Korean Style Ground Turkey with Cabbage

Super quick and easy, especially if you buy the pre-shredded cole slaw mix at the supermarket. The only other thing that needs dicing is the small onion and that doesn’t take long. This dish is a little sweet, spicy and tangy and the ground turkey, unless you really overcook it of course!, stays moist and succulent in the sauce. I apologize for not sprinkling the finished dish with scallion as it should be but I didn’t have any in the house and wasn’t up to going to the store today. Excellent even without them! As usual, feel free to mellow or increase the spices to fit your family’s tastes.

First, in a deep skillet (3″ or so), heat over medium high heat:

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 tablespoon sesame oil

When hot reduce heat to medium and add:

1 pound ground turkey breast

Break up the turkey and sauté for about 2 minutes before adding:

1 small onion, diced

1 cup shredded cabbage*

1/4 cup shredded carrots (in the cole slaw mix if you use that or most supermarkets now sell pre-shredded carrots)

2 teaspoons minced garlic (or 2 minced garlic cloves)

Stir to combine and cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 4-6 minutes until the cabbage and onion are softened.

While the dish simmers make the sauce by combining in a small bowl:

1/2 cup soy sauce substitute** (of course if your family can have soy, use regular soy sauce but reduce to 1/4 cup)

2 teaspoons tapioca starch (or flour)

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (or 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger)

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1-2 tablespoons date sugar depending on how sweet you like it

1/4 teaspoon garlic chili sauce (or 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or 1 teaspoon siracha)

Whisk to combine. Remove cover from the turkey mixture and add in sauce, stirring constantly until it thickens which should be about 5-10 seconds. Remove from heat to a serving dish, top with toasted sesame seeds and/or sliced scallions. Serve over rice. Makes 4 servings.

*If cabbage isn’t a favorite in your family, add a small can of sliced bamboo shoots and a can of sliced water chestnuts. Or some thinly sliced bok choy would also work.

**See recipe under sauces. I generally have several 1 cup jars of it in the freezer.

Pork and Tomato Stew

This is a very easy recipe to make, cutting up the vegetables and pork are the most time consuming parts of the recipe. Be smart and use pork chops rather than pork roast so you don’t have to deal with as much fat and silver skin. I also used pre-cut carrots. Makes 4 servings.

In a 6-quart or larger Dutch oven, heat over medium high heat:

1 tablespoon olive oil

When shimmering, add:

3-4 cups diced pork (4-6 boneless pork chops depending on size and thickness)

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Cook until the meat is browned on all sides. Lower heat to medium and add:

2 medium onions, diced

2 teaspoons minced garlic

Cook until the onions are translucent before adding:

2 tablespoons gluten-free, all-purpose flour

Mix the flour into the pan so that it absorbs the fat before adding to the pan:

1-1 1/2 cups sliced carrots

2 cups button or baby bella mushrooms, cleaned and cut into quarters (or 6ths if they are larger)

1 cup chicken stock (or bone broth)

Stir to combine these ingredients and mix the chicken stock into the meat mixture. In a small bowl combine:

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1-2 teaspoons siracha (optional)

1 tablespoon date syrup

Add to the pot along with:

5 large RIPE tomatoes, peeled and cut into quarters or eighths

2 teaspoons dried basil (or, if preferred add 2 tablespoons fresh chopped basil right before serving)

Stir to combine, reduce heat to low and let simmer for 45-50 minutes until meat is tender and carrots are cooked. Be sure to taste before serving and adjust salt and pepper as needed. Serve it over any starch your family likes – it will go great with rice, mashed potatoes or pasta, or any other grain such as quinoa.

Mahogany Chicken

The CHICKEN BIBLE strikes again! Once more, I needed to make changes to the recipe but another delicious, succulent chicken. I was impressed on how moist the chicken stayed even though I think I cooked it about 10 minutes too long. I was also impressed that it didn’t come out as sweet as I thought. Not difficult, a fairly easy recipe to make, very little preparation time, less than an hour, beginning to end. This would also work great for turkey or even duck. I did find the sauce a little bland so I added a dash of hot sauce but some coriander would also work.

In a 12″ skillet (oven proof) combine:

1 cup water

1 cup soy sauce substitute (of course if you are able, you can use regular soy sauce)

1/4 cup chicken stock

2 tablespoons date sugar

2 tablespoons unsulfured molasses

1 tablespoon rice vinegar (or white vinegar)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon hot sauce (optional)

Whisk to combine and dissolve the sugar. Place in the sauce, skin side down:

4 chicken leg quarters (leave whole or cut between legs and thighs)*

2″ stick of fresh ginger, peeled and halved (lengthwise) then smashed

6 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed

Bring to a boil and simmer over medium low heat for 5 minutes. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. After 5 minutes place skillet in the oven uncovered and cook for 25-30 minutes. Turn chicken pieces over so that the skin side is now up and bake another 15-25 minutes or until chicken reaches 195 degrees. Remove from oven. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.

