Taco Rice

This is has a bit long name that I have no idea how to say...which is Okinawa Takoraisu. I like taco rice better...it's much easier to say! I thought this recipe sounded interesting so I couldn't wait to try it.

I had picked up a package of beefalo at the farmer's market...pastured raised local meat! I figured with the price of meat lately I might as well get some that is healthier for us. We couldn't really tell the difference between this and regular beef.

Taco Rice-shared from Siggy Spice

1 lb ground meat

1 onion, diced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tbsp chili powder

3 tbsp soy sauce(I used tamari)

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

4 cups steamed rice

2 cups lettuce, chopped

1-2 tomatoes, chopped

salsa

sour cream

shredded cheese(I used sharp cheddar)

Brown beef, drain if needed. Add in onion and garlic and cook for about 5 mins until soft. Stir in chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, and soy sauce. Let simmer until liquid reduces. 

Spread about a 1/2 a cup of rice on plate. Top with some meat mixture, tomato, lettuce, cheese, sour cream and salsa. Serve and enjoy!

**I actually really liked this! Like siggy mentioned the soy sauce is subtle but the combination is delicious! I really liked it so did K. A did eat the meat but that was about it.

Beef and Peppers

I love looking at Pioneer Woman's blog...her pictures are truly stunning even if they are of food! This one roped me right in!

Beef with Peppers-adapted from Pioneer Woman
1 lb steak(I used london broil) thinly sliced
2 sweet peppers, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 pkg rice noodles
1/2 cup soy sauce
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 tsp hot sauce(or chili paste)

Mix together hot sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, and corn starch. Add in beef and stir to combine, allow to marinate. Cook rice noodles according to the package directions.

Preheat frying pan or wok. Add in 1 tbsp oil, once hot add in onions and cook for 1-2 mins until edges become brown, but still tender. Remove from pan. Heat pan back up and add in another tbsp of oil add in peppers and cooked for a few mins until edges are brown but peppers are still al dente. Remove from the pan. Heat pan up again and add in beef until browned and caramelized, 2 mins per side(approx.). Add veggies back in and stir to combine. Add the marinade into the pan and cook for about 5 mins. Stir in noodles.

**This was delicious...despite the fact that I over cooked the noodles, so next time I'll cook them less! I will also double the sauce/marinade. K really enjoyed it!

Thai Steak and Fried Rice

I love that flavors of Thai food and love trying new steak marinades so I thought this would be perfect!

I did make a different Fried Rice recipe than what is on this link...I realized I was missing 2 ingredients!

Thai Steak-Jenn's Food Journey
2 tbsp lime juice
1 1/2 tsp fish sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp srirachu sauce(i use plain hot sauce)
1/4 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp canola oil
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 tsp hoisin sauce
1 lb steak(I used a london broil)

Mix together marinade ingredients and place steak inside. Marinate for 4-6 hours. Grill for 4-5 mins per side or until desired doneness is achieved. (This was cooked about 5-6 mins on each side under the broiler.

**I think this definitely needed more marinating time, but the flavor was pretty good and tasty!

Chicken Pad Thai

I love Pad Thai at the local Thai place...we generally fight over who is going to order it. We like to share and try new things when we go. I even managed to get my sister to try it once and she couldn't believe how good it was! Thankfully I found this recipe so I can indulge it it much more at home! This recipe came together quick and easy, I want to say it took 30 mins to make!(Of course it helped that I had the chicken already cooked.)

Chicken Pad Thai-shared from Loving My Domestic Life
4 oz rice noodles, cooked according to the pkg
1-2 cups chopped chicken
1-2 tsp sesame oil(I tend to not like the flavor, so I went with 1 tsp)
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup sugar(I used organic cane sugar)
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup peanut butter
3 cups shredded cabbage(omitted b/c I didn't have any)
4 green onions, thinly sliced(omitted)
chopped salted peanuts

Heat oil in large skillet. Add in onion and cook for about 5 mins until tender. Add in garlic. Stir in beaten egg until just about cooked. Add in vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, and peanut butter. Allow to cook until melted and blended together. Add in chicken, cabbage, green onions, and cooked noodles. Cook until heated through. Garnish with chopped nuts.

