Pantry leftover surprises
Oriental Shepherds Pie
In this economical meltdown, it's best to use everything your pantry has to offer before braving grocery shopping again. So go ahead and go crazy and brake out that sauce you never opened or that spice you never tried and create something new. Substitutions can easily become your favorite replacements. Cookbooks and recipes can be found everywhere, but knowing what ingredient substitutions you can make will save you money.
Shepherds Pie isn't usually a meal served to guests at an occasion, but this is sure to please and looks as good as it tastes. It's mixture of vibrant colors, various textures and compatible flavors make it universally palatable. Shepherd's Pie is also an easy and inexpensive meal to do in large quantities that can be served to a lot of guests, or simply refrigerate for tomorrow. It even tastes good cold! In any case, enjoy!
Ingredients:
- White rice (or Ramen noodles)
- Corn (or diced carrots/peas)
- Ground hamburger (or ground turkey)
- Wasabi sauce (or Hoisin sauce)
- Ground ginger (or Chinese 5 spice)
- Celery chopped (or green beans)
- Black pepper to taste
No potatoes? No problem. Substitute with the big bag of rice you've been ignoring in your pantry. Frozen corn is great, but if it's not on hand, substitute with the vegetable (like carrots) that isn't being used fast enough. Next, look at a food item that is soon to expire. Celery is a good example of a food that isn't used in large quantities at once, so its prone to be wasted. When buying hamburger, buy it in bulk and immediately freeze what you won't be using the next 2 days. When using hamburger, make it less boring by adding a new sauce or spice you haven't experimented with before.
Base Layer of Shepherds Pie:
The best rice to use is jasmine, but if the only choice is rice pilaf or wild rice, don't be afraid to use it. This is also an opportunity to make use of the ramen noodles sitting in the cupboard, if rice is not an option. The point is to use a soft textured starch as the bottom layer of the shepherds pie.
Middle Layer:
Simply use corn or diced carrots/peas. Add pepper to taste, but not salt, since Wasabi and Hoisin sauce already has a lot of salt in it. Most importantly, the texture should be slightly chewy, yet firm.
Top Layer:
After browning and thoroughly straining the ground beef, place it back into the pan and mix in a generous amount of Wasabi sauce and ground ginger to taste, along with a small portion of the corn and ground black pepper. Mix well while simmering together. Doing this "marries" the flavors harmoniously.
Topping/Garnish:
On high heat, stir fry sliced celery or green beans in wasabi sauce for a few minutes, being careful not to overcook. The goal is to have it warm and caramelized, yet crunchy. For extra flair, shave a few curls of carrot and place on top of each plate.
Do you have an ingredient that you don't know what to use it in? There are a lot of internet resources to give you ideas on how to use it. Decide on which ingredient you want to use, then look up the company that made it. You will find that they will have a recipes section on their website that will give you ideas you wouldn't have thought of. In no time at all gourmet cooking will seem like child's play.
Recipe Examples:
Wasabi by Ty Ling
Chinese style five spice by Spice Supreme
Ground ginger by McCormic
Price Chopper recipes
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