Chicken a la Quad in the Crock pot

The other night I was looking for a hearty mid-winter meal in anticipation of the blizzard of 2013.  I always have to plan cooking in stages, since I need physical assistance to prepare parts of the meal.  Depending on who's working, I have to figure out who will cut up food, who will help me clean up, etc. etc. so as you can imagine it takes some creativity and resourcefulness!  But with the right spirit, it can be a challenge that sparks my innermost creative juices (not to be mixed with other kinds of juices).

Fortunately, someone who stopped by was willing to cut up onions and potatoes, so I had them do that and leave those items on a plate in the frig.  Once I had that done, I was halfway home so I yanked out the frozen boneless chicken breasts to defrost.

 My next challenge was to get the can of cream of mushroom soup and peas open. I was able to manage that with the help of a delivery man who happened to stop by.   Trust me, this not only is a useful way to get items open if you're a quadriplegic but can lead to meeting some cute guys.

Once the frozen chicken breasts were defrosted, I tossed them in the bottom of a crock pot, covered them with the onions and potatoes, then added the can of soup and peas along with a bit of pepper. This requires a willingness to worth with gravity because my arms won't reach up very high. I find that putting the crock pot on as low a surface as possible and dumping everything in works best.  

 I turned the crock pot on HIGH for four hours...and voila!

 It was a delicious meal - the chicken was juicy and pulled apart, requiring no cutting.  The potatoes and peas went well together too. 

Just remember when you're cooking with a disability, the following tips can make the difference between being able to do it - or not:

1)  Delegate what you can't physically do - and plan your starting cook time accordingly;

2) Keep it simple!  Use canned ingredients and recipes with as few ingredients as possible; and

3) Keep it safe - do not handle sharp or hot objects in ways where you might be injured - only you know your physical limits so go ahead and experiment to find safe ways to do what you can.

   

The Last Supper

How I go about training aides to assist me in the kitchen varies depending on the person I hire. Sometimes people know how to cook and other times they know nothing at all. If they’re willing to learn, this really isn’t an issue as long as we find a way to make it a pleasant and fun experience.

Recently I hired a young lady who decided to move to Hawaii a few weeks after taking the job. During the time we had, she learned how to cook in a crockpot. We made a number of recipes, starting out with dishes as simple as that of cabbage and low-fat kielbasa .

On her last day, however, I decided that it was appropriate for her to make the entire crockpot dish, i.e. The Last Supper,  on her own. I had frozen a Santa Fe black bean dish with corn and diced tomatoes into a container a few weeks before so I pulled that out for her to use as a base ingredient. To that she added two boneless chicken breasts,  one half cut up green pepper, one whole cut up red pepper, a quarter of the package of taco mix, and a half of a medium-sized onion cut up.

She placed the chicken at the bottom of the crockpot and layered the other ingredients around it. The base provided adequate liquid and she chose a few spices to add-ground pepper and garlic powder. She then cooked it on high for 3 ½ hours.

The dish came out very tasty and looking spectacular.  The chicken was tender and required no cutting. It just pulled apart in pieces. Speaking of which, if the peppers and other ingredients are cut into reasonably sized pieces, this is the kind of dish which gives those of us with dexterity concerns some independence in eating since it doesn’t require cutting up when served. I like to build that factor into recipes as often as possible, since I don’t have aides around most of the time.

It was really a satisfying experience to be able to teach someone how to make simple, affordable meals in a crockpot. Before she left, I declared that my aide was now ready to get her own crockpot and figure out some delicious recipes of her own. I hope she stops by this blog to visit .  Aloha!

Quadriplegic cooking

I never gave much thought to the logistics of cooking before I became a quadriplegic.

I took for granted that I'd always be able to reach everything, including appliances and shelved items. I never considered what issues a lack of dexterity might cause when it came to slicing veggies or opening cans. Not to mention energy issues, which affected food prep, clean up, etc. etc.

Once I realized how difficult it was logistically,  I assumed that if I hired aides, they would cook for me and prepare meals. I didn't anticipate that many people considered a nutritious meal to be a peanut butter sandwich on rye bread or a stop at McDonald's on their way.

And those were the good days.

I got hungry. Then I tried frozen foods.  I put weight on.  I went on a salad run.  That was okay as long as I didn't want too much in my salads, aides said - which turned out to be lettuce and a few tomatoes. Canned soup. Yogurt. Relying on occasional meals brought in by friends.  All of that was okay, but I wanted to eat healthy balanced meals more often than I could afford to eat out - which wasn't often.

I've decided to start this blog to help others who find themselves facing similar issues.  I'll address solutions I've found to access issues, including dexterity and wheelchair height concerns, as well as ways to work with an aide side by side to prepare meals. Recipes will be simple and healthy, keeping cost factors in mind. And I'll show how cooking can be fun and rewarding, even if you're a beginner! Fear not.

I'll also link to and feature blogs and sites and videos by others who are facing similar situations. Let me know if you're out there!

And now to begin.....