Kung Pao Chicken

 A classic Sichuan dish, with my adaptation.  I've never seen a classic version of this with zucchini, but I want some veggies in mine, and zucchini works well with the flavors.

Ingredients:

3 medium chicken breasts, trimmed and cubed
3 zucchini, trimmed and cut to a similar size as the chicken
8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 cm ginger, peeled and grated
10+ dried Chinese chiles, facing heaven chiles if you can find them
6 green onions, separated, white and pale green parts thinly sliced, green parts in 1 cm lengths
1 1/2 C peanuts
Vegetable oil

Marinade:

2 T soy sauce
1 T Shaoxing rice wine
1 T cornstarch
2 t salt

Sauce:

5 t soy sauce
5 t dark soy sauce
2 T Chinkiang black vinegar
1 T sugar
2 t Sichuan pepper, toasted and ground
2 T Shaoxing rice wine
6 T chicken stock
1 T sesame oil
2 t salt
1 T cornstarch
Additional chile to desired heat (optional)

Instructions:

Combine the marinade with the chicken and set aside for at least 10 minutes.

While the chicken is marinating, combine the sauce ingredients and set aside.

Once the chicken has marinated heat 1/4 C of oil in a wok with the dried chiles over very high heat, and blacken the chiles (open windows, turn on the vent fan, and be careful you can pepper gas yourself at this point).  Once the chiles are turning dark and the oil is smoking hot add in the chicken; it will splatter as it goes in.  Spread the chicken out in the wok and let it sit without moving until it browns, then stir fry it until just done.  Remove from the wok, reserving the oil in the wok, and set aside.

Heat the oil in the wok back up over high heat, adding more oil if needed.  Add in the garlic, ginger, and white parts of the green onion, and stir continuously until fragrant 30 seconds to 1 minute.  Add in the zucchini, still over high heat, and stir fry for several minutes but leaving it crunchy.  Add in the peanuts and reduce the heat, then add in the sauce, the green parts of the green onions, and the chicken.  Stir until the sauce is thickened, adding additional stock if needed to thin the sauce.

 

Moo Shu Pork

 A restaurant favorite and one of my rare forays to a part of China other than Sichuan province.

Ingredients:

3/4 lb pork loin, trimmed and cut in to thin ribbons
2 cm ginger, peeled and grated, divided 3/4 and 1/4
5 cloves garlic, minced
4 green onions, divided white and pale green chopped, green parts in 1 cm lengths
4 eggs, beaten
6 leaves cabbage, central stem removed and thinly sliced
2 handfuls dried black fungus, re-hydrated
1 small can sliced bamboo shoots, drained
1 T shaoxing rice wine
vegetable oil
salt

Sauce:

4 T soy sauce
4 T hoisin sauce
2 t sesame oil
2 t cornstarch 

Directions:

Combine the sauce ingredients with 1/4 of the ginger and set aside.

Make an omelette with the eggs, salting to taste.  Set aside and slice in to strips when cool.

Heat the oil in a wok over high heat until starting to smoke, then sear the pork until browned, being careful not to overcook it.  Remove and set aside.

Return the wok to the burner and lower the heat to medium high.  Add more oil as needed, then saute the garlic, white parts of the green onion, and the remaining 3/4 of the ginger.  Stir fry until fragrant, approximately 1 minute.  Add the cabbage, black fungus, and bamboo shoots then stir fry briefly before adding the shaoxing wine, then continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the cabbage just begins to wilt (you want it to still have crunch).  Add in the green parts of the green onion, toss for about a minute, then return the eggs and pork to the wok and stir to warm and coat everything with the sauce.

Basic Taco Seasoning

 My take on the taco seasoning that you get in little pouches to mix with ground beef only, you know, not horrible.  I don't call for onion or garlic, because sauteing actual onion and garlic gives a much better result; you can add onion and garlic powder if you want to skip that.  I also don't specify the amount of salt, both because it should be done to taste, and because I usually add some soy or fish sauce to up the flavor.

2 T cumin, ground
2 t dried oregano
2 t coriander, ground
1 t smoked paprika or ground dried chipotle
2 ancho chiles, ground
1 guajillo chile, ground
1 t pepper, ground