recipes that are simple and delicious.

Chicken paprikash is one of those dishes that is nothing but comforting. Don’t let the word paprikash intimidate you by any means. It basically translates to paprika, so when you are done slow cooking this dish, you end up with Hungarian paprika chicken. I have been wanting to make this dish for quiet some time [...]

Approximately once a month, if not more, my wife and I get a real craving for a curry and coconut mixture, typically with a bit of chicken, peas, and other vegetables that is served over rice. It is a dish, especially this time of year, that is extremely comforting. Some of my favorite Thai curry [...]

The croque monsieur. The sibling of the croque madame. A French style sandwich that, once made, will be in your memory for a very long time. It is a sandwich unlike no other. If you were to compare it to a hot brown sandwich, as awesome and amazing as those are, it still does not [...]

It’s soup season, and to boot, it’s comfort food season, at least in Wisconsin. See, it is pretty darn cold here right now, and when we come inside the house after hours of sledding outdoors, or even just getting home from work, we want, or better yet, we need something to warm our bodies. This [...]

I admit that I took eleven years of Spanish class, so I can quickly bust out the title of this recipe known as chiles toreados. Translated to English, it simply means roasted jalapeños, but not just any roasted jalapeño pepper in my opinion. I first noticed these roasted jalapeño peppers while dining at the counter [...]

I had one of those mornings where I woke up and immediately began working. I’m sure you have had this type of morning as well. Well, I got so caught up into my work that by the time I looked at the clock it was already 10:15 a.m. Normally I like to go to the [...]

Maybe some of you have once heard about a Mexican hot dog, and might have questioned it, much like I did. I recall seeing a show on television and they were talking about Mexican hot dogs, somewhere in the southwest portion of the United States. What it ended up being, and don’t get me wrong, [...]

I know I should probably be posting Christmas and holiday recipes right now, but I am not. Instead, I am posting about beef, and Thai beef to be more clear. I have no idea why I came up with this recipe, but I am pretty certain that I wanted something a bit salty, and something [...]

If you have never experienced larb in any of your favorite Thai restaurants, you must. Larb is typically seen in an appetizer section, or possibly a salad section of a menu. Larb can be done using pork, beef, or chicken, and when you make with any of these meats, you will understand the simple, yet [...]

As many of you are probably already aware, I love Mexican food. Heck, I like most all ethnic food that I have ever tried, but Mexican cuisine, and well, Thai, really stand out for me. There is something to be said of its simplicity while at the same time having a very complex flavor. Take [...]

Torta what? If you have never had a Mexican torta, you should seek out a local Mexican restaurant, an authentic one, and try one of their tortas. They are Mexican sandwiches that can be made in a variety of different ways. One of my favorites, is one loaded with avocado, refried beans, lettuce, and carnitas. However, [...]

For the past couple of months I have been tinkering with the thoughts of making some Korean food. I cannot say that Korean food is very popular in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and as a matter of fact, I think there might only be one Korean restaurant in the city. Many years ago, while I was living [...]

I do not know what came over me on this recipe, but I think I was thinking of the Thai fish balls I made some time ago. If you have never tried that recipe, I encourage you. Simple, and nothing but delicious and packed with flavor, I wanted to make something different for my wife [...]

A couple of years ago while traveling the east coast, one of our cousins was nice enough to ask my son if he wanted to travel to New York City with him to tour Yankee Stadium. It was a no brainer for my kid, who at the time was only seven years old. I don’t [...]

My wife is very lucky to have me. Hehe, just kidding. I do the food shopping in the house, and every other day I am at the store. I often reflect back to when I remember my dad going to the store, almost every night for a small basket of food items. Now I know. [...]

There are many times when I often think to myself, ‘it would be nice to go out tonight and have an array of tapas’. Some times you just want to be cooked for, and further more, sample small bites. Small bites are typically not found in my household, primarily due to the fact that I [...]

It was only a week ago when I decided to make a Cuban marinade for a pork shoulder. What I was going to do with the pork shoulder when I was done cooking it was a completely different story. I just knew I wanted pork that would be infused with a great garlic, and citrus [...]

I will be up front with you, I have never been to Cuba. I had to get that off my chest. But that does not mean that I have not sampled Cuban food throughout my lifetime, or better yet food from the southern part of Florida. Ropa vieja, tamales, and fried plantains are only a [...]

Let me begin by saying this dish is actually called ‘Costillitas de puerco con salsa verde’. I say this only because I first encountered this at one of my favorite Mexican restaurants in Milwaukee, El Rey. See, normally when I frequent El Rey, I typically order the same thing; a horchata with 2-3 tacos al [...]

It was many years ago when I first encountered what is called siao pao (show pow). I immediately fell in love with these. They are basically steamed buns filled with a meat mixture. It is the bun portion that I fell in love with however. The texture is unlike any other bun. It is soft, [...]

I had a craving for something different lately. I think it could have been the idea of a flatbread, or maybe it was hummus, or something to eat with ajvar that I had recently made. I know we all get this way at times, and we need to fill that craving pretty immediately. Fortunately, I [...]

The word ajvar is probably a word that many of us have never heard of before. It is a word that I bring to you today, and it is a word of Serbian decent. I am not too certain where I came across the name ajvar, but it did catch my attention when I began [...]

