Velvet chicken and asparagus stirfry

We tried this recipe by Grace Young, who is well-regarded for healthy Chinese cooking: https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/grace-youngs-velvet-chicken-with-asparagus-52140001 We used 1 lb chicken cutlets (thinly sliced chicken breast), which we cut into ¼" thick x 2" wide diagonal slices. As the first step, we marinated the chicken for 30 mins, and towards the end of marinating time, we… Continue reading Velvet chicken and asparagus stirfry

Burmese chicken with bottle gourd (kyet tha boothee hin)

In a blender (we use a handheld chopper), roughly chop 1 large onion, 4 garlic cloves, 1 tsp (about ½ inch penny slice) fresh ginger, and 6-8 Thai chili peppers (or 3 medium Korean hot peppers), and set aside. Marinate 2 lbs of chicken (here, skinned chicken thighs cut into large chunks) in 2 Tbsp… Continue reading Burmese chicken with bottle gourd (kyet tha boothee hin)

Leftover rice and Chinese sausage frittata

I had a craving for a frittata with Asian flavors. We had about 1 cup of leftover cooked jasmine rice, so I experimented as follows: Preheat oven to 400. At the same time, heat 1 Tbsp neutral vegetable oil in a large (10") cast iron on the stove top on medium heat. Add 1 large… Continue reading Leftover rice and Chinese sausage frittata

Turkish scrambled eggs with tomatoes, onion, and chilies (menemen)

We had leftover roasted shishito peppers, we tried this recipe: https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014/09/menemen-turkish-style-scrambled-eggs-tomatoes-chilies-recipe.html Our modifications: first, we used ¼ tsp Aleppo pepper instead of ½ tsp hot paprika. Second, we sauteed the onion, Aleppo pepper, and oregano in 2 Tbsp olive oil, and a few mins later added ¾ chopped roasted shishito peppers (which had been roasted… Continue reading Turkish scrambled eggs with tomatoes, onion, and chilies (menemen)

Sichuan minced pork with cellophane noodles (ma yi shang shu)

We tried this recipe: https://www.chinasichuanfood.com/ants-climbing-a-tree/. Our modifications: first, based on our pantry, we used Korean sweet potato cellophane noodles (dang myun). Because they are thicker than bean thread noodles, we parboiled the cellophane noodle for 4 mins, drained, rinsed in cold water, and then set aside. Second, we used ½ lb minced pork. Also, to… Continue reading Sichuan minced pork with cellophane noodles (ma yi shang shu)

Sichuan dry-fried green beans with minced pork and pickled radish

We tried this recipe: https://omnivorescookbook.com/szechuan-dry-fried-green-beans/ We made minimal modifications: first, we used Chinese long beans (trimmed and cut into string bean length). Second, we reduced the pickled radish to 1 Tbsp, which we rinsed and drained. Third, we used a large nonstick wok. Finally, we reduced the Sichuan peppercorns to ½ tsp, and then at… Continue reading Sichuan dry-fried green beans with minced pork and pickled radish

Chinese five-spice peanuts, pressure cooker style

We devised this recipe for shelled raw peanuts as follows: first, place 2 cups raw shelled red-skinned peanuts in the bottom of a small (8-quart) pressure cooker, add 4 cups water, 1 small cinnamon stick, 1 whole star anise, ¼ tsp fennel seeds, 1/8 tsp Sichuan peppercorns, 1/16 tsp cloves (we used ground cloves), and… Continue reading Chinese five-spice peanuts, pressure cooker style

Chinese celery and carrot tossed with sesame oil and five-spice peanuts

To recreate an appetizer we tried at a Montreal dumpling house, we tried this Andrea Nguyen recipe as our base: https://www.vietworldkitchen.com/blog/2012/07/celery-and-carrot-tossed-with-sesame-recipe.html We used 4 large celery stalks and 2 medium carrots (orange and purple). We increased the sesame oil to 2 tsp. We then added ½ cup drained, Chinese five-spice boiled peanuts (http://piglettedc.tumblr.com/post/182349694281/chinese-five-spice-peanuts-pressure-cooker-style), tossed with… Continue reading Chinese celery and carrot tossed with sesame oil and five-spice peanuts

Cast iron skillet cornbread

We tried this recipe: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alexandra-guarnaschelli/cast-iron-skillet-corn-bread-recipe-2012669 For the buttermilk, we combined 1 Tbsp white vinegar and nearly 1 cup (1 cup minus 1 Tbsp) of 1% milk (see Note below). We also used 1 cup blue cornmeal and ¼ cup yellow cornmeal. When coating the hot skillet with 1 Tbsp melted butter, we encountered a lot… Continue reading Cast iron skillet cornbread

Syrian baked kofta with grated tomatoes

We tried this recipe from Mayada Anjari’s cookbook, The Bread and Salt Between Us. First, preheat oven to 400. Second, combine 1.5 lb minced beef (80/20 or 85/15), 1 small grated onion and 1.5 cups (one small bunch) coarsely chopped parsley leaves and tender stems (instead of mincing by hand, we used a handheld blender… Continue reading Syrian baked kofta with grated tomatoes