My Favorite Beer to Have at the End of a Long Week

Any time my buddies and I get together, we always have a difficult time deciding what types of beer to get. Of course, different people have different tastes, so there are often varying opinions on this subject, leading us usually to go our separate ways with our purchases.

When it comes to going out to a restaurant though, everyone is on their own and happy to be. Here are some of the beers that I choose to order.

I will start out by mentioning the obvious choice for me any time I see it on a menu, and that is none other than a Rolling Rock. The light version of this beer is too light, but the regular brew when served fresh out of a tap is very tough to beat.

Another craft ale that I thoroughly enjoy is Stella Artois. Coming way from Belgium, this is a very tasty beer; however, try not to order it in a bottle, as the volume is less than your standard bottled beer.

Any time I'm out for Chinese or Thai food, I always find myself ordering a Singha. This beer is heavy enough to cut into the spicy food that I always order with it, but not too flavorful to overpower and overwhelm my taste buds.

If you want to talk about smaller breweries that I enjoy, one of the finest beers to get on tap in my opinion is the Harpoon IPA. Getting this beverage with a dozen oysters or with a bucket of mussels is tough to beat for me.

Finally, I will mention a rare beer that any time I see it on a menu (which is not so often) I have to get it. And that beverage is none other than Red Seal. The Red Seal American Amber ale finds the perfect balance of taste, refreshment and hops. I just love this one and highly recommend getting it if you ever see it.

I hope that my advice has helped to educate you on a few different beers that you may not have known much about prior to reading this article.

Make Your Favorite Vegetarian Thai Recipes at Home

Eating out at Thai restaurants can be very difficult for vegetarians since so many Thai dishes are flavored with oyster sauce or fish sauce. Luckily, it's not too hard for you to make a handful of your favorite vegetarian Thai recipes yourself in your own home.

One very popular vegetarian Thai recipe that takes less than fifteen minutes to make on your own is Thai Spring Rolls. For this recipe, you need some spring roll wrappers, which are usually available in the fresh food section of your local grocery store. (If you cannot find them there, check your local Asian food store.) Mix together bean sprouts, chopped green cabbage and green onions, grated carrots, and some cooked thin rice noodles. If you want to make your spring rolls even more filling, you can add some pieces of scrambled eggs and grilled tofu. Flavor this mixture with some basil, mint, soy sauce, and lime juice. Soak the spring roll wrappers in cold water for ten to twenty seconds, or until you can bend them. Spoon some of the mixture into each spring roll wrapper and roll. Serve with some soy sauce to dip your Thai spring rolls.

Another choice when looking for vegetarian Thai recipes is tofu satay with peanut sauce and cucumber salad. Peanut sauce is something that can be bought from a grocery store; just make sure you read the ingredients to make sure that it's actually vegetarian. Cucumber salad, though, is something that you'll have to make yourself. Slice a seedless cucumber and a small red onion into thin pieces. Toss with rice wine vinegar, sugar, and salt, and put in the refrigerator for around thirty minutes to allow the flavors to blend together. In the meantime, cut up tofu into bite size pieces and thread onto bamboo skewers that have been soaking in water for at least fifteen minutes. Brush the tofu with a mixture of soy sauce and chili paste to flavor it. (Use less chili paste if you don't like a lot of spice.) Grill the skewers and serve with the peanut sauce and cucumber salad.

A final choice when trying your hand at creating a variety of vegetarian Thai recipes is to make Pad Thai. While it looks like it would be hard to make, it's actually pretty easy. All you need to do is cook up some flat rice noodles and toss in a mixture of sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, and water. Add a bunch of vegetables (mushrooms, shredded carrots, bean sprouts), and some scrambled egg and cubed tofu, and stir-fry until the whole dish is warm. Sprinkle the whole dish with ground up peanuts, and you have a dish fit for a restaurant, but without any meat or meat-based sauces.

You can make similar substitutions in any Thai recipe to create your own at-home version of vegetarian Thai recipes. Anytime a recipe calls for meat, you can substitute with tofu. And, instead of using oyster sauce or fish sauce, you can mix up some soy sauce with some Thai chili paste to give yourself a similar flavor without any meat. With these easy recipes, you'll always be able to enjoy your favorite vegetarian Thai recipes without any concern about any meat getting mixed in.

Favorite Beef Stew

I've been using this beef stew recipe since 1982 and have never found another to rival it. The timing of adding each type of vegetable is one of the things that make this beef stew special. Be sure to follow the recipe and don't add the ingredients all at once. If done correctly, the potatoes and peas will be perfectly cooked through and not the least bit mushy. The celery and carrots will be slightly crunchy for a pleasing blend of textures.

At my house, this recipe is affectionately called "Invisible Stew". When our son was a small child, my husband and I told him that he would turn invisible if he ate all of his stew. It worked like a charm! After he emptied his complete bowl of stew, we couldn't see him for at least 30 minutes. Those were fun times. More than twenty years later, he still comes around and asks me to make Invisible Stew.

Favorite Beef Stew

Ingredients:

2 pounds stew beef, cut into 1 inch chunks
3 tablespoons oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
4 cubes beef bouillon
4 cups water
4 cups potatoes, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
2 cups carrots, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
1 cup celery, cut diagonally into 1/2 inch pieces
1 cup frozen peas

Preparation:

1. Heat the oil in a 4 quart sauce pot or dutch oven. Add beef and brown lightly. Remove beef and set aside, making sure the oil remains in the pot.

2. Add garlic and onion to oil in the pot. Cook until the onion is clear.

3. Add flour and stir into the oil and onion mixture. Brown lightly.

4. Return beef to the pot. Add 1/2 cup water and stir until smooth. Add Worcestershire sauce, bouillon, salt, pepper and remaining 3 1/2 cups water. Stir and cook until the broth forms a thin gravy.

5. Reduce heat and simmer beef in gravy for 30 minutes.

6. Return pot to medium-low heat. Add potatoes and carrots and cook for an additional 10 minutes.

7. Add celery and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

8. Add frozen peas and cook for 5 more minutes. Serve hot.