Szechuan Green Beans

Seriously using up the Asian condiments with this one!

AKA – a recipe to use up a TON of Asian condiments sitting neglected in your fridge.

Lately, I’ve had a thing for green beans. Not sure why. I mean, they are so average. Predictable. Every day. I think there is something about their crunch that is winning me over (yeah, I’m one of those people who BARELY cooks vegetables. “Crisp tender” is probably overcooked to me. “Crisp crisp” is more like it).

So enter Szechuan Green Beans. I will readily admit to never having had them at a restaurant. Supposedly, they are normally deep fried – which seems a sorry fate for my beloved green beans. Then you mix in some ground pork, sauces, a little heat and some chopped peanuts for more crunch. Um, what’s not to love here folks?

I FLIPPING LOVE THESE THINGS.

I came across a super flavorful recipe from Guy Fieri. But he deep fries them and I just can’t bring myself to doing it. Plus, he doesn’t include any pork. So that’s two strikes.

Then I came across a Cook’s Illustrated recipe and they just stir fry the little guys on high heat till they get nice and shriveled and burnt. I thought that would do nicely. But I like Guy’s sauce. A LOT. So that stays, but I use the method (and the pork!) in the Cooks Illustrated recipe.

Give it a try. It comes together fast (we are talking 20 minutes tops including prep) – so it’s perfect for weeknight cooking. I usually serve over rice to make a full meal.

Adapted from Guy Fieri and Cook’s Illustrated

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 lb ground pork
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 ounce hot chili garlic sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon mirin or white wine
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 pound green beans, cleaned
2 tablespoons chopped peanuts
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves (optional – I usually forget this part)

Steps:
1. Heat oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over high heat until just smoking. Add beans and cook, stirring frequently, until crisp-tender and skins are shriveled and blackened in spots, 5 to 8 minutes (reduce heat to medium-high if beans darken too quickly). Transfer beans to large plate.

2.Reduce heat to medium-high and add pork to now-empty skillet. Cook, breaking pork into small pieces, until no pink remains, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and ginger; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 15 to 20 seconds.

3. Quickly add soy sauce, chili sauce, rice wine vinegar, hoisin, mirin, sesame oil and cilantro. Return green beans to pan. Toss to combine.

4. Serve immediately. Garnish with chopped peanuts and parsley.

Enjoy!
Ms. Pantry Raid

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Scalloped Tomatoes

Baked tomatoes with buttery breadcrumbs - perfect side for the end of summer!

Scalloped Potatoes I get. Scalloped Tomatoes? Never heard of it!

It is the height of tomato season, so what better time to try a new tomato dish? I adore tomatoes, but mostly I like them raw or just lightly cooked. I think that’s why I gravitated towards the recipe – it was something totally new for me.

The recipe comes from Edna Lewis, a chef who is well-known for her Southern style cooking. Good ingrediants, used at their peak of freshness and prepared simply was her forte. And that was mostly cause that was how it was done while she was growing up.

The key to this recipe is to use BUTTER. Do not, under any circumstances, think you can get by with olive oil. NO. YOU CANNOT. Got it? Use butter or don’t do it at all! I know this because I took one look at the recipe and freaked by how much butter it used and I cut it with olive oil (why olive oil is acceptible and butter is not…don’t ask). I did not know it at the time, but the butter is absolutely integral here – it creates the buttery breadcrumbs which punctuate the dish.

The other key here? Room temp is best. You can taste the flavors the most when the dish has cooled down a bit. So if you pull it from the oven and the rest of your meal isn’t quite ready, do not despair!

Oh and one final thing – I threw in some fresh thyme cause I just felt like it.

Edna Lewis’ Scalloped Tomatoes

Ingredients:
6 large vine-ripe tomatoes, seeded and cut into 1 & 1/2 inch pieces
1 small onion, finely chopped (about 1/3 cup)
1 t salt
1/2 t freshly ground black pepper
2 t sugar
4 slices crusty white bread, crusts removed and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
7 T unsalted butter, melted
optional: I threw in maybe a teaspoon of fresh thyme

Steps:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. Put the tomato pieces ad chopped onion into a large nonreactive bowl. Season with the salt, pepper, and sugar. Toss well to distribute the seasoning. Scatter the bread cubes on a baking pan, and drizzle 4 tblsp. of the butter over them so they are coated evenly. Toast them in the oven until they are golden brown, approximately 8-12 minutes (turning once to toast evenly).

3. Add the cubes of bread to the tomatoes and toss well. Taste the tomatoes and adjust the seasoning (salt, pepper, or sugar) as needed.

4. Turn everything into a buttered 9×13 nonreactive baking dish, and drizzle the remaining melted butter over it.

5. Place a piece of parchment paper directly over the tomatoes, and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 35 minutes, then uncover and bake for 10 minutes longer.

Enjoy!
Ms. Pantry Raid

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