Some of our favorites include: Pork Stir Fry with Green Beans and more!
Pork Stir Fry with Green Beans
A Pork Stir Fry with Green Beans that packs an amazing flavour punch for something with so few ingredients! You’ll love how it’s eaten with a spoon, and that it takes just over 10 minutes to make.
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 5 minutes
Total: 15 minutes
Servings: 3
Section 1: Ingredients
3/4 lb green beans (Note 1a)
1/2 lb pork mince (Note 1b)
1/2 small onion, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
2 tsp finely chopped garlic (2 cloves) (Note 2)
2 tsp ginger, finely chopped (Note 2)
2 1/2 tbsp peanut oil (or vegetable or canola)
SAUCE
1 tbsp dark soy sauce (Note 3)
1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine -(Pandaroo Chinese Cooking Wine) (Note 4 for subs)
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp + Chilli Garlic Sauce (Note 5)
Section 2: Directions
1. Mix Sauce ingredients in a bowl.
2. Trim the tough end of the beans, then chop into approximetly 1" pieces.
3. Charred Beans: Heat 1 1/2 tbsp oil in a heavy based skillet over high heat (cast iron if you have it) until smoking. Add beans, spread out to cover base. Leave for 1 minute. Quick stir, spread out, cook for 30 seconds. Stir, then leave for 30 seconds, then repeat once more (so 2 1/2 minutes in total cook time) until beans are charred but tender crisp (not withered and floppy). Remove into bowl.
4. Turn heat down to medium high, add 1 tbsp oil. Add onion, then garlic and ginger. Cook for 1 minute until edges of onion are golden.
5. Turn heat back up to high. Add pork and cook, breaking it up as you go. Cook for 2 minutes until the pork is cooked through, then add Sauce. Cook for 30 seconds, then add beans and stir for another 30 seconds.
6. Serve over rice. Garnish with slices of large red chilli (it's mild), entirely optional. To eat, mix the pork into the rice then eat it with a spoon - forget chopsticks for this one! (For a low carb, low cal option, try Cauliflower Rice)
Recipe Notes:
1a. If using frozen green beans, thaw and drain away excess water, and pat dry. If the bean is too soggy, you will struggle to get the char.
1b. Also terrific with chicken, turkey and beef.
2. Chopping rather than mincing garlic and ginger stop them from sticking and burning on the extremely hot skillet. Good general tip for stir fries!
3. Dark soy sauce has more intense flavour than light and all purpose soy sauces. It will work fine with light and all purpose though, but you won't get the same colour on the pork.
4. You can substitute Chinese cooking wine with dry sherry, cooking sake or Mirin. If you sub with Mirin, omit the sugar. I really urge you to use one of these options as cooking alcohol is key to achieve a truly restauranty quality for Asian food, especially Chinese recipes.
If you choose not to use alcohol, the next best option is to use low sodium chicken broth. Use 1/4 of cup. It will take an extra minute or so for the Sauce to reduce.
5. Chilli Garlic Sauce is readily available in large supermarkets. It's not "blow your head off" spicy, so feel free to increase it. It can be substituted with sriracha, sambal oelak or any hot sauce that has a bit of a vinegary taste (eg Frank's) but you'll need to adjust the quantity depending on the spiciness of what you use.
6. Frozen cooked white rice is a quick-meal life saver. A very Asian thing to do, all my relatives in Japan do it! Cook rice of choice as you usually do, including resting it for 10 minutes (never skip this!). While the rice is still warm, cling wrap into serving size portions, put it in plastic bags or containers, then freeze. To reheat, place in a bowl (frozen), sprinkle with water, cover with cling wrap then microwave until warm (1 serving = about 2 1/2 minutes from frozen). Let stand in microwave for 2 minutes - the extra steaming helps remoisten the rice. Serve!
Ground Pork Tacos
When your next taco craving strikes, you’ll be happy to have these flavorful and easy ground pork tacos. The crispy pork is pan-friend in a few minutes, seasoned with Mexican spices then served in tortillas and topped with pickled red onion and cilantro.
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 20 minutes
Servings: 4
Section 1: Ingredients
Quick Mexican Pickled Onions:
1 cup thinly sliced red onion (1/2 large onion)
2 Tablespons lime juice (1 lime)
1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon granulated sugar, honey, or agave
Ground Pork Tacos:
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 small yellow or red onion diced
2 cloves minced garlic
1 lb ground pork
3 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon EACH: cumin and kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon EACH: garlic powder, onion powder, paprika
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon honey or agavee
2 tablespoons lime juice (about 1 lime)
8 6-inch flour or corn tortillas (see Notes for serving)
Toppings: queso fresco, cotija cheese, avocado crema, sliced avocado, cilantro, pickled red onion
Section 2: Directions
1. Make the pickled red onions, if using. Place all of the ingredients in a medium bowl or glass jar and let them sit at room temperature, stirring once or twice, while you make the ground pork.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once it’s hot, add the onion and cook, stirring frequently for 2-3 minutes, until soft and translucent. Add the minced garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes, until fragrant.
