Full of Flavor

I hope you have been enjoying our articles and recipes that we have been blogging lately!  I really am glad that Meg Loc encouraged me to start blogging again and to keep at it. (Thanks Meg!!)  Our cooking club only meets once a month, so if we only blogged about that it would be few and far between before we got to share our yummy recipes with you!

But we did just have a meeting and I sure do have some winners to share with you this month! Andrea suggested an Asian theme for our recipes and I am so excited to try them out!

Our menu this month includes:

*General Tso Meatballs

*Chicken Stir Fry

*Thai Mango Chicken

*Mongolian Shrimp

*Shrimp Lo Mein

I couldn't wait to dig into our meals, so last night Joe and I had Beth’s Mongolian Shrimp and it was yummy!  Beth made brown rice to go along with it.  Pretty healthy..full of veggies!  I made the General Tso meatballs this month (thanks to Angela for the save…I couldn't decide what to make!).  She found a recipe on pinterest and sent it my way…well it was what we like to call a, “PIN WIN!” Such a great recipe and it actually turned out like I thought it would.  Have you ever had those recipes that you've made and they  A. don’t look like the picture, or B. don’t taste at all like you thought it would? No..that’s just me?

Well…we didn't talk about it at our meeting, but Meg Loc mentioned a theme of healthy meals for our menu next month, since she just did that great article on FIGURE FRIENDLY freezer meals!  So keep a look out for that topic and those recipes!  We also have some other topics that we are excited to dive into like meal planning, shopping for your freezer cooking day and comparing prices for your recipes.  I’m also REALLY into fantasy football (I know I’m not the only lady who is!!) and I think a Sunday Funday recipe segment might be in our future as well!  

Scroll down for the recipes for our meals this month!  Thanks for reading and sharing our site!  We have a new pinterest account for you to follow: Freezer Friendly is our user name.  We also have a facebook page up and running, where you can see more pictures of our recipes this month and grab a sneak peak at what we’re cooking up in between blog posts!  We are also on instagram as freezerfriendly so check us out! 

General Tso Meatballs 

(adapted from: http://www.ibreatheimhungry.com)

Meatballs:

1 lb ground turkey

2 TBSP minced ginger (fresh is a must!)

2 scallions, chopped

1 tsp garlic powder

1/4 cup panko bread crumbs 

1 egg

Sauce:

1 tsp hot sesame oil

3 tbsp mirin

3 tbsp soy sauce

2 scallions, chopped

1/4 cup water

slurry: 1 tbsp cold water mixed with 1 tbsp corn starch

Combine all ingredients for the meatballs and mix well.  Form into balls and place in lightly oiled baking dish.  Bake about 30 minutes at 350 (checking internal temp).

Combine sauce ingredients in a sauce pan except for the slurry and bring to a simmer.  Add slurry to simmering mixture while stirring.  Reduce heat and allow to thicken.  

Serve over rice

TO FREEZE:

Follow directions above.  Allow both meatballs and sauce to cool.  In containers, add meatballs and pour over sauce.  Label and freeze.

TO EAT:

Thaw, reheat in a small sauce pan over low heat.  Serve over rice

Chicken Stir Fry 

(adapted from www.thepioneerwoman.com)

Ingredients

  1-1/2 lbs chicken breasts, sliced

  1/2 cup Low Sodium Soy Sauce

  3 Tablespoons Sherry

  2 Tablespoons Packed Brown Sugar

  2 Tablespoons Cornstarch

  1 Tablespoon Minced Fresh Ginger

  2 cloves Garlic, Minced

  1 teaspoon Red Chile Paste (or A Few Dashes Red Chile Oil)

  2 Tablespoons Canola Oil

  1 whole Medium Yellow Onion, Sliced

  2 whole Red Bell Peppers, Cored And Sliced Into Rings

  1 Tablespoon Diced Fresh Jalapeno (or 1 Teaspoon Dice Hot Pepper)

  

Mix together soy sauce, sherry, brown sugar, cornstarch, ginger, garlic, and chili paste (or chili oil.) Place sliced beef in the mixture and toss to coat. Set aside.**

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high to high heat. When it is very hot, throw in the onions and cook for less than a minute. Remove to a separate plate. Return skillet to flame, allow to reheat, and add bell peppers (and hot pepper/jalapeno if using.) Cook for a minute, tossing, until peppers have brown/black bits but are still firm. Remove to a plate.

