Mongolian Pork

I have been so excited to try this recent recipe from Elly over at Elly Says Opa. So when I was craving chinese take out, I knew this would be the perfect fix. One problem... no steak lying around. Solution... two pork center cut loin chops!! I did nothing else to modify the recipe, other than the meat.

This dish tasted amazing with brown rice. Mr. Tote commented on how tender the pork was. We will definitely be having this again. I can't wait to try it with some steak.

2 pork chops, sliced thin.
3 Tbsp. corn starch
3 tsp. canola oil, divided
1/2 tsp. grated ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
2-3 large scallions, sliced

Pat the pieces of pork and make sure they’re dry; then, toss the meat and cornstarch together. Be sure all pieces are fully coated, but shake off excess corn starch. Mix together the soy sauce, water, brown sugar and red pepper flakes.

Heat half the oil in a wok at medium-high heat and add the ginger and garlic. Once fragrant (30 seconds or so), add the soy sauce mixture. Cook for about 2 minutes and transfer to a bowl.

Turn the heat up on the wok and add the remaining oil. Add the pork and cook, stirring until just browned. Pour the sauce back in and let it cook with the meat. Let the sauce thicken to your liking, and then add the green onions in just before plating.

Peanut Butter Chicken Stir Fry

I served this with Teriyaki "Salad Fingers" Chinese Long Beans.

1 tsp sesame oil
1 large boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch cubes
½ red bell pepper
2 C frozen broccoli florets, microwaved
1 tsp fresh grated ginger root
1 ½ Tbsp creamy peanut butter
3 Tbsp soy sauce
Sesame seeds

Heat the sesame oil in a large skillet or wok. Once the oil is hot, add the chicken. When the chicken is about half way done, add in the red bell pepper and grated ginger. When the chicken is almost completely done and the bell pepper is slightly soft, add in the broccoli. Sautee for 2-3 minutes. Then add in the peanut butter and soy sauce. Reduce the heat to low and continue sautéing while stirring until the peanut butter softens and is incorporated with the soy and the rest of the ingredients.

Teriyaki Chinese Long Beans with Almonds

I've had my eye on these Chinese Long Beans at our local market for quite some time. They are so unique-looking and always remind me of an internet sensation I heard about in college named Salad Fingers. Observe...


See!?!? The Chinese long beans look just like Salad Finger's fingers! If you haven't seen the Salad Fingers videos and don't get disturbed easily, I encourage you to watch his escapades, which can be found here. If you are easily disturbed, please reconsider watching the videos. You've been warned...

Teriyaki Chinese Long Beans with Almonds
1 bunch Chinese long beans
3 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp splenda
1 tsp corn starch
3 tsp COLD water

Slivered almonds

Steam the long beans in a pot of water, using a steamer basket. In a separate bowl, combine the soy sauce, Splenda, corn starch and cold water.

In a small sautee pan, over low heat, toast the almonds.

After the beans are done (about 5 minutes), strain them and return them to the original pot, sans the water and the heat. Dump in the soy sauce mixture and let the residual heat from the pot and the beans help thicken the sauce. If you need to, turn the heat on low to help it thicken. Add in the almonds, toss and serve ‘em up hot!

I served them with one of my favorites, Peanut Butter Chicken Stir Fry.

Thai Noodle and Pork bowl

Peanut Butter, Pork and Pasta... OH MY! I had some leftover ground pork in the freezer from the Parmesan Herb Meatballs and was craving something asian-inspired. This dish was incredibly fast to make and tasted great. I will definitely be making this again soon!

5 ounces pasta
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 Tbsp lite soy sauce
4-6 oz ground pork
3 scallions
8 baby carrots
1/2 red bell pepper
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, shredded
1 1/2 Tbsp creamy peanut butter
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, optional

Cut the scallions into 1-2 inch pieces. Cut the bell pepper into thin strips. Cut the baby carrots in half lengthwise and then cut again lengthwise.

Bring a pot of water to boil and cook the pasta as directed.

In a bowl, mix the broth and soy sauce together.

In a large skillet, cook the ground pork over medium heat until browned and no longer pink.

Add the scallions, carrot, bell pepper, ginger and garlic. Cook for an additional 3-5 minutes, or until veggies begin to soften.

Stir the broth mixture and peanut butter into the pork and veggies. Cook until peanut butter is melted and blended.

Drain the pasta, reserving a half cup of the pasta water. Add the pasta to the skillet and toss evenly to coast with sauce. Stir in some pasta water if needed to keep the mixture creamy.

Asian Pork Tenderloin and Veggies

This is one of the simplest, best tasting pork tenderloin recipes EVER! It comes compliments of my Auntie Meg out in Colorado. I made a quick teriyaki sauce for the sugar snap peas and some leftover cabbage.

