Vegetable Eggrolls

Don't be intimidated...these are really quite easy to make!

Ingredients:
1/2 medium cabbage
3 carrots
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsps fresh minced ginger
1 pkg - #48 egg roll wrappers
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp soya sauce
1/4 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water
2  1/2 - 3 cups vegetable or peanut oil for frying

Shred the cabbage and carrots and add the minced garlic and ginger. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a wok and cook the vegetables for 1 minute. Mix the vinegar, soya sauce, sugar, salt and pepper together and add to the vegetables, cooking for 1 more minute.

Remove the vegetables to a large baking pan and spread them out to cool. Place something under one corner of the pan so that excess liquid will accumulate and can be removed. But don't remove it all or the filling will be too dry.

Now place a few wrapper out on your work surface. Keep the rest covered with a dish towel. Take 1 heaping tbsp of filling and place in the center of the wrapper. Mix the cornstarch and water together and spread with a brush (or you can just use your finger) along all the edges.

Fold the bottom corner up, then the sides in like an envelope and roll up firmly.

Once they're all rolled up you are ready to fry.

Heat frying oil to 350-375 F.
Place eggrolls in the oil using long handled tongs a few at a time. Fry 1 minute, flip and fry another 1 minute until golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to remove from the oil. Place on paper towel lined pans.

Serve warm with plum sauce. Or cool and freeze individually.
Makes 48 egg rolls

Chicken Fried Brown Rice and Quinoa

Chicken fried rice turned up a notch.

1 cup brown rice
1/4 cup quinoa
3 cups water

2 eggs
1 tbsp butter
salt and pepper

1 cup chopped, cooked chicken

1/4 cup soya sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp sesame oil

Vegetable oil 
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 carrot, diced
1 stalk of celery, sliced
1/2 red pepper, diced
1 radish, diced

4 green onions, sliced
1/2 cup peanuts

Bring rice, quinoa and water to  boil, then simmer covered for 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork and chill.

Scramble 2 eggs in butter, add salt and pepper and set aside.
Mix the soya, oyster sauce and sesame oil together and also set aside.

Heat a couple tablespoons of vegetable oil in a wok or large frying pan. Add the garlic and white part of green onions. Cook on medium heat 1 minute. Add remaining vegetables, except green part of green onions, and cook 5 minutes or until tender crisp.  

Add chicken, rice and sauce and cook another 5 minutes. Toss in eggs and peanuts and heat through.

Serve with extra soya sauce and topped with more green onions.

Orange Teriyaki Pork

Happy Chinese New Year!

1/2 cup soya sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/2 tsp sriracha 
2 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp ginger

Makes 1 cup sauce

1  1/2 lb boneless pork loin
1 onion, sliced
1 orange, sliced

Whisk the sauce ingredients together and cook over medium heat until thickened enough to coat a spoon.

Cool completely.

Once cooled, pour about 1/3 cup of the sauce over meat, sliced onion and orange in a plastic bag. Marinate at least 1 hour or overnight.

Place the meat in a roasting pan and pour the sauce, onions and orange slices over the top.

Roast at 350 F for 1 hour. Let the pork rest 5 minutes before slicing.

Pretty gorgeous eh?

And serve with more of the teriyaki sauce.

Vegetable Eggrolls

Don't be intimidated.  These are really quite easy to make.

1 daikon (Chinese winter radish, optional)
1/2 cabbage
3 carrots
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsps. fresh ginger, minced

1 pkg- approx. 48 egg roll wrappers

1 tbsp. rice or white wine vinegar
1 tbsp. light soya sauce
1/4 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper (or more)

1 tbsp. cornstarch
1/4 cup cool water

2 1/2 - 3 cups vegetable or peanut oil

Shred the daikon, cabbage and carrots in a food processor.  Or by hand if you feel so inclined.  Add minced garlic and ginger. 

Heat 1 tbsp. vegetable oil in a wok and add the vegetables. Cook for 1 minute. Mix the vinegar, soya sauce, sugar, salt and pepper and add to the vegetables, mixing and cooking for another minute.  Remove the vegetables to a baking sheet.  Spread them out to cool and place something under one corner of the pan so that any liquid will accumulate and can be removed.

On to the rolling of the egg rolls....

Take 1 heaping tbsp. of filling and place in center of wrapper.  Mix water and cornstarch together and use to seal the edges.  Just dip your finger in and spread along the edge of the wrapper.

Fold the bottom corner up, then the sides in like an envelope.  Now roll up firmly. Always keep the dough covered with a dish towel so it doesn't dry out.

Once everything is rolled up you're ready to fry.

Heat the oil in the bottom of a wok or deep fryer. For safety reasons use a flat-bottom wok on the stove.  Use a thermometer and bring the temperature up to 350 - 375F.  Using an electric stove, I set my dial on 5-6.
Place eggrolls in hot oil using tongs, 4 or 5 at a time.  Fry for 1 minute then flip them over for another 1 minute.

Use a slotted utensil to remove them from the oil.

Place on a paper towel lined baking sheet to cool before eating or packaging to freeze.

Deep frying is a messy job so expect to clean the stove and the counter and the floor when you're done  : )

Oh and not one eggroll came apart and blew up in the oil!

Yay me!!

Serve with plum sauce.

Made 50 two-bite egg rolls
The daikon cost $1, the cabbage $0.50, egg roll wrappers $7.00. Pretty inexpensive right?