Dinner and American Idol

While waiting for the American Idol much awaited result, I whipped up some healthy and savory dinner. The show had so much commercials and fundraising in between for two hours, so to make time more useful, I spent half of the time in the kitchen. One good thing about having a kitchen and dining open floor plan, you can cook and still be able to see what is going on in the living room.

I usually don't cook elaborate dish because my husband is on special diet, my daugher is very choosy of the foods she eats, and so I often find myself digging for leftover in the refrigerator. Tonight, I was all pumped up and ready to get dirty in the kitchen, eyes fixed on the television part of the time.

Tofu and Shrimp Stir Fry dish came to my mind. Lucky, I had all the ingredients in the refrigerator: cube of tofu, shrimps, pechay (bok choi), lots of garlic, ginger, soy sauce, sweet soy, and chinese vinegar.

It came out really delicious! It was so easy to fix, and it is healthy. If you want the recipe, please let me know and I will try to come up with one, otherwise, bon appetit!

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

tofu
shrimps
pechay
light soy sauce
sweet soy
chinese wine vinegar
thin strips ginger
crushed garlic


Per the picture, cut the tofu into cubes of your size preference. Marinate in generous soy sauce, 1 T (tablespoon) of sweet soy, and 1 t (teaspoon) of wine vinegar, strips of ginger, and lots of crushed garlic for half an hour.

Put 2 T of olive oil in pan and brown the tofu cubes on each side on medium heat.


De-shell the shrimps, (de-vein if you wish), and add some soy 1 T of soy sauce, 1 t of sweet soy, 1/2 t of wine vinegar, and 1 t of cornstarch. Let it soak for 5 to 10 minutes.

Wash pechay and cut into bite size. I like to blanch it in hot water with a teaspoon of oil before I add it to the dish the last minute.

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in the pan, add garlic, and ginger from the tofu marinade, and fry it gently until golden brown. Add the shrimps, stir fry until brown. Add the browned tofu, the veggies and mix all together. The cooking shouldn't take long. For gravy, use the tofu marinade, add some broth liquid or water to make 1/4 cup. Add a heaping teaspoon of cornstarch and mix well. Add to the dish and let it thicken and mix everything together.

Remove from pan and pour it on the serving plate. It should look like this. You may add some chopped green onions for garnishing.

Note: I just poured out whatever it felt right so the measurements that I gave you may not be accurate especially for the gravy. On this particular dish, I used light soy.

Turon with Cinnamon

I had friends over at my house last week and I thought of serving them some filipino delicacy. I saw some ripe Saba bananas in my fruit basket and turon first came to mind. I remembered I had a package of lumpia wrappers in my freezer so I quickly thawed it out.

My friends were watching me in the kitchen while I was preparing the turon. I sliced the banana into three equal parts, lengthwise. I rolled one slice over a pre-mixed brown sugar and cinnamon powder, I added a strip of ripe jackfruit (from the jar I bought in oriental store). I rolled it up and sealed the ends of the turon with water.

I didn't use much oil because I only cooked a small batch, reason why it had spots on them, probably from melted sugar at the bottom of the pan.

You know what, my American and Japanese friends loved it. My husband thought it resembled the taste of an apple pie. It disappeared quickly from the table.

A Different Approach to Cooking

Here's how the packet of Vege Fresh Fish looks like (for dangkin) The picture on the left is showing only half of the diameter of the packet.

Does this dish look appetizing to you? Do they look like fish steaks? Well, this is actually a vegetarian dish made out of soy. Believe me, you will love it. Even the picky eater like my daughter ate it with gusto. My husband thought it was because of the sauce that I whipped together to spread over the dish. Nah, the veggie fish steak itself was good.

You know where I got it? From the oriental store in Phoenix, called Lee Lee. It costs a little over $6.00 but it makes a meal for the whole family. One slice was enough to fill me up plus a veggie side dish, of course. It is a good alternative for meatless dinner and it is healthy.

It was so simple to cook. I pan fried each side until light golden brown. Then I chopped some red and bell pepper, some mushrooms, onions, slices of ginger and threw it all in the pan and cooked it until transluscent. I added a tablespoon of blackbean garlic sauce for flavor. Let it simmer for 2 to 3 minutes. Then I spread it over the dish. Finally, I opened a package of brown gravy and boiled it up as per instructions. I then poured it over the whole dish. There you go, a delectable meatless dinner.

My Comfort Food

I don't have that much of a free time today to write a longer post so I will be as brief as possible. My friend is meeting me in half an hour for a walk in the mountains. Of course, I will take my camera along in case I find interesting scenes that strike my fancy.

The pictures above are the kind of food that I crave for and look forward eating when I get a day off like today. I spent a few hours cooking these dishes this morning. I love fish. I can eat fish practically everyday and never get tired of it. I usually cook it in sour broth with plenty of veggies. This time, I tried the different approach...steaming inspired by Chateau. Boy, it is delicious. Steamed fresh pompano is awesome. You should try it.

First, I washed the fish and patted it dry. Then I sliced some ginger and spread it on top of the fish. I added about a tablespoon of soy sauce and steamed it for half an hour or until it is done. Of course, I checked the fish every now and then to make sure I didn't overcook the fish. When the steaming was over, I shredded some green onions and placed it on top of the fish. I then heated up some olive oil to a sizzle and poured it on the fish. You know when the oil is hot enough because it makes a hissing sound when poured on the steamed fish. Then I added another tablespoon of soy sauce.

Before I eat my meal, I usually eat fresh fruits. Many of you may wonder. Simply because it helps me avoid overeating since I am usually half way full after eating the whole mango or banana. Also, I discover that when I eat my meal in this particular order, I feel much better. I don't feel gassy and stuffed.

I also cooked togi today(stir-fry mong sprouts, tofu, and slices of pork). For some reason, I can't seem to eat a meal without vegetables. I can get by eating veggies and rice only even without fish and meat but not the other way around. I have to have those greens on my plate, whether it is salad or steamed veggies.

At work, I try to eat as little as possible because I tend to get sleepy when I eat huge meal. My kind of job requires me to be alert on the road at all times. Besides, it is difficult to work when stomach is full. Therefore, I usually go for veggie tuna salad or avocado sandwich, which is not only light but also healthy. Notice the salad is placed on top of a tray of letters. I took during my lunch break in my vehicle. You see, I do carry my camera to work but not often as it can be a nuisance.

Ooops, I have five minutes to drive to our meeting place.