Fried Rice Yum Yum!

Fried Rice is definilty a Fish Fam Favorite!

It's quick and simple to make and so delicious. It's best made with leftover refrigerated rice. Today I made it for breakfast. This recipe is vegetarian, but I at different times I do add in cooked chicken, beef, or spam. I don't have an exact measurements of ingredients because it's usually just what I have on hand and make necessary adjustments. But, generally here's what I  do....

Ingredients:

• 2-3 cups leftover rice
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/4-1/2 cup corn and peas
• 1 green onion stalk
• 1 Tbsp. avocado oil

• Avocado Oil (enough to keep it from burning)
• White Pepper ( a few dashes
• Soy Sauce (more than less, but don’t over do it)
• Sesame Oil (not too much)
• Rice Vinegar (splashes)

Directions:

• Finely chop garlic cloves and dice onion. Heat up avocado oil in a deep cast iron pan on med. high heat. Not too hot because the garlic burns easily. Add garlic and stir. I like to tilt the pan and have all the oil and garlic to one side so the garlic can infuse in the oil without burning. Then I lay the pan back on the burner and add the onion and stir the onions and garlic around and cook until onions are tender. Then I put the onions and garlic in a serving dish.
• Next I turn down the heat to low medium heat and add a little more oil to coat the pan. I crack my eggs and mix/beat them with a fork. Then pour them into the pan and make scrambled eggs. The eggs cook better on low heat. I add the eggs to the serving dish with the onions and garlic. 
• Turn up the heat and add more oil to generously coat the bottom of the pan. I add in all the rice and use the spatula to break it up the rice. I add in the soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, white pepper, and a little bit of water. Mix it until it is well incorporated. You can put a lid on it to let the moisture break up and soften the rice. Watch the heat. 
• Add in the onions, garlic, eggs, corn, and peas. Mix it all together. Let it cook for a few mins and stir occasionally. If you want a crispier rice add more oil and turn up the heat a little watching carefully and stirring the bottom of the rice to the top. *More oil makes crispier rice. But just don't add too much.
• Chop up some green onions an toss them in pan at any point or just at the end of cooking.
• Transfer fried rice into the serving dish and enjoy!!

Yum Yum!!

Hoisin Chicken Stir-fry

I bought some small chicken cuts at a local Japanese grocery store and fried them up with some homemade hoisin sauce. This meal turned out great and was quick and easy to throw together!

Homemade Hoisin Sauce:

• 4 Tbps. Soy Sauce
• 2 Tbsp. Black Bean Paste
• 1 Tbsp. honey or molasses
• 2 tsp. white wine vinegar
• 1/8 tsp. garlic powder
• 2 tsp. sesame oil
• 20 drops hot sauce
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper 

Combine all the ingredients together!

I fried up some garlic and onions. Then added the chicken and cooked for about 5mins and then added the last of the sauce that I had. Maybe about 1/8 cup or a little more and it thickened up really well. Add some green onions to brighten up the dish! Maybe next time I'll have to marinate the chicken in my homemade hoisin sauce. Yum!

The results were all thumbs up! 

The Fish Fam really enjoyed this dish over rice!

Delicious Baozi!

Today we made delicious homemade baozi! 

I used this recipe....https://redhousespice.com/pan-fried-pork-buns/.

I pan fried some and steamed the rest.

I made the pork filling and the dough, both of which I doubled.

Pork filling from Red House Spice:

• 250g / 9oz minced pork
• 2 stalks spring onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 tablespoon ginger, minced
• 2 teaspoons light soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon Shaoxing rice wine
• 1/2 teaspoon pure sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 pinch Chinese five-spice powder
• 5 tablespoons water (or chicken stock)

The dough raised nicely, then my youngest came and patted it down. 

All set up and ready to fill.

The pork filling smelled soooo gooood!

My kids made an assembly line and filled and bao-ed the buns.

They did a great job!!

