Favorite spices, seasonings, or condiments?

By "tight budget" I meant I only had $100 for two weeks worth of food.

Still, I'm trying to find a way to find the cheapest, best tasting foods while leaving more money available to spend on other things, like entertainment.

On an unrelated note, do any of you think it would work if I made a spice blend out of the following things?

1 part garlic powder
1 part onion powder
1 part monosodium glutamate
1 part cayenne pepper powder

Each "part" consisting of an equal portion.

I don't want to add salt or sugar as that will most likely compel me to eat more food, and most foods, whether veggies, fruits, or meats, already include a variant of salt and sugar in one form or another. The MSG is there to give it that junk food zing (and it really is a flavor enhancer) while reducing sodium intake.

I suppose I could also technically crush up a 500 mg magnesium oxide tablet and add that for digestion. Not a whole lot is really needed to keep your stomach from being upset.

If you're going for some sort of Tex-Mex seasoning, sure. Though I'd do 2 parts garlic, and 2 parts chili powder. Maybe add a dash of coriander or oregano to that as well.

yukib1t said:

If you're going for some sort of Tex-Mex seasoning, sure. Though I'd do 2 parts garlic, and 2 parts chili powder. Maybe add a dash of coriander or oregano to that as well.

I agree.

To be honest, I think garlic tastes (and smells) better than onions.

I wonder why they don't sell garlic oil that you can smear on foods. It would be awesome when making garlic bread with butter. Or even, dare I say it... a margarine made with 50% real extra virgin olive oil and 50% garlic oil (and whatever else they add to such things). For that excessively decadent taste. Minus any potential protein, but butter doesn't really have any protein either.

Eggs are a very economical food choice, ground turkey. pasta roni is good and cheap. 100 for just you? you got this. Chilli, soup. those are good choices as well. fried cabbage.

Mmmmm, cabbage and egg noodles fried together in butter is delicious... toss in a little scrambled egg and it's even better.

I fuckin love habanero and ghost pepper sauce. You get to enjoy it as you eat it, then a second time as it sets blissful fire to your rectum.

soy sauce is like the only condiment I ever truly enjoy other than salt and pepper.

It's weird because I prefer most foods just plain and nothing else. Doesn't mean I won't put seasoning in my food when I cook it.

Count651 said:

I fuckin love habanero and ghost pepper sauce. You get to enjoy it as you eat it, then a second time as it sets blissful fire to your rectum.

I hallucinated a little bit the first time I tried ghost pepper sauce.

And then I felt pain.

ZALGO said:

soy sauce is like the only condiment I ever truly enjoy other than salt and pepper.

It's weird because I prefer most foods just plain and nothing else. Doesn't mean I won't put seasoning in my food when I cook it.

Soy sauce is like MSG on steroids. I like it. :)

Wasabi, if I want something hot. It's got a nice "bite" to it, and doesn't mess with my digestion, plus wasabi works great for meat/fish-free dishes. I also love ginger and soy sauce. I can eat +1M ShU stuff, but I stay away from it, because it hurts me where it's not supposed to, and it usually messes with my make-up while I'm eating :-/. Other than that I love guacamole, and a lot of the seasoning used for the "milder" dishes served in the eastern part of the world.

as of now I cook my protein steaks/chicken in olive oil and SHITLOADS of garlic as I fucking love it.

I do like various random brands of steak seasoning with shitloads of big chunks of stuff in them, it mostly all looks like sea salt and pepper, but beating that shit into some eye of round, after a few minutes on a skillet it tastes like gourmet salami/beef jerky, just fucking fantastic

I also enjoy sriracha aka hipster ketchup on damn near everything though it overpowers the flavor of what you put it on most of the time

past that I don't really fuck with anything else as I drink more protein shakes than I eat actual meals, and I fucking absolutely hate cooking and cleaning dishes, though I am rather good at both, I just fucking hate doing it, I actually get mad about it