The *OFFICIAL* Culinary Thread

[D-Man]

I was scanning over other sections on the forum and I noticed that Milkyway made a thread asking why we don't have a culinary thread. Well, now we do.

Have a recipe that you'd like to share with us? Are their foods that you'd like to mention go well together? Seen any YouTube cooking channels that grab your interest? Have you discovered any cooking utensils that you've found to be so useful that you'd like to share them with us? Well, here is your platform.

Discuss all things culinary in here.

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[ABMorales787]

Make a mean marinade for your steaks by mixing orange soda, achiote, some onions, a couple of garlic pieces and other spices. It gives it a great, juicy flavor without making it look all "dirty" from pelting it with oregano, salt, pepper and all that. A touch of lemon does good for it too.

 

[D-Man]

Believe it or not, for all of you culinary novices out there, have you ever wondered how to properly dice an onion? How about make a simple dish of scrambled eggs the proper way? Ever have someone tell you the proper way to sharpen your knives using a steel? And on top of all that, have you guys ever heard of Chef Gordon Ramsay?

If the answer to any or all of these questions is "yes," you need to go to YouTube and know that he has his own cooking channel called Cookalong Live. He's made numerous videos (such as the ones below) that are easy to follow and give step by step instructions on how to do simple things in the kitchen. Plus, he's very entertaining to watch and you'll probably absorb a lot more from him than from many of the shitty culinary YouTube channels that currently exist.




Bon Appetit!!

 

[Diet Soda]

Last thing I baked, Guinness Bread:

600g Wholemeal flour
150g Plain Flour
75g Oatmeal
2 and 1/2 teaspoons of Bread soda
1 teaspoon of Salt
2 and 1/2 tablespoons of brown sugar
40g Butter
480ml Milk
200ml Black treacle
½ Pint Draught GUINNESS

Mix the butter and the dry ingredients until the texture is like breadcrumbs, then add the milk, treacle and Guinness until you have a wet dough. Bake in a greased loaf tin for 45 mins at 170C.

Spoiler

 

[Diet Soda]

Little hint: the enzymes in onions which cause eye irritation usually trigger the reaction when entering the sinuses through the nostrils. Breathing through your mouth when chopping an onion will highly reduce the effect.

 

[Lowdown]

Just made this pineapple marinade for chicken breasts last week for my wife. First time trying it out, so it needs to be perfected some. The measurements aren't accurate, but the results were good nonetheless.

1/2 12 oz can of diced pineapples in juice
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar or extra virgin olive oil
small dash of basil
dash of garlic powder
tbsp black pepper

Make sure to marinade poultry or desired meat over night (poke holes at various spots so marinade can be soaked into meat).

 

[Max Headroom]

I make awesome vanilla-blueberry protein pancakes, I eat one everyday when I get back from the gym! They taste amazing too. Here's how it goes & in the order I do it, it's really worth a shot makes great breakfast too.
-1 egg, whisk it up
-3/4cup of milk[I use .5%]
-1+1/2 tablespoons of oil[I use extra virgin olive oil]
Whisk it again until it's mixed well.
-1/8cup of enriched white flour
-1/2cup of whole wheat flour
-1/2 tablespoon of sugar[or a full one, I go somewhere in between]
-1 tablespoon of baking powder
-1/4 teaspoon of salt
-1/2 cup of vanilla protein powder[Add more to get the thickness you like]
-1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

It can last a day or so in the fridge if you don't use it all, Or you can cook them all at once and put them in a good container they should last a week or so, that's what I do. I get about 8 pancakes in total out of this, but it doesn't really matter how big/small they are.

 

[Silly Willy Nilly Vanilly in the Milly]

My grandmother makes this very seldom. THE most amazing dish, EVER.
Kaese Spaetzle
She typically makes it as a solo dish with a German salad on the side. She also tends to replace the Emmentaler cheese with Swiss, which is much better.
If never you have eaten this, then never a life you have had.

 

[Milkyway!]

Don't mind me starting a WrestleZone Revolution!

