Indonesian Barley Pilaf

I got this recipe from Kashi and just modified it a bit for what I had on hand. It's quicky, healthy and delicious.

1 cup barley

2 cups water (or chicken broth)
1 cup whole peanuts
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, diced
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoons cumin
3/4 cup raisins
1 large carrot julienned
1 cup red cabbage diced (optional- I didn't use)
pinch of salt
red bell pepper, diced
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

4 tablespoons soy sauce (I usually pour it on until everything is light brown)

2 teaspoons fresh ginger root, grated

1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes (more or less depending on how spicy you want it)

Cook barley in water according to directions (usually takes about 35-40 minutes). In large sauce pan saute garlic, onion and pepper in sesame oil (or other oil). Add remaining ingredients and simmer 2-3 minutes. Stir in barley and serve.

Asian Noodle Salad

A friend suggested I try the Pioneer Woman Asian Noodle Salad and since my husband loves Asian food and I am finding I do as well (wish I'd liked it more when I went to China!) I figured it was time to give it a try. I was nervous about the sauce because I really don't like dressings, so I changed it a bit and it turned out perfect for my taste!  I changed a bunch of other things too, so if you want her original one click the link above.

I wasn't sure if my boys would go for it or not, but it's so similar to stir fry they gobbled it right up. I forgot the spinach at first, but then added it later, and it's perfect even without spinach so if you don't have any you can still make it. I'm not a big fan of raw peppers though so next time I think I'll broil the peppers in the oven with the cashews. I only used 1/2 of each pepper and then chopped the leftovers and froze for future stir fry and kebabs. That's the great thing about salads- you add what you like and as much as you like.

Asian Noodle Salad

1 package chow mein stir fry noodles (I used 1/2 of the bag pictured below)
1 head finely chopped napa cabbage, washed and dried
1/2 bag baby spinach chopped
1/2 red pepper finely chopped
1/2 yellow pepper finely chopped
1/2 orange pepper finely chopped
1 bag bean/mung sprouts (my store was out and I was so sad because I love these!)
1 cucumber chopped or sliced
1 cup cashews, broiled in the oven for about 5 minutes (just until brown- I will broil my peppers next time too)

Dressing

1 lime, juiced (you can microwave for 30 seconds, makes it easier to juice)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

Cook noodles according to package, drain and set aside. Mix dressing ingredients in salad bowl. Chop all vegetables and toss in bowl with salad and noodles. EAT.

  

Chinese Chow Mein

Stir fry's make the best dinner, especially when you're in a hurry. I always try to keep stir fry veggies in the freezer for those times when I fail to plan properly. This meal takes about 15 minutes from start to finish (even less if you don't have to chop the veggies) and couldn't get much healthier.

Stir Fry noodles

Favorite Veggies (Carrots, Broccoli, Celery, Peppers, etc...)

2-3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon oil

Cook noodles according to package, drain. Heat oil in wok over medium high heat. Stir fry vegetables just until tender. Mix in noodles and 2-3 tablespoons of soy sauce (until the noodles are dark brown). That's it! So simple but oh so good. You could also add beef or chicken strips to the mix, just cook them for about 10 minutes before adding veggies.

  

Barley Stir Fry

This was my first attempt at using barley in something other than stew. I really like the flavor of barley and the texture- much better than white rice. I've never really cared for white rice because it's so sticky, so this is a perfect substitute, it's like a mix between oats and rice. This is just a simple stir fry, chop your favorite veggies, stir fry and add a bit of soy sauce.  Yummy, healthy and so simple.

I liked the flavor & texture so much I saved a bit extra- added brown sugar, raisins, walnuts and a tiny bit of orange juice and it was fabulous (not sticky like oatmeal)- we couldn't wait until breakfast to eat it- the boys thought it was a great dessert and asked for more.

1 cup barley
2 cups water

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 chopped red pepper

1/2 chopped onion

favorite veggies: sugar snap peas, broccoli, carrots, celery, etc...

