chinese food is great, but if you have an allergy to sesame, it becomes a death trap. unfortunately, my husband has a sesame allergy, so a lot of asian food has been out of the question for us. i’ve been left with no choice but to learn how to make it myself!
the great thing about this recipe (other than not killing my husband) is that it’s just as tasty as regular take out, but it’s not; it’s a lot cheaper and arguably healthier. it’s also pretty easy to make and can be adjusted for spiciness.
honestly, what’s not to like? go make it now!
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Cashew Chicken Stir Fry
easy, spicy, weeknight stir fry. homemade junk food at its finest.
dice chicken thighs into small chunks and brown in a wok. season with salt and pepper while it browns. dice the onion and green pepper into similarly sized chunks while chicken cooks.
once chicken begins to brown, add in your diced onion and green pepper.
combine soy sauce, brown sugar, oyster sauce, chili garlic sauce, and minced ginger. when chicken is nearly done and onion and green pepper have just started to soften, add in sauce and reduce heat to low.
roughly chop cashews. combine corn starch and water to make a slurry. add them both to the wok and stir to combine. continue to simmer on low until sauce thickens and becomes glaze-like and cashews soften slightly. serve with rice or noodles.
i never enjoy salad. usually, i just force my way through it bite by bite while i daydream about all the good snacks I’m going to eat later when i’m alone. my point here is that if I’m recommending a salad on here, it’s probably a pretty good salad.
this is another one of my mother-in-law’s recipes. i don’t know where she got the recipe, but I’ve been scarfing it down at her house for as long as i’ve been with my husband.
i think the key to this salad is that it’s simple, so there aren’t a lot of ingredients to pick through and contend with, and it makes a great side dish because it has vegetables AND rice. it would probably even make a good main dish, if you eat enough of it.
i usually serve this with some grilled or pan-fried chicken thighs, but yesterday was sunday and i wanted to make a big dinner, so we had it with this amazing mushroom lasagna.
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Judy's Spinach and Rice Salad
A great accompaniment to meat or hearty pasta dishes. Comes together quickly and easily and (I know it's unbelievable) it actually tastes great!
1bunchgreen onionssliced, some greens and some whites
Instructions
cook rice according to package directions.
while the rice is cooking, combine olive oil, white wine vinegar, soy sauce, black pepper, and turmeric. shake or whisk the combination together until fully combined. add to rice once rice is fully cooked (rice will be a bit wet and oily).
combine spinach, green onions, and rice mixture. the rice acts as a dressing for the spinach leaves; a few will wilt a little- that's ok.
serve! works great as an accompaniment for hearty pasta dishes or meaty main courses.
I made up this recipe with some random stuff I had around the house. The result was so good that we ate too much and didn’t have enough leftovers for lunch the next day.
You can pretty much always make a great stir fry with a combination of some meat, a chili garlic/soy sauce, and some form of noodles or rice. Beyond those three things, you can pretty much put any kind of veggies you want in it.
I use an equal part chili garlic sauce because we like it spicy, but you could always cut back on it if you want a milder dish.
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Bok Choy and Basil Rice Noodles
Spicy stir fry with bok choy, basil, chicken, and rice noodles.
Set the rice noodles to soak in a pot of cold water set on the stove for ten minutes.
While the rice noodles soak, thinly slice and dice the chicken breast. Place chicken breast in a bowl, and pour 1/3 of soy sauce over it, stirring to make sure all chicken pieces are coated. Season chicken with salt and pepper.
Once rice noodles have soaked for ten minutes, turn on the heat, and bring the water to a rolling boil. Boil for about ten minutes.
Heat olive oil in a large wok or skillet. Cook chicken until golden brown and cooked through, about 5-7 minutes.
While chicken is cooking, whisk together the chili garlic sauce, oyster sauce, and remaining soy sauce. Add to pan with chicken and reduce heat to low.
By this time, the rice noodles should have soaked for at least ten minutes. While the chicken simmers on low, bring the rice noodles to a boil and cook at a rolling boil for 10 minutes.
Drain rice noodles, add to pan with chicken and sauce and stir to combine.
Move the wok from the heat and stir in bok choy and basil. Keep stirring it until the bok choy wilts into the dish.
