Things I have learned recently.

  • The true cost of a house: A roof is between 5 and 10K, depending on whether you have it re-shingled or stripped down and totally rebuilt. HVAC bits? 5K and up. Water heaters are cheap, weighing in around $700 or so. Washer/Dryer? Starting around $250 apiece, with the really nice front-load magic ones topping 1K. Also apiece. Good lord, this is all quite ridiculous.
  • One cat is a delight and a joy. Two cats are a complete home entertainment system, and also occasionally a battle royale in the middle of your bed at 4 a.m.
  • Rice is not that hard. I had been making the mistake of putting the rice in before the water boils. I don’t know why. I just was. However, several times now I’ve done rice the “right” way and everything’s worked out fine. 1 c rice, 2 c water. Bring the water to a boil. Throw in rice. Cover, reduce heat, and let it cook for 20 minutes. Stir it at the end, and set it aside for another 10 or so. That’s it! I don’t get why this was so difficult before.
  • 9.4 Estimated Tax: Large Gains, Lump-sum Distributions, etc. If I anticipate a sizable capital gain on the sale of an investment during the year, do I need to make a quarterly estimated tax payment during the tax year?

    If you first receive income subject to estimated tax during a period other than the first quarter, you must make your first payment by the due date for the period the income is received. You can pay your entire estimated tax by the due date for the period the income is received, or you can pay it in installments by the due date for that period and the due dates for the remaining periods.

    If you are making estimated tax payments you can increase your quarterly estimated tax payments or increase your Federal income tax withholding to cover the tax liability. If you have the proper amount withheld you may not be required to make stimated tax payments nor have to file Form 2210 (PDF), Underpayment of Estimated Tax by Individuals, Estates and Trusts,
    with your tax return (as you would if you just increased the remaining estimated tax payments). If you wait and make increased estimated tax payments in the later quarters, you would have to file Form 2210 with your tax return because we do not know when you received the income. Since you really did not receive the income evenly throughout the year, you have to tell us when the income was received by filing Form 2210.

  • When corn on the cob is cooked on the grill, it shall never be wrapped in tin foil. It shall always be wrapped in the covering it came with — the husk. Tried that this weekend, am now puzzled why noone ever told me it could be that good. Screw convenience getting in the way of deliciousness.
  • Accidentally feeding a vegan butter does not kill him. In fact, he wonders why his food tastes so damn good, and you wonder why your version came out all… funky.

Mom’s curry

I craved this dish the other night. I love curries, and this was the first kind I ever had–a fairly mild version my mom used to make any time we had leftover chicken or turkey. I wasn’t actually sure how she made it, so I winged it (I’m pretty sure, though, that the cream of coconut was all me. Mom might have used milk instead?). It was, nonetheless, yummy.

My recent success in the area of rice let me to start making some of this ’serve-with-rice’ dishes that previously I have avoided. Yes, yes–it is true: I have conquered my rice issue. I made a perfect pot of plain white rice last night to go with the curry. For many, a pot of plain old rice is an everyday event. For me? It was a miracle.

leftover chicken or turkey, cooked and cut into pieces
onion, chopped
1 t garlic, minced
1-1/2 T flour
1-1/2 T butter
curry powder
chicken stock
a little half-and-half
cream of coconut
rice, cooked

  1. melt butter in a heavy skillet over med high heat. sautee onions in butter until soft, add garlic, curry powder and flour.
  2. let the flour cook to a roux and the onions brown a bit.
  3. add the stock and bring the mixture to a simmer. let it cook a bit until it thickens and bubbles.
  4. Add the half-and-half/milk/cream of coconut/coconut milk towards the end. let it sit on med low heat until your rice is done. The longer it sits, the better it seems to get.
  5. Serve over rice with a nice spinach salad

3 responses to “Things I have learned recently.”

  1. KJ Says:

    Yes indeed, corn husk cooking on the grill WORKS. TJ showed me this a few years ago. As an aside, it is probably not a Bad Idea to remove the silks from the husks first - you will get fewer singed fingertips that way.

    However - I must disagree with you on the rice thing - rice and water in, bring to boil, turn to low, wait 20 mins. Works in my pot. :) But - still the best way: rice cooker.

  2. DeadBlob Says:

    Oh yes, corn still in the husks is the way to go, although I am frightened at the number of corn cages I have seen for sale and at people’s grill stations lately. Because, you know, grilling corn is just that hard.

    In other grilling news, I am picking up a new grill this weekend! I plan to christen it with some pork ribs. Mmmm ribs.

    On the rice front, I always get liquid boiling before for white rice. For brown rice, glutenous rice, sushi rice, wild rice, I add both then bring to a boil. Never been able to use a rice cooker properly for some reason, but mine in a pot comes out pretty much perfect every time. Obviously, we all have our favorite ways.

  3. bascha Says:

    Removing the silk is a good idea. I did remember to do so, but forgot to make a note of it.

    I am still not advanced enough to try ribs–I still have a little trouble with the fire. The grill is so large and deep that even a huge amount of coals can’t keep it quite hot, and I have some trouble keeping it going once I get it lit. I think I skipped beginner grilling (with gas) and went straight to advanced grilling (on an enormous charcoal pit). Whoops.

    Never fear. I will probably add a smaller gas grill at the new house. Since there’s already a gas line on the deck and all. ;)

    Rice–I am simply not going to question the current method. Since previously I have turned out either watery or burnt pots o’ grainy badness, I will simply stick to what works and thank goodness that it finally does. I am no longer doomed to a riceless existance! Yay!

    BTW, KJ, your package arrived here today. IT IS THE COOLEST EVA! :)

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