Sloppy Joes

During a recent move, I had neglected to remember my spices; the food I've been cooking has taken on a somewhat rudimentary flavouring scheme. That is, everything I'm eating is flavoured with salt, pepper, and some combination of ketchup and mustard. Still, I have to admit that these satisfy all of my deepest comfort food needs.
Start by sauteeing

2 tbsp butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped

at a very low temperature until the onion is translucent and sweet, about 10 minutes. Then add

1 pound lean ground beef

and fry until the meat is cooked through. Then add

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
3/4 cup ketchup
3 teaspoons brown sugar
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste

Serve the whole mess on a white but or as a sandwich between a couple of slices of white bread.

Crispy Ginger Fried Pork

First, marinate

1 lb pork loin sliced into fine strips

in a mixture of

1 tbsp

orange juice

3 tbsp finely minced ginger root

2 tbsp soy sauce (any darkness you prefer)

1/2 tsp salt

in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, and up to 12 hours. 20 minutes before the pork is finished marinating, prepare white rice. 10 minutes before the pork is finished marinating, begin to heat

3/4 C peanut oil

to a medium-high heat (as high as you can go without the oil smoking at all). Prepare the batter in a separate bowl:

1/2 C corn starch

1/4 C flour

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

3-7 tbsp water (I failed to measure the water properly: start with a little, and thin it out one tbsp at a time until it is runny enough to coat the pork without clotting)

Grab your first pair of chopsticks and take individual strips of pork, run them through the batter, and carefully extrude them into the hot oil in the wok. Use a metal utensil (large metal spoon, for example) to loosen all of the pork strips from the bottom of the wok after a minute in the oil. After a short time, they should begin to float. If the strips stick together, increase the heat of the oil. If any smoke begins to appear, lower the heat of the oil. Cook the pork until the crust is a medium to dark golden brown colour.

Dad's Pancakes

These are not good for you, but they are delicious.

Mix together

2 C flour

1/2 C white sugar

2 tsp (10 ml) baking powder

1 tsp (5 ml) salt

in a big mixing bowl. Then beat

2 eggs

in a separate bowl and add

1 3/4 C milk

to the beaten eggs. Combine everything in the big mixing bowl. Heat an 8'' pan to medium heat with

3-5 tbsp vegetable oil

You want the pan hot enough to cook the pancakes but not so hot that the pancakes burn after a few minutes. Drop three 1/4 cup spoonfuls of the mixture into the pan. After a few minutes (when bubbles begin to form on the tops of the pancakes) flip the pancakes and cook for another minute. Serve immediately with lots of butter and syrup. I also love to put berries and vanilla yogurt on top :)

Sauce for Tacos or Enchiladas

2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste
2 cups water
1 8 ounce can tomato paste
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt

Cook the oil, paprika, and chili powder in a saucepan on medium heat for 2-5 minutes. Then add the rest of the ingredients and cook for 20 minutes more. Blend with taco beef if making tacos, seasoning to taste.