**This was REALLY REALLY good! The leftovers didn't last long at all! The only complaint we had was that the noodles were still a bit crunchy. I will definitely be making this again but with different noodles. I used rice threads but they didn't seem to have the same texture as the noodles used at the restaurant! Still highly recommended!

Sesame Chicken

I love trying out new Chinese recipes! This one has been on my list for a while now, it was quick and easy to make.

Sesame Chicken-Let's Dish
1 lb chicken, cubed
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
dash of ground cloves
dash of ground cinnamon
2 tbsp oil
1/3 cup teriyaki sauce
1/3 cup honey
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 onion, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced
2 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
brown rice

In a large resealable bag, combine flour with spices. Add in chicken and shake to coat the chicken. Heat oil in pan and fry chicken until browned on both sides. Place chicken on paper towels to drain.

Mix together sauce ingredients. Place peppers and onions in pan and saute for 5 mins. Place chicken back in the pan and add in sauce ingredients and cook until thickened. Stir in sesame seeds. Serve over rice.

**I really liked the flavor the chicken had, but I think next time I won't bother frying it. I didn't find that it really added to the flavor, so I will use it like a rub and brown the chicken and add in the sauce. This was really tasty and delicious!

Coconut Chicken Chili

I stumbled on this recipe while going through The Sweets Life collection of soups and stews. I LOVE coconut and looking at it the recipe it looked like a nice mix between chili and thai. It's not that pretty to look at, but it was very tasty!

Coconut Chicken Chili-shared from The Sweets Life
1-2 cups chicken, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2-3 stalks celery, chopped
1 1/2 tbsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp flour
1 14 oz can lite unsweetened coconut milk
1 cup water
1-2 tbsp peanut butter
2 cups white beans
3 carrots, shredded
5 cloves of garlic, minced
4 cups brown or jasmine rice

Place oil in stock pot and warm. Add in veggies and garlic, and cook for 5 mins. Stir in flour and spices. Cook for 1 min. Stir in peanut butter, coconut milk, and water. Bring to a boil. Stir in chicken and beans. Simmer for another 10 mins. Serve over rice.

**At first this recipe sounded great...then I went to make it and wasn't too sure about it. BUT once I tasted it, it was WONDERFUL! It does have a little bit of a kick, but it is mellowed out by the coconut milk. I did have to add some salt, but other than that it was fabulous! This could easily be changed to a vegetarian meal by leaving out the chicken!

Thai Chicken Pizza

I love Thai food so when I saw this recipe I knew I had to try it to have something new on the menu and who doesn't like pizza! I used leftover turkey on my pizza. This pizza also is supposed to have like a "slaw" topping, but I forgot to buy it, so it went without, but if you are looking for more veggies you can definitely add it.

Thai Chicken Pizza-shared from Creatively Domestic
No Rise Pizza Crust(this makes 2 thin crusts or one thick large crust)
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
2 tbsp hoisin sauce
2 tbsp terriyaki sauce
2 tbsp water
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes(I only used a pinch)
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp white sugar
1-2 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp minced onion(omitted)
1 tsp minced ginger
Topping:
1.5 cups chopped chicken/turkey
1/4 cup chopped peanuts
1-2 cups mozzarella cheese

Place sauce ingredients together in a bowl. Heat in microwave for 30-60 secs until pb melts slightly and you can mix it together. Take some of the sauce and pour it over the chicken and let marinate.(When i did this it made the chicken paste like)

Spread crust out, and bake at 400 degrees for 8 mins. Remove from the oven and top with remaining sauce. You may have a little left over. Top with cheese, chicken, and sprinkle with peanuts. Return to the oven and bake for another 8-10 mins until cheese is melted(watch that the nuts don't burn!)

**This pizza surprised me with how good it was! K I think was pleasantly surprised as well and he then asked me what it was.He loved it though and went back for seconds! I wasn't sure at first how the italian cheese I used would blend with thai flavors, but the sauce was so flavorful that it took right over the subtle cheese flavor and worked well!

General Tso's Chicken

We generally love Chinese food, but it doesn't tend to like us back so I've been trying some at home versions. I originally saw this recipe at Debbi Does Dinner Healthy, but followed her link to the original and used that one.

I did double the sauce, but this is the NOT doubled.

