Fresh and Easy Asian Salad

This is a good one! Easy and quick to throw together! Not too much to it. Just throw and go! Now, of course, I didn't get a good picture, but I have a GREAT reason. I made this at 7am so that my husband would have dinner while I made the opening day of ECLIPSE. So, sorry if you are motivated by pictures, but believe me, this is EXTREMELY tasty!!

Combine the following:

1 bag (or head) of lettuce of your choice (romaine, butter, etc.)

1 8 oz can mandarin oranges, drained

1 pkg of grilled chicken strips (pre-cooked)

1 cup of Chow Main noodles

1 cup of snap peas, cooked to al dente

1.5 cups cooked and shelled edamame

1/2 red or yellow bell pepper chopped or sliced

(You could easily add almonds to this!)

Kraft Light Asian Toasted Sesame Dressing

Add dressing to individual servings, because you WILL have leftovers :)

ENJOY!

Sesame Stir Fry - You chose your meat!

So this is another recipe from Eating For Life! Such a great cookbook. Recipes are pretty simple, pretty cheap, but very tasty, light, and healthy! This recipe called for ground beef, but you all know me by now. I avoid red meat for the most part and go for the whites! I chose ground chicken because it was cheaper than ground turkey, but your options are endless! Have fun with this! I doubled the recipe (intending to have leftovers)-but if you half this, you would be JUST FINE!

Ingredients:

1 pound ground meat

2 T Sesame Oil

2 cups Napa Cabbage, shredd

2 cups Broccoli Slaw

4-6 cloves of garlic, minced

1 cup uncooked brown rice

One bundle of green onions

2 T Lite Soy Sauce

Ground Red Pepper to taste

Method:

First, cook your rice according to box directions. My brown rice takes about 45 minutes, so don't start the next step right away! 

Next, when rice is coming to a finish in cooking time, in a wok or large skillet, brown your meat until no longer pink. I used a WOK, of course :) Once finished, drain of any excess liquid and set aside.

Heat Sesame Oil in the same skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and green onions. Stir fry constantly for about 2 minutes and then throw in the cabbage and the slaw. Cook again, for about 2 minutes. 

Drain rice. Add to veggie mix. Add soy sauce to entire combination. Continue to cook 2-5 minutes.

Lastly, add your ground meat to the rice and veggies and cook until flavors and components are well combined. Add red pepper to taste and serve!

We really liked this dish, and I know you will too!

Enjoy :)

Easy and healthy Chili-and-Basil Chicken Noodle Stir Fry ... Fast Food!

I'm so sorry I've left you guys stranded for a good week or so. Moving into a house and working a lot of overtime has made posting on the blog quite a challenge. Not to mention the week we went without internet! BUT I'M BACK! And I promise I have some gems to share with you!

Chili-and-Basil Chicken Noodle Stir Fry

This was delicious, and right out of a Weight Watchers magazine! Very affordable, very quick, and very yummy! Fast food Chinese :) You'll love it!

1 pound boned, skinned chicken breast thinly sliced

6 oz Soba Noodles (Ramen Noodles will work)- uncrumbled/uncooked
3 T Soy Sauce

2 T fresh Lime Juice
1 T Chili Garlic Sauce
1/4 cup low sodium Chicken Broth (plus 1 Tablespoon)
1 tsp cornstarch
1 T Olive Oil or Canola Oil
3 Green Onions sliced

1/3 cup fresh small basil leaves (or chopped basil)


1. Cook noodles according to package directions, omitting any salt/oil/butter/seasoning packet.

2. While pasta cooks, combine soy sauce, lime juice, chili garlic sauce, and tablespoon of chicken broth.  Combine chicken with 2 Tablespoons of the soy sauce mixture.

3. Add remaining chicken broth and cornstarch to remaining soy sauce mixture. Set aside

4. Heat oil in a large, nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook about 5 minutes until done. Stir frequently. Add noodles and soy sauce mixture; cook about 1 minute or until sauce thickens. Top with green onions and basil. Serve immediately.

