Pork and Ginger Potstickers

Potstickers.... yum! I love any food that is small, tasty, and easy to eat, and potstickers certainly fall into this category. I labeled these as appetizers or as an entree because it can be either type of meal, depending on how many you choose to eat!

I have experimented a bit with these potstickers. They are originally based off of a Ming Tsai recipe, and they are super tasty! It takes a little practice to fold the dumplings, but the more you do, the easier it gets. It's even easier if you have some helpers! :o) When I have the time, I make a big batch, and then freeze a whole bunch on a sheet tray and store them in an airtight bag. You don't even have to defrost them when you want to cook them... they just steam up right from their frozen state (dangerous for a snacker like me).

Potstickers can have a variety of fillings, but these pork ones are my favorite combo that I've tried. Enjoy!

Pork Potstickers with Ginger and Cabbage

yield: several dozen, depending on size and patience

Ingredients

Filling:

2 cups chopped Napa cabbage

1/2 tablespoon salt

1/2 lb pork, not too lean

2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger, or 1 tsp dried ginger powder

1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

1 egg

1 cup chicken stock

Hot Water Dough:

4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups boiling water

In a bowl, sprinkle the cabbage with the salt and let sit for 30 minutes. In the meantime, make the dough.

Make the dough. In a large bowl, mix together the flour and salt. Slowly stir in the hot water until a dough forms. Once cool enough to handle, form the dough into a smooth ball, cover with a damp cloth, and allow to rest for 1 hour. In the meantime, make the filling.

To make the filling: in a large bowl, mix together the pork, ginger, garlic, soy, sesame oil, and egg. Squeeze the liquid out of the cabbage until it is very very dry. Add the dry cabbage to the pork mixture.

To assemble the potstickers: roll the rested dough into a long log, approximately 1 inch in diameter. Cut the log into 1/2 inch pieces. Lay a piece cut side up and use your palm to flatten into a disk. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough to a circle approximately 3 inches in diameter. Fill each wrapper with a small amount of filling, approximately a teaspoon full. To make the dumplings easier to fold, be careful not to overfill, and also make sure the filling does not touch the edge of the circle. Fold the circle in half around the filling and pinch the edges shut using 7-8 folds. Potstickers can either be cooked or frozen at this point.

To cook the potstickers, cover the bottom of a large sautee pan with vegetable oil and heat until quite hot, but not smoking. Add the potstickers flat side down and cook for a minute or two until the bottom is lightly browned. Carefully and quickly pour the stock into the pan (be careful, it will splatter... have the lid ready!). Quickly cover and allow the dumplings to steam until cooked through and until the liquid has evaporated, approximately 3 more minutes. Once the liquid is evaporated, the filling will be firm and cooked through, and the bottoms will be crispy again. Remove to a plate and serve!

Spicy Soy Dipping sauce:
Mix together the following ingredients and serve alongside the potstickers for dipping. Yum!

1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1 scallion, sliced
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon sambal oelek or sriracha

Pork Carnitas

Delcious Carnitas!

Carnitas literally means "little meats" and it is usually pork or beef which has been simmered or braised for hours. I think of it as pulled pork, Mexican style. This version is for pork carnitas which ends up being a very versatile ingredient in many recipes. Use for tacos, burritos, a topping for nachos, quesadillas, huevos rancheros... the list goes on and on!

In this version, most of the work is done in a slow cooker. It starts with an inexpensive cut of meat seared in a hot pan, then finished for a few hours in the slow cooker. You can sear the meat the night before, then put it in the slow cooker the next morning. Easy and delicious... enjoy! :o)

Pork Carnitas

Serves 4-6 when used in an entree

Ingredients

1 (4 lb.) pork butt or pork shoulder - remove any excess fat

2 tbsp. oil

spice rub (below)

1 cup chicken stock

1 bay leaf

Spice Rub
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon crumbled dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground coriander
pinch of ground cinnamon

Directions

Mix together all ingredients for spice rub. Set aside.

Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Sear the pork for 2-3 minutes on each side until slightly browned, then remove to a plate. Put the bay leaf in the bottom of the slow cooker. Rub the spice blend on all sides of the pork and add to the slow cooker then pour the chicken stock around the pork being careful not to wash off the spice rub. Cook on high heat for 3-4 hours or low heat for 8-10 hours until the pork is tender and pulls apart easily. Remove from the slow cooker and shred the meat using two forks or your fingers (let it cool for a few minutes first). Enjoy!

Carnitas Burrito Bowls

Enough of these Winter blues... we decided to heat it up for dinner and make something warm, spicy, and delicious! I am a huge fan of burrito bowls from Chipotle. If you have never had one, I recommend it, but this homemade version comes very close! The burrito bowl is basically a pile of burrito ingredients minus the wrap. They are sometimes called "naked" burritos as well, but either way, it is all the goodness of a burrito without all the fuss. I fell in love with the burrito bowl because I could never finish a whole burrito when we ate out, and the bowl was easy to store and eat the next day. The leftovers also make a wonderful huevos rancheros brunch dish, but that's for another day :o)

To make the burrito bowls, we layered chipotle lime rice, then frijoles negros, carnitas, cheese, homemade guacamole, pico de gallo, then sour cream in a shallow bowl. Feel free to mix up the toppings to suit your own taste! 

