Poached Chicken Breasts - Week of Menus

From Week of Menus

Poached Chicken Breasts with Three Dipping Sauces
Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients
2 to 3 whole chicken breasts, bone in, skin on
5 slices of ginger
1 onion, or leek, or a few cloves of garlic (to flavor the water)

4 inches ginger root, peeled finely chopped (I use my mini food processor)
3 scallions, finely chopped
½ cup vegetable oil
¾ teaspoon salt

2 jalapenos, finely chopped (I use my mini food processor)
1 tablespoon sugar
¼ cup rice wine vinegar

5 scallions, finely chopped
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
¼ cup soy sauce (I prefer low sodium, Kikkoman green)

Method
Fill a large stockpot with water. The water should be at a level which will allow you to completely SUBMERGE your chicken underwater, with no problem. A large stock pot will generally be big enough.

Cover your stockpot and bring water, ginger, and onion/leek/garlic to a boil. In the meanwhile, salt chicken breasts liberally and give it a bit of a salt scrub. Rinse thoroughly and set aside, until water is fully boiling.



Once water is fully boiling, place chicken into the water, making sure that it is completely submerged in the water. Leave pot uncovered and bring chicken and water to another rolling boil again. While waiting it to boil again, you can skim off any scum off the surface of the water, if you intend to use the broth for rice porridge or something else. If you don’t want to use the broth for anything, go ahead and just wait for the chicken and water to boil again.


Once water is boiling, carefully stir chicken to make sure that the entire pot is evenly distributed with hot water. Cover pot with lid and TURN OFF stove. Do NOT remove lid of pot for the next 45 minutes, but you can even let it rest for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

While your chicken is enjoying a nice soak in the hot water, begin making your 3 dipping sauces.

For the ginger sauce, mix together finely chopped ginger, finely chopped scallions, oil and salt together in a bowl. Mix and set aside.

For the jalapeno sauce, mix together finely chopped jalapenos, sugar, and vinegar. Set aside.

For the scallion sauce, place chopped scallions in a bowl. Heat two tablespoons of oil in a small, fry pan or sauce pan. The oil should be hot enough that it shimmers or you can test by carefully putting one scallion piece in the oil to see if it sizzles. If the oil sizzles the scallion, then carefully pour the two tablespoons of oil over the scallions in the bowl and allow the scallions to be cooked by the oil. Add soy sauce and mix. Set aside.

Once the 45 or more minutes of chicken cooking in water is up, uncover pot, and remove chicken breasts from water and place in a bowl (in order to catch residual liquid). Allow chicken to cool enough so that you can handle it without screaming OUCH!

Once chicken has cooled sufficiently (30 minutes or so), begin cutting chicken as you wish. I don’t like skin so I removed skin, peeled breast off of bone and cut it into nice large cubes.

Serve chicken warm, room temp, or cold from fridge, with dipping sauces. Allow diners to dip however they please. Perfect with hot rice.

滷水包

滷水包 from:

http://oniyomeryori.blogspot.com/2012/04/blog-post_24.html

之前的滷水汁送給了朋友，她自己滷過，家人也大愛，其實滷水包就是她送的， 她送我原材料，我送她製成品，禮尚住來，哈哈！ 滷水汁可以一直重覆使用，10年，20年的陳年汁就是這樣來的，放涼後，拿掉蔥，放到凍箱急凍，煮時再室溫溶雪，每次再試味，加點蔥、香料、冰糖、水及醬油便成。鬼嫁家的瑞士汁就已經有4年歷史了～～ 相公問如果有天我們要搬到外國去，瑞士汁怎麼辦？ 當然是一起搬了！要問的嗎！！

調味：

蔥段     2條

滷水包      1包

醬油     1樽 （約500ml)

水     500ml

冰糖     3湯匙

材料：

牛腱 2條

鵝翼 2隻 (急凍的在街市凍肉檔有)

鴨舌 50g

雞蛋 1隻

製法：

1）  牛腱洗淨，切去外面的筋（如有的話，不切也沒問題）

2） 加入薑及蔥，凍水落牛腱，中火煮至水滾，以冷水洗淨備用

3） 雞翼、鵝翼及鴨舌如步驟(2)般跑活水，以冰水浸10分鐘，令皮急促收縮，更加爽口，煮完皮也不會爛

4） 大鍋或LC鍋加入所有調味料，（可以試味，再隨口味加糖或醬油，不過我沒再加）滾起後加牛腱、鵝翼和鴨舌，滾起轉小火，煮30分鐘，牛腱中途反轉一次，熄火焗20分鐘或過夜

5） 雞蛋滷4分鐘，弄碎蛋殼至有點裂紋，再以滷水汁滷過夜

6） 牛腱放涼後，切薄片，淋上汁便能吃

小貼士：

1） 除了以上材料，滷什麼也可以，鴨腎(30分鐘)、豆腐（40分鐘）、雞翼

2） 滷水放涼，材料浸過夜更入味

趁急凍滷水前，今天再滷雞翼，因為LC非常鎖水，只小火煮了5分鐘，熄火焗了40分鐘，非常入味軟滑，一點也不“老”或“鞋”，皮還有彈性呢(因為浸過冰水

Ah Leung's Secret "Master Sauce" recipe

鹵水

The "Master Sauce" - the initial pot:

- 2 cups of dark soy sauce

- 1 cup of light soy sauce

- 1 cup of sweet soy sauce (kecap manis)

- 3 cups of water

- 1/2 cup of Shao Xing rice wine

- 1 small whole onion, peeled and wedged

- 4 to 5 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed

- 1 green onion, cut in about 1-inch pieces

- 3 to 4 inches length of fresh ginger, cut into thick slices

For the spices:

- 3 teaspoons of fennel seeds

- 3 teaspoons of cloves

- 3 to 4 whole cardamom - chop them into big pieces or crack them

- 20 star anises, break them up

- 2 sticks of cinnamon, hand-break them into small shreds

- 3 teaspoons of Sichuan peppercorn

- 2 to 3 pieces of dried tangerine peels (chan pei)

- About 3 big cubes (each about 2-inch x 2-inch x 1-inch) of rock sugar

(Note: you may also add cummin seeds, white or black peppercorns if you like.)

(Note 2: If you want to take time to cook, use whole spices. Don't use the powder form. The result from cooking with whole spices is so much better.)

Pour all the ingredients into a medium-size pot. Bring the sauce to a boil. Do an initial boiling for about 5 minutes. Then reduce the heat to a simmer. Let it bubble for about 3 hours. There... you have a pot of "Master Sauce" freshly made.

You may use the sauce for flavoring all Cantonese braised dishes (e.g. beef brisket, abalone, pork belly, etc.)... or use it to cook soy sauce chicken. Or use it to cook tea eggs.

For home-cooked soy sauce chicken... I only do split chicken breast with ribs and not a whole chicken. You may cook a small whole chicken with it. (I am not sure if the above portion is enough to cover the chicken, so adjust if needed). Bring the sauce to a high-heat boil. Add the chicken/breasts/thighs. Boil for about 13 minutes or so. Turn off the heat. Let the chicken/breasts/thighs continue to cook in the sauce for about 15 to 20 more minutes at least. Remove, chop up and serve with some braising liquid.

This pot of "Master Sauce" is like the mother dough of your sour dough bread. Filter out all the spices and residues. Save the liquid only in the freezer. (It won't even freeze up) Next time you make another round of soy sauce chicken: add more ingredients of everything. The soy sauces - probably use about one quarter of the portion suggested above. Spices - about the same. Rock sugar - only 1 cube.

Louisiana Seafood & Sausage Gumbo by Hollie

Recipe from Facebook, Hollie Phuong-Hong Nguyen

Louisiana Seafood & Sausage Gumbo. I always cheated, using pre-made roux (specific Louisiana brand only) when making this. Roux from scratch just never suits my palate 😃. I stock up on specific brand of roux and andouille sausages when I get a chance to go back to NOLA. They are a must for this dish for me 😃.

Update with recipe:

Savoie’s roux (light) (see picture)
Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning (see picture)
Homemade chicken or turkey neck stock
Gumbo filé
Frozen cut okras
Onions, chopped
Green onions, chopped
Celery, chopped
Louisiana crawfish tails
Shrimp, peeled
Richard’s Andouille sausage (see picture), cut lengthwise and sliced into 1/4” thick pieces.
Crabmeat
Scallops
Butter or cooking oil

Amount of ingredients use will depend on your servings, so use accordingly.

Follow instructions on the roux jar to add the amount of roux into your stock pot.

Since the roux is thick, you may want to dissolve it with some hot water or hot stock before adding it into the stock pot. That way, there are no lumps.

Season with the Creole seasoning.

Bring the stock to light boil.

Add the celeries, onions, and okras. People add green bell peppers, too but since I don’t like to eat them, I don’t put them in my gumbo.

In a skillet, add some butter or cooking oil (personal preference. I used butter). Sauté the crawfish tails. Add them to the pot.

In the same skillet, add some butter and sauté the sausage. Add the sausage to the pot. Cook on simmering low heat.

Add some gumbo file (about a tsp) if you want to thicken it more. But I find that to thicken your gumbo, add lots of okras. That’ll do it.

Taste your gumbo and see if more seasoning is needed.

Let it cook on low heat until all the veggies are soften and the seasoning is sipping through.

Add shrimp, crabmeat, and scallops just 5 minutes before serving. I sometimes add oysters, too if I can get some good ones. Basically, add your favorite seafood.

Add the green onions and serve with white rice.

Chicken Karaage

Recipe from Facebook,  A Taste Of Vietnamese Home Cooking, ‎Kieu Shafai‎

The secret to crispy and juicy chicken is to triple fry as mentioned in my recipe.

I combined 3 recipes to get it perfect for them. Thumbs up for sure!

Chicken Karaage recipe:

1 lb skin-on chicken thigh, cubed to 1 and 1/2”
1 Tbsp sake
1Tbsp mirin
1 tsp sugar
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp ginger, grated
4 clove garlic, grated
1 egg, beaten
Black pepper
potato starch
cooking oil, for frying

Combine sake, mirin, soy sauce, and sugar. Blend well until sugar is dissolved. Add ground black pepper, grated ginger and garlic. Mix well. Add chicken cubes. Mix well and let it marinate in the fridge for 30 mins.

When ready to fry, blend egg and add to the marinated chicken. Mix well. Place plenty of potato starch in a shallow container. Coat chicken cubes both sides and place them in a baking tray. Let it sit for 5 mins.

