Spicy Noodle with pickled Vegetable and Ground Pork

 中文： 雪菜肉碎拌面

Noodle to Chinese people is just like pasta to Italians. We are obsessed with it and devoted to create many, many, many varieties.

I, too, love to make noodle from scratch at home.  They are mostly for breakfast.  I usually make dough and toppings ahead of time so that I can make noodle soup fast in the morning. 

Ingredients：

1 cup bread flour
1/4 cup of water
a pinch of salt

Pickled vegetable and ground pork toppings：

1/2 package of chopped pickled vegetable (available in any Asian grocery store)
1 cup ground pork
2 gloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
1 slice of ginger root, minced
freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4  to 1/2 cup chicken stock, hot
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon garlic water (minced garlic in water)
1/4 teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper corns
2 to 3 tablespoon chili oil sauce (available in any Chinese grocery store. I use homemade version.)
1/2  teaspoon sugar
chopped cilantro
roasted soy beans
chopped green onion
salt to taste
2 tablespoons oil for cooking ground pork

Directions：

In a medium bowl, combine bread flour, salt and water.  Mix them together and then knead into a smooth dough ball.  Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for at least 1 hour.

Heat a wok over high heat.  Add oil to the wok, along with garlic and ginger.  Add ground pork and salt, black pepper and oyster sauce.  Stir fry the ground pork on high heat until the pork is golden brown.  Add chopped pickled vegetable.  Stir fry for a couple more minutes.  Remove from heat.

Bring a large pot of water to boil.

Run the dough through kitchenaid pasta roller several times until the dough is smooth out.  Set the thickness to 3 and run it through one more time.

Use the pasta cutter attachment to cut it into spaghetti size noodle.

Isn’t it beautiful? O(∩_∩)O~

Cook the noodle in boiling water for 30 to 45 seconds.  Drain and transfer to a bowl.

Add cooked ground pork, chicken stock, soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic water, ground Sichuan pepper corns, chili oil sauce, sugar, salt, cilantro, green onion and roasted soy beans.

Mix well with a pair of chopsticks.  Now it is time to enjoy a bowl of tasty noodle!

Shrimp Cocktail

中文： 鸡尾虾

Is there any appetizer simpler and easier than this one?  I don’t think so.  I love to serve shrimp cocktail when I host a party or have companies because it takes no time to prepare and look great! 

Cocktail sauce is also sold in any grocery store.  I just prefer to make my own version because I like it spicy with a gentle hint of tomato taste. O(∩_∩)O~

Ingredients：

1 pound fresh or frozen jumbo shrimps
1/4 cup siracha hot sauce
1 to 2 tablespoons ketchup
freshly ground black pepper
salt to taste

Cook the shrimps in boiling water for two minutes.  Drain well and place them in a large plate. 

In a small bowl, combine siracha hot sauce, ketchup, black pepper and salt.  Whisk them together and it is ready to be served with shrimps together.

It is so easy that even people with no cooking skills can nail it too.

Raisin Brioche Bread

中文：葡萄干BRIOCHE面包

Both my husband and I prefer rich, sweet, fluffy and soft bread.  And I always prefer to make them from scratch at home, not just because they taste better when freshly out the oven but also because I have so much fun in the bread making process.  It feels kind of relaxing and calming when I make bread in my own kitchen.  

I always make them in loaf shape so that I can use the leftover to make brioche French toast which is another breakfast favorite in the house.  (I posted French toast with blueberry sauce before: http://www.yankitchen.com/blog/cinnamon-swirl-french-toast). 

Brioche bread ingredients：

320 g bread flour
2 tablespoons honey
40 g butter, softened and diced
2 large eggs
130 g whole milk
40 g sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon yeast
1/8 teaspoon salt
raisins
brown sugar
ground cinnamon
egg wash
white sesame seeds

The whole process is quite similar to the raisin bread I posted before:http://www.yankitchen.com/blog/2014/10/18/2-1

Directions：

Heat the milk in microwave for 30 seconds; add the milk to bread machine container; dissolve yeast into the warm milk; and let it sit for 5 minutes.

