Eggroll Bowl

Easy and satisfying, this mixture is low carb and very healthy.  I used ground turkey (7% fat), but have also made this with lean ground pork too. Be sure to customize the recipe to use up veggies you might have on hand.  Don't like mushrooms? Substitute broccoli florets, celery or even diagonal cut pieces of asparagus instead. You don't have to buy the pre-shredded cabbage mixture (usually I would not), but in this case, it was just easy.  You could also add shredded napa cabbage too.  Mung bean sprouts would be delicious too.

We happily ate this when it was snowing outside, the perfect cozy, and healthy, meal!

This meal reminds me a bit of Mo Shu Pork, so it would be great with Hoisin sauce on a thin Chinese pancake.  Just something to think about...

Serves 3-4
Ingredients:

1 lb ground pork (or Turkey or beef)
2 tsp fresh ground ginger
2 fresh garlic cloves, minced
2-3 tsp sesame oil
1-2 tbsp soy sauce

1/4 green onions
1 cup fresh mushrooms, diced
2 eggs
1 14oz bag of shredded cabbage
Salt and red pepper flakes,  if desired

First, in a well oiled sauce pan (use veg il and a couple drops of ssesame oil) over medium heat, add some well beaten eggs and swirl it about so it covers the large fry pan in a thin layer.  Cook until almost set and turn off heat.

Excuse the yucky looking cutting board below... I had chopped all the mushrooms on it before this egg "roll".

Roll the egg out of the pan into a roll shape, and cut into thin strips. 

In a dutch oven or a bigger saucepan, add the sesame oil and the turkey and cook over medium high heat.  Using a spatula chop up the turkey so that it cooks into small chunks as you cook it.  Add in the chopped ginger and the garlic, cook until the pink in the meat disappears.  Add in the chopped mushrooms and cook for another 1-2 minutes.  Add in the soy sauce, cabbage mix and the green onions.  Stir well, finally added the chopped cooked egg. Season with salt (or MSG- hey some people like it!).

Serve with sriracha and more soy sauce, as desired.

If you're not watching carbs, you could serve this over steamed rice.

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Ground Pork Lettuce Wraps

What's a simple easy dinner to make with ingredients that you just may have on hand? I like to use this recipe for either ground pork or ground turkey or chicken.  I usually have the veggies on hand (lettuce, green onions, cilantro, onions and garlic). If you don't have Hoisin sauce and sesame oil, I highly recommend that invest in those! 

Serves 4-6 as a generous appetizer, or about 3 for a dinner

Ingredients

1/2 onion, minced

3 garlic, minced

2 stalks celery, small dice

3-4 green onions, sliced

1 lb. ground pork

1 tbsp ginger, grated

1 tsp sesame oil

1/4 cup hoisin sauce (or oyster sauce)- could also substitute 1/4 cup soy sauce with 1-2 Tbsp white sugar

1/4 cup chopped cilantro (optional)

1-2 tsp Sriracha (optional) plus more for serving

Toasted sesame seeds

Chopped peanuts (optional)

Small Romaine lettuce, but butter lettuce or even cabbage leaves would work

Brown pork over medium high heat, when mostly cooked, drain off the fat.  Add the sesame oil, onions, garlic and ginger and cook until the onions start to wilt.  Add in chopped celery (you want this to be more crunchy when its done). Add in the hoisin or oyster sauce and taste. If you want it spicy, you may need to add in the Sriracha and/or the red pepper flakes. Add in cilantro (optional) and spoon into a serving bowl. Allow the mixture to cool a bit before serving into the lettuce.

Prep the mini romaine leaves into 'cups' or use cabbage leaf, or butter lettuce.  

Put soy sauce, sesame seeds, Sriracha and chopped peanuts on the table for each diner to customize their wrap.

I just brought the pork mixture to the table in a bowl and served the lettuce on a plate so that everyone could just make their own at the table.  Served with a little sriracha and a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds.  My hubby liked it with a drizzle of soy sauce.

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Marry Me Chicken (or Pork!)

 I am a skeptic.

Just because someone makes up a name like "Marry Me Chicken", doesn't mean it's that good, you know?  My hubby is a notorious chicken hater, I mean... how is that even a thing? I happen to like chicken, so he does eat it (which is very good for him, LOL). I made this recipe from Pinterest (there are dozens of versions) and did not tell him the name. He was immediately a fan the recipe, so maybe there is something to this name!  This year we celebrate 37 years of marriage, so I guess I didn't need this back in the days before we got engaged. I think this recipe would work well with thin sliced boneless porkchops or pork loin medallions too.

