My Menu Blog

1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon Asian chili paste, such as sambal oelek
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1/2 cup julienned mixed vegetables (carrots, yellow squash, zucchini)
4 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast or thigh, sliced into strips
12 medium to large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 pound medium-wide rice noodles, soaked in warm water until softened and drained
1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
Chopped Romaine lettuce, for garnish
Mung bean sprouts, for garnish
Lime wedges, for garnish
Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish
Chopped peanuts, for garnishIn a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, water, peanut butter, and chili paste until smooth.

1. Heat a large wok over medium-high heat, and add canola oil.
2. When the oil is hot, add the garlic and ginger and let cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Add the vegetables, chicken, and shrimp, and stir-fry until chicken and shrimp are browned and cooked through, about 2 minutes
4. Add noodles and toss to coat.
5. Add peanut/spice paste, brown sugar and cider vinegar and toss to distribute.
6. Cook until heated through, about 2 minutes.
7. Spread chopped romaine on a platter.
8. Serve pad Thai on top of lettuce and garnish with mung bean sprouts, lime, cilantro and chopped peanuts.

1/2 pound spaghetti
1/4 cup Tamari dark soy, eyeball it
1/4 rounded cup smooth peanut butter, softened in microwave 15 seconds on high
2 tablespoons cider or rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil, eyeball it
2 tablespoons hot sauce
2 cups shredded cabbage and carrot mix, available in produce department
1 cup bean sprouts or pea shoots, any variety, available in produce department
3 scallions, chopped on an angle
2 tablespoons sesame seeds

1. Cook pasta to al dente, with a bite to it, then cold shock it to stop the cooking process by running it under cold water in colander. Drain the pasta very well.
2. In the bottom of a large bowl, whisk together soy, peanut butter, vinegar, oil, sesame oil, and hot sauce.
3. Add noodles and veggies and toss to combine the noodles and coat them evenly with sauce.
4. Sprinkle scallions and sesame seeds throughout the salad and serve.

1 pound thin cut chicken breast meat, available packaged in meat case of market
Grill seasoning (recommended: Montreal Seasoning by McCormick)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 2 turns of the pan
2 tablespoons minced ginger root
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and very thinly sliced
1 cup packaged shredded cabbage and carrot mix
3 scallions, chopped on an angle
1/2 cup plum sauce
2 cups basil leaves, loosely packed
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1/2 head iceberg lettuce, cut into half again
1/2 seedless cucumber, chopped Thinly slice the chicken into strips and sprinkle with grill seasoning.

1. Heat a large skillet to screaming hot.
2. Add vegetable oil, then chicken. Cook chicken 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
3. Add the ginger, garlic, peppers, cabbage and carrot mix and scallions and stir-fry another 2 minutes.
4. Add plum sauce to glaze the mixture, toss 1 minute, then add basil and wilt leaves.
5. Add fish sauce and turn to coat.
6. Transfer cooked chicken and vegetables to a bowl.
7. Place spoonfuls of chicken into a piece of lettuce with cucumber and fold lettuce over to eat, like small tacos.

1 1/2 pounds fresh tuna steak
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 inches fresh ginger root, minced or grated
3 tablespoons tamari dark soy sauce
2 scallions, chopped
1/2 small red bell pepper, finely chopped
2 teaspoons sesame oil — eyeball the amount
2 teaspoons grill seasoning blend (recommened: Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick) or 1 teaspoon black pepper and 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt — eyeball it
1 tablespoon light-in-color oil, such as canola, safflower or peanut oil
1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, coarsely chopped
Coarse salt
4 sesame kaiser rolls, split
1 jar, 8 ounces, mango chutney
4 leaves red leaf lettuce
1 jar, 8 ounces, wasabi mustard (recommended: Stonewall Kitchen brand) — Asian sweet-hot mustard, available on the condiment aisle as well as in Asian foods section of larger markets, may be substituted
Exotic root vegetable chips (recommended: Terra brand), to pass at table, optional
pickled ginger, optional plate garnishPreheat a nonstick griddle or a grill pan to high heat.

1. Cube tuna into bite size pieces and place in a food processor.
2. Pulse the processor to coarse-grind the tuna; it should take on the consistency of ground beef or turkey.
3. Transfer tuna to a bowl.
4. Combine ground tuna with garlic, ginger, dark soy sauce, scallions, red bell pepper, sesame oil, seasoning blend and black pepper.
5. Form 4 large patties, 1 1/2 inches thick.
6. Drizzle patties on both sides with light-in-color oil, such as canola, safflower or peanut oil.
7. Cook tuna burgers 3 minutes on each side for rare, up to 6 minutes each side for well done.
8. Preheat broiler.
9. In a medium nonstick skillet over high heat, saute fresh shiitakes for 2 or 3 minutes in tablespoon light oil — 1 turn of the pan in a slow stream. Season mushrooms with salt and pepper
10. open up the rolls and lightly toast them under the broiler.
11. Spread mango chutney on the bottom of each bun. Top with tuna burger, shiitakes, red leaf lettuce. Spread wasabi mustard or sweet hot mustard on bun tops and set them in place. Serve with exotic chips and pickled ginger, if desired.

