Kim Bap... Unrolled

I know what some of you are probably thinking... "This isn't Kim Bap!" and in some ways you would be right, because I do not know how to roll things like sushi rolls.. YET!! One day, hopefully soon, i will be taking a sushi making class. Then I can show all of you how to do it too! But for now this is how i do Kim Bap. My hubby and I LOVE Asian food... ALL ASIAN FOOD! and this one turned out sooo good I will probably make it again this week! Found it at Fifteen Spatulas and made mine unrolled for all of us who can't roll. 

Ingredients:

- 2 cups white rice
- 4 mini cucumbers (these have better flavor than the big ones)
- 3 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 big handfuls of spinach
- 4 medium carrots
- 4 extra large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 ripe avocado
- olive oil for sauteing
For the bulgogi style beef:
- 1 lb top sirloin, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup chopped scallions (green part only)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp red wine
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp sesame seeds
- 1/3 of a kiwi, chopped

Directions:

Make the bulgogi beef by marinating the top sirloin with the scallions, garlic, red wine, soy sauce, sesame oil, sesame seeds, and kiwi. The reason we add the kiwi is to tenderize the meat. Let it marinate in the fridge for 2 hours, but no longer, because the kiwi will break down the meat too much.

On to the rice. I have a ricer cooker, so I cooked the rice in there according to the rice cooker's directions. If you don't have one, you can also cook the rice in a saucepan, just cook it according to the directions on the rice package. Let the rice cook while we work on the other ingredients.

Cucumber time. Quarter them up and cut them to the desired size. Soak the cucumbers in the rice vinegar, and sprinkle them generously with salt on both sides. We are not only seasoning the cucumbers and drawing the moisture out. I soaked mine for about 10 minutes.

In a frying pan, add a little bit of Olive oil and cook the spinach until wilted. remove the Spinach, Peel and quarter up the carrots, and saute them over medium high heat in 2 tbsp of olive oil and a sprinkling of salt until they are tender but still have some crunch, about 5 minutes. Remove the carrots, and cook the marinated beef in the same pan, being careful not to overcook the meat.

In a small frying pan scramble up 4 eggs. 

I set all my toppings out in different bowls so that it could be served more "buffet style" and everyone could load up on their favorite toppings. Mine was the egg, avocado and beef! 

Serves 4

Grilled Hoisin Pork (or Chicken)

 

Samuel and I are always looking for REAL Asian food. After living in China its hard to find stuff that isn't totally Americanized and doesn't taste like it should. I got this cookbook from my sister in law for Christmas and this recipe out of it is definitely a keeper!

Ingredients:

- 3 tbls Hoisin Sauce

- 3 tbls Fresh Orange Juice

- 2 tbls Soy Sauce

- 2 tbls Rice Cooking Wine

- 1 tsp Brown Sugar

- 2 tsp Peanut Oil

- 1 tbls grated Ginger

- 3 cloves minced garlic

- 4 pork loin chops (or we used chicken once too)

- salt and pepper

- steamed rice

Prepare a girl on medium-high heat (i used our handy george foreman). in a small bowl combine the hoisin sauce, orange juice, soy sauce, wine and brown sugar. Stir to disolve the sugar.

In a small suacepan over medium heat, warm 1 tbls of oil. add the ginger and garlic and saute for about 5 seconds until fragrant. Add the hoisin sauce mixture and simmer for about 2 minutes. set aside half of the sauce as a glaze and heat just before serving.

season the pork chops (or chicken) with salt and pepper and oil the grill rack with remaining oil. place the chops on the grill and brush the sauce on chops. cook 4-5 minutes on both sides or until done. Serve over rice and with extra sauce.

Spicy Asian Stir-Fry

I have always been a little nervous to cook Chinese food. My husband is very picky in his Chinese food and I have become that way too... but living in China will do that to ya. When I saw this though and that it uses Hoisin sauce I knew my husband would love it. I found it here.

Ingredients:
- 1 Tbs. peanut oil
- 8 oz. whole-wheat linguine noodles
- 1 small onion, thinly sliced (1 cup)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)
- 1 small head bok choy, chopped into 2-inch pieces (1½ cups)
- 1 1/2 cups broccoli florets
- 1/3 cup snow peas, halved
- 1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced (1/2 cup)
- 2 Tbs. hoisin sauce
- 1 Tbs. garlic-chile sauce
- 1/4 cup chopped peanuts

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking water, and set pasta aside.