Okay. So I know absolutely nothing about culinary, but my favorite "romantic" meal to cook is Chicken Parmesan. I always cook it for the ladies, and they always put the fuck out. However, recently I have grown tired of my own Chicken Parmesan; this being the culinary thread of the century inspired by none other. Help?

Basically I boil the noodles, put them in a pan, proceed to put boiled (or grilled) chicken on top (some times just a whole breast, sometimes shredded according to my mood), Parmesan cheese, shredded cheese, and croutons on top. Bake on 350 degrees for 20 minutes. YUMMY! Except after 50 times. Fix this shit. Now.

 

[D-Man]

Don't mind me starting a WrestleZone Revolution!

Okay. So I know absolutely nothing about culinary, but my favorite "romantic" meal to cook is Chicken Parmesan. I always cook it for the ladies, and they always put the fuck out. However, recently I have grown tired of my own Chicken Parmesan; this being the culinary thread of the century inspired by none other. Help?

Basically I boil the noodles, put them in a pan, proceed to put boiled (or grilled) chicken on top (some times just a whole breast, sometimes shredded according to my mood), Parmesan cheese, shredded cheese, and croutons on top. Bake on 350 degrees for 20 minutes. YUMMY! Except after 50 times. Fix this shit. Now.

If you want to make a REAL chicken parmesan, you need to create every element of the dish yourself. This includes frying the chicken cutlets and making the sauce.

Chicken
Take a chicken breast and cut it in half. It should be thinly sliced to make the cooking process easier. Dredge it in flour, then in an egg wash, then in breadcrumbs, and then into a pre-heated frying pan with vegetable oil lining the entire bottom. (You know the oil and pan are hot enough when the chicken touches the oil and you hear a sizzle and see bubbling.) Let the chicken cook for about a full minute to minute and a half on the one side (until you see the bottom browning) and then turn over. Cook the other side the same way until it's browned. The chicken should be thin enough where it's cooked all the way through if the breading has been browned.

Continue until all of your chicken is cooked. Set cooked chicken cutlets aside.

Sauce
Dice onions, garlic, shred some carrots, and set aside. Then, take a large sauce pot and heat it up on medium heat. Pour about two tablespoons of oil on the bottom when pot is hot. Then, add the onions and carrots and let them sweat out until the onions are translucent. Stir a bit, then add diced garlic on top. Let sit cook for about 45 seconds to a minute making sure garlic doesn't burn. Take some red wine and deglaze the bottom of the pan when garlic, onions, and carrots are cooked. Let the red wine reduce a bit for about 3 minutes.

Then, add two cans of some crushed tomatoes. Add salt, pepper, oregano, and basil and stir everything through. Next, add about 1/2 can of tomato paste for some extra, tomato flavor. Stir together until sauce begins to boil a little then immediate lower heat to a simmer. Let sauce reduce for 30 minutes to an hour.

Chicken Parm
Pour some sauce to line the bottom of an over pan. Place chicken cutlets on the sauce in the pan. Ladle some sauce on top of the chicken and shred some mozzerella on top of the sauced chicken. Then, ladle some more sauce over the top. Continue until all chicken cutlets in the pan are covered. Place pan into a pre-heated oven (425 degrees) until cheese is fully melted through.

Serve with pasta.

BAM!!! Awesome, simple chicken parm!!!

 

[Lowdown]

Don't mind me starting a WrestleZone Revolution!

Okay. So I know absolutely nothing about culinary, but my favorite "romantic" meal to cook is Chicken Parmesan. I always cook it for the ladies, and they always put the fuck out. However, recently I have grown tired of my own Chicken Parmesan; this being the culinary thread of the century inspired by none other. Help?

Basically I boil the noodles, put them in a pan, proceed to put boiled (or grilled) chicken on top (some times just a whole breast, sometimes shredded according to my mood), Parmesan cheese, shredded cheese, and croutons on top. Bake on 350 degrees for 20 minutes. YUMMY! Except after 50 times. Fix this shit. Now.

