Asian Turkey Lettuce Wraps

 

• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 10 mins
• Total Time: 15 mins

Ingredients

• 1¼ lb. lean ground turkey (or ground chicken)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1 (8 oz) can sliced water chestnuts, drained and coarsely chopped
• 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
• 2 tablespoons lower-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons roasted red chili paste
• Pinch of salt
• 12 Bibb/Butter lettuce leaves

Instructions

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add turkey, garlic and ginger to the pan and cook for about 6 minutes or until turkey is browned. Stir to crumble.
2. Combine turkey mixture, onions and chopped water chestnuts in a large bowl, stirring well, and set aside.
3. Meanwhile in a small bowl, whisk together hoisin, soy sauce, rice vinegar and roasted red chili paste and drizzle over the turkey mixture. Toss to coat completely.
4. Add about ¼ cup turkey mixture to each lettuce leaf, serve and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts:

• Serving Size: 2 lettuce cups
• Calories: 162
• Sugar: 3.4 g
• Sodium: 441.5 mg
• Fat: 4.3 g
• Saturated Fat: 0.8 g
• Carbohydrates: 7.8 g
• Fiber: 0.9 g
• Protein: 23.5 g

* Please note that all nutrition information are just estimates. Values will vary among brands, so we encourage you to calculate these on your own for most accurate results.

Chicken Egg Roll in a Bowl

Prep Time: 5 mins

• Cook Time: 15 mins
• Total Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• 1 lb. ground chicken (or ground turkey, beef or pork)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and ground pepper, to taste (just a little to season the chicken)
• 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
• 1 teaspoon roasted red chili paste (or more if you like the spice)
• 4 cups coleslaw mix
• 1/4 cup green onions, sliced
• Sesame seeds, for garnish
  
  Instructions

1. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add the ground chicken to the pan, season with a little salt and pepper (you don’t need much since there is a lot of sodium in the soy sauce), and cook for about 6 minutes until the chicken is browned and cooked through, stirring to crumble.
2. While the chicken is cooking, whisk together soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, ginger and roasted red chili paste in a small bowl; set aside.
3. Once the ground chicken is cooked through, add the coleslaw mix to the skillet and stir everything together until the coleslaw mix has softened.  Pour the sauce in the skillet, stirring well until everything is completely coated.  Cook for a few more minutes until the sauce has thickened, about 2 minutes.
4. Serve over white or brown rice, or you can enjoy the meal as it is, and garnish with sliced green onions and sesame seeds.  Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts:

• Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe
• Calories: 254
• Sugar: 2.6 g
• Sodium: 708.2 mg
• Fat: 14.7 g
• Saturated Fat: 3.7 g
• Carbohydrates: 6.1 g
• Fiber: 1.8 g
• Protein: 23.2 g

* Please note that all nutrition information are just estimates. Values will vary among brands, so we encourage you to calculate these on your own for most accurate results.

Asian Caramel Slow Cooker Pork

 

Slow Cooker Asian Caramel Pulled Pork

Asian Caramel Slow Cooker Pulled Pork is crazy tender smothered in the most addicting savory, sweet and spicy sauce infused with coconut milk, soy sauce, sweet chili sauce, fish sauce, sriracha, ginger and garlic. You will be licking your plate -  and the slow cooker. 

 CuisineAsian

 Prep Time10minutes minutes

 Cook Time5hours hours

 Total Time5hours hours 10minutes minutes

 Servings8 -10 servings

Ingredients

• 4-5 lbs. pork shoulder/pork butt trimmed of excess fat
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Wet Rub

• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seed oil
• 2 tablespoons ginger powder (sounds like a lot but it's amazing)
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tsp EACH salt, onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Slow Cooker Sauce

• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
• 1/3 cup Japanese sweet rice wine/mirin (may substitute dry sherry)
• 1/4 cup Asian sweet chili sauce
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon Sriracha/ Asian hot chili sauce
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Caramel Sauce

