- 6 hours ago
Craving the ‘90s dinners you grew up on? This video has exactly what you need. These 5 easy comfort classics are back — and honestly, they taste even better than you remember. From crispy coated pork chops to creamy casseroles and weeknight favorites, Nicole revisits her go-to 1990s meals with simple, homemade touches that skip the shortcuts but keep all the nostalgia.
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00:00Get ready for a delicious blast from the past
00:02as we recreate five iconic dinners from the 90s
00:05that are all about comfort and convenience.
00:07I'm starting with what is probably
00:09the most iconic food of the 90s, shake and bake.
00:13Cause it's shake and bake, and I helped, and I helped.
00:16Got me some boneless, skinless pork chops.
00:20I'm gonna make the mixture in this bowl
00:22just so you can see everything well,
00:24but you know, it goes in a bag so we can shake it up.
00:27Starts with dried breadcrumbs,
00:29just the plain breadcrumbs.
00:30And then you go in with oil.
00:31This might sound weird to go into this like dried mixture,
00:34but it's gonna help everything stick.
00:37And then we just start going in with a whole bunch of spices.
00:39In goes some salt, and then paprika.
00:41This is gonna help kind of give it that good color.
00:44And also celery salt.
00:46This has great flavor.
00:47Another salt component is garlic salt.
00:50I think this is just a 90s ingredient.
00:53I don't ever buy garlic salt anymore
00:54because you always have garlic powder and you have salt.
00:57So you don't need to pay for salt in this little thing.
01:00It takes up half of the mixture when you could get,
01:02for the same price, all garlic powder.
01:04A little bit of pepper.
01:05Then we're also adding minced dried garlic and dried onions.
01:10These are pretty easy to find, but if you don't wanna buy these,
01:12you can just add in some extra garlic powder.
01:14And then it's just a pinch of some herbs.
01:16This is just gonna kinda add little flecks of color in there.
01:19And it's parsley, oregano, and basil.
01:21So I mean, that's the combination.
01:22You might've thought you were making seasoned breadcrumbs
01:26in the past, but I bet the ingredient you might've missed
01:28is the oil, which is gonna be key.
01:30I did a little poll on my Instagram asking, you know,
01:32what is the most iconic dinner of the 90s?
01:34Hands down, number one answer is shake and bake.
01:37I wonder if you can guess throughout this
01:39what I'm gonna be making next to see if you're right
01:41on what other iconic foods we've got.
01:45So add your shake and bake to a bag.
01:49Then in goes our pork chops.
01:52Shake and bake.
01:54Lightly breaded pork chop.
01:57Oh, the 90s were so good, especially the music.
02:01Am I right?
02:02Shake and bake says you just put it on the pan and bake it.
02:06All of a sudden this feels very unhinged
02:09to not grease this pan or put some parchment down.
02:13But we are cooking like the 90s,
02:15so into the oven we go 400 degrees
02:17for like 15 to 20 minutes.
02:19Maybe we've been complicating things for the past 30 years.
02:22I'm smelling good.
02:25Look at our shake and bake pork chops.
02:28They are cooked.
02:29It only takes about 15 minutes.
02:31I'm also about to serve these up 90s style.
02:34Mashed potatoes and gravy, because duh.
02:38And then an ode to my dad, the Lesurpee.
02:42These were considered fancier than any other green pea
02:45and top tier, okay, when it comes to canned green peas,
02:49the Lesur.
02:50So this is what we are serving up.
02:52I mean, one time my mom even wrapped up a box of them
02:55from Costco for my dad for Christmas.
02:57And that's a true story.
02:59All right, and then the star of the show on top,
03:01the shake and bake isn't as crunchy as I remember.
03:05I don't know if we just need to double it up
03:06or stick it in a skillet.
03:08I mean, it's cooked perfectly, though.
03:13That is a really good recipe.
03:16Perfectly balanced, season-wise.
03:18People say they can't cook pork chops,
03:20because they always dry out.
03:22I didn't even put anything on the pan,
03:24and they came out perfectly.
03:25And you're gonna want to make this one.
03:26We are off to a fabulous start.
03:29A totally awesome start.
03:31Or is that the 80s?
03:33Nothing says 90s quite like chicken divan.
03:36This is a specialty my mom used to make it.
03:39Chicken divan is a creamy, rich chicken dish
03:44that has a hint of curry powder.
