Beef with Broccoli Stir Fry

I decided to give everyone a break from the Southwestern chicken recipes, and do a complete 180. Asian! Steak! Stir fry, oh my!

I have a confession that I'm not even a little bit ashamed over. This dish was made using a New York strip steak. That's right. Now, before you start chasing me off with pitchforks, you can listen to my reasoning. A couple of months ago, on a Costco trip, I bought a 5-pack of New York's. I vacuumed-packed (2) packs of 2 and sealed 1 on its own. I planned on using that individual steak for exactly a dish like this, an Asian stir fry. Granted, the hubby's eyes about bugged out of his head when I told him we were using a steak for a stir fry, but after one bite, he pretty much shut up :)

That being said, you would by no means be forced to use such a nice cut for this dish. Sirloin, flank, or skirt steak would work beautifully in this dish.

Another note on this dish- I grilled my steak. I did! I wanted tender slices of beef that would not be in any danger of being overcooked. Mission accomplished! I had the hubby grill the steak, and then I let it rest while I prepared the rest of the dish. I sliced the steak at the last second, and threw it in the pan at the very end, as I was removing the dish from heat. The steak was still warm, it didn't need to be cooked anymore. The only thing it needed was a dip in the sauce, and it was G2G. That's online speak for "Good to Go!" You are not required to grill your steak. If you decide to forgo that technique (you know, because it's March, it's cold outside, and you aren't crazy like me), I would brown the beef on the stove after softening the onions in the recipe.

Just in case you were all wondering, the hubby ate 2 plates of this. Yep, you know it's good. The hubby only has seconds on a handful of dishes. I get the most satisfaction out of dishes that warrant a return to the pan by the hubs. But really, it's hard to go wrong with men and steak.

Now for some exciting news! Last week's Sticky Sweet Baked Chicken is a weekly feature over on The Country Cook's Weekend Potluck. I've been participating in the Weekend Potluck for a couple of months now, trying to network and grow my blog. I just about died when I got an email that I was being featured. You can bet I'll be walking on air this weekend :) Head on over to the Potluck, and check it out!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Ingredients (serves 3-4)-

1 New York strip steak, trimmed

olive oil, salt, pepper

1 head broccoli, cut into florets

1 tbsp peanut oil

1 large onion, thinly sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tbsp fish sauce

1 tbsp chile paste with garlic

1 tbsp sesame oil

2 tsp rice vinegar

2 tsp cornstarch

hot cooked rice or noodles (for serving)

garnish- sliced green onions and sesame seeds

Directions-

1. Preheat gas grill on high. Oil and/or clean the grates.

2. Prepare the steak- brush trimmed steak with olive oil, season to taste with salt and pepper. Place steak on pre-heated grill, and close lid. Cook for 3 minutes, then flip to the other side. Cook for another 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat, and allow to rest for 10-15 minutes. Thinly slice and keep warm. Set aside.

3. Prep the broccoli- steam the broccoli. Steam in a covered pan over boiling water for 3-5 minutes, or until broccoli reaches desired texture. I steamed mine for 3 1/2 minutes, because I like my broccoli with crunch. Set broccoli aside. 

3. Heat peanut oil over medium-high heat. When hot, add onion. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes or until onions start to soften. Add garlic to pan, cook for 30 seconds. Add broccoli to the pan, stir-fry for 1 minute.

4. In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce through the cornstarch. When the cornstarch is fully dissolved in the mixture, add mixture to the pan. Cook over heat for 1-2 minutes or until sauce begins to thicken. Add steak to the pan, toss to combine, and remove from heat.

5. Serve stir fry over rice or noodles. Garnish with sliced green onions or sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Cunning Ladies' Friday Party

Spicy Szechuan Chicken

Time to get my Chinese food fix on!

I know I've mentioned this before, but the lack of restaurant choices in my area really irks me. I know I signed up for this when I left Portland, but you really don't understand your choices until you are living them. When we left Oregon I thought, "Yes, I'll be living in the country and I won't have access to Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, fresh fish, specialty food items, and endless possibilities of restaurants. That's ok, I have Amazon!".  Well, Amazon does not provide you everything, including restaurant choices. In Portland, you can find a restaurant for anything. I don't say that lightly, it's just true. What if you want Argentinian tacos with crispy menudo? You can find that. What about a raw vegan experience? You can find several of those. You want Chinese food? You can literally find hundreds of thousands of Chinese restaurants, each more delectable than the last.

