Doong Goo, Mook Yee, Chow Ngau (Stir Fried Beef and Three Mushrooms)

This is another recipe I found in "The Melting Pot "cookbook. The entree is from the Chinese Kitchen section. We liked the coconut curry shrimp a bit more and have made it several times now but I do think this one is worth trying and maybe working on to get a stronger flavor. I was thrown by the metric system on this one too so maybe that's partial to blame. Otherwise, if you like mushrooms and could have fun exploring new mushrooms and combinations this is a keeper.

Ingredients:

300g beef (sirloin or rump)...about 3/4 lb

A large handful of dried Chinese mushrooms (try the bulk aisle at CM or WF)

50g wood ear (or chestnut) mushrooms (these are thick, dried and really flavorful)...about 2 oz

2 cloves garlic

5 cm ginger....1/2 inch

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 tbsp light soy sauce

peanut oil (or other oil for frying)

2 spring onions

100ml oyster sauce...3 1/2 ounces

Prep:
1. Rinse the dried Chinese mushrooms and wood ear mushrooms and soak for 30 minutes in hot water.

2. Wash them quickly with cold water and remove any stick bits
3. Slice all the mushrooms

4. Peel and chop the garlic, ginger and the white part of the spring onion, setting aside the green part
5. Slice the beef and rub it with sesame oil and soy sauce

Cook:

1. Heat the peanut oil in a wok until very hot, add the garlic, the white part of the spring onion and ginger; fry off with the Chinese mushrooms.
2. Add beef and stir fry quickly then add the other mushrooms, saute, and toss in the oyster sauce. Keep turning the mushrooms and beef so they do not overcook but get coated in sauce. Served immediately garnished with a little chopped green spring onion.

I got a little confused on her mushroom instructions and I think I combined the mushrooms when I was suppose to let them soak separately. I also didn't do a great job of measuring the mushrooms (the more the better, right?) but it turned out fine. I would like to add a little heat or a stronger flavor but I'm not sure what/how yet.

Coconut Curried Prawns

I got a new cookbook! The Melting Pot. The World in Your Kitchen Each chapter of the book highlights a different country and nationality (Malaysian, Chinese, Ethiopian) and gives you an introduction to the cuisine, flavors you'll find in the kitchen, and, of course, offers recipes. I like the aspects of learning the contents of an Estonian store cupboard and lessons learned along the way when discovering Perisan cooking but I'm not a fan converting measurements from metric to imperial (note to self: do not buy English cookbooks).

The Coconut Curried Prawns recipe came from the Caribbean Kitchen section. Allen loves curry and coconut so I figured it was a good one to try first. He loved it. The color turned out much more yellow than the red curry pictured in the book. Regardless, we'll make it again. It's easy, rich and a bit different Caribbean style, Mon!

Ingredients:
200 g prawns (you tell me how many!) Actually, we used about 20 (or more) frozen shrimp.
1 small red bell pepper
2 cloves of garlic
A small bunch of spring onions (green onions)
5cm of ginger (I don't know what this quantity is either so I used about 1 tsp
1 scotch bonnet chili (a small colorful chili that's got a thin skin and is hot!)
1 tsp curry powder
1 can coconut milk
A small bunch of coriander (cilantro)
Salt and Pepper

Prep:
1. Clean and de-vein the prawns
2. Finely chop the red pepper, garlic, green onion, ginger and chili
3. Do not shake the can of coconut milk, open and spoon off the heavier coconut cream from the top of the can and set aside the rest of the coconut milk
4. Roughly chop the cilantro

Cook:
1. Heat a little oil and fry the red pepper, garlic, green onion, ginger and chili with the curry powder and a pinch of salt and pepper until soft and glossy
2. Toss in the prawns and cook for one minute
3. Add the coconut cream and half the milk. Turn up the heat to cook the prawns and reduce the sauce. Add milk until you get the consistency you want
4. Cook for 10 minutes and serve with freshly chopped cilantro

Very easy and, again, fairly rich. Probably a recipe best to consume in small quantities but, instead, we ate the entire meal in one sitting.