Return skillet to heat and allow to get hot. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the skillet. Add 1/3 of the meat mixture, evenly distributing over the surface of the skillet. Allow to sit for 20 to 30 seconds, then turn with tongs. Cook for another 30 seconds, then remove to a separate plate. Repeat with remaining meat until all brown.

Reduce heat to low. Add all meat, onions, and peppers to the skillet and toss to combine. Pour in remaining sauce (the sauce the meat marinated in) and stir. Allow to simmer on low for a few minutes. Sauce will slowly thicken. Turn off heat.

Serve over rice.

**TO FREEZE:

Slice chicken breasts and vegetables.  Make sauce mixture.

Flash freeze chicken breasts and vegetables.

Place vegetables in a small freezer bag.

Place chicken breasts into small freezer bag with sauce.

Place both small bags into a large bag that is labeled. 

*TO EAT*

Thaw ingredients.

Heat 1 tbsp oil in pan and cook onions and peppers.  Remove from pan.

Add additional tbsp of oil to pan and sauté chicken until golden brown.   Remove from pan.

Reduce heat and add meat, veggies and sauce to pan.  Allow to simmer to complete cooking the chicken and allow the sauce to thicken. 

Serve over rice!

Shrimp Lo Mein

(adapted fro www.jessfuel.com)

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 1/2 cups shredded carrots

2 cups shredded cabbage

4 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tbsp fresh ginger, grated

1/2 cup soy sauce

1 tbsp + 1 tsp cornstarch

8 oz chicken broth

4 green onions, sliced

1 lb cooked medium shrimp (peeled with tails removed)

1/2 lb (1/2 box) linguini, cooked and drained

Heat sesame oil in a large skillet or saute pan over medium heat. Add red pepper flakes and cook 1 minute. Add carrots, cabbage, garlic and ginger, and cook, stirring occasionally, until veggies begin to soften.

Add soy sauce and cook another minute. Dissolve cornstarch in the chicken broth, and add the mixture to the pan. Cook until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Add scallions and shrimp and continue cooking until everything is heated through. **Add linguini and toss.

Serve topped with extra green onions or sesame seeds.

**TO FREEZE:

Follow directions as stated.  Before cooking and adding to linguini (or noodles) allow mixture to cool and add to labeled freezer bags.

TO EAT:

Thaw mixture and reheat in sauce pan over low heat.  Cook noodles according to packaged and serve mixture on top.  

Thai Mango Chicken

(adapted from www.tarasmulticulturaltable.com/thai-mango-chicken/)

1 bag of defrosted (frozen) mango chunks

1 teaspoon chili sauce

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

zest of 1 lime

juice of 1/2 lime

1 inch piece ginger, peeled and sliced

3 cloves garlic

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

Chicken:

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin 2 inch long slices

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced

In a food processor, add sauce ingredients: chopped mangoes, chili sauce, rice vinegar, soy sauce, , lime zest, lime juice, ginger, garlic, and turmeric. Blend until smooth. Add a little sugar if too sour or more chili sauce to add spice.

In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Add the chicken slices and coat well. In a wok or large pan, heat oil over medium high heat. Once thoroughly heated, fry coated chicken slices until cooked through, 3-5 minutes per side. Remove to plate.

Clean out wok and reheat to medium high heat. Add the red pepper slices and blended mango sauce. Bring the sauce to a low boil and reduce to medium low heat. If too thick, add 3-4 tablespoons coconut milk. Continue to simmer until red pepper just begins to soften, 3-4 minutes. Gently stir in chicken slices and add cubed mango if desired. Simmer until chicken is heated through.

TO FREEZE:

Follow directions and allow mixture to cool completely.

Place in labeled freezer bags.

TO EAT:

Thaw mixture completely

Reheat over low heat in a sauce pan.

Serve over jasmine rice.

Mongolian Shrimp

(adapted from www.food.com)

2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon ginger, minced
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup dark brown sugar

1/2 lb shrimp

8 oz frozen stir fry veggies

brown rice

Heat oil in sauce pan and add ginger and garlic.  Carefully add soy sauce and water.  Add brown sugar and stir until dissolved.  

Make brown rice according to package directions (cannot be minute rice).

TO FREEZE:

Cool sauce mixture and place into freezer bag.

Place shrimp and veggies into freezer bag.

Place cooled rice into separate freezer bag. 

Place all three bags into one large labeled freezer bag.

TO EAT:

Thaw completely.

Simmer sauce in sauce pan until slightly thickened.

Add shrimp and veggies and simmer until cooked.

Microwave rice for about 1 minute until hot.

Serve shrimp and veggies over rice!