I really must add, if you are looking for a doughnut in the shape of a man's genitals, you too can find that in Portland. Just saying'...

It does make me sad that I can't take care of a Chinese food hankering at my leisure. Tradeoffs, I tell you. And if you want to get right down to it (minus the lack of access to fresh, unique foodstuff), the benefits of living in the boonies far outweigh the cons for me.

That being said, I think this dish knocks Chinese food right out of the park. You know me and veggies, so this stir fry is mostly veggies. I only added one chopped chicken breast for a smidge of protein. You really don't miss the meat though, between the leafy boo choy, crunchy peanuts, and the spicy, lip-smacking sauce. I made sure there was plenty of sauce in this stir fry, there must always be enough sauce for me to mix with my rice. Another pro? This makes great leftovers. I highly recommend giving this recipe a whirl.

Chopsticks optional :)

Ingredients:

2 tsp canola oil

1 chicken breast

salt and pepper

1 tbsp peanut oil

1 onion (cut into slices, then cut slices in half)

1 red bell pepper, chopped

3 baby bok choy (separate leaves from stem. Thinly slice leafy portions. Roughly chop bok choy stems. Keep leafy portions and stems separate.)

1 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup + 1 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp chile paste with garlic

1 tbsp cornstarch

1 tbsp garlic, minced

hot, cooked rice

garnish- chopped peanuts (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat canola oil over medium-high heat. While heating, season chicken breast with salt and pepper. Cut chicken into bit-sized pieces. When pan is hot, add chicken. Sauté 4-5 minutes, or until chicken is browned and cooked through. Remove chicken from pan, keep warm. Wipe pan out.

2. Heat peanut oil over medium-high heat in same pan. Add onions, red pepper, and bok choy stems. Sauté 4-5 minutes, or until vegetables have begun to soften.

3. In a small bowl, combine chicken broth through garlic. Whisk to combine. Add sauce mixture to pan. Cook 2-3 minutes, or until sauce begins to thicken.

4. Add chicken and bok choy leaves to pan. Cook 1 minute, or until chicken is heated and bok choy leaves have wilted. Spoon over hot cooked rice, sprinkle with chopped peanuts. Serve immediately.

Linked to: Weekend Potluck

Crunchy Thai Chicken Salad

This is only my, oh, 4th or 5th time making this dish, it's about time I got around to blogging about it! I'm so enamored with the dressing for this salad that I'm the crazy girl running around trying to convince my family that this dressing could practically make mud taste good. And please, no emails after you put make this dressing and put it on mud, only to discover that it does not make mud taste good. I was speaking hyperbolically.

In all seriousness, we've all had those days when you don't feel really feel like cooking, right? Plus, you've got leftover rotisserie chicken in the fridge? This is a perfect, fast, and nutritious dinner to pull together in 20 minutes. I roast a lot of chickens, so it's nice to keep various recipes using rotisserie chicken on hand. The first time I made this, it immediately made it to the top of my go-to recipes for leftover chicken.

I'm excited because the hubby actually has tomorrow off, which means we get to have a real weekend. We're starting it off low-key (surprise, surprise) with this salad for dinner, and watching The Wire. I made it earlier this afternoon, so I could clean the kitchen and do most of the dishes before the hubs got home.

Low-key evening, here I come! I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Ingredients:

1/2 head of cabbage, thinly sliced
1 orange or red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 lb cooked chicken meat, roughly chopped
2-3 scallions, thinly sliced
1/3 cup peanuts, roughly chopped
1/2 cup frozen edamame, defrosted

Sweet Chile Thai Dressing

Directions:

-Combine cabbage through edamame in a large salad bowl. Drizzle with dressing, toss to combine. Serve immediately, or chilled.

Recipe adapted from Smells Like Home

Asian Style Slaw

Pictures don't do this slaw justice. After years and years of sticking to lettuce, I've begun to appreciate cabbage. Especially on tacos and sandwiches, items I've always strictly put lettuce on. I'm always hesitant to try a new vegetable, mainly because I'm always worried if the hubby will eat it or not. So I was hesitant to try using cabbage. Luckily, my fears were unfounded and the hubby likes cabbage if I prepare it the right way. I've primarily begun to make slaws and put cabbage in soup. So far, so good.

If you are a fan of Asian flavors, you'll love this slaw. It's tangy, sweet, salty, crunchy, etc. I served this on Hoisin Turkey Burgers (ground turkey mixed with a tbsp of hoisin, a tsp of garlic, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper), and the burgers were devoured so fast there was nary a picture. Boo. Even though I put this slaw on burgers, you could easily serve it as a side to chicken, pork, fish, etc.

