# What's for dinner tonight? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 6, 2011, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652 "2011-01-06T20:36:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 41
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/803 "2011-05-19T14:36:25Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Those aren’t technically deep-fried (they’re not completely submerged in oil, so far as I can tell), but if you do deep fry or are worrying about the waste of oil, don’t. Let the oil cool down, strain it, store it in a jug, and use it next time you deep fry something. You can recycle the oil at least three or four times; Alton Brown says seven times. I find that the first time you reuse the oil, it actually deep fries better than fresh oil, but after that or the second time, I start mixing it with more and more fresh oil. Wow, so I made the tacos actually last night and…it was something all right. The filling kept falling out of the corn tortillas and it took 5-10minutes for t hem to get even slightly “done”. I guess my burner wasn’t hot enough on the “medium high” setting. So I ended up just doing the tortillas and then stuffing them with chicken/chili mixture, which then was very tasty. But due to stuff falling out of them initially, the oil mixture got super dirty so I tossed it. Definitely a very kid-friendly recipe, with all the fixins’ added on but also pleasing to adults with a far departure from the “taco night in a box” kits. ---
**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:** [May 19, 2011, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/804 "2011-05-19T14:53:35Z")
> [@lindsaybluth](#): > > Wow, so I made the tacos actually last night and…it was something all right. The filling kept falling out of the corn tortillas and it took 5-10minutes for t hem to get even slightly “done”. I guess my burner wasn’t hot enough on the “medium high” setting. If it took 5-10 minutes to get slightly done, yeah, your oil wasn’t hot enough. You want to food to sizzle immediately and relatively vigorously on contact. I can’t remember where I heard this, but I believe it was a French chef who said the secret of (deep) frying was you wanted to “surprise” your food. If you do fried tacos again, do another batch with a mashed potato filling, too. (Doctor them up as you like–I like them with some fried onion, jalapeno, and cheese.) Fried potato tacos are one of my favorites–crispy outside, soft chewy, unctuous center. They should also be a little easier to deal with, as the potatoes will stick to the inside of your tortilla and shouldn’t go flying around the pan. Obviously, potato tacos are very starchy, so it’s nice to have some meat-filled tacos, too, to go along with them. ---
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/805 "2011-05-19T15:07:12Z")
That mashed potato filling sounds quite good. You’re right though, make them alongside meat filled ones so I’m not one walking carb-bomb. I’ll be making them again too, just 1) with the heat cranked up as high as it’ll go and 2) probably just the tortilla still, since when I did crank it up to the highest setting last night it still took 3-4 min/tortilla. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/806 "2011-05-19T15:10:22Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > If you do fried tacos again, do another batch with a mashed potato filling, too. I _almost_ made chorizo y pappas burritos this morning. But we had a couple of blueberry turnovers left, so we had them. Though I prefer piggy chorizo, Trader Joe’s has some decent soy chorizo. Checking the sausage locker, that’s the only chorizo I have at the moment. I cut up the potato and cook it in the microwave oven until it’s almost done, then fry it in butter to finish and make it a little crispy. Warm up a flour tortilla, spoon in come chorizo and potatoes, wrap it up, and Bob’s your auntie’s live-in lover. Monday a friend said she likes (soy) chorizo burritos with mashed potatoes. I’d actually considered that. I think I like the chunkiness of fried potatoes, though. Something tells me that Saturday’s breakfast is going to be a chorizo y pappas burrito. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/807 "2011-05-19T15:15:06Z")
I’m going to fry some catfish tonight, with some black beans and rice on the side and a vegetable to named later. I lightly dust it in a cornmeal/chili powder mixture and fry in peanut oil in a very hot cast iron skillet. Crispy and flaky, but not greasy. I also make my own tartar sauce with mayo, green onions, dill relish, a bit of lemon juice and a dash of paprika. Man, it’s like I was hearing porn movie music in the background when I was typing that…bow chicka wow! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/808 "2011-05-19T16:05:42Z")
**An Arky** , do you have a recipe/ratios for that tartar? I’ve tried making my own but it never turned out well or seafood house quality in the slightest. ---
**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:** [May 19, 2011, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/809 "2011-05-19T16:19:18Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > I _almost_ made chorizo y pappas burritos this morning. But we had a couple of blueberry turnovers left, so we had them. Though I prefer piggy chorizo, Trader Joe’s has some decent soy chorizo. Checking the sausage locker, that’s the only chorizo I have at the moment. I cut up the potato and cook it in the microwave oven until it’s almost done, then fry it in butter to finish and make it a little crispy. Warm up a flour tortilla, spoon in come chorizo and potatoes, wrap it up, and Bob’s your auntie’s live-in lover. Monday a friend said she likes (soy) chorizo burritos with mashed potatoes. I’d actually considered that. I think I like the chunkiness of fried potatoes, though. > > Something tells me that Saturday’s breakfast is going to be a chorizo y pappas burrito. I loves me some papas con chorizo. Hell, they don’t even have to be in burrito or taco form–great on their own or with eggs. If you do get a chance, do try a mashed potato filling in a fried taco. Hell, I could see no reason why you couldn’t do mashed potato with chorizo if you wanted. It’s that textural contrast of crispy and gooey that makes it so lovely. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/810 "2011-05-19T17:03:23Z")
> [@lindsaybluth](#): > > **An Arky** , do you have a recipe/ratios for that tartar? I’ve tried making my own but it never turned out well or seafood house quality in the slightest. Recipe, hell! I want to know if he has an extra seat at the table. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![janis\_and\_c0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janis_and_c0/32/21_2.png) [@janis\_and\_c0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janis_and_c0)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/811 "2011-05-19T20:05:40Z")
We’re having curried chicken with peas and potatoes, and tortillas on the side. It smells good already! ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/812 "2011-05-19T20:19:40Z")
I just wing it, but it’s basically about 1/3 - 1/2 cup mayo, 3 chopped green onions, about a heaping tablespoon of dill relish (not sweet), which I blot with a paper towel so it’s not too wet, about half a lemon’s juice, and just a dash of paprika to give it a bit of…something. Hope that helps. I forgot to mention that I put a bit of flour in the cornmeal mix to bind it a little (probably 4:1 cornmeal/flour), and you don’t need to season it beforehand if you don’t want. I also like Zatarain’s or Lousiana or Mrs. Sylvia’s brand fish fry mix, as well. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/813 "2011-05-19T20:27:06Z")
[http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Baked-Spaghetti-Squash-with-Beef-and-Veggies/Detail.aspx](http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Baked-Spaghetti-Squash-with-Beef-and-Veggies/Detail.aspx) This recipe, although baking the squash for 40 minutes means I need to start cooking as soon as I walk in the door. It’s tasty, cheap, and fairly nutritious. ---
**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:** [May 19, 2011, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/814 "2011-05-19T20:30:25Z")
Gonna fire up the smoker and throw a couple racks of ribs on. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/815 "2011-05-19T20:51:23Z")
> [@missred](#): > > Recipe, hell! I want to know if he has an extra seat at the table. 😛 There’s always room for one more. [/polite southern boy] 😃 Once it gets to be summer, I usually put on a big fish fry and make hush puppies and the whole nine yards. It tends to be fairly popular, so I’m probably doing something right. ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/816 "2011-05-19T21:16:09Z")
Roasted red potatoes with salad greens, homemade dressing, and broiled goat cheese disks bathed in olive oil, egg and bread crumbs. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/817 "2011-05-20T02:40:43Z")
Low Rent Chili Bean Pie. Open a can of chili beans in sauce, a can of Hormel’s Hot Bean Chili. Chop fine and cook a green pepper and some onion, mix into the chili and beans. Grate some cheddar cheese over this, spread a box of corn muffin mix prepared as the package directs over, bake 20 min. - 1/2 hr. till corn muffin topping is done. Tastes meh when cold, heated with some salsa and sour cream, dramatically improves. Makes a LOT! ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/818 "2011-05-20T03:27:12Z")
I finally got myself a julienne peeler and made a big mess of zucchini and yellow squash noodles, had them with a little cream and various spices and a lemon squeeze. They were very good! We had that with ham steaks. ---
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/819 "2011-05-20T16:56:47Z")
Ooo I don’t like zucchini but I do love yellow squash noodles 😃 **An Arky** , that’s a great recipe, thank you! I think I was screwing up by using sweet relish and not blotting it to boot. Tonight for dinner… who knows! I know I’ll be grilling at least one night this weekend; onion, tomato and bell pepper skewers, corn, lamb or beef burgers or possibly steak. I love the summer 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Alpine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpine/32/17813_2.png) [@Alpine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpine)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/820 "2011-05-20T22:01:36Z")
Tonight, ground elk soft tacos. We were going to have seared ahi, but I didn’t feel like driving to town just for a piece of fish. Third elk-based meal this week, but we’ve got a lot in the freezer! (Pan sauteed elk steak on Monday, thai chili elk on Tuesday.) ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/821 "2011-05-20T22:58:47Z")
I had bought some beef bratwurst in preparation for hubby coming home last night, and putting them on the grill. Unfortunately, he’s not going to be able to make it home this weekend. ☹ So I made some mac and cheese, popped the brats under the broiler, got some nice rolls, and chilled some fruit. Simple, and just the kind of thing the brats (the ones I gave birth to, not the ones from the grocery store) like! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2011, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652/822 "2011-05-21T00:44:51Z")
Chili soft shell crabs. Never cooked them before. I have only eaten them in restaurants and never seen them in a fish shop but spotted some frozen ones the other day at the Asian supermarket. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652.md?page=40) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-for-dinner-tonight/566652.md?page=42)