• 1 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup water

Instructions

• Lightly spray a 6 qt + slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
• Whisk together all of the Wet Spice Rub ingredients together in a medium bowl then massage it evenly all over the pork. Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil over high heat in a large cast iron skillet. Using tongs or 2 forks, sear pork on all sides until lightly browned. Place pork in prepared slow cooker.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together Slow Cooker Sauce ingredients (not Caramel Sauce) and pour all over pork.
• Cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours or on HIGH for 5-6 hours OR until pork is fall apart tender and easily shreds with a fork. At this point, remove pork to a cutting board until it is cool enough to shred.
• Meanwhile, remove all of the sauce left in the slow cooker to a measuring cup. If there is less than 2 ½ cups then add enough water to equal 2 ½ cup. Set aside. You can add shredded pork back to the slow cooker now that you have removed the sauce.
• To make the Caramel Sauce, add brown sugar and water to large skillet and boil over medium heat for 1 minute, whisking constantly. Don't overcook or it will harden! Slowly whisk in the 2 ½ cups Slow Cooker Sauce and simmer over medium high heat, whisking constantly until reduced and thickened, approximately 7-10 minutes. Pour desired amount of Caramel Sauce over shredded pork and toss until evenly coated with a spatula. Add additional sriracha for spicier if desired.
• Serve with rice/veggies/etc. and my Slow Cooker Caramel Pork Tacos with Pineapple Snow Pea Slaw are coming soon!

Notes

OVEN:  Tightly cover and bake at 425 F for 30 minutes then reduce the temperature to 325 F and continue to roast for an additional 5-6 hours or until super tender. Check the pork the last couple hours of cooking to make sure there is still liquid and add a little coconut milk if needed.

Cilantro Lime Rice with Pineapple

 1 cup dry white rice, cooked according to directions

2 tablespoons real butter

Juice from 1 large lime, or two smaller ones (taste as you go, I add a lot!)

1 small can crushed pineapple, drained (You may want 2 small cans)

½ – ¾ cups chopped fresh cilantro

Salt and pepper to taste

Cook rice. As soon as it’s done, toss in the butter and stir to melt. Add lime juice, pineapple, and cilantro. Stir to combine, and then add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

You’ll want to serve this right away, if you don’t, the flavors tend to mellow a bit and you’ll probably need to add more lime juice because the rice kind of sucks it up.If you’re not quite ready to eat when your rice finishes cooking, just toss in the butter and keep a lid on it so it stays warm.Then right before you serve it, toss it all together.

Quick Ramen

 Ingredients:

4 packages Ramen Noodles -- seasoning discarded
4 TBS butter + extra for sauteing veggies prior
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 C soy sauce
1/4 C water
2 TBS brown sugar
1-2 tsp Sriracha sauce
4 green onions
4 eggs
Everything seasoning
+sliced cabbage
+mushrooms
+any other veggie

Bring a large pot to boil and cook the noodles for 2 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Whisk together soy sauce, water, brown sugar, and sriracha and set aside.

Melt a small amount butter in large skillet over medium heat, and saute mushrooms and cabbage - set aside. Melt more butter, add garlic and ginger and cook for 1 minute. Increase heat to medium high, add soy sauce mixture. Cook until bubbly (approx 1 minute). Add noodles and coat completely.

Reduce heat to medium and push noodles to one side. If necessary, add more butter. Whisk eggs, pour into side of pan and scramble. Cook until done. Add cabbage, green onions, and mushrooms (plus any extra veggies). 

Sprinkle everything seasoning in individual bowls before eating.

Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken

INGREDIENTS

CHICKEN:

•  3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds)
•  Salt and pepper
•  1 cup cornstarch
•  2 large eggs, beaten
•  1/4 cup canola, vegetable or coconut oil

SAUCE:

•  1/2 to 3/4 cup granulated sugar (depending on how sweet you want the sauce)
•  4 tablespoons ketchup
•  1/2 cup apple cider vinegar (see note for substitutions)
•  1 tablespoon soy sauce
•  1 teaspoon garlic salt

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Cut the chicken breasts into 1-inch or slightly larger pieces. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Place the cornstarch in a gallon-sized ziploc bag. Put the chicken into the bag with the cornstarch and seal, tossing to coat the chicken.
3. Whisk the eggs together in a shallow pie plate. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat until very hot and rippling. Dip the cornstarch-coated chicken pieces in the egg and place them carefully in a single layer in the hot skillet.
4. Cook for 20-30 seconds on each side until the crust is golden but the chicken is not all the way cooked through (this is where it's really important to have a hot skillet/oil). Place the chicken pieces in a single layer in a 9X13-inch baking dish and repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.
5. Mix the sauce ingredients together in a medium bowl and pour over the chicken. Bake for one hour, turning the chicken once or twice while cooking to coat evenly with sauce. Serve over hot, steamed rice.

NOTES

See the recipe post for a ton of FAQ's about this recipe (substitutions, etc).

