Secret blogs and Chinese Chicken Lettuce Wraps

So, friends in the blogosphere, you've noticed that my blog has become private. I'm completely safe, and there's nothing crazy going on with blog stalkers or people who have become violent in an attempt to make me confess my Mom's secret bulgogi recipe. (Don't get any ideas - I'll cook it for you anytime, but I'd never share the actual recipe. Have you ever been beaten with chopsticks? I have, and it's not pretty.)





Rather, I have some good reasons for making it private for now, and hopefully I can share those with you guys eventually. For now, enjoy the recipes, and I promise sooner or later things will go public again. I appreciate every single one of you who enjoys this blog!


Onto more important things, like having to create my own PF Chang's recipes because there's not one within 90 miles of me right now...


There are several variations of this recipe out there, and one that's received rave reviews is Food Network's Almost-Famous Chicken Lettuce Wraps recipe.  I like it, but I do a variation on the theme that is a little bit faster to cook and that I personally prefer.  The prep work on this dish is what takes the longest - once your ingredients are chopped up, it's a breeze to cook it all up and serve.


*Note - Food Network also features a number of other "Almost Famous" recipes that are based off of popular dishes that restaurants will not release the recipe to. Personally, I can't wait to try their knock off of the Chick-Fil-A original chicken sandwich..I'll let you know when I do :)


OK, let's go!


Equipment you'll need - a good chef's knife, cutting board, measuring cups (if you like to be precise), a large saute' pan, bamboo utensils (if you have them - if not, no sweat), vegetable peeler, and grater


Chinese Chicken Lettuce Wraps
2 cups fresh shiitake mushrooms*
1 1/2 pounds of ground meat (I use half extra lean ground sirloin, half ground chicken)**
1 tablespoon canola oil
Salt and pepper to taste
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 inch ginger root, grated
1 orange, zested
1 red bell pepper, diced into small pieces
OPTIONAL: 1 can water chestnuts, diced into small pieces***
3 scallions, chopped
1/4 cup hoisin sauce (in the Asian section of most regular grocery stores - by soy sauce)
1-2 teaspoons of dark sesame oil
OPTIONAL: 1 teaspoon of oyster sauce or to taste****
Large head iceberg lettuce, core removed, cut into thirds


*You can use dried shiitakes - you have to rehydrate them in hot water for about 20 minutes, but they work well if that's all you have on hand.
**Other recipes call for chicken breasts cut into small pieces - you can certainly use this if you like.
***Dear Husband considers water chestnuts a "nood" - a non-food. So they are verboten in this recipe in my home.
****Dear Husband got one whiff of the oyster sauce and placed it somewhere I couldn't reach, so, that's why it's optional. I HIGHLY recommend it in this recipe, but hey - if you don't have it, don't sweat it...it will still be delicious.


Mise en place, friends.

Neither the GPS or the matches are part of the meez

First things first - prep your veggies, chopping up the bell pepper, mushrooms, and green onions (scallions). With the mushrooms, keep in mind that they are a very porous vegetable - therefore, don't wash them, but rather wipe them down with a damp cloth.

Teeny, tiny little bell peppers...loving the mirror bowl effect here too.

Delicious scallions

Make sure you remove the tough stems!!
Left: RIGHT. Right: WRONG. Confused yet?

Teeny, tiny pieces. Shiitakes are meaty, so you really want to use these.

OK. Now let's move on to grating the ginger and zesting the orange. I use a grater for both of these tasks, and a veggie peeler to peel the ginger beforehand. 

Peel the ginger's tough skin off first.

Grate the ginger into a small dish and add to garlic if you like.

Same concept - zest the peel, being careful not to zest the pith (white part)

Orange zest can be powerful, so unless you love a strong orange flavor, don't go too crazy. You'll notice I have a very small amount of zest for what will be a large amount of filling.

Next, I prepped the lettuce just to get it out of the way:

I cut it in thirds for finger food friendly portion sizes

JUST bought a salad spinner. Best. Lettuce. Drying. Technique. Ever.

So at this point, you're ready to begin cooking.  Add oil to your hot pan, and begin to cook your ground beef and chicken.  I use a bamboo spatula to cook the beef, breaking it up and then briefly draining off the oil and fat after the meat is cooked.  It isn't all that appetizing at the beginning...

Ew.

After the meat is cooked, add your mushrooms and cook for another two minutes. If you so desire, add salt and pepper to taste at this point.  Add your garlic and ginger and cook for another minute, allowing the flavors to start to blend together.  At this point, I also drizzle my sesame oil over the mix and incorporate it. 

Next, add your orange zest, bell pepper, and scallions.  Continue to mix together and cook. Lastly, add your hoisin sauce. I noticed that I had a bit more mixture than I'd originally thought, so really, add your hoisin to taste. If you like a saltier flavor, add some soy sauce. If you have opted for oyster sauce, add it at this time as well. Make sure your sauce coats the mixture evenly.

MUCH better.

Lastly, call over anyone who will be eating dinner with you and has up until this point been otherwise occupied....

I mean, he's recruiting star players for his NCAA 2011 football team. That builds up an appetite, you know.

For some reason, the dogs weren't interested in helping me cook today. Here they are in all of their lazy Bassador glory.

Plate....and serve!

Food styling isn't really my area of expertise...

Enjoy! :)