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

peanuts or sliced almonds

Boil 2 cups of water, add barley, reduce heat and simmer about 40 minutes until barley is tender. Chop all vegetables. Heat oil in skillet or wok and stir fry just until tender. Stir in soy sauce, nuts and cooked barley.

Yummy Cashew Chicken

I guarantee this will taste just as good (or better) than the cashew chicken at your favorite Chinese restaurant. It's very simple to make and tastes fabulous.

1 boneless skinless chicken breast
1/2 cup cashews
2 stalks of celery chopped
Sliced peppers (or any other veggies you like)
1/4 onion diced
Olive oil (for frying)
Brown rice/barley, cooked

Marinade:
1/2 teaspoon Fresh grated ginger
1 tablespoon Soy sauce

Sauce:
1 teaspoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons water
1/8 teaspoon salt

Finely grate ginger and mix with soy sauce. Cut chicken into 1” chunks and marinate in ginger-soy mixture 15 minutes. Chop onion, celery and if desired, peppers. Mix sauce in small bowl and set aside. Turn oven to broil and lightly toast cashews.

Heat oil in fry pan or wok over medium high heat. Fry onions until translucent. Add celery, peppers and chicken and cook about 10 minutes until chicken is no longer pink, turning and stirring every few minutes. Add sauce and cashews, stir then serve over rice/barley.

Fortune Cookies

I know, they're not really Chinese. I was sooo dissapointed when we didn't get any fortune cookies with our pig sandwiches in China. But it's still so fun I had to try them. I've tried the griddle method before and they did not turn out well at all. My friend sent me a recipe from her friend so I figured I'd try it again- this time in the oven. The recipe had way more flour than I wanted and I read reviews that said butter made the paper greasy, so I found a Paula Deen recipe and merged the two with fabulous results!

I first tried to make them on tin foil (I didn't have parchment paper) that did not work. Just use a regular cookie sheet and spray with pam before putting down the dough. I use a rubber scraper and spread the dough in a circle motion making it really thin. You want it to be as thin as crepe dough or thinner and really small- you'll be tempted to make them big but don't, they fold easier and cook better if they're small. If you use regular paper it will stick to the cookie but I didn't have any rice paper on hand, so they were a little hard to get out- BUT the cookie tasted yummy- much better than store bought ones and were crunchy.

Ingredients:
3 egg whites
1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract (I didn't use)
1/2 cup flour
2 Tablespoons water

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375. Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper. Have fortunes ready to go on small strips of paper folded in half (rice paper works best).
2. Whip the egg whites and sugar until frothy, about 2 minutes. Add vanilla and/or almond extract and water. Mix in flour. Batter should resemble thin pancake batter.
3. Spoon batter into 3" circles on greased baking sheet, spreading very thin, don't do more than 4 at a time
4. Bake for 5-7 minutes until edges begin to brown slightly. Using a metal spatula quickly remove cookie (one at a time, working quickly- the cookie will harden in seconds) place fortune in center, fold in half (or thirds if you have a large cookie), then fold ends together. Place in muffin tin to cool and help hold shape.

Egg Fried Rice

This is yet another recipe I have tried to make and failed miserabley many many times. I finally found this recipe here where they explained the *secret* to making fried rice.

I was always using fresh rice- it needs to be old rice. I didn't plan in advance- but I tried his method of putting the rice in the fridge uncovered for a few hours. Then I dumped it out on a cookie sheet, broke up the rice and let it sit uncovered for a few more hours to dry it out. It turned out great- FINALLY!

Ingredients


5 cups cooked white rice
4 eggs, beaten
Diced onions
Pinch salt
Pinch pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, lightly crushed
Ham, julienned
1/2 cup carrot, finely sliced
1/3 cup chicken stock
4 tablespoons soy sauce

Method
Break rice into individual grains with your hands and put aside.