If you like extra sauce, double the sauce ingredients – pour half over the chicken and follow the recipe instructions; pour the other half in a small saucepan and cook the sauce on the stovetop at a simmer for 8-10 minutes until it reduces and thickens. Serve it on the side of the chicken.

Often I'll sub in rice vinegar for the apple cider vinegar for a milder/slightly sweeter flavor.

Asian-Style Meatballs

Ingredients

Meatballs:

• 2 pounds ground meat (beef, pork, turkey or a combo - see note)
• 1 cup panko or regular bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 green onions, white and green parts finely chopped
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce (I use low-sodium)
• 1 tablespoon finely minced ginger (or ginger paste)
• 3 cloves garlic, finely minced or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• Zest from 1 lime (about a teaspoon)
• Pinch of crushed red pepper, more or less to taste (optional)

Sauce:

• 1/3 cup soy sauce (I use low-sodium)
• 1/3 cup sweet chili sauce (see note)
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice (from 2-3 limes)
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and lightly spray with cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, add the ground meat. Add all the other meatball ingredients and mix until well-combined (I just dig in there with my hands). Roll 2-3 tablespoons of the mixture into meatballs and place 1/2-inch apart or so on the prepared baking sheet.
3. Bake for 20-25 minutes until cooked through (an instant-read thermometer should read 165 degrees F in the middle of a meatball).
4. While the meatballs cook, whisk together all the sauce ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl or small saucepan and heat until simmering.
5. Using tongs or a spatula, remove the meatballs from the baking sheet onto a plate or tray. Drizzle the cooked meatballs with the warm sauce and garnish with additional green onions and toasted sesame seeds, if desired. Serve the meatballs on their own or over brown rice, white rice, quinoa, etc.

Notes

If you want to change up the flavor a bit, use fish sauce instead of soy sauce in the meatball mixture. I've made these meatballs with a combination of ground pork and ground turkey and another time with 100% ground beef. All versions have been delicious.
Sweet chili sauce is pretty widely available in most grocery stores in the Asian-foods aisle (by the soy sauce). It is sweet and spicy; different brands may differ in flavor and spiciness (Mae Ploy is a popular brand). There are also lots of homemade versions online if you google a recipe.

Thai Chicken Wraps with Peanut Sauce

Ingredients:

For the Chicken:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar

For the Veggie Saute:

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 cup finely shredded green cabbage
• 1 cup finely shredded carrots
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
• 2 large cloves garlic, finely minced

To Wrap:

• 6 12-inch tortillas
• 3 cups warm, cooked Jasmine rice
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced
• Chopped roasted, salted peanuts

For the Peanut Sauce:

• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil or canola oil
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Directions:

1. Combine garlic, pepper, sugar, and salt in a small bowl. Rub the mixture onto both sides of the chicken. Preheat the broiler to high (or use a gas or charcoal grill) and broil (or grill) the chicken about 4-5 minutes on each side until cooked through. Remove to a plate and tent with foil. Let the chicken rest 5-10 minutes before slicing into thin strips.
2. Combine all the peanut sauce ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend/process until smooth. Set aside.
3. In a large nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onion, cabbage, carrots, ginger and garlic. Sauté the mixture, stirring often, for 4-5 minutes, until the vegetables are crisp tender. Place a scoop of warm rice on a tortilla. Top with sliced chicken, sauteed vegetables and sprinkle the roasted peanuts and green onions on top. Drizzle peanut sauce over the top. Roll up tightly and serve immediately.

Asian Lettuce Wraps

Asian Lettuce Wraps
Recipe by Our Best Bites
2 tsp canola oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 lb ground chicken*
3 ounces mushrooms, finely chopped (about 8 small mushrooms)
1/2 tsp kosher salt
4 C bagged coleslaw mix or thinly shredded cabbage
1 8oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained, rinsed, and finely minced
1/2 C thinly sliced green onions
4 Tbs soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
1 lemon, zested and juiced (about 3-4 Tbs juice)
1/2-1 tsp sriracha or other hot sauce (1 tsp of Sriracha is fairly spicy in my opinion, so if you want less or no kick, just give it a little, or you can leave it out completely)
1/3 C roughly chopped cilantro
1-2 heads iceberg lettuce
*To prepare your own ground chicken, cut boneless skinless chicken breasts into large chunks and pulse in a food processor until ground.

