Sweet & Sour Un-Stuffed Cabbage Soup

We adore stuffed cabbage but making it can be awfully time consuming. Enter Un-Stuffed Cabbage Soup, tastes just as delicious and takes just a fraction of the work and time to make.  We make this for a quick hearty meal in the pressure cooker which cuts the time even more, but it’s just as easily made in a pot on the stovetop.
Sweet & Sour Un-Stuffed Cabbage Soup 

• olive oil
• 1/2 lb chuck steak, 1/2-inch dice, seasoned with salt & pepper
• 1 lg onion, diced
• 8-10 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 lb ground beef
• 2 medjool dates, chopped
• 1/4 cup raisins
• juice of one lemon
• 1 tsp. sour salt
• 28 oz. can whole plum tomatoes
• 15 oz. can diced tomatoes
• 4 c. chicken or beef stock
• 1 small head green cabbage, roughly chopped
• salt & pepper to taste

(I make this in a pressure cooker but you can use a soup pot.)
Heat the olive oil and then sear the chuck steak cubes on all sides until browned. Remove the steak from the pot and set aside.  To the same pot add the onions and sauté until they begin to caramelize.  Add the garlic and ground beef and cook until the beef is browned.  Return the steak to the pot and add all the remaining ingredients.  Cook until the cabbage is tender. (I use a pressure cooker, 15 minutes at high pressure and then I let it cool to reduce the pressure instead of just releasing the valve)  Salt and pepper to to taste.  This is good the first day but gets better after it sits a day or two.
Enjoy!

Crack Slaw

So a friend of ours (hi Heather!! Big wave!) posted a picture and recipe for a dish called Crack Slaw. It looked like a simple and delicious dish so we decided to give it a try.  Heather said that it’s one of those dishes that you adjust the amounts to make it your own and that’s just what we did.  Here is our delicious version of Crack Slaw.  Crack Slaw

• 1 lb. ground beef 
• 2 tsp. Red Boat Fish Sauce
• fresh ground pepper
• 2 TBS. toasted sesame oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 scallions (green onions,)  white and green parts sliced in rings
• 1 TBS. minced fresh ginger
• 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes, more or less to your desired heat
• 1 lb coleslaw mix with carrots
• 2 TBS. coconut aminos
• 1 tsp. kombucha vinegar, or white vinegar

In a large skillet brown the ground beef and season with the fish sauce and ground pepper.  Remove from pan and set aside.  In the same pan, heat the sesame oil and sauté the garlic, green onions, ginger & red pepper flakes until fragrant.  Add the coleslaw mix and cook until desired tenderness. (I like it so that it still had a bit of crunch.)  Stir in the coconut aminos and the vinegar and add back in the reserved beef and any accumulated juices.  Serve hot or cold, great either way!.

Enjoy!

Pork Dumplings with Rice Wrappers

Happy Chinese New Year ~~ Year of the Dragon ~~ Gung Hay Fat Choy!!! 新年快樂

Maisie is my dumpling loving girl and how could I have her celebrate Chinese New Year without her beloved dumplings.  But now with her food allergies to wheat, egg whites and milk, I’ve had to find new ways of making her favorite foods so enter, dumplings made with rice paper wrappers.  I didn’t have to make any changes to my filling recipe, it was only replacing the traditional wheat based dumpling wrapper with the rice paper wrapper.  I couldn’t make traditional shaped dumplings so I tried cigar and rectangular shaped and both worked out well as far as wrapping went.  I then tried steaming the dumplings and though they were wonderful, the wrapper just didn’t want to stay on so I tried pan frying and it was a success.  The dumplings were absolutely delicious and we all love them so these are the dumplings which the Cook Lisa Cook household will be enjoying from now on.  I made a huge tray of dumplings, fried them all up and then on a Silpat lined baking sheet I froze them (don’t allow them to touch one another.)  I then was able to transfer the fully cooked individually frozen dumplings to FoodSaver zipper bags and then I vacuumed out all the air using my FoodSaver .  This way whenever Maisie wants some dumplings I can easily pull out as many as she wants and heat them up and then easily seal up the rest so to keep them fresh and freezer burn-free.     