At this point, pour the cooking liquid through a strainer to remove the bits of garlic and pieces of ginger. Strain into a fat separator if you have one and let sit for 5 minutes so the fat rises to the surface and can be removed.* Turn the oven to broil.

Add the strained and defatted liquid back into the skillet and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Add:

Slurry made with 1 tablespoon arrowroot (or tapioca starch) mixed into 1/2 cup water (or chicken stock)

Whisk to combine and continue whisking until the sauce thickens, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Pour into a bowl and set aside. Place chicken, skin side up, back into the skillet and place under the broiler for 4-5 minutes until the skin is crispy and crackling. (I put my chicken pieces on a small baking sheet lined with parchment and broiled them while I made my sauce.) Serve with the sauce on the side. Makes 4 servings. Serve over rice or mashed potatoes. I sprinkled some toasted sesame seeds on mine after I served it with the sauce.

*I don’t have a fat separator so I didn’t do this step but there wasn’t a lot of fat in my pan because I trimmed the fat off the thighs before putting them in the skillet.

Empanadas

I know you’ll take one look at the picture and say, But Jean, empanadas aren’t round! I know, they’re supposed to be half-circles but this gluten-free dough is supposed to have an egg to bind it together and the flax egg just didn’t work as well so I made full-moons. They taste delicious, just don’t try to eat them with your hands! I used ground turkey in mine but any ground meat will work.

In a small bowl combine:

1 tablespoon ground flax

3 tablespoons water or aquafaba

Let sit about 5 minutes until it sets then make the dough. In the bowl of the food processor put:

3 cups gluten-free flour (whatever blend you have works)

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

2 tablespoons date sugar

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 cup vegan margarine, Earth Balance, or Spectrum shortening (put in around the food processor, not in just one spot)

Pulse until the mixture is a coarse meal. In a small bowl combine:

1 flax egg (that you made above) [OR if you can use it, 1 large egg)

1/2 cup oat milk (or other non-dairy milk)

Add to the food processor and pulse until the dough comes together. Remove from the processor into a food storage bag and refrigerate for 30-45 minutes. While the dough chills, make the filling. In a 12″ skillet heat over medium heat:

1 tablespoon olive oil

Add:

1/2-1 teaspoon paprika

1/2-1 teaspoon cumin

1-2 teaspoon dried oregano

Heat just until fragrant, about 30 seconds then add:

1 small onion diced

Cook to soften the onion, about 2 minutes and then add:

1 pound ground meat, like turkey, beef, or pork

1 teaspoon minced garlic

Cook, breaking the meat apart as it cooks, until the meat is done, about 8-10 minutes. Remove from the skillet to a bowl. Add:

1/3 cup sugar-free ketchup mixed with 1-3 teaspoons hot sauce (hot sauce optional)

1 small can mild (or medium whichever your family likes) green chilies

1/2 cup non-dairy cheese shredded, whatever cheese you can eat (I used parmesan)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Stir to combine and let cool. Before the dough is chilled, line a 24×24″ space on a counter with plastic wrap and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

When the dough is ready, take out of the bag and cut the dough into two pieces. Put one half back into the bag and the refrigerator and put the other half on the counter with the plastic wrap. Press down on the dough to flatten slightly and then cover with a sheet of parchment paper. Roll out the dough to about 1/8″ thickness. Cut in whatever size you desire (I used a bowl that’s about a 6″ circle). Use a spatula to pick up the dough and move to the lined cookie sheet. Place about 3/4 of a cup of the filling** in the center of the disk and cover with a second disk of dough. Seal the edges together, if necessary moisten the edge with water (I didn’t need any water with my dough).

Repeat, rerolling the dough until all the dough is used and the filling is gone. I was able to make 4 of the 6″ size. If you’re able to use the egg in the dough, you can probably fold over the dough to make the half-circles and therefore can make more empanadas. Use a small knife to cut air holes in the tops of the empanadas so steam can escape. Spray with a non-stick cooking spray or brush with oat milk or egg wash if you can use eggs. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Makes four servings (6″ size). Serve with guacamole, salsa, or as I did, just slices of avocado.