They were delicious and filled with lots LOVE!!!

蛋餅 Dan Bing Taiwanese Egg Crepe!

We just came back from Taiwan and one of the boys favorite breakfast foods was Dan Bing! So, I found this recipe and gave a it a try. It turned out pretty good!

For the Crepe

1/2 cup flour

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

1 cup water

For the Egg

3 Eggs

1/4-1/2 tsp. salt, to taste

1/4 tsp. white pepper

Dash of Sesame oil

Chopped Green Onions

For the Sauce

2 Tbsp. Soy Sauce

1 tsp. Rice Vinegar

Chili Oil & Sesame Oil, to taste

Crushed garlic

Chopped green onions

Directions

1. Mix the flour and cornstarch together. Then add the water. Let it rest for 10mins.

2.  In the mean time chop green onions and garlic and put in separate small bowls. Begin to heat your non-stick or cast iron pan to medium low heat. Make the sauce. 

3. For each crepe, in a bowl beat one egg with 1Tbsp of green onions, a dash of sesame oil, and a pinch of salt and white pepper. 

4. When your pan is heated oil it add about 1/2 cup of batter to the pan swirling as you do to coat the bottom (lifting and tilting the pan works best if you don't have a crepe spreader). Cook for 3-5 min until the top has set. 

6. Flip the crepe over and add the egg mix to the top spreading it over the crepe keeping most of it on the crepe. Cook until the egg is just about set and then flip to the other side.

6. Cook for 10 seconds or so.

7. Flip the Dan Bing onto a plate or cutting board, egg side up. Roll it and cut into sections. Grab your dipping sauce and enjoy!!

Pressure Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken

This Pressure Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken looked pretty good so into the Instant Pot it went. The feedback from my oldest was...

"Mom, this is at the top of my favorites now! It's not the first, but it's at the top!"

Well then, there we go! However, my youngest refused to eat it because I added bean sprouts and little seeds. Oh no! Not bean sprouts or sesame seeds. Ha! Sorry buddy, its what's for dinner.

This was quick and easy to make along with a big pot of rice. I always have to make sure I make lots of rice! I really wish I was able to taste for myself, so I could give you feedback, but you'll just have to trust a kid's food critique. Which, I assure you he has good taste in food!

With the right ingredients you've got a healthy meal...

I try very hard to avoid GMO's (genetically modified organisms), unnecessary preservatives/additives, and over processed foods. So I like sticking with these non-gmo, organic, minimally processed food products. FYI, this honey is the BEST! I order mine from Vitacost.com (best price). Also, found at your local health food store and amazon.

This meal also turned into one of my lifesaving leftovers too...

On night number 2 we had the original meal with some steamed broccoli and corn. Then night number 3 there was still some left but not enough for everyone. So, I cut up onions, garlic, and a half a head of cabbage. Once cooked I added the rest of the rice and honey sesame chicken. Then whalla, dinner is served! Lifesaving Leftovers at its best.

Simple Sesame Noodles

The Fish Fam said these noodles were pretty good. One of my kids tried a tasted and said, "Yum, this tastes just like seaweed salad!"

Yes, they liked it, but the husband said maybe next time don't do spaghetti noodles.

I was thinking the same thing. I'll have to try flat rice noodles or some other Chinese noodle. But this recipe was quick and simple. I also added leftover shredded chicken.

Simple Sesame Noodles

By Pioneer Women

• 12 ounces, fluid Thin Noodles, Cooked And Drained
• 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons Sugar
• 4 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
• 3 Tablespoons Pure Sesame Oil
• 1/2 teaspoon Hot Chili Oil
• 4 Tablespoons Canola Oil
• 4 whole Green Onions, Sliced Thin

Whisk all ingredients (except noodles and green onions) together in a bowl. Taste and adjust ingredients as needed.
Pour sauce over warm noodles and toss to coat.
Sprinkle with green onions and toss.
Serve in a bowl with chopsticks. Yummy!