Enjoy :) This was just too easy and too good- don't pass it up!

Kung Pao Chicken!

You want some real good, real authentic Chinese take out? Then this recipe is FOR YOU! Nick asked me for a "Wok Recipe" this week, and this one really delivered. You could serve this over rice and or some steamed veggies. I kind of used an older recipe from the blog for the Sesame Noodle Salad, however I found these really cool Spicy Sesame Linguine Noodles:

ANYWAYS! Back to the chicken!

Ingredients (Marinade):

2-3 Boneless Skinless chicken breasts, diced into bite size pieces

1 T Soy Sauce

1 T Rice Wine Vinegar

1 t Sesame Oil

1.5 t Cornstarch

Place all ingredients in a baggie and let chicken marinate about 25 minutes (Or longer if you want).

Meanwhile, whisk together your sauce, and cut up your veggies

Ingredients (Sauce):

2 T Soy Sauce

1 T Rice Wine Vinegar

1 tsp Sugar (I used 1 packet of Truvia Sugar Substitute)

Ingredients (Veggies):

4 green onions, sliced (Reserve some for garnish at the end)

3-4 cloves of garlic, minced

Ingredients (Other):

1/2 t ground ginger

1/2 t ground cayenne pepper

1-2 T sesame oil (for stir-frying)

1/3 cup dry roasted peanuts

Optional: Sesame Seeds

Heat a large deep pan (preferably a wok) over medium heat. Add enough Sesame Oil to stir fry chicken for 5-6 minutes until no longer pink and probably about 80% done cooking. Remove and set aside.

Next, add some more sesame oil as needed, and then add your garlic, green onions, ginger, and red pepper.

After about 30 seconds, add sauce and bring to a boil (should happen quickly) Then add your chicken back to the pan to finish cooking

At this point, your chicken should only need about 2-3 more minutes on the heat to finish cooking.

Add in your reserved green onion, toss in the peanuts, and top with some sesame seeds. Toss for about 15-20 seconds and remove immediately!

Serve however you want. Here's our Sesame Linguine noodles with some red pepper and snow peas. Again, for this recipe, click on the link up at the top for Sesame Noodle Salad.

Does this look like real Chinese Kung Pao Chicken, or what!?

I hope you'll try it, and enjoy it :)

Soy Ginger Chicken with Sesame Snap Peas .... Make your OWN take out!

This recipe is a healthier version of chinese take-out :) Always go for the brown rice (Long Grain is better if you can find it!) Steer clear of sodium-high traditional chinese dishes by choosing this one! Here's what's on the grocery list:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup soy ginger sauce*

1 pound chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

(I sliced my chicken very thin, the way they do in a Mongolian Dish or Cashew Chicken dish)

6-8 cups assorted fresh winter greens (Kale, collards, mustard, chard, bok choy)

2 T Olive Oil

2/3 cups julienned carrots

1/2 cup chopped scallions

(Make Carribean Turkey Burgers with leftover scallions!)

*The soy ginger sauce I found was at Whole Foods. VERY low calorie, low sugar, low fat. If you are going to a local grocery store, just look for a soy ginger asian sauce with acceptable nutrition for your family's diet*

Here's How I did it:

If you have time, its always best to marinate your chicken as long as possible. Even overnight if you can remember! The LONGER that sauce can be in contact with your meat, the BETTER flavor you'll gain. I sliced my chicken very thin, put it in a gallon zip lock bag, added the sauce, and put it in the fridge that morning to start marinating. GIVE IT AT LEAST 30 minutes if you forget to start it early!

Next, you want to wash your greens. Trim them and chop them up, roughly. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil, and place the greens in there for about 3-4 minutes. DRAIN IMMEDIATELY. You are just blanching them.
 

