Common Cuisine |

Do you ever wonder what makes a dish Chinese, or French, or Italian? These are some spice and herb combinations that distinguish certain national cuisines.

By using these combinations you can stick with a family of flavors and turn your otherwise ordinary meat and potatoes dinner into something with ethnic flair. All of the following spice combinations include onion and black pepper. Take a look at some of their distinctive flavorings.

Note that I have listed cuisines with which I have more experience. If you have knowledge of a national cuisine I have not listed, please feel free to submit a list of distinctives for that cuisine to be included here.

There is no shame in using Ramen noodles to jump-start your evening meal. Nutrition is another matter, but you be the judge of whether nutrition or survival is your highest value at the moment. 1 lb chicken or beef, cut into small pieces 2 Tbsp oil 1/4 cup diced onions (or 1/2 small) 2 cups cut up vegetables, such as red or green pepper, mushrooms, carrots, and/or broccoli 2 packets Ramen Soup (chicken or beef flavor, or oriental, or whatever you want) 2 cups water In large saucepan or wok, stir fry chicken or beef with onions until meat is cooked and onions are translucent. Remove from dish. Put cut-up vegetables in pan and stir-fry for a few minutes until slightly limp. Return meat to pan. Break up noodle packets and add to pan. Combine seasoning packets with water and pour over all. Simmer 5-10 minutes until noodles are soft. Serve immediately. Serves 4.

You can use any kind of cream soup here, for a variety of results. You can also add vegetables in the last 30-60 minutes, such as fresh mushrooms with mushroom soup, asparagus tips with asparagus soup, etc.

• 4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2 inch pieces
• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 1 onion, cut into slivers

Place chicken bites into slow cooker, then onion.

Stir together cream cheese and soup. Pour over top of chicken and onions, then mix gently.

Cook on low for 4-5 hours. High setting not recommended.

Serves 6.

You could invent meals for a month if you had all these things at one time! Try to keep all of the must-haves in stock, and a good variety of the useful items.

MUST-HAVES

• Bread
• Butter
• Cheese
• Chicken Broth
• Eggs
• Flour
• Garlic
• Ketchup
• Mayo
• Milk
• Mustard
• Olive Oil
• Onions
• Pepper
• Potatoes
• Rice
• Salad Dressing
• Salt
• Soy Sauce
• Spaghetti (noodles and sauce)
• Sugar
• Tuna
• Vegetable Oil
• Vinegar

USEFUL ITEMS

• Aluminum Foil
• Baking Powder
• Baking Soda
• Brown Sugar
• Canned Black Beans
• Carrots
• Celery
• Cereal
• Chocolate Chips
• Cornstarch
• Crescent Rolls
• Cans of Cream Soup
• Green Onions
• Horseradish
• Hot Pepper Sauce
• Lemons
• Onion Soup Dry Mix
• Parmesan Cheese
• Pillsbury Pie Crust
• Plastic Wrap
• Pickles
• Relish
• Salsa
• Tortillas
• Vanilla Extract
• Worcestershire Sauce

USEFUL DRIED SPICES

• Oregano
• Red Pepper
• Bay Leaves
• Cayenne Pepper
• Celery Seed
• Chili Powder
• Curry Powder
• Dill
• Thyme
• Garlic Powder
• Ground Cinnamon
• Ground Cumin
• Ground Ginger
• Dry Mustard
• Paprika

USEFUL FREEZER ITEMS

• 1-meal portions of chicken
• 1 lb portions of ground beef
• 3-4 pound roast (beef, pork, or whole chicken)
• Frozen Spinach
• Frozen Peas
• Frozen Fruit
• Bread Dough

• 3 cups peanut butter crunch cereal, crushed to 1 ½ cups
• 1 ½ C quick cooking oats
• ¾ C packed brown sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ C (1 stick) butter, melted
• 1/3 C corn syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 C semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 C peanut butter
• 2 T powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 13″ x 9″ baking dish. In large bowl, combine cereal, oats, sugar, salt and margarine. Add corn syrup and vanilla; stir until mixed. Press mixture into prepared dish. Bake 13 to 15 minutes until bubbly. Cook in pan on wire rack.

Meanwhile, melt chocolate chips, peanut butter and powdered sugar in small saucepan, stirring until smooth. Spread over cereal layer. Chill 30 minutes or until set. Cut into bars and store in airtight container. Makes 48 little squares, or 24 generous ones.

These are mashed potatoes, Southern Style, and sized for a crowd!

• 5 pounds potatoes
• ½ cup butter (1 stick)
• 8 oz cream cheese (1 pkg)
• ½ cup half-and-half
• onion powder
• garlic powder
• seasoned salt

Peel potatoes (if desired) and cut into chunks or slices. Place in large pot, then fill it with water to 1″ above tops of potatoes. Turn on high heat until water comes to boil. Cook on medium high heat until potatoes are soft when poked with a fork. Drain out water.

Using a mixer, add in butter, cream cheese and half-and-half. Add onion powder, garlic powder, and seasoned salt to taste.

Makes a lot of potatoes!