Vegetarian Eight Treasures

The Chinese believe eight is a lucky number.

Ingredients:

3 pieces spicy pressed bean curd
4 dried mushrooms
50 grams (3 1/2 tablespoons) carrot
75 grams (5 1/4 tablespoons) wheat gluten (a meat substitute available
in Asian markets)
50 grams (3 1/2 tablespoons) water chestnuts (fresh if possible)
75 grams (5 1/4 tablespoons) string beans
1 red chili
1/4 cup peanuts, or as desired
1 garlic clove
1 shallot
1 1/2 tablespoons hot bean paste
1 teaspoon rice wine

Seasoning:

1/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon hoisin sauce
1/2 teaspoon dark soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
pepper - a few shakes
50 ml (just under 1/4 cup) water
Oil for deep-frying and stir-frying


Directions:


Soak the dried mushrooms until they have softened. If desired, save the soaking liquid to use in place of water in the seasoning.
Wash and dice the string beans, gluten ball and spicy pressed bean curd.
Wash and dice the carrot, water chestnuts and red chili.
Peel the garlic and shallot and chop finely. Mix together the seasoning ingredients in a bowl.Boil the peanuts in boiling water for about 2 minutes. Cool.
Peel the skin and set aside.
Heat the wok and add oil for deep-frying. When oil is ready,deep-fry the peanuts on high heat until they are golden brown. Remove and set aside. Repeat with the gluten ball. Parboil the carrots and string beans for 1 minute. Drain.
Heat wok and add oil. When oil is ready, add the garlic shallot and hot bean paste. Add all the other ingredients except for the peanuts. Stir-fry until they are cooked,then add the rice wine and seasoning.
Turn off the heat, mix in the peanuts, and serve.

Learn the secret why Chinese women don't put on weight and the secret

China's been keeping for 400 years.

Can tea really help you lose weight? According to Jesse Willms, the establishment weight loss industry doesn't want you to know about a cheap and easy way to lose weight without relying on expensive products and programs.
Wu-Yi Tea, which has been used in Asian culture for hundreds of years,is an alternative to some of the other diet products out today.

According to Mr. Willms you can lose significant weight in the matter of a couple months with the help of Wu-Yi Tea, along with proper exercise and diet. The testimonials on his website show people who have lost 20-30 pounds, or even more. That's certainly a lofty claim. Wu-Yi does note that those individuals were compensated for their weight loss, they are not actors or models, and they can verify their weight loss claims.
You may be wondering how a simple tea can be such a powerful weight loss tool. What are the claims really all about? Wu-Yi is said to have a high natural concentration of polymerized polyphenols. These compounds have been clinically proven to activate enzymes that cause the breakdown of fat. They also improve your metabolism to help
speed up weight loss. It is recommended that you drink two cups of Wu-Yi Tea every day and stick to a diet and exercise regimen. You can then lose weight due to increased metabolism and blocking the fattening effects of carbohydrates.

PRO

    * If you are a coffee drinker, this can be a way to lower your caffeine intake
    * Clinical trials supporting Wu-Yi Tea's fat burning abilities
    * Claims to be more effective than Green Tea
    * Promotes healthy diet
    * Promotes exercise
    * Does not contain calories, carbs or fat
CON

    * Has some caffeine, only slightly less than what is in a cup of coffee
    * Website is cumbersome and maybe even a little ambiguous, since pricing info is not readily available 

DIET and NUTRITION

You are advised to drink the Wu-Yi Tea twice each day and include a sensible diet and moderate exercise. There are no actual foods or recipes, only the recommendation to not eat after 7:30 p.m. and to drink eight asses of water a day.



EXERCISE

Mr. Willms' website recommends some exercise along with drinking your Wu-Yi Tea. These exercises include going for a 30 minute walk, swimming, or cycling at least three times a week.

EXPENSE

A free trial is available, with a $4.95 shipping and handling fee, but you don't get the price of the Wu-Yi Tea until you sign up. You are also offered a 60-day money-back guarantee.


CONCLUSION

The Wu-Yi Tea website is not visually appealing and looks somewhat skeptical.

You have to really search for price information, and you get nothing unless
you go through with the sign-up process.

The Wu-Yi Tea claim is that you can lose up to 30 pounds or more by drinking Wu-Yi Tea. Of course, their recommendations to follow a sensible diet and exercise program will also contribute to your weight loss. As with most
supplemental products, don't expect a miracle, but possibly a positive
small addition to your overall weight loss efforts.

