by Theo Chester

Created on: January 26, 2008   Last Updated: February 02, 2008

If you have one pound of lean, fresh, ground beef, you've got at least 101 great opportunities for a quick and easy meal. Sometimes the meal can be sheer genius, fantastic, even memorable. With a pound of good ground, you have the opportunity to create a dish that will take you on a trip around the international gourmet world. You could also choose to use that same beef to make memory meals for a comfort food fix

A pound of ground beef is the most basic and versatile ingredient there is for a quick and easy mealtime fix. Here are some recipes basics, spices and add-ins for your ground beef recipes. You may adapt any of these recipes to make a variety of meals just by tweaking a spice or ingredient.

Loose Meat Sandwiches

One pound ground beef
One onion diced (Vidalia, if possible)
1/4 teaspoon each of the following: cumin, oregano, ground pepper, salt (to taste)
1 1/2 Tablespoons of Canola oil
1 clove fresh garlic, diced ( you may sub with 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder)
1 package shredded mozzarella, swiss or provolone cheese
4 slices sourdough bread, mini sub rolls, potato rolls or hamburger buns

Heat the pan and add it in a couple of teaspoons of Canola oil
When the oil is heated, add the onion and garlic
Saute until translucent, careful not to overcook the garlic
Meanwhile add spices to the ground beef

Now, the key to any and all recipes for ground beef is the seasoning and spices. For the loose meat, I use a bit of cumin, some oregano, and salt and pepper, as listed above. Evenly distribute the spices and blend them into the meat. Be careful not to knead the meat as if it were dough. Gentle blending of the ingredients is best. Remember, we're not mixing concrete here.

If you're onions (garlic) are translucent, then add your beef mixture. If you didn't use fresh garlic, then be sure that you put garlic powder on the beef. You just brown the beef until you can't see any red. Add and stir swiss, muenster, colby or mozzarella cheese until it melts into the crumbled beef. Then drain off the fat from the meat.
Smear the slices with mayo, mustard and ketchup. Grab yourself a kosher dill slice, some chips or salad and yummmmmm.

Variations:

Stuffed Pasta Shells
I box pasta shells
1 pound ground beef
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 onion diced
2 garlic cloves diced
1 bag chopped baby spinach
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1 jar pasta sauce (marinara, tomato and basil or your preference)
1 egg
1/2 cup Parmesan

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
Cook pasta shells as per package instructions
Drain shells and reserve

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