Quarantine Food Shopping List: Nutritious Alternatives to Instant Noodles

@Femme Fatale , this recipe is from the anime Shokugeki no Souma S1E1.

 

You should try it. That and the transforming rice turned out pretty good from the YT recipes I followed.

 

Make stew, add whatever you want.

 

Just want to add wheat flour.

It's a very versatile food even without yeast. One kilogram of flour can feed a family of four for up to 2 weeks if it's rationed well. If you add some greens and meat, it's really quite nutritious.

Or you can grab some fruits. Or grow some greens yourself. Greens like bok choy or water spinach don't take long to grow and do not need specialized soil to grow. If you start growing these greens now, you can make a harvest every month in your own flower pots.

 

Sorry for the late response, I wanted to get at least one recipe out before answering your wonderful comment. Here is the recipe for Rice and Beans (another long one, but this will be the last long recipe!)

https://forum.novelupdates.com/threads/quarantine-food-rice-and-beans-recipes.101524/

If you try the recipe, feel free to post and comment.

And, like you said, oil is really versatile. It's amazing how many people don't know that you can substitute oil for butter on most recipes..I mean, essentially margarine is processed oil. >_> However, nothing beats butter in cooking...the flavour is different and totally worth it if your recipe calls for it!

I have already copied your suggestion for later use. >_>

ENVY ENVY ENVY

I gotta send the family out to get me some fish. >_> The rice and beans dish would go fab with fried or baked fish...My hubby makes a dish with milk and butter that's also nice.

He once caught a Wahoo off the pier in Tolaga Bay, Gisborne. We couldn't identify it for a while and when we did, we were shocked cause it was not meant to be anywhere near New Zealand. *boggles* It was yummy though. >_>

Wah? Not even Cthulhu Soup?

If I try this, I will post a photo. >_> The hubby is keen to give it a go.

Would you like to make a few recipes with wheat flour? I'm always keen to learn something new and it's best to get the knowledge from someone that knows what they are doing. ^.^

Even suggestions to recipes online would be great...not all recipes are made alike I find.

 

Back to the topic...

Remember that combining leagues and cereals produce a complete protein...this is how vegans and vegetarians not die. Or get Pellagra. Which is

 

Pellagra sounds horrible! you'd need the oats then if you were in real quarantine to deal with the itchy skin. >_>

However, because it's you and you would trick me ....do you mean leagues as in distance? Or something more like legumes which is like peas and beans?

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pellagra



Terrifying pictures...

Legumes... Autocorrect let me down.

 

I stocked on various kinds of pasta as well.. after a month of instant noodles due to buying too much merchs i can't eat only instant noodles anymore ready-made sauces works wonders too!! Mixed with canned tuna, sardines, and corned beef. And also canned/packed soup/meal (no fridge or oven here, only rice cooker and a single gas burner so limited cooking method) works wonders.

 

Thanks for the recipe, I'll use it in a few days. The method I posted earlier is done with wheat flour, use it to make a thick sauce or soup for each of your dishes. Please do not leave the flour in it's bag or box. Transfer it to a proper hard container or you'll find guests have taken up residence in it and have helped themselves to the flour. Actually, I guess it's extra protein.

Curry blocks/powder (NOT INSTANT BAG CURRY! Too expensive for one meal) are an absolute life saver as well, I've saved many experiments and failures with curry block and power. It can make most bland or disgusting foods you accidentally cook up taste good. I take an entire box of curry blocks and chop it into smaller pieces to use for individual dishes or by itself as a soup. I've used this in place of instant noodle powder sometimes so consider switching that out with curry for your health. Four blocks can make a big pot so you don't need to add a lot of it to a dish. It also lasts forever in the fridge or properly sealed.

I've never actually cooked fish or any seafood for that matter. What's your go-to recipe?

 

For seafood I keep it pretty simple. Since you're starting out I'd recommend either pan frying or grilling the fish a couple of minutes (about four/five minutes on each side per inch thickness) in butter or oil, with whatever seasoning you like. I usually cook mine with garlic butter, salt and pepper. Other blends I like for grilling/frying:
- cayenne pepper, garlic, onion, salt, cumin
- cumin, coriander, turmeric
- chili, salt, lemon juice

You can steam/bake fish in the oven in foil/taro leaves/banana leaves too. It only takes about 15-20 minutes (for an inch thick piece). Chuck in your herbs/spices, wrap it up and cook it in the oven. Be warned if you're cooking with leaves in the oven that any juices can leak out of the package, so you need to put it in a covered dish after you've wrapped it instead of on an oven tray. If you're using a bamboo steamer it takes roughly 6-8 minutes to cook an inch thick piece and about 25 minutes to cook a whole fish. I add spices and aromatics to the water at the bottom as well as to the fish itself.

For clams, mussels, oysters, etc don't forget to de-beard them and clean the shells. Chuck out any shellfish that are already partially open since they might already be 'off'. Once you've cleaned them up you can steam, fry, grill them the same way as fish. Just make sure to keep an eye on them, because once the shells are open, they're cooked. Discard any that don't open at all. I tend to chuck my useless shellfish into my planter boxes, digging them down deep so I can feed my lettuces/herbs.