包子 Baozi Chinese Steamed Meat Buns :)

新年快乐!!!

For Chinese New Years I made some Chinese food and we got together with some friends and family to celebrate!

My cousin, little chef, and I made 包子 Baozi (Stuffed Steamed Buns) from scratch. Baozi are definitely a Fish Fam favorite! When we lived in China you could find Baozi on every corner at any time of the day, which they are a breakfast food, nonetheless we ate them all the time morning, day, and night! Our little guy had a baozi dance, he'd get so happy :)

For the celebration we made a lot of food...Baozi, Jiaozo (potstickers), Lemon Chicken, Long Bean Stir-fry, and a Lychee smoothie. Grateful I had lots of help too or else it would have taken all night to cook because I didn't get started soon enough!

In the end, all I heard was how yummy it all was!

I followed this recipe from Yi Reservation. I need to work on the buns, but for a first they turned out pretty good, just need to get them more round and soft. The recipe is in grams, so I had to convert everything and was probably a little off of the measurements, but the clock was ticking!

Here is Mr. Yi's recipe....

But going to his website and following the step by step photo process is important.

CHINESE STEAMED MEAT BUNS (BAOZI) 包子

YIELD: 21-24 BUNS

PREP TIME: 180

COOK TIME: 30

TOTAL TIME: 210

Make these homemade Chinese Steamed Meat Buns following this MAN-PROOF step-by-step recipe at www.yireservation.com.

INGREDIENTS:

FOR THE DOUGH

• 500g all-purpose flour, more as needed
• 1.5tsp instant yeast
• 50ml lukewarm water
• 230ml milk or water +/- 10ml, at room temperature
• 1tsp baking powder
• 50g sugar
• 3g salt
• 2tbsp cooking oil
• 1/10tsp baking soda (optional)

FOR STUFFING

• 1.5lb ground pork (can use chicken, beef, or lamb)
• ¼ cabbage
• 5 scallions
• 2inch fresh ginger root

STUFFING MARINADE

• 2tbsp soy sauce
• 2tbsp cooking oil
• 1tbsp sugar
• 1.5tbsp Chinese rice wine
• 1tsp five-spice powder
• 1 egg
• 1tsp sesame oil
• 2tsp ground white pepper
• Additional salt to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Follow my basic steamed bun (Mantou) recipe to make the basic dough. You’ll need about 2 – 3 hours to prepare the dough
2. While waiting for the dough to rise, start making the stuffing by chopping the scallions and ginger
3. Chop the cabbage to the size of ½ of your pinky nail. Move the chopped cabbage to a mixing bowl
4. Mix 1 tbsp of salt into the cabbage. Let sit for about 20 minutes or until cabbage has released some moisture
5. Remove the cabbage liquid. Combine with the ground pork (or your meat of choice) in the same bowl. Add the chopped scallions and ginger to the pork and cabbage
6. Mix in all the stuffing marinade ingredients to the pork except the cooking oil. Whisk the stuffing using a spoon until all the ingredients are well incorporated. Add additional salt to taste if needed
7. Drip the cooking oil in the meat mixture and whisk to mix. Seal the stuffing with plastic wrapper and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. This can be done in advance
8. Once the dough is ready, transfer the dough to a flour-dusted workstation. Divide into 4 portions. Roll each portion into a log that’s about 1.5 inch in diameter
9. Cut the log into 6 parts and shape each port into a ball. Make sure you coat the dough balls with a layer of flour. Press down the ball with your palm. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a round thin wrapper with 4 inch diameter. When rolling, make sure the center of the wrapper is thicker than the edge of the wrapper. Repeat this step to make a batch of 6 wrappers at a time
10. To fold the bun. Place 1 to 2 tbsp of the filling in the center of the wrapper. Try to stack up the filling so it’s at least 1 inch from the edge of the wrapper. Wrap the bun by folding the edge counterclockwise until the bun is completely sealed. Repeat these two steps to assemble the rest of the buns
11. Place the buns on a bamboo steamer with parchment in between to prevent sticking. Don’t steam your buns right away but instead let them sit for another 30 – 45 minutes. This is an important step in making the buns soft and fluffy. The buns will increase in size
12. Steam the buns for 15 minutes over high heat. Turn off the heat but do not open the steamer cover. Let them sit in the steamer for another 5 minutes before you take them out. Let them cool a little and serve hot as breakfast, snack, or appetizers

