500 Favorite Foods

[IggytheBorg]

284. Mom's Layonnaise (sp?) Potatoes These were sort of like home fries, in that they were composed of sliced potatoes onions, fried in a little butter in a pan. No peppers, and not fried at all crisp, this simple side dish was the perfect vehicle for salt & pepper, and a most welcome side dish at mom's table growing up.

[IggytheBorg]

285. Rice Pilaf The subtle, buttery flavor of this steak house stand by is a favorite becaise it perfectly offsets the spiciness of steak rubs and sauces so very, very well. It's also a bit healthier than a baked potato smothered in butter, sour cream or cheese & bacon bits, or steak fries. If one wishes, it can also serve as a great vehicle (as will most rice dishes) for hot sauce.

[IggytheBorg]

286. Rice a Roni Chicken Flavor Could you make a better one from scratch? Of course you could. BUt could you do it in less than 20 minutes (which is key when cooking for the family on a weeknight)? No. No you can't. And as pre-packaged as this stuff is, its flavor grows on you. I could eat a box myself, along WITH the dinner it accompanies.

[IggytheBorg]

287. Rice a Roni Beef Flavor A nice change of pace, indeed, with all the virtues of its chicken based brethren.

[IggytheBorg]

288. Pork Fried Rice Is this some anonymous side dish in Chinese combination platters? Not if you do it right it isn't. Browned just enough, it's got a slight smokiness of charred soy sauce & peanut oil to accent the subtle 5 spiced accents of the roast pork. And again, a delicious vehicle for hot sauces, particularly ones with a heavy ginger presence.

[Ed Hocken]

My family would make #286 a lot.

[IggytheBorg]

289. Beef Stroganoff I have yet to perfect this on my own, but if I see it on a menu someplace, I'll order it. I've had the version TGI Friday's made a few times, and it almost scratches the itch. Better than nothing. It's just a shame Eastern European cuisine gets so little respect in this country, and you won't find even a tasty dish like this on many restaurants' menus.

[IggytheBorg]

290. Hamburger Helper Original I may be blowing a lot of my foodie credibility right here, but think about it: pasta, a cheese based sauce, and browned ground beef. It's like chili mac or ghoulash, kinda. Neither of those is haute cuisine, but both are well loved peasant/comfort foods. Good ol' Hamburger Helper is, if you ask me, a reasonable and even easier approximation.

[IggytheBorg]

291. Hamburger Helper Cheeseburger macaroni Much like the original, but even cheesier. What's not to love?

[B_Metal]

My wife makes a TURRIBLE Beef Stroganoff but I don't have the heart to tell her.

[IggytheBorg]

292. Frosted Cherry Pop-Tarts bad for you as all get out, but damned tasty. A little sweet, a little tart. . . I used to pack these with a sandwich for lunch sometimes when I was brown baggin' it, and eat 'em cold. better warm, of course, but still damned good.

[IggytheBorg]

293. Frosted Blueberry Pop Tarts For much the same reason as the last entry, but they are more of a mellow, well rounded sweetness w/o any tart notes to speak of.

[IggytheBorg]

294. Frosted Strawberry Pop Tarts A little sweeter still than the blueberry, but never cloying or overpowering.

[Matt]

289. Beef Stroganoff I have yet to perfect this on my own, but if I see it on a menu someplace, I'll order it. I've had the version TGI Friday's made a few times, and it almost scratches the itch. Better than nothing. It's just a shame Eastern European cuisine gets so little respect in this country, and you won't find even a tasty dish like this on many restaurants' menus.

Word. The best Beef Stroganoff that I've ever had is at this place that we went to over the weekend: Moscow on the Hill in St. Paul. It's so damned good, with real mashed potatoes instead of those noodles.

My mother's favorite dish was Beef Stroganoff, and we took my parents there on the New Year's Eve before she died. She ordered the Stroganoff and was in complete nirvana for the entire meal. She told us afterwards that it was the best Stroganoff that she'd ever had. AWESOME.

[Timothy225]

Fuckin' A on the Pop Tarts, Iggy. They used to make plain Cherry Pop Tarts without the frosting, but they stopped. Because I liked them.

I swear it's like Chocodiles - I fall in love with a junk food and they either stop making it or stop carrying it in my area. RAGE!