Chili Garlic Shrimp

Quick and easy dish that can be prepared in minutes. Large chunks of onion and chilies sauteed with shrimp in a sweet and spicy sauce. Serve as a starter, or as lunch over steamed rice, or as a filling inside a wrap. Either way it tastes wonderful.

Ingredients:

25 large shrimps

1 large red onion

Red chili peppers as per your spice quotient

1 Green pepper

2 green onions

2 cloves of garlic crushed

Vegetable oil

Sauce (mix all together)

1/4 cup Soy Sauce

2 tbsp Sambal or any hot sauce

2 tbsp honey

2 tsp Sesame Oil

1 tbsp grated ginger

1.  Peel and de-vein the shrimps, rinse and pat dry.  
2. Cut large chunks of red onion and green pepper. Cut red chilies into rings and chop green onions fine (reserve some for garnish). 
3. Take 2 tbsp oil in a wok on high heat and add garlic, green peppers and red onion chunks. Saute for a few a minute. Add green onion and red chili rings and toss for another 30 seconds. 
4. Arrange the veggies on the side of the wok and add a tsp oil in the center. Add the shrimp and cook for 2 minutes per side. Now toss them with the sauteed veggies from the sides till shrimps are cooked through. 
5. Add the sauce and toss for a bit till everything is coated with the sauce. Taste and adjust the flavors by adding more soy sauce and/or honey. Garnish with reserved green onion. Serve hot.

General Tso's chicken

General Tso's Chicken on veggie brown rice

I am sure you all have seen this very popular chicken dish in every Chinese restaurant across North America. This deep fried spicy and slightly sweet chicken is named after General Tso, a famous Qing Dynasty military hero who is known in China for war not chicken. This dish was created by Chef Peng Chang-kuei in 1950s for a visiting US Navy Admiral, Arthur Radford.

Whatever the story behind it, I just love the taste and when I came across this recipe, I loved it. This version is the better-for-you version than the traditional one. Pair it with veggie brown rice and you have yourselves a complete nutritious delicious meal.

General Tso's Chicken
Ingredients: (serves 4)
4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces)
1 Egg
6 tbsp Corn Starch
Vegetable Oil
For the sweet and hot sauce
1/4 cup Soy Sauce
2 tbsp Sambal
1 tbsp Honey
2 tbsp frozen Orange Juice concentrate
1 tbsp Sesame Oil
4 cloves of garlic crushed

2 tbsp grated ginger

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg and cornstarch. Toss the chicken in the mixture. The cornstarch makes the chicken crispy and keeps the breading from getting soggy. 
2. In a sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat the vegetable oil and sauté the chicken pieces, about 3 to 4 minutes per side or until cooked through. Remove from pan and keep warm. 
3. Stir together the soy sauce, sambal, honey, orange juice concentrate, and sesame oil. 
4. Use the same pan. Wipe it clean, add the additional 1 tablespoon vegetable oil. Sauté the garlic and ginger for about a minute, until fragrant, and then add the soy sauce mixture. Once boiling, add the chicken and toss to coat. Check seasoning and serve over veggie brown rice.

Veggie Brown Rice
Ingredients: (serves 4)
2 cups Brown Rice, cooked
1 bunch green onions, sliced thinly
1/2 lb mushrooms, sliced
1 cup shredded carrots
Soy Sauce as per taste
1 tbsp hot sauce
Oil

1. In a small sauté pan, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat. Add sliced mushrooms and let them brown, untouched for 2 minutes. Turn and cook for another minute. 
2. Add the green onions, carrots and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. 
3. Add the cooked brown rice, soy sauce and hot sauce. Toss to coat.

Adapted from Daphne Oz's recipe from The Chew

Five spice chicken with peppers

The Chinese five spice powder is believed to be a unique blend of all five elements. All five flavors - sour, bitter, sweet, pungent, and salty, are mixed together in a specific proportion to create this wonderful bold aromatic powder. Use of five spice can spruce up any dish. Use it as a marinade or just toss it in a stir fry and you will see the difference. The five ingredients used are Schezuan peppercorns, star anise, cloves, cinnamon bark, and fennel. You can use store bought or make your own (recipe below).

