Upgrade your packaged foods with chef Richard Blais' recipes
Stuck at home? Staring at the same pantry, fridge and freezer ingredients with little inspiration? Time to upgrade the packaged foods you have on hand to make a delicious dish that has a former Top Chef winner's stamp of approval.
Chef, restaurateur and "Food Court" host Richard Blais joined "Good Morning America" from his home in San Diego with his two daughters, Riley and Embry, who helped whip up two creative recipes.
First up is a nacho recipe "from the depths of the Blais family pantry, fridge and freezer on day 11 of no shopping due to the quarantine in California," the chef said amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
"We are trying to do our part, let grocery stores restock shelves, practice social distancing and of course staying inside as much as possible," he said. "You’ll be surprised how much food you have when you are conserving and making the best of it all. I found a small packet of saffron on the floor in my pantry behind the dog food yesterday. Celebrate the small things fam!"
His second dish reinvents how to use ramen noodles using other pantry ingredients for an open faced sandwich situation,
Check out the full recipes below.
Whatcha Got-Cho’s
Ingredients
1 cup leftover cold chicken breast (this can be any protein, ground meat of any variety, deli meats, chopped bacon, or can be omitted)
1/2 can canned black beans
3 - 4 tablespoons canned or jarred olives
1/2 cup guacamole
2 quarts tortilla chips
2-3 tablespoons sour cream or ranch dressing
3/4 cup shredded cheese
4 tablespoons chopped dill (any fresh herb will work -- dried herbs would be ok as well)
3 tablespoons onion, diced
3 tablespoons Tomato diced
1 tablespoon or at your discretion hot sauce
Pickles, optional, to add acidity
Directions
Place a layer of chips down on an oven proof baking tray or bowl.
Sprinkle on some shredded cheese, any cheese will do.
Scatter on all of the ingredients except the guacamole, sour cream / ranch, fresh herbs and hot sauce.
Repeat step one and two to pile high.
Bake at 350 degrees or 10-15 minutes until the cheese melts.
Remove from oven and finish with the remaining ingredients.
We encourage a one song family dance party before devouring.
Open Faced Ramen Noodle Cakes
Ingredients
2 packages/cups of Ramen noodles, cooked until just done in water or the broth. You may save the ramen packets for seasoning other dishes during quarantine. Your call, it’s crazy times.
4 tablespoons butter or ghee or olive oil, or any oil you have. That bacon fat under the sink at grandmas? Now's the time to use it!
4 ounces flank steak (you can use any protein you have)
8 tablespoons sour cream (or ranch or even a thick salad dressing would work)
4-6 tablespoons pickled whatever you have in the pantry
Chopped Chives, use whatever herbs you want or have
Directions
Using the chilled and cooked noodles, heat a pan with butter or oil or bacon drippings until it is hot and shimmering, nearly smoking. A non stick pan would be great here.
Place a baseball sized clump of noodles in the pan and as it cooks press into a shape that resembles a patty. No one is going to judge how perfectly circular it is... unless you are at my house. Here, even in trying times my kids are ruthless critics. Kids am I right?
Brown one side of the noodle cake and flip.
When golden brown and crispy, remove the cakes onto a paper or reusable kitchen towel.
Top with the sour cream, flank steak, pickled beets and fresh chives.