I'll be scarfing down the leftovers for lunch today :)

Ingredients:

1 head cabbage, thinly sliced
1 carrot, shredded
1 jalapeno, de-seeded and minced
3 green onions, thinly sliced
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp garlic, minced
1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp ground ginger
salt and pepper

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine cabbage through green onions.
2. In a small bowl, combine vinegar through ginger. Whisk thoroughly. Drizzle over salad, toss to coat. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve.

*Recipe adapted from Curry and Comfort*

Sweet Chile Thai Dressing

Sometimes I can get a little bored with cooking. I feel like I've tasted everything there is to taste. In my head, I know this is beyond false. There are lots of things I've never tried. I think what's going on is I use the same flavor profiles over and over. Olive oil, garlic, crushed red pepper, basil, etc. I really need to branch out more.

The point is that last night I tried something different. It was (not to brag here) awesome. It was this Thai Crunch Chicken Salad, adapted from a Smells Like Home recipe. I was actually going to blog about it today, but none of the pictures I took last night turned out. They were not appetizing photos. The hubby took the leftovers for lunch today, so I had no second chances either. However, the hubby loved it so much he informed me that he has added this to his list of favorites. High praise from the hubby! So have no fear, I'll be making this salad again and taking much better pictures.

I (unselfishly) offered the hubby the leftovers to take to work for lunch, while I myself woke up today wishing I had those leftovers. Drooling, even. No such luck on leftovers, but if I could have had Scotty beam me over to the hubby's work so I could steal the tupperware... Let's just say the hubby would not have had a lunch today.

This dressing is very versatile. You could use it on a regular salad, to toss vegetables in, as a sauce on meat, or in a stir fry. I used some today for a brown rice lunch bowl. My only advice is that if you are using this as a stir fry sauce, add 1-2 tsp of cornstarch to the dressing before you put it in the pan. It gets a little thin when heated.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sweet chile sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp brown sugar
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp lime juice

Directions:

1. Combine sweet chile sauce through lime juice in a bowl. Vigorously whisk ingredients together until smooth.
2. Serve!

Recipe adapted from Smells Like Home.

Cooking Light This Spring: 2013

Image Source: Cooking Light

Cooking Light is one of those things that arrives in my mailbox, and 5 minutes later it's sitting on the side table of my couch with 30 dog-eared pages in it. The tacos on the cover didn't help with my over-eagerness to get into that magazine.

I read the magazine very oddly. I flip quickly through the whole magazine 1 time. My 2nd browsing of the magazine takes a little bit longer as I dog-ear the recipes I want to try. The 3rd time around, I actually stop and read all the articles. It's weird, I know. It may even fall into an OCD category, but that's how I like to read my Cooking Light.

I'm amazed every month at all the inspiration I get. Most of the time, I'm smacking my forehead and wondering 'Why I didn't think of that?'. I've come to terms with the fact that I'm not a revolutionary thinker with my palette. That's ok, recipes were made for people like me :)

What inspired me in this month's issue? Tons!

Grilled Asian Flank Steak with Mango Salad

Chicken Noodle Bowl

Fish Tacos with Tomatillo Sauce

Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Quesadillas

Raspberry Chipotle Chicken Breast with Cucumber Salad

Seared Tuna with Avocado Salsa

Shrimp Fettuccine

Almond Brittle

Chocolate Tacos

You can bet some of these are going to show up on my menu plan ASAP! Especially those Chocolate Tacos :)

Have a great weekend everyone!

Top 10 List: Pasta

It's been a busy week. Doctor's appointments, vet appointments, the hubby had a couple of days off. There's just been no time to blog! Plus, we just got the Internet back after 24 hours without ANY. Gotta love livin' in the country :)

Thanks to Pinterest, I've been seeing a lot of pasta. Pasta makes my world go round. I could eat pasta morning, noon, and night. I love the texture, the way it tastes, its easy versatility, and the fact that almost anything could go with pasta. To that effect, here are my top 10 favorite pasta dishes. Tried and tested. Craved constantly. Delicious.

In no particular order:

Beef and Broccoli Lo Mein

1. Beef and Broccoli Lo Mein- Need I say more? I love Asian food, and this recipe tops the list. I frequently sub the beef for chicken, shrimp, or pork. The sauce is fantastic, and goes with almost any protein.

