Living in Finland, by Lady Enslain

Go-to meals without go-ing-to drive-thru

September 9, 2009 at 8:51 pm (Food & Recipes)

This is what we eat regularly.  I guess I’m not documenting these to remember, but rather to perpetuate the usefulness of these incredibly simple meals.

Spicy Hot Dog Soup – Tuulinen Nakkikeitto

The husband doesn’t particularly enjoy soup, but this one is so thickly tomatoey, and heavily based upon the food rather than the liquid, so this is the only soup I dare to make.  What man wouldn’t enjoy hot dogs in any form?

1 l water

8-10 hot dogs

5-6 medium potatoes

2-3 carrots

1 veggie bouillon

1/2 box tomato paste or puree

2 tbsp sweet chili sauce

bit of Tabasco

oregano, salt, and pepper to taste

Boil water with veggie bouillon.  Add chopped (about teaspoon-sized) potatoes and sliced carrots.  Let boil for about 10-15 minutes.  Add tomato puree along with sauces and seasonings until the taste is a bit spicy and rich.  Add sliced hot dogs and stir for about a minute.  Mix well when serving – the hot doggies float.

Corned-Cream Tagliatelle  Nopea Broileripastakastike

I dunno what creamed corn tastes like, but my corned-cream pasta dish is moist and sweet with a peppery bite, and is one of the fastest meals I know how to make.  I didn’t stray far from the original recipe here, only a li’l.

1 pkt honey-marinated chicken pieces

300 g tagliatelle (or fetuccini)

1/2 bag frozen corn (canned is fine too)

1 dl food cream

1/2 package of Mustapekka cheese (translated as Buck cheese, if that helps.  It’s pepper-filled and soft.)

more pepper!  Lotsa lotsa.  And some salt.

Boil pasta.  Fry chicken in small amount of oil.  Add cream and cheese when the oil is soaked in and dried out.  Add corn, and flavor with salt & pepper.  Keep adding cream until it’s nicely moist, which will be soaked in by the tagliatelle.

Fried Dogs & Fries Nakkiperunat

I usually make this dish outta sausage rather than hot dogs, but this was equally excellent, and a super cheap dinner.  I don’t know if this costs more than a euro for a two-people meal, and it’s always a favorite.  Not the most nutritious, I suppose, but on a Friday night nutrition gets gently shoved out of the window.

5-6 potatoes

6 hot dogs

SALT

Peel and chop potatoes into smallish wedges that are thin but not too much, else they’ll overcrisp and lose their potatoness.  Fill a frying pan 1/2 way with cheap oil.  Fry at medium-high or high heat.  It usually takes me 2-3 rounds to get all of these through the pan, ensuring that every spot of the surface is immersed in the sizzling oil.  Takes 5-10 minutes, the first round is usually the slowest.  Remove after surface is quite dark, place on paper towl to absorb the excess grease, but quickly transfer to a plate before it absorbs too much.  Cut hot dogs into slices and cut them in half.  Add to the hot grease.  These are rather quick, only a couple minutes, so do this at the end.  Remove when they have crisped and browned a bit.  Give the fries a nice cool shower in salt, and serve with ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, or melted cheddar.

Toothpicked Taco Assortment

I don’t know why I’m unable to keep tacos closed.  Maybe I overstuff ‘em, I’m not sure.  But I bought a container of 1000 toothpicks which I thought was ridiculous, as in, I’m not gonna use this many toothpicks in my life.  Now I’m on a mission to use them up before the end of the year.  But taco day comes fairly often, every time I have a little bit of minced meat left, either still in the container, or pre-cooked with tomato sauce.  Always a little different, and always a welcome treat.

3 medium-sized tortillas

100-150 g minced meat

tomato sauce, puree, or chopped tomatoes

lettuce

1 tomato

shredded cheese

corn

black olives

guacamole

Thai sweet chili sauce

Microwave tortillas for about 30 seconds.  Fry minced meat.  Add tomato saucy product, and flavor until it tastes just right (salt, pepper, spices).  Add in shredded cheese (and optionally the sweet chili sauce) and stir.  Spread some guacamole on some or all of the tortillas.  Place a bit of the minced meat mixture on on side, then add other toppings, however you like.  Usually I’ll add either tomato pieces and lettuce, or corn and olives, or some mixture of these.  Wrap up, fold in one side, stick with a toothpick, and warm up in microwave for 20 seconds or so.

Mac & Cheese: Ham & Peese Kinkkujuustomakaroni

This is about the easiest dinner, provided you can find the Kraft Mac&cheese box in Finland.  Hint:  I found them for just over 2€ at the K-Supermarket in Ruoholahti.  Granted, it should cost less than a dollar back home, but it’s still worth an easy meal without thought to ‘is it cheesy enough?’

1 box Kraft Macaroni & Cheese

little bit of milk and butter

1/2 bag of frozen peas

1/2 bag of sliced pizza ham

Prepare Mac&Cheese as directed on box.  Add peas to macaroni a few minutes before draining.  Meanwhile, fry the ham until they are browned and not sticking together.  A bit crispy is good.  Add to pot when adding the cheese powder, milk, and butter.