Recipe of the Week

1 must of eaten this dish hundreds of times during my time in Taiwan. I never got tired of it and I have been trying to find a recipe just like what I had there for the last almost 6 years. I finally have the perfect recipe that brings back so many memories for Mike ad I. I know you all with just devour this like I do so I hope it goes on your list of to try soon recipes. The pepper does make it a litte spicy which I love but if you don"t then put less pepper. It was a favourite amoung missionaries so that tells you it is not too foreign tasting and even similar to some thinng we are used to eating here.

 Beef in Gravy over Rice 牛肉燴飯

250 grams Beef tenderloin
1/2 carrot sliced on a slant
1/2 onion, cut in chumks
1 green onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
400 ml or 1 3/4 cups water
1 cup roughly chopped spinach or other green
1 Tbsp. starch mixed with 1 Tbsp. water or 3 Tbsp. lotus root powder

Beef marinade:
1 egg white
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp. beef boullion

1 Tbsp. starch

Seasonings:
3 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. oyster sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
1/2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. ground black pepper

Thinly slice beef against the grain. This is easiest when it is mostly frozen with a very sharp non-serrated knife. Mix egg white, soy sauce and beef boullion into beef and let rest 30 minutes then stir in starch. Prep vegetables. Heat wok over high heat and add a lttle oil. Stir-fry beef until cooked through then remove. Heat a little oil and add onion, garlic, green onion and carrot. Stir-fry until onion starts to soften. Add water, seasonings and beef. Simmer a couple minutes then add the starch and water mixture and stir until lightly thickened. Take off the heat and stir in spinach and a little, little sprinkle of sesame oil.

Recipe of the Week

I love sushi. I must admit though it wasn't love at first taste. It was in Beijing were I finally had some really good sushi and was hooked. Cooking it at home you can control the quality of nori seaweed (makes a big difference) and the filling is totally up to you which makes a difference if you don't care for the common fillings you see commercially. I love to stuff it with chicken curry or left over grilled or beaded meats or strips of omelet. This also means my husband can enjoy it as well because he is not a fan of the common sushi fillings.Green onion or leek adds a nice kick in flavor. For nori seaweed sheets, at the Asian supermarket in Lethbridge it is labeled gold, silver and bronze for quality. I am sure other markets would have a similar way or some other way to let costumers know the quality of nori they are buying. I love pickled ginger, wasabi soy sauce but you can do whatever you like. Hey if your favourite condiment is ketchup, why not. Ketchup is a great condiment for rice. They put the two together often in asia. Japanese omurice is a good example and it is sooo delicious. By my third time time making sushi I was able to get a nice tight roll. Think I learned is go light on the rice, just a thin thin layer and only two thirds down the nori sheet. Go light on the filling as well only about 1 cm thick. Also pushing down on the it while pulling the bamboo mat. I also just bought the sushi seasoning but you can make your own. It contains stuff most people have around such as sugar, vinegar, salt...
Sushi
1 cup uncooked rice
3 Tbsp. sushi seasoning
filling of choice
3 nori seaweed sheets

Wash rice and then soak in 11/4 cups water for 20 minutes. Cook rice as normal then take off the heat an leave covered for an additional 10 minutes. Mix sushi seasoning into the rice and spread out on a plate and let it cool completely. Place a nori sheet between two damp paper towel and press down just to slightly dampen it and make it more pliable. Place nori sheet at the top of the bamboo mat. Dampen hands to prevent rice from sticking and then spread a very thin layer of rice over two thirds of the nori sheet. Place the filling half way down the area covered in rice. Dampen the end of the nori to help it adhere when rolled up. Roll up using the bamboo mat. Press down on the roll while pulling the bamboo over itself all the way until it releases the sushi roll. Repeat with the remaining two nori sheets. Cut with a dampened knife.

A cute little jada moment

While at church today, Jada was looking at a book called "I love you because you are you". After we were done, she put the book away and then looked up at me with her big brown eyes and said "Daddy, you love me, don't you." I replied "Yes Jada, I do love you." She then gave me a hug and said "I love you too daddy." It was just a very sweet little moment between Jada and I.
This is one of the best things about being a dad!

Recipe of the Week

Cashew Chicken Stir-fry

3 boneless  skinless chicken breast, cut into small bite sized pieces

1 cup cashew nuts

1 small red bell pepper, cut into 1/2 inch sized pieces

2 teaspoons fresh minced ginger

3 green onions cut into 1 inch segments

1 small head of broccoli

2 egg whites
2 Tbsp. starch

Sauce Ingredients:

2 tablespoon oyster sauce

3 Tbsp. soy sauce

¼ cup chicken broth

1 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoon brown sugar

2 teaspoon rice wine

1 teaspoon chili paste or 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper flakes

3 cloves minced garlic

½ teaspoon sesame oil

¼  tsp. starch

Beat egg whites until froathy. Beat in starch until smooth. Mix chicken with egg whites and starch then let rest 30 minutes.

While the chicken is marinating start some rice.

Mix the sauce ingredients together and set aside.

Pour out excess egg white mixture from chicken. Heat up a large skillet with 2 tablespoon of cooking oil and stir-fry the chicken meat until the color turns white and is just barely cooked through. Check one of the larger pieces. Dish out into a bowl and set aside.

Add another 1 tablespoon of cooking oil into the skillet and add in the Ginger, Bell Pepper and broccoli.
Stir-fry for a minute then add ¼ cup of water and cover and let steam 3 minutes or so. Add the chicken meat back in.
Add in the cashews  and green onions and stir everything together.
Add in the sauce and stir continuously until lightly thickened.
Add salt to taste, and serve the Cashew Chicken over white rice.

Unexpected Announcement

I hinted at being pregnant in my last post but now that it has been confirmed by the doctor we feel comfortable announcing it. We are having our third child due oct.9th. We like to joke that we are 1 percenters because i was on birth control pills which claim to be 99% effective. Even though we were hoping for a little break we are thrilled to have another child enter our family. Jada and Makayla are so special to us, we love them alot and already feel the same towards our unborn child. It is exciting because I get to be pregnant along with both my sister and sister-in-law. Number three will mean alot of changes; larger vehicle, larger housing, another bed, bigger stroller, more car seats in the back seat. It is an exciting change. Our plans for scuba diving are being post poned for me until after the baby is born. Mike is still going ahead with scuba classes and he will wait for me to do a diving trip to the coast.
Makayla is 10 months, Jada was about the same so they will all be between 17-19 months apart.

Yesterday jada found a book that I had made some notes in and she told me "Mommy, don't color books you color paper". She got me some paper and had me draw on the paper. It was really funny. When she was going to bed last night she told us Jada is a big sister, I like being a big sister, and makayla is a little sister. We told her, makayla is going to be a big sister too soon and Jada is going to be a big sister twice. She seemed very pleased with that.

Makayla loves food. Jada is going through a bird stage and so often Makayla eats her food and then whatever jada didn't eat. People who see her eat are amazed at where all that food is going. No words yet but she practices alot with sounds. She is getting pretty sturdy on her feet maybe she will be walking by her first birthday.