Bacon Mac

2. I love homemade macaroni and cheese. This is ironic, because when I was a child, I wouldn't touch homemade mac and cheese. I was a blue-box-of-Kraft kind of girl. My taste has pretty much flip-flopped, and now I turn up my nose at the boxed kind. What I like most about this recipe is the flavor that the small amount of bacon lends to the dish. I also love the peas thrown in for some extra color and veg.

Fettucine with Olive Oil and Red Pepper

3. This is one of the simplest recipes you'll find, but it's packed full of flavor. This is my go-to side dish for Chicken Parmigiana.

Gemelli with Broccoli, Bacon, and Chickpeas

4. Another crazy easy dish! Olive oil and pasta were made for each other. I actually prefer an olive oil based sauce, to a cream based sauce.

Shrimp Florentine

5. Umm, I'm sensing a theme here, and it's olive oil and pasta! Shrimp, spinach, and lemon are soooo good together.

Pad Thai

6. Pad thai is such a unique dish, and I love every aspect of it. Crunchy bean sprouts. Bits of fried egg. Salty peanuts. That sauce that is distinctly Pad Thai. Guarantee I will be making this soon, now that I've been thinking about it.

Spaghetti Carbonara

7. Well, I think I've made it crystal clear that I also love the combination of bacon and pasta. This is one of my hubby's favorites, and a go-to, fast, and easy recipe in our house.

Orecchiette with Roasted Peppers, Tomatoes, and Arugula

8. This is a perfect summer dish for when tomatoes, peppers, and arugula are at their peak of freshness. If you've never had orecchiette pasta before, I highly recommend it. The texture is amazing.

Chicken and Mushrooms in Garlic White Wine Sauce

9. Referred to as Chicken Stroganoff in our house, this recipe is tried and true. It's almost impossible to mess it up, and looks downright fancy. It also comes together in a snap.

Ravioli with Roasted Zucchini

10. What would a pasta list be like without some sort of cheese-filled pasta? Not a very good one, in my opinion :) You can make fresh raviolis if you like, or use a pre-made ravioli from the grocery store for a quicker meal.

Man, I'm wishing pasta was on the menu tonight :) 

Have a great weekend everyone!

Sesame Chicken and Noodles with Shiitakes and Baby Bok Choy

I've had this dish on my list of dishes-to-try since August.

The main reasons I hadn't made it yet were:

1. I didn't have my own kitchen in which to experiment with new recipes and,
2. It calls for ingredients which are hard to find where I live i.e. shiitakes and baby bok choy.

I've never cooked with baby bok choy (or even regular bok choy for that matter) so as always with a new ingredient, I was hesitant to pull the trigger. There's nothing that makes me more mad than messing up a dinner, having to trash it, and then ordering a pizza. Let me just say that if you are thinking about trying bok choy for the first time, do it! It's simple to prepare, has a lovely crunch, and quite frankly, is delicious. The grocery store finally had some good lookin' bok choy, so I decided this was the week to make that leap.

The recipe I adapted this dish from calls for fresh shiitakes. However, the hubby and I bought a huge container of dried shiitakes at Costco last month, so I subbed those. The dried shiitakes are chewier than fresh shiitakes, but overall, we are liking the dried shiitakes. Plus the water you reconstitute the mushrooms in becomes a flavorful broth after soaking them.

The recipe is a bit labor intensive, so I would recommend to the average working girl (or guy) to try this one on a night where you have a bit of time, perhaps a weekend night. The hubby and I loved this dish, as it provided us with flavors I don't usually cook with. Like a Japanese vacation for the taste buds. It also presents beautifully. The hubby wants to make this for company, which is a huge compliment coming from that hard-to-impress man :)

Ingredients (serves 4):
1 cup dried shiitakes
1 1/2 cups beef broth
1 cup water
4 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp fish sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/8 tsp chile oil
8 ounces chow mein noodles
1 tsp sesame oil
cooking spray
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into thin slices
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup toasted sesame seeds
4 baby bok choy, halved lengthwise
1 red pepper, sliced

