Pan Fried Bacon and Potato

中文菜谱：香煎培根黑椒土豆块

This is our weekend go-to brunch dish.  It is super easy and simple to make, but loaded with tons of flavor.  My husband and I love it so much that we had it as breakfast four days straight during Christmas holiday week.  And we still love it.

There is a local farm near us that produces awesome yellow potatoes.  They come to sell potatoes at local farmer’s market every Wednesday and Saturday. I always buy potatoes from them. When the farmer’s market closed up at the end of October, I bought two buckets of potatoes and stored them in the fridge.  I thought they should last the whole winter.  Well, I was wrong.  They are almost gone in less than 2 months. 

Maybe we eat too much potato, or maybe I am a really good cook...  Hahaha…O(∩_∩)O~

Ingredients：

3 slices of thick cut apple wood smoked bacon
6 to 8 small yellow potatoes
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
2 to 3 sprigs of thyme (optional)
freshly ground black pepper
salt to taste

Directions：

Cut the bacon into bite size.  Clean and rinse the potatoes.  No need to peel them.  Crispy potato skin is a big plus in flavor town.

Heat a cast iron skillet (from amazon)over medium heat.  Add bacon.  Cook until it becomes golden and crispy.  Get them out with a thong.

Add potatoes to the skillet with bacon fat. Cook over medium heat.  Add salt, black pepper, minced garlic and thyme.  Cover; cook until potatoes are cooked through and the outsides become gold and crispy too. Discard the thyme.  

It is indeed a simple and tasty dish.  Remember to flip potatoes from time to time.  It will help prevent them sticking to the bottom because potatoes contain high amount of starch.

If you like potatoes as much as I do, I would strongly recommend this dish. O(∩_∩)O~

Lentil Bean Sprouts Salad

中文菜谱：扁豆小芽菜苗沙拉

I don’t really need to tell you bean sprouts are nutritious, healthy, and good for your body, do I?  I love to grow myself lentil bean sprouts at home.  All I need is quart size mason jars.  It is easy and fun to do so.

My sister and brother-in-law introduced black lentil bean sprouts to us when we were visiting them for thanksgiving holiday.  Black lentil bean sprouts taste better than the yellow one.  They are nutty, crunchy and very refreshing.  I love adding them to my salad, flat bread wraps and sandwiches.  They greatly improve the taste, texture and flavor. 

For each quart size mason jar (which you can buy from amazon),  I use 2 tablespoon black lentils. 

Soak them overnight. Drain well. Cover with cheesecloth or anything you have at hand that can let air in and out.

Rinse and drain the lentil beans once or twice per day.

You will see the sprouts in 2 to 3 days. 

In another 2 to 3 days, they grow longer and bigger.  

In about a week, you can harvest your very own lentil bean sprouts. 

I mostly use them in salad.

Ingredients:

1 tomato, sliced
romaine leaves
1 avocado
A handful lentil bean sprouts
dried cranberry
sliced almond

For salad dressing：

2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 and 1/2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoon honey
salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper

Directions：

Combine balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey, salt and black pepper in a bow.  Whisk until well mixed.

Remove avocado’s skin and core, dice avocado and cut or tear romaine leaves into bite size.

In a big plate, layer the tomato, romaine, avocado, lentil bean sprouts, dried cranberry and sliced almond. Sizzle with balsamic vinegar salad dressing.

Enjoy！

Spicy peanuts

中文菜谱：辣味花生

I like to make my own spicy peanut which goes well with popcorn and soda or beer, the perfect snack combination for stay home movie night.   O(∩_∩)O~

Ingredients:

1 pack dry roasted peanut (1 pound)
1 to 2 tablespoon peanut oil
2tablespoon Sichuan peppercorns, crushed
a handful dry red chili pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
salt to taste

Directions:

Rinse well the dry red chili peppers, pat dry and cut them into small pieces with scissors.

In a large wok, add oil,  Sichuan peppercorns and chili pepper and; cook over medium  low heat.   After they are well toasted, add peanut, sugar and salt. 

Cook over low heat all the time, which doesn’t burn the peanut.   Stir frequently, until the peanut becomes shinny and golden brown and evenly coated with seasoning.   

