# What do you call a dish that is a grain, a meat, and a veg all mixed together? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [February 1, 2023, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146 "2023-02-01T08:10:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/81 "2023-02-07T18:18:10Z")
I dunno, the cheese is certainly the best part of mac&cheese, but the noodles helps to hold it together. It sounds good to me. But yes, I assume that recipe serves a LOT of people. ---
**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:** [February 7, 2023, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/82 "2023-02-07T18:23:34Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > But yes, I assume that recipe serves a LOT of people. I have a recipe book that came with all blank pages that I’ve filled in over the decades. The bottom of each page has a spot that says, “Serves\_\_\_\_\_”. Every one I have written, “1”. ---
**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:** [February 7, 2023, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/83 "2023-02-07T18:31:16Z")
I certainly understand why it appeals to many. For me, the cheese is a nice accent to the noodles. My recipe is one pound mac to one pound cheese, and that’s even much richer than I like it. (But the kids love it at that ratio, and they’re the bosses.) Plus I’m also a cheap bastard. Four pounds of cheese is a lot of money. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/84 "2023-02-07T20:08:57Z")
I don’t especially like pasta. It’s calories, it will keep me going. It’s rarely delicious. ---
**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:** [February 7, 2023, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/85 "2023-02-07T20:13:21Z")
Ah, yes. Meanwhile, I could live my life on macaroni and butter, preferably with some parm or pecorino. Irony is, I don’t make pasta often (and my wife still thinks I don’t like pasta, even though I keep explaining this to her) because I lack the self control to avoid eating a thousand plus calories of it without thinking. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/86 "2023-02-07T20:15:30Z")
Whereas my husband and daughter don’t eat cheese (well, nothing vaguely like cheddar, anyway) so mac&cheese is something i almost never get. ---
**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:** [February 7, 2023, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/87 "2023-02-07T20:16:10Z")
Oh, a life without cheese is an unfulfilled one, I agree! ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/88 "2023-02-07T20:20:25Z")
I eat cheese. But I’ll have a slice of cheese for lunch, not a cooked fish that includes a lot of cheese. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/89 "2023-02-07T23:58:20Z")
If that wasn’t in fact a typo for “a cooked dish that includes a lot of cheese”, I am intrigued by this reference and would like to see your cooked-fish recipe. 😄 ---
**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:** [February 8, 2023, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/90 "2023-02-08T00:15:08Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I made a batch of this for this past Thanksgiving and it was easily the single best thing on the table. No leftovers by the time we were done. … And if it doesn’t clog your arteries, nothing will! 😲😉 ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/91 "2023-02-08T01:22:44Z")
I don’t have a special name, since there is important information in specifying a curry, stir-fry, or any of dozens of similar food subgenres. But I like the name “hodgepodge”. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/92 "2023-02-08T04:02:42Z")
Sadly, just a swypo. ---
**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:** [February 8, 2023, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/93 "2023-02-08T17:20:51Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > If that wasn’t in fact a typo for “a cooked dish that includes a lot of cheese”, I am intrigued by this reference and would like to see your cooked-fish recipe. 😄 I make a Greek-style fish dish with feta cheese. It’s yummy! 🥰 There’s a restaurant in Riga that offers grilled whitefish covered with cheese. I think they call it French-style. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2023, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/94 "2023-02-12T02:27:29Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > A bowl of that and I won’t be shitting for a week. I think the 2.5 sticks of butter would fix that right up. ---
**Author:** ![TekirKedi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tekirkedi/32/19028_2.png) [@TekirKedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TekirKedi)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2025, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/95 "2025-03-10T22:02:01Z")
I got here because I was looking for a name/word/category to tack onto the end of a recipe involving a grain, a protein and some veggies that is written up to cook in an Instant Pot. After reading some of the responses (The person disquieted by the thought that they had been making Mac n’ Cheese wrong all this time was priceless.) I decided to look up “melange” and wasn’t exactly turned on by the phrase in much the same way that I don’t go out of my way to try recipes that end in “bake” or “toss”. But an alternate word “medley” sounded better although restaurants appear to use this to describe “mixed vegetables” to make them sound more sophisticated and warranting the higher price. I don’t know if you have coined a name yet…but I get why you asked the question. I have a lot of “Once-Around-the-Kitchen” somethings with a similar vibe to one person’s “potato stuff”. So perhaps after the grain, bean and vegetable names one could put “one-pot medley”…? Eg. Instant Pot Quinoa, Bean, Edamame and Corn One-Pot Medley. Maybe it could be just the grain and “one-pot medley”. And call it Instant Pot Quinoa One-Pot Medley. Shorter and allows one to be more creative with the veg and protein combinations. …It was just a thought… ---
**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:** [March 10, 2025, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/96 "2025-03-10T22:15:42Z")
To answer the OP. It’s a _stew_. We personally call it “Zoop”. That was how my kid described it, age 3. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2025, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/97 "2025-03-10T22:22:50Z")
“Dinner” ---
**Author:** ![dougrb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/76d3ee/32.png) [@dougrb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougrb)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2025, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/98 "2025-03-10T22:39:36Z")
In high school we called it “Gruel”. ---
**Author:** ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2025, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/99 "2025-03-10T23:02:41Z")
We call this genre “rice 'n stuff”. Jambalaya, paella, arroz con pollo, biryani, bibimbap, fried rice–most cultures that have access to rice seem to have a version. I’ve considered writing a cookbook on the subject. Of course, rice could easily be quinoa or farro or couscous or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Bredin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@John\_Bredin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Bredin)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2025, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146/100 "2025-03-11T00:36:19Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I eat cheese. But I’ll have a slice of cheese for lunch, not a cooked fish that includes a lot of cheese. I know from reading on that was a typo, but my first thought when I read it was an Italian insisting that cheese with seafood is an abomination. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-a-dish-that-is-a-grain-a-meat-and-a-veg-all-mixed-together/979146.md?page=6)