Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

This really does sound like a dream job. I'm lining up behind the other jealous. A very long time ago I cooked on the weekends at a boarding school. It was fun but not terribly creative. Lots of frozen foods (including quiche - it wasn't shabby, it was just already done). I'm so pleased for you and inspired by your moving through lots of opportunities and working your butt off until you found what a great fit.

I had plans to BBQ some ribs and the weather turned very wet and storms were in the area so I decided to put them in the oven. They were great and I plan to do them this winter as well. I made my own BBQ sauce this spring and what a success. I use it on everything I grill now. When I start off though with ribs, I use a dry rub and wrap it up with the sauce about 30 minutes before I serve them.

sure beats the hell outta Ramen!

Thanks for the advice! I too will be BBQ-ing well into the fall-winter months.

Yes,I could not find Ming's new toy,too.But I would rather to use ceramic knife.I own 3 pcs 4"-6" Fuboon ceramic knife.Cheap and good to use.

I must admit that I have become a huge fan of Look cooking bags. Over my protestations, my husband convinced me to use one for a turkey once and I have never looked back. I cook mine on a bed of root veggies in a stoneware roasting dish.

cfoodie, chicken is a very forgiving piece of meat, just cook the damn thing any way you prefer, it's cheap and if you screw it up try it another way.

Which All Clad pan is it that you think doesn't have any aluminum core?

As for roasting a chicken, I use my 10 inch All Clad stainless skillet fairly often and on occasion use my 10 inch cast iron skillet. I also use my 5 qt oval enameled cast iron dutch oven. It depends on what's easy, whether I feel like dealing with cleanup and whether I intend on making a sauce and/or want to roast vegetables along with the chicken.

@california foodie I don't think it makes any difference with the cleanup. I roast a well seasoned 4-5 pound chicken for about 2 and a half hours at 325 degrees. I think the lower temp reduces a lot of the splatter, cooks the bird all the through without drying out the breast and results in a nice crispy skin. Everybody has their own favorite routine for a perfect roast chicken and this is the one my family likes the best....oh here's a hint about cleaning the pan-as soon as you take the bird out of the oven and have either drained off the juices or deglazed fill the pan up with hot soapy water ASAP and in a few minutes your pan will clean up nicely.

@melissaaune, the show I was referring to, is "Anna And Kristina's Grocery Bag" - it is on the Woman's network on Canadian TV - they are out of Vancouver and they used to have a similar type show called, "The Shopping Bags" where they would try out different brands of a product, (i.e. hair shampoo/toothpaste/flooring/garden shears, etc.) and tell you what they thought was the best product for the price point. Hope this helps. We actually have a couple of good shows that could be used to advantage in the US - ie. Michael Smith's, "Chef at Home" series in which he makes meals from whatever is in his pantry without use of recipes - it sure would be better than their Sandra Lee, who is supposed to appeal to non skilled cooks. Michael prepares good, simple food from scratch.

Slow Cooker Jambalaya

Make this Cajun/Creole dish as spicy as you like.

Ingredients

1 large onion, chopped (1 C.)
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped (1 C.)
2 medium celery stalks, chopped (1 C.)
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 can (28 oz.) Progresso® diced tomatoes, undrained
2 C. chopped fully cooked smoked sausage
1 Tbs. parsley flakes
1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. red pepper sauce
3/4 lb. uncooked peeled deveined medium shrimp, thawed if frozen
4 C. hot cooked rice

Directions

Mix all ingredients except shrimp and rice in 3 1/2- to 6-qt. slow cooker. Cover and cook on low heat setting 7 to 8 hours (or high heat setting 3 to 4 hours) or until vegetables are tender. Stir in shrimp. Cover and cook on low heat setting about 1 hour or until shrimp are pink and firm. Serve jambalaya with rice.

Note: This recipe was tested in slow cookers with heating elements in the side and bottom of the cooker, not in cookers that stand only on a heated base. For slow cookers with just a heated base, follow the manufacturer’s directions for layering ingredients and choosing a temperature. (Total time will vary with appliance and setting.)

Hillary
Chew on That

Nigella's lamb tagine recipe could probably be done as an all-day slow cooker recipe, or just make it the day before. Lamb, caramelized onions, olives, capers, garlic, ginger, cumin, wine. Done. She sprinkles coriander (cilantro) and pomegranate seeds over the top for some color, but you can also use Italian parsley and orange zest. Couscous is fast and if you need another side you could do ahead the butternut squash and chickpea salad from Orangette or Smitten Kitchen. Exotic but reeeally easy.