# Jerry-rigged foods. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 10, 2016, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612 "2016-07-10T23:42:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/21 "2016-07-11T15:20:00Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > “Jury-rigging” was a nautical term, referring to actual ship’s sail rigging, set up in an emergency or temporary fashion. A jury-mast is a smaller pole wedged up in place of a proper mast broken off in a storm, for example. Jury-rigging may be expertly done, but it is never meant to be permanent. Indeed! And the cool knot used to rig the temporary mast is a [jury mast knot](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jury_mast_knot), a very cool knot. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/22 "2016-07-11T16:06:53Z")
Why are my side notes always more interesting than my main topic? I am the Queen of digression! ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/23 "2016-07-11T16:44:51Z")
Pasta alfredo: Cook the pasta, then add milk, butter, and Parmesan cheese. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/24 "2016-07-11T16:48:12Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > Why are my side notes always more interesting than my main topic? I am the Queen of digression! 😃 Been there. I feel your pain/delight. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/25 "2016-07-11T16:53:47Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > I’ll mix mayo and sweet relish to make tartar sauce. Reduce the amount of relish, add ketchup and you’ve got either Russian dressing or McDonald’s secret sauce. If you grate half an onion, soften (but don’t brown) in olive oil (you can add garlic too), add tomato paste in with chicken broth, you got a sort of tomato sauce that you can put over meatballs. I wouldn’t call any of those “jury-rigging” as much as “just making stuff from scratch”. Tartar sauce _is_ essentially mayo with chopped pickle. My recipe for tomato sauce basically consists of cooking grated onion and garlic in olive oil, then adding canned tomatoes and spices. > [@RealityChuck](#): > > Pasta alfredo: Cook the pasta, then add milk, butter, and Parmesan cheese. Bah. Alfredo doesn’t need milk; just toss the pasta with butter, parmesan, and a bit of the boiling water. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/26 "2016-07-11T17:39:47Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > Why are my side notes always more interesting than my main topic? I am the Queen of digression! Interesting fact about the Queen of Digression; she was never expected to become a queen at all. As the Princess of Sidebars she was fourth in line of succession, but a series of unexpected diversions occurred… ---
**Author:** ![skdo23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@skdo23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/skdo23)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/27 "2016-07-11T17:47:18Z")
> [@ThisSpaceForRent](#): > > Pretty much that is just “making cocktail sauce”… Exactly. That’s how we made cocktail sauce at a seafood restaurant I once worked at which was part of a chain. ---
**Author:** ![Labtrash](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/labtrash/32/528_2.png) [@Labtrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labtrash)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/28 "2016-07-11T17:54:56Z")
2 Avocados + 1 pint container of store-made Pico de Gallo = Guacamole ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/29 "2016-07-11T19:09:58Z")
Ah! I remember a Jerry-rigging I do! If I need buttermilk for making skillet cornbread and I don’t want to a)walk to the corner or b) pay for buttermilk, I will whisk a heaping spoonful of sour cream or plain yogurt into a half-cup of skim milk until smooth. Works great. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/30 "2016-07-11T19:12:10Z")
> [@Labtrash](#): > > 2 Avocados + 1 pint container of store-made Pico de Gallo = Guacamole That would work well. What I usually do is slice the avocados onto a dish, squeeze a lime over, salt, and squeeze a little more lime over. WHY DILUTE THE AVOCADO GOODNESS ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/31 "2016-07-11T19:17:39Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > That would work well. What I usually do is slice the avocados onto a dish, squeeze a lime over, salt, and squeeze a little more lime over. > > WHY DILUTE THE AVOCADO GOODNESS I usually take a potato masher to the avocadoes and then add in a bit of salt, pepper, lime, olive oil, and a few dashes of hot sauce. Tomatoes and cilantro and what-not belong in the pico de gallo, which I learned how to make by observing what my Hispanic customers at the grocery store would buy all the time; Roma tomato, white onion, serrano pepper, lime, and cilantro. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/32 "2016-07-11T20:39:51Z")