You can replace meat with seafood in a lot of dishes. I tend to use seafood in curries, soups, steamer stacks and hotpot. Most people horribly overcook seafood, which is a crying shame. Properly cooked seafood should be slightly bouncy to the bite, juicy and tender. If it's like chewing rubber, you overcooked it, so keep that in mind when it comes to cooking times. If I'm making curries, soups, etc I treat it the same as regular cooking, add your ingredients in order of how long it'll take to cook for optimal taste, nutrition and texture. If you want a quick meal, stir frying is a good option since you can chop everything down into smaller pieces and cook it fast. There's lots of recipes around for all the methods I described so no doubt you'll be able to find something to your taste.

 

Thanks for the info. I'm gonna write something about it in the main post so everyone can make informed choices. ^.^ I have limited options when it comes to niacin, I guess, because I have a family member that cannot have any form of nuts. But we have a depressing amount of peas in the freezer (I don't like peas!) and meat that we eat daily. Maybe this is where we discuss getting some multivitamins to supplement what we can't find or eat?

Ah...I remember the days of student eating... I didn't have a microwave for two years. >_> So I had to reheat all my food on the stove. Reheated rice, with a bit of butter and some seasonings is really nice.... I still do it to this day just for the nostalgia factor. ^.^

Cordials (syrupy type stuff with vitamin C) or the instant powder drinks like Raro, Tang, Hawaiian Punch, etc are nice for something to drink if nothing else is around. I luckily have a lemon and lime trees so I am set there. Sometimes I will make a natural lemon or lime drink and add some powder drink sachets for the sugar and the flavour. ^.^ Kids think I'm a whiz. >_>

And ramen everyday definitely gets old after a while.... Anything gets boring or your body can reject it if you have too much of it... Also, before I forget, you can make sweet recipes with pasta too! Like a rice pudding dish, it's quite nice and not that hard to make either...I'll just have to get a hold of a recipe.

The Beans recipe that I posted uses Italian sauce. ^.^ since you can't always get the 'real stuff' when living overseas so If you like, you can look at this post for a kind of stew that you can make and add just about anything at hand. You can then have it with pasta, no harm in that. That recipe also translates well to a corned-beef dish to have with pasta or rice. *YUM* If you are interested, I'll post.

I will definitely try your suggestions. TBH, you could make a post like this with recipes for instant noodles...I'm sure there are many people that would appreciate the suggestions! As it is, I'll see if I can add links to your suggestions to the original post.

This comment made my mouth water. I _LOVE_ seafood. I can't have some of it due to allergies, but what I can have I enjoy thoroughly...now I have other ideas to try.. ^.^

If you don't mind, I'll refer to this response in the original post. I feel like it's worth mentioning even though it's not strictly emergency rations, yet if you know how to fish or have the opportunity to eat fish it's good to have a few recipes up your sleeve. ^.^

...Your knowledge on seafood would make a really good blog or post on it's own... *hint* *hint*

 

Well...I'll think about it? I'm going fishing this weekend so I'll try to remember to take photos when I cook something and put it in a blog post if you think it will help.

 

Meats have complete proteins. Eating beans and rice is only important for vegans and vegetarians. This is also why Fruitians need to see a doctor before beginning their diets...(well, they’re nutty to begin with. living on just fruit is nuts.)

 

eat nuts, i like mung bean and soybean

 

Food porn! ... I mean, oh yes! Only if you have the time though...I'm only doing what I can afterall. I can't ask any more than what you have already provided. It was so easily explained. ^.^ Have you ever tried the marinated raw fish recipes...I had one with raw coconut and lemon I think...that was nice. I'm too much of a wuss to make it myself though...

True dat. I'm thinking about contingencies plans and having a better, tasty diet. NZ produces all its own meat and stuff so I doubt we'll go without...unless they decide to ship it all overseas to get money... >_> But I don't think the government would let that happen.

 

There's a really simple recipe called ika mata loved by the cook islands (lit. raw fish). Take a decent fillet of raw fish. Cut it into small, bite size pieces on angles so you don't "squash" the fish. Slice with the grain. Arrange it in a bowl or dish. Take about 3 lemons worth of fresh lemon juice. drizzle it evenly through the fish, making sure the pieces are evenly coated. Stir, cover and chill for a few hours in the fridge to let it marinade. Once you've let it stand, take it out and drain it. Put the mixture into a new bowl. Add finely grated/chopped raw onion (red or brown doesn't matter). Add half a can of coconut cream (cream, not milk) capsicum, fresh chopped tomato and salt to taste.

It doesn't look that pretty, but it's extremely satisfying. It's rich, creamy, slightly salty and tart at the same time. The acid in the fish from the lemon and the sharpness of the onion cuts through the richness of the coconut cream without being overwhelming. I personally add tomato to mine for freshness and capsicum (bell pepper?) for sweetness.
I've got a couple of others I do, but that one takes care of the heartier appetites in the family. You can adjust the amounts all the way up to feed 100+ people and yeah I'm speaking from experience, lol.

 

To those who can't cook : instant noodles is life.

 

It's not because they'll die, but some governments have already implemented lockdowns so unless you can't avoid work you have to stay at home.

We have lockdown now in our area (for those who have an idea where I am please don't disclose tyvm) but my company says I still have to work since there are angry customers waiting for phones to be answered. Oh wait I went tangent.

Going back, I wish I could cook some meals mentioned in this thread. Unfortunately, I don't even have a stove. Not even a freakin' rice cooker/pressure cooker/etc.

 

Buy instant noodles..