Quickie Moo Shu Chicken

This is easy, tasty, and FAST. It also doesn't require all that many ingredients. If you have hoisin sauce and chicken breasts, it's easy to throw it together, with other leftover produce. I have to admit - I was a tad skeptical, because the idea of grinding chicken breasts in my Cuisinart sounded... well... gross. It actually worked really well, though. I ended up skipping the egg, as the reviews said it didn't add much, and I also served this over rice, because all I had was corn tortillas, which didn't go all that well with the Asian flair of the recipe. Anyway, I will definitely be making this one again, on an evening when I'm pressed for time.

We tried them on corn tortillas, but the flavors didn't mesh very well!


Try these. I give them 3 bowls, because they are tasty, but not quite extraordinary enough for a special occasion!

In-a-Pinch Moo Shu Chicken

Authentic Chinese moo shu uses thin homemade pancakes. Flour tortillas make a fast substitute. Serve with fresh fruit.

Yield: 5 servings (serving size: 2 tortilla wraps)


Cooking spray
1/2 cup egg substitute
1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
4 cups packaged cabbage-and-carrot coleslaw
1 cup chopped zucchini
3/4 cup chopped green onions
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 cup hoisin sauce
10 (6-inch) flour tortillas

Heat a small nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons egg substitute; cook 1 minute or until done. Remove egg to a cutting board. Repeat procedure with remaining egg substitute. Cut egg into thin strips; set aside.

Place chicken in a food processor; pulse until finely ground. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken, garlic, and ginger; cook 3 minutes, stirring to crumble. Stir in coleslaw, zucchini, onions, salt, and pepper; cook 3 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in hoisin.

Warm tortillas according to package directions. Spoon 3/4 cup chicken mixture down center of each tortilla; top each with about 1 tablespoon egg strips. Roll up.

CALORIES 322 (20% from fat); FAT 7.2g (sat 1.6g,mono 2.1g,poly 3g); IRON 3.1mg; CHOLESTEROL 50mg; CALCIUM 111mg; CARBOHYDRATE 36.1g; SODIUM 762mg; PROTEIN 26.6g; FIBER 2.5g

Cooking Light, MAY 2003

Soy-Sherry Chicken with (Turkey) Fried Rice

This was a last minute, "I have a million ingredients to get rid of" type of meal. I basically found a couple of recipes that would help me use up my fresh produce. I wanted to use some leftover cabbage, red peppers, carrots, chicken, etc. The chicken recipe was on the front page of the Cooking Light website last week, and I dug around a bit, to find the other one, so I could serve the two, side by side. Needless to say, I was clearly in Asian mode last week.



This fried rice recipe, is clearly meant to be one of those "Day After Thanksgiving, Use up your Leftovers" type of recipes. I omitted everything "turkey" about it, and just made the fried rice with veggies (though I did use chicken broth). The rice was super tasty. I loved the addition of cabbage and peas, and the flavor combination of the rice vinager and sesame oil was perfect. This would be a terrific way to use up Thanksgiving leftovers. Then again, doing it veg style was delicious also.

Make this. Make it with turkey, make it with chicken, make it vegetarian. Any way you make it, it'll be a 5 Bowler.

Turkey Fried Rice


Canned chicken broth will work in place of the Turkey Stock, though the stock will enhance the dish's turkey flavor. Chilling the rice keeps the grains from sticking together as they're reheated. For more spice, add an extra teaspoon of chili garlic sauce.


Yield: 6 servings (serving size: about 1 1/2 cups)


1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons Turkey Stock (I used chicken)
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
1 teaspoon chili garlic sauce (such as Lee Kum Kee)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
5 teaspoons canola oil
2 cups shredded green cabbage
1 cup sliced green onions
1 1/2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
5 cups cooked long-grain rice, chilled (I used brown rice)
4 cups chopped cooked turkey (light and dark meat) (omitted)
2 cups leftover green peas or frozen peas, thawed
1 cup leftover carrots or frozen carrots, thawed (I used fresh)
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Combine the first 7 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk until well blended.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add cabbage, onions, and ginger to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until tender. Add rice, turkey, peas, and carrots; sauté 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Stir in soy mixture; cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in cilantro.


