Kitchen Adventures

So lately I've been in a cooking mood so when I saw Mandi had tried a recipe for kung pao from Everybody Likes Sandwiches I thought I would also give it a try! I modified it just a bit to remove the broccoli because let's face it, Emily does not like broccoli. I also added in chicken. Since it isn't often I actually try and cook, I ended up buying most of the ingredients, but at least they'll be on hand if I decide to make it again. I think it turned out okay, for the most part. I had a problem with the tofu - it ended up being more of the consistency of scrambled eggs as opposed to cubed. I'll have to work on that for the next time.

kung pao vegetables (+ tofu + udon) - broccoli + chicken
1 t sesame oil
1 T canola oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 small head of broccoli, broken into florets (or leave it out!)
2 carrots, sliced on the diagonal
1 rib of celery, sliced on the diagonal
1 small packet of prepared udon noodles
1/2 block tofu, cubed
1/4 c peanuts, chopped

sauce:
1/4 c soy sauce
1/4 c orange juice
1 T cider vinegar
1 T ginger, minced
1 T chili paste or asian hot sauce (the one with the rooster on the bottle)
1 T brown sugar
1 T bottled peanut sauce
1 T cornstarch

1. Mix sauce ingredients in and set aside.

2. Heat oil in a wok or large skillet. Add onion and garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add carrots, celery and broccoli and stirfry until crisp-tender. Add the sauce and the udon noodles and combine well so everything gets saucy.

3. In a separate pan, fry up tofu in a bit of oil until brown on all sides. Add tofu and peanuts to the vegetable mixture, stirring gently to coat with sauce. Serve in deep bowls.

Before

After