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 cup chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
3 tablespoons fish sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound dried rice vermicelli
2 carrots, julienned
1 cucumber, halved, peeled, seeded and sliced into thin halfrounds
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
1/2 cup finely shredded napa cabbage
1/4 cup chopped dryroasted nuts

1. Place the garlic, cilantro, jalapeno, honey, lime juice, fish sauce and salt in the bowl of a food processor and process until almost smooth.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the noodles and cook for 2 minutes.
3. Drain, rinse well with cold water and drain again.
4. In a large bowl, combine the sauce, noodles, carrots, cucumber, mint and napa cabbage.
5. Toss well and garnish with peanuts

Vietnamese Dressing:
2 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
2 fresh long red chiles, seeded and finely diced or julienned
2 tablespoons finely minced fresh ginger
4 tablespoons fish sauce (nam pla)
1 lime, juiced
4 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons groundnut oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil

Salad:
8 ounces cooked small shrimp
6 ounces glass noodles
4 ounces sugar snap peas
4 ounces bean sprouts
3 scallions, sliced into thin circles
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves, to garnish

1. To make the Vietnamese Dressing, simply mix all the ingredients together. This will keep very well in a tightly sealed jar in the refrigerator for at least a week.
2. To make the salad, marinate the shrimp in 1/2 cup of the Vietnamese Dressing.
3. While this is going on, soak the noodles in freshly boiled water according to packet instructions. Once re-hydrated, refresh the noodles in cold water, then drain.
4. Put the sugar snaps and bean sprouts into a colander and pour over freshly boiled water from a kettle.
5. Rinse them with cold water and drain well, just shaking the colander, so they’re not actually wet.
6. In a large bowl, mix the marinated shrimp with the drained noodles, scallions, sugar snaps, and bean sprouts.
7. Dress with 2 tablespoons more of the Vietnamese Dressing; add more dressing, to taste, if desired.
8. Sprinkle over the chopped cilantro and toss everything together well before arranging onto a large plate.

1 head garlic, peeled (about 16 cloves)
1 cup good olive oil
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 stalks broccoli, cut into florets (8 cups of florets)
2 tablespoons soy sauce

1. Put the garlic cloves and oil in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan.
2. Bring to a boil and cook uncovered over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until the garlic is browned and tender.
3. Turn off the heat and add the red pepper flakes and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
4. Immediately pour into a heat-proof container to stop the cooking.
5. Allow to cool to room temperature.
6. For the salad, blanch the broccoli florets in a large pot of boiling salted water for 2 to 3 minutes, until crisp-tender.
7. Drain well and immerse immediately into a large bowl of ice water until the broccoli is cooled. This process stops the cooking and sets the bright green color. Drain well.
8. In a large bowl, toss the broccoli with 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 cup of the oil used to cook the garlic, the soy sauce, and 8 or more cloves of cooked garlic.
9. Taste for seasonings and serve cold or at room temperature.

1 cup diced seedless cucumber
1 cup diced seeded ripe tomatoes
1 cup diced fresh feta cheese
1/2 cup diced red onion
11/2 cup coarsely chopped black olives (kalamata?)
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red-wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
1-1 1/2 pound sirloin steak (butt sirloin/boneless top sirloin)

1. combine cucumber, tomatoes, olives, feta, parsley, salt and pepper
2. toss with oil and vinegar
3. preheat a lightly oiled grill
4. season steak with salt and pepper
5. grill 4 minutes each side (until seared)
6. remove to cutting board and letrest 5 minutes to redistribute juices
7. slice steak on angle
8. top with salad mixture.

1 pound boneless, skinnless, chicken thighs
1 tablespoon asian sesame oil
1 tablespoon chinese chili garlic sauce
1 tablespoon finely minced garlic
1 tablespoon finely minced ginger
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice
1/4 savoy cabbage(remove outer leaves, core), thinly sliced
2 ounces raw snow peas
4 scallions, including 3 inches of green, thinly sliced
1/4 red bell pepper, thinly slivered
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves

dressing
1/4 rice or cider vinegar
3 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoons asian sesame oil
1 tablespoon smooth peanut butter
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 egg yolk
salt and pepper

1. combine chicken, sesame oil, chili sauce, giner and lime juice in a bowl
2. cover and refrigerate 2 hours, tossing once
3. cook chickeni n well oiled grill about 5 minutes per side
4. when cooled, slice into thin strips
5. in a large bowl,add cabbage, chicken, snow peas, scallions,bell pepper and cilantro
6. prepare dressing: place all ingredients in a blender, process on high until smooth, refrigerate until ready to use
7. toss salad with 1/3 (or to taste) dressing
8. remaining dressing can be stored in refrigerator for up to 2 days only