Asian Turkey Meatballs with Lime Sesame Dipping Sauce

I've been meaning to make this recipe for a while now and I had all the ingredients so I decided to make it tonight. Super easy to put together and it tasted amazing. The dipping sauce really gives the meatballs a lot of flavor. The author of the blog I found this on suggested pouring a little of the sauce on top of the meatballs instead of dipping it and I did that and yum! I'll definitely make this recipe again! I added 2 cloves of garlic instead of one because you can't just have one garlic clove!

Asian Turkey Meatballs with Lime Sesame Dipping Sauce (4 servings):

*Meatballs

1/4 c panko
1 1/4 lb ground turkey
1 egg
1 tbsp ginger, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 c chopped fresh cilantro
3 scallions, chopped
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil

*Dipping Sauce

4 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp water
1 chopped fresh scallion

Preheat oven to 500. Mix ground turkey, panko, egg, salt, scallions, ginger, cilantro, soy sauce and sesame oil with your hands until combined well. Shape 1/4 c meat mixture into a ball and transfer to a baking dish. Bake until cooked through, about 15 minutes.

For dipping sauce, mix everything together. Transfer meatballs to a serving dish. Stir sauce, then drizzle meatballs with 1 tbsp sauce. Serve meatballs with remaining sauce. Enjoy!




Ready to be baked...






Lime Sesame Dipping Sauce...






Fresh from the oven...






Enjoy!...

Egg Drop Soup

I've always loved Egg Drop Soup and I usually make it with a packet of seasonings that I find in the grocery store. However, some stores don't carry those packets so I've also made it on my own and I think when I make it on my own, it tastes a lot better! Super easy to make and you can pick and choose what you want to add to it, and how many eggs you want to put in it.

Egg Drop Soup (1-2 servings)

2-4 c chicken broth (or any flavor of broth)
1-3 eggs, beaten
2-3 green onions, sliced
Soy sauce, to serve

Heat the chicken broth and green onions to boiling. Slowly add the beaten eggs, while whisking the soup vigorously to stir up the eggs. The eggs will cook as you whisk them into the broth. Take off heat and stir in the soy sauce to your taste. Enjoy!




Beaten eggs...






Eggs whisked into the broth...






Enjoy!...

Beef Bulgogi

Bulgogi is a Korean dish that I've had a couple of times now and I love it every time I've had it. A friend of mine recommended a blog for me to look at to find the recipe but her recipe seemed really hard so I started looking around on Pinterest and found this one from this site: http://www.kimkimcooking.com/2013/10/29/easy-korean-beef-bulgogi/ The author said it's a simpler version using ground beef instead of the traditional sliced beef. I was a little hesitant but it turned out very flavorful. And paired with store-bought kimchi, it tastes even better! I will definitely make this dish again and again! I think it would be good served on lettuce leaves but I'm currently out. It also doesn't specify whether the beef was cooked ahead of the garlic and ginger cooking, so I cooked it ahead of time to be on the safe side.

Beef Bulgogi (2-3 servings):

1 lb ground beef
1 tsp oil
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1/4 c soy sauce
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c water
1 tsp sesame oil, optional
Sesame seeds

Brown beef and drain. In pan, add oil and heat to med. Add garlic and ginger and cook 2 minutes (I only cooked it about 30 seconds so the garlic didn't burn). Add cooked ground beef and mix well. Add brown sugar, soy sauce and water; mix well. Cook 7 minutes over med-high heat. Add sesame oil into cooked beef and mix well. Top with sesame seeds, if desired.




Sprinkled with sesame seeds...






Served with kimchi and sticky rice...Enjoy!

Oriental Chicken Wings

I got this recipe from my friend Leigh's mom. I've had it once or twice when Leigh made it and when her mom made it a couple weeks ago I knew I wanted to make this for myself. The chicken becomes so tender that the meat just falls off the bone. There's no set time for how long to keep it in the slow cooker but the longer you do, the more tender the meat becomes. I left mine in the slow cooker for 4 hours tonight and it was so good! I will be making this recipe over and over again!

Oriental Chicken Wings:

20-25 chicken wings, cut tips off
1 c water
3/4 c soy sauce
1 c sugar
1/3 c sweetened pineapple juice
1/4 c olive oil
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground ginger

Mix everything together except the chicken wings. Place the chicken into a 9x13-inch glass dish. Pour the sauce over the wings. (I had to use another smaller dish since not all of my chicken fit in the regular dish.) Cover the dish and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 350. Either wait for the glass dish to come to room temp or transfer to a shallow roasting pan. Bake for about 1 hour, turning the chicken once halfway through the cooking time. Transfer to a slow cooker with the juices and cook on low for about 4 hours, stirring occasionally.

*Note: If you don't use a slow cooker, bake in the oven for 2 1/2 hours.

I served my chicken with some sticky rice, to mop up the juice. So good!




Soaking in the marinade...






The rest soaking in the marinade...






Fresh from the oven...






Enjoy!...

