Crunchy Vietnamese Chicken Salad

 

I put this salad (called Goi Ga in Vietnam) together in less than 5 minutes. You will be able to do the same if you follow my lead. I accomplished this feat by buying the ingredients rather than cooking. While I normally love cooking, I came down with a nasty cold and wanted to eliminate any unnecessary labor. 

So I bought a rotisserie chicken to avoid cooking. The recipe also calls for fried shallots...so I just bought a can of them from Amazon rather than cooking delicate little shallots in oil. But if you are feeling lazy, go ahead and substitute fried onion rings.

I suppose I could have bought a head of cabbage to cut up. But again, I went the lazy route. I just bought a bag of shredded cabbage normally used to make cole slaw. Ditto for the carrots...I simply bought a bag of matchstick carrots.

So the mantra for this meal is simple: "No prep. Just eat." 

INGREDIENTS

For the Dressing

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon of fish sauce

1-1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1-1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 tablespoon water

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

For the Salad

4 cups green cabbage, thinly sliced

2 carrots, shredded

1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced

1/4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro

1/4 cup coarsely chopped mint

3 cups shredded rotisserie chicken

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 tablespoon red chili flakes

For the Toppings

3 tablespoons fried shallots

3 tablespoons coarsely chopped, unsalted roasted peanuts

Limę wedges, for serving

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Mix well until sugar dissolves and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine all salad ingredients. Add the dressing and toss to mix thoroughly.
3. Place the salad on serving plates and top with the fried shallots and peanuts. Put lime wedges on each plate. Chow down!

Wine pairing: Sauvignon Blanc

Beijing Beef

 

So here we begin...Year 15 of my blog. I started this body of work in 2010, the year I retired. Obama was in his first term. The New Orleans Saints won the Super Bowl and Sandra Bullock and Jeff Bridges took home Oscars for best actress and actor. And my hero, Steve Jobs, introduced the very first iPad that year..

 I used to count my readers on one hand back then... today I average around 15,000 readers a month. I have never run ads in my blog because cooking is a passion. And I cannot stop because I love to cook!

The most used pan in my kitchen is my wok. My range has open burners and it is capable of the same outrageous temperatures used in restaurants. My wok is carbon steel and it puts a sear on meat like you have never seen. And that is why it is the most used pan...seared beef is present in a lot of our meals.....pork and chicken, too.

This is a fun meal to prepare as it is cooked entirely in the wok. As is the case with most wok cooking, you want to have all of your ingredients prepared and ready to go before you start. While it takes awhile to stage the ingredients, your cooking time will only run 10 to 15 minutes. This recipe was created by Sam the Cooking Guy as a knock-off of Panda Express' Beijing Beef. It serves 4.

INGREDIENTS

For the Stir Fry

1-1/4 pounds flank steak, thinly sliced against the grain

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

1/2 cup peanut oil, plus 2 tablespoons

1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

3/4 cup corn starch

6 cloves of garlic, minced

1 small onion, diced medium

1 red bell pepper, diced medium

For the Sauce

1/4 cup brown sugar

6 tablespoons soy sauce

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1/4 cup ketchup

1/4 cup oyster sauce

2 tablespoons Sriracha

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine the first 3 ingredients in a bowl, mix well and set aside.
2. In another bowl, combine all Sauce ingredients, mix well and set aside.
3. After beef has marinated for about 10 minutes, drain beef and marinade into a colander. Wipe out and dry bowl, then return beef to bowl. Add cornstarch to bowl and mix thoroughly with the beef.
4. Add 1/2 cup peanut oil to your wok (the oil should be an inch deep) and heat over a medium flame (shoot for 350º oil temp).
5. Working in batches (to maintain oil temp), shake excess corn starch off of the beef. Deep fry beef in oil until each piece is a crispy, golden brown. Remove beef, set aside and repeat with rest of beef.
6. When done, get rid of the used oil and add 2 fresh tablespoons to the wok.
7. Turn heat to high and stir fry onion and bell pepper for 2 minutes. Add garlic and stir fry for 30 seconds more.
8. Pour in the sauce and simmer for 1 minute until bubbly and thickening. Add beef back in  and mix well to coat beef with the sauce and heat through. Serve.

Wine pairing: Zinfandel