General Tso's Chicken-shared from Recipe Rhapsody
1 lb chicken,cubed
1 head broccoli
2 sweet peppers, sliced
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 tbsp sesame oil
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp ginger, minced
1 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp hoisin sauce
crushed red pepper flakes

1 egg
1 tbsp soy sauce
flour
oil

Mix together sauce ingredients and set aside. Heat some oil in a large frying pan. (My oil wasnt deep, it just filled the pan and I replenished if I needed too) Oil is hot enough when a sprinkle of water sizzles when added.

Combine egg and soy sauce and mix well. Combine with the chicken. Coat chicken with flour and fry until crispy and cooked all the way through. Remove to a papertowl lined plate.

Saute veggies in pan until crisp tender about 10 mins or so.(This may depend on how well you like them cooked.) Remove from the pan. Add the sauce into the pan and bring to a simmer and allow to thicken. Add the chicken back in and heat through. Toss in the veggies. Serve over brown rice.

**I did add in some crushed red pepper flakes for some heat as I know its traditionally spicy, but it needed more. We felt like something was missing but we weren't sure what. We did end up adding some more soy sauce as we ate it and that helped the flavor along. It was pretty healthy and tasty otherwise.

Thai Chicken Soup

I was told to hold off on the soup for a while...apparently we were all souped out after Thanksgiving. BUT I borrowed one of the recent Food Network Magazines from the library and this was in it. I HAD to make it...I love all things Thai(well all that I've tried.)

This was the first time I used a curry paste and other than the price of it, it was wonderful in this soup! Luckily the rest of the ingredients were pretty cheap!

Thai Chicken Soup-Food Network Magazine
1 tbsp oil
1 onion, sliced thin
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp green curry paste
6 cups chicken broth
1 15 oz can coconut milk(I did use light)
1 tbsp fish sauce(plus more to taste)
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
4 oz rice noodles, broken into pieces
2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
juice of 2 limes

Place oil in hot soup pot. Add in onions and cook until soft and lightly browned. Add in garlic and curry paste. Saute for 1-2 mins. Add in broth, milk, and fish sauce. Cover and bring to a boil. Add in bell peppers and noodles. Cook for about 3 mins. Add in the chicken and cook for another 3 mins. Add in lime juice, stir and serve.

**This was perfect! It was such a different taste on a "traditional" soup and will be making it again! It had a bit of a kick, but it was not over powering. I did use leftover turkey and turkey broth, but it was delicious none the less!


For more great soups and stews check out Finding Joy in my Kitchen's 2010 soup round up!

This has also been linked to Eat at Home

Beef and Broccoli

I needed a very quick dinner and had pulled a random steak out of the freezer. I had just bought some broccoli so I decided to whip up some of this. The longest part of the recipe was cutting the meat!

Beef and Broccoli-shared from Allrecipes.com
1/3 cup oyster sauce
2 tsp sesame oil(I actually only used 1 tsp)
1/3 cup sherry or white wine vinegar
1 tsp soy sauce(or tamari)
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp cornstarch
3/4-1 lb beef round steak, sliced thinly into strips
1/4 inch grated fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lb broccoli, cut into florets
1 tbsp oil

Mix together everything except the beef and broccoli until combined. Add in steak and marinate for at least 30 mins.

Pour in oil in the pan, and stir fry steak until cooked through. Remove and set aside. Add in broccoli and cook for about 5-7 mins until crisp tender. Add steak back in and heat through. Serve over your favorite rice.

**I really don't know how authentic this is as I've never had it at a restaurant, but K and I both thought it was very tasty. The boys didn't eat it they had cheerios which they were quite happy with. I was told it hit the spot for Chinese, which we very rarely eat anymore.

Pineapple Beef Stir Fry

K isn't too much of a fan of stir fry...I LOVE it! Mostly because its an easy way to get lots of veggies(hence why he isn't a fan of it) and can use up leftovers! I got a great deal on some steaks at the store yesterday and this was on my menu so I went with it.