Pork Dumplings with Rice Wrappers

2.3 pounds ground pork
1.5 pounds Napa cabbage, shredded
3 TBS fresh grated ginger
6 large scallions, whites & greens sliced
12 TBS soy sauce 
3 TBS Shaoxing wine
3 TBS sesame oil 
1 package rice paper wrappers, round 16 cm

In a large bowl combine the ground pork, shredded cabbage, ginger, scallions, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine and sesame oil and mix well.  To make the dumplings, one by one quickly soak a rice paper round in some warm water until pliable.  Lay the wrapper on a work surface and place some of the pork mixture in the center of the round.  Fold the rice paper around the pork as you would for an egg roll or wrap sandwich.  Lay the wrapped dumpling on a Silpat or oiled parchment paper lined baking sheet.  When ready to fry, heat a very thin layer of peanut oil (or oil of your choice) in a large fry pan.  Fry up both sides of the dumpling until the pork is cooked through and the wrapper is golden brown. 

Serve with Dumpling Dipping Sauce

Dumpling Dipping Sauce

2 tsp sesame oil
1/4 cup seasoned soy sauce for seafood (bottle will say "ideal for steamed fish")
3 TBS Shaoxing wine or rice wine
1 TBS rock sugar
2  teaspoons grated peeled ginger root
1 clove garlic, minced finely 
1 small chili pepper, thinly sliced into "coins"
4 TBS cilantro, medium chopped
1 scallion thinly sliced, mostly into rings and then some longer thin strips from the green end

In a pot over medium heat stir everything but the scallion together until the sugar melts and then allow to simmer for 3-4 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in scallion.  Allow to cool.  Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  I have kept this for a month and it's still great.  (I usually double this one as it keeps for so long)

Enjoy!!

Pulled BBQ Chicken Sandwich

One of the ways we enjoy the meat from my “Rotisserie” Chicken is in Pulled BBQ Chicken Sandwiches. 

These sandwiches are delicious, a hot buttered and grilled bun topped with hot pulled BBQ chicken and topped with some nice cold and creamy Copycat “KFC” Coleslaw…DELISH and oh-so easy!

With this sandwich we like soft, white, fluffy buns without any seeds or fancy stuff.   I butter the cut side and grill it in a pan until it’s crispy and golden brown.  The chicken couldn’t be easier as there are just two ingredients, “Rotisserie” Chicken and your favorite bbq sauce (we like K.C. Masterpiece original) mixed together until it tastes how you like, easy peasy lemon squeezy.  The coleslaw is my super simple Copycat “KFC” Coleslaw recipe which can be made a day or so in advance so go check it out and make this sandwich as you won’t be disappointed.

Enjoy!

Copycat “KFC” Coleslaw

For the most part I am not a fried chicken lover and on my own I don’t ever choose to visit KFC but Eammon does enjoy their chicken and I have found that I am quite fond of their coleslaw.  Since I’m not going to run to KFC every time I’m in the mood for some creamy coleslaw I had to figure out a way to get my fix when the craving strikes so after a little search of the internet I was happily making coleslaw at home that tastes spot on to the original.

I am not linking to a source because you can find this recipe all over the internet.  Give it a try as it really does taste just like the coleslaw you’ll find at KFC. 

Copycat “KFC” Coleslaw

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup buttermilk
2 1/2 TBS lemon juice
1 1/2 TBS white vinegar 
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
8 cups finely chopped cabbage (about 1 head)
1/4 cup finely chopped carrot
2 tablespoons finely minced onion

Make sure cabbage and carrots are chopped up into very fine pieces (about the size of rice).

Combine the mayonnaise, sugar, milk, buttermilk, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper in a large bowl and beat until smooth.  Add the cabbage, carrots, and onion, and mix well.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

Enjoy!