Southwest Egg Rolls with Cool Avocado Dip, Mongolian Beef, Fried Rice

One of my New Year's resolutions was to continuously try new dishes this upcoming year.  To be more experimental.  To be creative when doing my weekly menu plans.



When I was working on my menu plan this week, I noticed one of recipezaar's postings on their website, "Top 100 Recipes of 2009".  Of course, I was intrigued.  I had to see what others were seeing, selecting, making, and reviewing.  I went through the list.  I found about 5 things I wanted to try.  And I added one from the list...P.F. Chang's Mongolian Beef...to this week's menu plan. 



I have never had Mongolian Beef.  My brother found this to be funny since it's one of the most popular dishes on a Chinese menu.  After all, I had spent a couple of months in China just a few years back.  But food there and here is very, very different.  Things in the US are very "Americanized".  Plus, Chinese food is my least favorite food from afar.  Where I love Thai food, as well as other Asian foods, Chinese is my least favorite.  I think I got burnt out from going to eat Chinese food every Sunday after church when I was with my first true love, many, many, many years ago...



Nonetheless, I put this on the menu.  I knew I would pair it with a simple Fried Rice, one that I make often when I cook Asian foods, but differs every time I make it (depending on what I have on hand). 



The big surprise to the menu was an appetizer I came across for Southwest Egg Rolls with Cool Avocado Dip on babycenter's forum "Cooking For Your Family".  Of course, this recipe is very non-Chinese, but I figure what-the-hey, it's my menu, I can do it however I want.  Plus, I'd be serving the appetizer much earlier than the actual meal.  And I was only serving Jimmy and Serena, and when did they care if the items truly "matched" or went together in perfect harmony.



Anyway, this was the menu.



First and foremost, I didn't plan accordingly.  The appetizer took much longer than I expected.  Maybe because I was tired, taking too many breaks in the middle, or just because I didn't plan accordingly.  Everything ran behind normal schedule!



But I successfully got the egg rolls out.  And I have to say, holy moly, these were GOOD!  I could have had them as my entire meal.  I made just under 20 and let's just say, I hope they heat up good because we have several left, after almost filling up on them.  The dip was great.  The whole thing was easy, just took a little longer than I had expected.



The Mongolian Beef was super easy to make.  I adjusted the recipe using very thin sliced sirloin beef (my butcher was out of flank steak), and threw the beef in the deep fryer, since I already had it out. I cooked the beef in batches, just for a couple of minutes, and then added it to the sauce.  I also used light brown sugar because that's what I had on hand.  Again, I can not compare this recipe to the Chinese take-out place up the road, but I can vouch that it tasted very good. 



The rice is always a winner.  Not much to it.  I'll post the recipe as I made it for this meal.  But know, you can add whatever you want and adapt it to your tastes or what you have on hand.



Southwest Egg Rolls & Cool Avocado Dip

Michelle (MMmom) was the poster, also a follower of my blog



2-1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken

1-1/2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend

2/3 cup frozen corn, thawed

2/3 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained

5 green onions, chopped

1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon grated lime peel

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

20 egg roll wrappers

Oil for deep frying



Dip:

3/4 cup ranch salad dressing

1 medium ripe avocado, peeled and mashed

1 Tablespoon minced fresh cilantro

1 teaspoon grated lime peel

1-2 Tablespoon lime juice



In a large bowl, combine the first 10 ingredients.  Place 1/4 cup of chicken mixture in the center of one egg roll wrapper.  (Keep remaining wrappers covered with a damp paper towel until ready to use.) Fold bottom corner over the filling.  Fold sides toward center over filling.  Moisten remaining corner with water; roll up tightly to seal.  Repeat.



In a deep fryer, heat oil to 375 degrees.  Fry egg rolls, a few at a time, for 2 minutes or until golden brown.  Drain on paper towels. 



Meanwhile, combine the dip ingredients.  Serve with egg rolls.







P.F. Chang's Mongolian Beef

Recipezaar



2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon ginger, minced

1 Tablespoon garlic, chopped

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup water

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

vegetable oil, for frying (about 1 cup)

1 lb flank steak

1/4 cup cornstarch

2 large green onions



Make the sauce by heating 2 tsp of vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over medium/low heat.  Don't get oil too hot.  Add ginger and garlic to the pan and quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches.  Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then raise the heat to about medium and boil the sauce for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens.  Remove it from the heat.  Slice the flank stead against the grain into 1/4" thick bite-size slices.  Tilt the blade of your knife at about a forty-five degree angle to the top of the steak so you get wider cuts.  Dip the steak pieces into the cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to both sides of the beef.  Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks.  As the beef sits, heat up on cup of oil in wok (you may also use a skillet for this step as long as the beef will be mostly covered with oil).  Heat the oil over medium heat until it's nice and hot, but not smoking.  Add the beef to the oil and saute for just two minutes, or until the beef just begins to darken on the edges.  You don't need a thorough cooking here since the beef is going to go back on the heat later.  Stir the meet around a little so that it cooks evenly.  After a couple of minutes, use a large slotted spoon to take the meat our and onto paper towels, then pour the oil out of the wok or skillet.  Put the pan back over the heat, dump the meat back into it and simmer for one minute.  Add the sauce, cook for one minute while stirring, then add all the green onions.  Cook for one more minute, then remove the beef and onions with tongs or slotted spoon to a serving plate.  Leave the excess sauce behind in the pan.



Fried Rice



Rice, prepared the night before (1 cup of rice, 2 cups of water, bring water to boil, cover and reduce to simmer for 20 minutes, then refrigerate)

1 Tablespoon butter or margarine

2 beats, beaten

1-2 green onion

1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed

1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed

Soy sauce (about 1/3 cup)



Melt 1 Tablespoon butter in skillet or wok.  Scramble eggs.  Pour in rice, green onion, peas, and corn.  Stir well to incorporate all the ingredients.  Stir in soy sauce until color of rice is uniform.  Heat only until its warmed through and serve immediately.