Directions:
1. Combine shiitakes through chile oil in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then cover and remove from heat. Allow broth mixture to sit for 1 hour. Remove mushrooms from pan with a slotted spoon, place in a bowl, and set aside. Run broth through a sieve into a large (4-cup) liquid measuring cup. Set broth aside. Discard solids.
2. Cook chow mein noodles according to direction in a separate saucepan. Drain noodles, then place back in sauce pan. Toss with sesame oil, and set aside.
3. Spray a large skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken with black pepper. Dredge chicken slices in sesame seeds, then place in pan. Cook 3 minutes on each side, or until slices are browned and cooked through. Remove from pan, and set aside.
4. Add baby bok choy to pan. Cook 3 minutes on each side, or until browned. Remove from pan, and set aside.
5. Add red pepper slices to the pan. Cook 2-3 minutes, or until slightly tender. Add reserved shiitakes to the pan, saute 1 minute or until mushrooms are heated through. Add reserved broth to the pan, allow to simmer for 2-3 minutes.
6. To plate, add 1/2 cup of noodles to a bowl. Place 1/4 cup vegetables, 4 ounces of chicken, and 1 baby bok choy on top of noodles. Spoon 1/4 cup of broth into bowls and serve.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light

My Favorite Chicken Dishes

I got my Cooking Light in the mail this week, and very eagerly dived in. Per usual. As I get closer and closer to moving into my new house and my new kitchen, the more and more I think about food. I can't wait to bake my first batch of cookies in the house, and frost my first cupcakes. To roast my first chicken, and to simmer my first batch of chicken broth all night. To sit down at our dining room table in our new dining nook in the bright Kentucky sunshine, and enjoy dinner with the hubby. We haven't had room in a house for our dining room table since we lived in our first apartment together, which we moved out of a couple days before we got married. The excitement is getting harder and harder to keep a handle on.

There was a big feature on chicken in Cooking Light this month. This, of course, got me thinking about my favorite chicken dishes. I love chicken. As far as proteins go, boneless skinless chicken breast is very healthy. It can also be incredibly tender, versatile, and packed with flavor. I actually had a hard time picking out my favorites, as my mind wandered off on this particular tangent. There are a couple of dishes that stand slightly taller than all the rest :) In no particular order (because I just tried to put them in order, and that didn't work so well):

5. Chicken Parmesan

www.skinnytaste.com

Ah, chicken parm. How can you not like a chicken breast breaded, seared, and then baked with sauce and cheese? This is one of my favorite dishes to make in the winter. It feels a bit heavy for summer, but this is serious comfort food when the weather is 30 degrees and the ground is covered in snow.

4. Chicken Lo Mein

www.ifood.tv.com

Simply because I love noodles. And soy sauce. And vegetables. Oh, but how I love those Asian noodles. Lo mein is my favorite Asian dish, and gets heavy rotation in my kitchen. I love this dish with shrimp, but chicken makes a much more affordable dinner.

3. Chicken Soft Tacos

www.nourishingmeals.com

I would probably eat anything that came in soft taco form. In my opinion, there is hardly anything not made perfect with a tortilla, cheese, and some salsa. I make tons of different tacos, but my hands-down-favorite and go-to is chicken. Argh, now I want salsa!

2. Chicken and Dumplings

www.myrecipes.com

Again, you can't go wrong with this down-home, Southern classic. I personally like an updated version with celery, carrots, and peas, rather than the standard chicken, broth/gravy, and dumplings. I especially like to sprinkle parsley on mine. There's something about those fresh colors that makes my mouth water.

1. Chicken Souvlaki with Tzatiki Sauce

www.myrecipes.com

Well, I think my choices are certainly diverse! I cover a good portion of the planet with my faves. Chicken Souvlaki is soooo healthy, but you would never know it by how good it tastes. Chicken is marinated in olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and salt for a good couple of hours before tossing it on the grill. The best part is the Tzatiki dipping sauce, also extremely healthy. I make mine from Greek yogurt, shredded cucumber, garlic, lemon juice, and salt. Combined with the chicken, this combination is a flavor explosion. Maybe this is my favorite chicken dish :)

Awww, now I'm hungry!

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Asian Grilled Chicken

I love a good ol' piece of marinated meat. Marinating is a good way to add flavor to something, yet still control the amount of calories you are adding. I had about 4 large chicken breasts that I needed to do something with, and was at a loss of what to do with them. There was no shortage of large ziploc bags in the house, so on to marinating it was.