Sweet & Sour Pork

I found this recipe in a Weight Watchers Cookbook. I had tried it several years ago and loved it. Unlike most Weight Watchers recipes, this recipe had a lot of flavor. I was telling my mom about the recipe and started craving it so I decided to make it again and once again I loved it. While making it, I discovered I was missing some ingredients, but I just worked around it. I didn't have a bell pepper so I went without. And I've never used scallions before for some reason so I just used green onions instead. It says to marinate the pork while you prepare and cook the veggies but I let mine sit overnight, as I did the first time I made it. I think marinating it overnight lets the marinade sink into the pork and makes the pork more flavorful. I'll definitely keep making this recipe!

Sweet & Sour Pork (4 servings) (Weight Watchers) (4 points)

1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp hoisin sauce
2 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 lb boneless lean pork loin, cubed
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-in pieces
3 scallions, sliced
1 c drained, canned unsweetened pineapple chunks (reserve 1 tbsp juice)

In large skillet, heat oil. In gallon-size plastic bag, mix hoisin sauce, brown sugar, soy sauce and ginger; add pork. Seal bag, squeezing out the air; turn to coat the pork. Let bagged pork stand while you cook the veggies.

In skillet, stir-fry the bell pepper and scallions until softened, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Transfer the pork to the skillet, reserving the marinade; stir-fry the pork until browned, about 2-3 minutes. Add the marinate, pineapple and pineapple juice; stir-fry until pork is cooked through, about 5 minutes longer. Return the veggies to the skillet and heat to serving temperature, about 2 minutes.




Pork marinating...






Pork and green onions...






Pineapples added to the pork...






Enjoy!...

Sticky Rice with Spicy Tomato Relish

Like I said in my previous post, I've been on a major sticky rice kick lately. And I was getting bored with eating it with just soy sauce. I'll be making another stir-fry soon now that I have all the regular ingredients but then I remembered this tomato relish that my best friend made several years ago. Super easy to make and very little ingredients yet very tasty. I thought I had the recipe written down but apparently I didn't so I asked her for it again. I think I used too much cilantro since the relish turned a little green but it tasted okay. It was missing something though-maybe salt. I added a little garlic powder to mine and some soy sauce and it tasted much better.

I've included pictures of the way I make my sticky rice but if you don't have the proper pieces I'm sure you can google how to make sticky rice in a ricer cooker or in a regular pan. I got all my stuff from an Asian store and my best friend went with me to help. The base is a metal pot-you fill it with water and heat it to boiling. The basket is shaped kind of like a funnel so that goes into the pot (without touching the water) so the rice gets steamed. The pan lid on top helps trap most of the steam. I cook my rice for 20 min and it comes out perfect every time. But an important thing to remember..no matter how you cook your rice, make sure you soak the rice in water at least 1 hour before you cook it or it will come out harder than a rock and not good to eat. I always soak my rice overnight just to be safe.

Again, I don't have an actual recipe..I just kinda went by general instructions from my friend and how I like it. According to her, for the cilantro, you should have half the amount of tomatoes and green onions should be half the amount of cilantro. So I'll try to put down what I used.

Sticky Rice with Spicy Tomato Relish:

25 grape tomatoes, halved
4-6 green onions, sliced (I used 6 only because my green onions were tiny)
1/2 c cilantro
1 Thai chili pepper, sliced

Using a mortar and pestle, grind the cilantro and chili pepper until dark green and mushy looking; transfer to a bowl. Boil the tomatoes and green onions until potatoes can be mashed down, about 5 min. In small batches, add the tomatoes and green onions to mortar and mash down. Once mashed, add it to the bowl. Once everything is added, mix it up well. This is when I added some garlic powder and soy sauce to taste.




Rice in the basket...






Steamer basket for the rice...






What I use to make my stick rice...






Sticky rice done...






Ready to be boiled...






Thai chile pepper and some of the cilantro being grinded...






Tomatoes & green onions after they've been boiled...






Everything all mashed together...






Sticky Rice dipped in relish...

Thai Turkey with Basil

I found this in a recipe book that had Chinese, Japanese and Thai recipes in it. I forgot I even had the book so I marked what I wanted to try and I'll add it to my recipe collection on my computer. This recipe stuck out and I knew I would try it soon. I made it this morning and yes I know it was only 10am but I didn't care. It was sooooo good! I've never fried basil before so that was new to me. You are supposed to serve it on a piece of lettuce, which I did but I also put some additional lettuce leaves on the side to wrap it up in. I also drizzled some hoisin sauce over the top. The recipe calls for Boston or Bibb lettuce but I couldn't find any at two grocery stores so I just used iceberg lettuce, which worked fine.



Thai Turkey with Basil (4 servings)

1 small bunch fresh basil, divided
2 c veggie oil
6 large shallots, coarsely chopped (I used the other half of a white onion, diced)
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 piece fresh ginger, cut into thin strips
1 lg ground turkey
2 fresh Thai chili peppers, cut into thin slices
2 tsp packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
Lettuce leaves

Set aside 8 small basil sprigs. Slice remaining basil into strips; set aside.