When oil is ready, add chicken and deep fry for 1 minute then remove the chicken to a rack and rest for 30 seconds. Return the chicken back to the oil and fry for 30 seconds, and then rest on a rack again for 30 seconds. Transfer the chicken back into the oil for one last 30 seconds.

Hawaiian Shoyu chicken

Shoyu Chicken #1

(by Marilyn Morikawa, page 61, who notes this recipe is used to feed hungry volunteers at Makawao's Hongwanji Mission Buddhist Temple.)

1 cup Kikkoman shoyu (soy sauce)
½ cup water
1 cup sugar
1 piece ginger, peeled and crushed
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 tablespoon oyster sauce (optional)
1 tablespoon Mirin (optional)
5 lbs. chicken thighs

Peel and crush ginger and garlic. Combine with all other sauce ingredients in a large pot. Add chicken. Bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium and continue cooking for 30 minutes or until done.

Shoyu Chicken #2
(by Leslie Frankel of The Pukalani Club House, page 62)

6 chicken thighs, bone in
1 cup shoyu (soy sauce, any brand)
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 tsp. sesame seeds
1 green onion stalk, chopped

Add shoyu, sugar and water together in a large pot. Add chicken to mixture. Bring to a boil on stove top, then reduce to simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Remove chicken from pot. Return pot to simmer and reduce remaining liquid for 10 minutes. Pour mixture over chicken; garnish with sesame seeds and green onions.

Adapted from Facebook, Bonnie Clyde

Shoyu (soy sauce. The best one is Aloha Shoyu, if you can find it. I found it in Tokyo Central and some 99 Ranch markets)

Sugar. Brown or white, both work. Mix it up 1/2 and 1/2 if Danger is your middle name and adventurous.

Mirin (Japanese rice cooking wine) You can substitute sherry for mirin.

Water.

2 Crushed gloves of garlic

I don’t know how to measure. You don’t want the Shoyu to overpower the marinade. It should taste lightly of Shoyu and sweet.

I’ve looked over some shoyu chicken recipes online and most of them...aren’t local style shoyu chicken.

Look for the ones from the state of Hawaii, not like AllRecipes.

You can marinate it for a couple of hours and throw it into a pan. I use the skin on, bone in thighs. Best flavor, hands down.

You can do this in a crockpot or oven but I find cooking it down in the skillet is the best way. You want to reduce the sauce so that it’s thick and bubbly but careful because it’ll burn quick.

Pro local Hawaii girl tip - make sure you spoon in that sauce on some rice.

INSTANT POT PORK SINIGANG

INGREDIENTS
2-3 pounds All Natural Boneless Chops and/or Boneless Loin Filet cut into 2 inch cubes
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 TBL Olive Oil
1 packet of sinigang soup mix (found in Asian stores, Amazon, Walmart or Walmart.com)
32 oz of chicken broth or chicken stock
Approximately 32 oz of water
Spinach (1-2 bags or 4 if you are like my family and love it)
3 tomatoes (sliced)
1 large onion coarsely chopped
package of radishes (Taro Root or Gabi is traditionally used instead of radishes.)
2 TBL patis (fish sauce that can be found in the international foods aisle)
Juice from 1 lemon
salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

Using Saute function, add the olive oil to your Instant Pot. Add pork,salt, pepper, and garlic. Brown the pork to lock in the juices.

Press cancel to cancel saute function.

Next, pour in the chicken stock.

Seal Instant Pot and cook on MANUAL for 15 minutes.

Allow the pressure to naturally release for 5 minutes then quick release (move the knob to “vent”.) Make sure you stand back so that the steam doesn’t burn you.  let it naturally release for 5-10 minutes. (IP display will read "L 00:05"

Add the onion, radishes, tomatoes, half of the seasoning packet, fish sauce, and water. Do not overfill pot.

Reseal and manually cook for 5 minutes.

After timer goes off, allow pressure to release for five minutes. Then quick release.

Remove the lid.

Put Instant Pot back on Saute.

Add the lemon juice, rest of the seasoning mix, and the spinach. Allow to cook until spinach is slightly wilted.

Braised Ginger Chicken

From Facebook, VCG, Kat Nghi

Ga Kho Gung

2 lbs chicken thigh(cut into bite size)
1.5 cup coconut juice(fresh or can)
1/3 cup ginger(fine julienne)
1 tbsp Shallot
1 tbsp Garlic
1 tbsp Soy sauce
1 tbsp Oyster sauce 
1 tbsp Nuoc Mau (sugar+water)
1 tbsp sugar 
1 tsp Black ground pepper 
Optional: Red pepper+scallions

Clean chicken > brown chicken w/ oil over high heat, after chicken is brown add in coconut juice simmer for 20 mins over medium heat>then add all the ingredients in over medium-low heat for 15 mins.

