Broccoli Beef!!!

Tweet

This recipe came to me in an email from AllRecipes.com. I tweaked it a tiny bit. I just love Asian foods. If you know me, know that! Everything from Chinese, Pho, Japanese and Thai! I LOVE IT ALL!! The thing is those aren't the easiest things to make at home. A lot of it seems to be secret. I can never get my Hot and Sour Soup to taste like it does at Mandarin Gourmet. I don't like using those packets or bottles of premade sauce. I mean what's the secret to that?! So when I made this last night and it tasted just like I thought it should I was oh, so happy!!  I served mine over white rice and an eggroll on the side. It was so good!


Broccoli Beef
30 Minute Meal                      15 Minutes Prep, 15 Minutes Cook Time             Serves 4
1/3 cup Oyster Sauce
2 tsp. Sesame Oil
1/3 cup Sherry
1 tsp. Soy Sauce
1 tsp. Sugar
1 tsp. Cornstarch
2 tbls. Sriracha Sauce
8 Dried Chiles, broken into pieces
1 lb. beef round steak, cut into 1/8 inch thick strips, put in medium size bowl.
3 tbls Vegetable Oil
3 thin slices of Fresh Ginger
3 cloves Garlic, peeled and smashed
1 lb. Broccoli, cut into florets

1. Start your rice. Whisk together the oyster sauce, sesame oil, sherry, soy sauce, sugar, cornstarch and sriracha sauce in a bowl. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Pour the oyster sauce mixture over the meat and coat well. Marinate for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator.

2. Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ginger and garlic. Let them sizzle in the oil for about 1 minute. Here is a deviation. The recipe said to take the ginger and garlic out. I didn't. Do what you're comfortable with. Stir in the broccoli and stir in the oil until bright green and almost tender, 5-7 minutes. Remove the broccoli from wok and set aside.

3. If you need a little oil, add some. Add the marinated beef until the sauce forms a glaze and the meat is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Return the broccoli to the wok and stir until well mixed, about 3 minutes.

Finger Lickin' Fried Chicken

Tweet

Fried Chicken is one of my husbands favorites. He asks for it on his birthday and anytime that I ask what to make for Sunday Dinner. This recipe is easy and very flavorful. It might sound a bit weird to make it with hot sauce, especially the quantity, but it's delicious and it is not spicy at all. I repeat, it's not spicy!!! I personally don't like bone or skin with my chicken so I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts and the breading actually stays on!! This is also great to do for chicken tenders!

Finger Lickin' Fried Chicken

30 minutes to Coat                     45 minutes to Fry                    About 8 pieces of chicken

Ingredients

3 cups Self Rising Flour

Salt and Pepper

1 cup Crystal Hot Sauce (or your favorite Louisiana Style Hot Sauce)

2 eggs

Chicken (thighs, drumsticks, breasts - whatever you like)

Peanut Oil

1. In a big bowl add flour and season it heavily with salt and pepper. In a separate bowl, add the eggs and hot sauce and whisk until well mixed.

2. Dry the chicken with a paper towel. The best way to go is to have a "wet" hand and a "dry" hand. Other wise both your hands are caked! I get a station going and move right to left. Coat the chicken well with flour, then coat well with egg/hot sauce mixture, and back to flour mixture. Make sure you coat extremely well. I like to put the chicken on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil, them I put a coat of flour down for the chicken to soak up. There will be some  bits of flour that get wet and stay in the flour bowl, try to get those to stick to the chicken. That is Matt's favorite, he calls them the finger drippings. Also, I like to sprinkle more flour on the chicken on the baking sheet. The chicken will become a tad wet again and will soak it up.

             (If you are doing a lot of chicken and run out of flour or egg mixture, you can 

              just add another cup of flour, or another egg and more hot sauce)

3. For frying the chicken you want your oil HOT!! About 350 degrees. I don't have a pot with the thermometer on it, if you do, use it. I sprinkle some water into the oil and when it starts popping, it is ready to go. You are going to want at least an inch and a half of oil. It should go about half way up you chicken. Place the chicken in the oil with tongs. You want to do this slowly and start with the edge of the piece closest to you, working away from you to avoid splatters.

4. Fry in batches. Overcrowding will reduce the heat of the oil and it will take forever. Drums take about 5 minutes per side per piece. The thighs and breasts will take about 7 minutes per side per piece. I heat the oven to about 170 degrees, place cooling racks in a roasting pan and place my chicken in there to keep warm while I continue with the rest of my batches.

Not Your Kids Macaroni and Cheese

Tweet

Who doesn't love Mac N' Cheese as a kid? But once you get older it's just not the same. You wish it were because how easy it is to make, but no, it's gritty and the second it's not hot it's time for the garbage!! Here is a great recipe for it. It takes a bit longer to make than the box kind but it is so worth it. This dish also is great reheated the next day!

Macaroni and Cheese
40 minute Side Dish           10 minutes prep, 40 minute cook time            Serves about 8
1 16 oz. box Elbow Macaroni (get the smaller kind, not large)
8 oz. Velveeta or Other "Cheese Food"
4 oz. Monterey Jack Cheese
4 oz. Muenster Cheese
4 oz. Sharp Cheddar
1 pint Half and Half
1/2 stick butter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large pot, heat water to boil and add pasta. While this is cooking, heat the half and half.
2. While waiting on the above, grate the Monterey Jack, Muenster and Sharp Cheddar. Cut the Velveeta into small pieces.
3. When the cream is hot, slowly add the Velveeta  Once it has all melted add the shredded cheeses slowly until well melted in.
4. When the noodles are almost cooked through, remove and add the butter to them mixing well. In a 2.5 quart baking dish add the noodles and then mix the cheese sauce into them. Bake for half an hour.