Mongolian Beef and Sesame Green Beans

This recipe has become a regular at our dinner table. It's easy -- you can easily put it together in under 30 minutes, in less time than it takes for the rice to cook  -- and the flavors are a winner with all my family. The recipe is modified from Cooking Light.

The Sesame Green Beans are a recipe I have been making for years. I first ate them at my friend Gina's house and all my kids eat them. They are a great side with the Mongolian Beef and steamed white rice.

Mongolian Beef

serves 4-6

2 T lower-sodium soy sauce

1 t sugar 

1 t cornstarch

2 t dry sherry

2 t hoisin sauce

1 t rice vinegar

1 t chile paste with garlic (I use Sriracha)

1/4 t salt

2 T vegetable or peanut oil

1 T minced peeled fresh ginger

1 T minced fresh garlic

1 pound sirloin steak, thinly sliced across the grain 

8 medium green onions, cut into 2-inch pieces 

Combine first 8 ingredients, stirring until smooth.

Heat peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add minced ginger, minced garlic, and beef; sauté for 2 minutes or until beef is browned. Add green onion pieces; sauté 30 seconds. Add soy sauce mixture; cook 1 minute or until thickened, stirring constantly.

Serve over white or brown rice.

Sesame Green Beans

1 pound green beans, ends trimmed and washed

1 T. vegetable oil

1 t. sesame oil

1 t. sesame seeds

1/2 t crushed red pepper

salt to taste

Cook green beans in hot water until just tender (or if you are using a rice cooker with a veggie basket use that - that's what I do). Drain and set aside until serving time.

Just a few moments before serving time, heat vegetable oil in a skillet. Add beans and cook on high heat for several minutes tossing a few times. Add sesame seeds and crushed red pepper. Drizzle with sesame oil and salt to taste.

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Rumbi Rice

We had a very fast spring break last week -- it seemed like I blinked and it was over, and now we are having re-entry. It's so much harder to get into life after a break -- it makes me wonder if it's worth it...but the free time is so wonderful.

I have a backlog of recipes to share with you here. This one was a big hit, which is rather odd since it is veggie-packed. I saw the recipe at a new-to-me favorite website "Favorite Family Recipes." It's called Rumbi Rice and is apparently a popular dish at a popular restaurant in Utah. I've never been to Utah, and thus not the restaurant, but it just looked like a yummy dish with a funny name. 

I made it exactly as directed, using my rice cooker for the rice (good rice), except when it came to the Hawaiian sauce (Mr. Yoshida's). This sauce is an unknown in my neck of the woods, so I used Kikkoman which was super duper salty. I used the Hawaiian sauce sparingly, but the kids and my husband did not, and they had a hard time finishing their meals. I would highly recommend making a homemade teriyaki if you are not able to get a low-salt version, or using the sauce very sparingly. Oh...and I left out the celery (reluctantly) because of my celery haters.

And, by the way, I think it would be just as good without the chicken. My family disagrees.

This served my five with leftovers.

Rumbi Rice

1 T. vegetable oil

4 carrots, peeled and grated

3 celery stalks, washed and sliced

1 zucchini, chopped into small cubes

1 1/2 c. chopped broccoli florets

2 c. chicken, grilled and cut into small cubes

*Rumbi Rice (see recipe below)

**Spicy Hawaiian Teriyaki Sauce (see recipe below)

Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add carrots, celery, zucchini, and broccoli (pretty much equal parts of said vegetables.. you can add more or less veggies depending on your taste). Saute ONLY until vegetables are crisp tender. About 1-2 minutes tops.

Serve over Rumbi rice and top with chicken. Serve with Spicy Hawaiian Teriyaki Sauce on the side (about 3 Tbsp. per bowl.. you can add more or less depending on your taste).

*Hawaiian Coconut Rice with Red Beans (aka Rumbi Rice)
2 c. long grain white rice
2 1/2 c. water
1 (14oz) can coconut milk (about 1 1/2 c.)
1/2 Tbsp. sugar
1 can red beans, drained and rinsed

Combine all ingredients in a rice cooker. Gently stir it all together so the beans are all mixed. Place the lid on and start the rice cooker. Fluff rice with a fork before serving.
If you don’t have a rice cooker… Combine water, coconut milk, and sugar in a saucepan. Stir in rice and beans. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 18 to 20 minutes, until rice is tender. 

**Spicy Hawaiian Teriyaki Sauce:
3/4 c. Mr. Yoshida’s teriyaki sauce
1 t. soy sauce
2 tsp. chili garlic sauce (Sriracha)
1 tsp. fresh ginger
pinch of salt
pinch of brown sugar
1 T. cornstarch
2 T. cold water

Combine Yoshida’s, soy sauce, garlic sauce, ginger, salt, and brown sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Combine cornstarch and water and SLOWLY add to sauce for thickening. You want it to be slightly thicker than the Yoshida’s sauce. Allow to simmer for about a minute. Cool to room temperature and serve with your rice bowls.

