Onions are the cheapest produce you can get, and brown onions are the cheapest onion. You will shed a few tears chopping an onion; but caramelized onion is so sweet and flavorful you will make extra to add in an omelet, pita pizza, or as an extra cheese burger topping!
The Chef's French Onion Soup recipe is simple to make -- although you will be cooking onions for a half hour, so tune in your favorite radio program and start sauteing; time will fly.
My local Latin market practically gives brown onions away, and all you need for this dish is a measly half dozen. The other main ingredients are French bread and cheese. Less expensive day old bread is perfect to toast, melt cheese onto, then float in the finished French onion soup. For this recipe the Chef used a six ounce block of white cheddar from the 99c only Store; try out your favorite cheese, or even leave it out to cut calories.
Onions are sauteed in half a stick of butter or olive oil. I also used beef bouillon cubes, but you can use vegetable broth to keep it vegetarian; it will taste delicious either way.
Ingredients (3-4 servings)
6 brown onions, roughly chopped (throw in a couple extra to caramelize and use later)
1/2 stick of butter - OK to substitute 1/4 cup of olive or vegetable oil
6 cups of water with 6 beef bouillon cubes or vegetable broth /water
1 cup of 99.99 cent red wine
1 tbsp. of flour
1 bay leaf (optional)
A few thick slices of French bread
6 oz. of cheese -- white cheddar or your favorite vegan substitute
Pepper to taste - no salt, as you get plenty from bouillon cubes and cheese
Directions
Start heating water with bouillon cubes over low temperature. Melt butter and add chopped onion and a bay leaf over medium heat in a large soup pot. This is the long part so put on the tunes, or, if you're like me, NPR radio.
Stir onions so they don't stick to the pot and burn too much. After about a half hour the onions should be medium to dark brown and taste deliciously sweet. At this point you can set a little aside for your future grilled cheese burger!
Next, add flour, cook for couple more minutes, then add 99.99 cent red wine to browned onions to dislodge brown tasty bits.
Finally add broth to onions and cook for half hour to an hour at a low simmer - the longer the better as the flavor will intensify when soup is reduced by about a third.
You can serve French onion soup with a thick slice of
toasted French bread topped with melted cheese floating on top, or not.
Toast French bread in a pan or your broiler. Flip toast when brown and
add sliced cheese to toasted side.
For the broiler, toast one side, flip and add cheese, cooking until melted. Hey, go crazy and add sliced hunks of cheese to piping hot French onion soup; the bread just gets in the way! As this recipe is so cheap, you may as well use a time-honored French Gruyere cheese from your local favorite deli.
On the 5th of May, 1861, Mexico battled and defeated the French invading army. It became a celebrated holiday started in the United States.
And here in Los Angeles, the clashing continues in the Cheap$kate Cocina. For my latest recipe roundup, it's Mexican versus the French, redux, and the battlefield is the palate. Can we all get along? Forget about it - bring out the heavy artillery and let's duke it out, plate vs plate.
Skirmish One is a Fried Feud: Tacos Baja Fried Fish Tacos vs Ludo Truck French Fries and Fried Chicken.
Forever on lists of best taco joints in Los Angeles, Tacos Baja makes one of the most delicious Fish Tacos in town. These battered deep-fried filet torpedos of perfection are also one of the best deals around, especially on Wednesdays, when they are sold for only 99 cents!
Fish Taco
The Fish Taco is loaded with a Mexican machete chopped tomato/cabbage slaw that is topped with cream and chile sauce. When you try to pick up the taco half of the slaw is left on the plate, so be sure to get a forked slaw detector and sweep over the plate to get all that spilled.
Click on any photo to see it larger.
The deep-fried batter is well-seasoned and cooked to perfection. The fillet has a thick seasoned crust and the bass fish filet is flaky and moist - a detonated depth charge of flavor.
This Mexican Pescado Taco is a winner, even at the regular price of $1.69 per taco. Your strafed taste buds happily surrender to such crunchy deliciousness. To see what I'm writing about just check out my video review below. (And click here to see my cheap$kate recipe you can make in your own foxhole.)
The French return fire with Top Chef star Ludo Lefebvre's fried chicken fast food truck. How does the Ludo Fried Chicken Truck compare to Tacos Baja Fried Fish Tacos?
You would think Chef Ludo has all the culinary training to deliver a coup de grace with his fried poultry ordinance. Not so quick mon ami, fried chicken is a Southern staple so you better have a toothsome battle plan.
