Cheff Dogg's Ingredients
Welcome to Cheff Dogg's Ingredients. These ingredients are meant for quick cooking and will make nearly any recipe better. This list includes an Ingredient of the Month, a hand-picked ingredient that Snoop Dogg would like for everyone to give a try this month. The information was provided by Cooking Light and the Huffington Post.
Ingredient of the Month: Couscous
Cooking Light says Couscous is one of the easiest and most versatile starches you can find. It can be used in salads and for stuffing roasted veggies like zucchini, serving with Moroccan tagines and other stews. According to Clifford A. Wright, couscous is one of the staple foods of the Maghrib (western North Africa). Couscous is made from two different sizes of the husked and crushed, but unground, semolina of hard wheat using water to bind them. Semolina is the hard part of the grain of hard wheat, that resisted the grinding of the relatively primitive medieval millstone.
Ingredients for any Occasion
Here is a list of the top ten ingredients Snoop always loves.
Boil-In-Bag Brown Rice
Boil-in-bag brown rice is one of the quickest ways to get more whole grains in your diet. It is excellent for rice pilaf, rice salad, soups, and stews.
Peppercorn
If all you know about pepper is the stuff that comes out of a shaker, just stop. Put down the ground black pepper — that stuff doesn’t taste like anything anyway — and go buy yourself a pepper grinder and some real peppercorn. Then add it to everything. The flavor will amaze you.
Canned Diced Tomatoes
Canned no-salt-added diced tomatoes save you the time and effort of seeding, chopping, and peeling fresh tomatoes. They are great in marinara sauce, bruschetta, and salsa
Za'atar
Za’atar is not a spice, but a blend — it’s usually a combination of salt, sesame seed and sumac — and its the one that you need in your kitchen. A sprinkle of it as a finishing touch on just about everything will do wonders for your dinner.
Paprika
Paprika brings not only a warmth in color, but also in flavor to your dishes too. It’s made from either bell or chile peppers. Paprika is most famous in Hungarian cuisine — think goulash — but it’s also widely used in Spanish or Portuguese dishes. There are many different flavors of paprika: sweet, hot smoked, plain. We think you should try them all.
Pitted Kalamata Olives
Pitted kalamata olives add a rich, meaty, and unique flavor to any dish they grace. These are good for tapenade, pasta dishes, roast with chicken or vegetables
Sumac
Sumac is a Middle Eastern spice with a bold lemony flavor. Just a sprinkle of it will instantly improve upon a dish. You can use it as a garnish on dips, atop of salads, or to flavor rice.
Panko
Panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) is every bit as convenient but tastes better than bland dry breadcrumbs. Panko also gives foods a supercrisp crust. Panko is good as a filler for meatballs, crab cakes, and the like. It can also be used as breading for oven-fried shrimp or fish fillets. Panko can even be used in casserole toppings!
Cumin
Cumin’s bright, peppery flavor is one of the reasons Mexican food is so addictive. It’s that certain flavor that you love, but can’t quite put your finger on. It’s also an important component in Indian and Middle Eastern foods. Next time you make refried beans, add a little cumin. You won’t regret it.
Chile Pasta
Chile paste (sambal oelek) is an all-purpose hot sauce. It can be used for marinades, vinaigrettes for steamed vegetables, and scrambled or poached eggs