Teriyaki Wings

My hubby loves chicken wings, even for dinner. This is a quick, inexpensive meal. The wings come out flavorful & juicy.

<3 Lishie

Teriyaki Wings 

• 2 lbs chicken wingettes
• s & p
• garlic powder
• 1 c Teriyaki sauce
• fresh parsley, to top

Preheat oven to 375.

On a greased baking sheet, season chicken wingettes with s & p, & garlic powder. Brush with terriyaki sauce, save remainder of sauce.

Bake in preheated oven for 25-30 mins.

Remove chicken & baste with the remainder of the terriyaki sauce.

Sprinkle parsley over the chicken& serve.

Recipe Swap: Crock-Pot Asian Beef & Noodles

I am absolutely loving this recipe swap! It's really exciting to see what recipe I'll get & from which friend! This week's theme was "Asian" & I got my friend Lauren's (over at Lauren's Kitchen) Crock-Pot Asian Beef & Noodles recipe! I made some changes in the recipe to better serve my family's needs as I've blogged below.  Lauren's recipe has a much easier & faster prep time than mine but both are tasty! I took her advice on the saltiness completely to heart & tweaked a lot of ingredients. I like to choose what vegetables go into my stir fries & we're not big fans of frozen veg, so I changed the frozen up for fresh. Another big difference is with the Ramen noodles. Delicious as they may be, they have way too much sodium for us so I substituted with fresh, Chinese noodles (found by the wonton wrappers in your grocery store).

Oh! & I only have a 6 Quart Crock-Pot:

My hubby thought the veg looked so "pretty" in there- he said to take a pic!
Fresh, goodness! The "before" shot ;)

Crock-Pot Asian Beef & Noodles (Adapted from Lauren's Kitchen)

• Cooking Spray
• 1/2 head of Broccoli
• 1 large Onion
• 2 red Peppers, chopped into large chunks
• 8 oz. package of snow peas
• 1/4 cup button Mushrooms, quartered
• 2 lbs. Stir fry Beef/Beef Round
• 1/2 cup reduced sodium Soy Sauce
• 1/4 cup Sesame Oil
• 1/4 cup Red Wine Vinegar
• Zest & Juice of 1 Lemon
• 12 oz. Water
• 2 TBSp. Corn Starch
• 9 oz. package Chinese Noodles
• 1/4 cup Scallions, chopped

Spray Your Crock-Pot with cooking spray. Place the first five ingredients (all Veg.) in the bottom of the cooker & lay the beef on top.


In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice & zest, & water. Dissolve the corn starch into the liquid. Pour the mixture over the beef & veg.


Cover & cook for 5 hours on high or 9 hours on low.


10-15 minutes before cooking time finishes, carefully incorporate the Chinese noodles & scallions into the crock-pot & cover again. Allow to finish cooking.

Not-so-pretty (it blinked!) but it was tasty

The beef was so tender & flavorful from the crock-pot cooking! But, I have to say, it's doubtful I'll make it again soon. The negatives for our family? The veg was too mushy & it's color was "stewed" out. Now this may be my fault for subbing fresh in for frozen! But we love fresh veg with "bite" to them. If I were to make it again, I'd tweak it so that I'd slow cook the beef in 3/4 of the sauce then add the different vegetables at varying times which, in effect, defeats the purpose of a crock-pot meal! LOL Also, I'd use the scallions as garnish instead of placing them in the pot. Still, the meat & the noodles were delicious with the sauce & I was happy to try something new- me, cooking/eating-wise & the family, taste-wise.

Thank you, Lauren!

"Chinese" Pot Stickers... well, Korean Dumplings

OK, so I really was suppose to make these: Chinese Pot Stickers for the Chinese Takeaway Copy-Cat recipe challenge (proposed by Feisty over @ Tales from the Mad Men Kitchen) that I first spoke about here. Well, my Step-mom is Korean & she makes the most wonderful Dumplings... Since I learned from the best, why waver? I make my own variation & it comes out delicious. Never heard of Korean takeaway? Well now you have ;)

I usually love to get round, dough wrappers at the Han Ah Reum Market in Little Korea, NYC on 32nd Street but did not get a chance. So I had to settle for square. To my surprise, I liked the square shape just as much. And ahhh, the scent of the sesame oil reminds me of my beautiful Step-mom, Anne. There's nothing like her cooking, it is delicious. But, of course, she's a trained chef. I hope I've done her proud.

