Carrots and potato beef stew 胡萝卜土豆烧牛肉

Unlike the traditional Chinese beef stew this version is really light with much less fat and oil. I always add extra water into the stew just to make sure there will be enough stew soup for yummy beef noodles later. And of course you can only use tomatoes instead of carrots and potato to have tomato beef stew which has an really fresh and rich flavor.
这个版本的胡萝卜土豆烧牛肉跟传统做法相比清淡许多，少油少脂肪，美味却不减。我总喜欢慢炖时多加点水，这样隔天就能吃好吃的牛肉面啦！当然用西红柿完全代替胡萝卜和土豆，味道那是非常鲜美啊！

Ingredients 食材:
4 pieces bay leaf, 4 dried chili pepper halved, 2 star anise, 2.5 inch long cinnamon,  6 big slices ginger, 1 nutmeg, 1 tsp Szechuan peppercorn, 1 tsp whole black peppercorn,  1tbsp Szechuan bean paste chili (can use Siracha sauce instead), 6 cups water, 3 tbsp cooking wine, 5 tbsp soy sauce,  3tsp salt, 2 tsp sesame oil,  1.5 lb beef cut into 1 inch chunks (steak cut is the best), 2 carrots cut into 2 inch pieces,  12 white new potato (1.5 inch diameter) halved crosswise, half yellow onion chopped, 2 tbsp chopped spring onion.
4片月桂树叶，4个干辣椒拌开并保留辣椒籽，食指长短桂皮，6片姜片，1个草果，1茶匙四川花椒，1茶匙整颗型黑胡椒，1汤匙四川豆瓣酱，6杯水，3汤匙料酒，5汤匙酱油，3茶匙盐，2茶匙芝麻油，1350克瘦牛肉切块，2棵胡萝卜滚刀切，12个新小土豆对半切，半个黄洋葱切小块，2汤匙碎香葱。

Instructions 步骤:

1: In a large skillet heat up sesame oil on medium-high. Add Szechuan peppercorn, halved dry chili pepper, spring onion, stirring for 10 seconds.
1：芝麻油加热后，爆香花椒和干辣椒。再加入香葱翻炒10秒钟。
2:Add beef chunks, Szechuan bean paste chili or Siracha sauce, and onion stirring frequently until beef is turning a bit brown.
2：加入牛肉块，豆瓣酱和洋葱快速翻炒至牛肉变色。
3: If you use "slow cook" or " pressure cook" or "electric pressure cook", then transfer everything in the skillet and all the rest of the ingredients to your cook pot (don't forget the 6 cups of water). Set time 35 minutes for pressure cook, and 40 minutes for slow cook. Otherwise just transfer everything in the skillet and the rest of the ingredients in a big pot. Cook on high heat and then reduce the heat to low when its starts to boil, keep low heat for 50 minutes stirring occasionally.
3：如果使用“电慢炖锅”或者“高压锅”或“电压锅”，则将步骤2中的牛肉倒入锅中，加入桂皮，月桂叶，草果，胡椒，水，料酒，酱油，盐，胡萝卜和土豆。电压锅35分钟，慢炖锅40分钟。如果使用传统锅，则将所有食材加入大锅中后，大火煮开，小火炖50分钟。

Tips 技巧:
1: Just replace carrots and potatoes with 5 tomatoes keeping every other steps the same, you will have yummy tomato beef stew.
1：用4－5个西红柿代替胡萝卜和土豆，其它步骤不变，就是好吃的西红柿炖牛肉。

2: The stew juice can be very useful as noodles broth, plain rice mixing...
2：汤汁可以当作面条底料，用来拌饭也好吃。

Spicy bean sprouts 麻辣豆芽

This dish is easy, quick, simply and light. In the " Tips" there will be an instruction about how to make the spicy sesame oil sauce I use in this dish and the other dishes later on. Try making a small bottle of the spicy oil which will keep for about 2 weeks and you will find its very useful for spicy salad, noodles and Chinese dumplings.
这道菜简单，快捷方便且健康。在本页最末端附有“芝麻辣椒油”的做法，有兴趣的朋友们可以试着做一小罐存起来，可以保存2个星期哦！

