Asian Turkey and Veggie Lettuce Wraps

My love affair with lettuce wraps began when I spent some time in South Korea in college.  While there, we would go to restaurants where the meat was cooked right at the table and was served with many wonderful Korean side dishes, rice, and leaves of greens.  It took me a bit to figure out the process, but through observation, I realized what to do - get the piece of lettuce, add some meat, some rice, some toppings and maybe some sauce, fold it all up and pop it in your mouth.  Amazing.  Ever since, I have loved lettuce wraps of all kinds.  This recipe is a very simple one, with the veggies and meat and sauce all cooked together so that there is only one final step at the table - fill the lettuce leaf  - and then enjoy!!

INGREDIENTS:

• ground turkey (~1.5 lb)
• carrot
• red pepper
• mushrooms
• green onion
• 1 cup (cooked) quinoa 
• 2 Tbs Hoisen Sauce
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• Romaine lettuce leaves

DIRECTIONS:

1. Begin cooking quinoa. (I usually add 1 cup uncooked, rinsed quinoa to 2 cups of water, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 15 minutes.  This makes much more than the recipe needs, but I always have a use for leftover quinoa.)
2. Finely dice veggies (or use a chopper), keeping mushrooms separate.
3. In a small amount of olive oil, saute carrot, red pepper, green onion until beginning to soften.  Add mushrooms and saute a few minutes more.  
4. Add 1/4 cup soy sauce to the veggies, allow to simmer for 5 minutes.  Transfer veggies to a bowl.
5. In same skillet, brown ground turkey.  Once browned, add cooked veggies and 2 Tbsp Hoisen Sauce; mix.  Add 1 cup cooked quinoa; mix well.
6. Serve wrapped in Romain leaves.

Difficulty: medium (the dicing)

Time: 35 minutes

Source: my kitchen experiments

Sweet and Sour Chicken (slow cooker)

It is already mid-April, and so far this year, I have managed to not cook on a single Sunday evening.  There have been a day or two that things have been going on for which we were elsewhere eating, but mostly, I have accomplished that feat via my slow cooker.  I do the prep work in the morning around the same time as our typical leisurely Sunday breakfasts, which means I can clean the kitchen once for both cooking occasions.  Then I am pretty much home free for the rest of the day.  And it is heavenly.  Here is one of the recipes that has popped up on a few Sundays for us:

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp hoisin sauce (found in Asian section - also used in this awesome recipe for Asian pork chops)
• 1 Tbsp cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tsp packed brown sugar
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 2 tsp cornstarch (optional)
• 2 Tbsp minced chives (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine broth, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar, garlic and pepper in slow cooker.  Stir well to mix.
2. Add chicken thighs and stir well to coat.  Cover; cook on low 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 hours.  
3. If thicker sauce is desired:  Remove chicken with slotted spoon and keep warm.  Combine cornstarch and 2 Tbsp cooking liquid in small bowl.  Add to slow cooker.  Turn heat to high.  Stir 2 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened.  
4. Stir in chives, if desired.  Serve chicken and sauce over rice.

Time: 15 minutes prep, 2 1/2-3 1/2 hours to cook

Difficulty:  easy

Source: Crock Pot Slow Cooker Bible, copyright 2010

Asian Pork Chops

A long time ago, at a previous place of employment, I had the privilege of eating lunch with some amazing people. Aside from great conversation, one of the best things to ever come from those lunches was this recipe. It is my absolute favorite way to prepare pork chops (and my family's favorite way to eat them), and I am so happy that it is now officially "grilling season" in our neck of the woods so that we can make them more often.  If you want to know more about hoisin sauce and other ways to use it in cooking, as well as a bit more about me and my undying love for the ingredient, head on over to our friend’s blog, The Unhip Chick, where I have a guest post today. (The Chick likes to try new products and services and gives them a “chickalicious” rating based on her experiences. While you are there, check out her other great posts about food and kitchen gadgets, too!)

INGREDIENTS:

• 5 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp Hoisin sauce
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 4 boneless pork chops

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine first five ingredients and marinate pork chops for one hour at room temperature or 24 hours in the fridge.
2. Grill until juices run clear (about 4-5 minutes each side, but this depends on thickness of chops, so watching for juices is the best way to time)

Note: My kids love this recipe, and they love it even more when I serve it with seaweed sheets.  We put a bit of rice, a bit of meat, and some veggies in the seaweed, roll or fold it up, and pop it in our mouths.  My kids think of it as a special treat and get so excited when they hear that we are having this meal!

Difficulty: Very easy

Time: 5 minutes prep, 1-24 hours marinating, ~10 minutes grilling

Source: a former co-worker