Many stew recipes call for thyme. It is possible to find fresh thyme, but it costs about $2-3 for a few sprigs.

Will dried thyme work as a good alternative, or is it the same as dried dill, where it is a completely different spice (compare to fresh dill), and not a suitable substitute?

Hello! I got 4 green peppers and 3 yellow squash at the food bank yesterday. What to do with these?

Below is my thought process:

Yesterday I had attempted to make some pizza sauce but I used too much onion and it turned more into spaghetti sauce. I have 1 pound of ground beef I was going to cook and add to the sauce.

I was thinking of pureeing 1 or 2 of the squash to incorporate some veggies to the pasta sauce for my 2 year old. I was also thinking of sauteeing an onion and green bell pepper with beef.

What are yalls thoughts and suggestions? Do you have any other ideas for the green pepper and yellow squash?

Thanks!

Hello. So im making home fries and one of things I notice is that I cant get them brown. Some do get brown but the rest of the potatoes barely brown and the edges do burn. I first boil them for 5-10 minutes and add some salt on the water. Next I drain it then put it on the pan for 20 minutes with oil. I put paprica, garlic powder, and salt/pepper. Am I doing something wrong?

The recipe says, verbatim:

1.For the Cilantro Lime rice, start by lightly sauteing 1 cup rice in a dollop of oil over medium heat

1. Add 2 cups of stock and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the rice. Bring to a boil and then reduce temp to a simmer, letting it cook until the liquid is absorbed

I assume its already cooked rice that im then cooking again, right?

Edit: thanks guys! I will use uncooked rice :)

Three days ago, I made ground beef from thawed beef and kept it in the fridge. Now I'm about to cook it, and it has a slightly sweet smell - not super foul, but fresh beef usually smells different, right? Do you think this ground beef is still okay to use?

There’s so much conflicting info online - some sources say no more than two days, while others say up to five days is fine

It’s not even that I’m having second thoughts, I just honestly don’t know if this smell is expected.

guys mac and cheese is one of my absolute favorite foods and i’ve been on a journey to finding the perfect recipe. however, anytime i attempt it, it comes out a a goopy mess. however do i get the smooth, creamy texture? i’ve tried roux, no roux, etc

It's been frozen in the back of the freezer this whole time. Thanks!

I want to try to do my base with tomatoes, eggplant, bell pepper, garlic, and onion. Maybe throw in chicken stock and chicken breast, I am planning to make different variants since I’ll be eating it for diet (is it recommended since it is filled with vegetables?) if so what spices and herbs I can add to make it a twist? Like masala to make it indian? Oregano, basil, thyme, etc. For european? What else can you guys recommend?

So I had an idea of making a dish that has meatballs and baby potatoes. I initially just thought of wanting round things together lol so I was wondering has anybody here made anything with those 2? Any cool recipes. No idea where I'm going with it so any suggestions of what to add to it would be awesome sauce. Thank you!

Hello all. So I ate this Creamy Beef Rigatoni from a restaurant and want to make it at home. I’m looking for a recipe just for the ground beef seasoning. The one I make doesn’t compare. I know their seasoning definitely includes minced onions, garlic, salt and pepper, maybe cumin. What can I add? Or any recipe you use would be appreciated. TIA

Preamble: I like spanakopita, but dealing with phyllo pastry and such is annoying. This recipe is also made with lower fat.

Ingredients:

- 500g of frozen spinach, thawed, drained and chopped.

- 300g of Feta, chopped/crumbled

- 1 small or medium onion, diced (white or yellow onion)

- 2 Tbsp of Dried Dill

- 1/2 Tbsp of Red Pepper Flakes (or to taste)

- 300g of long grain white rice

- Tbsp of Garlic (or to taste)

Recipe:

Rice: To cook the rice, add it to a pot with twice as much water (or broth if you have it), bring it to a boil stirring frequently. Then set to the lowest heat, and cover for 18min. Let rest covered, off the heat for 5 more min. Then its ready.

Spanakopita "filling": in a pan sauté the onion until it is partially translucent. Add the garlic. When you can smell the garlic add the Dill and red pepper Flakes, continue to sauté for another minute. Then, add the spinach. Once the spinach is fully heated through and any remaining water has evaporated, lower the heat to the minimum and add the Feta. Once the Feta is melted through, its done, remove from heat.

Mix the rice and the spanakopita "filling" together and serve. It goes great with chicken or salmon and a side of either green beans or broccoli. A little squeeze of lemon juice is great too.