Ingredients: 450g bean sprouts washed, half red sweet bell pepper sliced, 4 cups water, 2 tbsp cooking wine, 3 slices ginger, 1 clove garlic minced, 1/2 tsp white vinegar, 1 tbsp rice vinegar, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1/8 tbsp sea salt, 1 piece bay leaf, 1.5 tsp spicy sesame oil sauce, 1/4 tsp sugar, 1/8 tsp ground Szechuan peppercorn (or a pinch ground fresh pepper), 1/2 tbsp spring onion chopped

食材：450克豆芽洗净，半个红椒切丝，4杯水，2汤匙米酒，3片姜，1瓣蒜切碎，1／2茶匙白醋，1汤匙米醋，1汤匙酱油，1／8海盐，1片香叶，1.5茶匙芝麻辣椒油，1／4茶匙糖，1／8茶匙花椒粉（可用细胡椒粉代替），1／2汤匙小葱切碎

Instructions 步骤: 

1: Boil 4 cups water with sea salt, ginger slices, bay leaf and white vinegar. Add bean sprouts and bell pepper slices to cook when the water is boiling.

1：将海盐，香叶，姜片和白醋加入4杯水中煮沸。水开时倒入豆芽及红椒丝。

2: When the water is boiling again drain and cold down bean sprouts with cold water. Drain again and place it in a big bowl.

2：水再次沸腾时倒入豆芽红椒，沥干水份并用凉水冲刷。再次沥干水份后装入大碗。

3: In then bowl add garlic, rice vinegar, soy sauce, spicy sesame oil sauce, sugar, Szechuan peppercorn. Mix well and serve with spring onion on the top.

3：在大碗中加入蒜，酱油，醋，糖，芝麻辣椒油，花椒。混合均匀后用香葱摆盘。

Tips: The spicy sesame oil sauce is very useful and easy making. 3 tsp red chili flakes, 1/8 tsp fennel seed, 1whole nutmeg, 1/8 celery seeds, 1/2 tsp white sesame seeds, 1 piece bay leaf, 2 tbsp cooking oil (not olive oil), 2 tbsp sesame oil.  Mix all the spices in a bowl (no medal, no plastic). Heat up cooking oil and sesame oil on medium-high for 40 seconds. Turn off stove and pour the hot oil immediately into the bowl with spice. Mix it up carefully and use it when its cool down.

窍门：芝麻辣椒油非常容易做。3 茶匙辣椒粉，1／8 茶匙小茴香，1草果，1／8 芹菜籽（可选），1／2茶匙白芝麻，1片香叶，2汤匙食用油，2汤匙芝麻油。将所有干调料倒入碗中（非金属或塑料）。中高火将食用油和芝麻油加热40秒，关火立刻乘油热将油倒入调料碗中。小心搅拌均匀，待凉后使用。

Spicy bamboo(or white radish) with cilantro 香菜辣冬笋

   The citrus tree we have in the yard carries so much weight from the hundreds of blood orange and I feel  it's my responsibility to help the tree loosing weight so there will be some weird dishes with blood orange on this blog next week. I know it's hard to find fresh bamboo unless you go to Chinese or Japanese grocery stores but at least there are white radish and cabbage can be used as substitutions.Sambal oelek ground fresh chili paste is available at Safeway in Asian food section(picture below) . To make this tasty dish healthy I used as little oil as possible and of course double the oil amount can make it look better and more testy.

