Save Money On Food And Energy... At The Same Time

Lately we have swapped our online time from The News to more healthful pursuits, such as Learning to Cook More Vegetarian Dishes. 

We are using the infinite cookbook that the internet has become, which is a much better use for it than being a conduit for mind-bending propaganda.

We have been very happy with the results. By cooking all our vegetarian food, and using the thermal cooker extensively to do it, we are saving money on food and energy at the same time.

Question:
What is in the thermal cooker tonight?

Answer:

Baked curried spiced sweet potato, cauliflower, onion, and garbanzo beans so good that eating this dish felt like doing a round of yoga, or laughing, or being on a mountain top at sunrise. 

Or all three, simultaneously.

Yes, we like it that much.

This veg dish is flavoured with olive oil, paprika, cayenne, cumin, salt, black pepper, cinnamon, and lemon, all of which do wonders for vegetables. 

In our experience, the more spices the better, and we try not to hold back. We want this dish to take us right back to India, and it does when done right.

Plate up with a generous garnish of home made yogurt. 

We made eight pita bread to accompany our meal.

The result?

A guaranteed nutrient high. The light burn in the mouth, and general feeling of well being lingers as a reminder of what just happened in the kitchen, the mouth, and the stomach. 

It's downright transcendental.

The News NEVER has that effect on us.

Question:

Why a thermal cooker? 

Answer:

There are many advantages to thermal cookery.

1. Don't have to watch dishes as no danger of burning, or boiling over. 

2. Foods done in the cooker almost magically reach perfection in cooking. We have rarely overdone anything.

3. Cooked foods stay warm and ready for serving for a long time. Eat at your leisure when you are ready. 

4. Save 50 to 80% in energy costs. This is one of our favourites. 

Note: 

We use dry beans because they are the most cost effective. Using the thermal cooker to make our beans reduces the amount of time the beans must be on the burner. 

First we soak all beans to be cooked in water overnight.

Then we drain beans, refill water to 2.5cm above beans, simmer on stove top for an hour, then 2 to 6 hours in the cooker, depending on the bean and what consistency is desired.

We cook three cups of dry beans at a time, then use canning jars to freeze 500 ml portions to use later. 

Our freezer currently holds a few cans of our own 3 bean mix (white, chilli, and kidney), chick peas (garbanzo beans), and soy beans.

For the dish in this post we used a can of the cooked chick peas done in the cooker earlier. 

The beans and the veg was all mixed together then mixed with the spices in 1/4 cup olive oil. We placed it in a baking dish in the oven at 350 for 15 min. 

After that we put it into the thermal cooker to finish off and keep warm (30 - 60 min).

This is where we learned this vegetarian dish, which has quickly become a favourite.