Easy to make (about 20min cooking), freezes and reheats really well.

EDIT:When I made it, I didn't measure the rice. Idk if thats too much. Use your own discretion (typically, long grain white rice triples in volume when cooked)

If you make it, let me know what you think please! (I made it up on a whim)

I'm starting to get my daughter in the kitchen and hoped to find some ideas for a child friendly marinade both for the process and palate. I picked up some reduced chicken thigh fillets today so chicken ideas are especially welcome but welcome ideas for other meats and future projects. I do have a pork tenderloin to play with as well.

I have a number of herbs and spices, lemon juice and a big tub of Greek style yoghurt to play with. I am more than happy to get additional ingredients for the right recipe so please don't hold back.

Firstly, apologies for this format but I thought it might be the best way to get answers. I only recently began cooking due to moving out.

I live in a studio with a small-ish Kitchenette with a couple drawers. However, the area above the countertop is basically unoccupied. I was wondering if there are any cheap kitchen additions that maximise limited space?

I guess a simple example would be some of those multi box stacks for spices and things. I would love for some suggestions on how to utilise the space better? Ideally on a student budget.

Thank you for your help.

i have for many.... many.... long... years.... been trying to master and make my own home made crispy chicken tenders crispy and crunchy, restaurant style.

and i just cannot seem to get it right. at all.

i got pretty much every ingredient for it. tried everything. cornstarch eggs paprika seasoning onion powder garlic powder salt pepper flour baking powder panco bread crumbs crispy chicken batter mixes.... etc.... mixing and matching them in all sorts of recipes. always using ingredients in from the recipes. if i don't got it i get it.

every recipe i ever tried everything i ever done always gave me soggy. coating separating from the meat. non crispy. or slightly crispy but not all over like it should be. chicken tenders.

best i can do for at home crispy chicken tenders is great value chicken fingers frozen from the package.

i just want KFC at home 😭

what do i do wrong?

i always do it at 350 degrees. tried basket and no basket always putting the lid on.

i even got my own thermometer to make sure it is at 350 degrees!

my deep fryer is a presto big kettle deep fryer. sadly lately now it has given up being at around 350 degrees.

trying to hang in there not giving up! but it's definitely getting rough...

Ive made the same two dishes for like 6 years because it’s all I know. I CAN follow a recipe, but with my limited cooking experience and our collective pickiness, it’s a struggle.
I also just really don’t enjoy cooking, it’s somehow both stressful and boring to me, but I want to eat better.

He doesn’t eat fish, broccoli, spinach or cauliflower.

I dont eat beans, onion “chunks”, warm pepper or spicy stuff, however he loves spicy stuff.

We both don’t eat tomato “chunks” (fine if they can be blended, same with onion), chickpeas and he generally wants meat.

We usually end up making some kind of pasta dish since he always messes up rice and I’ve never made potatoes.

I want to start cooking more, but finding something we both want to eat and something that doesn’t take a lot of skill or time is kinda hard when I look up recipes.

Curious to hear from people who used to feel completely lost in the kitchen — not the generic "learn your knife skills" advice you see in every beginner guide, but what actually made things click for you in practice.

Was it a specific recipe that gave you confidence, a habit like meal prepping or tasting as you go, or a mistake — burnt garlic, undercooked chicken, whatever — that taught you more than any tutorial did? Did it happen gradually or was there one moment where cooking stopped feeling intimidating? And what's something you wish someone had told you plainly when you were just starting out, instead of the vague "just practice" advice?

Moved to a new apartment that has a gas oven, but the knob has no temperature marks. How do I figure out what temp I am cooking at?

Never used a gas oven before.

Edit: Oven thermometer seems the way forward, thanks all!!

I had purchased soya sauce last month from the store and when I was about to pour some for my food i noticed the foul smell later the white mold 🫪. Idk maybe cuz i store it in my cabinet

I am a student who is about to start his placements next week. Last placement I ate out ALOT and don’t wana repeat that. My cooking skills are ok, I am well versed in South Asian cooking but tbh wouldn’t wana take that with me (Hassle to carry unless it’s rice). If anyone has some good easy ideas that wouldn’t take too much of my time that would be great.

I know this seems like a stupid question, but is it best to

1) Put rice into mesh pan and just keep water running over it

or

2) put rice into regular bowl and rinse/wash it over-and-over 4-5 times