Nini’s Peanut Noodles

These don't exactly qualify as authentic peanut noodles, but they are darn good. They are not spicy hot at ALL, but are very flavorful. So if you want Thai, but aren't fond of the heat, try this!

1 breast or 1 can chicken OR 1/2 lb prawns or scallops (optional)
1 package Asian noodles*
3-4 c chicken broth
a few Tbs oil (wok oil or veg oil)
2-3 eggs, scrambled into a blob then sliced into strips
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, cut julienne
4-6 cloves garlic
2/3-3/4 c peanut butter (chunky is best)
1/2- 2/3 c soy sauce
1/3-1/2 c brown sugar
2 tsp roasted sesame oil**
1/2 -1c peas (I use frozen)
1 can bamboo shoots or water chestnuts
3/4 c bean sprouts
other veggies as desired

Put the broth in a saucepan to heat. Add garlic
Scramble the eggs, then cut and set aside. Put a little oil in a frypan or wok, and gently sauté onions and chicken.
When it boils, add noodles to broth to cook (follow package instructions for cooking time and method).
Add peanut butter, soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, and a little broth (from noodles) to the wok, and stir until all is well blended. Add additional broth as needed to prevent sticking and achieve a smooth texture. Add eggs, carrots, peas, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, (other veggies), and cooked noodles. Add remaining broth slowly while stir frying. Add bean sprouts just a minute before serving.

* This recipe really doesn’t work unless you use real Asian noodles. Don’t bother trying if you’re not going to do it right. :-)

**roasted or ‘Asian’ sesame oil is not the same as plain sesame oil. It means the seeds were roasted before the oil was pressed out, and the flavor is much stronger. As with the noodles, if you’re not going to use the right thing, don’t bother doing it at all.

Orange Sesame Ginger Stir Fry

1-2 c Meat as desired (beef or chicken is best)
2-4 c Veggies as desired (onion, garlic, broccoli, carrots, mushrooms, water chestnuts, baby corn, bamboo shoots, etc)
One orange
1 Tbs grated Ginger (or 1/2 inch fresh and grated)
Toasted sesame oil (the ‘toasted’ part is important)

Stir fry meat with a little wok oil and/or sesame oil until cooked or nearly cooked. Add veggies. Squish an orange over the pan to get out all the juice and as much pulp as possible. Grate/sprinkle in ginger. Sprinkle in 1-2 tsp sesame oil. Stir well.
Serve over rice.

Glazed Salmon & Cranberry Risotto

GLAZED SALMON(on the left)
My dad's cousin showed me this. She does it on her grill, but since I don't have a grill I just do it in the oven and it works well enough.

salmon (I prefer fillets, but a steak would work too)
brown sugar
butter

Use about equal parts sugar and butter, and melt them together to make a glaze. Peiodically as the salmon cooks, paint it all over with the glaze. It works best with several thin coats rather than just one thick one. Let it cook until caramalized!



CRANBERRY RISOTTO
(on the right)
I invented this myself. I am calling it a risotto rather than fried rice because it is still soft--it's not fried in butter to get any crunchy parts, it's merely prepared in a little oil in a frying pan...I don't know if that's a true risotto, but it looks close enough to me!

about 3 c cooked rice
1 onion, chopped (I used a leftover half a red onion, as well as half a white--it added lovely color, but of course any onion would be fine)
1/2-3/4 c craisins
juice of one orange (around 1/3 c)
herbs
oil

Saute the onions and rice in a little oil until the onions begin to look glassy. Stir in herbs to taste (I used a costco seafood rub blend because I was serving it with fish, but any mild herbs will work). Squeeze in juice from the orange, using a fork to get some pulp in too. Throw in craisins, and stir well. Fry everything together for a few minutes to blend all the flavors.