There's a lot of recipes out there for guys, like Rachael Ray's series of 30 minute meals and such. And you can usually go to sites like Campbell's or allrecipes.com. The simplest ingredients like rice you can turn into gourmet style.

 

[D-Man]

Moderator's Note:

Guys, please know this is a NON-SPAM section. You must follow all rules in regards to spamming in this thread. It is not for cutting and pasting or single-lined questions. It's a discussion thread. I was forced to delete many comments that did not follow this but I did not infract anyone. However, that is your only "GET OUT OF JAIL FREE" pass. Any new spam posts will be handled accordingly.

If you have any questions in regards to what is considered to be spam or non-spam, please refer to our rulebook.

Thank you.

 

[Max Headroom]

I shall keep this thread alive, the amount of recipes I have is quite an abundance. Here are some good homemade burger ideas. This has a lot less steps to it compared to my protein pancakes:
-Get some lean ground beef[I go 80/20]

-Weigh out however many burgers you want/how big you want them[I go 1/3 pounders, get 3 out of a pound]

-Get some chili powder, pepper, ground chili, paprika, crushed/roasted garlic, Montreal spice, and whatever other spices you enjoy, throw a pinch of each in.

-Chop some onions, along with some red, green & orange peppers[I chop them extremely fine, but that part is all up to you and how big you like it, but I recommend quite small bits when it's all cut up] & flick all them in.

-Get some BBQ sauce[tea-tablespoon per 1/3 pound burger, I use Bullseye Original.]

-Lastly, if you enjoy hotness, you can always toss some Frank's Red Hot Sauce in.

Don't precook the meat, just weigh it out & put your stuff in(or vice-versa), & slap them on a BBQ for about 15-20 minutes. The time can vary, though, depending on size. You can make a bunch at once & freeze them, also, that's what I do. You can cook them from frozen but it takes a bit longer, and if you make them thick they can take as long as an hour on the BBQ from frozen, so if you plan your supper ahead of time I recommend taking them out in the morning.

There you have it, some excellent, tasty burgers. Get some real black diamond cheese slices if you enjoy having cheese on your burger, screw the processed crap.

I also apologize for the lack of pictures to back my food, I have a flip phone with a shit camera & a desktop with no webcam, but I guarantee that it all looks & tastes absolutely delicious.

 

[Daniel]

Sandwiches are my thing. I love good food, but generally dislike cooking dishes that take a lot of preparation. I'll do it occasionally (I make a mean smoked haddock and spinach lasagne), but sandwiches are just better.

[YOUTUBE]jKqs7j3iRxo[/YOUTUBE]

This is a great guide to sandwich-making. Adam Richman knows what he's talking about when it comes to food. The focus he puts on order and layering is justified. The spicy sauce on the bottom is something I picked up from this video and now practice regularly (I use Encona hot pepper sauce at the moment, as I've yet to come by sriracha sauce). I've long been an advocate of using crisps as a way of introducing a new texture, as well as not always adding lettuce to your sandwich. So it's nice to know he backs me up.

But my favourite sandwich - the one I've got down to a fine art - is the fish finger sandwich. Aw. Hell. Yeah.

Two slices of bread. Ideally white (this is one of the times heavily-processed sliced bread is encouraged), but I have wholemeal in my house most of the time. Four fish fingers under the grill. Wait until they have small scorch marks on the top, turn and wait until the other sides char to a similar degree. The light char ensures a crispy exterior, which works well against the softness of the bread. For condiments, I go with salt, vinegar and tomato ketchup. If you've never tried a fish finger sandwich, you need to. It's amazing comfort food.

 

[Milkyway!]

Sandwiches are my thing. I love good food, but generally dislike cooking dishes that take a lot of preparation. I'll do it occasionally (I make a mean smoked haddock and spinach lasagne), but sandwiches are just better.

[YOUTUBE]jKqs7j3iRxo[/YOUTUBE]

This is a great guide to sandwich-making. Adam Richman knows what he's talking about when it comes to food. The focus he puts on order and layering is justified. The spicy sauce on the bottom is something I picked up from this video and now practice regularly (I use Encona hot pepper sauce at the moment, as I've yet to come by sriracha sauce). I've long been an advocate of using crisps as a way of introducing a new texture, as well as not always adding lettuce to your sandwich. So it's nice to know he backs me up.

