Hamburger Stroganoff

Charlene prepared this recipe with extra-lean ground beef instead of sirloin strips which makes this comforting dish a bit more affordable and a bit lower in fat. When choosing recipes for the Seniors Cooking Club, Charlene always look out for low fat, low sodium, low sugar and low budget recipes. In fact, we should all adopt such healthy factors.

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Stroganoff is usually served over noodles but it is also delicious served over rice, or on toast for a simple dinner.

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 pound extra-lean ground beef
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 pound mushrooms, sliced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup sherry, optional
  • 1 cup low-sodium chicken or beef broth
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • pinch of nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (we substituted with soy sauce)
  • 1/2 cup low-fat sour cream (or full fat plain yogurt)

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Frances and Helmut paired up to make this comforting Hamburger Stroganoff.

Prep time: 20 mins; Cook time: 35 to 40 minutes; Serves 4 to 6.

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Korean Cuisine: Japchae

Japchae is another popular dish in Korean cuisine.  Julia demonstrated this dish at the Gilmore Park Church community kitchen. Japchae literally means a mixture of vegetables. It can be served as a side dish or as a main dish on its own.

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Japchae is a noodle dish made with sweet potato noodles. It is loaded with vegetables and has a strong sesame oil flavour. Japchae can be served hot or cold, hence it makes a great potluck dish.

Ingredients

  • 500g Oriental (sweet potato) noodles i.e. 2 bundles
  • 300g spinach (1 bunch), wash, blanched in salted water and drained
  • 200g carrot (1 medium), peel, slice into match stick
  • 10 pieces Pyogo mushroom, slice
  • 200g onion (2 small), thinly slice
  • 300g rib eye beef, cut into thin strips, marinate with salt and pepper
  • 4 to 5 cloves of garlic, minced

Seasonings:

  • 3 to 4 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds
  • sesame oil
  • salt
  • oil

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Vermicelli Soup

The Vermicelli Soup is not really a soup but it’s like vermicelli in thick broth. This is great by itself as a vegetarian dish or you may add some meat in it to make it a dish in one pot.

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This vermicelli dish reminded me of the dish my mom used to make for me when I’m sick. The texture of this dish is like ‘mien sien’.

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If you like it to be more soupy, add more chicken broth and water. The vermicelli is like a sponge and by the time we served it, there is no more broth visible.

Ingredients

  • 100g enoki mushroom
  • 20g dried mushroom
  • 100g vermicelli (made from mung bean)
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 egg
  • finely sliced green onion and carrot for garnishing
  • white pepper
  • sesame oil

Click on the link below for the instructions.

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Country Harvest Spaghetti

Heidi partnered with Tanni in this week’s demonstration in the Gilmore Park Community Kitchen. Heidi made a Country Harvest Spaghetti and a jello dessert.

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The Country Harvest Spaghetti is full of goodness of colourful vegetables and the sauce is flavoured with white wine. The slice apples add some crunchiness to the dish.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb spaghetti
  • 1 sweet bell pepper, sliced
  • 1/2 lb asparagus, sliced
  • 1/2 lb white mushroom, sliced
  • 1/2 lb onion, sliced
  • 1 medium size apple, slice
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 2 tablespoons dried cranberries

For the sauce

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

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Click on the link below for the instructions.

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Hokkien Mee

During the Chinese New Year gathering as featured in the Yee Sang blog, I learned how to make Hokkien Mee from Jessica, the host of the gathering. Hokkien Mee is a very much missed noodle dish from Malaysia. Jessica made some very nice Hokkien Mee and she always gets requests from this group of Malaysian/Singaporean friends to make this dish during our gatherings.

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Hokkien Mee is a noodle dish made from thick yellow noodles and fried in pork fat and dark soy sauce. The fried pork fat gives the crunch to this dish and you simple cant find any restaurants in Vancouver which will cook this dish the authentic way. I guess the reason is Vancouverites are very health conscious.

Ingredients

  • thick yellow noodle, soaked in hot water to soften and remove access oil
  • pork belly
  • pork liver
  • prawns
  • Choy Sum, a kind of Chinese greens
  • few cloves of garlic, chopped
  • thick dark soy sauce or cooking caramel
  • soy sauce
  • oyster sauce

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Click on the link below for the instructions.

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Hand Made Noodle

Ming shared with us how to make noodle from scratch. She shared with us on how to make dumpling skin earlier. Hand made noodle is fresh and chewy. It does not any ‘gan sui’ taste in it compare with those store bought ones.

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A bowl of hand made noodle is comfort food.

Ingredients

  • all purpose flour
  • cold water

Click on the link below for the instructions.

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Shallot Pork Sauce

On the last cooking meet at South Arm Community Kitchen in 2007, Julie demonstrated two Chinese dishes. The first one is a very traditional Taiwanese dish called Shallot Pork Sauce.

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The Shallot Pork Sauce is very fragrant as it has lots of shallots in it. The shallots are first fried to crisp and braised with the ground pork.

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This Shallot Pork Sauce is great with noodles or rice. Kids will love this.

Ingredients

  • lean ground pork
  • shallot (use about 10 to 12 shallots for each pound of ground meat)
  • dark soy sauce
  • salt to taste
  • sugar to taste
  • ground black pepper to taste
  • water

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Click on the link below for the instructions.

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Baked Spaghetti Squash

Ben was away on his vacation at New York City and of course he had his precious camera with him. I had to borrow a point and shoot digital camera from Polly for the community kitchen photo shoot. Every time I use a new camera, I have trouble adjusting with the focusing and maneuver with the settings. So, the photos might not be as nice as those taken with the Rebel XT. Please bear with me.

Minoo demonstrated this Baked Spaghetti Squash in the South Arm Kitchen and also the Caring Place. Since this is the season for squash, it is a great way to introduce the Spaghetti Squash to the community kitchen.

The spaghetti squash (known as Sharkfin Melon to Chinese) is an oblong seed-bearing variety of winter squash. When cooked, the flesh falls away from the fruit in ribbons or strands like spaghetti or shark’s fin and is slightly sweet, crunchy and watery.

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The Baked Spaghetti Squash is a complete meal with protein, fiber and dairy. It is an excellent healthy meal.

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Ingredients

  • 1 spaghetti squash
  • 1 lb hamburger, extra lean
  • 1 small onion, grated or diced
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
  • 1 cup canned tomato sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon basil leaves, crumbled and finely chopped

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If you love spaghetti squash, here is a link to a Ultimate Guide on Cooking Spaghetti Squash.

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Chinese Style Baked Chicken with Noodle Soup

The South Arm Community Kitchen started off with Mr. Chung making a Chinese Style Baked Chicken. Mr. Chung is the room mate of Julie who had demonstrated many times in this kitchen. Julie had went back to Taiwan for the summer.

Mr. Chung told us that he learn his cooking from his mother and Julie. Julie, you are very lucky to have a husband who enjoys cooking.

Vanessa, the group leader of the South Arm Community Kitchen made a simple noodle soup to complement Mr. Chung’s chicken dish.

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The chicken is moist and taste great. This is a very homey recipe and it uses the most common ingredients one can in a Chinese home.

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Ingredients

  • 2 chicken legs cut into smaller pieces
  • 2 green onions, cut into one inch length
  • 1/2 bulb of garlic, peeled and rough chopped
  • 2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and rough chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon white pepper

Mr. Chung emphasized that the most important ingredients in this recipe is the garlic.

Click on the link below for the instructions.

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Chili Con Carne

At the Gilmore Park Church community kitchen, Jean paired up with Tanni for this week’s demonstration. Sharing the load makes it easier for members as one do not have to come up with at least 2 dishes to fill the time slot.

Jean made a pot of Chili Con Carne, commonly known as Chili, is a spicy stew like dish with meat (beef or pork), chili peppers (if you prefer spicy), tomatoes, onions, beans other vegetables. The vegetarian version of Chili is known as Chili Sin Carne. Chile Con Carne in Spanish means “chili with meat”. Chili Con Carne is the official dish of the state of Texas in U.S.

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Jean served the Chili Con Carne with whole wheat spaghetti. You may served it on rice or garlic toast too.

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Even though Jean just prepare a dish for this week, she also brought homemade pumpkin raisin muffins to share with us. Thank you, Jean for your generosity.

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Ingredients for Chili Con Carne

  • 1 onion, finely diced
  • 1 cup diced celery
  • 1 lb lean ground beef
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 1 large can of tomato soup
  • 1 large can of chopped tomatoes or chopped fresh tomatoes
  • 1 large can of kidney beans, drained
  • 1 can of sliced button mushroom or fresh ones
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon vinegar, to tenderize the meat

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