Delicious Chinese Chiken Recipes

Chengdu Chicken

 

(A typical Szechuan dish, named after the capital of the province)

Serves 2 by itself, or 3 - 4 as part of a multicourse meal

Ingredients:

1/2 lb chicken breasts, boned
Marinade:
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teasoon cooking wine (or sherry)
2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons tapioca starch (or cornstarch)
4 tablespoons oil
1/2 bunch spinach
1 tablespoon chopped green onion
1 tablespoon chopped ginger
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 tablespoon hot bean sauce


Sauce:

1 teaspoon cooking wine (or sherry)
1 teaspoon light soy sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon vinegar (red wine or rice vinegar)
1 1/2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon freshly-ground Szechwan pepper

Directions:

Remove fat from chicken. Cut first into strips, then cubes. Mix together marinade ingredients. Marinate chicken for twenty minutes.
While chicken is marinading, prepare vegetables. Peel skin off ginger, cut into thin slices, and mince. Peel and cut garlic into strips (whack it first with the cleaver to make it easier to peel). Chop green onion two to three times into fine pieces. Heat wok. When wok is hot, add oil. Add spinach, and sprinkle a bit of salt on top. As soon as spinach wilts, remove and set aside.

Mix together sauce ingredients. Set aside. Mix cornstarch and water. Set aside. Heat wok again and add three tablespoons oil. Put in chicken cubes and stir-fry, stirring continually to keep the chicken from sticking.
When the chicken is approximately 80 percent cooked, move it to the side of the wok. Add the ginger, garlic, and green onion in the middle of the wok. Mix in the hot bean sauce. Stir the sauce mixture and mix in.
Stir the cornstarch and water mixture and mix in. Serve over spinach and sprinkle with ground szechuan pepper.

Chicken Wontons

 

  

Makes approximately 15 wontons

Ingredients:

1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 slice ginger, grated
250 grams (8 ounces) chicken meat, minced
2 tablespoons peanut butter
1 tablespoon sweet chilli sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
30 wonton wrappers
Oil for stir-frying
Oil for deep-frying
Dipping sauce of your choice

Directions:

Heat wok and add oil, drizzling the oil down the sides of the wok. Stir-fry the crushed garlic, ginger and onion. Add the chicken meat and stir-fry on high heat until the chicken browns. Add the seasonings, stirring. Remove the wok from the burner and allow the mixture to cool.

Set out the wonton wrappers with a small bowl filled with water. Lay out 1 wonton wrapper, and place approximately 1 tablespoon of the chicken mixture in the middle. Dip your finger in the water and run it along the edges of the wonton wrapper to wet. Take another wonton wrapper and place it on top in a way that forms a star shape (the top wrapper looks like a diamond instead of a square). Continue with the rest of the mixture. Deep-fry the wontons a few at a time, sliding them carefully into the wok so that the oil doesn't splatter. Deep-fry until they turn golden and drain on paper towels. Serve with Sweet and Sour Sauce or the dipping sauce of your choice.

(Approximately 105 calories per wonton)

Popular Beef Recipe

Beef and Peppers in Black Bean Sauce 

A Cantonese recipe
Ingredients:

4 ounces Sirloin beef sliced thin or thick steaks
3 green peppers (or red and green peppers as desired)
1/2 small onion
2 sticks of celery
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon MSG (if desired)
1 teaspoon black beans
2 cloves garlic
3 slices ginger
1/2 cup stock or hot water
2 tablespoons oil for cooking

Marinade:
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons oil

Directions:

Place the beef in a bowl, and stir in the marinade ingredients. Marinate beef for approximately thirty minutes.
While beef is marinating, prepare the vegetables. Cut peppers, onion, and celery into 1/2 inch pieces. Mix the garlic cloves and ginger with the black beans and chop finely. Heat wok and add 2 tablespoons oil. When oil is ready, add 1/2 of the black bean, garlic, and ginger mixture. Mix and add the beef. Stir-fry until the beef is approximately 60 - 65 percent cooked. Remove the beef and set aside. Add the rest of the bean mixture, onions and celery. Stir-fry for 3 - 4 minutes and add the peppers. Stir-fry for a couple of minutes longer and add 1/2 cup of stock or hot water. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for a couple of minutes. Add MSG if desired.
Mix, taste, and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Add the beef. Mix and serve immediately.

Beef and Snow Peas in Oyster Sauce
 

Ingredients:

1 pound flank steak, sliced thinly
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 pound fresh snow peas
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon minced ginger

Directions:

1. Mix beef with cornstarch and soy sauce. Trim snow peas. Blanch in boiling water 1 minute until they turn bright green; drain and run under cold water. Combine oyster sauce, sherry, and sugar.
2. Heat oil in a wok. Add garlic and ginger. Stir-fry a few seconds until fragrant. Add beef and stir-fry until browned. Add oyster sauce mixture. Cook, stirring, until it begins to boil. Add snow peas and stir-fry 30 seconds longer.

Mexican Food Recipes for Cinco De Mayo Celebration

Spanish for the 5th of May, Cinco De Mayo is a popular holiday in parts of Mexico and the United States, as well as wherever Mexican cuisine (whether authentic, Tex-Mex, fusion, or Mexican inspired) is known and loved.