I had an Asian-style marinade recipe, and I had most all of the ingredients. The only ingredient I didn't have was sake. Damn. That's not something you are going to find around these parts. I decided to improvise, using a mixture of dry chardonnay, mirin, and rice vinegar. This strange sounding combination turned out fantastic! I made plenty of marinade, threw all the chicken in a bag, and left it in the fridge for the day. This resulted in a wonderfully salty and slightly spicy, flavorful piece of meat. Yummo! I served this up with teriyaki rice and grilled zucchini, and we had an Asian feast. Definitely making this one again :)

Ingredients:
1/4 cup dry chardonnay
2 tbsp mirin
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sesame oil
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp garlic chile paste
1 heaping tbsp minced garlic

Directions:
1. Combine chardonnay through garlic in a large ziploc bag. Add chicken to the bag, seal, and shake. Chill in fridge for 7-8 hours, turning occasionally.
2. Grill accordingly. Let chicken rest for 7-8 minutes. Serve immediately.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light

Cold Sesame Noodle Salad

There's probably no other food that tops pasta in my book. I could eat pasta all day, everyday. But make it an asian-style noodle with a spicy sauce? I'm in heaven.

This was actually a surprisingly easy salad to make. It makes a lot, another plus since I've been eating this for lunch all week. The hubby loved it, but that didn't really surprise me. I haven't been cooking much due to our situation, and it's hard to find healthy dishes that fit everyone in the household's taste buds. It was nice to make a big batch of this, and have a healthy go-to meal all week. I think I'm looking forward to having my own kitchen back the most!

Anyhoo, I based this recipe on the Pioneer Woman's recipe, and just threw in the extras that I wanted to add:

Ingredients:
12 ounces thin chow mein noodles
1 cucumber, julienned
1 cup carrot, shredded
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp garlic, minced
2 tbsp rice vinegar
3 tbsp sesame oil
3/4-1 tsp hot chile oil
2 tbsp canola oil
sesame seeds, for garnish
thinly sliced green onions, for garnish

Directions:
1. Cook noodles according to package directions. Rinse and drain under cold water. Add to a large salad bowl.
2. Add cucumber and carrot to the noodles.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce through canola oil. Drizzle over salad. Gently toss salad to combine.
4. Garnish salad with sesame seeds and green onions. Chill in fridge for at least 1 hour.
5. Dig in :)

Kung Pao Shrimp Rice Bowls

The cleaning out of the freezer continues...

Tuesday's nights dinner used a couple of items from the freezer. I used some frozen shrimp and then threw in a bag of frozen broccoli for good measure. The meal ended up being quite tasty. It's always easy to come up with good results with a stir fry. Really, it's just sautéing the veggies to your desired tenderness, and adding a flavorful sauce. It all comes down to science :)

The recipe I used didn't call for broccoli but I added some for more veggies. I also doubled the sauce, because well, we like sauce! I always feel with Cooking Light recipes that the sauce is never enough.

The results? Completely edible :)

Some freshies. Minced garlic, roughly chopped peanuts, chopped red pepper, and chopped celery. I love all the crunch in this dish.

Some ingredients for a flavorful sauce. I actually left out the salt. I figured there was enough saltiness from the soy sauce. I was right. Chile garlic sauce, rice vinegar, sherry, soy sauce, and homemade chicken broth.

Whisked into a pretty, shiny sauce.

I like to coat the shrimp with cornstarch, salt, and pepper, and then sear them for a very short amount of time. They are finished in this short cooking time, so I remove them from the pan and add them back at the very end of the dish.

I add all the veggies, the chopped peanuts, and the garlic next. Stir fry for a couple of minutes, until the veggies are tender.

Add in the broth mixture, and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until it begins to thicken up. At this point, I turn off the heat and add the shrimp. Toss to combine. Serve over hot cooked rice, drizzling pan sauce over the rice for maximum flavor.

Ingredients:
1 lb large shrimp
2 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 tbsp soy sauce
3 tsp sherry
2 tsp rice vinegar
1/2-1 tsp chile garlic sauce
2 tbsp peanut oil, divided
1 1/2 cups celery, chopped
1 cup red pepper, chopped
1 (12 oz) bag of frozen broccoli, defrosted
1/4 cup peanuts, roughly chopped
1 tbsp garlic, minced
hot cooked rice

Directions:
1. In a large Ziploc bag, combine shrimp, cornstarch, salt, and pepper. Shake to coat. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, combine chicken broth through chile garlic sauce. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
3. Heat 1 tbsp peanut oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. When hot, add shrimp. Sear 30 seconds-1 minute on each side, remove from pan. When shrimp are cooked, set aside.
4. Heat remaining tbsp peanut oil in pan. Add celery through garlic to the pan. Stir fry for 4-5 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Add broth mixture to the pan, cook for 2-3 minutes or until broth mixture begins to thicken. Remove pan from heat, and stir in the shrimp. Serve immediately over hot cooked rice.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light