Tag: black bean sauce
Minced Chicken with Black Bean Sauce
- 1 pound minced chicken (thighs)
- 1 tablespoons tamari
- 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
Add the chicken to a medium bowl. Dissolve the corn starch in the rice vinegar and tamari. Add the corn starch mixture, mix well and marinate for 2 to 3 hours. Keep refrigerated.
Sauce
- ¼ cup black bean sauce
- 2 tablespoons sweet chili sauce
Mix the black bean and sweet chili sauce. Keep aside.
- 2 to 3 bunches broccolini, cut the tops off and chop; cut the green stalks and chop, keep aside
- 2 tablespoons extra light olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves, grated
- 1 inch ginger, grated
Heat a wok like saucepan with the olive oil. Add the broccolini stalks, ginger and garlic. Saute on high heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the minced chicken and cook while separating on high heat. Add the broccolini greens and mix well. Add the black bean sauce and mix well. Bring to a boil and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. Check for seasonings and serve with rice or noodles.
Bok Choy and Scallop Stir Fry
Yummy, simple and quick- need I say more???
- ½ to a pound scallops, cleaned and sliced in half or quarters
- 1 large bok choy, cleaned, chopped with greens and whites separated
- 4 green onions, chopped with greens and whites separated
- ½ cup cilantro, leaves and stems separated and chopped
Sauce
- 2 teaspoons dark soy sauce or ¼ cup regular low sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup black bean sauce
- 1 teaspoon agave
- 2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
- 3 garlic cloves, grated
- 1 inch fresh ginger, grated
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
Mix the ingredients well in a small bowl and keep aside.
- 3 tablespoons extra light olive oil
Heat a wok like sauce pan with the olive oil. Add the scallops and sauté for 2 minutes on high heat. Take out of pan with a slotted spoon. Reheat and add the whites of the green onions, stems of the cilantro and whites of the bok choy. Saute on high heat for 2 minutes. Add the bok choy greens and the remaining cilantro. Add the sauce and the scallops. Bring to a boil and cook for another few minutes till the scallops are cooked through. Check for seasonings and serve with brown rice.
Ma Po Tofu with Peas
This is my husband’s favorite thing to order in Chinese restaurants. It is a Szechuan dish and so not really available in a lot of the restaurants. The dish is also on the greasy side- like any other that we tend to order in the restaurant. As usual I try to make it at home. It doesn’t taste exactly the same but it tastes good and I know it is healthy.
Usually the dish is made with ground pork and soft tofu with a delicious sauce. I used my usual ground turkey, which is my ‘go to’ ground meat. It is much healthier- I use dark turkey meat so the taste is really good.
I marinated the meat with some tamari and corn starch. The corn starch was to thicken the sauce while cooking the dish. I then prepared a sauce consisting of black bean sauce, chili garlic sauce, ketchup and vinegar. I made a delicious sauce and got the tofu ready. I decided to make the dish a one pot meal and added some peas to it. I thought it was a good addition to the dish and I didn’t have to worry about serving a vegetable on the side.
Try this dish- it is easy, quick and super delicious….
- ½ pound ground turkey
- 3 teaspoons tamari
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
Mix the tamari with the cornstarch. Marinate the turkey meat with the cornstarch mixture for 2 to 3 hours.
- 1 tablespoon tamari
- 2 teaspoons black bean sauce
- 1 teaspoon chili garlic paste
- 2 teaspoons ketchup
- 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon honey
Mix the tamari, bean sauce chili paste, ketchup, vinegar and honey in a small bowl. Keep aside.
- 1 pound silken or firm tofu, cut into 1 inch squares
- 1 tablespoon extra light olive oil
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
- 2 teaspoons water
Mix the cornstarch and water in a small bowl and keep aside.
Heat a wok-like saucepan with the oil. Add the ground turkey and sauté on high heat and separating the meat with the back of the spatula. Cook on high for 4 to 5 minutes till golden brown. Add the tamari sauce and mix well. Add the tofu and frozen peas. Mix well and bring to a boil. Add the cornstarch mixture and bring to another boil. Check for seasonings and serve with brown rice.
Pan Seared Flounder with Bok Choy Tofu Noodles
If you are trying to feed your kids less pasta- you need to try this dish. A few months ago, I started buying tofu noodles (shirataki noodles) from an Asian store. Later I noticed them in my regular super market and was thrilled. They are very low in calories and are delicious. The texture is a bit different and might need a bit getting used to- but sky is the limit with them.
I usually use them in Asian preparations but they can be used in anything. My daughter loves, loves them. When I was planning on making this dish, I made sure I bought enough packs of these noodles (each pack is a small quantity). I actually bought five to make sure all three of us get enough noodles. I then sautéed some delicious flounder which I sprinkled with a spice mix. The dish was delicious with sautéed bok choy with the noodles and the fish. I used a bit more chicken broth to mimic some of the delicious noodle soups we have been having at Asian restaurants.
The dish was a big success! Try this super healthy meal…
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MaPo Tofu- Silken Tofu Cooked with Ground Turkey
My husband introduced this Chinese dish to me. I had never heard of it. He loves tofu- in any form. Before meeting him, I wasn’t much into tofu- not sure why but I just wasn’t interested.
We usually have this szechuan dish in restaurants. I like it a lot- definitely not a combination that comes to mind easily. I never think of pairing two proteins together. In this dish it works really well.