Now, have a bowl of ice water ready- you're going to throw them right in it to stop the cooking process! This will allow the leaves to retain that bright green color which means YOU retained the majority of the nutrients in the leaves! Once cool, drain, and set aside.

Time to WOK it up!

In a large saute pan, or wok, heat your olive oil over medium high heat and saute chicken for about 5 minutes until browned and cooked through

Remember: the thinner you slice the chicken, the quicker it will stir fry

Also, remember at some point along the way to start cooking your brown rice

Now, add your carrots, scallions, and cooked greens. Saute another 3-5 minutes, tossing to mix ingredients.

Once you are ready, serve this over brown rice with additional soy ginger sauce.

But wait! Now its time for your side dish! These easy Sesame Snap peas compliment the meal well. They were yummy, cheap, and best of all, EASY! I would recommend starting them as soon as you start to stir fry the chicken. They have a similar cook time!

What you'll need:

1 T Sesame Oil (I bought TOASTED sesame oil because its sounded yummy)

1/2 pound snow pea pods (About 2 cups)

1 T Sesame Seeds

1 Medium Red or Yellow Bell Pepper sliced thin

Those green onions go with the stir fry, don't be confused!

What to do:

-Heat your sesame oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

-Add your pea pods and sesame seeds. Cook about 2 minutes, stirring frequently at first to distribute oil.

Add in your red bell pepper, cover, and continue to cook 5-7 minutes, STIRRING FREQUENTLY until veggies reach desired tenderness. We kept ours pretty crisp. I kept them covered more to the 5 minute mark!

Serve alongside Chicken Stir Fry and Rice for a Chinese Take Out turned HEALTHY!


Enjoy :) We hardly had leftovers!

It just LOOKS healthy, doesn't it?!

Garlic Chicken Stir Fry- IN THE WOK!

Okay, so this was delicious! We both loved it! Not too pricey, not too complicated. Pretty perfect if you are a garlic fan. NOTE: ALL THOSE WHO DISLIKE GARLIC... STEER CLEAR OF THIS RECIPE. 12 CLOVES REQUIRED!

Anyways, I made this dish in my new wok, which was awesome! I snapped a picture just because I was so happy to use another new kitchen appliance! Coming soon- THE PASTA MAKER! Thats besides the point though! You cook this dish without the lid, so be ready for your kitchen to smell like PARADISE (If China is paradise to you!) So, anyways, I marinated the chicken all day (it only requires about 30 minutes), but after that, i whipped this baby up in about 10 or 15 minutes!

I served it with brown rice, but I would recommend basmati or jasmine rice just due to the nature of the dish! Sometimes its worth it to bypass the healthy rice in a dish like this! I'LL DO IT NEXT TIME!

So, I realize this picture is a LITTLE blurry, but it was such a close up of the chicken, scallions, and mushrooms, I just couldn't resist!!! Here's the recipe:

Garlic Chicken Stir Fry

2 T EVOO

1 pound chicken (I used tenders) cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 1/2 cups water

3 T Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce

1 T Rice Wine Vinegar

1 T cornstarch

10 scallions, biased cut into 1 inch pieces

1 cup thin sliced fresh mushrooms

12 cloves of garlic, peeled, and minced (I ran them through a garlic press!)

You could throw water chestnuts in, but I chose not to!

2 cups cooked rice, whichever you prefer!

Whisk together water, soy sauce and vinegar. Pour over chicken. Marinate at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator. Drain and reserve marinade.  Add cornstarch to marinade, stir, and reserve.

Heat oil in the wok over medium-high heat. Stir fry the scallions, garlic, and mushrooms in the wok for about 3 minutes, remove and reserve.

Add chicken to the wok and stir fry until no longer pink. Push chicken away from the center of the wok, and add cornstarch mixture to center. Stir fry until thick and bubbly. Return veggies to the wok and cook together about 1 more minute.

Serve over rice.

YUMMMMMY! This is a keeper! Enjoy :)