What's for dinner?

Before I came to Peace Corps my idea of cooking involved boiling pasta, heating up jarred sauce and popping frozen breadsticks in the oven. That life was not allowed to continue here, where such pre-prepared standards are unavailable. I remember a time back in training when I had to ask another PCV how long to boil an egg to ensure it was hard-boiled. Oh, how times have changed.

Don't get me wrong, I'm still no chef and eat my fair share of rice and fill-in-the-blank, ramen and many things I'm embarrassed to mention. But I have also learned how to bake just about anything in a dutch oven and a million ways to use stir-fried vegetables. I decided I would share a few of my favorites with you all. They're really easy and, I'm sure, taste even better in America where so much more variety of ingredients is available. Bon appetit!


Baked Ziti
A Kelly Original
250g (8.8 oz. or ½ bag) pasta – preferably penne rigate or macaroni
.23kg (½ lb.) hamburger
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, minced
1 can (approx. 400g or 14oz.) chopped and peeled tomatoes with garlic
1 small can (approx. 120g or 4.2oz.) tomato paste
1 small can (approx. 155g or 5.5oz.) dessert cream OR 2/3 cup ricotta cheese
1 package (approx. 300g or 10.6oz.) Mozzarella cheese, grated
Italian seasoning
garlic salt
ground black pepper

Cook pasta in boiling salt water for 7 minutes, drain well.

While pasta is cooking combine minced onion, minced garlic cloves and hamburger and brown until meat is completely cooked. Add Italian seasoning to taste while browning. Drain well.

In a large bowl combine can of chopped and peeled tomatoes, tomato paste and dessert cream (or ricotta, if you're lucky enough to have some). Add in meat mixture and stir well. Add Italian seasoning, garlic salt and ground black pepper to taste. Add in cooked pasta and stir until well-coated.

Spoon pasta and sauce mixture into a well-greased baking pan (I use a small, square bar pan that fits into a dutch oven). Top with grated Mozzarella until completely covered. Bake uncovered until bubbling and brown at the edges (approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour in a dutch oven on high heat or 30-45 minutes in a 350° oven).

Serves 3-4.


Lemon Pepper Tuna Noodle Stir-Fry
Special thanks to Nichol and Lizzie for this one!
1/3 500g (approx. 167g or 5.9oz.) bag of pasta – preferably macaroni or corkscrew
2-3 tbsp. oil
1 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bell pepper, sliced
1/3 500g bag (approx. 167g or 5.9oz.) fresh green beans, sliced
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced
3 tomatoes, sliced
1 can tuna, drained
lemon juice
garlic salt
ground black pepper

Boil pasta in salted water according to package directions. Drain well.

While pasta is cooking pour oil into small saucepan and add onion and garlic. Cover and let cook while slicing bell pepper. Add pepper, stir well and cover. Repeat with green beans and then carrots. Stir occasionally until vegetables are desired tenderness. Add more oil for cooking as needed.

Add pasta and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes on low heat. Add in 3 tbsp. lemon juice, tomatoes and tuna and stir constantly. Add garlic salt, ground black pepper and additional lemon juice to taste. Continue cooking on low heat, stirring constantly, until skins begin to peel off tomatoes.

Serves 2-3.


Thai Noodles
Adapted from "Where There Is No Chef," the Peace Corps Lesotho cookbook
250g (8.8 oz. or ½ pkg) cellophane noodles or spaghetti
2-3 tbsp. oil
1 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 hot chili pepper, minced OR ½ tsp dried crushed chili pepper
1 bell pepper, sliced
1/3 500g bag (approx. 167g or 5.9oz.) fresh green beans, sliced
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced
Any other veges as desired...broccoli is good if you can find it
½ cup peanut butter
½ cup lemon juice
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup soy sauce
ginger
cilantro
basil
garlic salt

Boil pasta in salted water according to package directions. Drain well.

While pasta is cooking pour oil into a small saucepan and add onion and garlic. Add minced chili or dried crushed chili pepper. Cover and let cook while slicing bell pepper. Add pepper, stir well and cover. Repeat with additional vegetables. Stir occasionally until vegetables are desired tenderness. Add more oil for cooking as needed.

In a medium saucepan combine peanut butter, lemon juice, sugar and soy sauce. Stir over low heat until all ingredients are well-mixed. Add in ginger to taste. Add in cooked vegetables and season with cilantro, basil and garlic salt to taste. Pour sauce and vegetables over cooked pasta and stir until well-coated.

Serves 2-3.