It’s kinda those Chicken Wraps only different. This dish is surprisingly filling.

Tips:
1. You can use ground chicken or beef if you don’t like pork.
2. If you find fish sauce to be too fishy, try squid sauce.
3. You can substitute corn starch for the rice flour if you don’t find any or even if you just don’t want to spend the money.
4. This is also good with just plain steamed rice.

Fills up to 6 lettuce wraps

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 lb ground pork
1 shallot, sliced
1 sprig lemongrass, diced (hard part only)
3 scallions diced
4 Tbsp fresh lime juice
3 Tbsp fish sauce
1 cup chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp rice flour
6 Romaine lettuce stalks, cut most of the stem

Heat oil in a skillet. Add pork once oil is hot. Brown for 7 minutes and stir occasionally to separate large clumps of pork. Remove from heat and let pork cool. In a large bowl, combine shallot, lemongrass, scallions, lime juice, fish sauce and cilantro. Once they are combined, whisk in flour. Stir into cooked pork. Finish by serving into lettuce stalks.

Enjoy!

sausage slow cooked in tomato sauce and bell peppers

Very flavorful, easy and filling.

Tips:

1. Don’t use pre-cooked/smoked sausage

Ingredients:

• 8-10 italian sausages
• 1 28-oz tomato sauce or your favorite spaghetti sauce
• 2 bell peppers, diced

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Slow cook for 3 hours on high or 6 hours on low.  Serve.

Enjoy!!!

This is such an easy and quick dish that even a teenager can make it.

Tips:

1. When preparing, the ration between liquid and couscous is 1:1.  You can use water but I prefer low sodium chicken broth just to give the pasta some flavor.
2. The pasta can be prepared in the microwave. Just figure out how long it takes for water to boil and that’s pretty much how long you set your microwave. And remember use a microwaveable bowl then add liquid and pasta, cover and cook.
3. Don’t limit yourself with just the ingredients on this recipe. Other ingredients to add or substitute are salmon, pine nuts, and asparagus tips.  You can even use leftover rotisserie chicken just make sure you dice it.
4. Each cup of uncooked couscous yields 2 cups cooked.
5. This can be a make ahead dish. Just make sure it is stored in a tightly sealed container.

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients:

• 2 cups couscous
• 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1 lb thawed and cooked salad shrimp (can be found in the frozen seafood section)
• 2 cups grape tomatoes, sliced
• 2 2.5oz can sliced olives, drained
• 4oz reduced fat crumbled feta cheese
• 1/2 cup chopped parsley
• 5 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• Salt
• Pepper

Directions:

Bring chicken broth to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in couscous then cover for 5 minutes. Transfer couscous in a large bowl and let it cool for 5-10 minutes. In a small bowl, whisk together EVOO and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper.  Drizzle dressing on couscous and stir.  Toss in shrimp, tomatoes, olives, feta cheese and parsley. Season with salt and pepper if needed. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

slow cooked sausages in beer and onions

Recipe adapted from: Cook’s Country magazine, August-September 2012

Rich and robust flavor without having to fire up the grill.

Tips:

1. I like using an ale when slow cooking with beer. My favorite is Yuengling
2. If you want a little kick with the sausage, use spicy Italian sausages

Ingredients

• 2 large sweet onions, sliced into 1/4 inch thick rings
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 Tbsps packed light brown sugar
• 10 mild Italian sausage
• 2 12-oz beer
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp caraway seeds
• 1/4 tsp fennel seeds
• 10 hoagie rolls
• sauerkraut

Directions:

1. In a large microwaveable bowl, combine onions, soy sauce and brown sugar. Cover and cook in microwave for 5 minutes. Toss then transfer to slow cooker. Place sausages on top.
2. In a bowl, whisk together beer, mustard, caraway and fennel. Pour on sausage. Cook on low for 6-7 hours. When cooked, remove sausage and arrange on a platter. With a slotted spoon, remove onions from slow cooker and arrange around sausages as a garnish. Create sandwiches with hoagie rolls and top sausage with onions and sauerkraut, if desired.

Enjoy!

leftover turkey slices has never tasted so good..

Happy Thanksgiving! Still mulling over what to do with tons of leftover turkey? Try this recipe. Even my daughter who doesn’t like turkey at all ate this for leftovers. It’s really easy and you probably have the ingredients at home already.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 lbs leftover slices of turkey
• 1/2 cup soy sauce, preferably low sodium
• 3 tbsp lime juice
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp ground pepper
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

Directions:

Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Whisk together soy sauce, lime juice, garlic powder and ground pepper to create a marinade. Dip turkey slices in marinade and cook each side for 2-3 minutes.  Serve.

Enjoy!

carne asada tacos made from skirt steak with chimichurri and diced tomatoes and onions

Tired of the typical ground beef or shredded beef Tacos? How about something different – Carne Asada.

Tips:

1. If Skirt Steak is too expensive, use Flap Steak.
2. Don’t marinate for more than an hour as the acid from the lime can start “cooking” the meat.  Needless to say, this dish can be ready in less than 1 hour depending on how long you marinate.
3. Corn tortillas are what tacos are traditionally served with but if you prefer flour, go for it.
4. Be creative with other fillings you use. Don’t limit yourself with tomatoes and cheese. Radish adds a great flavor to these tacos. I love some chimichurri with my steak tacos.
5. This recipe is good for up to 20 tacos, just depending on how much you use for filling.