My kitchen is a bit of a mess in the picture below, but it includes my houseplants in old crocks from a salad bar, my French Gien mini Christmas plate that I bought on a holiday trip to France in 2018, and also my favorite cheap white wine, Kirkland/Costco Sauvignon Blanc. The entree is served on my Lenox Winter Greetings Christmas china. I take it out and use it every year from the day after Thanksgiving until New Year's day.

Serves 4

Ingredients

1-2 Tbsp olive oil

4 thin chicken breasts

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup white wine (like sauvignon blanc), or chicken stock

1/2 cup whipping cream

1/4-1/2 cup sundried tomatoes, chopped

1/2-3/4 cup finely shredded fresh parmesan (i used a microplaner)

2 Tbsp fresh basil, minced

1/4-1/2 tsp dried red pepper flakes (optional)

Salt & Pepper

Salt and Pepper the chicken breasts. In a frying pan (cast iron or stainless will work best), over medium heat, put the chicken on to brown on each side, about 6-8 minutes per side.

While the chicken is cooling, mince your garlic and grate your parmesan.

Chop up the sundried tomatoes

Here's what my chicken looked like when I flipped it.

When the chicken is done (or almost done...) take it out of the pan. Add a bit more olive oil, if needed, and cook up the garlic. 

Deglaze the pan with the white wine (or chicken stock) and adding the sundried tomatoes and the pepper flakes (if using). Cook for a couple more minutes, then add the cream and the cheese.

Stir to combine, then add the cooked chicken and any juices back to the pan.  Continue to cook and stir gently around the chicken breasts. Don't let it boil though!

Almost done... just add the shredded basil and continue heating gently to thicken the sauce and cook the basil slightly. Serve at once. Great with noodles, but nice on it's own with a green salad too.

Vietnamese Caramelized Ground Pork Bowls

We'd bought some ground pork and were wondering what to do with it.

I Googled "ground pork" and made a match with this recipe, Original recipe .

We've made it about 3 or 4 times, trying to perfect and simplify the recipe.  It's very simple and delicious. This will be one that we make again and again.

Funny story, we took this in our groceries at a VRBO vacation we went on, and I premixed the sauce. Unfortunately, I felt so confident to make this recipe that I didn't consult the original recipe before making it. However, I use SIX bird's eye chilies.... please do not that. It was so hot, and yummy, so we ate it all up. However, we had tummy troubles for days, LOL!!!

Ingredients

Serves 3-4

1 1/2 tbsp cooking oil

1/2 onion , finely diced

2 tsp ginger , grated or minced

2 garlic cloves , minced (2 tsp paste)

1-2 birds eye or Thai chili , finely chopped (or sub minced jalapeno)

20 oz.  ground pork

2  tbsp brown sugar (we used Swerve no carb brown sugar with success)

2 tbsp fish sauce

 

SERVING:

1 green onion stem, finely sliced

Steamed rice (or cauli rice!)

Sliced tomato, cucumber for garnish

Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat.

Add the onion, ginger, garlic and chili and cook for 2 minutes.

Add the ground pork and cook for 2 minutes or its fully cooked and no longer pink, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon.

Add the sugar and fish sauce. Stir, then leave it to cook without touching until all the juices cook out and the pork starts caramelizing - about 2 minutes. Then stir it and leave it again, without stirring, for around 30 seconds to get more caramelization.

YUM!

Blackened Cajun Spice Mix

A pork chop in the blackened seasoning mix, pan fried in a mixture of olive oil & butter, YUM!

Once upon my husband worked at a restaurant for a certified master chef.  The blackened seasoning that they used on fish, sauteed in butter and served over spinach was the bomb. The guy was nice enough to share this with my hubby. 

We've been looking for the recipe for many years now, but could not locate that slip of paper... basically we've been trying to locate it for about 15-20 years!

After years of wondering, we finally located the recipe in a binder of recipes that I had collected to "save" (back before you had the internet... hahaha!).

Here's the recipe that I adapted the measurements so you can make a SANE size recipe at home.  We've been arguing about whether the original has too much salt (which I believe to be true... and my hubby doesn't agree). 

Makes about 2 cups, plenty to share with friends and family!  We use this on fish, chicken, pork and even steak.  It would probably be great on a cauliflower "steak" too.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup kosher salt (use 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp if you like things salty...)

1/4 cup onion powder or granulated onion (NOT onion salt!)

1/4 cup white pepper

1/4 cup cayenne pepper (if you are afraid of too spicy, you can reduce this to 1-2 Tbsp...)