Chorizo Taco Salad

Measurements are approximate and easily changed. Serves 3-4.
Ingredients:
2/3 pound Ground chorizo sausage (not     in casing)
1/3 pound ground beef (depending on   
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Minced garlic
1 teaspoon oregano
1 lime
1 green pepper, sliced
1/2 large red onion, sliced
Baby romaine or other salad greens
Sour cream
Handful of chopped cilantro Taco shells or tortilla chips (sidenote: I bought La Tiara taco shells for the first time a while ago, and they taste great. Very light and corny, but not the best for filling up too much because they are small and thin. For this meal though, they were perfect.)

Put ground meats into a small pot or deep pan and begin to brown, breaking up with a fork. Stir in tomato paste, garlic and oregano, and let simmer until meat is thoroughly cooked. A squeeze of lime wouldn’t hurt.

Put another large pan on the stove over high heat. Add a small amount of olive oil, then toss in pepper and onion slices. Sprinkle with salt and ground pepper. Cook until they start to soften, but still have some crunch to them.

Serve meat mixture and peppers and onions in taco shells or on a salad bed with tortilla chips. Add tomato and corn salsa, sour cream, and chopped cilantro. Squeeze a slice of lime over the entire thing.

Mexican Tortilla and Lime Soup

A rotisserie chicken makes this easy, or use any leftover cooked chicken. You can make the soup and crisp the tortillas ahead of time; store separately in covered containers. Recipe adapted from Latin & Carribbean Stores Demystified, by Linda Bladholm. Serves 4-6.
Ingredients:

2 oat bran or whole wheat tortillas
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 canned chipotle chili in adobo, plus 1/2 tsp adobo sauce
2 cups cooked chicken breast, shredded (I used rotisserie chicken from the market)
2 Tbsp vegetable or canola oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
6 cups chicken stock (homemade or low-sodium canned)
Juice of 2 limes, plus the rinds (4 halves of squeezed lime)
1 tsp dried Mexican oregano
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt and fresh black pepper to taste
Chopped garnishes: red onion, avocado, radishes, queso fresco (or crumbled feta cheese), cilantro (some or all, optional)

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Slice tortillas into thin matchsticks, 2-3 inches long, and spread on a cookie sheet. Leave out on the countertop to get a bit stale, for 30-60 minutes, while you prepare the soup.

In a small food processor or with a mortar and pestle, puree the garlic and chipotle, and set aside.

In a large saucepan, heat the oil. Sauté onion until soft, 2-3 minutes. Add tomatoes and garlic-chili puree, and stir 2-3 minutes. Add 1/2 tsp adobo sauce, stock, lime juice, lime halves, oregano and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Add shredded chicken, and season with salt and pepper. Remove lime rinds. Set soup aside, covered.

Bake the tortilla strips for 10 minutes, or until crisp and browned. Ladle soup into individual serving bowls, and garnish with a few tortilla strips. Pass bowls of garnishes for each person to add, to taste.

Finger Food

 

Finger Food (chiken satay)

  

Finger Food (Szechuan pepper chicken with tomato chilli jam )

  

Finger Food (mouthwatering mini pies with pre-packaged, frozen meatballs.)

  

Finger Food (Roast squash bites with pumpkin seed pesto)

  

 Finger Food ( fish terrine )

 

Finger Food for Kids

Finger Food (Pandan Chicken Recipe)

Finger food is the latest lifestyle thing. Anything goes, but in dainty-sized portions; food is sophisticated but nibbled strictly without cutlery. This sums up the success of a phenomenon that is winning over gourmets and great chefs, editors and designers, TV and Hollywood stars and A-listers.

Marshmallow & Hot Dog Finger Food Recipes

Ingredients:

Marshmallow & Hot Dog Finger Food recipe picture 1This is the most common centerpiece for a kids birthday party here in the Philippines. Very easy to prepare and enjoyable enough for kids and adults alike. Making this for my brother's birthday to go with his favorite spaghetti.

You just need:

10 hot dogs
1 pack assorted color marshmallows
1/2 a head of a cabbage
toothpicks
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp cooking oil

Step 1:

Marshmallow & Hot Dog Finger Food recipe picture 2In a pan put about 1/4 cup of water and 1 tbsp of oil. Let it boil and add in the hot dogs. Cook them for about 3 minutes. Then pull them out and set aside.






Step 2:

Marshmallow & Hot Dog Finger Food recipe picture 3Slice the hot dogs in bite size pieces almost the same size as your mallows.




Step 3:

Marshmallow & Hot Dog Finger Food recipe picture 4Get a toothpick and just start skewering them. Afterwards stick them into the cabbage head and just work your way out to filling it. Kids can help with just a bit of supervision from adults on this part.



Step 4:

Marshmallow & Hot Dog Finger Food recipe picture 5Stick them around the cabbage filling the gaps and working on a colorful pattern. Put on the table together with the rest of your party meals and just let the kids help themselves picking up this pretty and yummy finger foods!



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