Baked Mac N Cheese

Recipe from Facebook, Katie T. La

Mac n cheese

Cook 3-4 cup macaroni w 1 tsp salt till al dente (remove and drain right before it's edibly soft. Do not rinse)

Melt 1/2 a stick of salted butter 

Add 4 TBSP all purpose flour

Whisk constantly about 5 mins to make a roux

Add 2 cans (20 oz) evaporated milk

2-3 tsp dry mustard

Stir well

Whisk 2 large eggs in a separate bowl

Remove about 1/4 c of the milk mix and slowly pour into eggs while constantly whisking to not cook eggs

Whisk till eggs reach room temperature, then stir gently into pot until smooth

Add 20 ounces of assorted freshly grated cheese (mild cheddar, sharp cheddar, Colby, gruyere, etc)

Reserve about 1/4 c for topping

Stir to melt cheese

Add 3/4 tsp seasoned salt and 1/2 tsp of kosher salt (start with 1/4 tsp at a time and add more to taste. Don't undersalt. Once you add the macaroni, it'll reduce the saltiness level)

Add ground black pepper to taste

Add macaroni and stir

Pour into baking dish

Top with remaining cheese

Bake 15-20 minutes 

Optional: add fresh bacon bits and chopped scallions 
Optional: Add seasoned toasted breadcrumbs (2 TBSP butter, melted on stovetop, 1/2 Panko breadcrumbs, toast till golden)
Bake another 5 minutes

Lin's Spicy Pickled Radish

The ratio for the pickled water is 1:2:2

1 cup of sugar
2 cups of warm water
2 cups of distilled white vinegar

Mixed the water and sugar together to dissolve the sugar, add in vinegar. You can adjust the sweetness and sourness based on how you like it 

Select the veggies you want to use, cabbage, radish, carrots, cucumbers( cut some of the seeds out) jalapeños, etc, sliced it to bite size and sprinkle some salt on it, let it sit for about 30 mins so the water can come out from the veggies, this process helps to make the veggies more crunchy, then rinse the veggies a couple of times to get all the salt out

Put the veggies in a jar or bucket and add in a couple slices of ginger then pour the vinegar mixture over it, let it cool down then store pickled veggies in refrigerator for 1-2 days and it will be ready to eat.

Pickled Green Papaya and Red Cabbage

Light and crunchy, this pickle makes a refreshing side for Cambodian-style beef skewers, or for any grilled meat. The recipe is from Nite Yun, chef-owner of Nyum Bai restaurant in Oakland. True green papayas are only available at Asian markets (for more info, see note). If you can’t get one, use unpeeled Persian cucumber, cut into matchsticks rather than shredded (and skip the cabbage; it’ll make the cucumber look murky).

1 ½ lbs green (unripe) papaya, peeled and seeded

2 tbsp plus 1 tsp. kosher salt

¾ cup sugar

1 ½ cups rice vinegar

2 minced fresh red or green Thai chiles (optional)

¼ red cabbage, halved

Shred papaya into ribbons, ideally using a julienne peeler or a spiralizer* for long, crunchy strands. Alternatively, cut into matchsticks. In a colander, mix papaya with 2 tbsp. salt and let drain in sink 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make brine: In a medium bowl, mix remaining 1 tsp. salt with the sugar and vinegar until dissolved.

Rinse and drain papaya, then squeeze out as much water as possible and add to brine. Stir in chiles, if using, and push cabbage into brine. Cover and chill overnight.

Remove cabbage and stir papaya to disperse color. Thinly slice cabbage and mix back in.

*How to Shred Green Papaya: Crunchy and delicately tart, green papayas are rock-hard, with dark green skin and bright white flesh; find them at Asian markets. For salads like the one here, they’re most easily shredded with light strokes of an inexpensive Asian-style julienne peeler. Bonus: the peeler works on carrots, beets, and more.

Cambodian Spice Paste (Kroeung)

From Sunset Magazine, Nite Yun

This beloved, essential seasoning is key for making Cambodian-style beef skewers, but adds zest to Western foods, too: Mix into ground pork for meatballs, sauté with greens, stir into raw rice before cooking, and use to marinate firm white fish. You can find lime leaves (aka kaffir or makrut lime leaves), turmeric, and galangal (a crisp, peppery rhizome) at Southeast Asian markets or on amazon.com, or use the alternatives here for a different yet delicious paste. Note: If you’re using the kroeung for the beef skewers, increase the amount of lime leaves to 30 (or use 1/2 cup lime zest plus 3 tbsp. lemon zest).

1 ½ oz shallot

½ cup peeled garlic cloves

16 lemongrass stalks

1 piece fresh turmeric (or 2 tsp. powdered turmeric)

1 piece galangal (or 3 garlic cloves)

7 whole (double-segment) lime leaves (or use 4 tbsp. lime zest plus 2 ½ tsp. lemon zest)

Chop shallot and garlic. Remove root end, leafy top, and 3 to 4 fibrous outer layers of lemongrass stalks. Thinly slice enough lemongrass to make 1 1/4 cups, then mince in a food processor with shallot and garlic.

Peel fresh turmeric and galangal; coarsely chop both. Remove central stems from lime leaves and coarsely chop leaves. Add turmeric, galangal, and lime leaves to processor and whirl into a very fine paste with 2 to 3 tbsp. water, about 7 minutes.

Lemongrass Beef Skewers

From Sunset Magazine, Nite Yun.

Ingredients:

2 lbs well-marbled beef (sirloin, flank, or boned New York strip)

⅔ cup firmly packed Cambodian Spice Paste

1 tbsp honey

3 tbsp Shaoxing wine (Chinese rice wine)* or dry sherry

1 tbsp plus 1 tsp. Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce

¼ cup canola oil

1 ½ tbsp kosher salt

¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

Put beef in freezer to firm up, 1 to 3 hours. Cut beef into 1/2-in.-thick slices across the grain, then into small pieces about 2 in. long by 3/4 in. wide.