CALORIES 456 (22% from fat); FAT 11.1g (sat 2.3g,mono 3.5g,poly 2.8g); IRON 5.4mg; CHOLESTEROL 72mg; CALCIUM 97mg; CARBOHYDRATE 50.4g; SODIUM 705mg; PROTEIN 35.5g; FIBER 5.2g

Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 2007




Make this. It would have been just as good over plain rice. So easy to make. Mmmmm. I want this again, immediately. 5 Bowls.

Chicken with Sherry-Soy Sauce


Serve this Asian-inspired chicken recipe with bagged salad greens and quick-cooking rice noodles for an easy meal.


Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 chicken breast half, 1 tablespoon sauce, and 1 tablespoon onions)


Cooking spray
4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup dry sherry
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle chicken with salt and black pepper. Add chicken to pan; cook 4 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Remove from pan; keep warm.

Add sherry, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, and red pepper to pan; scrape pan to loosen browned bits. Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute. Stir in oil.


CALORIES 230 (13% from fat); FAT 3.3g (sat 0.7g,mono 1g,poly 1g); IRON 1.6mg; CHOLESTEROL 99mg; CALCIUM 27mg; CARBOHYDRATE 4.7g; SODIUM 528mg; PROTEIN 39.9g; FIBER 0.3g

Cooking Light, DECEMBER 2005

Lo Mein with Tofu

I'm pretty sure that when I tell Kevin we are having tofu for dinner, his heart sort of sinks. That's okay with me, because I really enjoy eating tofu, and I think it's a nice alternative to chicken or beef. This recipe is really easy, and the flavor combination is perfect.

An ingredient lesson:

One of the key ingredients is Mirin, which is sweetened sake. If you don't want this to be a sweet dish, I supposed you could use regular sake or dry sherry (which is often a sub for sake, in Asian dishes), but I'm not sure how it will affect the flavor. If Mirin is MIA from your cabinet, or you want to be able to monitor the sugar content of your dinner, you could always use dry sherry (or sake), and add a couple of teaspoons of brown or granulated sugar, to fake the flavors of the dish. I think the subtle sweetness is definitely essential to the dish, but anything is worth a try! Wondering where to find Mirin? Look no further than the Asian section at your grocery store. I found it at Stop and Shop, so it can't be that mysterious!



Maybe you should make this... If you like tofu. Kevin probably gives this 2 Bowls, but I give it 4. The tofu was delish, but it was tofu...

Lo Mein with Tofu

Although lo mein is traditionally made with Chinese egg noodles, here we substitute whole-wheat linguine. Pan-frying the tofu gives it a crisp exterior.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 3/4 cups)


1 (14-ounce) package firm water-packed tofu, drained and cut crosswise into 4 (1-inch-thick) pieces
8 ounces whole-wheat linguine
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
3 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons mirin (sweet rice wine)
1 1/2 tablespoons less-sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
3/4 cup vertically sliced onion
2 cups shredded cabbage
2 cups peeled, thinly diagonally sliced carrot
2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups fresh bean sprouts
1/4 cup chopped green onions

1. Place tofu in a single layer on several layers of paper towels. Cover tofu with several more layers of paper towels, and top with a cast-iron skillet or other heavy pan. Let stand for 30 minutes. Discard paper towels.

2. Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente; drain. Combine pasta, sesame oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper; toss. Set aside.

3. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper evenly over tofu. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon canola oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add tofu to pan; cook 4 minutes on each side or until golden. Remove from pan; cut into bite-sized pieces. Combine oyster sauce and next 3 ingredients (through vinegar) in a small bowl, stirring well.

4. Heat a wok or cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon canola oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion; stir-fry 2 minutes or until lightly browned. Add cabbage, carrot, and garlic; stir-fry 2 minutes or until cabbage wilts. Reduce heat to medium; stir in tofu and vinegar mixture, tossing to coat. Add pasta and bean sprouts; toss. Cook 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Sprinkle with green onions.