Pineapple Beef Stir Fry-shared from Taste of Home
1 lb steak, sliced thin
20 oz can of pineapple
1 onion, sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced
1 tsp grated ginger
1-2 tsp minced garlic
1 jalepeno, seeds removed, diced
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp corn starch
2 tbsp canola oil
hot cooked rice

Mix together 3/4 of a cup of pineapple juice(from can), soy sauce, ginger, and garlic. Pour 1/4 cup over beef, cover and refrigerate for 30 mins.

Place oil in pan and allow to heat up. Stir fry beef until cooked through. Remove from heat and keep warm.*My beef let off a lot of juice, so I removed that as well and kept it aside. Stir fry onions and peppers. Mix together cornstarch and reserved sauce. When just about done add in the rest of the sauce and pineapple. Bring to a boil and let thicken. Add in beef and allow to warm through.

Serve over hot rice. I decided to use some lo mein noodles I had in place of the rice.

**I felt something was missing in this recipe, but it was very tasty. I loved using the lo-mein noodles as well. K liked it and the boys just liked the noodles of course!

Sweet Asian Chicken

This recipe came out of the book, Fix, Freeze, Feast. I was first introduced to this book when Amy came over for our cooking day. Usually you prepare the recipe in bulk, but there were some recipes in there that I wanted to try, but didn't have the meat(or ingredients in bulk) so I cut them down to one entree.

Sweet Asian Chicken-shared from Fix, Freeze, Feast
1 lb chicken breast
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp lime juice
1/4 tsp curry powder
1 tbsp garlic
3/4 tsp crushed red pepper

Place all ingredients, except chicken in zip top bag. Squish around until combined, add in chicken, squeeze out the air and freeze.

When ready to cook, thaw, and grill until done!

**This was delicious! The chicken was very moist and flavorful! It is definitely a keeper! I remembered after that it had crushed red pepper and it may be spicy, but rest assured it wasn't that spicy! Even my mom who doesn't like spicy liked it!

Mango Peach Pork Stir Fry

This is another recipe from The Taste Of Home Recipe Collection of 2009.
This would also be great with chicken.

Mango Peach Pork Stir Fry
1/4 cup corn starch
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup+2 tbsp soy sauce
1 head bok choy,chopped
1 lb pork tenderloin, cut into thin strips
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp minced fresh gingerroot
1/2 cup water
1/4-1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 medium mango, chopped(I used about 1 cup frozen, thawed)
1 cup chopped frozen peaches

In a small bowl combine cornstarch, soy sauce, and broth. Stir until smooth. Set aside. Stir fry pork in oil(I did not use any oil) until no longer pink. Remove and keep warm. Stir fry bok choy stems for 2 mins, add in garlic, ginger, and bok choy leaves for another 2 mins. Add in water and red pepper flakes, cook until bok choy is crisp tender. Stir the cornstarch mixture and add to the pan. Bring to a boil, cook and stir for 2 mins until sauce is thickened. Add in mango, pork, and peaches, stir and heat through. Serve over rice.

**This sauce is the doubled version. I like a lot of sauce especially over rice! This was very good, although I felt something was missing. K thought it was great just the way it was!

Garlic Ginger Glazed Pork

I had recently bought some fresh ginger root for another recipe and forgot I had some pork chops in the freezer, so when I found this recipe I knew it would be perfect! K gave it a 10, must have been pretty good!

Garlic Ginger Glaze-shared from For the Love of Cooking

1 tsp cornstarch
2 tbsp soy sauce
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup honey
1/2 tsp fresh ginger root, grated
1/2 tsp water
sliced green onion, for garnish
4-6 pork chops

Mix cornstarch and soy sauce until smooth, pour into sauce pan. Add in garlic, ginger, water, and honey. Whisk together. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and let thicken.

Season pork with salt and pepper. Place in hot pan until browned about 5 mins, flip and cook another 5-8 mins until cooked through. Once pork has been flipped brush with glaze, flip and brush the other side with glaze. We served this with mashed potatoes and broccoli,cauliflower,carrot mix with cheese sauce.

**This would also work great on chicken or beef.

Kitchen Tip: not sure what to do with the entire ginger root? as most recipes do not require much it can be easily stored! Peel ginger root using the edge of a spoon. Wrap root up wax paper or any freezer safe material. Place in zip top bag and place in freezer. Now when you need only a little, take frozen ginger out and grate what you need and pop it back in the bag.