3. Push the onion and garlic to the side and place the ground pork in the pan. Use a meat smasher or spatula to break the pork up into small bits. Continue to cook, mixing the pork with the onions and garlic, until no pink remains.
4. When the pork is almost done, let it sit in the hot pan, without stirring, for 2-3 minutes so the pork crisps, then stir and repeat 1-2 more times until it's as crispy as you'd like it. Be careful not to crisp it too much or it will end up tough and chewy.
5. Turn the heat down to medium-low and add the seasoning and honey and continue to cook until completely combined.
6. Remove the tacos from the heat and stir in the lime juice.
7. Serve the ground pork with flour or corn tortillas (Note 2). Top with crumbled Queso fresco, Cotija cheese, cilantro, or pickled red onion.
Notes
~ Corn Tortillas. Place a corn tortilla directly on top of the grates of a gas range. Turn the heat to medium-high, or until the flame just lights the outer ring. Char on both sides for 1-2 minutes, using tongs to flip them. Remove them to a plate lined with a tea towel. Repeat with all of the tortillas then wrap the tea towel around the tortillas to keep them warm. Don’t have a gas range? Try the oven method- On a sheet pan, arrange the tortilla shells in an even layer and brush both sides with olive oil. Next, place them in a 425 degree oven to warm for 2-3 minutes to make them more pliable and easy to work with.
~ Toppings. we love avocado or avacado crema on top for a cooling element.
~ Storage. Allow leftovers to cool completely then transfer the taco meat to an airtight container or resealable plastic bag. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Ground pork taco meat freezes well for up to 3 months.
*Storing assembled tacos is not recommended. Store the ground pork, tortillas, and taco toppings separately and assemble when you’re ready to eat.
Teriyaki Pork Meatballs
These Teriyaki Pork Meatballs are perfect for meal prepping, and are even better when paired with rice. They're pan-seared in a skillet, then baked to perfection and coated in the most delicious sticky-sweet teriyaki sauce.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 18 meatballs
Section 1: Ingredients
For the meatballs:
1 lb. ground pork
2 tbsp yellow onion minced
1 scallions finely chopped
3 garlic cloves minced
1 egg
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 cup plain panko breadcrumbs regular or gluten free
For the sauce:
3 garlic cloves minced
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 tsp ginger grated
1 1/2 tsp cornstarch or arrowroot
scallions and sesame seeds optional; for garnish
Section 2: Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 400°.
2. Add all meatball ingredients to a large bowl and use a spoon or your hands to mix everything together. You want everything to be combined, but you don't want to over-mix it. Then, use your hands to form the mixture into approximately 18 meatballs, placing them directly into an oven-safe skillet.
3. Pan fry the meatballs for 3-5 minutes over medium heat, or until they're golden on all sides. Then, place the entire skillet into the oven and bake the meatballs for 15-20 minutes, or until they're cooked through.
4. While the meatballs are baking, make the sauce: whisk soy sauce, syrup, vinegar, ginger, and cornstarch together and set aside.
5. Once the meatballs are cooked, remove them from the oven and place the skillet on the stove over low heat. Add the minced garlic to the skillet and stir for 1-2 minutes.
6. Remove the skillet from the heat, then pour in the sauce and stir so that the meatballs are coated in the sauce. The sauce should thicken very quickly -- within 10-20 seconds -- but if it doesn't, then place the skillet back over medium-low heat and heat until the sauce thickens.
7. Garnish meatballs with scallions and sesame seeds (optional) and enjoy!
Notes
Substitutions:
May sub for ground beef, ground turkey or ground chicken if you prefer
Can use shallot instead of onion
Can use tamari or coconut aminos in place of soy sauce -- If you use coconut aminos, only use 1 tablespoon of maple syrup
*Don't over-mix the meat: If you over-mix it, the result will be tough and dry meatballs, which we don't want. Gently mix until everything is combined, then form the meat into meatballs.
*Storage: Store leftover meatballs in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days; Freezer: If you're going to make these ahead of time to freeze, don't add the sauce! Otherwise, they'll get soggy when they're thawed/reheated. Simply cook the meatballs and freeze them, then before you're ready to serve, make/add the sauce.
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