Categories
Asian Chinese American Food Recipes

Steamed Pork Loaf

INGREDIENTS

  • 12 oz ground pork
  • 4 oz water chestnuts
  • 3 oz bamboo shoots
  • 2 pieces green onions
  • 1 Tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 2 Tbsp cornstarch
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 tsp chicken bouillon
  • 1/4 tsp white pepper
  • Cooking oil

DIRECTIONS

  1. Chop the pork into small bits, and put it into a bowl
  2. To the bowl of pork, add oyster sauce (1 Tbsp), sugar (1tsp), cornstarch (2 Tbsp), sesame oil (1 tsp), chicken bouillon (1 tsp), and white pepper (1/4 tsp).
  3. With chopsticks, mix the pork and flavors thoroughly (~1 minute). The pork will get stickier and pastier.
  4. Chop the water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, and green onions (white part), and mix it into the bowl for about 2 minutes.
  5. Add .5 tsp of oil to a glass pie plate, and spread it around
  6. Add .5 tsp of oil to the pork mixture, and mix
  7. Pour the pork mixture onto the plate and flatten with a spoon. Add a bit of oil to the top.
  8. Put a wok on the stove. Add about a cup of water. Put a steam rack on the bottom of the wok. Start the water to boil. Set the plate inside the wok, and steam for 15 minutes.
  9. Remove the plate from the wok. Garnish with the green part of the green onions from earlier
  10. Done.
Categories
Food Recipes

Instant Pot Split Pea Soup with Ham

INGREDIENTS

  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 1 onion diced
  • 2 ribs celery diced
  • 2 carrots diced
  • 6 oz. diced ham
  • 1 lb. split peas sorted and rinsed
  • 6 cups low sodium chicken stock or veggie stock, water, or mixture
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon mushroom powder
  • Salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

  1. Turn Instant Pot to “saute” mode. Melt butter, and saute onion, celery, and carrots for 5 minutes, until soften
  2. Add split peas, chicken stock, home, and 2 bay leaves. Turn off “saute”.
  3. Cover the Instant Pot. Et to manual, high pressure for 15 minutes.
  4. Natural release for 15 minutes.
  5. Taste and season with salt and pepper, and mushroom powder
  6. Serve immediately, or store in fridge for 1 week, or freezer for up to six months.
Categories
Food Health Recipes

Pomegranate & Pear Green Salad

INGREDIENTS

  • 1/2 cup raw pecans (halves or pieces)
  • 5 oz. baby arugula
  • 2 oz (~ 1/2 cup) feta cheese, crumpled
  • 1 large ripe Bartlett pear, thinly sliced
  • 1 Honeycrisp apple, thinly sliced
  • Arils from 1 pomegranate
  • GINGER DRESSING
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
  • 1 teaspoon finely grated ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • About 10 twists of freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

  1. Toast the pecans 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and rough chop them
  2. Arrange the arugula across a large serving platter (or bowl). Sprinkle the chopped pecans and crumbled feta over the arugula. Fan the slices of pear and apple and arrange them across the salad in sections (see photo). Sprinkel all over with fresh pomegranate arils.
  3. To prepare dressing, combine all the ingredients and whisk until blended. Taste, and if not zippy enough, add another teaspoon of vinegar.
  4. Wait to dress the salad until you’re ready to serve (the dressing will wilt the greens over time). When ready, drizzle the ginger dressing lightly over the salad.
Categories
Asian Food Recipes

Hot & Sour Soup

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 cups of chicken stock
  • 1/4 cup of slivered canned bamboo shoots
  • 1/2 cup sliced fresh shitake mushrooms
  • 1/4 cup wood ear fungus
  • 1/2 block of medium tofu
  • 2 TBsp of soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp of white pepper
  • 1 TBsp of white vinegar
  • 1 beaten egg
  • 1 TBsp of cornstarch (dissolved in 3 TBsp water)
  • 1 tsp of sesame oil

DIRECTIONS

  1. Hydrate wood ear fungus for 1/2 hr.
  2. Combine stock, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, and wood ear fungus and bring to a boil. Simmer for 3 minutes.
  3. Add tofu. Cook for 1 minute.
  4. Add soy, white pepper, and vinegar.
  5. Drizzle in egg, allow to set, and stir
  6. Thicken with cornstarch.
  7. Add sesame oil
  8. Season to taste.
Categories
China Food Recipes

Stir-fried Zucchini

Easy to cook and healthy.

