Corn is definitely a Summer grilling staple.  Even though I don’t have an outdoor grill, I can still count on my trusty stove top grill.  A local supermarket was selling unhusked white and yellow corn for $0.20 each, so I bought a dollar’s worth.  Here’s how I prepare and grill corn.

Grilled Corn

Ingredients

• Unhusked Corn (3)
• Juice from half a lime
• 1 Tsp of melted butter
• Pepper
• Adobo seasoning
• Paprika

Peel off the thick outer layers of husk from the corn, leaving the soft inner husk.  Peel down the inner husk, but do not remove.  Remove the think fibrous strands.  Combine the lime juice, pepper, and butter, mix well.  Brush the mixture onto the corn and cover it back up with husk.  Set the corn on the grill and cook for about 20 minutes, rotating on all sides sporadically for even cooking.  Once finished, peel back the burnt husk and sprinkle with Adobo seasoning and paprika.

~ Kin

Tofu is nutritious, versatile, and cheap.  Once in a while, I will throw some tofu on a grill and pair it with either rice or noodles.

There is some prep work involved in this.  Since tofu contains a high amount of water, it has to be somewhat dried out before cooking.  To do this, cut the tofu into slices and place the slices on a thick sheet of paper towels.  After half an hour or so, flip the tofu to the other side.  Then wait another half an hour before cooking.  Marinate with some soy sauce for additional flavor.  15 minutes will do.  The soy sauce will help create some great grill marks on the tofu as well.  Be sure to use firm tofu.

Add some cooking spray to your stove top grill and pre-heat it at medium heat.  Cook each side for 3-4 minutes.

The tofu dish pictured above probably cost me less than $1.00 to make.

~ Kin

Honey Glazed Pork Chops

• 3 pieces of pork chops
• 2 tablespoons of honey
• 3 tablespoons of teriyaki marinade
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of garlic onion powder
• 1 teaspoon of corn flour

1. Prepare the pork chop by beating it using a meat beater or using the back of your cleaver

2. Marinate the pork chop using the teriyaki marinade, salt, garlic onion and corn flour

3. Let it sit in the fridge for 1-2 hours for the marinate to seep into the meat

4. Prepare the pan at medium heat and pour some vegetable oil. I prefer cooking with olive oil as it is healthier. Sometimes I would use butter because it gives my food the buttery fragrance, but it tends to burn easily, so use it only when you want to tempt your guests with that extra buttery flavor. ; )

5. Pan fry the pork chops for 3-4 minutes on each side until the surface achieves a slight brown color.

6. Remove from heat, pour honey over the pork chops, and serve!

Steamed Spinach and B0k Choy with Olive Oil and Soy Sauce

• Spinach
• Bak Choy
• 2 teaspoons of olive oil
• 2 teaspoons of soy sauce or pinch of salt

1. Steam the spinach and Bok Choy with 2 teaspoons of Olive Oil.

2. Add 2 teaspoons of soy sauce for flavoring. You can substitute salt for soy sauce or just skip the flavoring part. Vegetables with olive oil are delicious by themselves.

Onion Omellete

• 4 eggs
• 1 whole onion
• pinch of salt

1. Beat the eggs up and add salt
2. Dice the onion
3. Cook the onion omellete!

Once all 3 dishes are done, serve with Brown Rice! Zinnnggg (sound of unsheathing knife)

Enjoy!

As always, please make sure all food is thoroughly cooked before consumption to prevent food-borne illness.

~ Boon

I love going to Whole Foods to shop for groceries, but when it comes to purchasing certain items, I feel they are overpriced. Even though most of their goods are organic, I believe the premium placed on organic fruits and vegetables is too high. I never buy fresh fruits and vegetables from there, but when I buy red meat and whole grain items, that’s where I go. I think the quality of meat at Whole Foods is top-notch.

There are three Korean H-Mart Supermarkets within a ten mile radius of where I live, and I drive by two of them on my way to work. When it comes to purchasing fruits and vegetables at the H-Marts, I end up about saving five or more dollars over the same items at higher-end supermarkets. When I was shopping for monkfish for my birthday party, I stopped by Whole Foods first and they were selling monkfish for $15.99/lb. I had purchased monkfish for my father’s restaurant back in the day and I recalled that monkfish was never that much. Feeling a little defeated and worrying on whether I should still serve monkfish at my party or not, I decided to take a trip to one of the nearby H-marts for monkfish. When I got to the seafood section, I couldn’t find monkfish and I was disappointed at the seafood section for the limited amount of seafood they offered. I walked around the corner and I saw all kinds of fish just laying there on the ice. The selection was greater and more affordable, and I had found the monkfish. At $4.99/lb, I knew this was the place to buy the fish. While I can’t attest to the fact that everything is cheaper at Asian supermarkets, it doesn’t hurt to check one out in your neck of the woods. Happy shopping!