But my favourite sandwich - the one I've got down to a fine art - is the fish finger sandwich. Aw. Hell. Yeah.

Two slices of bread. Ideally white (this is one of the times heavily-processed sliced bread is encouraged), but I have wholemeal in my house most of the time. Four fish fingers under the grill. Wait until they have small scorch marks on the top, turn and wait until the other sides char to a similar degree. The light char ensures a crispy exterior, which works well against the softness of the bread. For condiments, I go with salt, vinegar and tomato ketchup. If you've never tried a fish finger sandwich, you need to. It's amazing comfort food.

Speaking of delectable sandwiches. One of my favorite meals is quite simple. Grilled Cheese dipped in Chili. Use whatever cheese you like, mix your cheeses, anything. I often play with my cheeses mixing them. Perperjack/Cheddar have been my most recent experiments.

The chili is pretty standard. Chili power, 2 cans of pinto beans, 2 cans of red beans if you like them, 2 cans of tomato sauce (I also use a dab of ketchup), chunked onions, diced tomatoes, and just yummyness. This typically feeds my family of 5 quite easily, and everyone seems to always enjoy the new experiments.

 

[ABMorales787]

Just made this pineapple marinade for chicken breasts last week for my wife. First time trying it out, so it needs to be perfected some. The measurements aren't accurate, but the results were good nonetheless.

1/2 12 oz can of diced pineapples in juice
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar or extra virgin olive oil
small dash of basil
dash of garlic powder
tbsp black pepper

Make sure to marinade poultry or desired meat over night (poke holes at various spots so marinade can be soaked into meat).

I use pineapple for a pork marinade. The dish itself is called "Carne al Pastor" or Shepherd Meat. It mixes your random meat seasonings with the pineapple, no juice, achiote and boiled jalapeños. You'd think the result would be spicy involving the peppers but it's actually rather sweet. Add it to some diced pork loins while on the skillet and add some julianne cut peppers for the perfect fajita meat.

 

[Lowdown]

I use pineapple for a pork marinade. The dish itself is called "Carne al Pastor" or Shepherd Meat. It mixes your random meat seasonings with the pineapple, no juice, achiote and boiled jalapeños. You'd think the result would be spicy involving the peppers but it's actually rather sweet. Add it to some diced pork loins while on the skillet and add some julianne cut peppers for the perfect fajita meat.

Wished I had that last night. Had boneless pork chops for dinner. That sounds right up my alley KJ. We usually use chicken breasts for our fajitas, but Lord knows somethimes I gotta have that pork.

 

[ABMorales787]

Wished I had that last night. Had boneless pork chops for dinner. That sounds right up my alley KJ. We usually use chicken breasts for our fajitas, but Lord knows somethimes I gotta have that pork.

Steak fajitas are also good. Especially when flavored with lemon juice or even plain ol' beer. It gives it a nice bit of sour flavor that goes great with simple salt and pepper seasoning.

 

[Max Headroom]

So I never gave a recipe in a few days, busy staining the fence for the winter & whatnot. So I shall make it up to all of you by giving this formula to an absolutely delicious blueberry pie. It's a bit of work, but I promise it's damn well worth it.

First we'll start with the two-crust pastry(bottom & top parts)
-2 cups of flour(All-purpose/enriched white)

-1 teaspoon of salt

-2/3 cup + 2 tablespoons of shortening.

-4-5 tablespoons of cold water.

Get a rolling pin, flatten it out & take your pie-pan, cut out some of your pastry & put it along the inside perimeter of the pan. Make sure there is enough left over for your top, roll it out & have it waiting(using your pie-pan as a cookie-cutter type thing to cut out your top part first is actually a great idea).

Now for the pie's inside.

-1/3 cup of sugar[I use stevia, as I like to be healthy when possible. Both end up tasting the same in the end, though.]

