Special post: My two favorite things to make

Yesterday's review of the whole wheat tortillas prompts me to tell you about the two things I most often prepare for my main meal of the day, both of which are made mostly or entirely from Trader Joe's products.


Tostadas

I don't know if that's a proper Mexican food term. I picked it up from Taco Bell and appropriated for my own use.

The only preparation required besides assembling the ingredients is to brown some TJ's Soy Chorizo in vegetable oil. I usually use TJ's Grapeseed Oil, but any will do.

Now take a TJ's Handmade Flour Tortilla. Spread on it a layer of TJ's Fat-Free Refried Beans. Sprinkle on some of the browned Soy Chorizo. If I happen to have some leftover cooked rice from something else I've made, I'll sprinkle a little of that on, too. Sprinkle on any shredded cheese. My default is TJ's Shredded Sharp Cheddar, but I've used many others from TJ's cheese line-up with good success. Finally, top it with a handful of TJ's Sun-Dried Tomatoes. Microwave for about 2 minutes.


Fake chicken strips on rice

The second thing I make over and over and over again doesn't really have a name, but consists of four ingredients.

First, cook up any rice you like. My go-to staples are TJ's Brown Jasmine Rice From Thailand and TJ's Basmati Rice From India. (On occasion, I'll go crazy and use quinoa or lentils or couscous instead of rice.)

Plunk on top of the bed of rice some fake chicken strips, prepared per package directions (some oven, some browning in a skillet). I used to use TJ's Chicken-Less Strips often, but, sadly, they have been discontinued. My current favorite is the grilled strips from Beyond Meat, but I'm just about as happy with similar products from Gardein, Boca, or MorningStar. Breaded varieties (strips or nuggets) work fine, too, such as TJ's Chickenless Crispy Tenders.

Finally, this needs a sauce. I liked TJ's Mango Ginger Chutney the first time I tried it, but it really came to life when I followed Nina's suggestion of turning it into a sweet-and-sour sauce by adding some lemon juice (which, unfortunately, TJ's doesn't sell). I use roughly a 2:1 ratio of chutney to lemon juice, but of course you can vary this to taste. Pour or spoon this over the strips and rice. I like to use an amount of sauce that Nina considers excessive, but again, vary this as suits you.


If you were to drop by my house on a randomly selected lunchtime, which is when I eat my only real meal of the day, you would find me tearing into one or the other of the above things at least half the time, and maybe 2/3 of the time. All of the other things I sometimes prepare together make up the rest.