Because I use dry roasted peanut which doesn’t require long cooking time. Raw peanut should be roasted first before added to the wok.   

Peanuts will become crunchy and crispy after they cool down. 

A perfect snack for movie night! 

Teriyaki chicken with snow peas

中文菜谱: 照烧鸡柳炒甜豆

This is definitely a quick and tasty dish.  I always serve it with a sizzling hot cast iron plate.  Simple dish can be impressive too!  O(∩_∩)O~

Ingredients:

I package of snow pea (8 oz, 227g)
1 large chicken breast or 2 to 3 piece chicken thighs
2 tablespoon teriyaki sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon rice cooking wine
1/4  teaspoon ginger powder/ ground ginger
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
freshly ground black pepper
salt to taste
2 to 3 tablespoon cooking oil 

Directions:

Chicken breast is great for stir fry, but I always prefer chicken thighs which have smoother texture and can be cooked without getting dry like chicken breast meat. 

Rinse the chicken well, pat dry, remove fat and skin and then cut into bite size.  In a glass bowl, combine teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, rice cooking wine, ginger, black pepper, mix well, cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.  

15 minutes before stir fry, take out chicken from refrigerator and let it rest in room temperature for 15 minutes. 

In a large wok, add oil, heat over medium high heat and then add marinated chicken.  Do not stir.  Turn the chicken over when bottom side is golden brown.  When the other side gets golden brown, remove chicken from wok.   Drain the oil back to the wok. 

Add garlic and snow peas, stir fry over medium high heat until the peas become tender and sweet.  Add chicken, add salt and pepper, and stir fry for about 1 minute. 

While stir frying, heat another cast iron skillet until really hot, top with stir fried Teriyaki chicken with snow peas.  Serve immediately.  

Remember that Applebee’s commercial?  Everybody stops talking when the sizzling hot plate comes out of kitchen.  You can have that wonderful moment at home too! 

Stir-Fried Asian Aged Pork Belly with Dried Daikon

中文菜谱： 腊肉炒萝卜干

Asian aged pork belly is actually a great way to preserve pork when meat was scarce and nothing went to waste.  Fresh pork belly is marinated with spices and alcohol and then air-dried for a month or longer.  It is the fermentation process that gives Asian aged pork belly a distinct and unique aroma and taste. 

When I was a little kid back home in Southern China, making Asian aged pork belly and sausage was like a traditional winter event involving the whole family’s effort.  Aged pork belly is easier to make because it doesn’t require chopping and stuffing like the sausage.

Pork belly meat is my favorite when making aged pork belly.  But it is not easy to find in this small northern American town I live.  My husband and I drive to a nearby town where there is a newly opened Asian grocery store. I get my pork belly there.

For all those who don’t want to make Asian aged pork belly and sausage from scratch, they are available in frozen section in most Asian grocery stores.  Dried daikon can be found in pickled vegetable section.

Since I made my own Asian aged pork belly a month ago, I have been waiting so anciently to try it.  I also made some dried daikon a couple days ago. The newly made aged pork belly goes great with dried daikon.  

Ingredients:

1 piece aged pork belly
2 cup chopped dried daikon
1 cup dried red pepper, cut into half inch pieces
1 to 2 tablespoon Sichuan peppercorns
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
1/3 to 1/2 caup chicken broth/water
2 tablespoon soy sauce
3 to 4 tablespoon chopped green oion
2 tablespoon cooking oil
salt to taste

Directions:

Rinse the aged pork belly thoroughly with water and pat dry. 

Steam the jerky for about 20 minutes, and then thinly slice them. 

Dried daikon are chopped into small bit size too。

In a large wok, heat the oil over medium-high heat, along with garlic, Sichuan peppercorns and red peppers.  Add the sliced aged pork belly; stir fry for 3 to 4 minutes.

Add the daikon, stir fry for a couple minutes.

Add chicken broth, soy sauce and salt.  Stir fry over medium-high heat until all the liquid evaporate.  Sprinkle with green onion, stir them well. Serve hot. 

I made 5 pieces this time.  After sampling this dish, my husband decides we will definitely make aged pork belly more next time.  

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