Cooking Exceptionally With Gin Lee

American pokeweed  American pokeweed is a perennial, and it's commonly known as a survivalist plant. The plant is often referred to as poke salad, poke sallet, pokeweed, poke, among a few others. During the first days of spring, purplish shoots of pokeweed emerge from the soil. The plant will often pop up as a volunteer, and depending on the location, pokeweed can grow anywhere from 6 feet to 20 feet tall. The stalks and stems of pokeweed are an attractive purplish plum color. The leaves are a beautiful green color, and they can grow as big as 14 inches long by 7 to 8 inches wide. The plant's leaves will be tapered at each end. By summer, pokeweed begins producing long clusters of green and white flowers. The flowers turn into green berries that then transition from a light pink to a dark plum color. Pokeweed grows flowers and berries often at the same time and will continue to grow until the first frost. I have never pulled a pokeweed plant up from its roots, but I...

Image by Pexels/Pixabay Purifying water with the sun's rays Recently, I have gotten on a healthy water kick because, quite frankly, I have been extremely scared to drink our tap water. Plus, I believe that it's important to know survival skills, and knowledge is the key to surviving. So today I'd like to share a free and all-natural way of purifying water. Yup, if you haven't guessed it already, I am referring to sunlight. Sunlight is an old-fashioned water-purifying practice that's considered to be the most natural way to purify water. It's genius because you can purify your drinking water at zero cost. This water-purifying method requires no special equipment or expensive filters. How do you purify water using the sun's rays? You'll want to fill a clean container with clear water and place it in direct sunlight. I suggest using a clear PET one-or two-liter bottle and nothing much larger than that. A quick note of caution here: Water that's thick an...

Vegetables that contain protein If food prices have you scrambling down the aisles of the grocery store trying to find something that's more affordable than meat but still has protein, know that you're not alone! Back in the days when my grandparents went through the Great Depression, it was really tough times, but they survived through the hardships by growing their own food. There are a lot of veggies that actually do contain protein, and they're packed full of additional nutrients that our bodies all need. Vegetables highest in protein: Vegetables high in protein include artichokes, asparagus, beans, bean sprouts, and beans in general: broccoli, Brussel sprouts, chickpeas, green peas, kale, mushrooms, mustard greens, spinach, sweet corn, and turnip greens. For a few examples: Black beans contain 15 grams of protein in just a 1-cup serving. In fact, a 1/2 cup of cooked beans provides close to 7 grams of protein, which is the same as eating one ounce of meat. As for collar...

Distilling water If you're concerned about the PFAS that's in or may be in your tap water and want to learn a preventive way to truly clarify it, today I will walk you through how I distill water at home in my kitchen. I know it's extra work, but it's worth it. Of course, if you don't want to go through the process of distilling your own water, you can purchase it at grocery stores. Why should you distill water? Water distillation is an effective method of removing PFAS. In general, just boiling water will remove most bacteria and make the water safer to drink, but it will not remove PFAS. Distilling water removes a host of bacteria, chemicals, and other impurities, but be aware that when you distill water, it removes more than 99.9 percent of the minerals from your water. Instructions for distilling water at home: To begin, fill a large stockpot halfway with water. Then tie a coffee cup to the pan's lid with some string. The cup will han...

Wild edibles to forage If you're interested in foraging for free healthy food then today's article might be right up your alley. Every year during spring, summer, and fall, I enjoy going foraging for wild edibles. I believe that there's a better way of living through foraging. For one, it's an enjoyable experience just being outside and for another it's a way to learn about different plants that grow in the wild, and the third reason that I enjoy it so much are the natural health benefits of eating what I find. First I'd like to stress to you: when foraging, if you aren't familiar with a wild plant leave it alone. There's several that are indeed very poisonous. If you are new to foraging, take someone who's knowledgeable about wild edibles along with you at least for the first couple of times that you go out to forage.  Never take more from nature than you actually need. Remember that animals in the wild also need these wild edibles to survive. Wild ...

BBQ Boston butt in a Dutch oven Today, I will be preparing a barbecue Boston butt in a Dutch oven on the stovetop. I will be using my homemade spicy BBQ sauce , but if you prefer non-spicy, you can also get the recipe for my original BBQ sauce on Newsbreak too. Both are delicious. So, let's get on with the main recipe! Ingredients: 1 Boston butt (the one I am cooking today is just under 6 pounds). 2 tablespoons of steak sauce 1 tablespoon of liquid smoke flavoring 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes 2 teaspoons of onion flakes 1 teaspoon of minced garlic 1/2 teaspoon of fennel seeds (optional) 1/2 teaspoon of coriander 1-1/2 teaspoons of smoked paprika 1/2 teaspoon of seasoning salt 1 to 2 teaspoons of black pepper 1 to 2 cups of water for the bottom of the pan, plus more if needed during cooking Instructions: First, if you want to, sear the outside of your Boston butt in a Dutch oven with a tablespoon of canola oil. I never do this step for mine. Mix 2 teaspoons of steak sauce and 1 ...

Homemade country pancake and waffle mix In today's article, I will be walking you through the steps of how you can make your own dry pancake and waffle mix from scratch. Yes, you can use this mix to prepare both pancakes and waffles. The secret is that if you want to make waffles, you'll need to add two additional tablespoons of oil, per each cup of this mix, plus an extra egg, before making them, but do not add any wet ingredients to the homemade mix, until you're ready to make a batch. I will go more in depth on the steps for making waffles with the mix towards the end of my article. Ingredients for making the dry pancake and waffle mix: For a small batch of the pancake and waffle mix: 2 cups self-rising flour 2 tablespoons of Splenda, or sugar. Add more if you prefer your pancakes to be sweeter. 2 cups powdered milk, or leave out and use milk when making the pancakes ¼ teaspoon of no-salt substitute, or salt For an extra large batch of pancake and waffle mix: 6 cups of s...

What's the difference between griddle cakes, pancakes, hot cakes, skillet cakes, and flapjacks? Have you ever pondered the question, what's the difference between griddle cakes, pancakes, hot cakes, skillet cakes, and flapjacks? Well, today, I would like to tell you the answer to that specific question. Which is that all five of these food items are exactly one and the same.  Homemade country pancakes I have decided to write two separate articles on the subject of how I make homemade pancakes from scratch. The first one was just to take you through the steps of how I make the pancake and waffle mix from scratch. Inside this article, I will be going more into depth on how I use that particular mix to make pancakes. In the other article, I also covered how to make homemade waffles from this same mix. The dry mix is the same for both, but needs to be prepared a little differently when adding the last few ingredients to make the waffle batter. (Hopefully splitting the t...

Mama's Mexican chicken and rice casserole If you enjoy Mexican cuisine, I think that you'll love this! Because today, I am sharing my mom's recipe for her Mexican chicken and rice casserole. My beautiful and oh so amazing mom surprised me early this morning by bringing over a pan of her homemade casserole for me to serve for our dinner tonight and it looks simply mouthwatering. I know that I can't wait to taste it! Ingredients:  3-4 cups of chicken, boiled, deboned, and chopped 2 cups of rice 1 large onion, diced finely 2 cups of salsa (mom's is homemade) 1-15-ounce can of black beans, liquid drained 1 can of cream of chicken soup 1 teaspoon of no-salt 1 teaspoon of garlic powder ½ teaspoon of chili powder 1 teaspoon of cilantro Shredded Mexican cheese sour cream, optional Tortilla chips, optional Instructions: First, prepare your chicken. Mom adds water to a large pan and boils it until it falls off the bone. Then she chops the cooked chicken up into bite-size piec...

Sautéed baby bella mushrooms and onions Here's another savory mushroom recipe that pairs well as a side dish. The sautéed mushrooms and onions can also be served over baked (boneless) meats such as pork chops, steaks, chicken, and venison. Plus, it's delicious served over cooked buttered pasta, homemade pizza, etc.. When cooked bella mushrooms have a delicious savory meat-like flavor all to themselves. So, if you can't afford the high prices of meat, they can be served as a meat substitute. Ingredients:  1 pound of baby bella mushrooms, thickly sliced 1 large onion, diced 1 tablespoon of butter A pinch of seasoning salt Freshly ground pepper to your preferred taste Instructions: In a skillet, add one tablespoon of butter. Melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add your sliced baby bella mushrooms and cook for about five minutes. Reduce the temperature to medium, add the diced onion, seasoning salt, pepper, and simmer for another eight minutes. Stir frequently. The onion bit...