Asian Lettuce Cups

I have made these before and shared the recipe with you here on blog.  This time I took the some photos of the entire process and I thought I would reshare the recipe.  

I apologize for my lake of posting lately.  I was ill for a while, and I got behind on cooking; and then we went through a phase were I need to cook really quick recipes and I did not have time for photography.  

And NOW blogger has changed it's format and my poor old brain is not liking this AT ALL.  

Ingredients

1 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
3 cups sliced shitake mushrooms

1 (8 ounce) package of faux chicken
1 clove garlic, minced
1 (8 ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained and coarsely chopped
1 cup carrot peelings
1/4 cup unsalted dry roasted peanuts
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons Sriracha sauce (the Rooster stuff~yum)
12 Boston lettuce leaves, cleaned

The Tools

large skillet

small bowl

The Cooking

 Warm the sesame oil over medium heat in a large skillet, and add the mushrooms

Add the faux chicken and continue cooking

Add the garlic and cook until fragrant

Add the shredded carrots, the water chestnuts and the peanuts, and continue cooking

Combine together the hoison sauce, the soy sauce, the rice wine vinegar, and the siracha sauce together and add it to the mushroom mixture in the skillet

Bring to a slight simmer and cook until all the ingredients are warm and the flavors are well combined

Serve warm on a nice leaf of butter lettuce

Recipe source: My BRAIN!!!

Recipe serves four, with two lettuce leaves and 1 cup of filling as a serving

Calories: 236

Protein: 11

Fat Grams: 10

Sodium: 886

Fiber Grams: 4

Potassium: 420

Vegan Mongolian Faux Beef

This recipe is based on one that found on Food.com.  I made several changes and additions to the original recipe, but one things I did little to change was the sauce.  This sauce is pretty much the bomb and I liked it better than the real Mongolian Beef at my local Chinese restaurant. 

1 (14-ounce) package extra firm tofu, well drained and cut into strips
4 tablespoons sesame oil, divided
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
2 tablespoons garlic, minced
1 cup low sodium soy sauce
1 cup water
1 1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 large onion chopped
10 ounces slice white mushrooms
1 package beef like vegan meat substitute (like the meatless beef from Trader Joe's)

1. Cut and drain your tofu.  See the post, How to Drain Tofu for specifics. While the tofu drains, warm 3 tablespoons of sesame oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  When the oil is warm add the ginger and garlic, cooking until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Do not let the garlic burn.  Add the soy sauce and water.  Slowly add in the brown sugar and stir until the sugar is all dissolved.  Bring the mixture to a slow boil and cook until the sauce has reduced just a bit. 
2. While the sauce is reducing warm one tablespoon of sesame oil to another skillet, to this add the oil and cook until the onion in slightly tender and has released some of its moisture.  Remove the onion from the skillet and set aside.  Add the mushrooms to the still warm skillet and cook them until they are brown and have released all their liquid. 
3. The sauce should be reduced just a bit by now.  To the sauce add the cornstarch and stir with a whisk until the cornstarch is 100% incorporated into the sauce.  The sauce should thicken almost immediately.  Reduced the heat to low, and add in the onions, mushrooms, tofu sticks, and beef-like meat substitute.  Stir until everything is well coated and allow to cook together for 10 minutes or so until all the flavors are combined. 

Japanese Restaurant-Style Dressing

First, allow me to apologize for not having posted in such a long time.  With the holiday, I just let is slip.   I return today with this delicious salad dressing.  For Father's Day, the Veggie Dad requested Sesame Cold Noodle, which is his favorite meal.  As a side to the noodles I wanted to create a complimenting spinach salad.  I chose to make a salad dressing reminiscent of that which is often served at Japanese restaurants. 

1/4 cup grated onion

1/2 cup sesame oil

1/3 cup rice wine vinegar

2 tablespoons grated ginger

2 tablespoons ketchup

4 teaspoons soy sauce

4 teaspoons sugar

2 teaspoons lemon juice 

2 cloves mince garlic

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1. Combine the above ingredients in a blender or food processor until well combined. 

Vegan Fried Rice

My youngest son loves rice.  He would eat rice all day long if I let him. I created this recipe in attempt to mix up his rice consumption.  I left out the usual egg that one finds in fried rice and used an extra firm tofu instead. 