Ingredients:

• 1 small onion quartered
• 1 bunch cilantro chopped with no stems
• 1 1/2 Tbsp fresh lime juice, about 2 limes
• 1 Tbsp Adobo seasoning
• 3 Tbsp canola oil
• 2 lbs skirt steak
• 20 corn tortillas

Directions:

Combine first 5 ingredients in a food processor and puree to create a marinade. Marinate steak in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to up to 1 hour.  Pre-heat grill to medium. Grill each side for 6 minutes, flipping every 3 minutes to prevent charring.  Remove from grill and let steak sit under a tent cover for 10 minutes before slicing.  Serve on individual tortillas.

Enjoy!

lemon cilantro rice

This is a good side dish for seafood and pork dishes. It’s very simple and easy too!

Tips:

1. I don’t like very lemony rice but if that’s what you prefer, add more lemon juice.
2. Long grain rice is the suggested ingredient but Jasmine will work too.
3. Long grain rice has a 1:1 rice to liquid ratio. If you are using other varieties, check the rice to liquid ratio.
4. You can never have too much cilantro so add as you wish.

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp olive oil (EVOO)
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 cup long grain rice
• 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice (about 1 whole lemon)
• 1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
• salt

Directions:

Heat oil in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat. Add onion and cook for 2 minutes stirring occasionally. Add rice and stir for 1 minute. Slowly stir in chicken broth and lemon juice then bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Add cilantro, cover and continue to simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, season with salt and fluff rice using a fork before serving.

Enjoy!

slow cooked flanken ribs cooked in sweet tea, soy sauce and other seasonings

A savory dish that everyone can enjoy…

Tips:

1. Cooking for more than 6 hours on low will produce the “fall off the bone” ribs.

2. If it’s not readily available on the meat counter, ask the butcher for Flanken Style Ribs. I get mine at Publix.

3. Yes, it’s the same ribs used for Korean Kalbi (Galbi) Beef.

4. No sweet tea? Just add some sugar to regular unsweetened tea to sweeten to your liking.

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 8 Flanken Style Ribs (approximately 2.5 lbs), cut 1/4 inch thin
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 cup sweet tea
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 slices ginger root
• 2 bay leaves

Directions:

Rinse ribs and dry with paper towel. Arrange in slow cooker. Add onion on top. Add remaining ingredients, cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours. Remove bay leaves and ginger root before serving.

Enjoy!

simple, light and easy grilled salmon with peach pico de gallo

A simple, light and easy dish that takes less than 1 hour to make.

Tips:

1. Keep the seasoning of the fish to a minimum
2. The Pico De Gallo recipe makes for more than what you need for the salmon. It’s perfect with chips or as your vegetable serving.
3. Other fish such as Tilapia, Basa, Trout and Mahi Mahi are also great choices.
4. To prevent the Pico De Gallo from “cooking” and getting soggy, let the fish cool down for 3-5 minutes before garnishing with the pico de gallo.

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

Grilled Salmon

• 4 4-6 oz Salmon filets
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp coriander

Peach Pico De Gallo

• 1 large ripe tomatoes, seeds removed and diced
• 1 ripe peach, peeled and diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp coriander

Directions:

1. Prepare salmon by combining salt, pepper and coriander in a small bowl. Season salmon with mixture.  Individually wrap in aluminum foil and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. Combine and toss all the Pico De Gallo ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
3. Heat grill and set on medium low.  Grill salmon for 8-10 minutes depending on thickness. Remove from heat and carefully remove from foil wrapping.  Transfer to a platter skin down and let it cool for 3-5 minutes. Once cooled down, garnish with the Peach Pico De Gallo.

Enjoy!

chicken adobo – a classic filipino dish with rich and creamy coconut milk

A family favorite in my house so I always make a lot more than 1 serving for each.

Tips:

1. I like to use chicken drumettes so that I can also serve it as an appetizer.
2. Thoroughly clean and rinse the drumettes. Pat dry with a paper towel.
3. You can find coconut milk in the International Foods section of grocery stores. Usually it is with the Mexican food ingredients.
4. Lite soy sauce means less sodium.  Don’t confuse it with Light soy sauce.
5. This dish is best served with steamed rice.

Approximate prep and cook time: under 1 hour

Serves: up to 8 (as a main course with side dishes)

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs chicken drumettes
• salt
• pepper
• 1/4 cup cooking oil (vegetable or canola)
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and pressed
• 4 thin slices of ginger root
• 1 onion, chopped (maybe some extra to garnish with)
• 3 bay leaves
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 1/2 cup lite soy sauce
• 1 13-0z can of coconut milk

Directions:

In a large dutch oven or deep skillet, heat oil over medium high heat.  Season chicken with salt and pepper. Carefully add chicken to hot oil and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in garlic, ginger root, onion and bay leaves. Slowly add vinegar and soy sauce. Bring to a boil.  Cover and simmer on low for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Slowly stir in coconut milk. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and serve with your favorite side dishes while still warm. Garnish with chopped onion if desired.

Enjoy!