Saucy Asian Meatballs

Ingredients:

For the meatballs:

1 lb of ground beef

1 tsp. sesame oil

½ cup of Panko breadcrumbs

¼ tsp. of ground ginger

1 egg

3 tsp. of minced garlic

½ of thinly sliced green onions

For the sauce:

1/3 cup hoisin sauce

1/8 cup rice vinegar

1 garlic cloves, minced

1 Tbsp. soy sauce

1/2 tsp. sesame oil

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

Preheat your oven to 400°F (by the way, I just learned how to make the symbol for Fahrenheit, click here to learn how.)

 In a large bowl, mix together all the meatball ingredients. I used my clean hands and really dug in to mix it well. Shape the mixture into tiny meat-a-balls. I made mine a little big since it was only me and Chris eating them. If you make them 1 and a ½ inches this recipe will yield roughly 15 meatballs. I just like my meatballs bigger. I then placed them on a greased cookie sheet and baked them for 12-14 minutes (10 mins if smaller)

While the meatballs are in the oven, whip together the sauce. Whisk together all the sauce ingredients. Then, when the meatballs are done toss the meatballs and sauce together.

You can add some green onions on top, maybe sprinkle some sesame seeds on top for good measure. I served the meatballs with white rice.

Personal Shepherd's Pie

Its easy enough and the kiddo loved them. It was actually fun for her to eat. My husband loved them too. He thought it was kind of like eating a pot pie with shepherd's pie inside. Plus, the idea that these can be picked up and eaten made them go fast.

Shepherd's Pie

Ingredients:
1/2 lb ground beef
1 cup onion, chopped
1 medium Yukon gold potato, peeled and diced
1/2 cup carrot, diced
1/4 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup frozen corn
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup canned beef gravy
1 egg
1 Tbsp water
2 boxes (4 rolls) pre-made pie crust
8 slices American cheese, quartered

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line two (or three) baking sheets with parchment paper.
Cook the ground beef and onions in a medium-size sauté pan over medium heat until the onions are translucent and the meat is no longer pink, about 5-8 minutes. Drain and set aside.
While the beef is cooking, add the potatoes and carrots to a small saucepot. Cover the veggies with slightly salted water and boil until they’re cooked through, but not mushy, about 3–5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Add the beef, onions, carrots, potatoes, peas, corn, Worcestershire sauce, and gravy into a medium-size mixing bowl. Fold together and set aside.
Whisk the egg and water together in a small bowl; set aside.
On a lightly floured work surface, unroll one of the pie crusts. Using a 3-1/2″–4″ biscuit cutter, cut five rounds. Repeat with the remaining rolls of dough.
On half of the rounds, place a generous Tbsp of filling in the center, leaving a 1/2″ border. Stack two quarters of the American cheese on top of the filling. Then, using a pastry brush, apply the egg wash on the border of the crust. Place an empty round on top and seal the edges together with a fork.
Place the pies on the papered baking sheets and brush the tops with egg wash. Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden brown.

This recipe went well. I think I will egg wash the whole top next time. Also I had no biscuit cutter so I used a large mug and cut around it.

Mongolian Beef

Made a dish that I wasn't too sure how it was going to taste. My husband helped me by cooking the meat and we cut the prep time down in half. This is all prep work, the meat cooks so fast since the meat is so thin. My husband said it was the best thing I've made.

Mongolian Beef Recipe:

Ingredients:

1 lb of flank steak, thinly sliced crosswise (I used sirloin tips cut into thin strips)

1/4 cup of cornstarch

3 teaspoons of canola oil

1/2 teaspoon of grated ginger (about 1/2 inch piece)

1 tablespoon of chopped garlic (about 2 -3 large cloves)

1/2 cup of water

1/2 cup of soy sauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

3 large green onions, sliced crosswise into thirds

Prepare the meat:

First, make sure the steak slices are dry (pat them dry) and mix them with the corn starch. Using your hands or a spoon, move them around to make sure all pieces are coated. Place beef slices in a strainer and shake off excess corn starch (see picture bellow).

Make the sauce:

Heat half of the oil in a large wok at medium-high and add the garlic and ginger. Immediately add the soy sauce, water, brown sugar and pepper flakes. Cook the sauce for about 2 minutes and transfer to a bowl. Don't worry if the sauce doesn't look thick enough at this point. The corn starch in the beef will thicken it up later.

Cook the meat and assemble dish:

Turn the heat up and add the remaining oil to the wok. Add the beef and cook, stirring until it is all browned (this is a quick thing). Pour the sauce back into the wok and let it cook along with the meat. Now you can choose to cook it down and reduce the sauce or leave it thinner. Add the green onions on the last minute so the green parts will stay green and the white parts crunchy.

Serve it hot with rice.

It was amazing, too spicy for the kidlet, but the adults loved it.