Butterfly Chopsticks on my plate

Korean Dumplings or Mandu.

• 1/2 lb. shredded, cooked Chicken*
• 1 cup shredded carrot
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon green onions, chopped
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2 teaspoons fresh ginger, minced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 64 wonton wrappers ( usually 1 pkg)
• 1/4 cup canola  oil
• 1 cup chicken stock

DIPPING SAUCE

• 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
• 1 tablespoon green onions, chopped

Little pockets of yummy goodness, waiting for dipping

Filling
Mix the first 9 ingredients in a bowl.


Putting it all together
Fill a tiny bowl with cool water. Try to keep the wontons damp & semi-cool.


Lay out one wonton wrapper. Using a "1/2 TBSp" measure, spoon filling into the center of the wrapper. Dip a finger into the water bowl & follow one edge of the wonton (use the water as an edible glue). Fold the wonton in half, pressing out the air & seal it. This makes a triangular dumpling.


For a "purse-like" dumpling, spoon 1/2 TBSp of the filling into the middle of the wonton wrapper. place water all the way around the edges of the wonton... pull upwards two diagonal sides at the same time, then the other two sides & "pinch" together to glue!

"Purse-like" Dumpling

In a non-stick skillet on Medium-high, heat a little canola oil & fry the dumplings on one side for about a minute or until golden brown & watch them! They burn quickly!!! Add a little of the chicken stock into the pan, reducing heat to low. Cover & simmer-steam for 5-7 minutes until wrapper is translucent.


Repeat for the remaining dumplings.


Mix the dipping sauce & serve.

*Cook the chicken any way- bake, poach or pan sear (I did the latter), then shred. You can even use rotisserie chicken.

*Lishie tips- If you do not have permanent sets like I do, next time you order in or takeaway Chinese food, get extra sets of chopsticks to stash in your drawer.

*Lishie facts- It is believed that mandu were first brought to Korea by Mongolians in the 14th Century.

As for Chinese pot stickers a legend of an Imperial Court Chef exists. He burnt a batch of dumplings on one side only out of carelessness, & with no time to re-cook, served them as his "own creation". Fortunately, the Imperial Court LOVED them! & so do we. YUMMMM

And don't forget wonton crisps as an easy dessert idea!

Wonton Crisps

This is so easy it's, well, embarrassing to blog. But I will share because it is Oh So Yum. I mean it, you should really try it. The scent alone... Smell that cinnamon-y goodness? I do.

Cinnamon-Sugar Wontons
3 TBSp sugar
1/8 tsp cinnamon

Package of Wonton Wrappers (OK, not the entire package, but save a few when you bust open a pack!)

1-2 TBSp Canola oil

Mix together sugar & cinnamon in a small bowl. 

Fill another tiny bowl with cool water. 

Heat the canola in a non-stick skillet over medium-high.

Lay out a wonton wrapper. 

Dip finger into water then brush water over one side of the entire wonton/Sprinkle a little of the cinnamon sugar mixture all over the same side of the wonton.

Place the NON-SUGARED side of the wonton into the skillet. It sould start to change color & slightly bubble immediately. As soon as the edges are golden, with a spatula, take the wonton out of the pan & place on paper towels to cool.

These are fast & incredibly delicious little munchies. So great for snacking after a heavy "Chinese Takeaway" meal. Enjoy!

Cinnamon-y-sugary goodness. Yummmm

*Lishie tip- This came about from running out of dumpling filling a long time ago & my love for all things cinnamon. Never let something go to waste if you can help it ;)!

Change it up & use confectioners sugar instead- it will be like Asian kruschiki!

Chinese Take Away @ Home!

My friend Christina over at Tales From a Mad Men Kitchen had the great idea of testing out "copy cat" Chinese takeaway recipes. This excites me because, due to my shellfish allergies & other food confines, I am unable to splurge on this yummy fast food alternative. I happened to see this one for sweet & sour chicken when she cast the challenge.

