January 18, 2023
It’s only been a week since we
set up my Christmas gift, but we’ve already used our new Ninja Foodie three
times! After some discussion, the decision was made that the first thing that
should be prepared in the device was French fries.
We don’t eat those often in
this house. In the good weather, David will take care of his regular craving
for “fries and gravy” by riding his scooter down into the center of town and
buying a large order of fries with gravy from a small local restaurant. He puts
the package of them in the insulated bag that is strapped to the back of his scooter
seat and then brings them home. They’re still very hot when he sits down at the
table to eat them. This of course makes him a very happy man.
He and our daughter both love
fries. I like them, but don’t crave them as often as they do. But I was looking
forward to learning a new, less-fuss and time-consuming way to make them.
Not unexpected, one of the
first things we discovered was that there is a learning curve involved when it comes
to using our new appliance. Perhaps more of a learning curve for some of us
than for others. You see, between my daughter and I, one of us reads directions
very carefully and more than once, and one of us, well, not so much.
We decided to make fries last Thursday
night. The only problem? We had no fries in the freezer. Daughter said she
would bring some home after work, which she did. However, she did not
buy them directly on the way home, but in that small time frame just before her
final client, which meant when those fries got here, they were no longer
frozen.
Some accommodation in the time
or temperature or perhaps, both, should have been made accordingly. As a
result, the fries cooked up very quickly and were definitely crisp. Maybe a bit
crisper that might have been desirable—for me. I’m the only one sitting at that
table who does not smother fries with gravy. I prefer a small circle of ketchup
for dipping on one side of my plate, and some malt vinegar sprinkled on the
fries on the other side. I ended up not eating my full portion, which was huge,
but the results were a good first try.
I especially liked the part
about not adding any oil.
The next day we went grocery shopping,
(and yes, we got another package of fries for the freezer), and while browsing,
we saw that they had a ready to heat “thin sliced beef” suitable, according to
the package, to make Philly Cheese Steak sandwiches. David salivated the moment
he put eyes on that product, and it was on sale, so we bought it. We also got a
package of six sausage buns for those dinner sandwiches, buns that looked very
fresh.
I knew I had green and red peppers
at home as well as onions that I could sauté to go with, so I knew our supper
was set. A quick update via text to my daughter, who would not be home for a
couple of hours yet resulted in her request for me to take a pack of her “Impossible
Burger” out of the freezer. Her plan was to make herself a couple of non-meat
burgers for her supper, and to cook them in the Ninja.
This time she read the instructions
and set the temperature and timer accordingly. And absolutely loved the
results.
Last night was Nanny Tuesday, which
means we had our daughter’s two grandchildren here for dinner. She decided to
make hamburgers for them—and for us, too. The Ninja is perfect for that,
because it will hold 4 burgers at a time, which is all we needed for the meat
eaters at the table. She cooked her own veggie burger separately, and again, the
appliance worked well. They tasted as good as burgers grilled outdoors. Another
plus, there was no smell of fried meat throughout the room that one usually
gets from frying hamburgers indoors.
Now we’re on a mission to seek
out different meals to make in the Ninja. There will be some new recipes in our
future, just in time to fight the winter doldrums.
Love,
Morgan
http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury
No comments:
Post a Comment