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Sweet and Spicy Green Beans

It's not often that I come across a vegetable recipe that my family raves about. Most nights I have to nag my kids, "Eat your vegetable or your guts will rot out." They laugh, and eat one kernel of corn, and then I deny dessert, and then they come back when I am tired and eat cold cereal. It's an endless battle.

But these green beans...these green beans...they won! They made them eat green beans. Yey!

I am trying not to make them every week because I think they might catch on to my tactic, but they are so very good I want to eat them every week.

The recipe came from Abby at Confabulation in the Kitchen and I made them just as written (except I doubled the sauce). I was a little confused by the ingredient "chili sauce." I was pretty sure Abby didn't mean Heinz Chili Sauce, and so I used Sriracha. I think you could also use Asian Sweet Chili Sauce (also Tabasco makes a new sweet Asian hot sauce) -- it might be better for little guys because the Sriracha is pretty spicy.

Sweet and Spicy Green Beans

serves 4-6 side servings

3/4 pound fresh or frozen green beans
1 clove garlic, minced
2 T. soy sauce
1 t. chili sauce
1 t. honey
2 t. olive oil


Bring large pot of water to a boil. Steam beans 3 to 4 minutes. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, combine garlic, soy sauce, chili sauce and honey.

Heat olive oil in saute pan over medium-high heat. Add beans and saute, stirring, 3 to 4 minutes. Pour sauce over beans and cook another 2 to 3 minutes, stirring, until liquid is mostly cooked away (if you double the sauce you will have liquid left). Serve hot.

Jamie's Chicken Chow Mein

I have a recipe for Chicken Chow Mein in my cookbook, and it's a good recipe, but after trying Jamie Oliver's version for dinner the week, I'm afraid I'll never make my old recipe again. This recipe was the epitome of what I am looking for in meals this year. It was easy. It was delicious. But best, it was made with simple and whole ingredients, getting most of the flavor from fresh vegetables, herbs, and citrus, with no jarred sauces (except soy). The flavors, unlike most in Chinese/American were bright and fresh and definitely a little spicy. I used the recipe as written on Jamie's website and modified just a little (subbed red pepper flakes for a whole red Chili unavailable at my grocer). I also doubled it for four of us with just a little bit leftover. You could get two adult and three or four child servings from the recipe below. I think in the future I will sub some fresh veggie (like snap peas) for the water chestnuts, but mostly because my kids are not big fans of water chestnuts. I did not use the mushrooms because we have mushroom haters.

Just so you know you can cook Chinese without special equipment, I cooked mine in a large nonstick skillet.

Jamie's Chicken Chow Mein
 serves 4-5

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a thumb-sized piece of fresh root ginger

4 cloves of garlic

1/2 to 1 t. red pepper flakes

2  large skinless chicken breast fillet (I used four med/small and we had a lot of chicken)

  salt and freshly ground black pepper

5 scallions

  a small bunch of fresh cilantro

1 to 2 heads bok choy, depending on how much you like it

Optional: 4 shiitake mushrooms

10 oz. chow mein noodles

  peanut or vegetable oil

1 T. cornstarch

8-ounce can of water chestnuts (or 1 cup of another quick-cooking veggie, like snow or snap peas)

4-5 tablespoons soy sauce

 1 small lime

To prepare your stir-fry
Put a large pan of water on to boil. Peel and finely slice the ginger and garlic. Place your red pepper flakes with the ginger and garlic. Slice the chicken into finger-sized strips and lightly season with salt and pepper. Cut the ends of your scallions and finely slice. Halve the bok choy lengthwise and cut crosswise into large strips. If using the mushrooms, either tear into pieces or leave whole.

To cook your stir-fry
Preheat a wok or a large frying pan on a high heat and once it’s very, very hot, add a good lug of peanut oil and swirl it around. Stir in the chicken strips and cook for a couple of minutes, until the chicken browns slightly. Add the ginger, chile, cilantro stalks, mushrooms (if using) and half the scallions. Stir-fry for 30 seconds, keeping everything moving around the wok quickly. Add your noodles and bok choy to the boiling water and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, no longer. Meanwhile add the cornstarch, water chestnuts, and their water to the wok and give it another good shake to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom. Remove from heat and stir in soy sauce (start with half and taste to see if you need more). Halve the lime, squeeze the juice of one half into the pan and mix well. Drain the noodles and bok choy in a colander over a bowl, reserving a little of the cooking water. Stir in the noodles and bok choy, with a little of the cooking water to loosen, if necessary, and mix well. Have a taste and season with more soy sauce if needed.

