tv is good for kids.

People always ask me when I started cooking and most seemed shocked to find out the answer: I first started cooking when I was 7 years old. I'm not talking about making spaghetti or stirring the pot--I was 7 when I started to seriously get into cooking.

I remember loving the times when my parents would go out for the day and let me stay home alone or with my brother. When that happened, I would plop myself down on the couch and turn on TLC.

This was a time before we had Food Network, so TLC was the main source of my cooking shows. I know, it's hard to imagine TLC being anything but a home improvement game show channel, but back in the day it was the prime food show channel.

It was on TLC that I discovered the chef who, to this day, remains my idol: Martin Yan.

Yan Can Cook (And So Can You!) was a brilliant show hosted by a brilliant man. Later in life--like 7th or 8th grade--I actually got to meet him: he was doing a cooking demonstration at the local Boscovs. I convinced my parents to go to the show and so I went, with spatula in hand, desperately hoping to see his knife. I was sure I would faint.

Before the show began, I was walking around the store with my parents and I saw him. He was talking to someone, but then the other person left and he was free. I was too nervous and afraid to talk to him, but dad pushed me forward. After a few more pushes, I finally went up and spoke to him. He graciously signed my spatula and then went on to give a fantastic cooking demonstration.

One thing I've always loved about Martin Yan is his dual dedication to both genuine, traditional Chinese cooking and development of new creative approaches to food. To this day, I still use the technique he showed there for cutting and de-seeding bell peppers.

I still have that spatula, and a newspaper clipping with a picture of him at the event. They're kept in special places, but literally every single time I see a bell pepper I think of that afternoon.


Whenever I watched Yan Can Cook, and Capriel's Cafe right after it, I'd get antsy. Most often, the result of this was me in the kitchen using whatever we had in the fridge and cupboards to make a new dish...and a big mess. Wow, things haven't changed much!

This is where some of my first recipes came from, like roasted red pepper bruschetta and caramelized apple applesauce. Some of those dishes are still on my list of favorite things to make.


Another place that inspired creativity in the kitchen was my grandma's house. It's not that she was one of those grandmothers who cooked a lot--she didn't--but what she does cook is great. And I remember, quite vividly, a particular time in the kitchen with her when we made up a recipe together...

I thought it was an ingenious dish--a real masterpiece, I'd never had anything else like it. After that evening, it would become a regular staple in my young cooking repertoire...

So what was it?

Yeah, as it turns out, now that I'm 23 and a bit smarter I realize that what I made that night with my grandma was a down 'n' dirty, quick 'n' easy American stir-fry.

It was basically chicken with whatever veggies were in the fridge, sauteed with soy sauce, duck sauce, and sesame oil. Some spagehetti was tossed in at the end. And, voila!

So, ok, unoriginal. But, boy was it good!


Recently, I realized that it's been absolutely ages since I've made stir-fry. So, one evening, when I had a bunch of leftover veggies and was too tired to do something elaborate, I decided that it was time for a stir-fry.


Today's Menu:

Citrus Spice Stir-Fry
Vegetable Fried Rice


The inspiration for this stir-fry recipe actually came from some leftover cabbage. I was trying to come up with something to do with it and I came across a tasty sounding slaw recipe. I didn't have the jicama it called for, but I did have a grapefruit that was just dying to be used.

I didn't really want a slaw for dinner, though. So, I thought, why not adjust it a bit and make a stir-fry recipe. The sauce would be perfect and the grapefruit would give a little zing.

To go alongside, I decided to beef up some rice...with veggies and an egg. Fried rice--haHA! Perfect.

Typically, for fried rice it's best to use day old leftover rice, but I just cooked mine up with a 1/3 less liquid than usual and put it in the freezer to cool while I made the stir-fry. It turned out juuuuust fine.


Sure, it's still not a traditional stir-fry, but I think both Yan and Grandma would be proud of me. The results had a wonderfully agreeable flavor, the grapefruit was a fantastic twist! Definitely a keeper for a quick, but not boring, lunch or dinner.






Citrus Spice Stir-Fry



[note: this recipe was inspired by a cabbage slaw recipe on Epicurious, October 2005. Feel free to try out different citruses!]




1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 medium purple onion, coarsely chopped
2 carrots, julienned
2 yellow bell peppers, julienned
1/4 of a small head of cabbage, coarsely shredded
1 pink grapefruit, segmented and segments cut in thirds
1/4 c soy sauce
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp lime juice
1 tsp chili pepper flakes
1/2 tsp sweet paprika
salt
pepper
olive oil



directions:

1. cook the meat and vegetables
a. heat some oil in a large saucepan. add chicken and cook until starting to brown.
b. add garlic and onions and cook until onions become translucent.
c. add remaining vegetables and cook until they become tender, 3-5 minutes
d. add grapefruit and cook another minute. lower the heat.

2. make the sauce
a. combine the soy sauce, vinegar, lime juice, and spices in a bowl. whisk together.
b. add the sauce to the pan and raise the heat. cook until sauce is reduced by 1/4.






Fried Rice


[note: this is best made with leftover cooked rice. however, if you don't have any, cook some rice using 1/3 less liquid than is typically used. put the cooked rice in the fridge or freezer and let cool completely before using. you can cook the rice first and let it cool while you start the stir-fry]

1 c cooked rice
1/3 c chopped carrots
1/3 c peas, fresh or frozen
1 egg olive oil


directions:

1. put a smidgen of olive oil in a saucepan and turn the heat to medium-high. when oil is hot, add the carrots and peas. cook until they become slightly tender, 3-5 minutes.
2. add the rice and stir until the mixture is warmed through.
3. make a hole in the center of the rice and pour in the egg. break up the egg with a spoon and stir to scramble and mix with the rice. continue stirring until all the egg is cooked.

this one's for you Martin Yan, my hero!




Comments, questions, and recipe alterations are always more than welcome.