CALORIES 397 ; FAT 15.4g (sat 1.3g,mono 8.8g,poly 4.1g); CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CALCIUM 248mg; CARBOHYDRATE 55.1g; SODIUM 736mg; PROTEIN 18.2g; FIBER 9g; IRON 4mg


Cooking Light, APRIL 2010

Sesame Red Lentils

I'm not really sure I should have been writing about this recipe, because it tasted remarkably similar to most of the things I cook. Had I followed this recipe exactly, I think I would have loved it. Unfortunately, I used brown lentils instead of red, and vegetable oil, as opposed to peanut. I think those substitutions didn't make this a unique recipe. It should have had a uniquely Asian, sesame flavor, and the flavor was way too subtle to detect. I still loved this dish, but it was sort of boring, and left me wishing I had made one of my go-to lentil soup recipes, instead. It's certainly a solid recipe, but it wasn't particularly memorable, in comparison to other lentil dishes in my repertoire. If this sounds good to you, you should definitely give it a try. Made the right way, I'm sure it's delicious. Made my way, it was only "good." But hey, some dinners are only... good. Right?





Maybe you should make this, and actually follow the recipe. 3 Bowls, with the potential for 4!

Sesame Red Lentils

Lentils and sesame seeds combine in this savory, nutty side dish to provide about 10 percent of daily magnesium needs.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1/2 cup)


2 teaspoons peanut oil
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1/2 cup finely chopped shallots (about 4 medium)
2 cups dried small red lentils
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 cup thinly sliced green onions
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted

Heat oils in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots; cook 3 minutes or until tender. Add lentils, 1 1/2 cups water, soy sauce, salt, and broth; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes or until lentils are tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in green onions. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.


CALORIES 210 (14% from fat); FAT 3.3g (sat 0.4g,mono 1g,poly 0.9g); IRON 3.1mg; CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CALCIUM 45mg; CARBOHYDRATE 31.5g; SODIUM 310mg; PROTEIN 14.3g; FIBER 7.7g

Cooking Light, AUGUST 2006

Chapchae (Noodles with Beef and Mixed Vegetables)

I cook with beef so seldom, but I went to a great meat market the other day, so I decided to bite the bullet, and create a beef dish. Kevin loves all things stir-fried, so I figured a beef and noodle dish would be well received. Well, I was right. My family sucked this down, and wanted me to make it again immediately. The only thing I changed in this recipe,was that I used non-fried ramen noodles, and I used all the veggies I had on hand, as opposed to mushrooms and spinach. It was a winner. If you haven't made a stir fry with noodles, you need to go for it. Rice is a thing of the past!




Make this. 5 Bowls.

Chapchae (Noodles with Beef and Mixed Vegetables)

Chapchae is the most popular noodle dish in Korea and features cellophane noodles stir-fried in sesame oil with beef and vegetables. This version weighs in at less than 400 calories per serving and just over 10 grams of fat.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 3/4 cups)

Beef:
1 teaspoon cornstarch
8 ounces eye of round steak, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
2 teaspoons sambal oelek or Thai chile paste
1/2 teaspoon dark sesame oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
Cooking spray
Noodles:
1 (3.75-ounce) package uncooked bean threads (cellophane noodles)
Vegetables:
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
5 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups sliced shiitake mushroom caps (about 6 ounces mushrooms)
1 cup (2-inch) diagonally sliced green onions
1 cup (2-inch) julienne-cut carrot
1 (10-ounce) bag fresh spinach
Remaining ingredients:
1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted

To prepare beef, sprinkle cornstarch over beef; toss to combine. Add 1 tablespoon soy sauce and next 4 ingredients (1 tablespoon soy sauce through 3 garlic cloves); toss well to coat. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Heat a large nonstick skillet or wok coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add beef mixture; stir-fry 3 minutes or until done. Remove mixture from pan. Cover and keep warm.

To prepare noodles, pour boiling water over noodles; let stand 10 minutes or until tender. Drain and rinse with cold water. Drain. Snip noodles several times with kitchen shears.

To prepare vegetables, wipe skillet or wok clean with paper towels. Heat 1 teaspoon sesame oil and vegetable oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add red pepper and 5 garlic cloves; stir-fry 30 seconds. Add mushrooms, onions, and carrot; stir-fry 3 minutes. Add half of spinach; stir-fry 2 minutes or until spinach wilts. Add remaining spinach; stir-fry 2 minutes or until spinach wilts.

Reduce heat to medium-low. Add beef mixture and noodles to pan, stirring well to combine. Combine 1/3 cup soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, and 1 tablespoon sesame oil, stirring with a whisk. Drizzle over noodle mixture; stir well to combine. Cook over medium-low heat 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

CALORIES 372 (26% from fat); FAT 10.9g (sat 2.2g,mono 4g,poly 3.6g); IRON 5.5mg; CHOLESTEROL 51mg; CALCIUM 102mg; CARBOHYDRATE 41.3g; SODIUM 1020mg; PROTEIN 26.1g; FIBER 5g

Cooking Light, MARCH 2003

Sesame-Soy Meatballs

I love you, Cooking Light. You make my month.

