'Five' ingredients or less
Nov. 21st, 2010 08:26 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vass posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
cookabilityMy main cooking problem is with executive function/attention/general brain fog. If there are too many ingredients or steps, I just tend not to eat, or to eat junk instead of cooking a meal. I once had a three day brain block when it felt too hard to make a banana smoothie. All I needed was ice cream, a banana, cinnamon, and milk, but I also had to get the blender down and wash it afterwards, and it just seemed too hard.
So, it occurred to me this morning that I should try googling for recipes with five ingredients or less/fewer. I found a lot of recipes, but one small problem: THEY CAN'T COUNT.
Take this recipe for crockpot mashed potatoes: it purports to have five ingredients, but actually has nine. I'm guessing they thought the condiments didn't count. Well, if I were adding salt and pepper to my own taste, they wouldn't count. But if they're a step I have to get over while following a recipe, they certainly do count. If I have to go to the supermarket to buy onion powder, garlic powder, and white pepper, because I've never used those things in my life, then yes, they count.
I used to be a good cook.
Does anyone have any brain fog friendly vegetarian recipes? Preferably not too starchy, since insulin resistance contributes to the brain fog.
So, it occurred to me this morning that I should try googling for recipes with five ingredients or less/fewer. I found a lot of recipes, but one small problem: THEY CAN'T COUNT.
Take this recipe for crockpot mashed potatoes: it purports to have five ingredients, but actually has nine. I'm guessing they thought the condiments didn't count. Well, if I were adding salt and pepper to my own taste, they wouldn't count. But if they're a step I have to get over while following a recipe, they certainly do count. If I have to go to the supermarket to buy onion powder, garlic powder, and white pepper, because I've never used those things in my life, then yes, they count.
I used to be a good cook.
Does anyone have any brain fog friendly vegetarian recipes? Preferably not too starchy, since insulin resistance contributes to the brain fog.
no subject
Date: 2010-11-21 12:42 pm (UTC)Ingredients: red lentils, cooking oil, spice mix, water. And by spice mix, I buy something premixed at the supermarket. Or, on a good day, I pick several spices and add them.
rough quantities: for 2 adults and 3 kids, I use 1 1/2 cups of lentils and 3 cups of water. Oil is a generous slurp. Spice mix is about a teaspoon.
Put oil, spice mix and red lentils in pot to heat.
Boil water in kettle.
Add boiling water to lentils. This bit can be dangerous, as the water can spit. Can probably add cold water and it takes longer, but I've never tried.
Mix a bit.
Put lid on. Leave about ten minutes. Should be cooked.
Depending on how you are going, there are variations. My kids like to add dried fruit and nuts - a premixed option would work fine, although the ones we get round here might have too many peanuts in. Or I add in left over vegies, or frozen vegie mix from the freezer. All of these can be added at any point after the water is added.
no subject
Date: 2011-04-26 05:53 am (UTC)Put oil and lentils in pot, stir. Cover with twice as much water as lentils. Add spices (this should have been done earlier, but I stuffed up). Put chopped up zuchini on top, cover, leave ten hours. Came out rather soup like, zuchini was soft but didn't disintegrate, lentils weere good. Ate it with corn chips.