**Of course, if you’re using a smaller circle to cut your empanadas, you’ll use less filling in each.

Baked Asian-style Halibut

I’m always looking for new ways to cook fish to make it more interesting and succulent. Here’s one that’s really mouth wateringly good! And so easy to make and quick to make. In less than 45 minutes, you can have dinner ready with this one. While I used Halibut, any dense white fish will work like haddock or cod. Make sure your fish steaks are at least an inch thick.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray a baking dish with non-stick spray that will comfortably hold the fish (I used my 5″x 8″ dish). Dry with paper towels:

2 halibut steaks (6-8 ounces each)

Place them in the prepared baking dish. In a small bowl mix:

1 teaspoon sesame oil

3 tablespoons date syrup (honey, agave, etc., would also work)

3 tablespoons soy sauce substitute (see recipe under sauces)*

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 teaspoon lime juice (juice from 1/2 lime)**

1 teaspoon grated or finely minced ginger

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon chili sauce (or 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce) [Optional]

Whisk to combine and pour over the fish. Sprinkle over the fish:

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

Bake 20-30 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish. After about 15 minutes, open the oven and baste the fish with the surrounding sauce. When cooked, remove fish from oven and let sit for a couple of minutes before serving. Garnish with:

thinly sliced greens from 2 scallions

**zest from 1 lime (zest before slicing and juicing the lime)

*Of course, use soy sauce instead of the substitute if there’s no allergy to soy. Use 2 tablespoons soy and 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce in place of the soy substitute sauce.

Serve over rice to soak up the tasty sauce. Makes 2 servings.

Spicy Plum Sauce Pork Chops

I have jars of jam in my freezer and since I don’t eat much toast or other things where jam would be good, I’ve been looking for recipes to use up these jams. Here’s one I found for my plum jam. If you do a search on my blog, you’ll find a recipe for strawberry jam (sugar-free of course) which you can use to make sugar free plum jam which is the base for the oriental spicy plum sauce for these pork chops. I served these chops with sauteed bok choy (find recipe under side dishes).

First, preheat oven to 350 degrees then make the plum sauce by combining in a small saucepan:

1 1/2 cups plum jam

3 tablespoons rice vinegar

2 tablespoons date sugar

1 tablespoon dried onion (flakes or granules, both work)

1/2 teaspoon spicy chili sauce (or 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes)

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Whisk to combine and bring to a boil, stirring constantly, over medium high heat. Once it boils, remove from heat.

In a 12″ skillet, over medium high heat, heat:

1 tablespoon olive oil

When shimmering, add:

4 pork chops, about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thickness

Sear on all sides, including the outsides, until browned. Place in a 9×9″ baking dish (or whatever size fits your pork chops) and cover with the spicy plum sauce. Bake, uncovered, for 30-45 minutes depending on the thickness of your pork chops. Serves 4.

Sesame Turkey with Green Beans and Shitake Mushrooms

Here’s another recipe amended from the CHICKEN BIBLE, modified a little since I don’t like really hot and spicy foods. Once the vegetables and turkey are diced, the recipe is very fast and simple to put together. It only took me about 15 minutes to put together, after about 45 minutes of cutting and dicing! Be sure to follow the temperature instructions or it will take longer to cook and the turkey breast meat may get dried out.

In a small bowl (2 cup) combine the sauce ingredients:

1/2 cup chicken stock

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

5 teaspoons date sugar

1-4 teaspoons sriracha*

1 tablespoon soy sauce substitute

2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

1 teaspoon arrowroot, tapioca (or cornstarch)

1 minced garlic clove

Whisk to combine and set aside. In another small bowl (1/2 to 1 cup size), combine the garlic mixture:

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 minced garlic cloves

1 teaspoon grated (or minced) fresh ginger

Mix to combine and set aside. In a medium bowl (or I used a gallon food storage bag) combine the seasoning mixture:

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

3 teaspoons soy sauce substitute

1 teaspoon arrowroot, tapioca (or cornstarch)

Add:

1-2 turkey tenderloins (1 1/2 pounds), cut in bite size pieces

Mix to coat the turkey with the season mixture. In a 12″ (or larger) high sided skillet (or a wok if one if available), heat over medium heat:

2 teaspoons olive oil

When shimmering, add half the turkey and stirring constantly over HIGH heat, brown for 3-4 minutes. Remove to a bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel and repeat with the other half of the turkey, removing the second portion to the same bowl and recover with towel. Into the empty skillet, heat over medium heat:

1 tablespoon olive oil

When shimmering (this will only take a second since the pan should already be sizzling hot from the turkey), add:

1 pound green beans, trimmed and cut on the bias into 1″ pieces

Cook, stirring constantly over medium high heat for a minute or two. Add:

8-10 ounces sliced shitake mushrooms

Stir constantly until mushrooms start to brown and beans are slightly crunchy. Move the beans and mushrooms to one side of the skillet and add the garlic mixture and heat until you can smell the garlic, about 30-45 seconds. Mix into the vegetables then add the turkey and any juices back into the skillet. Whisk the sauce mixture and pour it into the skillet. Stir constantly until it thickens, about 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle with more sesame seeds if desired or sliced green scallions. Make 4 servings. Serve over rice or quinoa.