-1/4 cup of flour[same kind you used for the pastry]

-1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

-4 cups of fresh[or thawed, just not from frozen] blueberries.

Put the powder mixture into a bag & then pour the blueberries in and shake, then put it into the pie-pan. Throw out the excess powder. Now put on top of the berries:

-1 tablespoon of lemon juice & a little margarine and/or milk. This helps the blueberries break down & adds a tiny bit of flavor, but it is not 100% essential.

Lay the top part of your pastry on top of your creation, and cover the edge of your crust with tinfoil(take it off the last 15 minutes). Dip a brush into some milk, and spread it on the top of your pie. Now put your oven to 425 degrees fahrenheit & put the pie in for 35-45 minutes. Remember to take your foil off on the last 15, though.

When it is done, take it out, keep it in the pan & poke three clean holes as evenly apart as possible to speed the cooling of the inside. Make sure not to poke through to the bottom. Lay the pan on a cooling rack & wait for it to fully cool. This is by far the longest & most brutal part, but cutting it early will cause juices to leak out. After hours of waiting, you will be thankful.

Enjoy!

 

[Lowdown]

Ok people, got a recipe here that I haven't made in about four years prior to last night. The wife loved it. Lowdown's Fried Rice w/Smoked Sausage.

2-4 cups of white rice (brown if you prefer)
1 pack of Hilshire beef smoked sausage or hot links, diced
1 green or red bell pepper, diced
1 bunch of green onions, diced
1 egg for texture (optional)

Make sure the cooked rice has cooled some before preparing dish. Start by frying links in a skillet or pot on medium heat. Once they have browned some add peppers and onions and increase heat moderately. Once the veggies have blended with the links its time to add rice, stirring in mix gradually as you add. You might be able to hold on to some rice on the side if you want to make more at a later time. If rice starts to stick to the skillet or pot, and a little cooking oil to loosen it up. Add egg and scramble it into mix for texture if you desire. Add desired seasonings like cracked black pepper, seasoned salt, etc. Once rice has taken on a glossy color to the meat and veggies, its ready to be served.

This is a quick and tasty dish that goes well with any prepared meat like chicken or steak, or by itself. You might also be able to wing it with hot dogs if smoked sausage isn't readily at hand, but the taste will be different.

Enjoy.

 

[Trill Co$by]

Well recently (6 months ago) I opened a food truck in South Carolina, it's called The Wrap Up and we (myself, my girlfriend, and my friend) specialize in anything that can be wrapped up... meaning flat melts, tacos, burritos, etc. But we also have a strong menu of pizzas, and believe it or not, they're a hit.

Before I continue with the recipes, here's a story of how we started putting them on our menu. With a strong amount of flat bread one day, we were needing something to do with them. We use our flat bread to make the melts (Philly Cheese steak being the most profitable) but for some reason we weren't selling that day. So then at a huge lunch rush by a Walmart, someone asked if we had a pizza.

My girlfriend (who operates the serving window) started to say no, but then my brain hatched and I stopped her. Stepping out of the truck, I went to the menu and put "Build Your Own Pizza - $5".

It was a hit, and we've not looked back since. We now have 8 menu pizzas as well as the Build your own. But enough with that, here's the recipe I have for you guys. It's a barbecue steak pizza, our bestselling, and you don't even need an oven. This is great for people who are in an Extended Stay where there is no oven.

Recipe

You'll Need: 1 8in. Flat bread, Olive oil, Marinara/Pizza Sauce, Fresh Mozzarella (if you can use a grater, you should be a hater), 1 Bulls Eye steak patty (steak 'ems are a great substitute), 1/4 Diced Onion, 1/4 Diced Green Bell Pepper, and *Memphis Style barbecue sauce


How to make it:

Preheat your skillet or griddle to medium high heat (About 300* F), lightly coat the top of the flat bread with olive oil and place it on the skillet to lightly toast. Coat bottom and flip until lightly toasted. Place on a clean surface and set aside. Toss onions and peppers into the pan, and cook until translucent. Set aside for later. Turn up heating surface to about 350* F (That's still med. high on the stove). Cook steak patty, adding enough Memphis style barbecue sauce to coat the patty... it's best to add the sauce after the steak is fully cooked. Remove from skillet/griddle and set aside.

