Team KoalaBunny's Adventures

We used to go to Philly's Chinatown for some very authentic Asian food. One of those was amazingly delicious beef noodle soup. Unfortunately such places are not easily accessible here in the Midwest.

Thankfully we had some leftovers from this awesome slow cooker Korean beef (the author of this blog is Korean so I went with her recipe). My beef was the cheap bottom chuck roast section.
http://damndelicious.net/2015/02/21/slow-cooker-korean-beef/

So yours truly consulted several different recipes and made this:

Here are different recipes I consulted:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/taiwanese-beef-noodle-soup-231502
http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014/01/taiwan-eats-taiwanese-beef-noodle-soup-recipe.html
http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-taiwanes-159033
https://food52.com/recipes/20576-my-mom-s-taiwanese-beef-noodle-soup

Here's what I modified due to limited ingredients available here in the Midwest:
6 cups water
1/2-1 cup soy sauce (depends on how much leftover Korean beef you use)
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2-1 tsp ginger powder (depends on how much ginger you like)
3-5 garlic cloves, smashed
10 fresh cilantro, chopped and divided
2 (2 inch long) dried tangerine/mandarin/orange peel
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar combined with 1/2 cup of white grape juice (my substitute for Chinese rice wine, use 1 cup of rice wine if you have access)
1 tsp Chinese 5 spice powder
Leftovers from Korean beef :) (at least 1/2 cup of the broth from that)

Bring water, soy sauce, rice wine substitute, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, cilantro stems, tangerine peel to a boil in a 5- to 6-quart pot, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes. Add Korean beef leftovers and gently simmer.

Meanwhile, cook noodles in a 6- to 8-quart pot of (unsalted) boiling water until tender, about 7 minutes (14 to 15 minutes for linguine). Drain noodles well in a colander and divide among 4 large soup bowls.

You can also add vegetables to the soup part and I'll probably try that later on another day when I have more slow cooker Korean beef leftovers.

These days I really miss the East Coast with its abundance seafood and delicious food. So the other day was fortunate enough to see Old Bay spice in the spice section (took me 10 minutes to find it though). But used this recipe that turned out really great: http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/main-courses/4-minute-fish-crispy-lemon-tilapia/

They say it was only 4 minutes, took me more like 10 minutes though. But they tasted great!

• 1 pound Tilapia Fillets, Skinless
• ¼ teaspoons Kosher Salt (I used sea salt)
• ⅛ teaspoons Black Pepper
• 3 Tablespoons Whole Wheat Flour (I only had regular salt)
• 1 Tablespoon "Old Bay" Or Similar Seasoning (I was ready to make my own: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/homemade-old-bay-seasoning-recipe-52622321)
• 1 whole Lemon, Zest And Juice Only, Divided
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• ¼ Tablespoons Butter (just A Tiny Sliver, Basically!)
• 1 Tablespoon Fresh Parsley, Minced (I thought this was essential)

Lightly season both sides of the tilapia fillets with kosher salt and pepper to taste.
On a separate plate, mix the flour, seasoning and lemon zest.
Lightly dredge each tilapia fillet in the flour mixture, coating each side and pressing coating onto flesh so that it sticks.
In a large non-stick skillet, heat olive oil and butter over medium-high heat. Place the coated fish in the skillet and let it cook, untouched, for 2 minutes. Flip the fish and cook for 2 more minutes on the other side, leaving it untouched in the pan during this time.
Remove fish to a platter. Squeeze the lemon juice over the fish. If desired, garnish with fresh parsley and lemon slices. Serve immediately.

 Here's the results for us :)

Allrecipes.com has this awesome recipe that I love.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/71722/asian-lettuce-wraps/

Just in case they ever took this down (I'll be very sad) here's a copy of it:

A head of lettuce leaves (large leaves will do)
1 lb lean ground beef
1 tbsp cooking oil
1 large onion - chopped
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 tsp minced pickled ginger (I use ginger powder)
1 tbsp sesame oil
a dash of chile pepper sauce

I usually cook rice to go with this for the lettuce wrap.

1. Rinse whole lettuce leaves and pat dry, being careful not tear them. Set aside.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir beef and cooking oil in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain and discard grease; transfer beef to a bowl. Cook and stir onion in the same skillet used for beef until slightly tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Stir hoisin sauce, garlic, soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, and chile pepper sauce into onions. Add sesame oil and cooked beef; cook and stir until the onions just begin to wilt, about 2 minutes.
3. Arrange lettuce leaves around the outer edge of a large serving platter and pile meat mixture in the center. 
   

Living in the middle of nowhere forces you to cook a lot of foods you have cravings for but no access to. Thai food is one of them. Unless we were willing to drive about an hour down south to the bigger city one is really left to find the best recipe and run with it.

Thai curry can get pretty involved so I just tried my hands at the easiest recipes here. I combined them and will probably write it down later.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/73737/thai-curry-tofu/

http://minimalistbaker.com/30-minute-coconut-curry/

Made a fun recipe that satisfied my pizza cravings:

I have a suspicion it is a high calorie party food but it was fun to make and bake. 

