Stir Fried String Beans

I had this the first time when Keith took me to Grand Szechuan.  The food was great and I spent the whole lunch shoveling food into my mouth making Keith translate what all the Chinese NYU students were saying at the table around us, but i digress.  Keith recreated this dish for my parents and this is what he came up with.  It was pretty good, though the xo sauce which is made from scallops I believe might tip the scales to the too fishy side for some people, so if you're worried about that, I'd leave it out but definitely keep the dried shrimp in.  In other news, I have no idea why there is a photo of a cucumber in the picture.

1 lb string beans
5 tbsp vegetable oil (or any other neutral oil)
1 lb minced meat (of choice)
2 tbsp dried baby shrimp chopped
2 cloves garlic chopped
1 teaspoon dried chilies/red pepper flakes
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp chinese cooking rice wine
1 tbsp chinese xo sauce (optional)
1 tsp sesame oil


1. cut the string beans into 1-2 inches in length and wash thoroughly. fry in pan over med/high heat with 4 tbsp of oil for over 5 minutes until fragrant and you notice that the beans get a little brown and wrinkly. remove and drain the oil.
2. heat the remaining 1tbsp of oil in pan and fry garlic, dried chilies and baby shrimp for about a minute. add in meat, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, rice wine, sesame oil and xo sauce (if using). stir fry until fragrant and till meat is cooked.
3. add in cooked string beans and continue to stir fry for about 3-5 minutes. serve with rice.

Mushy Peas

Mushy peas are a British thing. I first found out about it on Jamie Oliver's cooking show. I added in the edamame to add a bit more texture to it, otherwise it has a tendency of being, well, too mushy. The sesame oil was my boyfriend's idea.  Anyhoo, it's a great alternative to mashed potatoes when you don't have the time to peel and boil all those potatoes and want a bit of color on your plate.

10 oz shelled frozen edamame

20 oz frozen peas

2 cloves of finely chopped garlic

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp sesame oil

2 tbsp butter

juice of half a lemon

1 tbsp of chopped chives

2 tbsp chopped parsley

salt and pepper

1. heat the olive oil and sesame oil over medium/ medium low heat and toss in the garlic, sauté until fragrant and slightly softened.  add in the peas and edamame, no need to thaw, and continue to cook until heated through.

2. add in the herbage and cook for 30 second/ a minute or until fragrant.

3. transfer to a blender of food processor, add in the lemon juice and butter, and blender until a chunky paste is formed. if it's a bit dry just add more butter or olive oil depending on how healthy you feel like being.

4. season with salt and pepper and serve. maybe with a drizzle of olive oil.

*if you're wondering how i made the cube of mushy peas, i used a square ice cream scoop, i think it was from williams sonoma.