03:46If it doesn't have the hint of curry,
03:47to me it is not chicken divan.
03:49And it has broccoli, and then it's usually served over rice.
03:52The version I'm making is built as a casserole
03:54in one dish with the rice on the bottom,
03:56so you don't have to do anything separately.
03:58You start with two cups of cooked rice.
04:02Now, I can promise my mom would've just made,
04:05like, instant rice.
04:07Next goes the broccoli.
04:08Recipe calls for frozen broccoli.
04:10So that's what I'm gonna do,
04:11because I also think that's what every mom
04:13in the 90s would do.
04:14Plus, as this cooks, the moisture's going to come out
04:19from the broccoli, helping create a little sauce in here.
04:22Then you just take cooked chicken.
04:23We feel like it is iconic to be diced.
04:26You could also shred it here,
04:28and then you just make a sauce to pour over.
04:29It's two cans of cream of chicken.
04:31The food of the 90s may not have been the healthiest.
04:36However, we were active back then, at least as kids.
04:39We were outside all day.
04:41I feel like we made up for it.
04:42You know, everything in balance, in moderation.
04:44Also, we just didn't know very much back then.
04:46It was all about being fat-free.
04:48Speaking of fat-free, in goes a cup of mayonnaise.
04:51A little bit of lemon juice and some curry powder.
04:55A little bit goes a long way.
04:56You don't want it to be overwhelming,
04:57because then the kids will need it, or at least my son.
05:00He'll be like, what is that weird flavor?
05:02It'll be like the most delicious thing ever, and that's it.
05:04And we just spread that right over.
05:06And then a topping of cheddar cheese.
05:08And the thing about, like, chicken divan,
05:10it just sounded fancy, and that is like a lot of foods
05:13from this time period.
05:15Things that just kind of sounded a little fancier
05:18than they actually are.
05:20Okay, and then finally, a topping of breadcrumbs.
05:22The recipe just calls for soft breadcrumbs.
05:24So we've just taken some day-old bread,
05:26and I just gotta mix it with a little melted butter.
05:28It just goes into the oven, 350, for about 30 minutes.
05:31Smells delicious.
05:33The yellowish tint on top is thanks to the curry powder
05:38when it cooks mixed with that cream of chicken.
05:42That's the iconic chicken divan.
05:44Gonna garnish with a little fresh parsley.
05:46I feel like parsley was the only fresh herb anyone used.
05:50Oh yeah, creamy, hot, cheesy chicken divan.
05:55It's divine.
06:01It's the curry powder, it just takes you back.
06:03The cream of chicken, the mayonnaise kind of,
06:06adds just like a hint of tang in there.
06:08It's rich, but it's not overwhelming.
06:11And of course I love having your meat, your starch,
06:15and your veggie all in one dish.
06:18If you haven't had this in a while,
06:19or if you're not familiar with chicken divan,
06:22you gotta try it.
06:23This is 1991 on a plate.
06:27The next most popular answer I got, sloppy joes.
06:30So that's what we're making.
06:31I love a sloppy joe, and I can't remember a night
06:36when we had a babysitter,
06:38and we didn't either have sloppy joes or pizza.
06:40Of course we are not going to use the can of manwich
06:44that my mom would have used.
06:46We're gonna make our own,
06:48because you know how to open a can of manwich.
06:50It is as simple as heating up your skillet
06:52and adding in some ground beef.
06:54Once this starts to get brown,
06:55I'll go in with some onion and bell pepper.
06:57All right, all that's looking good.
06:59Now we make our sloppy joe sauce.
07:01The base is, of course, ketchup.
07:03To that, you gotta go in with a little mustard.
07:05The recipe just calls for a teaspoon.
07:06I like it a little tangier,
07:07so I'm gonna go in with a little more.
07:09A little sweet, some brown sugar,
07:11a little garlic powder, and a little salt and pepper.
07:14And then I like to add just a couple dashes of Worcestershire.
07:17See, you've got everything to make sloppy joes at home.
07:20At this point, we're gonna cover it,
07:21and just let it simmer for about 20 minutes.
07:24The veggies will render some moisture out,
07:26and it's gonna become a little saucier.
07:28Sloppy joe, slop, sloppy joe, yeah.
07:31This smells so good,
07:33and there's really only one way to serve it up.
07:36On a plain white bun is how I like it.
07:38You know, sloppy joe is meant to be sloppy,
07:40so pile it on.
