Life Skills Thread

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To each their own. I'm just not a health conscious person, never have been.
As far as "anything I care about in my life?", I guess not. I've been depressed and apathetic for most of my life.
I'm just basically doin my time on earth. I don't really aspire for much in life. And if something starts to feel too much like work, I won't do it. Sounds sad and pathetic, but that's how I feel about life. There isn't a whole lot to live for, I merely exist.

Must be nice to be young and full of hope and enthusiasm for life.
I lost that long ago.

That's why I like the crock pot - Basically, you gather your ingredients, toss them in the pot and turn it on. The most you may have to do is open a can of something, defrost a bag of veggies or cut up some fresh veggies.

I take copies of my recipes with me when I go shopping and make sure I get everything I need (after checking off the supplies I already have at home.)

I found a few crock pot Chicken Vindaloo recipes. The crock pot is great for Indian cuisine because it cooks slow and low - a long time at a low temperature. That is what really infuses food with the flavors you add. Indian food also includes ALOT of spices. Once you learn them, and which spices adds what flavor, it's not quite as intimidating. Sometimes Indian ingredients can be hard to find. I'm in a good foodie area - we have access to an Asian market - but, if you don't, that shouldn't stop you from giving it try.

Crock Pot Chicken Vindaloo

Gather all of your ingredients first.

You will need 1 to 2 lbs of chicken - chicken leg quarters or chicken thighs are cheap and work well or you can use chicken breast cut into chunks if you prefer white meat. The weight does not have to be exact. If you are unsure you can always ask the butcher to help you pick the right cut of meat. People rarely do this any more and most butchers seem to love sharing their meat knowledge!

If you would like vegetables in your vindaloo, you will need about 2 cups worth of bite size vegetables - these can be frozen mixed vegetables that you like, peeled and cut up potatoes, peas, green beans, baby carrots, etc... whatever veggies you add make sure they are bite size chunks. Frozen veggies need to be defrosted in the microwave first. If you add ice cold veggies to a hot crock pot, you run the risk of breaking the ceramic liner that is your crock pot. Always defrost first.

You will need one baseball-sized onion - slice off the top and peel the skin off. Cut in half lengthwise, so the root end in split in two. Then slice the onion into thick strips, from top to bottom, about 1/8 to 1/4" wide. Put aside. (many groceries have precut onions in the frozen veggie aisle too. These will work just fine - remember - always defrost first!)

You will need one large can of crushed tomatoes - it will say 'crushed' on the can and may come in 'Italian flavor' - either is fine. This is a good item to stock up on when there is a sale. Canned tomatoes hold their vitamin content well and can be used in lots of different recipes.

Gather all the different spices that you need to mix together - this is a big list! You will need:

2 tablespoons of minced garlic from a jar (or more if you really like garlic)
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 cinnamon stick about 3-4" long OR 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tablespoons yellow curry powder (you will find this in any spice aisle)
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons ground mustard

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon hot cayenne pepper (or more if you like really spicy!)
2 teaspoons kosher salt (or salt to taste)

Most dollar stores have a decent selection of spices and many of these can be found there - you do not need to spend money on gourmet spices unless you want to. Cardamom may be the only spice you need to visit a supermarket for. Measure all of your spices (except the garlic and cinnamon stick) with measuring spoons (also at the dollar store) and pour them into a small bowl. Mix all of the dry spices together. When mixed, add the garlic and the cinnamon stick (if you are using the stick instead of ground cinnamon) on top of the mix and put the it aside. Put away your spices to help keep things organized.

Pour the can of crushed tomatoes into the crock pot. Pour your spice mix into the tomatoes and stir well until it is well incorporated. A whisk works well. Put your veggies in , if using them. Put your onions in. Put your chicken in. Turn chicken over in the tomato sauce with a fork a few times so it is coated with tomato sauce. Put lid on crock pot and turn on low. Let cook for at least 5 hours, longer is just fine too!

You can make rice to go with this. Many groceries have frozen naan bread that would also go well with this. Begin making the additional items about 1/2 hour before dinner time.

When ready to serve, turn off crock pot and give all contents a good stir before spooning over rice or into your bowl.

Just so this big list doesn't seem so complicated here is what we are doing, simplified:
chicken
veggies
onion
spices
all in the pot for at least 5 hours or longer

It's really not as much work as it sounds like it may be!

That sounds pretty approachable.

Could you clarify what you mean by "cutting the onion into strips?"

When you look at an onion - it has the pointy top and the root end. If you cut it in half horizontally, you would get onion rings - round sections. If you cut it vertically, on the top/root axis, you would get strips.

In cooking, the shape of the food and how you cut it is usually related to how it is eaten. Indian cuisine has alot of onion strips which tend to be somewhat straight shaped pieces - the food was originally designed to be eaten without utensils. People would rip off a piece of naan and pinch the food between the bread and eat it that way. Food that was oddly shaped or too rounded wouldn't make eating this way easy. Likewise, if food is cut up too small it might be harder to grab it. Most of the food in Indian recipes is cut with this traditional method of eating in mind - bite sized pieces that are easily grasped.

It doesn't really matter what shape your onions are though - you can cut them however you like! A fork and spoon change that food dynamic quite a bit.