Wok Star Eleanor Hoh

Be a Wok Star!

grill

Curry Grilled Pork, Cauliflower Stir Fry Was A Hit!

By Leave a Comment

Curry powder(my fav is from MySpiceSage, so fresh & intense) on pork shoulder is so intoxicating when it hits the grill. My fav are dry rubs cause they crisp up the meat. So easy, just salt, then sprinkle curry powder, under hot broiler till golden brown & crispy both sides. I recently saw on Dr. Oz show that spicy foods energizes your metabolism, I always knew there was a reason why I love this spice so much.

I stir fried green cauliflower & red bell pepper, perfect with grilled curry pork.

When my hubby keeps saying ‘delicious’ through dinner, I think that means it was a hit!

Photo_1
Photo_2

For lucky folks who get my Wok Star Kit, it includes either curry powder or 5 spice powder from MySpiceSage! Once you’re hooked, you’ll keep wanting more, so good. Their spices come in handy dispensers so it’s easy to sprinkle on anything and I do but best is on pork shoulder, hmmm…I’ll post more dishes I’ve used curry powder on, so invigorating.

Cook Like a Wok Star 1.0

By 1 Comment

Cook like a Wok Star is a series of quick, short posts to get you cooking in your wok, give you ideas for simple weeknight dinners and hopefully with leftovers for lunches too!
Even if you don’t have my cast iron wok set or know my NO-recipe technique, I hope these posts will inspire and encourage you to use your wok for cooking most anything and not just for an Asian stir fry!

I tend to think of more things to add after my posts, so do subscribe to get the updates…here’s my first one, enjoy…

A wok is a perfect shape and size for big batch cooking.

It’s fast and keeps its flavor, texture & color.

I lightly stir fried with Tea seed oil, garlic & ginger.
You don’t even need to do that if you don’t want to.

Par boil a big head of broccoli in my cast iron wok!

I marinaded skirt steak 2 ways and stuck under broiler.

Satay sauce & Stubbs BBQ sauce are both thick sauces so they cling to the meat. I used 2 different marinades on one skirt steak for variation. I know when it’s done by just the aroma, no timing needed! Flip over, slather more sauce & that’s it!

Grilled Satay Skirt Steak, penne with broccoli
Looks like a typical western dinner but with Asian flair!
Made enough for hubby’s lunch & our dinner!

During the week, I’ll use these and different ingredients to pull together a dinner, so much FUN! Sometimes, I’ll add a light balsamic salad dressing, sometimes sauce from the skirt steak marinade. But, my favorite is just stir frying my veggies with a a dash of tamari and sherry. So crunchy and full of flavor.

Love to hear what inspires your weeknight dinners without using any recipes and better yet cooked in a wok?!

Here are more ways to help you succeed at being a Wok Star!
Wok Up Your Own Creations

Stir Frying Without Recipes

Seasonal Foods

Swordfish: Wok Fried or Grilled

By 4 Comments

Wok Fried Swordfish with Swiss Chard,
garbanzo beans and quinoa.

Side of chayote and carrot pickle.

Grilled Swordfish with Purple Swiss Chard
and quinoa.

Marinaded Swordfish with olive oil, lime juice,

ginger, garlic & dried basil

Place Swordfish nuggets on metal grid to grill

Stir fry zucchini, carrots with garlic and ginger.

Added Swordfish to Lobster Bisque.
Sides: pickles and stir fried veggies, wholewheat toast

Whenever I’ve ordered Swordfish in restaurants, I’ve always been disappointed. It’s not only expensive but dry and bland. Oh, they got it blackened alright but the interior has no flavor, you might as well eat a cardboard box! So, when I saw Swordfish nuggets recently, I thought I’d experiment as they were a quarter of the price of a whole steak and looked good. Even if I ruined the nuggets, it wouldn’t break the bank. I decided to wok fry some, grill some and just add to some store bought lobster bisque. These techniques would give me 3 different textures.

As usual, I surfed the net to see how to tackle this fish. Most recipes suggest marinading in olive oil and grilling. I’m all about technique, when you know the ‘why’ of something, it’s easy. Olive oil is supposed to keep the fish tender, that was a no brainer. Done! I also added my usual, TSPC marinade (tamari, sherry, pepper, cornstarch for any kind of protein incl. toufu) for the fish that were fried in my cast iron wok and grilled.

Ha, I just remembered Mark Bittman recently mentioned his NPR segment: Fish Debate: Fresh or Frozen. Great information. So, that’s what I think must’ve been the problem, Swordfish I had were previously frozen! Freezing fish changes its texture, the only way round this is this fabulous tip I learned that prevents freezer burn! Bittman mentioned an alternative method: eliminating air but it’s more difficult to accomplish. Next time you see Swordfish, try it. I was pleasantly surprised at how tender and creamy it was, very similar to bass.

Many who’ve tried my tip agree it’s the closest thing to fresh fish! And that was from some Chinese friends who are very particular about their fish. In Asia, fish is mostly sold still swimming, that’s how fresh we like it. Here’s a photo I ‘fished’ out from my Hong Kong trip.

Don’t let bad experiences prevent you from experimenting and open your mind to new ways of doing things. As the saying goes, “the way you do anything is the way you do everything!” Any fish stories you want to share?