Compared to the Colonel's KFC, the Ludo Truck's Chicken Strips ranks a Private. Fried chicken, when done right, has moist meat with a brightly seasoned crunchy coating. While Ludo's Chicken Strips meet the first requirement, it deserves a blindfold and firing squad for an under-seasoned coating. Chicken Strips start with a handicap -- the skin is usually removed, so the crust has to be exceptional.
Chef Ludo needs to bone up on Southern fried chicken seasonings, especially if Chicken Strips are the ordnance of choice -- or take your fried chicken strips in a more original and delectable direction.
Chicken strips, Fries and Dipping Sauce
Now the white meat tenders are moist, and are a generous portion, even at $5.50 for two. While the coating is crunchy enough and not objectionable, it's just bland and boring. I expect more from a Top Chef contestant.
Another item I have tried from Ludo Truck is the French Fries -- and I hate to say it, but no improvement here. Chef Ludo should just wave a white flag and surrender.
French Fries
You would think French Fries from Frenchman Ludo Lefebvre would be a direct bullseye hit, wiping out other fries contenders, but they are more of a warhead dud. These French fries are limp and under-seasoned. Maybe because I am more of a Belgian double-fried crispy fries type. (Chef Ludo, you can check out my recipe video for a better French fry by clicking here.)
Even though the Ludo Truck fries seem fresh, and thick-cut, almost any fast food burger joint makes them better, even when made from frozen pre-cut spuds. Don't fill your mess kit with this meal, stick to MRE's. Okay, at ease... now check out my video below to get all the so-so tasty details.
So in this battle royale, Mexico blows the French out of the water, and not because it's cheaper, it's just tastier.
Calabasitasis a Mexican veggie stew made with a bunker full of summer squash. It's spicy comfort food, a dish often ordered by my late wife at a local Hollywood Mexican restaurant, and shared over a Happy Hour of frosty margaritas.
Along with squash, you need an ammunition belt of onion, corn (fresh or from a can), tomatoes, a can of mild green chiles, cilantro, and finally, some melting cheese as a topping.
Be sure to choose a cheese that is firm, like Jack, mozzarella, Swiss, mild cheddar, or my favorite, Mexican Queso Fresco (avoid processed American cheese; it will melt into a soup - save it for a grilled sandwich).
They say the military marches on its stomach, well Calabasitasis hearty enough to satiate any soldier's appetite.
Sweet caramelized onions in a broth of red wine and the beef flavor is a full-on invasion of savoriness. It takes a lot of slow cooking sliced onions to make a French Onion Soup. But the time invested is worth it. And when you add a thick slice of toasted French bread and a slab of melted cheese, well you have to succumb to this flavor bomb.
So in the battle of the soups, the white flag of surrender is waved by Mexico - France gets the win, but just barely. There, you have your revenge for the last culinary resounding defeat.
I've been making Huevos Rancheros often lately. And the reason is: it's the bomb! You got corn tortillas, creamy refried beans, crumbly Mexican cheese, and fried eggs topped with more cheese and tangy salsa.
You are hit from all sides with this Gatling gun of disparate flavors. And it's an easy recipe to make. Just heat up some tortillas and refried beans to add to your fried eggs. I prefer Mexican cheese, but you can use what you have on hand. Deliver the coup de grâce with your favorite salsa, either fresh (simple recipe click here) or from the jar. Just check out my video below to see my cheap$kate version.
It's Guerilla vs Classic Warfare. The technique is paramount to making a French-style Omelettte. I took me several counter-offensives to finally conquer it.
French Omelette
Mainly you gently stir the omelet until it is almost done but still slightly moist, then add the cheese and fold the egg. It's served with a damp interior.
Oh, and you fry the omelet in butter; so in your own battle of the bulge, fitting into your fighting gear will be a lost cause.
Once you've tried my version of a French Omelette, you will never surrender to any other kind. Check out my video recipe below and start your own cooking maneuvers.
So who won the War of Breakfasts? Man, it's a tough decision...I can't decide, so I'll call a truce in this kitchen combat zone - both recipes are victorious!
Everyone is a winner in this war of appetites, so don't wait to be drafted, just volunteer from my recipe boot camp and give any of the above battle-tested recipes a try.
*Click on any recipe name to see the original blog post recipe or review.
On the 5th of May, 1861, Mexico battled and defeated the French invading army. It became a celebrated holiday, starting in the United States.
And here in Los Angeles, the clashing continues in the Cheap$kate Cocina. For my latest recipe roundup, it's Mexican versus the French, redux, and the battlefield is the palate. Can we all get along? Forget about it—bring out the heavy artillery and let's duke it out plate vs. plate.
Skirmish One is a Fried Feud: Tacos Baja Fried Fish Tacos vs Ludo Truck French Fries and Fried Chicken.
Forever on lists of best taco joints in Los Angeles, Tacos Baja makes one of the most delicious Fish Tacos in town. These battered deep-fried filet torpedos of perfection are also one of the best deals around, especially on Wednesdays, when they are sold for only 99 cents!
Fish Taco
The Fish Taco is loaded with a Mexican machete chopped tomato/cabbage slaw that is topped with cream and chile sauce. When you try to pick up the taco, half of the slaw is left on the plate, so be sure to get a forked slaw detector and sweep over the plate to get all that spilled.
The deep-fried batter is well-seasoned and cooked to perfection. The fillet has a thick seasoned crust, and the bass fish filet is flaky and moist - a detonated depth charge of flavor.
This Mexican Pescado Taco is a winner, even at the regular price of $1.69 per taco. Your strafed taste buds happily surrender to such crunchy deliciousness. To see what I'm writing about, just check out my video review below. (And click here to see my cheap$kate recipe you can make in your own foxhole.)
The French return fire with Top Chef star Ludo Lefebvre's fried chicken fast food truck. How does the Ludo Fried Chicken Truck compare to Tacos Baja Fried Fish Tacos?
You would think Chef Ludo has all the culinary training to deliver a coup de grâce with his fried poultry ordinance. Not so quick, mon ami. Fried chicken is a Southern staple, so you'd better have a toothsome battle plan.
Compared to the Colonel's KFC, the Ludo Truck's Chicken Strips ranks as a Private. Fried chicken, when done right, has moist meat with a brightly seasoned, crunchy coating. While Ludo's Chicken Strips meet the first requirement, it deserves a blindfold and firing squad for an under-seasoned coating. Chicken Strips start with a handicap -- the skin is usually removed, so the crust has to be exceptional.
Chef Ludo needs to bone up on Southern fried chicken seasonings, especially if Chicken Strips are the ordnance of choice -- or take your fried chicken strips in a more original and delectable direction.
Chicken strips, Fries, and Dipping Sauce
Now the white meat tenders are moist, and are a generous portion, even at $5.50 for two. While the coating is crunchy enough and not objectionable, it's just bland and boring. I expect more from a Top Chef contestant.
Another item I have tried from Ludo Truck is the French Fries -- and I hate to say it, but no improvement here. Chef Ludo should just wave a white flag and surrender.
French Fries
You would think French Fries from Frenchman Ludo Lefebvre would be a direct bullseye hit, wiping out other fries contenders, but they are more of a warhead dud. These French fries are limp and under-seasoned. Maybe because I am more of a Belgian double-fried crispy fries type. (Chef Ludo, you can check out my recipe video for a better French fry by clicking here.)
Even though the Ludo Truck fries seem fresh and thick-cut, almost any fast food burger joint makes them better, even when made from frozen, pre-cut spuds. Don't fill your mess kit with this meal, stick to MRE's. Okay, at ease... now check out my video below to get all the so-so-tasty details.
So in this battle royale, Mexico blows the French out of the water, and not because it's cheaper, it's just tastier.
Calabasitasis a Mexican veggie stew made with a bunker-full of summer squash. It's spicy comfort food, a dish often ordered by my late wife at a local Hollywood Mexican restaurant and shared over a Happy Hour of frosty margaritas.
Along with squash, you need an ammunition belt of onion, corn (fresh or from a can), tomatoes, a can of mild green chiles, cilantro, and finally, some melting cheese as a topping.
Be sure to choose a cheese that is firm, like Jack, mozzarella, Swiss, mild cheddar, or my favorite, Mexican Queso Fresco (avoid processed American cheese; it will melt into a soup - save it for a grilled sandwich).
This was cheap back in the day.
They say the military marches on its stomach; well, Calabasitasis hearty enough to satiate any soldier's appetite.
Sweet caramelized onions in a broth of red wine, and the beef flavor is a full-on invasion of savoriness. It takes a lot of slow-cooking sliced onions to make a French Onion Soup. But the time invested is worth it. And when you add a thick slice of toasted French bread and a slab of melted cheese, well, you have to succumb to this flavor bomb.
So in the battle of the soups, the white flag of surrender is waved by Mexico - France gets the win, but just barely. There, you have your revenge for the last culinary resounding defeat.
I've been making Huevos Rancheros often lately. And the reason is: it's the bomb! You got corn tortillas, creamy refried beans, crumbly Mexican cheese, and fried eggs topped with more cheese and tangy salsa.
You are hit from all sides with this Gatling gun of disparate flavors. And it's an easy recipe to make. Just heat up some tortillas and refried beans to add to your fried eggs. I prefer Mexican cheese, but you can use what you have on hand. Deliver the coup de grâce with your favorite salsa, either fresh (simple recipe click here) or from the jar. Just check out my video below to see my cheap$kate version.
It's Guerrilla vs. Classic Warfare. The technique is paramount to making a French-style Omelettte. I took me several counter-offensives to finally conquer it.
French Omelette
Mainly, you gently stir the omelet until it is almost done but still slightly moist, then add the cheese and fold the egg. It's served with a damp interior.
Oh, and you fry the omelet in butter; so in your own battle of the bulge, fitting into your fighting gear will be a lost cause.
Once you've tried my version of a French Omelette, you will never surrender to any other kind. Check out my video recipe below and start your own cooking maneuvers.
So, who won the War of Breakfasts? Man, it's a tough decision...I can't decide, so I'll call a truce in this kitchen combat zone - both recipes are victorious!
Everyone is a winner in this war of appetites, so don't wait to be drafted, just volunteer from my recipe boot camp and give any of the above battle-tested recipes a try.
*Click on any recipe name to see the original blog post recipe or review.
On the 5th of May, 1861, Mexico battled and defeated the French invading army. It became a celebrated holiday, starting in the United States.
And here in Los Angeles, the clashing continues in the Cheap$kate Cocina. For my latest recipe roundup, it's Mexican versus the French, redux, and the battlefield is the palate. Can we all get along? Forget about it—bring out the heavy artillery and let's duke it out plate vs. plate.
Skirmish One is a Fried Feud: Tacos Baja Fried Fish Tacos vs Ludo Truck French Fries and Fried Chicken.
Forever on lists of best taco joints in Los Angeles, Tacos Baja makes one of the most delicious Fish Tacos in town. These battered deep-fried filet torpedoes of perfection are also one of the best deals around, especially on Wednesdays, when they are sold for only 99 cents!
Fish Taco
The Fish Taco is loaded with a Mexican machete-chopped tomato/cabbage slaw that is topped with cream and chile sauce. When you try to pick up the taco, half of the slaw is left on the plate, so be sure to get a forked slaw detector and sweep over the plate to get all that spilled.
The deep-fried batter is well-seasoned and cooked to perfection. The fillet has a thick seasoned crust, and the bass fish filet is flaky and moist - a detonated depth charge of flavor.
This Mexican Pescado Taco is a winner, even at the regular price of $1.69 per taco. Your strafed taste buds happily surrender to such crunchy deliciousness. To see what I'm writing about, just check out my video review below. (And click here to see my cheap$kate recipe you can make in your own foxhole.)
16032 Whittier Blvd. Whittier, CA 90603 Phone: (323) 887-1980. For the Tacos Baja website, click here.
The French return fire with Top Chef star Ludo Lefebvre's fried chicken, fast food truck. How does the Ludo Fried Chicken Truck compare to Tacos Baja Fried Fish Tacos?
You would think Chef Ludo has all the culinary training to deliver a coup de grâce with his fried poultry ordinance. Not so quick, mon ami. Fried chicken is a Southern staple, so you'd better have a toothsome battle plan.
Compared to the Colonel's KFC, the Ludo Truck's Chicken Strips ranks as a Private. Fried chicken, when done right, has moist meat with a brightly seasoned, crunchy coating. While Ludo's Chicken Strips meet the first requirement, it deserves a blindfold and firing squad for an under-seasoned coating. Chicken Strips start with a handicap -- the skin is usually removed, so the crust has to be exceptional.
Chef Ludo needs to bone up on Southern fried chicken seasonings, especially if Chicken Strips are the ordnance of choice -- or take your fried chicken strips in a more original and delectable direction.