In a large bowl, combine remaining ingredients, including Cambodian Spice Paste. Add beef and mix to coat. Chill at least 1 day and up to 3.

Soak 8 (10-in.) wooden skewers in water at least 20 minutes (or use metal skewers). Heat a grill to high (500° to 550°) and oil grates well. Thread beef pieces lengthwise onto skewers, bunching tightly. Grill (covered on gas), turning every couple of minutes, until lightly charred but still pink in center, 6 to 8 minutes. Sprinkle lightly with salt.

Black Pepper Beef (Lok Lak) by Nite Yun

Ingredients

1/3 cup oyster sauce 
1/4 cup crushed garlic (about 8 garlic cloves) 
3 tablespoons cooking rice wine 
2 3/4 tablespoons raw sugar 
2 tablespoons soy seasoning sauce (such as Golden Mountain) 
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce 
2 1/2 teaspoons crushed plus 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black peppercorns, divided 
2 tablespoons cornstarch 
2 tablespoons water 
2 pounds flank steak, cut into 3/4-inch cubes 
2 tablespoons olive oil 
2 cups thinly sliced red onion (from 1 medium onion) 
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (from 1 lime) 
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt 
8 butter lettuce leaves 
1 unripe red tomato, cut into 8 wedges

Stir together oyster sauce, garlic, rice wine, sugar, soy seasoning sauce, dark soy sauce, and crushed Kampot peppercorns in a small bowl.

Stir together cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water in a medium bowl until cornstarch is dissolved; add beef, and toss to coat. Add 1/4 cup of the oyster sauce mixture; cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. Cover remaining oyster sauce mixture, and set aside.
    
Heat oil in a wok over high. Carefully add beef mixture to wok, and cook, shaking wok often, until beef has a brown sear, 4 to 5 minutes. Add red onion and remaining oyster sauce mixture, and cook, shaking wok often, 2 more minutes.
    
Stir together lime juice, sea salt, and coarsely ground Kampot peppercorns. Place beef, lettuce leaves, and tomatoes on a platter, and serve with lime sauce.

Cambodian Chicken salad

Recipe from SF Chronicle, by Nyum Bai

Recipe: Nyum Bai’s Neorm Sach Moan (Cambodian Chicken Salad)

This vibrant salad is full of color, texture and tang — and simple to make, as adapted from “We Are La Cocina,” by Leticia Landa and Caleb Zigas (Chronicle Books). The book recommends boiling whole chickens and saving the broth for another use, but you could just as well use a rotisserie chicken from a grocery store.

Serves 2 to 4

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

2 tablespoons fish sauce

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 garlic clove, thinly sliced

1 bird’s-eye chile, Thai chile or serrano chile, chopped with seeds

½ small red cabbage, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)

1 small red bell pepper, thinly sliced (about 1 cup)

½ cup Persian cucumber slices

2 cups cooked chicken, cut or pulled into large chunks

2 cups loose greens, such as mizuna or arugula

1 cup loosely packed Thai basil leaves (or regular basil)

¾ cup loosely packed mint leaves

¼ cup peanuts, roasted and chopped

Instructions: Combine the sugar with ½ cup warm water in a medium bowl and whisk to dissolve the sugar. Whisk in the fish sauce, vinegar, garlic and chile.

In a separate bowl, combine the cabbage, bell pepper, cucumber and chicken. Add half the dressing and toss to combine. Add the loose greens, basil leaves and mint and toss again. Divide evenly among serving plates, drizzle the remaining dressing over each plate and top with chopped peanuts. Any remaining dressing can be refrigerated for another use.

Macaroni Beef Stir Fry (Nui Xao Bo Luc Lac )

Recipe from Instagram, Valerie N

Really simple recipe with intensely bold flavors.

Note: measurements are estimated as I usually eyeball my cooking. Adjust to taste!

Marinade
⚪ 1 Tbsp Sugar (Rounded spoon)
⚪ 1.5 Tbsp Oyster Sauce
⚪ 1 Tbsp Shallots
⚪ 1 Tbsp Garlic
⚪ 1 Tbsp Regular Soy Sauce
⚪ 1 Tbsp Fish Sauce
⚪ 1 tsp Thick Soy Sauce (important)
⚪ 1 tsp Sesame Oil
⚪ 1 tsp Black Pepper

Ingredients
⚪ 1 lb steak - 1" cubed (prefer ribeye or ny, I cut my steaks smaller b/c my son likes them bite sized)
⚪ Elbow mac or other noodle
⚪ 1/2 red onion, chopped
⚪ 1 Tbsp Ketchup
⚪ 1 Tbsp Cooking oil

Instructions
1. Mix all ingredients for marinade together until combined.

2. Marinate the steak with marinade for at least 30 min

3. Meanwhile, boil macaroni until al dente. Drain and set aside.

4. In a wok on high heat, add chopped onions and saute until fragrant.

5. Making sure wok is HOT, add steak to wok, reserving any excess marinade. Cook using "shaking" motion. DO NOT OVERCROWD. Cook in batches if necessary.

6. Once the steak is cooked to desired doneness, add remaining sauce to thicken.

7. Add in the macaroni and ketchup and stir fry until noodles and sauce are incorporated. Noodles should've absorbed all the sauce and shouldn't be too wet.