Here's one of the easier recipes without too many annoying ads. I might get around to perfecting this more and jot down my own recipe later.
http://www.just2sisters.com/party-food-easy-biscuit-pull-apart-pizza-bread-recipe/

Here's what it looked like for us:

Courtesy of Taste of Home's Quick Cooking Annual Recipes 2000 Book.
(page 305 if you're curious).

Here's what they listed
1 egg
1 tbsp water
3/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 cup dry bread crumbs
4 boneless skinless chicken halves
4 tbsp olive or vegetable oil - divided
4 medium tomatoes - sliced
5 medium zucchini - sliced
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese - divided
2 tsp minced fresh basil

Serves 4
In bowl, beat eggs, water, 1/2 tsp salt and pepper. Place crumbs in resealable plastic bag. Dip chicken into egg mixture and put into bag and shake to coat.
In skillet, cook chicken for 2-3 minute in 2 tbsp oil on each side or until golden brown, remove and set aside.
In same skillet, saute zucchini in remaining oil until crisp-tender; drain and transfer to 13 in x 9 inch x 2 in baking dish.
Sprinkle with 1/3 cup of cheese. Then top with tomato slices. Sprinkle with 1/3 cup of cheese. Top with chicken and sprinkle remaining cheese, basil and salt.
Cover and bake at 400 degree for 30 minutes.

Here's what it turned out like for us:

Courtesy of Taste of Home's Quick Cooking Annual Recipes 2000 Book.
We had some orange juice I really wanted to use up so went for this even though it was a grill/broil recipe which I don't do so just stuck it in the oven as baked chicken (page 103 if you're curious).


Here's what they listed:
1 cup orange juice
1/4 cup olive or vegetable oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon dried rosemary, crushed
1 tablespoon dried thyme (we used cilantro)
8 boneless chicken breast halves (2 lbs)

Serves 8
Combine orange juice, oil, garlic cloves, rosemary & thyme (or whatever other spices you have). Pour half into large resealable plastic bag. Refrigerate the remaining marinade for basting.
Add chicken to large plastic bag; seal & toss to coat. Refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Drain and discard marinade in plastic bag after use.
The recipes then says to grill chicken, uncovered, over medium heat or roil 4 in. from the heat for 3 minutes on each side. Baste with reserved marinade. Continue cooking for 6-8 minutes or until meat juices run clear.
But we didn't have grill and I never broil stuff so just stuck it into the over at 400 degrees for an hour depending on your oven.

Here's what it turned out like for us:

Courtesy of Taste of Home's Quick Cooking Annual Recipes 2000 Book.
(page 120 if you're curious).

Here's what they listed
2 cooked pork chops
Salt and pepper to taste (We use Trader Joe's 21 seasoning or Costco's No salt seasoning)
1 can (8 oz) apricot halves (un-drained)

Serves 2
Thaw pork chops if frozen.
Place in an ungreased 8 inch square baking dish. Sprinkle with salt & pepper.
Pour Apricots over the chops.
Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes until heated through.

Here's what it turned out like for us:

Growing up in a Chinese restaurant, lo mein is one of our stables that many customers order. Back when we had the restaurant in the buffet style it was also one of the dishes I replaced many times on the buffet table. I also know it is a favorite among families with small kids as I've had to clean many a high chair and the floor surrounding it with napkins to pull these noodles off. But out here in the middle of nowhere it is hard to get the egg noodles that restaurants make their lo mein out of but I've managed to make it taste somewhat like those noodles I knew. Although to be honest, the standard is pretty low as lo mein is more of an American Chinese food rather than an authentic Chinese dish.

This should only take about 20 minutes and normally serves 4 (around 2 if you're in our family *lol*)

The sauce is the most important part:
3 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce (or a combination of light/dark soy sauce like what this Minnesota blogger did: http://pinchofyum.com/lo-mein)
1 tablespoons of honey or 2 teaspoons of brown sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon Sriracha, or whatever spicy sauce you'd like to add in

8 ounces noodles
1 tablespoon sesame oil (extra virgin olive oil is fine too but sesame oil is better)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion
2-3 cups of julienne cut or chopped vegetables (peppers, carrots, broccoli, mushrooms) you can also use other vegetables like spinach and snow peas (which is what I did in this picture)
Any proteins you like to add is optional. Make sure to cook it before you put in the vegetables in step 3, take it out when you do the vegetables and then add it back in with the noodles.

1. Mix the sauce together, put aside
2. Make the noodles according to package instructions, drain
3. Heat oil in wok or whatever large hot pan you have on hand. Put in onions and garlic until they caramelize. Then add in the vegetables (put those that are slow to cook first, like carrots, peppers and broccoli first and then the faster to cook ones like mushroom and spinach). Around 3-5 minutes.
4. Put the noodles in and sauce (the noodles should turn medium brown, you might have to mix more sauce if you don't get this color) gently combine. Then serve :)

Here are my results: