Shrimp and Pork Belly Fried Rice with Peas

This shrimp and pork belly fried rice with peas is so delicious, you might just jump up and down with happiness when you take your first taste. 

The combination of the shrimp and pork belly in this fried rice dish is a spin on Chinese sausage fried rice, but with pork belly instead of Chinese sausage, and with added shrimp and peas. This fried rice is so good. I keep saying pork and shrimp should get married.

Grilled Crostini Four Ways

Grilled crostini topped with four different toppings after toasting on the grill. This is fabulous as an appetizer or bread course for an outdoor party.

These grilled crostini have something for everyone. Two of the toppings require putting together a few ingredients, but they can be prepared in advance. The other two toppings require very little preparation, and help round out your appetizer platter.

Chicken Orzo Soup with Spring Vegetables

This Chicken Orzo Soup with Spring Vegetables is hearty and filling, and the broth, made from a chopped up whole chicken, takes less than an hour. 

In fact, this Chicken Orzo Soup with Spring Vegetables tastes like it has been simmering for several hours.

Stir-Fried Crystal Shrimp and Stir-Fried Garlic Shanghai Bok Choy | Wok Wednesdays

For this Wok Wednesday's post, I'm posting both of February's recipes today. First, the Stir-Fried Crystal Shrimp, and then the Stir-Fried Garlic Shanghai Bok Choy.

Five Spice Chicken with Sugar Snaps | Wok Wednesdays

This Five Spice Chicken with Sugar Snap Peas has 13 ingredients. Guess what? I had all of them in my pantry and refrigerator except the chicken, the peas, and the fresh ginger. Ingredient hoarding? Justified!

Actually, I can't gloat too much, as the most difficult to find ingredient is the dark soy sauce. If you can't find the dark soy sauce, you can use regular soy sauce, but your chicken will not have this beautiful mahogany color.

This was the easiest to prepare Wok Wednesdays dish for me so far. Or maybe I'm just getting better at it. All I know is, my kitchen looked fairly clean and organized when I was done.

It may also have something to do with the fact that I actually read the entire recipe through in advance and was able to cut down on the number of dishes, bowls, measuring cups, and measuring spoons used to prepare this dish.

The chicken is briefly marinated in ginger, dark soy, honey, cornstarch, Shao Hsing rice wine (or dry sherry), five spice, and sesame oil. I just set the sliced chicken in a large bowl, added the ingredients, and stirred. In a second bowl, I mixed some chicken broth, ketchup (yep!) and more dark soy sauce. The only thing that needed it's own little container was the salt, which I left in the measuring spoon. I parked the peas on a dish towel, which made it easy to transport them to the wok when it was their time.

Why am I telling you this? Because I am pretty proud of the fact that my kitchen didn't look like a cyclone hit it when I was finished.

Verdict? Another simply amazing stir-fry from Grace Young's Stir Frying to the Sky's Edge. The chicken is simply succulent and flavorful. Watching the peas turn bright green as you stir fry them in the wok is an amazing thing. This dish is perfect with rice.

I am participating in Wok Wednesdays, and am pretty much in love with this book. After making quite a few of the recipes, I am a total devotee.

You don't have to be a blogger to participate. Just join the Facebook page! It's hosted by Matthew and visited often by the author herself! It's a very supportive group that has literally helped me with finding specialized ingredients while I was standing in the middle of the Asian supermarket.

I encourage you to get the book and start wokking.

An adapted version of recipe can also be found here.

Stir-Fried Lotus Root with Bacon and Vegetables | Wok Wednesdays

Finding the ingredients for this Stir-Fried Lotus Root with Bacon and Vegetables was an adventure.

This is one of the things I love about participating in Wok Wednesdays. I am forced to try ingredients I would never even think of trying otherwise. Another thing I love about participating? The support I receive from other Wok Wednesdays participants... including Grace Young, the author of Stir Frying to the Sky's Edge, the book from which we are wokking.

Cloud ears. Chinese bacon. Lotus root....

Cloud ears? Turns out it is a fungus. It is usually sold dried and needs to be reconstituted in water. Amazingly, I was able to find a big pack of fresh cloud ears.

I and many of my fellow participants had to make several trips to our local Asian market after buying the wrong item or not finding one of the ingredients. Participants posted photos of what they bought and others weighed in as to whether or not they had the correct ingredient. I actually took the book to the store to show pictures of what I was looking for.

We are a dedicated group. (If you have any interest in joining a fun and dedicated group of people who are interested in learning how to stir-fry, check out the Facebook page.)

Final verdict? We all loved this. This is a stunning dish and really easy to prepare once you have all of the ingredients.

In addition to the cloud ears, lotus root, and the bacon (there are some great photos of these ingredients on this blog), the dish includes snow peas, carrots, and scallions, along with ginger, chicken broth, salt and pepper, sesame oil, Shao Hsing rice wine, and soy sauce. Amazing flavor.

To get the recipe, check out page 193 of Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge by Grace Young. As participants, we've all agreed not to post the actual recipe. If you are interested in flexing new cooking muscles and want to make some amazing dishes, get the book and try this dish.

Fried Rice with Crab and Peas

This fried rice with crab and peas takes only 20 minutes to make, especially if you have some leftover steamed or Chinese takeout white rice. It makes a great lunch or dinner with a salad. The rest of the ingredients are easy to find, and the dish is a lot of fun to make.

I used a wok to make this dish, but a large skillet would work too. What's so nice about the wok is that it develops a nonstick finish when you use it over time, but you can still use it with very high heat, unlike most nonstick pans.

Fried Rice with Crab and Peas

Ingredients

1/4 C soy sauce

1 1/2 T rice vinegar

1 tsp sesame oil

1/2 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp white pepper

2 T peanut or vegetable oil

1 T minced ginger

3 cloves of garlic, minced

3 green onions, thinly sliced

4 C steamed white rice

2 eggs, beaten

8 ounces of crab meat

1 C frozen peas

Instructions

1. Mix the soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, and white pepper in a small bowl. 
2. Heat a wok on high heat until hot and add the oil.
3. Add the ginger and garlic and stir for about 5 to 10 seconds and then quickly add the rice and stir fry for about 5 minutes.
4. Make a well in the center of the rice to expose the bottom of the pan, and add the eggs and quickly stir fry until cooked through.
5. Add the crabmeat, peas, and sauce and stir fry for about 3 more minutes. 

Adapted from Williams Sonoma: Food Made Fast Asian. 

Asparagus, Pea, & Leek Stir-Fry

This asparagus, Pea, & Leek Stir Fry is fresh and crisp, and the recipe is wonderful to make during asparagus season. 

This asparagus, pea, and leek stir-fry has two kinds of peas... sugar snap peas and petite peas... and it's so green!!