8. Adjust to taste by adding more oyster sauce, fish sauce, ketchup, etc.

9. Remove from heat and Enjoy!

*** Find your favorite Bo Luc Lac recipe, cook as usual on HIGH. Throw in the cooked mac and add 1 T of each butter, oyster sauce, ketchup and add fish sauce and pepper to taste. I think the secret recipe to the beef marinade is thick soy sauce. It gives it the color and umami! You only need 1t per lb of beef.

Baked Parmesan Chicken Tenders - Ayesha Curry

1 cup panko
2 oz Parmesan cheese, grated (about 1/2 cup)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
1 1/2 tsp. Finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
Cooking spray
1 lb boneless skinless chicken tenders (about 8)

Preheat oven to 425. Stir together panko and Parmesan in a shallow dish. Stir together mayonnaise, mustard, parsley, salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder and onion powder in a separate shallow dish.

Insert a rack in a large rimmed baking sheet; spray with cooking spray. Coat chicken tenders in mayonnaise mixture; gently roll in panko mixture, pressing to adhere. Place coated tenders on rack. Spray tenders with cooking spray.

Bake chicken until cooked through and golden, about 15 minutes

Spam Musubi

Insatiably Epicurious

SPAM MUSUBI

Special Equipment:
Parchment paper
Half sheet pan
Musubi maker
Rice cooker

Ingredients:
2 cans spam
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup oyster sauce
8 sheets roasted nori
Furikake
4 cups uncooked short grain rice (I prefer Calrose)
5 cups water

Instructions:
- Rinse rice until water runs clear. Drain off as much water as possible. Place washed grains in inner rice cooker pot. Add 5 cups water. Cook.

- Cut each can of spam into 8 slices. Lay each slice flat onto a surface with rounded sides, like a brownie pan.

- Mix sugar and vinegar until dissolved. Stir in soy sauce and oyster sauce. Pour mixture over spam. Marinate for 30-60min.

- Set oven to broil. Lay parchment paper over sheet pan.

- Lay each slice of spam into pan. Set pan on the lowest rack.

- Each oven is a little different, so you’ll need to keep an eye on the spam. After about 3-5min, the edges will begin crisping. Flip to the other side, baste with marinade, and broil for another 3min. Don’t let it burn. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

- Fill a small bowl halfway with water.

- Lay nori on a clean working surface. Place musubi maker in the middle of the nori.

- Fluff up rice a bit. Sprinkle rice with furikake and lightly mix in.

- Fill the musubi mold 3/4 with rice. Press down until firm. Sprinkle with more furikake if desired. Place two slices of spam into rice mold. Lift up the mold carefully. Fold the nori closets to you onto the spam. Wet the opposite end of the nori and fold over.

- Turn musubi over and set aside. This will give the nori a chance to set firmly with the weight of the rice on top of it.

- Once all the musubi are complete, slice each into 1/2 or 1/4, depending on preference.

- *For parties, I cut into 1/4 and saranwrap individually. This helps keep the rice from drying out.

Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken

Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken 

What you need...
-5 to 6pcs of chicken thighs (I prefer thighs its more moist than chicken breasts.) Cut in cubes 
-Sweet potatoes starch (find the starch that is grainy not powdery)
-1 to 2 eggs

Marinate chicken with:
2 to 3 cloves of garlic minced
1tbsp of ginger minced
1tbsp garlic powder 
1/2tsp of salt
1tsp of sugar
1tbsp of soy sauce 
1tbsp of five spice powder
1tsp of white pepper
1/2 tsp of cooking wine(optional)
1/2 tsp of sesame oil
Marinate for 1hr to 3hrs. 

Before frying add 2 eggs if you use up to 6pcs of chicken, 1 egg for 4pcs of chicken and mixed in with the marination chicken. 

Seasoning for after frying:
mixed first to a bowl
1tbsp of sugar
1tsp salt
1/2tsp five spice powder 
1tsp of white pepper
(For spicy...I use dried chilli flakes because chilli powder or cayenne pepper powder is not that spicy to me) Sprinkle on after frying chicken

*Optional- Also sprinkle some dry basil or dry parsley after frying

*Optional* Before frying add a few leaves of basil to the frying oil for like a min or 2 when the leaf gets crispy take it out. 

On a separate plate add the starch
Add each pcs to the starch one by one on to a separate plate before adding to the hot oil pot. Fry until golden brown. Pour onto a bowl, sprinkle your after seasoning while shake the chicken around for even coating. Good luck!! 

Shaken Beef

Shaken Beef with asparagus, whole garlic, and baby Bella mushrooms by Hollie Phuong-Hong Nguyen

Marinade the meat with some sugar, Maggi, oyster sauce, minced garlic, and ground black pepper. I usually add some dark soy for the color but I didn’t have any left, so that was skipped.

By Jennifer Le

Season ribeye with oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, garlic powder, black pepper, caramel sauce (nước màu) & sesame oil (substituted w/grapeseed oil) for at least 30 minutes. Cook on high heat in small batches.

By Katie T. LA

 Bò lúc lắc (shaken beef) using boneless ribeye. 15 minutes from start to finish.

Marinated with: oyster sauce, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, minced garlic, garlic powder, onion powder, and a dash of fish sauce for umami.