Meanwhile, heat oil in large skillet or wok over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and sauté 5 to 7 minutes, or until onion is golden.

Add bok choy, broccoli, snow peas, and bell pepper. Stir-fry 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water, cover, and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in hoisin and garlic-chili sauces. Stir in noodles. Add more water if mixture seems too dry. Garnish each serving with 1 Tbs. chopped peanuts.

Korean Bulgogi

My brother served his mission in Korea and since he got back and introduced me to Korean food that has always been my favorite. I found it at this website and it is amazing!

Ingredients:
- 2 lbs flank steak (sliced into thin strips)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tbls sugar
- 1 tsp sesame seed oil
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 tsp sesame seeds

Cut steak with sharp knife into paper thin strips. Add sugar and mix well by hand. Mix soy sauce and water and add garlic to this. Pour sauce mixture into meat and mix again by hand. Add sesame seed oil and sesame seeds and mix again by hand. This is better if it marinates for at least 12-24 hours and will keep in the refrigerator for three days.

After marinaded cook in a medium saucepan until cooked through and serve over rice.

Thai Yellow Curry

I LOVE CURRY!! We are lucky enough to have an Asian store just 4 blocks from our house (Chaos) and they carry the best ingredients ... and this is one thing that is a staple in our home

Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup Mae Ploy Curry Paste
- 2 cans (13.5 oz each) of Coconut Milk
- 1 cup Water
- 2 large potatoes (cubed)
- 1/2 large yellow onion

Stir Fry 1 can of Coconut Milk with 1/4 cup Curry Paste in Wok. Add 2nd can of Coconut Milk and cook until boiling. Add 1 cup of water, Potatoes and onions to curry. Cook until potatoes are soft. Serve Over Rice. This probably makes enough curry for 5-6 servings

Thai Peanut Chicken

 

 So at work last week Nate said that i should try to make Thai food.... so i found this recipe from Vons and it was pretty good, i tweaked it of course with stuff that i had...

Ingredients:

- 2 cups uncooked white rice

- 4 cups water
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- Chicken Breast or Tenderloins- cut into thin strips
- 3 tablespoons chopped garlic
- 1 1/2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger root
- 3/4 cup chopped green onions

- 1/3 cup dry-roasted peanuts (chopped)

Cook rice in a rice cooker, or however you cook your rice. (if I didn't have a rice cooker i wouldn't know what to do, lol) 

In a small bowl, stir together the soy sauce, peanut butter, lemon juice, and cayenne pepper. Set aside.

Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Add chicken, garlic and ginger, and cook, stirring constantly, until chicken is golden on the outside, about 5 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium, and add green onion, chopped peanuts, and the peanut butter mixture. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes, or until broccoli is tender, and chicken is cooked through. If mixture becomes too thick just add a little water. Serve over rice.

Jiaozi-- aka, Chinese Dumplings

Ever since marrying Samuel China has become a big part of our life, his work, living there for 4 months, knowing we may move back there, etc. But my favorite thing from china is the food. These are the BEST chinese dumplings ever!

Ingredients:
- 2 lbs ground pork
- 1 Large Napa Cabbage
- 1 cup Chinese Chives
- 1 cup Ginger root, finely minced
- 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
- 1 Tbls sesame oil
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 Tbls vegetable oil
- 2 packages of dumpling wrappers

Wash cabbage and cut into large chunks. Place cabbage in a large pot, adding water to cover, then cover pot. Bring to a boil, and reduce to medium heat, cooking for 15-20 minutes.

Drain cabbage and rinse with cold water. Chop cabbage as finely as possible and, using both hands, squeeze the water out (this prevents the filling from soaking through the dumpling skins.)

In a large mixing bowl, use your hands to thoroughly combine the meat, cabbage, chives, ginger root, soy sauce, sesame oil, salt and vegetable oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 1 day.

Open dumpling package. Line each wrapper with water, add dumpling mixture and seal by pinching. Boil completed dumplings in water, add water and let boil again. repeat 3 times then pan fry to brown in oil.