The bones of this recipe are really good even with the bit of tweaking I did (or especially with the tweaking ;) ) but the text in itself was highly frustrating to me. Very difficult to follow while cooking, all clustered the way it is. So, in a highly unlike-Lishie way, I re-wrote the entire recipe to make it much more user friendly. The original came from Jennifer Iserloh's Secrets of a Skinny Chef, originally linked here : Just Like Takeout Sweet & Sour Chicken.

This was so flavorful & delicious I'd definitely recommend it. It's much healthier, "clearer" & has less sodium than bottled sauces. We ate it without a carb but next time, I'll make it with white rice on the side. My hubby said, "All you need is the white box." Awesome.

Just Like Takeout Sweet-and-Sour Chicken


Sauce

• 1 cup orange juice
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 lemon, juiced & the zest
• 1 tablespoon orange marmalade
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil

In a medium bowl, whisk sauce ingredients together until incorporated & smooth. Set aside.


Chicken

• 1⁄2 cup AP flour
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 egg whites
• 1 lb. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts  cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄4 teaspoon paprika

Preheat the oven to 450°F.


Place parchment paper on a baking sheet (or “grease” with cooking spray).


Then using a typical breading “mise en place” station, prep the chicken to cook- In one shallow bowl, place the flour, cornstarch, salt & paprika, & mix. In another shallow bowl, the egg whites.


Bread the chicken… & this is how “I” did it… I placed all of the chicken pieces into the egg whites & tossed the pieces until they were covered. Then I transferred the egg-coated chicken to the flour mixture for coating. Lifted each piece, shaking off the extra flour mix & placed them on the prepped baking sheet.


Bake 10 to 15 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the breading is crisp.


Veg

• 3 TBSp Canola Oil
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 1 cup cauliflower florets
• 1/4 cup scallions

***Optional Add-ins:

• 1⁄2 cup cubed pineapple
• 1 8-ounce can bamboo shoots, drained
• 1 can of water chestnuts

Heat a large skillet with 3 TBSp canola oil over high heat. Add the bell peppers, broccoli, cauliflower & scallions. Cook 4 to 5 minutes, stirring often, until the veg starts to brown lightly but is still crisp. (Optional items should be added here).


Transfer the chicken from the baking sheet to the skillet with the vegetables. Pour the sauce over the chicken & veg, gently stirring until the sauce is incorporated into the skillet. Cook about 2 minutes more, until the sauce thickens.

***I did not use the additional ingredients. For the pineapple, I like my veg with a fruit or citrus accent but not with actual fruit chunks mixed in.

Flavorful, yummy goodness!

*Lishie tips: A lot of the ingredients are staples for my kitchen- For instance, a kitchen MUST is corn starch... But you do not need to run out & buy everything. If you need to eliminate something from the sauce- it would be FINE without the orange marmalade (the marmalade simply strengthens the beautiful citrus highlights of this meal. Orange juice alone would be fine). Oh, but a MUST that is not an American pantry staple? Sesame Oil! Do buy it- it's wonderful!

*Lishie facts: Sweet & Sour Chicken really is a Western invention & generally the chicken is deep fried. Sweet & Sour Pork, on the other hand, is Cantonese from as far back as 18th Century China.

Definitely Not Made in China

Happy Chinese New Year! This year, the Chinese New Year falls on February 3rd & it's the Year of the Rabbit! In our home, we will be learning about it through a toddler's eyes this year (using crafts & a book as always) but I love to serve traditional foods... Unfortunately, the more authentic foods (egg rolls, noodles & fishcakes) will have to wait till the weekend, but tonight, as a nod to Chinese-American culture, I decided to make Fortune Cookies! Nothing is as non-authentic Chinese as these San Francisco-originated cookies. They still are associated with Fortune or "Fook":

I made these. They were so easy (especially using a Silpat) & the recipe is perfect & tasty! I made little, hand-written notes (wasn't going crazy here after working all day... it's meant to be fun!):

6 Cookies/ 6 Messages:

2- "You are Loved"

2- "You are Blessed"

2- "Not Made in China" ;)

These (normally stale "afterthoughts" in takeout places) were so tasty & fresh- absolutely delish! 

I brought the plate right down to my Mother & Father-in-Law to share... On a mixed plate, they both chose "You are Blessed". Yes, we all are. Gung Hay Fat Choy!

Nope, not a perfect circle but perfection's highly overrated!

I am Fortune- ate :)