Seared with butter in a cast iron pan and shaken just to fulfill the dish’s namesake

By Andrea Nguyen 

Wok-seared "Shaking" Beef
Thit Bo Luc Lac

Use both the light and dark soy sauces if you want a little extra deep color. Feel free to dress up the final platter with some tomato wedges. If serving without the watercress, opt to present the beef with a side of salt, pepper, lime dipping sauce (muoi tieu chanh) for guests to dip the cubes in.

Serves 4 with 2 or 3 other dishes

1 1/4 pound tri-tip (bottom sirloin/culotte) steaks

Marinade:
1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon light (regular) soy sauce, or 2 teaspoons light (regular) and 1 teaspoon dark (thick) soy sauce

Dressing:
1 shallot, thinly sliced (1/4 cup total)
1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 or 2 pinches salt
3 to 5 cracks black pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
2 tablespoons water

4 cups watercress, use only the tender leafy parts
2 tablespoon canola or peanut oil

1. Trim excess fat from the steaks and then cut each into 3/4-inch cubes. In a bowl, combine the pepper, sugar, garlic, oyster sauce, fish sauce and soy sauce. Add the beef and toss well to coat. Set aside to marinate for 20 minutes or up to 2 hours.

2. For the dressing, put the shallot in a mesh strainer and rinse under water for about 10 seconds to reduce some of the harshness. In large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, salt, pepper, vinegar and water. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Add the shallot. Put the watercress on top but hold off on tossing.

3. Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. Add the beef and spread it out in one layer. Cook in batches, if necessary. Let the beef sear for about 1 minute, before shaking the wok or skillet to sear another side. Cook for another 30 seconds or so and shake. Cook the beef this way for about 4 minutes total, until nicely browned and medium rare.

In between shakes, toss the watercress and transfer onto a platter or serving dish. When the beef is done, pile the beef on top of the watercress and serve immediately with lots of rice.

Bánh Xèo - Crispy vietnamese crepes

Recipe from Facebook, Vietnamese Cooking Group

Bánh Xèo. Crispy vietnamese crepes with shrimp, side pork and bean sprouts 

Crepe Batter 
400g rice flour
100ml beer ( any kind )
300 ml warm water
1 liter of coconut milk
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp thinly slice green onions.

In a large bowl whisk together the rice flour, turmeric powder, sugar, salt, water and coconut milk until the mixture is smooth. Strain through sieve and add beer. Then let the batter rest in the fridge for at least 2 hour. Just before use add green onions to the mixture.

Bitter melon Stir Fry with Pork Belly, tofu, and eggs

Recipe from Greg Gong

3 small bitter melons (about 12 oz.)
2 tbsp. kosher salt
7 oz. extra-firm tofu
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
4 oz. pork belly, skin removed, thinly sliced crosswise
1⁄3 cup dashi (see Noodles in Dashi for recipe)
1 tbsp. soy sauce
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1⁄4 cup bonito flakes
Koregusu (Okinawan chile sauce), optional

Instructions
Cut each bitter melon in half lengthwise and, using a spoon, remove and discard the seeds. Slice the bitter melons crosswise into 1⁄4-inch-thick half-moons and transfer to a medium bowl. Add the salt, toss until evenly combined, and let stand for 20 minutes. Using your hands, squeeze the bitter melon to release as much liquid as possible, then transfer to a colander and rinse under cold running water. 

Squeeze again to drain any liquid, transfer to paper towels, and pat dry.

Place the tofu on a flat plate lined with a kitchen towel. Cover the tofu with another towel and plate and then weight the plate with two 32-oz. cans to press the tofu and release excess water. Let the tofu stand for at least 20 minutes. Remove the weights and uncover the tofu. Using your hands, crumble the tofu into 1-inch pieces into a large bowl.

In a 12-inch skillet, heat the oil over high. Add the bitter melon and pork and cook, undisturbed, for 5 minutes. Stir and cook 2 minutes more. Add the tofu along with the dashi and soy sauce and cook until the liquid has almost completely evaporated, about 1 minute. Pour in the eggs and cook, stirring to break up the curds, until the eggs are just cooked, 1 to 2 minutes more. Remove the skillet from the heat and scrape the stir-fry onto a serving platter. Sprinkle with bonito flakes and serve immediately with the koregusu, if using.

Notes:

More ideas: 
My family’s recipe goes like this: Cut them in 2” sections and core them. Then mix some ground chicken or pork with some garlic, onion, and shiitake mushrooms and use the meat mixture to stuff the cored melons. We usually steam or braise them in chicken broth.

Vietnamese grilled pork sandwiches - Banh Mi

Recipe from ThuyTien Dang, Vietnamese Cooking Group

Banh Mi Vietnamese grilled pork sandwiches recipe - Quick 20 minutes cooking, big portion for firefighters !

One to two pounds of pork tenderloin, slice into one-inch slice, pound out flat, sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides, put into a medium size bowl, and set aside.

Marinade for the pork:
Put 2 cups of olive oil in a blender with 3 cloves of garlic
1 bunch of green onions
2 tablespoons of soy sauce (Maggie's seasoning sauce recommended)
1 tablespoon of brown sugar.
Blend on medium speed.

Let the pork tenderloin soak in the marinade at room temperature for half an hour (if at home, on fast speed cooking competition 5 mins) before grilling.

Recipe for pickled carrots and onions:
1 pound of julienne sliced carrots,
1 small onion thinly sliced,
1 cup of white vinegar,
1/3 cup of sugar,
1 bunch of roughly chopped cilantro
mixed all together in a bowl and set aside.