> [@Skammer](#): > > Interesting fact about the Queen of Digression; she was never expected to become a queen at all. As the Princess of Sidebars she was fourth in line of succession, but a series of unexpected diversions occurred… If this were Facebook, I’d thumbs up the shit out of this. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/33 "2016-07-11T21:24:55Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > If I need buttermilk for making skillet cornbread and I don’t want to a)walk to the corner or b) pay for buttermilk, I will whisk a heaping spoonful of sour cream or plain yogurt into a half-cup of skim milk until smooth. Works great. There’s a variant of that with vinegar; I don’t recall the exact measurements, but I do know not to use cider vinegar; gives cornbread a weird flavor. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/34 "2016-07-11T21:59:16Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Anyhow, I’m not sure I consider mayo & relish jerry-rigging tartar sauce so much as actually making tartar sauce. But if stuff like that counts, I do that, as well as the “hamburger sauce” of mayo, relish, ketchup, and mustard. When I want to half-ass pizza, I’ll just build it over a flour tortilla instead of making or going out and buying fresh pizza dough. They may not be the best versions of these sauces, but they’re adequate, and I think most people haven’t had anything significantly different. My friend’s bar and grill used to sell pizzas made on a big tortilla as thin crust pizza. Sold it at the same price, big saving in prep time cost, cooked in about 3 minutes. The young women in the place couldn’t get enough of the low-carb pizza. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/35 "2016-07-11T22:37:16Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Anyhow, I’m not sure I consider mayo & relish jerry-rigging tartar sauce so much as actually making tartar sauce. But if stuff like that counts, I do that, as well as the “hamburger sauce” of mayo, relish, ketchup, and mustard. When I want to half-ass pizza, I’ll just build it over a flour tortilla instead of making or going out and buying fresh pizza dough. I do both of these as well, and hot-dog spread in my house is equal parts yellow mustard, diced onion, and pickle relish with about a tablespoon of the oil from a jar of good hot giardiniera. ---
**Author:** ![tenacious\_j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/439d5e/32.png) [@tenacious\_j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tenacious_j)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/36 "2016-07-11T22:53:13Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > Why are my side notes always more interesting than my main topic? I am the Queen of digression! You are also the queen of making me hungry lately. Good thing dinner’s in the oven. Not any kind of -rigged, just sausage and veggies. > [@zoid](#): > > I do both of these as well, and hot-dog spread in my house is equal parts yellow mustard, diced onion, and pickle relish with about a tablespoon of the oil from a jar of good hot giardiniera. Totally stealing this tomorrow. Yum! ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2016, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/37 "2016-07-12T00:09:41Z")
Waitaminute! Am I to understand that tartar sauce does.not somehow include cream of tartar? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2016, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/38 "2016-07-12T00:17:38Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > Waitaminute! Am I to understand that tartar sauce does.not somehow include cream of tartar? It actually could be in some commercial preparations as a thickener or stabilizer. However, steak tartare was so named for being served with tartar sauce. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2016, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/39 "2016-07-12T14:49:32Z")
I’d say that a common jury-rig in our house is to cook something one day, and then repurpose the leftovers into another dish. For example, we might roast a chicken (or buy one at the grocery store or Pollo Regio up the street), and eat that one night, then strip the carcass and make chicken salad the next night. Or get barbecue one night, and then have brisket tacos the next night. In the winter, soups become quite the thing in our house; leftover ham, turkey and chicken make great soup. ---
**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:** [July 12, 2016, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612/40 "2016-07-12T15:33:51Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > Waitaminute! Am I to understand that tartar sauce does.not somehow include cream of tartar? Honestly, I’ve never seen a recipe that includes it. I don’t know of any connection between tartar sauce and cream of tartar. I’ve only used cream of tartar for the acidic component in a baking powder or to help egg whites stiffen. My take on tartar sauce usually also involves capers, but typically a basic one is mayo, finely diced onion, relish, and lemon juice. I’ll also add parsley, chervil, and/or tarragon if I have them on hand. And, of course, salt and pepper to taste. But plain mayo and relish is close enough to call homemade tartar sauce. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jerry-rigged-foods/759612.md?page=3)