1/4 cup paprika

1/4 cup dried thyme

2 Tbsp ground pepper

Mix in a bowl with a whisk to fully mix.  Save in an air tight jar, or jars.  Sprinkle liberally onto meats before grilling or pan frying.  

Pork Kimchi Burger

I get that kimchi might not be everybody's favorite thing, but I always, always have been a fan, even back before it was cool! Thanks Mom for being different from every other suburban housewife in the 1970's! 

The inspiration for this came out of necessity, we were staying somewhere in a cabin far from home, and I had packed limited ingredients to use for the weekend to put dinner together for the two of us. I always love a challenge!  I had a package of ground pork that I had brought with us, but only had limited other things to work with (I should have planned better- LOL). In full disclosure, we did travel to the Safeway to pick up some kimchi after I shared my idea with my hubby (who insisted we go get it ASAP), but I used what I already had brought with me (hence the simple ingredients!) for the rest.

About two years ago, we were lucky enough to go to Korea, and boy oh boy, did we have a foodie's paradise adventure.  My hubby likes kimchi just as much as I do.  If you are interested, here's a couple travel posts that I wrote to remember the trip!
Korean Adventure, Part 1

Korean Adventure, Part 2- coming soon!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Burgers:

20 oz ground pork
1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup kimchi, drained (save juice) and chopped fine
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp soy sauce

Kimchi Coleslaw:
4 cups green cabbage, shredded (about 1/2 small head)
1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup kimchi, drained and chopped coarsely (or more, if desired- I used 1/2 cup)
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
2-3 Tbsp kimchi juice 
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp red pepper garlic paste (optional)

4 Buns

Mayo, if desired

Get two bowls out, one for meat mixture and one for your salad.

Chop your green onions finely, add 1/4 cup to each bowl.  Next, chop your kimchi, adding 1/4 cup to each bowl. Shred your cabbage (or use pre-packaged slaw cabbage mixture), add to the salad bowl. Add the vinegar, sesame oil and a bit of salt. Mix the slaw, let it sit and marinate for 30 minutes before serving.

In the meat bowl, add the ground pork to the bowl with green onions and kimchi that you put in there previously. Add in the pork, red pepper flakes, sesame oil and soy sauce. Make mixture of meat (I use latex gloves and mix by hand), shape into patties and grill for about 10 minutes until done.

Assemble the burgers by putting mayo on the buns, add the patty and a generous amount of slaw. Enjoy right away.

Buns, mayo, patties and slaw= Yum

Note- these are just as good served with a side of coleslaw and not on a bun. We found some Franz low carb buns that are delish, so it was great to have a burger!  

Here's the kimchi, ready for chopping.

Chop it pretty finely

Here it is ready for mixing with the cabbage.

I use latex gloves to mix the meat mixture, and shape the patties.

This is the chili garlic sauce I like

Here's my salad, all ready to go. Let it sit for at least 10-15 minutes before serving so the cabbage softens up a little bit.

Patties are all shaped and ready to go on the grill. I put them on wax paper, as it makes it easier to easily over turn onto the grill without deforming the patties by using a metal spatula.  Just my little trick.

Cook over medium high heat for about 10 minutes.  Try not to over cook, you want these to be juicy!

Stuffed Cabbage Bowl

We both agree, how can this be comfort food if you never even had it as a kid?

I can't actually say I really even like Stuffed Cabbage, but I do love this!I  know lots of people remember their mom's stuff cabbage rolls for dinner.... I assure you, my mom made many, many amazing dishes in my childhood, but I never specifically remember her making these. My husband's mom was definitely more challenged in the kitchen, so she never made something exotic as stuffed cabbage rolls! I seem to remember making them once, decades ago, and I thought they were fussy and not that great. So, in other words, a recipe NOT to be repeated.

We're trying to reduce how many carbs we eat, so when I saw this recipe it really intrigued me. We were both instantly in love with this.  A couple months went by, but I remembered we liked this, so I bought the ingredients again to see if it was a fluke, or did we really like this?  Guess what? We so LOVE this! 

Easy, fast, comforting and cheap.  Something to enjoy in this uncertain times of a pandemic. Let's call this one a dinner hug.