   院子里的血橙树坠满了橙子，看着都替这棵小树累啊。索性干脆摘下些用来做菜，酸酸甜甜的自然滋味胜过用糖醋调出的酸甜。如果没有食材里面提到的Sambal oelek 辣椒酱，那么中国筒子们当然可以用剁椒或泡椒代替，滋味可能更好呢。这道菜我用尽量少的油来做，美味同时也健康，当然想要菜色好看且口感更香脆的话，可以加倍用油。

Ingredients 食材:

3 fresh bamboo peeled and sliced(or white radish),  3 ginger slices, 6 cherry radish sliced, 1.5 cup cilantro chopped, 2 cloves garlic minced, 1 tsp chopped ginger, 1/2 or 1 blood orange, 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce, 5 tbsp cooking wine, 1tsp white vinegar, 1.5 tsp ground Szechuan peppercorn (Chinese grocery store or Penzey's Spicy, downtown Menlo Park), 1/2 tbsp oil, 1/2 tbsp sesame oil, 2 tbsp Sambal oelek ground fresh chili paste. 

3个新鲜冬笋切片，3片姜，6个樱桃萝卜切片，1.5杯香菜切碎，2片蒜切碎，1茶匙碎姜，半个或1个血橙，2汤匙减盐酱油，5汤匙米酒， 1茶匙白醋，1.5茶匙花椒粉，1／2汤匙食用油，1／2汤匙芝麻油，2汤匙剁椒或碎泡椒。

Instructions 步骤:

1:  Boil 3 cups of water and add bamboo, 3 slices of ginger and 3 tbsp cooking wine when its boiling. 1min after the water boiling again turn off the stove. Drain and cold down the bamboo with cold water.

1：将冬笋，姜片和3汤匙米酒倒入沸水中一起煮，可去掉冬笋部分的涩味。等水再次沸腾后1分钟关火。滤去水份并用凉水冷却竹笋。

2: Heat up oil on medium high. Add ginger and garlic stirring for 5 seconds. Add radish, bamboo, 2 tbsp cooking wine and  Sambal oelek ground fresh chili paste stirring frequently with the heat on high for 1 min.

2：锅中热油，爆香姜蒜。倒入冬笋，樱桃萝卜片翻炒。加入米酒和剁椒酱大火翻炒1分钟。

3: Reduce the heat to medium-high. Add soy sauce, white vinegar and squeeze blood orange juice in. Stir frequently for 30 seconds to mix everything well.  

3：调至中火。加入酱油，白醋，挤入血橙汁。快速翻炒30秒。

4: Add ground Szechuan peppercorn and cilantro. Quickly stirring for 30 seconds.

4：加入花椒粉和香菜，快速翻炒30秒。

Tips: Fresh bamboo always come with a bit bitter taste and boil it in water with cooking wine and ginger can reduce the bitterness. Skip the step 1 if you use white radish instead of bamboo.

关键：新鲜的冬笋总带点涩味，用米酒和姜片煮狒后会减少涩味。如果用白萝卜代替冬笋的话，那么可省去第一步。

Shiitake mushroom chicken with galangal sauce 沙姜香菇鸡

    This is a very good winter dish matching so well with rice or even you can mix it up with pasta or any noodles!Galangal (Kaempferia glanga) also be called aromatic ginger, kencur, sand ginger, resurrection lily which has been used hundreds of years in Chinese medicine for cold, indigestion, pectoral, abdominal pains, headache and toothache. I guess it doesn't matter if it really works for all the above problems since I just simply love the taste and the warmness it brings to my stomach. It's hard to find fresh Galangal root so in this dish I use galangal root powder which can be find in most of the Chinese grocery stores. I also used orange peel powder in this dish and of course you can use fresh mandarin peel instead. Vegetarian version of this dish will come up next week.
    沙姜这调料简直太神奇了！不光美味还能暖胃，行气止痛，缓解牙痛和风湿关节痛，主治肠胃炎和消化不良。作为我的调味品大爱，还能保持身体暖和。这道菜非常实用，摇身一变便可以做炒饭，炒面，甚至和意大利面也是绝配呢！这道菜的素食版本下周更新。

Ingredients:

8 boneless skinless chicken tights each piece cut into 4 smaller pieces; 2 tsp orange peel powder; 10-12 tsp galangal powder; 5-7 dried shiitake mushroom; 1cup dried bamboo (optional); 70ml low sodium soy sauce; 1/2 tbsp oil; 1/2 tbsp sesame oil; 8-10 Sichuan peppercorn; 4-5 dried chili pepper; 2 cup cooking wine;  5 slices regular ginger; 2 pieces bay leaf; 1tsp sugar or a bit more based on your taste.