To assemble the pizza, place 2 teaspoons of Marinara/Pizza sauce on the top surface of the pizza. Spread it to the corners, add onions and peppers on top and spread. Top with cooked steak, and then top with cheese. Place pizza back in the preheated pan and top for 1 minute to melt the cheese. Remove and serve.

* - Memphis Barbecue is recommended over Texas, Kansas, Carolina, and Oklahoma because it's got a more vinegar content and is sweetened with molasses, which both help bring out the extra flavors of the steak. You may substitute your choice of sauce as desired, however Memphis is highly recommended. If you're sitting at your computer asking "What's the difference?" then just find your bottled sauce in the stores if you want.

 

[Max Headroom]

Time to share another recipe. This one is simple, but also not so simple at the same time. You'll see what I mean. This is a recipe for some homemade protein bars, super healthy & super tasty. Perfect for taking to school/work.

-Start with four tablespoons of peanut butter.

-Add four scoops of vanilla(or chocolate) protein powder.

-1/3 cup of rolled oats.

-1/3 cup of ground whole flax seeds.

-Two tablespoons of natural, unsweetened cocoa.

-1/3 cup of water.

This is where the hard part comes in, as that small amount of water is all you have for liquid. You'll give your arm a hell of a work out stirring, chopping, and pounding this until it's perfect. You may need to add extra water but be very careful because it's as easy to over-shoot as a chemistry titration. When it's done, it pretty much looks like a clump of shit, but taste or smell it and damn you'll know the difference.

What I do next is I take a small, square dish(preferably glass). Cover the bottom perfectly with that cling-wrap stuff, making sure you leave enough to cover over the top, also. Put the mixture in there and pound it out until it's flat, even, and takes the shape of the dish. I actually use a meat-tenderizer for this part, to make it perfectly flat. then smooth it out with my hand if it's not too sticky(over-shooting the water). cover the top then with the plastic wrap, and put it in the fridge.

After about two hours or so, take it out and cut it into bars. I make four, to get an even serving of peanut butter and the protein in each bar. Then wrap each one individually, and put them back in the fridge. You can also freeze them, they're tasty frozen, and if you're bringing them to work/school and don't plan on eating it right away, I recommend you do so, and bring an ice-pack so it doesn't get too warm(not that it matter, it's just warmer=more sticky). Enjoy! I sure do.

 

[Slice]

I got a molecular cuisine starter kit but haven't ever gotten the chance to use it. I really want to soon (side note, also got the molecular cocktails set recently)

I also have a love/hate relationship with cooking, because taste is so fleeting.

My favorite thing to make is just a simple RibEye steak.

I season each side with lemon salt and pepper, then pour beer over it slowly. In the fridge for a few hours, then grilled on high heat for about 5 minutes per side with some olive oil. For a side I'll usually do some pasta or the other, with some Parmesan and some bits of ham and bacon in it.

When I get to using that Molecular Cooking kit thing I'll make sure to post here!

 

[HBsam31]

I am a restaurant chef. I do my cooking in an upscale winebar in Pittsburgh, but I have cooked in a lot of different place. Most of all I like to cook for my wife and new daughter at home. I just found this culinary thread, and what I am going to try and do is do one slow cooking dish per week depending on the responses I get and how many people actually read this thread. I picked slow cook because all you need is a crock pot to do it, and it doesn't need constant attention. I am also going to pick dishes that are cheap to make using stuff that can be found in any grocery store. All I ask is people keep and open mind, and give me some feedback if you actually tried and liked the dish. The first dish I picked is one I just tried for the first time myself last week. Here we go.