2-4 cups white rice cooked (long or medium grain)
3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil, divided
1/2 onion, minced
1 carrot, diced
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 package extra firm tofu
soy sauce, as needed

1. Warm 1 tablespoon of the sesame oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the onion, carrots, peas and corn.  Saute until the onion is translucent, the carrots are slightly softened and the frozen veggies are thawed.  Remove from skillet and set aside.  Crumble the tofu into the same skillet and cook until the tofu is warmed through, slightly browned and all its moisture is released.  Add some soy sauce for flavor. Remove the tofu from the skillet and reserve it with the veggies.  Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of sesame oil, and add the rice a little at a time, sauteing and adding soy sauce for flavor until the rice has absorbed the oil, and the soy sauce.  Add the reserved veggies and tofu to the rice and saute until all is well combined.
2. Serve warm and enjoy!

Sesame Coleslaw

I must have at least a dozen Coleslaw recipes.  I just cannot stop changing them around.  I need to keep better track of them all. Maybe I will publish a Coleslaw only cookbook. 

1 tablespoon sugar

6 tablespoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon honey

pinch of salt

1 package store bought coleslaw mix

1/4 cup chow mein noodles

1. In a large bowl combine the sugar, vinegar, oil, honey, and salt together with a whisk.  Add the coleslaw and toss to properly coat.  Top with the chow mein noodles and enjoy!

Faux Chicken and Mushrooms with Peanuts

This recipe should look familiar to you as it is basically the filling in my Asian Lettuce Cups.  The plan was to have the lettuce for dinner one night, but we could not find the right kind of lettuce at any of our local stores.  Instead to driving to the next town over to look for lettuce, I decided to serve this up over rice and see what everyone thought of it.  Well, it went over very well with the family.  In the original recipe I used Morning Star Farms Chicken starters as my faux chicken.  Unfortunately this product is no longer available in Livermore whatsoever.  I was lucky enough to find a replacement product at Trader Joe's which worked just as well. 

1 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
3 cups sliced shitake mushrooms
1 package Trader Joe's Chickenless Chicken
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoons grated ginger
1 (8 ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained and coarsely chopped
1 cup carrot peelings
1/4 cup unsalted dry roasted peanuts
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons Sriracha sauce (the Rooster stuff~yum)

1. Warm oil in a large skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add the mushrooms and saute until mushrooms begin to release their liquid. Add the Chickenless Chicken, garlic, ginger, water chestnuts, carrot peelings, and dry roasted peanuts. Saute until chick'n strips are tender, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, and Sriracha sauce and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes or until all the flavors are well incorporated.

Szechuan-Style Tempeh

This recipe originally appeared in Joy of Cooking: Vegetarian. As usual I have made some changes to the recipe, so I you want to see the real thing you are going to have to buy the book.

8 ounces tempeh, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
4 tablespoon soy sauce, divided
3 teaspoons fresh minced ginger
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon cracked peppercorn
2 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, divided
1/4 cup smooth peanut butter (I used the natural kind)
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon dry sherry
1 teaspoon chili paste

2 cups sliced, seeded, and peeled cucumbers

1/2 cup jarred roasted red bell peppers

1/4 cup chopped peanuts

1. Combine the tempeh, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, fresh ginger and garlic in a bowl and let stand for 30 minutes (use this time to cook your rice if you are serving over rice).
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of toasted sesame oil in a large skillet and add the tempeh. Cook until browned.
3. In a separate bowl combine 1/4 cup peanut butter, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, dry sherry, 1 tablespoons toasted sesame oil, and chili paste. Whisk until smooth and set aside while tempeh cooks.
4. Place the cucumbers and roasted red peppers on the serving plate. Top with the warm tempeh. Drizzle the sauce over the tempeh and sprinkle with chipped peanuts.
5. Serve over rice or noodles.

Serves 4(calories do not include rice or noodles): 349 calories, 24 grams of fat, 8 grams of fiber

Vegan Wonton Soup

This recipe is meant to give some soup options to the vegan or vegtarian wanting to have a nice Chinese inspired soup. In an effort to make this recipe vegan I decided not to use a egg wash to seal shut the wontons (as was recommend on some cooking sites). This left the wontons rather fragile when cooking and as you can see above some of them opened up. Once could easily lower the cooking time to avoid this, but really the end result was delicious and I would change a thing.