Being that Chinese New Years is 15 days long stay tuned for more yummy 中国菜 Chinese food!

新年快乐!!!

Chicken & Cilantro Wonton Soup

My boys love their Chinese soups and homemade is so much better than take out.

Well, it's mostly homemade. Gotta work on those wontons.

So, for now these Cilantro & Chicken Wontons from Costco will do...

When it comes to buying prepared foods I like when I am able to read the ingredients list, know what they are, and really it should be way way way less than a paragraph long. It'd be awesome if it was organic. The couple no good ingredients are: Carrageenan (thickener/stabilizer/sneaky MSG ingredient) and soy/soybean oil (GMO)/don't overlook the "*No MSG added" (I like their honesty on this one). 

When we lived in China at my sons preschool we made homemade jiaozi/potsickers. It was fun and easy! All the kids got to help and they loved it. So for a family night we'll definitely be making some!

This dinner was quick and easy because I pre-make my bone broths in my instant pot pressure cooker and have them ready to go in the freezer. The broth consists of...

Grass-fed Beef Bones (bought locally)

ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar)

Carrots

Onions

Parsley

Celery

Sea Salt

I pull it out of the freezer and depending on what you froze the broth in and the size of your pot, you put it into a pot and let it cook/melt. I also had frozen chopped onions and garlic to throw in. Then my Little Chef grated fresh grated ginger and chopped green onions. He threw it all in with some sesame oil once the soup become liquid. Once the soup is about to boil add the wontons and whalla, it's done in about 5mins (once the wontons are floating, a helpful Chinese cooking tip)!

Mine is pretty similar to this Wonton Soup at Damn Delicious.

Which I'm saving to make the wontons! 

So, for now these will do...

Enjoy!

Fried Rice Nori Wraps

My little 許家庭 Xujiating could eat this for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They love it and I love to be able to just throw together whatever I have in the fridge that needs to be used! Easy peasy. 

But of course, as in anything moderation is best! Here's what I used Leftover...rice, small baked chicken, some organic frozen veggies mix, and fried egg, seasoned with soy sauce, sesame oil, and ginger. 

Then use some Nori to wrap it up or slice it. The health benefits of Nori or seaweed are so good! Being that it's a sea vegetable it's filled with tons of vitamins and minerals, such as iodine. Read up about it here and here.

To seal the seaweed just get your fingers wet and run along the edge of it and gently press it closed. 

Enjoy :)

Irresistible Potstickers..

 Who doesn't love jiaozi, shuǐjiǎo, guōtiē, dumplings, aka Potstickers!

My kids sure do, but have you ever made them from scratch?
It's quite the process, but very authentic and so good.

When we lived in China my oldest went to a nursery school and I was welcomed to stay too, which I did some days with my 1yr old, one day we made Jaozi all from scratch. The kids loved it. No one talked at the lunch table and they were gone before we knew it!

These however are far from homemade, they are the all famous Ling Ling Potstickers.
A easy and fast go to frozen food in our house.

I either boil them, which is super super fast and easy, or pan fry them, which isn't that much harder, but the Fish Fam certainly prefers it this way.

To do it up a bit more I chop up fresh mushrooms and green onions, then fry them in butter with some garlic and white pepper.

 Then plate it with steamed calrose rice, green beans, and dipping sauce.