Serves 4-6 (makes great leftovers)
Ingredients

1-2 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup chopped onions
1/2 to 1 cup diced red bell pepper (optional)
1 lb ground pork
1 lb ground beef, low fat
4-6 cups shredded cabbage
1 can diced tomatoes plus juices
1 tsp granulated garlic
2 tsp Italian seasoning
Red pepper flakes (optional)
Salt & Pepper

Chop the onions and pepper into a dice, saute over medium high heat in a large saute pot or dutch oven, for about five minutes. Add the pork and the beef and cook breaking into medium size chunks while it cooks. Add the Italian seasoning and the garlic, plus some generous salt, pepper and red pepper flakes (as desired).  Add the canned tomatoes and the shredded cabbage.  Cook until the cabbage starts to wilt, about 3-5 minutes.
Serve in a low bowl as the meat/veggie mixture, or over steamed rice.

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Lazy Girl Chile Verde Pork Stew

This is variation of one of my all time favorite ways to cook pork, Chile Verde.  However, the recipe I have always used calls for tomatoes, which are RED, and not VERDE (green) at all, so it has always bugged me a bit that the end result was a reddish dish.  In this recipe, I have substituted the tomatoes with canned tomatillos instead.

As I was making this, my hubby walked in and said "aren't you going to brown that pork?". To which I answered,"No, I am not" feeling a bit grumpy at being challenged about being a accomplished lazy girl. Now, honestly people, I do realize that browning adds carmalization and therefore, more flavor.  BUT, in this case, there is SO much more flavor ingredients in this dish, you honestly should save yourself some time (and a greasy stove top) by skipping the browning and throwing it altogether in your crock pot.  Set it, forget it, do something awesome with your day and come back to a great dinner.

Serves 5-6 
Ingredients

3lb pork, large, cut into large chunks
1 large can (14 oz) whole tomatillos, with juice
1/2 onion, diced small
1 small yellow bell pepper, diced small
2 jalapenos, diced small
1 small can (4 oz) diced ortega green chilies
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped small (about 1/2 bunch)
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 tbsp cumin
1 tsp oregano

Topping:

• green onions
• cojita cheese or feta cheese (optional)

Add all the ingredients to the crock pot, and cook for 8 hours on low.  Serve with green onions and cheese, as desired.

Below is a picture of the crock before I cooked it. I didn't brown the pork, as I guess, I am a lazy girl. LOL.  You can definitely brown it before starting your crockpot, and it just might be even better.  Me?  I can't decide if this stew is actually better for having browned the pork first.

Pfeffer Schnitzel

I had this dish on a trip we took to Germany this summer.  Everywhere you go in Germany, there is schnitzel on EVERY menu.  It's definitely the national dish!  I was a bit tired of the fried version, even though it is delicious.  We had an outdoor lunch in the Augustiner Keller beer garden and I saw pfeffer schnitzel on the menu!  I know enough German to understand pfeffer is pepper, which I love!  This one was served with spaetzle and fried onions.  Yum! 

I wanted to recreate this dish at home!  So here is my first attempt, You could use chicken, turkey or veal instead of pork, but do get the thinnest cut of meat that you can, and then pound it to a uniform thickness under 1/4 inch.  Getting it thin and tender is the keep to this dish.  Traditionally, it would be served like pictured to the left, or even with red cabbage and potatoes. We had ours with broccoli, as I felt a bit more green needed to be involved here. Certainly not traditional, but definitely more healthy.

As a note, I used half and half instead of whipping cream, but I do think that whipping cream would have tasted more traditional.

Ingredients

Serves 4

8 Pork cutlets, pounded thin to 1/4 inch

2-3 Tbsp flour

2-3 Tbsp olive oil

1 cup chicken broth

1 med onion, minced small (about 3/4 cup)

1 Tbsp cracked black pepper

1-2 Tbsp green peppercorns (optional)

1/2 cup cream

1 1/2 tsp cornstarch

Salt and pepper

With a meat mallet and some plastic wrap, smack the meat until it is a uniform thickness of less than 1/4 inch.  If you don't have a meat mallet, you could use an empty wine bottle!

Lightly dredge the pork in flour, shake off excess.

Saute the onions in about 1 tablespoon of oil until golden brown.

Deglaze the pan by adding the chicken broth and bring to a boil.  Turn the temperature to medium and add the cream, stirring to combine. 

 Add the cornstarch to a small amount of water and mix thoroughly, add to the broth/onion/cream mixture.  Add the pepper (black and green, if using), and salt to taste.  Keep sauce warm while you fry the  pork cutlets.

Keep sauce warm while you fry the  pork cutlets. In a non-stick pan over medium high heat, add a bit of oil and fry the pork cutlets for 2 minutes per side, letting them get a little bit brown on the edges. Cover the cutlets with the sauce and serve at once.

Here's a little shot of us eating lunch in the beer garten!