Heat oil in wok over med-high until oil registers 375. Add 1 or 2 basil sprigs at a time and deep-fry about 15 seconds or until basil is glossy and crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon to paper towels; drain. Repeat with remaining sprigs, reheating oil between batches. Reserved fried basil.

Let oil cool slightly. Pour off most of oil, leaving 1/4 c in skillet or wok. Heat over med-high 30 seconds. Add shallots, garlic and ginger; cook and stir 1 min. Add turkey and stir-fry about 4 min or until lightly browned. Push turkey up side of work or skillet, letting juices remain in bottom.

Continue to cook 5-7 min or until all liquid evaporates. Stir in chili slices, brown sugar and salt; cook 1 min. Stir in reserved basil strips. Remove from heat.

Line serving plate with lettuce. Spoon turkey mixture on top. Top with reserved fried basil.



The ingredients...

Fried basil...

Enjoy!

Asian Glazed Scallops

I don't know where I found this recipe. I have a habit of collecting recipes and in order to save room in my apartment, I type out the recipes that look good and keep them on my computer. I randomly went through my seafood files the other day and decided to try this one. I haven't had scallops in a while..I forgot how good they are! And they smell so good when they are cooking..kind of a buttery smell. Super easy recipe to make. I had a hard time finding the bottle of minced garlic but I finally found it at Rainbow. And I have no idea where I got the chili sauce..I've had it forever. One change I would make..less of the chili sauce..it's spicy! But still good. I'd definitely make this again. And it makes plenty of extra sauce to put on something else. The only weird thing I have noticed is that there's a slight crunch with every couple bites..from the garlic I think. It's tastes okay though..just a little weird texture. I also patted my scallops dry since they cook better that way. There's no measurement about how many green onions to use..since I love them I chopped up four of them. I served the scallops with rice I made in my rice cooker. It serves 4.

Asian Glazed Scallops:

5 tbsp sesame oil, divided
2 tbsp bottled minced ginger
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 c sweet hot chili sauce
1/4 c teriyaki sauce
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
12 large fresh sea scallops
1/2 tsp salt
Garnish: Chopped green onions

In small saucepan, heat 3 tbsp sesame oil over med heat. Add ginger and garlic; cook for 2 min, stirring constantly. Add chili sauce, teriyaki sauce and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer; cook 5 min, stirring occasionally.

In large skillet, heat remaining 2 tbsp sesame oil over med-high heat. Sprinkle scallops with salt. Add scallops to skillet; cook 2-3 min per side or until golden brown. To serve, spoon sauce over scallops. Garnish with green onions.




Bottled minced garlic

Chili Sauce...

Ginger & garlic cooking...

Scallops patted dry...

Scallops cooking..

The sauce...

Enjoy!

Hoisin Cocktail Meatballs

I found this recipe in Taste of Home's Healthy Cooking magazine last year. I actually made these meatballs last year for Christmas but I forgot what they tasted like. And they are soooooo good! And super easy to make. And make great leftovers!

Ingredients:

Meatballs

1 lb ground beef
2 tbsp hoisin sauce
1 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
3 tbsp minced fresh parsley
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp minced fresh gingerroot

Sauce

1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 tbsp water
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp honey
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp minced fresh gingerroot

In a large bowl, combine the first 8 ingredients. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well (with your hands!).

Shape into 32 meatballs. Place in a 13x9-in baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 20-25 min or until meat is no longer pink.


Meatballs ready to be baked...




Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the sauce ingredients; heat through.

Sauce simmering on the stove...




Meatballs are done!




Serve the sauce over the meatballs. When I made these meatballs, after they were done cooking, I placed everything into my slow cooker and turned it to warm until I was ready to use them. It worked perfectly!

Enjoy!

Tomato Stir-Fry

Another one of Mandi's recipes that I love. I went to the Mpls farmer's market this morning and came back with a bunch of fresh veggies so I added some to this stir-fry. Normally this recipe calls for 1/2 green bell pepper (I used a whole, small purple bell pepper). I also added bean sprouts and a red hot pepper in place of the Sriracha sauce. Don't these tomatoes look gorgeous?!

Some more gorgeous looking veggies! And super spicy!

Here are the ingredients:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
10-15 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 handful chopped cilantro
3 green onions, chopped
1 small bell pepper, any color will work
2 tsp Sriracha Sauce (again I used one of the red pepper above from the farmer's market), more if you want it spicier
2 tsp fish sauce, more if you want it saltier
2 tsp soy sauce
Olive oil and Garlic salt



In frying pan, heat up olive oil and fry chicken until cooked. Add green onions (I added the red pepper at this time as well) and stir for a few minutes

Add tomatoes and bell pepper. Fry until tomatoes are "saucy".
Add cilantro, Sriracha sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, garlic salt and bean sprouts (if using). Stir for a couple of minutes and then remove from heat.

Serve over hot cooked rice.

Enjoy!