1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms
2 cups slice white mushrooms, divided
16 ounces extra firm tofu, divided and drained (crumbler 8 ounces of the tofu and dice the other 8 ounces)
1 cup thinly sliced bok choy, diveded
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
3 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
1 tablespoon dry sherry
2 teaspoon roster sauce, divided
1 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
20-30 wonton wrappers
5 cups vegetable broth

1. In a large skillet, warm the oil over medium heat. Add the shiitake mushrooms and saute for about 2 minutes. Add 1 cup white mushrooms, 1/2 cup bok choy, and 8 ounces crumbled tofu. Saute until the vegetables are softened and the tofu begins to brown. Add the 1 teaspoon garlic, 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon dry sherry, 1 teaspoon roster sauce, sugar, salt and pepper. Cook until well combined and the vegetables are tender.
2. While the wonton filling cooks, bring 5 cups of vegetable broth to a boil in a large saucepan. Add the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon roster sauce, 1 cup of white mushrooms, 1/2 cup bok choy and the 8 ounces diced tofu. Drop to a simmer and allow to simmer until all the wontons are made.
3. Spoon a little of the vegetable mixture into the wonton and fold according to package directions (this varies based on whether you purchased pot sticker wrappers or egg roll wrappers or something in between). Set aside the wontons until all are complete. Then gently add the wontons to the soup broth. Allow to simmer until the wonton wrappers are cooked. They should begin to float to the service.
4. Serve warm.

Serves 8: 146 calories, 4 grams of fat, and 2 grams of fiber

Asian Lettuce Cups

I have wanted to make these vegetarian for some time, so that Aaron could enjoy them as well. I replaced the chicken with mushrooms and Morning Star Farms vegetarian chicken-like product.

1 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
3 cups sliced shitake mushrooms
1/2 of a package of Morning Star Farms Chick'N Starters
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoons grated ginger
1 (8 ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained and coarsely chopped
1 cup carrot peelings
1/4 cup unsalted dry roasted peanuts
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons Sriracha sauce (the Rooster stuff~yum)
12 Boston lettuce leaves, cleaned

1. Warm oil in a large skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add the mushrooms and saute until mushrooms begin to release their liquid. Add the Morning Star Farms Chickn Strips, garlic, ginger, water chestnuts, carrot peelings, and dry roasted peanuts. Saute until chick'n strips are tender, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, and Sriracha sauce and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes or until all the flavors are well incorporated.
3. Place filling into lettuce cup and enjoy.

Serves 6. Two leaves of lettuce a piece with 1/2 cup filling in each cup. 154 calories, 7 grams of fat

Gado-Gado

This recipe is from the original Moosewood Cookbook. As always, I have made some changes. If you want to see the original, your are gonna have to buy the book. This recipe as such a hit that my youngest son got very excited when he saw the photo of the dish here on my computer. He is going to be very mad when I serve him hot dogs for dinner.

Sauce
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 medium cloves of garlic, minced
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger root
1 cup natural peanut butter (the kind the comes separated)
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon low sodium soy sauce

3 cups water

Underneath the Sauce
1 block of extra firm tofu, drained, squeezed and cut into cubes
1 head of broccoli, chopped into bit size pieces

1. Slice the block of tofu lengthwise into four pieces. Line a cookie sheet of a large cutting board with paper towels. Place the tofu on the paper towels and cover with more paper towels. Top this with another cookie sheet of large cutting board. Place a couple of heavy objects on top of the second cookie sheet/cutting board. Allow the tofu to drain.
2. Meanwhile, place the broccoli into a microwave dish, add about a 1/4 cup of water and cook in high for 2-3 minutes or until the broccoli is properly steamed.
3. Heat the oil over medium high heat in a large saucepan. Saute the onions until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger, cook for an additional 30 seconds. Slowly whisk in the peanut butter until it is smooth. Then add the honey, cayenne pepper, lemon juice, vinegar, salt and soy sauce. Mix until well incorporated, then slowly add in the water, whisking until the sauce is smooth. Bring to a simmer and simmer for 30 minutes.
4. Once the tofu is drain and dried enough, cut it into bite size cubes. Saute the tofu in a dry skillet with a little bit of soy sauce until it is golden brown and just a little bit crispy. Once the tofu is the desired texture and color, turn off the stove, and add the steamed broccoli. Toss them quickly together, cover and set aside until the sauce is done.
5. Place the tofu and broccoli over some rice, and top it with the sauce. Serve warm and enjoy.

This serves 8 people. Per serving (without the rice) 311 calories, 21 grams of fat. That is 1 cup of tofu and veggie with 1/2 cup sauce.