Instructions:

1:  Soak dried shiitake mushroom and dried bamboo for 20mins in 1.5 cup of water separately after well wash. Slice the mushroom and keep the mushroom soaking water. 

2:  Heat up cooking oil and sesame oil on high and add Sichuan peppercorn, dried chili pepper stirring frequently for 10 seconds.

3:  Add chicken, bay leaf, ginger slice stirring until chicken is turning white. Add cooking wine, mushroom soaking water, galangal powder, orange peel powder (or 1/4 of fresh mandarin peel), sugar, soy sauce and keep stirring until all the spice mixed well, then reduce the heat to medium. Cover the lid, reduce the heat to low after boiling.

4: Add mushroom slice and bamboo pieces when there is only half liquid left in the pot. Stir well and cover the lid.

5: Cook until there is only 1/3 liquid in the pot then spray some spring onion on the top for serving.

Tips: I highly recommend to make pasta or chaomian noodles with the leftover. Just simple heat up the rest, add a little bit water and then add the noodles. 

食材：8个去骨去皮的鸡腿肉并切成切块；2茶匙陈皮粉；10－12茶匙沙姜粉；5－7个干香菇；1杯干竹笋；70ml 减盐酱油；1／2汤匙食用油；1／2汤匙芝麻油；8－10颗四川花椒；4－5个干辣椒；2杯米酒；5片姜；2片香叶；1茶匙糖或根据个人口味增减

步骤：

1：干香菇，干竹笋洗净后各用1.5杯水发泡20分钟。保留干香菇的发泡水，香菇切条。

2：大火烧热食用油和芝麻油，爆香花椒和干辣椒。

3：加入鸡块，香叶，姜片炒至鸡肉变白。加入米酒，发香菇的水，沙姜粉，陈皮粉（可用1／4的新鲜橘子皮代替），糖，酱油并混合均匀，中火煮开后加盖用小火慢炖。

4：锅中料汁煮至一半时加入香菇和竹笋，混合均匀后加盖继续慢煮。

5：当锅中料汁只剩1／3时，撒入小葱，翻炒均匀后关火。

关键： 强烈推荐用这个菜做炒面或者意大利面。将煮熟的面条混入菜汁中翻炒均匀即可。人间美味啊！

Peppercorn long beans 椒麻豇豆

  This is so easy to make and it takes 10mins maximum! And this cooking way almost works on any kind of vegetable! I usually use " seafood soy sauce" instead of regular soy sauce. This "seafood soy sauce" in can find in any chinese grocery stores) . For vegetarians, don't be confused by the name since there is NO SEAFOOD being used in this soy sauce and the reason named "seafood soy sauce"simply because it goes very well with seafood. Of course, regular soy sauce can be used instead of seafood soy sauce or you can make your own seafood soy sauce by boiling the mix of "cooking wine, sugar, ginger and low sodium soy sauce".
 
  这道菜绝对是快速与美味的结合！10分钟内便可以搞定的健康素食。一般情况下我会用“蒸鱼鼓油”来代替酱油。当然素食朋友们不用担心，“蒸鱼鼓油”里其实没有肉质品成分，之所以起这个名字我想大概是跟鱼类搭配特别美味吧。蒸鱼鼓油在各大华人超市均有售，如果实在没有那就试试我的自创鼓油吧－－将料酒，糖，姜丝和减盐酱油混合后煮开。（亲的，转载请注明出处，我也不容易啊。谢谢）

Ingredients: 

Chinese long beans cut into 3 inch long , 1 tsp salt, 2 tbsp soy sauce or seafood soy sauce, 2 tsp oil, 2 tbsp cooking wine, 8 Szechuan peppercorns(Penzeys Spices, downtown menlo park or any Chinese grocery store), 3 dried chili pepper broken into half, 3 cloves garlic minced, 1.5 tsp fresh grated ginger, BBQ tofu sliced (optional)

Instructions:

1: Boil 2 cups of water with salt and cooking wine. Add beans and cook for 2mins when the water is boiling, save a small cup of this boiling water.

