Takeout Timeout

Guys, who doesn’t love some Sunday night lo mein or kung pao chicken. However, after eating like crap all weekend or spending too much money going out it may be best to just cook your Chinese take out staple at home. It is a lot healthier and tends to be more wallet friendly as well. I hooked up some stir fry and fried rice for the boyfriend and I last weekend, it was tre yum. Check out the fried rice recipe below and see if you enjoy it as much as we did.

  • 1/2 cup mirepoix mix (pre diced celery, onions, & carrots. You can obviously do this yourself but its just more time away from laying on the couch and watching football).
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • salt & pepper to taste (I would add at the end only because soy sauce, even the low sodium stuff is pretty salty tasting so you don’t want to over season).
  • 1 tbsp. minced garlic paste
  • 1 tsp. minced ginger paste (if you don’t have garlic or ginger paste, the powder would work too)
  • 2 tbsp. soy sauce
  • 1 tsp. sambal oelek (it’s an Asian chili oil but a few squirts of siriacha would do if you didn’t have any)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup boiled rice
  • 1 tbsp. butter (I add it just at the end, before serving. It melts into the rice and adds a nice soft texture to the dish, but feel free to leave out).

Heat the oil on high in pan or wok, while cooking the veggies, paste & spices. Don’t add the rice or soy sauce just yet. Cook till translucent/tender. Then crack the two eggs into the hot oil, veggie, spice mixture. Start scrambling, this is when you add the rice to incorporate everything together. Lower heat and stir in the chili oil & soy sauce.

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It came out so legit, I didn’t even miss having a post meal fortune cookie. I may permanently be on a time out from my take out spot.

Happy Eating, XO.

Firehouse Chili

Football season is in full swing. However, as much as I love me some pizza and wings during NFL Sundays, I am trying to conserve some money. I figured chili is just the way to cook at home, eat yummy Fall food, and still have enough leftovers for the Monday night game. So fire up the crockpot when you wake up next Sunday and have a delish serve your self “buffet” set up for all day game watching. Your wallet will thank you and you can always check out the cute delivery guy next Sunday.

  • 2 yellow onions, chopped
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 3 tablespoons of minced garlic (fresh not powder)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 pounds Hot  (or Mild) Italian Johnsonville Sausage crumbled (and then 1 pound ground beef, or turkey or even all 3 lbs. sausage, you pick!)
  • 2 cans of diced tomatoes with green chilies (I used Rotel)
  • 2 packages McCormick Chili Seasoning Mix (any flavor)
  • 2 –  15 oz. cans Bush’s dark or light red kidney beans
  • 2 green bell peppers chopped small
  • 2 cans yellow corn
  • Pinch of cumin & red pepper flakes to taste (I ended up just throwing in a jalapeno instead of red pep flakes)
  • chicken broth, as desired for thinner consistency chili. It can also be stirred in at end.

Dump all ingredients in the order listed above and cook for 6-8 hrs. in crockpot. (I stirred half way through to make sure the meat was cooking evenly). I served with a platter of “garnishes” such as: shredded cheese, sour cream, pea shoots (or shredded lettuce), diced green onion, chopped avocado with a side warm baked corn bread. (don’t hate, but I cheated and used the store bought mixes vs. making from scratch). You can even skip the cornbread and crush up some tortilla chips as a topping as well. That’s why I love chili, its so versatile. Spicy, mild, whatever meat, veggies, and toppings galore, just eat and enjoy how you like it best!

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Happy Eating, XO.