I was thinking of what to make and Chinese food came to mind. I typically make a broccoli and chicken stir fry but I wanted to make something different and so this dish came to mind. I went shopping for some chili paste, etc. While I was researching the dish- most of the recipes had lots of heat in them. I can’t really do that since neither my husband nor my daughter eat very spicy dishes. I still wanted to have great flavor so I decided on a black bean sauce and a chili paste I picked up in Whole Foods. I prefer tamari to soy sauce- it is more concentrated and has more flavor. The sauce is quite simple to make and so is the dish.
I served roasted broccoli and brown rice with it. My daughter looked at the dish and wasn’t very happy. I have to say- it doesn’t look very appetizing but it is delicious. She thought so too once she tasted it. I keep telling her not to judge a book by it’s cover but somehow it doesn’t register… Anyway, I would highly recommend MaPo Tofu- good for you and easy to make.
- 1 block silken tofu, drained
- 2 tablespoons extra light olive oil
- ½ to ¾ pound ground turkey (dark meat)
- 3 garlic cloves, sliced thin
- 4 green onions, whites and greens separated
Sauce
- 3 tablespoons tamari
- 1 tablespoon black bean sauce
- 1 tablespoon chili bean paste
- 1 tablespoon sweet chili sauce
Mix well and keep aside.
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
Add the cornstarch to the chicken broth and mix well.
Heat a wok like pan with the olive oil. Add the ground meat and separate it with a wooden spoon and sauté until crispy and golden brown. Reduce the heat to medium and add the garlic and white part of the green onion. Saute 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tamari sauce and sauté for a minute. Add the silken tofu and break it into small pieces with the spoon. Add the cornstarch mixed with the chicken broth. Bring to a boil and check for seasonings. Garnish with the green parts of the green onions. Serve with roasted broccoli.
Cauliflower and Scallop Stir Fry
This is a great start to the healthy eating I had envisioned. Cauliflower and scallops are my husband’s two favorite things to eat- usually separately. I thought of using them together in one dish. I have seen some kind a sicilian risotto dish with both cauliflower and scallops used together- with raisins and nuts. I was a bit skeptical pairing them together- but decided to take a chance and go ahead and make a stir fry.
I love doing stir fries. They are quick and easy to make. It is nice to have some kind of tamari and soy sauce in your pantry. Some other things handy for a Chinese inspired dinner are rice vinegar, sweet chili sauce, black bean sauce and of course garlic and ginger are a must. I always have all of these ingredients in my pantry so I can make any dish on a whim.
I started by broiling cauliflower florets with a bit of oil and tamari. This gave the vegetable a sweet nuttiness and a great golden brown color. I then whipped up a simple sauce with black bean sauce, tamari, rice vinegar and sweet chili sauce.
The dish is very simple, yet quite sophisticated. I loved the sweet cauliflower with the sweet scallops. The two textures are similar yet very different. I sliced the scallops in half and got more bang for my buck. Be careful not to over cook the scallops- it will spoil the dish.
I made fabulous brown rice and served the stir fry on top. Big success- it was low fat with very big flavor. Exactly what I am looking for.
- 1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Preheat oven to broil.
Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Add the cauliflower on to the cookies sheet. Add the soy sauce and oil, mix well and broil till golden brown. Keep aside.
- ½ pound scallops, cleaned and sliced in half
Sauce
- 3 tablespoons black bean sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sweet chili sauce
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
Mix well in a bowl and keep aside.
- 2 tablespoons garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons ginger, minced
- 1 medium white onion, sliced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
In a wok like saucepan, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and sauté for 4-5 minutes on medium high heat. Add the ginger and garlic and sauté for 3-4 minutes on medium high heat. Add the scallops and sauté for a minute (careful not to break them). Add the cauliflower and the sauce. Mix well and serve with brown rice.
Shrimp and Spinach Stir Fry with Black Bean Sauce
I am always looking for new recipes to make with shrimp. It is such a favorite in our house that I know what ever I make, it will be a hit- well almost everything.
I remembered a dish we have at a local Chinese restaurant- Hunan Spring. It is a black bean and shrimp dish.
I decided to replicate it and went looking for black bean sauce. I actually wanted the dried black beans to make it from scratch but since I didn’t give myself ample time, I had to make do with the prepared black bean sauce. I also bought fresh Florida pink shrimp from Freeman’s fish market.
I decided to buy a bag of baby spinach to add to the dish- it is so much easier to have a dish with protein and a vegetable together. All I had to do was make some delicious brown rice. My secret to brown rice is sauteing it with a mixture of butter and olive oil and then cooking it with chicken broth. It gives the rice tons of flavor and makes it scrumptious.
As I predicted, the dish was a hit. Everyone loved it. Sia had it with a glass of milk and Anil and I had it with a red- I know a white would have gone a lot better- but I really felt like drinking a red. My rule about pairing wine and food is that you should drink what you feel like with you have cooked. It will definitely taste good!
- 1 pound large shrimp, cleaned and deveined
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon extra light olive oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 5 ounces baby spinach
- 2 medium white onions, sliced thin
- ¼ black bean sauce
- 2 tablespoons garlic chili sauce
- Salt
- 3 tablespoons extra light olive oil
Place the shrimp in a large ziplock bag. Add the garlic, 1 tablespoon olive oil and 2 teaspoons salt. Mix well and marinate for 2-3 hours.
In a wok like pan, heat the 3 tablespoons olive oil. Add the sliced onions and sauté on high heat for 3-4 minutes. Add the marinated shrimp and sauté for a minute. Add the black bean sauce and garlic chili sauce. Mix well and add the spinach. Saute till the spinach wilts down. Taste for seasonings and add salt if necessary. Serve hot with brown rice.