*Most Sriracha sauces contain cane sugar. If you, like me, wish to avoid cane sugar, I found one sriracha sauce at Whole Foods, YELLOWBIRD Blue Agave Sriracha Sauce which has no sugar in it but uses Blue Agave syrup instead. If like me, you prefer your food to be on the mild side with just a little spice, use 1 teaspoon of sriracha sauce. It gave me just a hint of heat in the back of my throat. I might increase it just a little in the future, especially if I make the dish for my grandson who likes things, the hotter the better!

Chicken Vindaloo-Style

I was looking through the CHICKEN BIBLE this morning seeking a new, different chicken recipe for the chicken thighs I took out of the freezer and found this one. It was fairly easy to make allergy-free. A relatively easy stew to put together, slightly spicy, vindaloo is a mix of Indian and Portuguese styles. Very flavorful, this dish serves 4.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In an ovenproof Dutch oven heat over medium high:

1 tablespoon olive oil

When shimmering add:

1 1/2 pounds diced chicken thighs

Sprinkle chicken with:

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Let the chicken brown for 2-3 minutes before turning and cooking another few minutes until well browned. Remove to a bowl. Add to the pot:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 1/2 medium onions, diced

1 tablespoon minced garlic

Sprinkle with:

1/2 teaspoon salt

Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Add:

2 teaspoons paprika

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon cardamon

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Stir to combine and cook about 1 minute. Add:

2 tablespoons gluten-free, all-purpose flour

Stir to combine and cook for a minute to cook out the flour. Add:

3/4 cup chicken stock

Stir to combine. Add the chicken back into the pot and then add:

6 ounces sliced shitake mushrooms

1 small can (15 ounce) diced tomatoes with juice

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

2 teaspoons mustard seeds

1 bay leaf

2 tablespoons diced dates (or 2 teaspoons date sugar)

Stir to combine, cover and bake in the oven for about 1 hour. Remove bay leaf. Serve over rice.

Hearty Pork Stew

I cooked a pork roast the other day and we only ate half of it so today I cut it up intending to make a hash with some sweet potato, onions and carrots. After I cooked the roast, I left the roasting pan out and it was cold when I decided to make some gravy to go with the rest of the roast when I reheated it. Threw in some cold chicken stock and all the fat congealed and I was able to spoon it out of the pan before I put it on the heat to get all the sticky parts off the bottom of the pan – made such a delicious gravy! So my hash turned into a stew, rich, succulent and soul warming on this single digit day in Minnesota! Let it be 9 degrees outside, I’m toasty warm in here with this stew in me.

In a high sided skillet, heat over medium heat:

1 tablespoon olive oil

When shimmering add:

1 small onion diced

1/2 cup shredded or chopped carrots

1 cup frozen peas

Stir to combine and cover. Cook over medium low heat until onions are sweated and carrots are softened, about 4-5 minutes. Add:

2 cups sweet potato (or white if preferred), diced and cooked

2 cups diced cooked pork

1 medium pear, cored and diced

Again, stir to combine, cover and heat until the pear is softened and pork and potatoes are reheated, about 3-4 minutes. Add:

2 cups gravy (see recipe for gluten-free gravy under sauces)

Salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 4-6. Some crusty bread would be great with it to mop up the gravy!

Stuffed Winter Squash

I do love squash, doesn’t matter to me what kind, color, shape, etc., it’s all delicious. My mother used to cut acorn squash in half and fill the halves with butter and maple syrup and bake them, so good! It never occurred to me to stuff winter squash but here’s a recipe that’s succulent and almost sinfully good. It doesn’t hurt that it’s extremely easy to make either! Use whatever kind of winter squash you like (I used acorns and the recipe would have stuffed 3 or 4 (so 6-8 halves).

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Halve and seed squash, the number will depend on what kind you use and how big a hole will need filling. Rub the inside of the squash with:

1 tablespoon olive oil (2 if you have more than 4 halves)

Place each half, meat side down, on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and bake for 40-60 minutes or until fork tender.

While the squash bakes prepare the stuffing. In a 12″ skillet, heat:

1 tablespoon olive oil

When hot add:

6-8 ounces chopped shitake mushrooms

1 bunch scallions (8-10), sliced (put 1/4 cup aside for garnish)

Cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Add:

1 pound bulk Italian sausage (mild or hot depending on your family’s taste)

Cook, crumbling the meat as it cooks, until the meat is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Add:

1 1/2-2 cups cooked quinoa, again depending on how much stuffing you need for your squash halves (I used a bag of frozen cooked quinoa from Whole Foods)

1 teaspoon minced garlic

Cover, reduce heat to medium low and cook until the quinoa is heated through and the garlic tender, about 3 minutes. Keep warm until the squash is cooked.

When the squash is tender, remove from oven, turn meat side up and fill the cavity with the stuffing. Garnish with reserved scallion greens and:

2-4 tablespoons (depending on how many halves you have) date syrup (honey or maple syrup).

Serve immediately.