tired of lettuce salads?

I guess that this is kind of turning into a food blog. But what can I say? I love to cook!

So if you have a husband like mine, he hates salad. I love salad. I like to have it a lot but my husband tires of it quickly. So to change things up a bit, make this instead:

Cucumber ginger salad! Its super easy and comes from a Japanese/American couple (the Watanabes) that went to church with my husband's family when he was young.

Before you start making your entrée just get 4 cucumbers and slice them as thin as you can. Sprinkle them with salt and let them sit in that as you combine these:
1 C. sugar
1 C. vinegar
1 t. grated ginger

(if grating ginger with a zester is not appealing to you, you can now buy already grated ginger in little tubes you keep in the fridge! They are so worth a few extra bucks! I do this with garlic too so that when I'm making pasta sauce, or stir fry I can just throw it in without stopping to smash and chop a clove up!)

Then just pour the stuff on the cucumbers and pop them in the fridge to chill while you're cooking. Then when dinner is ready, you just take them out of the fridge and BAM! You have a salad that most boys aren't afraid to try and might actually eat because it's tasty.


It goes great with stir fry, like this delicious SWEET AND SOUR PORK:
My husband LOVES this because you make a batter for the pork (I use chicken breast and its just as good) and fry it. It is a great way to get your man to eat veggies!

I love it because it tastes like the stuff you get at restaurants and it is amazingly good.
I got this recipe from Better Homes and Gardens, but have adapted it to my liking. Here is my version:

First, start your rice cooker! I have forgotten this before and it sucks when everything else is done.. and there's no rice. =(

Then cube the meat (about 12oz) and put in a bowl. Splash with soy sauce and oil (For people that HAVE to measure -about 2 T. soy sauce and 1 T. sesame [or whatever kind] oil).
Cover in plastic wrap and set aside to marinade.

Make sauce using:
1 C. chicken broth
1/3 C. sugar
1/3 C. rice vinegar (or whatever kind)
4 t. cornstarch
1 T. soy sauce
Set aside.

Heat up your wok, or pot with about 1-2 in cooking oil. You'll know it's ready when it starts to smoke, or when you drop a match in the oil and it lights (trick from Brazil).

While the oil is heating, make batter by stirring the following until smooth:
1 egg
1/2 C. cornstarch
1/2 C. flour
1/2 C. broth

Drain and meat and pat it dry. Dip it in batter coating well. Drop as many pieces as will fit in hot oil. Cook 4-5 min. until brown. Remove all pieces onto a plate lined with paper towels, and add more meat to oil. You can keep the meat warm in an oven set at 300F if you wish.

Next you want to fry up the veggies on med-high in a separate skillet that has about 1T oil in it. Add:
1 clove garlic, minced (or about a t. of the already chopped stuff that comes in a jar)
3 medium carrots (sliced thin)
2 peppers chopped (we like orange)
onions -3 green or one small normal one

Cook 4-5 minutes or until crisp-tender and remove veggies from skillet.

Give your sauce a stir and add to same hot skillet. Cook until bubbly and then cook 2min more. Add an 8-oz can of pineapple if you have one, and then put the veggies and meat back in. And then dinner is done!

Here is my husband decorating his plate. He did it of his own free will. I think he was excited for fried food.

So anyways, this is a great recipe, but it does take a little more prep than some dinners. But if you have the time and want to make a fantastic meal, then this is a crowd pleaser.