Add eggs, flour, sugar, salt and honey; start dough cycle.  My bread machine (Amazon this one) will knead the dough for 20 minutes and proof for an hour.  When kneading is done, abort the cycle; add diced butter; and start the dough cycle again. It will knead for another 20 minutes, which should be able to get the dough past window panel test.

When the dough is doubled in size, transfer it to a well dusted wooden board.  Gently press down and knead for a minutes; cover and let it sit for 10 minutes.

Divide the dough into three equal pieces.  Roll each piece out; sprinkle with brown sugar, cinnamon and raisins; and then roll them up from one end.

Braid all three rolls into a large loaf and place it in a greased loaf pan (amazon link); cover; and let it proof again for another 30 to 50 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350F/204 C.

Brush the bread with egg wash.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds.  Bake for 30 to 35 minutes.  Cover the bread with a large piece of foil if necessary to prevent dark color on top.

Cool the bread on the cooling rack.  Store the bread in a bread bag.

My favorite way to enjoy it is to slice it thinly and tear them apart with my fingers.  

Turkey Taco

 中文：火鸡肉TACO

I have a large piece of grilled turkey breast leftover, a avocado, tomatoes and cilantro in the refrigerator.  So, I guess we are meant to have tacos tonight! O(∩_∩)O~

Ingredients：

6 crispy taco shells
1 large piece of grilled turkey breast
2 medium tomatoes
1 avocado
1/2  lime
1 teaspoon honey
freshly ground black pepper
salt to taste
chopped cilantro
chopped jalapeño
shredded cheese

Directions:

Dice the grilled turkey and tomatoes.  Squeeze out the lime juice.

Slice avocado into halves.  Remove the seed with a knife or spoon.  Spoon the avocado flesh into a bowl.  Smash it with a fork. Whisk in lime juice, honey, black pepper and salt.  

Add a layer of diced turkey to taco shells, and then 1 or 2 tablespoons guacamole; sprinkle with chopped jalapeno, cilantro and tomatoes; and then top with shredded cheese. 

It is indeed fast and simple, and delicious! O(∩_∩)O~

Chicken Noodle Soup

中文： 鸡汤小面

The chicken noodle soup I am talking about is most likely completely different from what you are thinking about.  Our chicken noodle soup is made with long thin noodle, chicken stock, and a variety of toppings and seasonings.  What is in common with American chicken noodle soup is that it is also our comfort food.

I use egg and water to make noodle dough which can make noodle more elastic and al dente.

Ingredients for noodle dough：

1 cup of bread flour
1/4 cup liquid: half egg + half water
a pinch of salt

Seasonings and toppings：

Chicken stock (either homemade or store bought one is fine)
Sichuan style pickled vegetable (available in Asian grocery store)
Sichuan style chili sauce (also available in Asian grocery store but I prefer to use homemade one )
smashed garlic
Sichuan peppercorn oil (available in Asian grocery store)
sesame oil
soy sauce
sugar
salt
chopped green onion
chopped cilantro
fried soy beans
dry roasted peanuts, finely chopped

Directions:

Combine flour, salt, water and egg in a medium bowl, knead until a smooth dough forms.  Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for at least an hour.

Run the dough through kitchen aid （AMAZON link) pasta roller (AMAZON link) several times. 

Set the thickness to 4 and run the dough for one last time.

While making the noodle dough, heat a large pot with water over high heat.  bring it to boil.

Use the pasta cutter to make long thin noodle.

Tadah! Freshly homemade noodle!

Spread them out a little bit.  

Cook the noodle in boiling water for about 40 to 50 seconds, drain well and place the noodle into soup bowls.  Add chicken stock, pickled vegetable, chili sauce, garlic, Sichuan peppercorn oil, sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar, salt; and then top with green onion, cilantro, soy beans and peanuts.

Isn't it beautiful?

Time to enjoy! O(∩_∩)O~