3 Delicious Ways To Celebrate The Chinese New Year

As I've mentioned before, my darling daughter hails from China and is radiantly proud of her heritage. Celebrating the Chinese New Year consists of making decorations (here's a link to my latest post on that: http://isithotinheremmm.blogspot.com/2014/01/5-chinese-new-year-crafts-with-links-to.html) and, usually, going out to eat. But there are many fine, SIMPLE recipes for Chinese food that even the most inexperienced cook like myself can make at home. Here are three of my favorite:

Fried Rice With Pork (Or Chicken)


Ingredients:


3/4 cup finely chopped onion
2 1/2 tablespoons oil
1 egg white, lightly beaten
5 drops soy sauce (or Bragg Liquid Aminos – a healthier alternative)
3 drops sesame oil
8 ounces cooked lean boneless pork or 8 ounces chicken, chopped (Perdue Shortcuts work well)
1/2 cup finely chopped carrot (used the diced frozen ones if it's easier)
1/2 cup frozen peas (thawed)
4 cups cold cooked rice (I use brown rice)
2 cups bean sprouts


Directions:

1. In a large frying pan, heat 1 tbsp oil; add chopped onions and stir-fry until the onions turn a nice brown color. This will probably take about 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside.
   
2. Mix the egg with 3 drops of soy sauce or the substitute and 3 drops of sesame oil; set aside.
   
3. Add about ½ tbsp of oil to the pan and then add the egg mix. Cook, chop into little pieces, and set aside.
   
4. Add about 1 tbsp of the oil to the pan and stir-fry the meat along with the carrots, peas, and cooked onion for 2 minutes.
   
5. Add the rice and bean sprouts and cook for another 3 minutes.
   
6. Add the 2 tbsp of soy sauce or substitute plus the chopped egg white, turn off the heat, and let the entire dish rest for about a minute.
   
7. Serve.
   
   

Beef And Broccoli Stir-Fry  


Ingredients:


3 cups of cooked rice (I use brown)
3 tbsp cornstarch
½ cup of water
1 pound of boneless round steak cut into strips
½ tsp of garlic powder
2 tbsp of vegetable oil
4 cups of broccoli florets (frozen are fine)
1 small onion, diced
1/3 cup of soy sauce or or Bragg Liquid Aminos – a healthier alternative
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp of ground ginger


Directions:

1. Mix 2 tbsp of cornstarch with 2 tbsp of water and the garlic powder. Add the beef strips and toss to coat.
   
2. Fry the beef until it's almost done; then add the broccoli and onion and stir fry for about 4 minutes.
   
3. Mix the soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, and the remaining cornstarch and water until it's smooth. Add it to the stir-fry.
   
4. Stir, add the rice, and let the dish sit for about 5 minutes.
   
   
   

Pepper Steak – This is my mother's recipe and it was my first intro to Chinese food. Use red peppers for a sweeter dish. This makes wonderful leftovers, too.


Ingredients:


1-1/2 pounds of sirloin steak – cut into strips
2 peppers – cut into strips
1 small red onion - chopped
1 clove of garlic – peeled and chopped
1 cup of stewed tomatoes
2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp of oil
1-1/2 tbsp water
1 cup of sliced mushrooms
1 tbsp cornstarch
¾ cup of beef broth
1 cup of water chestnuts - drained
¼ cup of soy sauce or Bragg Liquid Aminos
1 14 oz. can of corn - drained


Instructions:

1. Combine the soy sauce with the beef broth in a cup.
   
2. In another cup, mix the cornstarch with the water.
   
3. In a large frying pan, heat the oil and brown the meat.
   
4. Add the onion, garlic, mushrooms, water chestnuts, and corn. Cook for about 5 minutes.
   
5. Add the soy sauce/broth mixture, then stir in the sugar. Bring this all to a boil, then cover, reduce the heat and simmer about 25 minutes until the meat is tender.
   
6. Add the peppers and stewed tomatoes and cook for another 5 minutes.
   
7. Stir in the cornstarch/water and cook another 5 minutes, stirring constantly because this dish is going to get thick and you don't want it to burn.
   
8. Serve over a bed of rice
   

And what would a good Chinese meal be without fortune cookies served at the end?  We have an Asian grocery store nearby, so I haven't made these yet, but I did find what looks to be a nice, easy recipe at allrecipes.com. Here's the link: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/fortune-cookies-so-easy.

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Thank you for reading!  I am not a fan of the Super Bowl, so I will be playing word games while my husband and son (and probably Diva) watch the big game.  Please check back in with me as I share my favorite ones with you.  Plus, I'll let you in on a website I just discovered which will help you with your vocabulary.  It's prodigious, noteworthy, significant...yep...I'm on that site right now.