Stir Fried Pasta - Kevin

This dish must be made with 5 organic ingredients from local foods for Kevin to bring in school. Friends and teachers in Kevin’s class loved it so much and it was voted to be the best dish on that day. Kevin’s mom would like to share it with everybody.

 

Ingredients:

• 16 ounces organic penne pasta
• 1 medium organic leek, julienned
• 1 medium organic carrot, cut into matchsticks
• 1 large head organic broccoli, cut into florets
• 1 cup organic sugar snap peas or snow peas ends trimmed
• Organic Celery trimmed and cut into pieces, sliced or julienned
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons fresh ginger, minced
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• Fried Tofu, Vegetarian Shrimp
• Soy sauce, salt and vegetarian seasoning, vegetarian stir fry sauce
• Black pepper to taste

 

Directions:

- Cook pasta according to package directions. 

-  Heat oil in a large  nonstick pan over medium high heat. Add the leek in and wait until lightly browned, add carrots, and broccoli, adding water one to two tablespoons at a time to keep the vegetables from sticking. Stir fry for four minutes. Add the sugar snap peas and cook for two minutes or until crisp-tender. Add the garlic, ginger, cooked pasta with vegetables. In a small bowl, combine the  salt, soy sauce and vegetarian seasoning. Pour over pasta mixture. Gently stir and cook another minute. Remove from the heat.

- In the separate pan, heat over medium high heat. Add the oil and add the tofu and vegetarian shrimp. Add little vegetarian stir fry sauce. Stir often about 3-5 minutes, add 1 teaspoon sesame oil, stir and turn off the heat. Remove the tofu, vegetarian shrimp from the pan with a slotted spoon.

- Return the tofu, vegetarian shrimp to the pan (already have vegetable and pasta above). Mix well. Season with black pepper.

Happy cooking!

Kevin

Tofu stir-fried with lemon grass and chili paste

My co-author's husband from amthucchay.blogspot.com made this dish.  It is similar to a dish from a restaurant in South Philly.  It was very quick and easy to make but it turned out to be delicious.

Ingredients:

• 5 pieces of fried tofu, cut in half in triangle shape
• 1 red bell pepper, slice in any way you want
• 1 table spoon minced lemon grass
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth (or water)
• Canola oil

Spices: salt, soysauce, vegetarian oyster sauce, sugar, chili paste (available in Asian Market as in the picture below):

Methods:

1. The trick for this dish is the cooking heat has to be very high.
2. Add cooking oil, when the oil is hot, add lemon grass.  Stir fry until lemon grass turns golden brown and release fragrance
3. Add bell pepper, stir fry 1 minute.
4. Add tofu, mix well.
5. Add spices to taste, mix well.
6. Pour in broth, stir fry in high heat for a few minutes.
7. If you want your bell pepper cooked well then let it cooked until soft, I prefer it to be crunchy.

Happy cooking and eating:)
Phongloc (Translated by Mai)

Colorful fried rice

I often make this rice for my niece and nephew when they come over. They really like it. You can use brown rice instead of white rice, it is healthier.

Makes 2 servings

• 1 tablespoons oil
• 1 carrot, peeled, diced
• 1 summer squash, diced
• 1/2 cup frozen corn
• 1/2 cup green peas
• 1/2 cup firm tofu, diced
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup or equivalent sweetener
• 2 cups cold rice (it can be plumed together, so use for hand to separate)
  
• a few dashes of pepper

In a pan with medium high heat, add oil, saute carrot 1 minute, saute squash 1 minute, saute corn 1 minute, saute peas 1 minute, add soy sauce, sweetner, salt, add tofu, add rice, stir quickly until the rice gets hot, add pepper, remove from heat. Serve hot.

Sauteed tofu with mushrooms

This dish is perfect with jasmine rice or brown rice. However, it is very salty! If you are sensitive to salt, reduce the salted beans to 1 tablespoon.

- 1/2 packet of hard tofu, cubed, boiled for 3 minutes, drained well in colander
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger (or garlic)
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 2 tablespoon salted black beans or fermented soybeans
- 1/3 cup water mix with 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or equivalent sweetener
- 1 tablespoon light low-salt soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon minced chili pepper (optional)
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 8 shiitake dried mushrooms, soaked to soften, diced (or baby bellas)
- 1 tomato, 1 small cucumber, sliced

1. In a hot pan, add canola oil, ginger, pepper, stir well until brown, add mushrooms, stir well until brown, add soy sauce, blackbean, tofu stir quickly until all mixed
2- Add flour mixture, sesame oil, stir quickly, removed from stove
3- Transfer to a plate, arrange tomato and cucumber around the plate

Vegetarian Pad Thai

This is a family favorite because of its mild sweet and sour taste.

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

16 ounce flat rice noodles

Sauce:
2 tablespoons tamarind pulp, mix with 1/2 cup water, squeeze out the juice, discard the pulp


1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup soy sauce

Vegetables:
Whatever you have available. I used:
1 king oyster mushroom ( it has a chewy, crunchy texture, similar to that of scallops)

2 celery stalks
1 yellow bell pepper
1 carrot
2 heads of mustard greens


Other ingredients:
1/4 pound bean sprouts
1 tablespoon crushed peanuts
1/4 lime wedge
extra light olive oil or canola oil
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 chili pepper, minced (optional)


1. Combine ingredients to make sauce and set aside.
2. In a hot wok or frying pan, add 2 tablespoons oil. Add mushrooms, brown on both sides. Add about 2 tablespoons sauce, making the glaze by cooking in medium heat until dry, stirring frequently, remove from pan.
3. In the same pan, add 2 tablespoons oil, add ginger and brown. Add vegetables to the pan one at a time, stir frying in between each for about 1 minute. Pour onto the vegetables about 2 tablespoons sauce. Stir fry until everything is soft. Remove from the pan.
4. In the same pan, add 2 tablespoons oil, pour in half of the remaining sauce and bring to boil. Add half of the noodles, keep stirring in medium heat until soft. Mix in half of the veggies. Remove from the pan.
5. Do the same for the remaining noodles.
6. Top with mushroom, beansprouts, peanuts, hot pepper, and sprinkle with wedge of lime. If you prefer to have the beansprouts less raw and more cooked, combine the sprouts with the nơodles from the pan immediately while they are still hot.