# Bad, bad bad Casseroles **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 6, 2024, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711 "2024-01-06T20:50:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2024, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/61 "2024-01-11T06:51:46Z")
> [@Deanna\_D](#): > > That is truly horrifying! Why? Why would someone ever create this monstrosity of a recipe? We’ve been going through _Young Sheldon_ on Netflix and one of the staples at the Cooper dinner table is spaghetti with cut-up hot dogs. Sounds delicious compared to this. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2024, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/62 "2024-01-11T07:54:15Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I’ve had broccoli/cheese casserole. It’s good. I can’t eat broccoli anymore though. I’ve never eaten a broccoli-cheese casserole I didn’t like, but for several years at Thanksgiving I ate one that I didn’t respect, if that makes sense: a friend of mine who didn’t like cooking was quite proud of her broccoli-cheese casserole. It was absolute mush: as far as I could tell, the recipe involved cooking already-soft frozen broccoli to the point where it practically dissolved if prodded, and mixing it with canned condensed mushroom soup, and pre-shredded cheese, then baking. I don’t know if the broccoli-cheese casserole you ate, @Beckdawrek, was like that, or had more structural and aesthetic integrity. As for me, my tastebuds are probably happy no matter what. Why can’t you eat broccoli? ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2024, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/63 "2024-01-11T08:41:31Z")
Any of those foods, broccoli, cauliflower or cabbage disturbs my digestion in ways that are not pleasant. Yeah, we’ll call it that😑. The last time I ate roasted cauliflower (which tasted very good) it stayed roaming around in there for about a month. I swear I felt it. Bumping into my sensitive guts and flopping around if I bent over. Disturbing. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2024, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/64 "2024-01-11T09:05:49Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Any of those foods, broccoli, cauliflower or cabbage disturbs my digestion in ways that are not pleasant. Sorry to hear that. Cruciferous veggies are delicious, but can have … consequences. ---
**Author:** ![DorkVader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2024, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/65 "2024-01-11T12:16:51Z")
That looks like something straight out of Close Encounters. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2024, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/66 "2024-01-11T14:25:10Z")
Haitian spaghetti makes spaghetti and hot dogs work pretty well, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2024, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/67 "2024-01-11T14:37:28Z")
My mom loved spaghetti with hotdogs. Blech. My mom wasn’t a great cook. I had a broccoli casserole I used to make that was delicious, but I’ve lost that recipe too. There was milk and eggs and cream of mushroom soup with crumbled ritz crackers for the top. I think there was mayonnaise in there too. ---
**Author:** ![Kelby2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ebca7d/32.png) [@Kelby2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kelby2)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/68 "2024-01-17T19:22:05Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > …will just drop this right here. > > [https://i.pinimg.com/originals/3f/a0/a1/3fa0a10538a5166902ffc763cc3e4c94.jpg](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/3f/a0/a1/3fa0a10538a5166902ffc763cc3e4c94.jpg) Oh. My. ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2024, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/69 "2024-01-18T08:02:14Z")
Could be worse. Could be set in aspic. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2024, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/70 "2024-01-20T06:21:25Z")
Last Sunday we had some friends over for pizza; a couple and their daughter. The wife had recently lost her mother, so of course I had to make them a casserole. First I sautéed some mirepoix, and tossed it into a big steel bowl for the stuffing. Then I sautéed some mixed bell peppers. Divided that between two casseroles (made one for us too, because why not?). Then I cutup some chicken breasts and put them on top of the peppers and threw the them in the oven on 450F. Then in the same pan I made a light roux. I thinned that with Madeira, heavy cream, and then milk. Tossed in a couple of bay leaves, some thyme, sage, marjoram, and left it on low to soak up the flavors. Meanwhile, in another bowl I made stuffing. The usual way. The mirepoix, chicken stock, butter, misc. herbs. Lots of tossing until it’s all damp. By then the chicken was cooked through. At this point I meant to add peas, but I forgot. I added some more celery and carrot to the chicken and mixed it all up. Then poured the creamy mix in, and topped it with the stuffing. Baked the whole thing at 350 for about a half hour. Let it cool in the oven while we ate our pizza. Then wrapped one up and sent it home with them. The other one we ate the next night. It was pretty yummy, if I do say so! Serious comfort food. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2024, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/71 "2024-01-20T06:59:45Z")
That sounds like a good good good casserole. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2024, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/72 "2024-01-20T07:40:42Z")
Any chance you have a pic of the final result? Sounds yummy but I can’t quite picture what it should be at the end. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2024, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/73 "2024-01-20T07:45:25Z")
I don’t, sorry. Imagine a chicken pot pie. Now take off the top crust and substitute a pile of dressing. To look at it, all you see is nicely browned dressing cubes. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/74 "2024-03-05T13:16:45Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > spaghetti with cut-up hot dogs Isn’t that what the Romans fed to Jesus? ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/75 "2024-03-05T15:15:47Z")
Yeah, just before pressing that crown of dogs on His head. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/76 "2024-03-05T15:29:15Z")
> [@kitap](#): > > Arepas are mainly Venezuelan and Colombian. They’re wheat or corn rounds thick enough to slice in half and stuff, if you want. There is a restaurant not far from us called Hola Arepa! The place is always packed. Good food the one time we were there. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2024, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/77 "2024-09-13T20:34:48Z")
Coming back to this thread to say that I have made @kaylasdad99 tamale pie recipe twice now - the first time, I made it as written (except for using some kalamata olives and jarred pimento strips instead of the can of black olives). It was okay but lacking in oomph (2 tsp of chili powder and no salt produces a bland result). But it did seem promising, so I made it a second time with these changes: -Masa harina instead of cornmeal -About a cup of jarred kalamata olives, cut in half, instead of canned black olives -Instead of 2 tsp chili powder, these flavors: - 2 TBS ground cumin - 1 TBS Mexican oregano - 1 TBS smoked paprika - 1 tsp Forward (a Penzey’s spice mix - you could probably just substitute more pepper) - 1/2 tsp ground white pepper - 2 tsp salt. -Rather than topping it with cheese before baking, I waited until the last 20 minutes. This got rave reviews from everyone who ate it! Personally, I’d add some hot Hatch chilis or other source of heat, but I knew it was going to be eaten by at least one person who doesn’t like hot food, and it was fine as a non-hot dish. I think using masa harina and adding salt were the most important changes. Anyway, I’d recommend this as a fairly hearty and tasty casserole. It makes LOTS - be sure to use a large pot when you cook it! ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2024, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/78 "2024-09-13T21:25:06Z")
That’s about my daughter does it. She adds fresh jalapeno if we have a few. It has to be mild for the kiddos. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2024, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/79 "2024-09-13T21:39:58Z")
Thank you, that’s very gratifying to know that you’ve enjoyed it. As it happens, I’m going to be making it this weekend for my meal prep. And I’ll be incorporating some of your modifications, so thanks for those, too. ---
**Author:** ![Patx2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/73ab20/32.png) [@Patx2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patx2)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2024, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711/80 "2024-09-15T02:53:29Z")
I’ve seen recipes for tater tot casserole a lot. Here’s the thing. I like tater tots, and I’ve made/had some good casseroles; but it’s one of those things, I don’t want tater tots in my casserole, I don’t want to steal this thread, but this got me thinking about basic meals that people sometimes want to add things to that do not belong. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-bad-bad-casseroles/995711.md?page=5)