P. F. Chang's Mongolian Beef

P. F. Chang's Mongolian Beef

Last night I was wanting something a little more exotic for dinner. I wanted to make General Tso Chicken because it's my husbands favorite. But I had just used up the last of our chicken to make Italian Chicken Sandwiches two nights before. So I thought of Mongolian Beef, my brothers favorite.
I had never made it before, but the recipe looked easy enough. I called my husband to see if I would have the time to make brown rice, and he asked what I was making. I told him Mongolian Beef. He's always a little worried when I say I'm trying out a new recipe. I'm not sure why though, in the five years of us being together I have only botched 4 recipes. To his credit they were so aweful we ended up having to eat take out or hot dogs, lol!
As in almost all Chinese Cuisine I only added half the sugar. And next time (because there will be a next time!) I'll be adding some Red Pepper Flakes to the sauce for a little more kick.
We all loved it and I'm definitely keeping this recipe on hand!

Here is the original recipe:


Ingredients:
Servings: 2




2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon ginger, minced

1 tablespoon garlic, chopped

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup water

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

vegetable oil, for frying (about 1 cup)

1 lb flank steak

1/4 cup cornstarch

2 large green onions




Directions:

Prep Time: 10 mins

Total Time: 30 mins



1 Make the sauce by heating 2 tsp of vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over med/low heat.

2 Don't get the oil too hot.

3 Add ginger and garlic to the pan and quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches.

4 Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then raise the heat to about medium and boil the sauce for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens.

5 Remove it from the heat.

6 Slice the flank steak against the grain into 1/4" thick bite-size slices.

7 Tilt the blade of your knife at about a forty five degree angle to the top of the steak so that you get wider cuts.

8 Dip the steak pieces into the cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to both sides of each piece of beef.

9 Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks.

10 As the beef sits, heat up one cup of oil in a wok (you may also use a skillet for this step as long as the beef will be mostly covered with oil).

11 Heat the oil over medium heat until it's nice and hot, but not smoking.

12 Add the beef to the oil and sauté for just two minutes, or until the beef just begins to darken on the edges.

13 You don't need a thorough cooking here since the beef is going to go back on the heat later.

14 Stir the meat around a little so that it cooks evenly.

15 After a couple minutes, use a large slotted spoon to take the meat out and onto paper towels, then pour the oil out of the wok or skillet.

16 Put the pan back over the heat, dump the meat back into it and simmer for one minute.

17 Add the sauce, cook for one minute while stirring, then add all the green onions.

18 Cook for one more minute, then remove the beef and onions with tongs or a slotted spoon to a serving plate.

19 Leave the excess sauce behind in the pan.

Chicken Curry and Coconut Rice

Chicken Curry and Coconut Rice

Ingredients

Four Chicken Breasts, thawed
Curry Powder
White or Brown Rice
1 can (13.5 ounces) Coconut Milk
Salt and Pepper to taste

Cover raw chicken on both sides with curry powder. Cover and let sit in fridge over night.
Make up white or brown rice according to package directions.
Grill, bake or fry your chicken till the juices run clear. I used my George Foreman Grill and it only took about 5 minutes to cook. While Chicken is cooking add 1 can of Coconut Milk to rice and stir.
The rice was still a little bland for us so I added extra curry powder, a little bit of salt and some pepper.
Serve Chicken over rice :)
The rice was still pretty bland for Austin and I, but Dakota loved it and even ate thirds! Next time I think I'll make the rice with half chicken stock and half water.

Bulgogi /Pulgogi Recipe

I have been trying to start making a wider range of food lately. I have been in charge of my own kitchen for over 3 years now, and I have the, "down home country cooking" down to an art form. But I was starting to lack inspiration so I have started to look for a more diverse palate. I have found some really good recepies I can't wait to share with you all!

Bulgogi /Pulgogi Recipe

Ingredients
1-1.5 lbs. of thinly sliced rib-eye steak purchased from a Korean market. Or you can slice your own rib-eye or sirloin steak across the grain in paper thin slices. Partially freezing the beef helps with cutting clean slices.
1/3 cup of soy sauce
3 Tbl white sugar
1 Tbl sesame oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced

1/4 of a medium yellow onion, halved and sliced into medium moon shaped slivers

2 green onions including the white parts, finely sliced into small pieces

2 Tbl toasted sesame seeds

1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes

2 pinches of black pepper

*optional 1/4 tsp. of ginger, finely minced

Directions:

Whisk all the ingredients together in a medium bowl except beef and onions. When most of the sugar has dissolved, add beef and onion slices to the bowl and massage the marinade with your hands into each slice of beef. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour. To pan fry, place a few slices of beef in single layers and completely flat on a hot oiled frying pan and fry each side until cooked. Some people prefer to cook the bulgogi until some of the edges have turned dark brown and crispy. Serve with a bowl of hot brown rice. Enjoy!

Teriyaki Chicken and Brown Rice

My husband Austin just Loves this recipe. He has asked for it many times already. I need to go shopping for more chicken!

~What you need~

2 Cups Cooked Brown Rice

2 Chicken Breast

1/2 Cup Tariyaki Sauce

1/2 Cup Soy Sauce

1 of each, green, red and yellow pepper 1 Onion

Cut up Chicken into 1" chunks. Mix together Teriyaki and Soy Sauce in a Ziplock bag. Add Chicken and put in fridge for at least 2 hours. Cook rice according to the package. (keep in mind that brown rice takes longer to cook than white rice) Place wooden Skewers in water for half an hour to keep from burning while cooking. Cut up veggies into 1" pieces. Place chicken and veggies on skewers and either grill or fry them until the juices run clear when you cut into the chicken. Serve over rice that has been seasoned to taste with Terriyaki and Soy Sauce. As you can see there are a LOT of ways you can play around with this dish! So have fun and make it your own. (and let me know what you do!)