To serve your stir-fry
Use tongs to divide everything between two bowls or plates, or lift onto one large serving platter. Spoon any juices over the top and sprinkle with the rest of the scallions and the cilantro leaves. Serve with lime wedges.

Yum.

Asian Pasta Salad

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This recipe for pasta salad is one I have been eating and enjoying for years. A good friend made it for us once, probably almost 20 years ago, and I remember calling her at least twice for the recipe. Of course, I lost it twice as well, but it's easy enough that you really don't even need a recipe if you remember the basic ingredients. There is really nothing particularly Asian in it, but the flavors go so well with Asian food I always make it with some yummy Asian marinated meat on the grill. Mostly what you taste in the dish are the wonderful fresh vegetables -- they go so well together. I usually put the cashews in a dish on the side, not only because I have a nut-allergic child, but also because the cashews get soggy in the leftovers, which are otherwise wonderful. There is no vinegar in this recipe, so don't think you're missing something. ;-)

This pasta salad is best served at room temperature, so if you make it far enough in advance that you don't want it sitting out for hours, remember to remove it from the refrigerator at least an hour before serving time -- more if it is thoroughly chilled. There is no dairy in it and nothing that will spoil even if left out for several hours. I wouldn't go more than three.

Asian Pasta Salad

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1 lb. rotini pasta

3/4 cup yellow bell pepper, sliced thin and in bite-size lengths

3/4 cup red bell pepper, sliced thin and in bite-size lengths

1 cup sugar snap or snow peas, washed and string removed, halved

1/2 medium red onion, quartered and sliced thin

1/2 to 3/4 cup mild oil -- mild olive, canola or peanut

4 cloves garlic crushed

salt to taste

1 cups cashew pieces or whole cashews, salted

Cook pasta to al dente in a large pot of salted boiling water. Drain but do not rinse. Drizzle with a small amount of oil (a few tablespoons) to keep it from sticking and let sit to cool, tossing occasionally.

Meanwhile, add garlic to remaining oil and cook to simmering in the microwave (or over the stove). Do not cook the garlic, you just want to infuse the oil with the flavor and lose a little bit of that raw garlic flavor. When oil has simmered for about 10 seconds remove from microwave and let cool.

When pasta cools to just a little warmer than room temp add oil and toss. You can start with a half cup and add more if it seems dry. Or save some of the oil and add it just before serving if you have a long hang time. Add peppers, onions and peas and toss. Salt to taste and let sit at room temp until ready to serve. Serve with cashews.

Source: my friend Gina

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Summer Supper #4

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I am experimenting with some of the apps we "spoke" about in my last post, and I'll let you know what I think of them in a few days. In the meantime...

...today's summer supper recipe was a really big hit with my entire family (except Peach who said it was spicy -- and it was), but I really loved it the most. I could have eaten it until it came out my ears. Luckily, it's low in fat so I practically did! This is not really a summer supper in that it's not made on the grill, nor needs seasonal ingredients, but it is very light and I just know my family would leave the table unsatisfied in the winter when you just feel like you need a stouter fare. Paired with some yummy Asian Broccoli, this meal was very satisfying on a summer night, and I can't wait to have it again.

The recipe came from Taste of Home Cooking and the only change I made was to use all white turkey instead of chicken. It was very tasty. If you have little ones who don't like it spicy, like Peach, you can cut back on the Sriracha, or prepare a small quantity in a separate pan without the Sriracha.

Spicy Asian Lettuce Wraps

serves 4 to 6

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2 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tablespoons ginger root, peeled and grated
1 1/2 lbs. ground chicken (or turkey)
4 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Sriracha
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 small can water chestnuts, chopped
1/3 cup chopped peanuts
1-2 heads butter lettuce

Heat oil in a large non-stick frying pan, add onion and saute about 2 minutes, then add garlic and ginger root and saute another minute. Add ground chicken (turkey) to frying pan and break apart, then add soy sauce and Sriracha. Cook until the chicken (turkey) is brown and crumbling apart about 5 minutes.

While chicken (turkey) cooks, wash and chop cilantro. Remove the core end from lettuce and separate leaves. Chop peanuts and put in small bowl to serve at the table. When turkey is done, add chopped water chestnuts and chopped cilantro and cook 1-2 minutes more.

To serve: place turkey mixture on lettuce leaf, sprinkle with peanuts, and fold the leaf closed to make it easy to grab and eat. 