07:41And see, I always serve it with these kind of chips,
07:45because as you eat it and it falls out,
07:48then you've got a vessel to scoop up the leftovers.
07:53Mmm, this is everything.
07:55It's everything.
07:56They just don't make things like they used to, guys.
07:59TV shows, music, dinners.
08:02It's sloppier than I remember.
08:04This recipe is perfectly balanced of sweet and tangy,
08:08and my favorite part is when it kind of starts making that bun
08:11a little bit soggy.
08:12The bun absorbs the flavor of the sauce.
08:15Then you take your chip with all the leftovers.
08:18That's a perfect bite.
08:21Sometimes I like to just put the chips directly on it.
08:24We're just having too much fun over here.
08:26Y'all should have, like, 90s week at your house
08:28and make all these recipes.
08:29Random things were considered fancy in the 90s,
08:32one of those being flank steak.
08:34I'm doing my mom's marinated flank steak pinwheels.
08:38These are actually her friend Cathy's pinwheels,
08:41but my mom always made them.
08:43Shout out, Cathy.
08:44See, your flank steak, the fibers are running this way.
08:48You have to cut against that, so the opposite way.
08:52That way, your meat is not too, too tough.
08:55So I'm gonna cut this flank steak into just thin strips.
08:59And I think flank steak used to be, like, a cheaper cut.
09:03Flank steak's also pretty lean.
09:05It's a leaner cut of steak.
09:06And what I also love is that you're gonna get
09:08a bunch of slices out of this.
09:10So this one two to two and a half pound flank steak
09:13is going to feed a lot of people.
09:14All right, so you can wrap them into pinwheels
09:16before or after you marinate them.
09:18I like to do it afterwards,
09:19that way the marinade kind of just really seeps
09:21into the whole piece.
09:22So take all of your steak.
09:26And especially if you are, you know,
09:27you wanna do this in advance and take it to the lake
09:30or the beach.
09:31This is easy to pack in your cooler.
09:32But for this recipe, I mean,
09:34we know the flank steak is our fancy star,
09:37but this marinade is what it's all about.
09:39Like I said, the flank steak is leaner,
09:42so you're gonna add in some fat,
09:44good bit of what they called salad oil.
09:47I'm gonna guess that's vegetable or canola oil.
09:50To that, you go in with soy sauce.
09:52Also adding some green onion.
09:54A couple cloves of garlic, a little bit of ginger,
09:56and I know they use dried ginger.
09:58A couple tablespoons of vinegar.
10:00It just had vinegar.
10:00My mom said she always used apple cider.
10:02And then a couple tablespoons of honey.
10:04So you've seen me make marinades before
10:05and you know that this one has all the components.
10:08It's got the fat, it's got the acid,
10:11it's got the salty, and it's got the sweet.
10:13That's it.
10:13So I'm just gonna blend this up and pour it over the steak.
10:16Now listen, I know sometimes I'm like, you know,
10:17the recipe says this, but you can do this.
10:19The recipe says this has to marinate for at least 24 hours.
10:22And I'm telling you,
10:22it has to marinate for at least 24 hours.
10:24I've tried to rush it and it's just not as good.
10:26It doesn't taste like mom's.
10:27Get it all in there.
10:29You can even freeze it like this if you want to.
10:31Get all the air out, let it go.
10:3524 to 48 hours.
10:37Did one 24 hours ago.
10:39As you can see, it looks different.
10:41The color has changed.
10:42It has absorbed all that marinade.
10:44Okay, so here's what we're working with.
10:46Here's how you do it.
10:47You get you a piece out and you roll it into a pinwheel.
10:50And just stick a toothpick in it and we have the cutest,
10:54most flavorful bites of steak you're gonna have.
10:57These become so tender, I promise you.
10:59I mean, it is like a filet mignon.
11:01I'm just gonna do a grill pan,
11:03but this is a fun thing to do when the weather's warm
11:06to do outside on the grill.
11:07Something different and a good way to entertain a crowd
11:10for not a ton of money.
11:12The flavor of a grill plus the marinade, perfection.
11:17You want it to be hot.
11:18We don't have to cook the inside so much just like any steak.
11:21So you just want like good sears
11:23and they don't take long to cook at all.
11:25And because we have them in the pinwheel,
11:26it's easy to control the temperature.
11:28You're not gonna overcook them versus
11:29if you just left them in the strips.
11:31Pinwheels are the way to go.