This aromatic chicken recipe gives you the intense flavor of five spice. Cornflour and five spice coated boneless pieces of chicken are stir-fried with onions, ginger, garlic, and chilies and served over steamed rice.

Five spice powder
Ingredients:
1-2 tsp Schezuan peppercorns
6-star anise
8 cloves
2-inch cinnamon bark
1 tsp fennel
Dry roast the peppercorns on medium heat in a skillet for 2 minutes, just until it releases the aroma. Cool and grind it with the rest of the spices to form a fine powder. Store in an airtight container.

Five spice chicken with peppers
Ingredients:
1 lb boneless chicken thighs cubed
1 large each red and green pepper
1/2 red onion cut in large chunks and separated
3-4 whole green chilies (optional)
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
Sesame oil
Marinade
1 tbsp soya sauce
1 tbsp five spice powder
Black pepper powder to taste
1 tbsp cornflour

1. Marinate the chicken using all items listed under marinade for at least an hour in the fridge. 
2. Cube the red and green pepper into one-inch pieces. 
3. Heat some sesame oil in a wok and sauté the onion and peppers on a high heat for a few minutes till tender crisp. Season with salt and 1/2 tsp five spice powder. 
4. Remove and keep aside. 
5. In the same pan add some more oil and sauté ginger garlic paste for 30 seconds. Don't let it brown, add marinated chicken and stir fry on medium high for 10-12 minutes till chicken cooked through. 
6. Add the sautéed peppers and a dash of rice wine vinegar. Toss for a couple of minutes and remove from heat. 
7. Serve over steamed rice.

Fish in ginger-garlic sauce with bokchoy

Tonight's Menu

Fish in ginger-garlic sauce

Sautéed Bok Choy

Steamed Rice or Rice Noodles

Wine Pairing: Plum wine, Sake

If you like Mandarin style Chinese food then this is a fare you will love. The simplicity of the dishes and the combination of flavours just delights the palette. Makes you feel good about consuming so many veggies. My kids just love Bok choy. It has crunchy stalks which have a crisp, subtle peppery flavour. It is a great source of vitamin A, vitamin C and calcium besides being low in calories. Doesn't require too much cooking either. Many varieties of bok choy are available in the stores, I usually get the baby bok choy since its easier to handle. Use a firm white fish for this recipe, catfish, snapper or halibut

Fish in ginger-garlic sauce
Ingredients:
4 firm white fish fillets
salt to taste
1/4 cup cornstarch
oil for frying
2 tsp peanut or sesame oil
1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 cup chicken stock
chilli garlic sauce to taste
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 1/4 cup water
2-3 green onions chopped
celery and carrots (optional)

1. Season the fish fillets with salt and dredge them with corn starch. Heat oil in a pan and fry the fillets until they are crisp and slightly browned. Oil should be hot enough to cook all the way through but not so hot as to burn the fish. Drain them on paper towel and keep aside.
2. Take a tsp oil in a wok and sauté the celery and carrots to tender crisp state. Keep aside.
3. Prepare the ginger-garlic sauce. Take peanut oil in the wok and add ginger-garlic paste. Stir fry for a minute. Add Vinegar, chilli sauce and sugar and mix well. 
4. Add stock and cornstarch mixture and bring to a boil. Add green onions and stir until sauce thickens.
5. Put sautéed veges and fried fish on to a serving platter and spoon the ginger garlic sauce over them. Serve hot. 

Sautéed Bok Choy
Ingredients:
2 lbs baby Bok Choy
1 tsp grated garlic 
2 tsp sesame oil
salt to taste

1. Wash the bok choy well and pat dry. You can separate the leaves and use them whole for this dish or roughly cut them into long strips (specially important if using regular bok choy).
2. Take a large wok and heat sesame oil. Add garlic and fry for 30 seconds. Add the greens and salt and mix well. 
3. Continue cooking on high as the greens will release water. Stir fry on high for about 2 minutes and serve immediately over steamed rice or rice noodles.