I think buying breakfast is the biggest rip-off ever. I wake up at 6:00am in the morning for work and I’m out the door by 6:45am. From taking a shower to dragging my lazy bum around the house until I get dressed, I don’t have time to eat breakfast at home. My morning regiment consists of a bowl of whole grain cereal w/ skim milk, a bowl of oatmeal w/ brown sugar, and an orange or some kind other type of fruit. To buy that at the cafe will cost me almost $4.00 a day. The oatmeal is what really gets me. A cup of oatmeal costs $1.34,yet I can make my own bowl for $o.25. Cereal costs $0.75 cents for a small box and that’s no where enough to keep me full. So I need to buy 2 boxes. The orange adds an additional $0.80. If I make my own oatmeal, bring my own cereal, and bring my own fruit, the total daily cost is about $1.70. A savings of $2.30 a day or $11.50 a week, or $46 a month or..well, you get my drift. I just love how savings just add up.

I’m not a big sandwich person. Since I am allergic to peanuts, I never got to enjoy PB&J sandwiches as a kid. I’m imagining what it tastes like…mmm, delicious. It’s the one thing I wish I could eat! Most sandwiches I’ve had were always made with lunch meats such as ham, roast beef, pastrami, and bologna, in essence, boring! What I like about a sandwich though, is that if made correctly, it could serve as a low-cost meal.

The way I came about this sandwich was purely accidental, I had half of an spinach omelette left and I didn’t know what to pair it with, so I put it in between two pieces of whole wheat bread w/ lettuce and tomato. Yes, it was that simple.

Try it out!

Cost: <$1.50

As always, make sure your food is thoroughly cooked before consumption.

If you have an ounce of cooking skill, then you should start thinking about preparing your own lunch. You will be surprised by how much money you can save!

Here’s the breakdown. On average, a meal costs about $5.99, tack on a drink at $1.25 and you’re at $7.24, add tax (7% in New Jersey) and the total comes to $7.75. Multiply that by five days and you’re spending $38.75 a week on food. Let’s say we work about 50 weeks a year, give a take a few days for holidays and what not. So lets multiply $38.75 by 50. That equals $1937.50 a year spent on purchasing lunch.

Now if we cook lunch ourselves and make use of the water cooler at work, the typical cost probably hovers around $2.50 a day for lunch. That’s $12.50 a week for lunch. Multiply that amount by 50 and we have $625.00. Take the difference and you could end up with $1312.50 in savings!
The downside is that you’ll lose some time during the day when you prepare lunch for the next day and you’ll probably have to do more grocery shopping. The upside is that you’ll be able to control the ingredients and portions, so in the end you’ll be eating healthier as well. Also, the more you cook, the better you will get at it. Don’t worry, we all struggle in the beginning when we first learn to cook.

I don’t know about you, but I can buy a lot of stuff for $1312.50

This is my Grilled Mahi Mahi over Multi-grain Spaghetti with a side of Sauteed Broccoli w/ Toasted Garlic Chips

Cost: Less than $4.50 a person.

Recipe at the jump.

I bought Frozen Mahi Mahi Filets from Whole Foods Market for $5.99. Each pack contains two filets.

Ingredients

• Mahi Mahi Filets (2)
• 1/2 Lemon
• Pepper
• Salt
• Canola Oil
• Multi Grain Spaghetti (2 cups)
• 1 Cup Frozen Broccoli
• 2 or More Cloves of Garlic
• Butter

Mahi Mahi

Step 1. Defrost the filets

Step 2. Brush the filets with canola oil

Step 3. Squeeze lemon juice over the filet and add some lemon zest if desired

Step 4. Sprinkle the your desired amount of salt and pepper

Step 5. Grill each side for 8 to 10 minutes between low to medium heat

Step 6. Set asiade when done, and garnish with a lemon slice

Sauteed Broccoli w/ Toasted Garlic Chips

Step 1. Chop the garlic into thin slices

Step 2. Brown the garlic chips in 1 tablespoon of oil, transfer to a paper towel to absorb the oil

Step 3. Steam the broccoli until almost cooked and transfer to the pan where the garlic was browned, sautee for one to two minutes in the garlic oil

Step 4. Transfer the broccoli to a plate and sprinkle the garlic chips on top

Multi-grain Spaghetti

Step 1. Cook to al-dente or your preferred level of softness

Step 2. Strain and add a tablespoon of butter, I used Smart Balance spread, mix well

Step 3. Add desired salt and pepper to the spaghetti, mix well

Final Step

Arrange food on plate as desired and enjoy!

As always, please ensure all your food is thoroughly cooked before consumption.