Simply irresistible!

好吃得不得了 Hao chi de bu de liao!!

Translated as: Incredibly Delicious

Perfect Fried Rice

 Fried Rice is a simple dish, but getting it right to taste like awesome fried rice takes practice.

 Because, yes, there is such a thing as Perfect Fried Rice.

I'm still working on mine, but it was good to hear..."This is so good, just like the fried rice we ate in China!"

 If you didn't know there are some secrets to help....

 "5 Secrets to Making Fabulous Fried Rice"
From The Asian Grandmothers Cookbook

1. Use cold, leftover cooked rice. Left in the fridge overnight, the rice grains will firm up, making it easier to separate and decreasing the chances of your fried rice turning out mushy. If you can’t wait, air freshly-cooked rice to remove moisture and refrigerate the rice for a few hours before cooking.
2. Use medium to long grain rice, not short grain sweet/sushi rice or glutinous rice. Medium grain jasmine rice is my choice for fluffy, sturdy grains that don’t clump or fall apart when fried. Short grain rice tends to be softer and to stick together.
3. A blazing hot wok (a wok is ideal but a large pan, skillet, or Dutch oven will do) and an adequate amount of oil will ensure your ingredients don’t stick to the surface. That’s how restaurants achieve the smoky, “burnt” flavor in their stir-fried dishes. Your home stove probably doesn’t have the same BTU strength (unless you have a commercial Viking or Wolf range *JEALOUS*) but just remember to preheat your wok before adding ingredients.
4. Use the biggest pan available in your kitchen and don’t crowd it with ingredients. Don’t try to cook for your spouse, son, twin daughters, and grandma and grandpa too. You’ll have rice and peas flying everywhere! Ideally, you should cook 1 to 2 servings at a time. My recipe below makes enough for 3 moderate appetites. When you have too many ingredients, the wok doesn’t get hot enough and your ingredients will get soggy causing the rice to clump together. If you prefer, cook each ingredient individually (raw vegetables or meat, egg) and remove to separate plates. Return all the ingredients to the pan at the end for the final mixing and seasoning.
5. Don’t overdo the saucy seasonings like soy sauce or oyster sauce. I add just a few tablespoons of my chosen sauce for flavor and then add salt for saltiness and savor. Too much sauce will make your rice mushy.

*Fish sauce is a great choice. If you've ever cooked with it you'll know it's not a pleasant smell, but man does it give Asian cuisine great taste. Seriously.

When I make fried rice I don't follow a recipe and I use up what I have on hand, but here's the recipe from the Asian Grandmothers Cookbook...

4 cups cooked long or medium grain rice, leftover from the day before or refrigerated for at least 2 hours
1 tablespoon canola or other neutral oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 medium red or yellow onion, coarsely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 cup carrots chopped into small pieces (about 2 medium)
3 eggs
1 cup chopped leftover meat or tofu
1/2 cup frozen peas, defrosted
2 tablespoons oyster sauce (or sweet soy sauce)
2 tablespoons soy sauce (or fish sauce)
Salt
White pepper powder

-Break up large clumps of rice and separate the grains with wet fingers.

-Preheat a 14-inch wok or 12-inch skillet over high heat for about 1 minute. Swirl in the oil and heat until it becomes runny and starts to shimmer.

-Reduce heat to medium and add garlic and onion and stir until fragrant, about 15 to 30 seconds. Add the carrots and cook until tender, about 2 to 3 minutes.

-Move all the ingredients to one side of the wok. Break the eggs into the wok, and stir to scramble until they are almost cooked through but still a little soggy, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes.

-Add the meat and the peas, followed by the rice, stirring and tossing between each addition. Use your spatula to break up any clumps.

-Add the sauces, and salt and white pepper to taste. Stir everything swiftly around the wok until the rice is well-coated and -colored (little bits of white here and there is OK) and heated through, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add more oil if the rice begins to stick to the wok; reduce the heat if it starts to scorch. -Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Or if you want some Tasty Taiwanese kind...