Chicken strips, Fries, and Dipping Sauce
Now the white meat tenders are moist, and are a generous portion, even at $5.50 for two. While the coating is crunchy enough and not objectionable, it's just bland and boring. I expect more from a Top Chef contestant.
Another item I have tried from Ludo Truck is the French Fries -- and I hate to say it, but no improvement here. Chef Ludo should just wave a white flag and surrender.
French Fries
You would think French Fries from Frenchman Ludo Lefebvre would be a direct bullseye hit, wiping out other fries contenders, but they are more of a warhead dud. These French fries are limp and under-seasoned. Maybe because I am more of a Belgian double-fried crispy fries type. (Chef Ludo, you can check out my recipe video for a better French fry by clicking here.)
Even though the Ludo Truck fries seem fresh and thick-cut, almost any fast-food burger joint makes them better, even when made from frozen, pre-cut spuds. Don't fill your mess kit with this meal; stick to MRE's. Okay, at ease... now check out my video below to get all the so-so-tasty details.
So in this battle royale, Mexico blows the French out of the water, and not because it's cheaper, it's just tastier.
Calabasitasis a Mexican veggie stew made with a bunker-full of summer squash. It's spicy comfort food, a dish often ordered by my late wife at a local Hollywood Mexican restaurant and shared over a Happy Hour of frosty margaritas.
Along with squash, you need an ammunition belt of onion, corn (fresh or from a can), tomatoes, a can of mild green chiles, cilantro, and finally, some melting cheese as a topping.
Be sure to choose a cheese that is firm, like Jack, mozzarella, Swiss, mild cheddar, or my favorite, Mexican Queso Fresco (avoid processed American cheese; it will melt into a soup - save it for a grilled sandwich).
This was cheap back in the day.
They say the military marches on its stomach; well, Calabasitasis hearty enough to satiate any soldier's appetite.
Sweet caramelized onions in a broth of red wine, and the beef flavor is a full-on invasion of savoriness. It takes a lot of slow-cooked sliced onions to make a French Onion Soup. But the time invested is worth it. And when you add a thick slice of toasted French bread and a slab of melted cheese, well, you have to succumb to this flavor bomb.
So in the battle of the soups, the white flag of surrender is waved by Mexico - France gets the win, but just barely. There, you have your revenge for the last culinary resounding defeat.
I've been making Huevos Rancheros often lately. And the reason is: it's the bomb! You got corn tortillas, creamy refried beans, crumbly Mexican cheese, and fried eggs topped with more cheese and tangy salsa.
You are hit from all sides with this Gatling gun of disparate flavors. And it's an easy recipe to make. Just heat up some tortillas and refried beans to add to your fried eggs. I prefer Mexican cheese, but you can use what you have on hand. Deliver the coup de grâce with your favorite salsa, either fresh (simple recipe click here) or from the jar. Just check out my video below to see my cheap$kate version.
It's Guerrilla vs. Classic Warfare. The technique is paramount to making a French-style Omelettte. I took me several counter-offensives to finally conquer it.
French Omelette
Mainly, you gently stir the omelet until it is almost done but still slightly moist, then add the cheese and fold the egg. It's served with a damp interior.
Oh, and you fry the omelet in butter; so in your own battle of the bulge, fitting into your fighting gear will be a lost cause.
Once you've tried my version of a French Omelette, you will never surrender to any other kind. Check out my video recipe below and start your own cooking maneuvers.
So, who won the War of Breakfasts? Man, it's a tough decision...I can't decide, so I'll call a truce in this kitchen combat zone - both recipes are victorious!
Everyone is a winner in this war of appetites, so don't wait to be drafted; just volunteer from my recipe boot camp and give any of the above battle-tested recipes a try.
*Click on any recipe name to see the original blog post recipe or review.
Onions are the cheapest produce you can get, and brown onions are the cheapest onion. You will shed a few tears chopping an onion; but caramelized onion is so sweet and flavorful you will make extra to add in an omelet, pita pizza, or as an extra cheese burger topping!
Stir onions so they don't stick to the pot and burn too much. After about a half hour the onions should be medium to dark brown and taste deliciously sweet. At this point you can set a little aside for your future grilled cheese burger! 
You can serve French onion soup with a thick slice of
toasted French bread topped with melted cheese floating on top, or not.
Toast French bread in a pan or your broiler. Flip toast when brown and
add sliced cheese to toasted side. 