Pork Tenderloin
One pork tenderloin (apx. 1 lb ,pre-cooked weight, for two people)
1/2 C soy sauce
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tsp dark sesame oil

Place the tenderloin in a large ziploc bag with the remaining indredients the day prior to cooking. Marinate overnight.

To cook, sear the meat in a skillet before placing in a 375 oven for 20-30 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 150. Allow the meat to sit for 10 minutes after taking out of the oven. This keeps the juices in and finishes cooking the meat.

This is also delicious when cooked on the grill. In fact, we prefer it that way, but it was a whopping 15 degrees today. And, besides, we need a new grill. I hope by the time we're ready to buy one that we'll be in a house where we can actually have a decent-sized one!

Sugar Snap Peas and Cabbage

In a small bowl, combine 1 Tbsp soy sauce and 1 Tbsp barbeque sauce. After steaming the vegetables, pour the mixture over the sauce and sprinkle with some toasted sesame seeds.

WW Points per Serving: I'm not sure exactly how many points this is, but the meat should be about 1 point per ounce, post-cooking weight. The veggies are 0-1 point and the sauce is probably 1-2 points, including the sesame seeds.

Kung Pao Chicken

Matt's little brother and his girlfriend came over for dinner last night before we headed out to catch our favorite Pink Floyd cover band. Trying to decide what to make for a diabetic who eats like a house was a bit challenging. But with all of the veggies I had in the fridge, a stir fry seemed like a great idea. This recipe is one of my favorites to make and it gave me a chance to use my wok. I received this recipe via email from hungry-girl.com.

Ingredients (I doubled it for 4 people):
2 tsp. sesame oil
8 oz. raw boneless skinless lean chicken breast, cubed
3/4 cup mushroom chunks
3/4 cup bell pepper chunks (red and/or green)
1/2 cup chopped broccoli
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup sliced & halved canned water chestnuts
2 tbsp. reduced-sodium/light soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp. rice vinegar
2 tsp. Splenda No Calorie Sweetener, granulated
1/2 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tbsp. chopped dry-roasted unsalted peanuts
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. red chili sauce (add more for extra spice!)
salt, pepper and red pepper flakes; to taste

Begin by combining 2 tbsp. of cold water with soy sauce, vinegar, Splenda, cornstarch and chili sauce -- stir well until all ingredients have dissolved. Set sauce aside.

Add the sesame oil to the wok and bring to medium-high heat. Add chicken, mushrooms, bell peppers, broccoli, onion, garlic and 2 tbsp. of water. Stirring occasionally, cook for about 5 minutes. Once chicken is almost fully cooked but still tender, add peanuts and water chestnuts to the pan or wok.

Raise heat to high, give sauce a stir, and add it to the pan/wok as well. Mix entire dish until all ingredients are coated in sauce, and the sauce is hot and thick. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.

Serve with brown jasmine rice.

WW Points per serving: 4.5 points (Without rice. 1 C brown rice adds 4 points.)

Asian Salmon with Parmesan & Roasted Veggie Couscous

We had this for dinner tonight. The marinade is from a Weight Watchers (WW) recipe. Serves 4.

Asian Salmon
Marinade:
2 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. grated, peeled fresh ginger
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. honey (I substituted 1 Tbsp. orange marmalade)
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tsp. sesame oil
4 four-oz. pieces of skinless salmon (1 lb. total)

Roasted Veggie Couscous
Ingredients:
1 pkg. Middle East parmesan couscous (regular couscous will work just fine)
Roasted veggies, chopped (recipe follows)
Freshly-grated parmesan cheese

Prepare the couscous, following the directions on the box. When you put the couscous in and take it off the heat, add in the chopped roasted veggies.

Prepare the marinade by mixing all ingredients in a large bowl. Toss the salmon in the marinade to coat. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the salmon and remaining marinade and cook until lightly browned on the outside and opaque in the center, about 2-3 minutes per side.

WW Points per serving: 8 points

We used almost a full pound for just the two of us and it was a little too much for either of us to finish. Pandora and Ozzy thoroughly enjoyed the leftovers...

GUILTY AS CHARGED!!!!

To roast the veggies, use whatever you have on hand. I used bell pepper, zucchini, onion and a few baby carrots. I also recommend scallions, yellow squash, mushrooms, egglant, etc. Set the oven to 400 degrees. Toss the veggies with olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread them out on a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Flip/toss the veggies one more time and roast for an additional 10 minutes, or until brown/black on the edges. Depending on the size of the chunks of veggies may vary the cooking time.