-Grill the pork at medium heat. It takes about only about 5 minutes because it's thinly sliced.

-1 long loaf of French baguette bread, put in the oven at 350 for 5 minutes or until nice and crispy around the edges.

-Slice the bread in half the long way. Lay out the pork on the bread and garnish it with the pickled carrots, and a little dash of the soy sauce if needed and some sriracha hot sauce if you want to kick it up another notch.

Braised Pork riblets - Sườn Kho

Recipe from Jennifer Le, Vietnamese Cooking Group

INSTANT POT:

Boil water in a pot, add pork ribs and blanch for 3-4 minutes. 

Rinse and clean ribs. 

Season cleaned ribs with sugar, minced shallots, garlic powder, fish sauce & black pepper.

In a pan, add sugar and turn the heat to medium, when the sugar melts and turns golden brown + seasoned ribs + minced shallots, seared both side for 2 minutes each.

In Instant Pot (IP), added seared ribs, add coconut water. 


High pressure (HP) for 5 minutes, natural release (NR) for 10 minutes. 

Then turn to sauté mode for 10 minutes or until the sauce reduces to 1/2.

FOR STOVE TOP: FROM LANIE HO

Recipe: 
2 lbs pork ribs 
1can coconut soda 
3 tbsp 3 crab fish sauce
1tsp salt
1tsp Black pepper 
1can quail eggs, drained and washed 
2 cloves garlic, minced 
2 green onions, chopped all the way. White and green part 
1 -2 tbsp sugar... depending on your level of sweetness. 

I boil my meat first w salt to get rid of the impurities. Don’t boil all the way. Just for a few minutes. Drain. 

In bowl, Marinate w the white part of onions, garlic, and the seasonings, for about 15 minutes.

Add 2tbsp oil to pan, then sugar. Do not stir the pot. Just gently swirl it... you want the sugar to caramelize. 

Once sugar is brown, add meat and stir. Do this on medium high heat until meat is covered in sauce. 
Add coconut soda. Cover w lid and let it cook for about 25-30 minutes...

Uncover and add the eggs.... let it cook for another 20 minutes... until sauce thickens. 

**this is where I taste my sauce and see if I need to adjust taste to my preference. 

More sweet, add sugar, more salty add more fish sauce. 


Once it’s done, garnish w green onions.

Pickled Cucumber and Carrots

Pickled Cucumber and Carrots:

In a large glass bowl mix:
3-5 garlic cloves finely diced
1-2 Thai chilis finely diced
1/4 teaspoon chili flakes
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup hot water (hot water will dissolve the sugar

Add remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly and put in jar or glass bowl

1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 teaspoons kimchee base spicy chili sauce (Momoya brand)
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
1/4 teaspoon parsley flakes
10 Persian cucumbers sliced or 2-4 regular large cucumbers.

*optional to add 1/2 sliced red onions

(Make sure that your cucumbers are clean. I soak in salt water for an hour and scrub the skin and rinse)

- Refrigerate for a few hours.

***You can adjust the amount of kimchee base sauce, salt, garlic, rice vinegar and chilis to your preference.

John's Fish & Shrimp Soup

Recipe from John Stacy, Facebook

1 7 oz can Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
2 lbs shrimp w/head and shells on. 
8-10 fish fillets (white meat fish- tilapia, cod, halibut).
4-6 cloves garlic
2 large white onions quartered
5 large tomatoes quartered 
4 guajillo dried chili pods
6 white potatoes quartered
3 chayote squash quartered
3 celery stalks finely diced
2 extra large/thick stew carrots (or 6 normal carrots) cut. 1" chunks
1 bunch cilantro diced
1 bunch Italian Parsley diced
1 bunch Epozote diced
1 red bell pepper diced

-Remove shrimp heads and shells and place in bowl. 
-Remove the "vein" and rinse the shrimp and set aside in bowl (refrigerate).

In a large deep pot:
20 cups filtered water
Shrimp heads and shells
2 tablespoons Knorr chicken flavor bouillon powder
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon oregano 
Bring to rolling boil and cook for 30-40 min med high heat.
Strain out the shrimp heads/shells broth and set aside liquid in a large pot.

In a small pot: 
4 guajillo peppers (remove stems and seeds). 
Add 3-4 cups water and bring to a rolling boil.
Set aside (don't throw away guajillo liquid).

In a food processor or blender:
Add 4 large quartered tomatoes, garlic, onion, guajillo peppers, can of chipotle peppers, salt and guajillo liquid and blend fine. (You may need to do it in two batches to process).
Strain into a large bowl.

In large pot:
On high heat
2-3 tablespoons oil 
Add 3 small white onions sliced
Add 3 celery stalks finely diced
3 Bay Leaves
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspooon ground coriander
Salt
Pepper 
Saute for 3 minutes

Add the strained chipotle, guajillo & tomato liquid (8-9 cups approx).
Bring to a boil.
Add carrots, chayote squash and potatoes cook for 15 minutes.
Add chopped Cilantro, Italian Parsley and Epazote (1 cup each).
Add shrimp broth and bring to a boil.
Reduce to medium heat.
Add fish fillets cook 5 minutes.
Add shrimp cook 5 minutes and then reduce to low simmer.
-Garnish with diced white onions and diced cilantro 
Enjoy!