INGREDIENTS

  • Half of a zucchini
  • Fresh shitake mushrooms (optional)
  • Avocado oil
  • Garlic powder
  • Water
  • Soy sauce
  • Mushroom powder
  • Oyster sauce

DIRECTIONS

  1. Take half a zucchini, slice lengthwise, and chop in slices
  2. Slice shitake mushrooms (optional)
  3. Heat oil in skillet
  4. Add zucchini and mushrooms to skillet
  5. Sprinkle with garlic powder
  6. Stir fry, adding small amount of water to build heat
  7. Season with soy sauce, mushroom powder, and oyster sauce.
Categories
Asian Food Recipes

Air Fryer BBQ Pork

This is a quick and easy Chinese-style BBQ pork, without red food coloring and excessive sugar. Pork shoulder (vs pork loin) is fattier with more flavor.

INGREDIENTS

  • Pork shoulder
  • Bachan’s Japanese BBQ Sauce

Directions

  1. Cut pork shoulder into 1.5″ strips with grain.
  2. Marinate in Banchan’s sauce.
  3. Set Ninja to “Air Fry” mode with the temperature set at 390° and at 9 minutes. One can smell when the BBQ pork is cooked.
  4. Cut into small pieces against the grain.
  5. Serve
Categories
Food Health Recipes

Instant Pot Natto

INGREDIENTS

  • 1/2 lb of organic natto-specific soybeans (from Laura Soybeans)
  • Takahashi Nattomoto spores (from Amazon)
  • Water

DIRECTIONS

  1. Wash soybeans until water is clear
  2. Drain, and add water 3:1 ratio
  3. Soak soybeans overnight (16-24 hours)
  4. Remove any skin or bad beans
  5. Transfer beans to Instant pot, and cover with 1″ water over beans
  6. Pressure cook on “bean mode” for 30 minutes, Natural release 15 minutes. Let cool for 20 minutes (temp drops from 175° to 130°)
  7. Sterilize glass bowl, rice bowl, chopsticks, and spoon in boiling water
  8. Drain soybeans, saving some broth
  9. Place soybeans in glass bowl, stir in 1 tiny spoon of Nattomo, mix well, add 2 Tbsp of broth, stir more
  10. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, and punch holes with sharp knife
  11. Add 1 cup hot water to bottom of Instant Pot
  12. Place bowl on trivet in Instant Pot
  13. Remove seal from Instant Pot lid (to save seal from odor)
  14. Set on yogurt mode for 24 hours (halo starts forming on beans after 8 hours)
  15. Leave at room temp a couple of hours to cool.
  16. Continue fermenting in fridge for 3-5 days to mellow for best flavor.
  17. Freeze what cannot be consumed within a few days
  18. Season with soy sauce or soup base before consuming.

Categories
Food Recipes

Air Fryer: Grilled Chicken

Air Fryer Grilled Chicken

INGREDIENTS

  • Organic chicken parts
  • Avocado oil, few tablespoons
  • Lemon Pepper Seasoning
  • Ninja Foodi Air Fryer DG551 with Grill insert

DIRECTIONS

  1. In a bowl, rub chicken with avocado oil; then sprinkle all sides with lemon pepper seasoning.
  2. Insert Ninja temperature probe into the thick part of the chicken.
  3. On Air Fryer, turn on, select “Grill”, press “Manual”, then select “Chicken”.
  4. Place chicken into the Air Fryer when “Add Food” comes on.
  5. The Air Fryer will turn off when temp reaches 170° (about 25 minutes)
  6. Done. Remove chicken.
Categories
Food Recipes

IP: Hulled Barley

Hulled barley in a rice bowl

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup hulled barley
  • 2.5 cups water (or stock)

DIRECTIONS

  1. Rinse hulled barley.
  2. Put well-drained barley into an Instant Pot bowl.
  3. Add water (or stock)
  4. Set Instant Pot to Multigrain function for 30 minutes (or 23 minutes for Hulless barley)
  5. Natural release for 15 minutes
  6. Fluff barley with a wooden spoon (don’t worry if some water in pot)
  7. Stir in olive oil or butter to taste.
Categories
Food Recipes

IP: Split Pea Soup

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1.5 tbsp avocado oil
  • 1 sweet onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 carrots, diced
  • 1 russet potato, diced (optional)
  • 1 cup split green peas
  • 6 cups water
  • 1 tsp of mushroom powder
  • 1 tsp of chicken bullion
  • 1 cup diced ham (optional)

DIRECTIONS

  1. Put Instant Pot in sautee mode
  2. Add avocado oil
  3. Add sweet onions and sautee until translucent
  4. Add garlic
  5. Add carrots and potato
  6. Add split green peas
  7. Add ham
  8. Add water, mushroom powder, and chicken bouillon
  9. Pressure cook 10 minutes, Natural release 20 minutes