Try Mickey's Tasty Fried Rice

Enjoy :)
 

Braised Tofu w/ Ground Turkey

Instructions (Click for link):

• 1 block firm or extra firm tofu 
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper 
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil 
• 1 pound ground pork, beef, turkey or chicken 
• 1 clove garlic, very finely minced 
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger 
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce 
• 1/4 cup cool water 
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch 
• 1/2 stalk green onion, chopped
•  

Directions:

1. Drain the tofu and place on towels or paper towels. To get rid excess water in the tofu, place another towel on top of the tofu, then place something flat and heavy (like a cutting board or a cast iron frying pan) on top. You can weigh the cutting board down by putting a couple of cans of soup on top. Let sit for 10 minutes. Cut the tofu into several slices 3/4" thick. Season on both sides with salt, pepper.
2. Heat a wok or large saute pan over medium-high heat. When hot, swirl in the cooking oil. Very carefully and slowely slide in the tofu slices in one layer. Fry for 1 minutes, then flip to fry the other side for 1 minute until both sides are browned. Remove the seared tofu to a clean plate.
3. To the same wok, add in the ground meat. Saute until browned, about 2 minutes. Add in the garlic and the ginger and stir fry for 30 seconds.
4. Add in the chicken broth, oyster sauce and soy sauce. In a small bowl, whisk together the water and the cornstarch. In the wok, stir in the water and cornstarch mixture and bring everything to a simmer. Add the cooked tofu back in the pot. Lower the heat to medium-low. Let simmer for 5 minutes, until thickened. Mix in green onion. Serve with rice.

Here's a good article about purchasing the best tofu.

My husband is half Chinese and grew up with great traditional Chinese/Taiwanese food.

He always says...

"太太, Tai Tai make me some good Chinese food!"

He makes better Chinese food than me, but mine are getting better :)

Enjoy

Asian Cauliflowered Fried Rice

Nom Nom Paleo is a paleo food genius!

Her Asian Cauliflowered Fried Rice is incredible

Just for the fact that you make "rice" out of cauliflower

& it's really easy.

I really enjoyed this dish.

Jiaozi...Dumplings & Mushrooms

When we need a quick fix for dinner, we usually have a bag of Ling Ling Potsickers in the freezer.

But, just boiling them can get boring sometimes.

My family loves crispy dumplings w/ sauteed mushrooms and green onions.

They are no where near as good as the real stuff in China, but they sure are good.

凉粉 Liángfěn

Chinese cold noodle with soy sauce/vinegar/sesame oil/garlic and peanuts. A friend from China made this and brought a plate full over...my husband says, "太太 Tai Tai! Learn to make me good Chinese food!" Ummm, I wish I could, it's hard to get the sauces just right! He knows what good Chinese food is since he practically grew up in Taiwan. I have much to improve on! Thanks 王晓莉 Xiaoli!

Here's the best recipe I found for this....My Cooking Hut: Cold Mung Bean Noodle

Organic Sesame Chicken

Using some essential sauces in Chinese cooking (soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar) I made this awesome Organic Sesame Chicken. I made up my own sauce: shoyu sauce, vinegar, organic agave, organic sesame oil, garlic, ginger, sesame seeds, an Asian spice mix, and a little bit of cornstarch for a marinade. Then after an hour I cooked the marinaded organic chicken drumsticks in the wok with onions. I added garden fresh red & yellow peppers and zucchini & squash. Put it over jasmine rice and it is delicious.

包子 Baozi

My boys love to eat 包子 baozi, so our friend from China brought some over. They are steamed stuffed buns filled with veggies and/or meat.

土豆丝 Tou Dou Si

This was one of our favorite dishes in China. 土豆丝 or shredded potatoes. Our friend from China also made it and brought it over today. So good!