It has been hotter than hell lately. You would not expect that from the great white north, right? Well, it has been humid and pretty darn hot, almost to the point where you want to surrender to the heat and stay indoors. But come on, I live in Wisconsin, and for the most part, we [...]

It was not too long ago when one of my readers had commented on my Indian fry bread recipe informing me that it reminded her of Salbutes. That alone intrigued me to find out more information about what the heck a salbute was. After some quick research, I learned that a salbute is a lightly fried [...]

You may or may not know, but my wife and I became addicted to a creamed corn recipe that I made not too long ago. It was so good that I could not stop thinking about it for a few days! The creamed corn had everything you would want in a great cream corn, and [...]

For the past several weeks, I have been on a salsa making frenzy. I was jarring it up and giving it to neighbors, and pretty much eating a variety of salsa with pretty much anything around me. I had thought I had mastered my red salsa until I tweaked a few ingredients, added a bit [...]

One of the many things I experienced while living in Dallas, Texas was Thai food. When I started my career with a great company called Big Hand Productions, I hooked up with one of the audio engineers, Kevin, and we would often hang out after hours. Our hang outs typically involved dining at his favorite [...]

I have been on a salsa making kick for nearly three weeks now, and as I have made been making, or should I say experimenting, with salsas for a number of years, I believe I have locked into three recipes that are now my go to salsas. I might even call them sauces, because they [...]

Tacos have been on my mind for a long time now. Well, they are always on my mind to be honest. Tacos have been probably on my top three things I would want to eat everyday, and the reason is an obvious one. It is because you can fill a taco, soft corn tortillas, lightly [...]

I am a sucker when it comes to olives. Simply put, I like them a lot. Olives have that perfect salty and briney flavor that goes perfect with certain dishes. I typically only have olives around the holidays for some odd reason, or used in a Greek salad, and with that said, I love kalamata [...]

I am a big fan of hummus. I believe I first encountered hummus at a Whole Foods in Dallas, Texas. I dabbled in the premade Middle Eastern dip, and immediately fell in love with the texture, flavor, and the fact that you could pretty much dip anything into it and have it still be just [...]

I know that I have posted that my coworkers and I literally start a conversation on the topic of food, around 9:45 every morning, almost every day. No lie. As busy as we are and as many requests that we service every morning and afternoon, it is really nice to discuss something that everyone enjoys, [...]

It was not too long ago when my wife and I decided to get out to lunch and escape our busy work schedules. I will admit, it is not that often when we both get a chance to get out on the same time to get a bite to eat, especially one that does not [...]

St. Patrick’s Day is a time of year that I get excited about. Not only is there a sense that spring is so much closer, but it is also a time when corned beef becomes on sale at the store. Yes, that is probably what I get excited about, the sale of corned beef. But [...]

As you are already probably aware, I made my corned beef yesterday and I am preparing myself to a nice reuben sandwich tomorrow. I have a handful of ideas for my leftovers that I think you will like, so stay tuned. In the meantime, enjoy some of these recipes I have made in the past. [...]

I am going to be up front with you and let you know that I am not the type to use pre-made seasoning packets. I am usually the type who often uses the pinch method when using seasonings, eyeballing teaspoons and tablespoons, as after all, that is some of the fun in cooking. But… I [...]

I believe the first thing I learned to make in the kitchen was probably eggs. My parents worked the first shift while growing up, and my brother and I were on our own in the morning. Reflecting back on it, I think that by waking up, getting ready for school, and walking less than two [...]

The flavors of Indian food, in my opinion are so addicting. I use the term Indian very loosely in this recipe as many countries have their own version of what is called biryani. Biryani in its basic state is simply a dish containing meat, fish, or vegetables and rice that is flavored with some really [...]

I love hearing my wife tell stories of how she grew up, in particular some of the Filipino food items that they would eat. My wife is part Filipino, and since being married to her, I have become very interested in Filipino cuisine. I will admit, you simply do not see a whole lot of [...]

I will be the first to admit that one of my pet peeves is smacking lips while eating, that, and probably aggressive slurping of soups. But there are dishes that you simply have to allow and enjoy the experience of just that; lip smacking and slurping. Laksa is no exception. After watching some television, I [...]

I love a great meatball. Meatballs are really simple to make, plus they are hearty, and can be used in many different ways. I’ve done meatballs a number of different ways, including a Mexican version known as albodingas, a Thai version that I called Thai Fish Balls, and my ever so delicious Meatball Sub, but [...]

If you have been following my site for some time, you are probably well aware that Mexican food is a good source of comfort for my family. I would say that once a week we are either having a taco or nacho night with an array of toppings to choose from. Whether it be cheeses, [...]

If there is one thing I love while eating at a Chinese restaurant, it has got to be stir fried pea shoots. It is not very often that you see them on a standard, Chinese menu either. I believe I first encountered pea shoots while eating dim sum, many years ago, and as I wanted [...]

I frequent the local Mexican supermarket, or as I know is El Rey Supermercado, in Milwaukee, probably about once a week. It is hands down one of my favorite places to go for a couple of reasons. One, is that you get great produce and fresh tortillas about half the cost that you would pay [...]

If you have been on this site, the last few weeks, you will notice that I made a habanero hot sauce that was so hot and addicting, that it got me to thinking about making a serrano hot sauce. A Mexican table sauce if you will. The type of sauce for us chili heads, that [...]