Beat eggs. Add 1/2 of onions, salt and pepper. Mix well. Heat a frying pan to a medium and make an omelette. Slice into small pieces and set aside.

Heat oil in wok at a very low heat. Add garlic and fry for a minute until oil is fully garlic-flavoured - do not brown garlic. Remove garlic but leave as much oil in wok as possible.

Bring wok to full heat. Add pork, stirring rapidly for 30 seconds. Add carrots, and onions while stirring. Add stock and soy sauce. Return garlic to wok. Cook vegetables for no more than a few minutes.

Add rice and stir everything together for a few minutes until rice is hot. If rice starts to stick to wok, reduce heat. Add omelette and cook for a minute more before serving on a plate.

Chinese Fried Noodles

When we were in X'ian, I had just about had it with the food- there were no American fast food places around and everything on the menu was labeled things like "pig sandwich" "fried frog legs" "cow heart" and things like that, so it kind of took the fun out of ordering food. The one thing I ate almost every day there was fried noodles and egg fried rice. I loved their fried noodles and found a recipe that is almost the same. Theirs were much crunchier, but this is pretty tasty. I found this recipe here.

Ingredients:


Chinese noodles
Ham, minced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Salt
Carrot, julienned
Onion, julienned
Black pepper
Soy

Directions:
1. Boil Chinese noodles until just cooked. Drain.
2. Heat the oil in a skillet. Cook and stir the ham minced, carrot and onion in oil for 1 minute. Add the Chinese noodles and salt, black pepper and a little soy, then cook and stir for 1 minute.

Chinese Dumplings (Jiaozi) and Egg Rolls (Spring Rolls)

I searched long and hard to find a traditional dumpling like we ate on the streets of Beijing and X'ian and I think I finally found it. When we were there we bought a little dumpling press and I am ashamed to say that after almost 6 years this is the first time I've used it.

I always have to modify the recipe a bit- I omitted the pork because I wanted to do an all veggie one- and I wanted to use the same mixture for the egg rolls/spring rolls. And since I don't eat mushrooms I changed the veggies around a bit too. You can add whatever veggies or meats you like. Also, these dumplings are fried and then steamed- trying to stay authentic- but I actually prefer the taste of just fried ones, so you don't have to do the extra steaming if you like them crunchy. I primarily used this site for the recipe http://lilyng2000.blogspot.com/2009/01/pot-stickers.html

Dough:

1 cup flour

1/2 cup water

1/8 teaspoon salt

Filling:

grated carrots
finely chopped cabbage
fresh grated ginger root
diced red peppers

diced celery
diced onion
ground pork (I omitted)
soy sauce
hoisin sauce (use very sparingly)
chicken stock
Mix dough, kneading until smooth and set aside to rest.

I let all my veggies sit in the stock and sauces for about half an hour, then drained all the liquid out. Because I was frying & boiling I didn't pre-cook the veggies. If you're just going to fry I'd recommend frying the veggies in a wok before stuffing- just make sure to drain any liquid really well before you stuff.

Roll dough out into small circles- I had a press so it was easy to measure- but you can make them as big or small as you like. You only put about a tablespoon of filling in each dumpling otherwise the stuff will fall out when frying. Seal tightly. There are tons of youtube videos on how to properly seal a dumpling so check them out.

 

You can refrigerate or freeze until ready to fry. Heat oil in wok and fry. If you're doing traditional- dump the rest of the oil into another container and add 1/2 cup chicken stock into the wok and quickly cover with lid because it will splatter out.

For Egg Rolls or Spring Rolls- I  simply used the leftover filling and stuffed them in egg roll wrappers, rolled and fryed. Pretty simple. There is a recipe for egg rolls- that is slightly different- but I think the most authentic (which I will be adding to my recipe book) at http://steamykitchen.com/65-my-mothers-famous-chinese-egg-rolls.html