Sweet and Spicy Mushroom Stir Fry
Please welcome guest author Garrett McCord as he shares a lip-smacking recipe for mushroom stir-fry he recreated from one he enjoyed in China. ~Elise
During a recent trip through China I ate a lot of life changing food. Sichuan stir-fried duck tongues, homemade noodles in beef sauce, spicy lotus root with ginger, Sandouping-style boiled peanuts, curried yak with butter, deep fried river shrimp with garlic... Oh! The list goes on! You can believe that I was taking plenty of notes so that I could recreate these dishes back in the States.
While in Beijing and Xi'an I noticed that much of the food there was sweeter than the rest of China. One particular dish we had quite a few times was a simple mushroom stir-fry. It was spicy, but not too much. Just enough to make the tongue tingle a bit. It was also quite sweet, but not sickeningly so. When I asked one of the cooks what made it sweet he pulled down a jar of practically-black honey whose musky fragrance, even with the lid firmly closed, dominated a kitchen packed with garlic and scallions. I was smitten.
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Jerusalem Artichoke Soup
When I was a kid, my mother often used to add sliced raw jerusalem artichokes to our salads. I have no idea why. She doesn't do it any more, and hasn't for years. At the time I just thought they were weird looking and didn't taste like much. Nothing at all like the real artichokes that we kids fought over at the dinner table. My kid's mind decided that they didn't grow very good artichokes in Jerusalem. Hah! Well, mystery solved. Turns out jerusalem artichokes are neither artichokes, nor are they from Jerusalem. They're tubers, native of North America, and the plant is related to and resembles sunflowers. (In fact, these days they are often called "sunchokes".) "Jerusalem" is thought to have evolved from the Italian name for the plant, "girasole" for sunflower. Why "artichoke"? If my mom had only cooked them, then that part of the mystery would have been solved for me. Cooked, they taste surprisingly like artichokes. Yum!
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Glazed Oxtails
"Now this is how oxtails should taste," my father declared after taking a bite of these glazed oxtails. I couldn't agree more. We have a thing for oxtails in our family. Oxtail stew was a favorite winter dish my mom prepared when we were growing up. If you are unfamiliar with oxtails, they are tails of steers, typically sold cut into segments. Most of what you buy is bone, and the meat is well exercised and fatty, so oxtail preparations lend themselves to slow cooking. Much like short-ribs, but in my opinion, even better. Think of the best pulled pork imaginable, but with beef. In this recipe the oxtails are first browned, then slow cooked with red wine and stock. Then the segments are removed so you can strip the meat off of them and the liquid is reduced to a glaze. It's actually pretty easy to make, most of the cooking time is hands-off while the oxtails are simmering.
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Chinese Barbecued Ribs
- 1/2 cup oyster sauce
- 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
- 1/4 cup honey
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 -2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/3 cup green onion , finely chopped
- 4 lbs pork spareribs , 6-inch sections
Directions:
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Heat grill.
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In small bowl, combine all ingredients except spareribs; mix well.
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Set aside.
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When ready to grill, place spareribs 6 to 8 inches from medium coals.
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Brush with sauce.
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Cover; cook 1 to 1 1/4 hours or until meat is tender and starts to pull away from bone, brushing frequently with additional sauce.
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To serve, cut ribs apart carefully with knife and arrange on platter.
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Heat any remaining sauce to a boil; serve with ribs.
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Oven directions:.
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Heat oven to 350ºF.
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Prepare sauce as directed above.
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Line 15x10x1-inch baking pan with foil; place wire rack in pan.
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Place ribs on wire rack, meaty side up; brush with sauce.
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Bake at 350ºF for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until meat is tender, brushing frequently with additional sauce.
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Continue as directed above.
Should Be Illegal Oven BBQ Ribs
- 3 lbs pork back ribs
- 1 (8 ounce) jar honey
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon celery salt
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- 1 medium onion , grated or finely chopped
- 12 ounces barbecue sauce
- 1/4 cup white sugar
Directions:
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Place all ingredients together in large roasting pan (i use bottom of turkey roaster).
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Cut ribs apart for easier serving.
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Mix together making sure to coat all ribs with this semi-dry paste.
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Spread ribs out evenly on bottom of pan.
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Cover lightly with foil.
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Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 1 hour.
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Turning or stirring occasionally.
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You can use broiler for these ribs, just watch more closely, and adjust cooking time.