I highly recommend trying this out, either as a bowl or as a burrito. For the burrito, just use all the same ingredients and wrap them in a flour tortilla. Delicious!

Panzanella

So I've started running. No, I haven't gone crazy! I'm going to try to run the St. Patrick's day 5k in Southie this year :o) To keep up my energy, I need to increase my carb intake a bit, so I decided to make this salad to go along side some roasted chicken the other night. It came out great and we couldn't stop picking at the salad before dinner! Panzanella is basically a salad loaded with veggies and bread in large cubes, much like big croutons. It is best with bread that is a few days old so that it doesn't get too mushy. I used up some whole wheat ciabatta that we had from a few nights earlier, and it was amazing! I'm sure this salad would be even better in Summer when there are super-fresh local veggies available, but a hothouse heirloom tomato worked wonderfully and was so flavorful. The beauty of this recipe is that you can add or take away any of the veggies to suit your own taste. We had some avocado lying around so we cubed it up and added it to the top of each portion and it was delicious. Have fun with it :o) This recipe is adapted from Ina Garten's.  Enjoy

Panzanella 

makes 2-4 servings 

Ingredients

2 tbsp. olive oil

3 cups day-old bread, cut into 1 inch cubes

1 tomato, cut into 1 inch cubes

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1 inch cubes

1/2 English cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeds scooped out, and cut into 1/2 inch slices

10 basil leaves torn into large pieces

1/4 red onion, halved and cut into 1/2 inch slices

1/4 cup kalamata olives, pitted and sliced in half

Vinaigrette
1/2 tsp. finely minced garlic
1/4 tsp. dijon mustard
1 1/2 tbsp. white wine vinegar or champagne vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp. salt (kosher)
1/8 tsp. black pepper

In the bottom of a large bowl, whisk together all ingredients for the vinaigrette. Add the sliced onion and allow to sit while you prepare the other ingredients.

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add bread cubes and toast for 5 minutes or so until all sides are browned. Keep an eye on them and toss frequently so they don't burn! Add the toasted bread to the bowl with the vinaigrette.

Add all other ingredients to the bowl and toss to coat with the dressing. It is best to let the panzanella sit for 30 minutes or so to let all of the flavors meld together. Yum!

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

It's a new year, and just like every other January I have decided to try to live a little healthier. This usually doesn't last very long, but it's worth a shot! Keeping the new, healthy mentality in mind, the first recipe of 2011 is chicken lettuce wraps. I figure that any dish that comes wrapped in lettuce has to be healthy, right? These delicious bites are actually inspired by a P. F. Chang's appetizer of the same name, but with some extra additions to suit our own taste. I have been experimenting quite a bit with this recipe, and it is finally share-worthy. I have found that Boston Bibb lettuce in the fancy plastic container works the best because it has flexible leaves and usually doesn't have holes, but iceburg could also work.

Serves 4-6 as appetizer portions, or 2-4 as a meal

Ingredients

Cooking Sauce:
¼ c. Hoisin sauce
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp dry sherry
2 Tbsp oyster sauce
1/4 c. water
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch

 

Marinade:
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tbsp dry sherry
1 tbsp water

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp vegetable oil

1 pounds ground chicken (or 1 lb chicken breast cut into small cubes)

½ oz. dried mushrooms such as shiitake or porcini (or 4 oz. fresh)
5 Tbsp oil
1 tsp fresh minced ginger, or ¼ tsp dried ground ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 green onions, minced

½ tsp. red pepper flakes (adjust to taste)

8 oz can water chestnuts, minced
Packaged Chow Mein noodles (or something crunchy)
lettuce "cup" leaves, bibb or iceburg

Directions:

If using dried mushrooms, cover with boiling water, let stand 30 minutes then drain. Cut and discard woody stems. Mince mushrooms. Set aside. 

Mix all ingredients for cooking sauce in bowl, and set aside. In medium bowl, combine all ingredients for marinade, and chicken. Stir to coat chicken thoroughly and let sit 15 minutes to marinate. 

Heat wok or large skillet over medium high heat. Add 3 Tbsp oil, then add chicken and stir fry for about 3-4 minutes. Set aside. Add 2 Tbsp oil to pan. Add ginger, garlic, red pepper flakes, and onion; stir fry about a minute or so. Add mushrooms and water chestnuts; stir fry an additional 2 minutes. Return chicken to pan.

Add mixed cooking sauce to pan. Simmer for 15-20 minutes on low heat until sauce is thickened and most of the liquid has evaporated. Spoon into lettuce leaf, top with crunchy noodles and roll. Yum!