausage for five minutes then turn it and boil for another 5 minutes until all the water evaporates. In another pan sauteed the sweet onions with oil or butter ( do not overcooked). Add the tomato slices, cooked until tomatoes are half cooked. Add the scrambled eggs. Continue the cooking until the eggs are half cooked. Shut off the heat and wait for 5 minutes. Serve with steam rice and hot coffee. Enjoy!

Cooking My First Lobster Tails ( Baking)

I always wanted to cook lobster tails. However, I am scared I will ruin it and since lobster tails are expensive, I never had the courage to buy this delicious seafood. However today there is special sale at our local Food Mart. The price is only $12.49 per lb, regular price is $16.99. I purchase 3 medium size tails for only $9.99, indeed a good buy. I searched in the Internet for a Recipe and here is what attracted my attention:*

Directions:

Make sure lobster tails are thawed completely before cooking for best results.

To prepare the lobster tail for baking or broiling:

Grab a pair of kitchen shears and grab the lobster tail in your hand. Begin cutting down one side of the lobster tail as close to the side as you can. Repeat the cut down the other side of the lobster tail. Cut the shell across the middle at the base of the tail. Grab the top of the shell and peel back. Take a knife and cut around the lobster meat so when it's finished cooking, it's easy to remove.

Lay each lobster tail on individual sheets of foil. Prepare lobster marinade of 3 tablespoons each of lemon juice and clarified butter, with a pinch of paprika, white pepper, garlic powder and sea salt. Drizzle lobster marinade over lobster.

Fold up the ends of the foil so your lobster tail is completely sealed. Bake lobster tail according to the chart below in a 450° F. preheated oven.

2 oz. - 12 minutes....................4 oz. - 18 minutes

6 oz. - 22 minutes....................8 oz. - 26 minutes

12 oz. - 30 minutes................14 oz. or more - 35 minutes

Once the lobster is cooked, unwrap the tail, dunk in butter and enjoy!

*From: http://festivalfoods.net/cooking/5188/Baking_Lobster_Tails

My Simple Recipe for Kare De Pata( Pork Feet, Hocks and Shanks)

The other day, I purchased 2 lbs of pork feet, hocks and shank as it was on sale at our local food market. With it I purchased 3 bunch of baby boctoy( pechay),1.4 lbs green beans and 2 large size Chinese eggplant. For the peanut sauce* I purchased Peanut Powder by Jif. This is the first time I have used this product. It says it has 85% less fat than the traditional peanut butter. The above are the major ingredients for this recipe. The other ingredients are:

1 medium onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon tumeric powder for coloring
1/4 cup cooking oil
2 cups water
Garlic salt and or ground black pepper to taste
Shrimp Paste ( bagoong)-optional

Cooking Instruction:

1. Pour 8 cups of water in a cooking pot along with the pork feet, hocks and shank. Add a dash garlic salt and black ground pepper. Boil at high heat for 1 hour or until the meat is tender. Remove the pork from the cooking pot and set aside.

2. In another cooking pot, saute the onions and garlic. Add the pork. In a cup of water add 5 tablespoon of peanut Powder( by Jif) and mix. Add the mixture to the pot, and green beans. Cook for another 2 minutes.

3. Add the eggplant, and the tumeric spice and let it simmer another 2 minutes. Lastly add the pechay and cook at low heat for another 2 minutes.

4. Serve with steam rice and with shrimp Paste on the side. My favorite brand of Bagooong is Barrio Fiesta.

* Normally, I use roasted and ground peanuts for the sauce. My discovery of the peanut powder by Jif saves time in praparing this dish. The tumeric is my own coloring ingredient, which is optional.

My Favorite Pancit Bihon Recipe

Ingredients

1 lb pancit bihon (Rice Noodles)
½ lb. pork, cut into small thin slices
2 cups diced cooked chicken breast meat
⅛ lb. pea pods or snow peas
1 cup carrot thinly sliced
½ small head cabbage, chopped
1 medium sized onion, chopped
½ tbsp garlic, minced
5 tbsp soy sauce
3 to 4 cups water
Fish Sauce( Patis)
2 lemons -cut into wedges for garnish( Lime or calamansi may used instead of the lemons)

Instructions

1. In a large pot or wok, Saute the garlic and onion. Add the pork let cook for 4 minutes. Then the chicken breast.

2. Put in the carrots, pea pods, cabbage, and simmer for a 15 minutes or until the cabbage begins to soften.

3. Remove all the ingredients in the pot except for the liquid and set them aside. In the pot with the liquid in, add the soy sauce and mix well

4. Add the pancit bihon (makes sure to first soak it in water for about 20 minutes) and mix well. Cook until liquid evaporates completely

5. Put-in the vegetables and meat that were previously cooked and simmer for a minute or two. Add the lemon wedges for the garnishing. Serve with Fish sauce ( Patis) on the side if desired.