Rice Cooker Meals for Everyone, Even Me

Now that I'm back in school, I'm more frazzled than usual. Out comes the trusty rice cooker. I used a recipe in a regionally published cookbook as a base.

Like many regional cookbooks, this one has recipes that are all kind of the same, calling for Rotel tomatoes and Cajun seasoning in almost every dish. I put together something based on Cabbage Casserole, which involved throwing into the rice cooker some cooked ground beef (I had this frozen), some onions, bell peppers, green onions, 1 cup rice, 1 cup or so of water, a few handfuls of preshredded cabbage and OF COURSE a small can of Rotel tomatoes. Turn on the rice cooker. It will know when to stop. If you need to add more liquid, do so.

Serve with hot sauce, also OF COURSE.

My hero Roger Ebert is right: the pot knows. I left out several things, including a pound of sausage, that I didn't have. It was still good.


The author says that this tastes like stuffed cabbage. Well, I wish. My grandma (from Poland) was a terrible cook, but she made wonderful stuffed cabbage. They didn't have Cajun seasonings or Rotel in Poland--or Brooklyn--though they probably do now. This tastes like what your Cajun grandma would have made.

After a long day at work, I must say I enjoy throwing a bunch of stuff into a single pot, letting the pot do the work, and then having enough to eat the next day. At which point, you will have to wash a single pot.

Next time, I'll add some cooked red beans.

A Gift for the Grad: Using My Talents

The best gift, of course, is one the recipient wants. I recently bought a wedding gift, using the registry. Gnashing my teeth all the while, thinking I could get 10 things for the price of the one (biggish) gift I am buying. It was the right thing to do though. Right now, I am in the process of buying a graduation gift for Mr C, a recent family friend. On Saturday, I noticed that the 2.8 million dollar home a few blocks away had a yard sale sign. So off we went. Mr C found some sport coats (cashmere and camel hair!) in his size. I said: Let me buy those as part of your graduation pres. He was pleased, so I got him a nice belt too. Hmmm. This is really using my frugal talents. Next, I'm going to buy him a slow cooker (new) and a stick blender (ditto). I already gave him a second-hand rice cooker and a copy of the little ebook Frugal Son and I put together. Finally, I am going to get some food staples for his first real cooking adventures. Mr. C will be working in a Vista program next year while studying for the dreaded MCAT exam. If he learns to cook efficiently, he will have skills that will take him through med school and beyond. I've finally found the perfect recipient! Happy Graduation Mr C!

Cheap Gifts for Your College Student, Adult Child, or Yourself: Rice Cooker and Slow Cooker

Far be it from me to promote shopping for something you don't need. I don't need a slow cooker or rice cooker. But many need one or the other or both. In fact, a colleague recently asked me to pick her up one at the thrift store. I told her that thrift stores sell those appliances for basically the same price they cost new.

So, no, I am not going to link to the famous on-line retailer. Instead, you will have to go to Target. There they have a 3 quart slow cooker for $10 and a 6 cup rice cooker for the same. Note that the slow cooker is smallish (mine is 4 or 5 quarts) and the rice cooker is a medium size. Still, you can cook at least half a pound of dried beans in that slow cooker. And make enough rice for a few meals.

For $20, you can get both! That leaves enough money to buy some provisions, for which your recipient--starving student or regular person--would, no doubt, be grateful.