Dipping/Drizzling Sauce
4 Tbs soy sauce
4 Tbs rice vinegar
3 Tbs water
2 tsp honey
1-2 tsp finely minced fresh ginger
Heat a very large skillet to medium-high heat on the stove top.  When hot, add vegetable  oil and then garlic and ginger.  Saute for about 30 seconds, until fragrant, and then add ground chicken, chopped mushrooms, and kosher salt.  Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until chicken is cooked through.  (*At this point, sometimes I have some extra liquid in the pan from the chicken.  If it’s quite a bit, I tilt the pan and spoon it out so the chicken can cook and not boil.) Add cabbage/coleslaw, water chestnuts, and green onions.  Cook for about 2 minutes, until cabbage starts to wilt.  Add soy sauce, sesame oil, the zest from the lemon and the lemon juice, and hot sauce to taste.  Remove from heat and stir in cilantro.
To prepare dipping sauce, combine all ingredients and whisk to combine.
To serve, carefully remove the individual leaves from the head of lettuce.  (The closer you get to the center, the easier it becomes!)  Place chicken mixture in the leaves and serve with sauce.
Yield: about 5 C chicken mixture.  Makes 14-16 lettuce wraps.

Asian Sweet Chili Sesame Chicken

2 pounds chicken breasts (thawed)* 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch 1/4 cup water sriracha to taste (optional) Sweet Chili Sesame Sauce 2-4 tablespoons Asian sweet chili sauce ** 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce 1/3 cup ketchup 1/3 cup packed brown sugar 2 tablespoons quality hoisin sauce (like Lee Kum Kee or Kikkkoman)*** 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder or 3-4 garlic cloves minced 1/2 teaspoon onion powder 1/2 teaspoon ginger powder or 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger 1 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper Garnishes toasted sesame seeds chopped green onions

1. Add chicken to the bottom of your crockpot.
2. Whisk the Sweet Chili Sesame Sauce ingredients together in a medium bowl. Pour over chicken.
3. Cook on low for 5-7 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.
4. Shred chicken and add 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 1/4 cup water to the crockpot. Stir contents around. Cook on high for 20-30 minutes until sauce thickens. Taste and add Sriracha for spicier, brown sugar for sweeter if desired.
5. Serve with rice and garnish with sesame seeds and green onions.

Skillet Beef and Broccoli Ramen

Ingredients:

1/4 C + 2 TBS vegetable oil, separated
3 tsp minced garlic, separated
2 TBS red wine vinegar
1/4 C honey
1/2 C + 2 TBS low sodium soy sauce, separated
1 TBS parsley
3/4 pound flank steak
3 TBS cornstarch
2 TBS sesame oil
1/3 brown sugar
1/2 tsp ginger
1 C beef broth
4 C broccoli florets
2 packages ramen noodles
Salt and pepper

 Instructions:

Very thinly slice the flank steak against the grain into 1/4th inch thick strips and them into 2 inch pieces. Put the steak pieces into a large ziploc bag.

In a bow, combine 1/4 C vegetable oil, 1 tsp minced garlic, 2 TBS red wine vinegar, 1/4 C honey, 1/4 C soy sauce, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 TBS parsley.

Whisk together and pour over the flank steak in the bag. Seal and place in fridge for at least 1 hour and preferably 6-8 hours. Flip the steak in the bag halfway through marinating time.

Boil a small pot of water over high heat and cook noodles for exactly 2 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water.

Chop the broccoli into bite sized, even pieces.

Remove the flank steak and drain off any marinade. Toss the steak to coat with the cornstarch.

In a large skillet over high heat, add in 1 TBS of the remaining vegetable oil. Heat until oil is shimmering and then add in 1/2 the beef so it can be in a single layer. 

Cook without moving until the beef is well seared, about 1-1/2 minutes. Continue cooking while stirring until the beef is lightly cooked, but still pink in spots, about 30 seconds. Transfer to plate.

Repeat steps with second half of beef.

In the same skillet, add beef broth, brown sugar, remaining soy sauce, sesame oil, remaining garlic, and ginger. Stir and cook (uncovered) over medium heat until sauce thickens a bit and reduces by about a third (about 5-8 minutes). You don't want to reduce it too much so it can still generously coat all the noodles and vegetables.

Bring mixture to a boil. Once boiling, top the mixture evenly with the broccoli (don't stir in). Cover put with a lid and reduce it to low.

Allow broccoli to steam until crisp, or to desired tenderness.

Remove lid, and add in the cooked pasta and cooked meat.

Stir and add desired toppings.