I made this recipe tonight, unsure of how it would taste. It is supposed to be made with ground sirloin, but I subbed ground turkey, because I don't eat ground beef, and I had turkey in the house. The meat mixture was a big, gloppy mess, to the point where I added more meat, because I thought the balls would fall apart. I was skeptical, to say the least. Even when I put them on the stove, in a pan, I thought there was no way they'd stay together. I was anticipating one of those nights, where we would try the food, hate it, and end up re-heating leftovers. I wished I had paid more attention to the one and only review of these meatballs - it said they were good, but mushy. Why didn't I listen?

Much to my surprise, even though the balls didn't keep their perky, bouncy ball shape (they were more like a messy, slightly deflated ball), they tasted delicious. They were very moist, without being mushy, and the flavor was really outstanding. Kevin said they reminded him of the szechuan meatloaf I make, though they were much saucier and moist. I will definitely be making this again, but I'll try it with ground chicken next time. We both tend to like the texture of it a little better. By the way, this one is easy and quick. Serve it over brown rice, with some steamed veggies on the side, and you have a delicious, easy meal, with an easy clean up.

Make these. Make them, now.

Sesame-Soy Meatballs

Serve these garlicky, spicy meatballs with steamed sugar snap peas and two cups cooked rice tossed with 1 tablespoon chile paste—you'll find it on the ethnic aisle of most supermarkets or at Asian grocers.


Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 5 meatballs)

Cost per Serving: $2.50

1/3 cup minced green onions
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons lower-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons dark sesame oil
1 tablespoon chile paste (such as sambal oelek)
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 pound ground sirloin
Cooking spray

1. Preheat the oven to 400°.

2. Combine first 7 ingredients in a large bowl. Add beef; mix gently to combine. With moist hands, shape beef mixture into 20 (1 1/2-inch) meatballs.

3. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the meatballs to pan; cook 4 minutes, turning to brown meatballs on all sides. Arrange browned meatballs in a single layer on a jelly-roll pan coated with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining meatballs. Bake meatballs at 400° for 7 minutes or until done.


CALORIES 241 ; FAT 11.3g (sat 2.7g,mono 4.8g,poly 3g); CHOLESTEROL 42mg; CALCIUM 36mg; CARBOHYDRATE 10.3g; SODIUM 491mg; PROTEIN 23.5g; FIBER 0.3g; IRON 1.9mg

Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 2010

Makin' a BBQ.

I had a tough time coming up with a menu for our little get-together on Saturday. We had a house full of picky eaters, and I was really puzzled as to how to I was going to cook for everyone. We also have no grill, which makes it really tough to do a BBQ. So... I decided to do a BBQ anyway. Here was our menu:

Mini-Man Burgers
Italian Stuffed Turkey Burgers
Veggie Burgers

Corn (Mom and Dad brought the cobs!)
Tortellini Salad (I made the recipe with regular pasta also, so Kevin could eat it)
Asian Cucumber Salad

Chocolate Cake (Thanks, Mom!)
Peanut Butter Pretzel Cookies


I thought this meal came out pretty tasty. The Mini-Man Burgers are an Alton Brown recipe, and they got rave reviews. It's really a very interesting method of making a burger. It really sucks in all the seasonings, and makes these little sliders, reminiscent of a White Castle burger. The turkey burgers were good, but they really should have been grilled on a real grill. It was so hard to tell if they were done, when I cooked on the stove top, and frankly, I served several undercooked burgers, which sort of upset me.



I totally spaced, and didn't take any photos of the tortellini version of this salad, but this is the rotini version, that I made for Kevin, and anyone else who was anti-cheese. The salad has a really nice balsamic dressing, with sun-dried tomatoes and red onion. It is really tasty, and the tortellini version had halved cherry tomatoes, which made it super colorful and pretty. I will definitely make this again. It's easy and delicious.




This Asian Cucumber Salad is a really nice, fresh, light salad. It's a great addition to a BBQ, in my opinion, because it's flavorful, and not starchy. Kevin likened it to a seaweed salad, but with cukes. I would highly recommend this one - it's also super easy.