Tangy summer stir fry with chicken, pomegranate seeds, macadamia nuts and grapefruit

This is meant to be a pick-me-up after a long, hot, humid summer day. Light, low calory, and yet hearty and loaded with vitamins.

serves 1-2:

1 chicken breast, skin removed
1/2 cucumber
1 small eggplant
1/2 large onion
1/2 bok choy
2 stalks of komatsuna (Jap. green vegetable)
1/2 red grapefruit
1 handful of macadamia nuts
1 small green bell pepper
Japanese enoki mushrooms
2 tbl spoons of dried pomegranate seeds (from Pakistan, found at the Halal foods shop)
sesame oil
balsamico vinegar
water melon liqueur
salt
paprika
rosemary

Cut all the veggies into pieces/ slices for the wok.
Peel the grapefruit half, separate the pieces
Heat 2-3 tbl spoons of sesame oil in a wok, add the onion. Add the meat, salt, stir, add eggplant, then the nuts, the bell pepper, add the softer veggies after a few minutes of stir frying. Then add the pomegranate seeds after soaking them in a little water for a few minutes, and the grapefruit, add more salt, spice and herb, pour a generous shot of watermelon liqueur over everything and steam for a couple minutes.
Ready!
The combination of the pomegranate and the grapefruit gives it a nice refreshing tanginess.

Asian beef and veggie stir fry

As I have known for a long time, a busy woman’s best friend in the kitchen is the wok- a bowl shaped thin Chinese iron pan. You can chop everything up, throw everything into the wok after adding a bit of oil, stir fry and your dinner will be ready in a matter of minutes. The idea was to save firewood in the Chinese kitchen, the wok is a healthy, tasty fast-cooking utensil, and so simple!

Now, as to today’s quick and easy dinner:

serves 1-2

1/2 onion, cut into eighths
1/2-1 thick carrot, cut into 5mm slices at a diagonal angle
small handful of broccoli florets
salt
2 eringhi mushrooms, sliced crosswise
ca. 150 g of shredded beef (very thinly sliced)
2-4 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced and cut small
2 dried chili peppers, crumbled with your fingers
freshly ground black pepper
a dash of cinnamon
olive oil
mirin (Japanese sweet sake for cooking)
oyster sauce and sweet chili sauce from Thailand
sprinkles of sesame dressing or a teaspoon of tahini
one bunch of green pea sprouts (toumyou) or cresson

Heat ca. 3 tbl spoons of olive oil in a wok, add onion, stir fry slightly, add carrots and eringhi, add salt, stir fry a few minutes, add broccoli. Fill up with 2cm depth of mirin, cook slowly, cover. When veggies have become crispy-soft, add meat and garlic. If meat was frozen, wait to thaw, while stirring frequently. When meat is ready, crumble in the chili peppers, grind black pepper over it, add a dash of cinnamon, stir, add 2 tbl spoons each of oyster sauce and sweet chili sauce, and sprinkle on sesame sauce, stir. Turn off fire, throw sprouts over food.
Serve with brown rice.

Follow with a nice cuppa of lavazza made in your espresso contraption, with milk, honey and cinnamon and a squirt of rose water (I use the natural rose water from the Moroccan cosmetics line of my hair dresser ; ) )

Sat, March 20, 2010 –

a light spicy dinner with a Japanese touch