2: Drain and cold down the beans with cold water. Drain again and place in a plate.

3: Add 2 tbsp of soy sauce and 2 tbsp of the water boiled beans in 1 to the bean plate, mix it well. Lay garlic, ginger on the top of the beans.

4: Heat 1.5 tbsp oil on medium-high in a small skillet. Add Szechuan peppercorn and dried chili pepper until the chili peppers are getting a bit brown. Turn of the stove and pore the whole thing gently onto the garlic and ginger on the top of beans.

Tips: It taste better using seafood soy sauce instead of regular soy sauce. Szechuan peppercorn, chili pepper absorbs most of the oil and those are the things you don't eat so there is not that much oil get into your mouth. Szechuan peppercorn is must.

食材：

豇豆洗净后切成5厘米段，盐1茶匙，食用油2茶匙，2汤匙料酒，8－10颗四川花椒，3个干辣椒对半拌开并保留辣椒籽，3小瓣蒜切碎，1.5茶匙姜末，五香豆腐切条（可选）

步骤：

1：水中加入料酒和盐，煮开后倒入豇豆。到水再次沸腾时关火，并保留1小杯煮豇豆的水。

2：将豇豆倒入筛子中滤去水分，立刻用凉水冷却，再次滤水后装盘。

3：将2汤匙蒸鱼鼓油，2汤匙保留的煮豇豆水混合后均匀倒入豇豆盘中，姜蒜末混合均匀撒在表面。

4：锅中热油，加入花椒干辣椒爆香。乘油热时赶紧连油带花椒辣椒一起浇入盘中。拌匀就可开动了。

注意：花椒一定是必须的哈！花椒和干辣椒非常吸油，最后摄入的油分已经很少很少啦。

Steamed Egg 水蒸蛋

 My grandma used to feed me with this smooth steamed egg as my main baby food. Even I've had this for thousands of times its still stay still on my top 10 yummy food list. It's very simple to make, no sugar, no cream, no butter, no oil. You can just eat plain, or mix up with rice, or have it seamed with seafood, or just simple serve with a little bit soy sauce like I do.  And be creative by using orange juice or milk instead of water!

回忆里根深蒂固地小儿食品味道便是奶奶做的水蒸蛋。那时候奶奶的厨房很简易却总能在我饿的时候端出一碗滑嫩嫩的蒸蛋并对我说“吃蛋好，看奶奶做得多嫩啊”。与其说是做蒸蛋，不如说是在思念爷爷奶奶。无油，无糖，无奶油，简简单单可以拌白米饭，可以滴几滴酱油就着吃，方便健康哦。当然也可以用橙汁或牛奶代替水哦。

Ingredients:

One egg, cold boiled water, salt, soy sauce, chopped spring onion

Instructions:

1: Beat the egg well, add 1.5 times of cold boiled water, a pinch of salt, beat well again.

2: Add the liquid gently into a cup with lid through a strainer. Steam 12mins-15mins on water.

3: Serve with a little bit soy sauce and spring onion on the top.

Tips: The water adds into egg must be cold or warm boiled water otherwise the steamed egg will come out with bobbles and holes. 

食材：

鸡蛋一只，凉的或温的开水，盐，酱油，葱末

步骤：

1：鸡蛋打均，加入鸡蛋液1.5倍的水和一小撮盐，再次打均匀。

2：将蛋水混合液通过滤网慢慢倒入杯中。加盖后隔水蒸12－15分钟。

3：滴上酱油撒上葱花，开动咯！

注意：水必须是煮开过后凉的或温的水，不然蒸出的蛋会有气泡孔。滤网也是为了过滤掉多余的泡沫。