Source: Taste of Home Cooking

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Asian Barbecue Chicken Pizza

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By now you probably have realized that I can turn almost anything into a pizza. To me, a circle of dough is just the perfect blank slate for almost any flavors, and what better way to get the food from your plate to your mouth? ;-)

This pizza was inspired by a recipe I saw for Asian Chicken Salad -- the flavors looked yummy, and so did all those fresh veggies, but my husband and teenage sons don't ever consider salad to be dinner. The funny thing is, I can load all those same ingredients on top of a pizza dough and there you have dinner. Silly boys.

Asian Barbecue Chicken Pizza

serves 4 to 6

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2 boneless chicken breasts

2 T. olive oil

2T. soy sauce

1 T. honey

Sauce:

2 t. oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 T. minced fresh ginger

1/4 c. diced red onion

1/3 c. reduced-sodium soy sauce

1/3 c. brown sugar

1 T. rice vinegar

2 T. ketchup

1/2 t. sesame oil

Salad:

1 bag cabbage slaw mix

1 red pepper, thinly sliced (or combination of red and yellow)

4 radishes, thinly sliced

1 carrot, cut into matchsticks or shredded

1/4 c. seasoned rice vinegar

1 T. sesame oil

1 T. honey

salt and pepper to taste

1 recipe pizza dough (or prepared pizza crust)

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Mix 2 T. soy sauce, olive oil and honey. Pour over chicken breasts and marinate for an hour or more in the refrigerator.

Prepare sauce: In a small saucepan, heat oil. Add garlic, ginger and onion and saute over medium low for about 5 minutes, until soft. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Simmer over medium low heat until thickened, about 15 minutes. Turn off heat and allow to cool slightly.

When ready to prepare pizza, heat outdoor grill or grill pan. Cook chicken over medium low heat until done. Set aside to cool a minute.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Prep pizza dough: grease large pizza pan. Spread dough to edges of pan (see technique here).

 Slice chicken into bite size pieces. 

Spread sauce over dough and then top with chicken pieces.

Top evenly with cheese. Bake for 10 minutes or until cheese is golden and crust is evenly browned on the bottom.

Meanwhile, place cabbage, radishes, carrots and peppers in bowl. Mix together vinegar, sesame oil, and honey in a container with a lid. Shake thoroughly and pour over salad. Salt and pepper and toss. Taste and adjust seasoning and sweetness if necessary. Toss occasionally while pizza bakes.

When pizza is done, remove from oven and let sit for a few minutes. Slice and serve, topped with salad.

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Maple and Soy Glazed Steak

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All the members of my family are big beef eaters, except me. I'm not much of a meat eater at all, so I have to remember to put beef on the menu once in a while to keep my people happy. They were really happy with this dish, and I enjoyed it as well. The flavors of this dish appeal to three of the tastes our tongues perceive -- sweet, salty, and umami (if you haven't heard of this one, it's because it is more recently known to Westerners, and comes from "meaty" flavors). The combination of all of those flavors made a really yummy dish. I started with a skirt steak, instead of flank -- a cut I had never tried before. It was better, in my opinion, than flank steak -- less connective tissue and more tender. I will definitely keep an eye out for this cut in the future. It was not expensive either. The recipe, which came from Cooking Light, is easy peasy, so no excuses.

The key to keeping the meat really tender is to not cook it past medium -- it will continue cooking a bit after you take it from the heat, but if you get it too done, you'll have shoe leather instead of steak. My husband cooked ours on the outdoor grill, so I can't say if the time under the broiler is accurate. I used the same time for the grill.

Note: The sriracha sauce you should be able to find in the Asian or Indian food section at the grocer. My oldest son turned us on to it a few months ago as a sort of Asian Tabasco -- my kids love it. It's very garlicky, but not too spicy.

Maple and Soy Glazed Steak

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1  (1-pound) flank steak, trimmed (I used an almost 2-pound piece of skirt steak with the same amount of glaze)

3 T.   lower-sodium soy sauce 

3  T. maple syrup

2  T.  sake (rice wine) or dry sherry

2  t.  dark sesame oil

1 t.  Sriracha (hot chile sauce)

1/8 t. freshly ground black pepper

Preheat broiler (or grill).

Pierce steak gently on both sides. Combine steak and next 6 ingredients (through pepper) in a shallow dish; turn to coat. Marinate at room temperature 20 minutes, turning occasionally.

Remove steak from marinade, reserving marinade. Place steak on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Pour marinade into a small skillet; bring to a boil, stirring well. Cook over medium-high heat 3 minutes or until thick and syrupy.

 Brush steak with half of glaze; broil 5 minutes. Turn steak over, and brush with remaining glaze; broil 5 minutes or until desired degree of doneness. Place steak on a cutting board; let stand 5 minutes. Cut steak diagonally across grain into thin slices.

Source: Cooking Light

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