1 pack of lamb breast. (I found this at walmart and it cost 5 bucks lol)
1 can of tomato sauce
1 bag of baby spinach
1/2 yellow onion
2 cloves garlic
Cumin
salt
pepper

When you open the lamb breast you will notice it is very fatty and comes with a rack of lamb ribs. Separate the ribs from the breast and trim as much of the fast from the breast as you can. You can throw the ribs in the pot as well. I cut the breast into smaller portions (whatever size you want). Sear the golden brown in a pan using your choice of oil or butter. Put into the crock pot. Julienne the half onion and put in the pot with a bag of spinach. Then the can of tomato sauce and the same can filled with water. Mince the two cloves of garlic and add along with salt pepper and cumin. I used about a table spoon, but go ahead and do it to your taste. Put crock pot on high and cook for about six hours. When it is done the meat is very tender and the sauce is ready to use. Put it over pasta or rice or eat in by itself. Total prep time is about 15 to 20 minutes, and the six hours it is in crock pot you can go and do whatever you want. Total cost for the meal is maybe 10 bucks. Let me know what you guys think.

 

[Fire Marshall Bill]

I was going to put this in a workout thread when I got around to it, because it's loaded with protein and good carbs, but I guess this is probably more appropriate.

This is sort of my own creation that I've played with and this is where it currently stands. First off, I cook this in a slow cooker, but I'm thinking is probably not necessary. It does a good job of blending all the flavors together, while completing the cooking of the rice and quinoa though.

Ingredients

3/4 cup dry long grain brown rice
1/4 cup dry quinoa
1lb ground beef (I generally use either 90/10 or 93/7. I drain the fat before adding anyways though so if you do the same the content means less)
4 cans of beans (I use 1 can dark red kidney, 1 black, 1 pinto and 1 navy or great northern. This provides slightly different nutrion values as well as amino acid profiles)
1/2 yellow onion
1 bundle green onion
1 can of diced tomatos
1 bundle of fresh cilantro (In a bind, dried cilantro helps, but doesn't provide nearly the flavor)
Spinach (This is a very new addition and so far I've only used a little bit of frozen spinach. I imagine fresh spinach would add flavor. Frozen didn't change the recipe much. I decided to add this strictly for it's amazing nutritional value)

First I pour some water into the slowcooker so we have something already to start warming everything up. Then I drain and strain all the cans of beans in order to wash off all the syrup and salt that sticks to them in the can. After each one I put it in the slow cooker. Then I drain the can of diced tomatos and pour that in as well. Next I start dicing up the 1/2 yellow onion and throw that in. I usually chop up about 2/3 of a bundle of green onions and throw that in. If using fresh cilantro, not a lot is necessary to chop up and put in. It's flavor is much more potent. I'd say maybe 1/4 of a bundle (cilantro is much harder to judge for obvious reasons). This is when I start boiling the water and heating up the beef in a pan. I brown the beef, drain the fat, and then add taco seasoning and water and let it simmer. When it's done simmering for 5-10 minutes, I drain the pan and add the beef to the mix. While that's happening I have the rice and quinoa boiling. I generally boil the rice for 8 minutes, then add the quinoa to the same pot and boil them together for 7 more. This doesn't cook either fully, but gets a good start on them both. They finish in the slow cooker. It also boils off that starch that comes off during cooking. Then I drain and add both of those to the slow cooker. Stirring throughout adding is optional, as I generally don't stir it all together until I'm done adding ingredients.

As for seasoning, there's already a lot of flavor mixing together in the slow cooker, but I do add some cayenne pepper throughout for a little kick. Sometimes some garlic as well.

When I'm done adding, I finish it off with just enough water to come up to the level of the mix, this way the rice and quinoa can finish cooking. Cook for approximately 2 hours, or until it seems the rice is cooked through. I stir it occasionally as well. I've overcooked this before and it made the contents too mushy and I didn't like it. If there's significantly less water in it when you're done, it's probably overcooked.

Chopped up bacon pieces go really good in this as well, but I have since removed them from my ingredients since it is getting crowded. This makes several servings. Understand, this will fill up a slow cooker (or at least a regular sized one) to within an inch or two of the top. When I make this, I do it at the beginning of the work week and eat it for lunch all week.