Movie Nite with Hot Dogs & Coleslaw

Heh it's movie night and to get into the mood of things, I decided we'll have hot dogs and coleslaw for dinner. Ok just as a point of clarification, we're not actually going to the movies .. we're watching movies on the telly!

Watching a movie over the week-end in Singapore is pretty expensive nowadays! The price of a week-end ticket is now S$10 per person (or US$6.80). And surely if you'll at the movies you'd want your coke and some pop-corn. So that'll easily add up to S$17 per person. Now that's expensive! I remembered a time not so long ago that a ticket would cost only S$7! Now with inflation, our dollar really doesn't go very far.

Something about hot dogs reminds me of my school days (ever so, so long ago in a far away land) when I would look forward to every Tuesday. Why ... because Tuesday was A&W's coney dog day! And the hot dog would only cost US$0.40 cts. It was a simple beef sausage wrapped in an untoasted bun and topped with chilli beans, with a sprinkling of chopped onions. Boy did it taste good!

The chilli beans which I prepared for the hot dogs is made from kidney beans and tomatoes. This is a fantastic recipe, quick and easy to make, low in fat and it tastes delicious! If you have extras, you can store in the fridge or the freezer. Chuck the left overs in the microwave whenever you feel hungry and use it as topping for a baked potato or nachos, add some cheese or sour cream for variation.


Chilli Beans
Serves 4 -6

Ingredients:

1/2 tsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cans red kidney beans, drained
1 can chopped tomato
1/2 cup tomato paste
1/4 to 1/2 cup water (optional)
1 Tbsp golden syrup
1/2 tsp oregano
A pinch paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp chili flakes

Method:

1) Heat oil in pan.
2) Add onion and cook on medium heat until softened.
3) Add the kidney beans and tomatoes, then stir in the rest of the ingredients.
4) Bring to a slight boil and simmer for approx 20 minutes (longer if you like), stirring occasionally.


Dead Easy Coleslaw
Recipe modified from SmittenKitchen

Ingredients:

1 medium sized green cabbage (about 2 lbs), cored and cut into 3" chunks, then finely shredded
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 small purple cabbage, cored and cut into 3" chunks, then finely shredded
1 large carrot, coarsely grated
1 1/4 cups mayonnaise
1/3 cup cider vinegar
3 tsp sugar

Method:

1) Toss all vegetables in a large bowl with 1 tsp each of salt and pepper.
2) Whisk together mayonnaise, vinegar, and sugar, then toss with slaw.
3) Chill, covered, stirring occasionally, at least 1 hour (for vegetables to wilt and flavors to blend).
4) Slaw can be chilled up to 1 day.