11:32Kathy knew what she was doing.
11:34The sugar in the honey is gonna help really caramelize
11:37this outside and get all that extra flavor.
11:39Don't these look delish?
11:42All that good color.
11:43This might not have been on everyone's 90s table,
11:46but it was on mine and I'm happy to share it with you.
11:50To me, this is like the perfect entertaining meal.
11:52So I'm gonna serve it up on a platter.
11:55Now as it settles, like when you take it off the grill,
11:58it makes its own little juice right here.
12:00You want that.
12:01You want that to serve it with.
12:03And then sprinkle with a little more green onion.
12:05For a side, I just wanted something 90s.
12:08Some au gratin potatoes.
12:10From scratch, I think not.
12:14From a box.
12:15I was very gourmet back then, as you can see.
12:18You are going to be the hit of the night
12:19when you serve this up.
12:21Cuts like butter.
12:26Takes me back.
12:28I don't think I can explain
12:31the level of flavor that is in this little pinwheel.
12:34It is by far the most tender flank steak you'll ever have.
12:38The way the marinade seeps through the meat
12:41by cutting it against the grain
12:43and then letting it hang out overnight.
12:45I would also like to know,
12:46has anyone ever had these from the 90s?
12:50Let's try potato for Old Tom's steak.
12:54This unpretentious yet delicious 90s dinner is five stars.
13:01You know when I give you a range of recipes,
13:02I always like to include something for taco Tuesday.
13:05So my final trick, taco salad from the 90s.
13:09Okay, so that means it has to be in one of these bowls.
13:13Now these tacos and what is iconic of the 90s
13:17is that they are probably the most unauthentic
13:20taco situation there is.
13:22Okay, so you start by just making your taco meat,
13:25however you like to make taco meat.
13:26I like to cook it crumbled with onion in there
13:29to kind of help start the flavor.
13:31And then because it's the 90s and because it's convenience,
13:35we are using the taco packet.
13:37And in with the packet of water,
13:38there is something about the smell of this stuff.
13:42It is a throwback.
13:43Even though we have everything to make it,
13:45when you put your own spices in here,
13:46it doesn't have the same smell.
13:47So we're just gonna want that simmer for a second.
13:49Turn off the heat and stir in the beans.
13:51When it comes to beans on a salad,
13:53I just feel like in the 90s, any kind of salad,
13:56you gotta use kidney beans.
13:58Now let's make us a taco salad.
14:01There was only one lettuce in the 90s, iceberg.
14:05You know, back then we weren't worried about,
14:07you know, the nutrition level of everything.
14:09We just went for taste.
14:11An iceberg is crunchy and makes the perfect taco salad.
14:13When I do my iceberg, I like to wash it
14:15and then put it in the fridge.
14:17That way it gets a little crunchier.
14:19All right, taco shell time.
14:22I can already tell you, this is not the way they used to be.
14:25They used to be bigger than this.
14:27All right, you gotta pop these in the oven
14:28for about five minutes.
14:31Here we go.
14:32Going back and forth with, does meat go down first
14:35or does lettuce go down first?
14:37I feel like I used to put the meat down first
14:40because then it kind of like flavors
14:42the edible shell at the bottom.
14:45All right, lettuce, some diced tomato has to go on.
14:48We also are a big fan of black olives in our house
14:52on this kind of thing.
14:54Cheese.
14:55You know, I like to shred my own cheese, but we didn't.
14:57We didn't in the 90s.
14:58You buy this and you put this on.
15:00A little dollop of sour cream.
15:02I gotta have pickled jalapenos.
15:04That's how you get closer to the perfect bite.
15:06For the sake of the 90s, we're going in with the Catalina.
15:11I give to you the iconic 90s taco salad.
15:16You go in with your fork and you know what you come out with
15:19in the perfect bite.
15:25I mean, you know what this tastes like.
15:27I don't really have to tell you, but you want to hate the Catalina dressing,
15:30but you can't.
15:31That's how you really eat the salad.
15:33Tear off the shell and eat it like nachos.
15:38Y'all are going to want to make this one,
15:39and we might create a movement to where they are forced to bring back
15:44these taco shells in every store.
15:46This whole salad is a perfect bite of the 90s.
15:50Have I taken you back?
15:52There are a lot more dinners I could create from this era or from another decade.
15:56If I've missed anything, let me know.
15:58This was just fun.
16:02I love the 90s.
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