I love eating good food but recently, when it comes to cooking meals, I have been uninspired. I’ve been tired (thanks winter!) and I never seem to catch up on the dirty dishes piling in my sink. I think they grow on their own. That lead to cooking my go-to meals over and over again. Boring, but dependable. After our trip to Disney World, I missed being in the kitchen. Luckily, the copy of Cooking Light Global Kitchen cookbook that I won from fellow blogger Andrea’s Recipes was waiting for me in my mailbox when I returned. Her site has mouthwatering recipes, so definitely go check it out!
The first thing I do when I get a new cookbook is to sit down with it and some Post-It flags. I flag the recipe I most want to try. Sometimes the kids join in, which I love because they’re more open to trying new foods when they choose the recipes. Plus, I’m in love with Post-It flags and have to justify buying a pack of 600. Sssh. It’s not as many as it sounds.
Enter Global Kitchen’s Korean-style Beef Tacos.
I try not to buy ingredients just for one recipe, especially if it’s a new to me recipe. The frugal part of me prefers to buy pantry items that work for multiple meals. Since chicken enchiladas were also on last week’s menu, I had plenty of corn tortillas on hand. I cook a lot of Vietnamese food, most of the marinade ingredients were already in my pantry. My local Trader Joe’s didn’t have Napa cabbage so I grabbed a bag of shredded kale, Brussels sprouts and cabbage.
My kids have a new love for tacos, so while this recipe is a twist on the classic, I knew they’d be open to trying it out. Except for the pickled cabbage. Sophia doesn’t like pickled foods. (I’m not sure how we can be related because the rest of us loves pickled veggies.)
What I love about Cooking Light magazine and all of their cookbooks is that the recipes are easy to read. Directions are straightforward and easy to follow. The cooking times are realistic and help me plan my menu (weeknight or weekend recipe?). The serving size, caloric and nutritional content is outlined for each recipe. Cooking Light create healthy versions of our favorite recipes without sacrificing flavor. Though my subscription to the magazine has lapsed, I still have every single issue I’ve ever purchased.
Cooking Light Global Kitchen feature the same bright, mouthwatering format as its magazine. Each recipe is accompanied by big, colorful, lick-the-page photographs. You could leave it out on your coffee table, but then you’ll be hungry all the time. The cookbook is divided into world regions such as East Asia & India and The Middle East & Africa.
So how were the Korean-style beef tacos and quick pickled cabbage? Excellent. I improvised a bit on the ingredients since I didn’t have time to run to my Asian grocer. I also broiled the beef instead of grilling like the instructions called for. Next time I’ll probably just cook it in a big non-stick skillet because I ended up drying out the beef a little. Those are just nitpicky things due to how I improvised the recipe.
The kids loved the tacos and I would definitely make it again.
I can’t wait to flag more new recipes to try from Cooking Light Global Kitchen!
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