Tag: Leftovers

(Romanian) Meatballs for lunch, please!

romanian-meatballs

Traditional Romanian meatballs are very different than the Belgian boulettes. If I weren’t so biased, I’d say they are much better, but hey!, I’m not even gonna dare going there. So what are the differences? Firstly, the composition. Romanian meatballs are made out of pork with lots of grated veggies and herbs inside. The Belgian ones are mostly beef, or a combination of pork and beef/ veal, onion and sometimes parsley. Then, there’s the shape. We like smaller, flat meatballs, while the Belgians make them large and round. And finally, there’s the cooking method. Traditionally, we roll the meatballs in flour and then deep fry them (I confess, I do the light version: no flour, simply cooked on the grill). As for the boulettes? They are, most of the times, fried in butter…yes, yes, this sounds delicious!

So, are you curious to know how the Romanian meatballs are made?  Read More

Food hacks, ep.1: One chicken goes a long way

pot

Today I’m starting a new series called Food Hacks because when we’re aiming at simplifying our lives, we need to learn some optimization techniques. These are some of the things I do to keep a smooth flow of life, to avoid unnecessary shopping trips, to save time and money, too. To become the queen of zen (don’t ask how far along the way I’ve got on this one).

So I decided to talk about chicken, one of the most wonderful birds that have walked this earth. Truth is, one chicken goes a long way; I’ve been brought up in a tradition that celebrates the creative usage of every bit & piece. I know the best meat is on the bone (only emperors eat this, as per my grandpa), I know the carcass is the best thing to make soup of and I know the (roasted) butt of the chicken is absolutely the ambrosia of gods- by the way, when was the last time anyone had a chicken butt?

What’s next?

Read More

Transform your leftovers

DSC03551Leftovers are probably the best thing that can happen to us. While most people are scared of leftovers, I always plan for some when cooking. And, most of the times, I like to give them a new life.

The leftover part of these lunch-boxes are the bits of chicken and the baked potato. It took me about 10 minutes to transform the chicken and it was totally worth it. I chopped and fried a box of brown champignons in a little bit of butter, just added some garlic, thyme, salt & pepper. I dumped in the chicken pieces and 2 full spoons of sour cream (like all Eastern Europeans, I know sour cream is amazing in almost any dish). And that was it, some chopped parsley to top! Next to it a half baked potato with a lump of blue cheese and green salad with cherry tomatoes, pepper, feta cheese and green onions. Don’t be afraid of the green onion at the office, the parsley takes away the oniony breath. Yep, that’s the trick of today.

The Secret

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After many years of packing and enjoying my own lunches, I’ve learned a thing or two about the art of the perfect lunch box. The secret? Simply enough: killing two birds with one stone…which translates into cooking two meals in one go! Because time is never enough (am I the only one out there with this problem?!?).

What did I put in here? Leftover burgers from the eve before, 2 baked potatoes that I threw in the oven while making a stew (more on that soon)- added some goat cheese and few chunks of blue cheese on top. These will melt in the office microwave and become the BEST topping for the above potatoes. Next to all this, an avocado salsa, which literally took me 3 minutes to assemble in the morning.

Not the most summery meal, I’ll give you that, but when you live in Belgium, you don’t really get many summery meals…