Now, this week, I want to talk a little more about menu planning, but from a different angle: Coupons. Every week, my house receives a copy of the Cedar Valley $aver, and in it are coupons from all of our local grocery stores (including the grocery sections of Walmart and sometimes Target). Now, as I understand it, it’s a bit hard to have something like that delivered to a dorm room. In that case, the Sunday paper is a good way to get your coupons if you don’t already have a way (also, if you know of other ways to get a decent number of coupons, please share it as a comment! :D).
However you get them, coupons are a great way to start building a menu. For example, my local Fareway – which already has fantastic prices on meat – often has sales on their supplies of pork. When I see coupons or sales happening in this regard, I know that I can plan to have at least one recipe that uses pork, or whatever else is on sale. This is a great way to save even more money on your groceries, and it can really inspire you if you’re stuck on what to plan for the week. There have been plenty of times when I’ve been stuck, seen an ad for 50% off of some food ingredient or another, and instantly began looking for recipes that use that ingredient. Not only did I have a menu plan that saved me money, but I saved 50% on a key ingredient in one of those meals. It’s even better if the sale is on a vegetable item, such as carrots or celery, as those are used in dinner recipes frequently, and you can build an entire week around those simple ingredients.
Now, speaking of pork…
This Week’s Recipes Are: Mu-Shu Pork, Lasagna Roll-Ups, and Roasted Sweet Corn
Mu-Shu Pork
[Picture to be added]
Serves: 6 Start to Finish: Under 25 Minutes
Ingredients:
· 1 small head (about 1 1/4 pounds) green cabbage (optional)
· 2 medium-size carrots
· 1 pound boneless pork loin chops (about 1 1/2 inches thick), defrosted if frozen
· 2 tablespoons peanut oil or other vegetable oil
· 1 small onion (for about 1/2 cup sliced)
· 8 oz fresh button mushrooms
· 1 small clove fresh garlic, minced, or 1/2 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
· 1/2 teaspoon finely minced fresh ginger or bottled minced ginger
· 1 bunch scallions (for about 1/2 cup sliced; optional)
· 1/4 cup dry sherry, white wine, or apple juice
· 2 teaspoons cornstarch
· 1/4 cup regular or reduced sodium soy sauce
· 2 teaspoons Asian (dark) sesame oil
· 8 small (7-inch) flour tortillas (optional)
· 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce, or more to taste
1. If using cabbage, cut the cabbage in half and remove and discard the tough core. Using a very sharp knife, cut the cabbage into thin shreds. Set aside. If you are not using tortillas, you may want to begin cooking 1 cup of white rice to serve the pork over.
2. Peel the carrots, and shred them on the largest holes of a box grater, or cut them into 1/4 inch rounds. Set aside.
3. Trim any visible fat from the pork chops. Cut the chops length-wise into thin strips about 1/8 inch wide. You may choose to cube the pork. Set aside.
4. Heat the oil in an extra-deep 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Peel the onion and cut it in half. Cut each half into 1/4-inch-thick crescent-shaped slices, adding them to the skillet as you cut. Rinse, pat dry, and slice the mushrooms, removing any tough stems. Add the mushrooms to the skillet as you slice. Add the pork and cook, tossing and stirring, until the mushrooms just begin to release their liquid, about 2 minutes.
5. Add the garlic, ginger, cabbage, and carrots to the skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pork is no longer pink in the center, 5 to 6 minutes. Meanwhile, if using the scallions, slice them, using all of the whites and enough of the tender green tops to make about 1/2 cup. Add them to the skillet.
6. When the pork is cooked through, combine the sherry and the cornstarch in a small container that has a lid (or a ziploc baggy), cover, and shake until the lumps dissolve. Add the mixture to the skillet, along with the soy sauce and sesame oil. Cook just until the mixture thickens, about 1 minute.
7. Just before serving, put the tortillas (if you choose to use them) on a microwave-safe plate, cover with waxed paper, and microwave on high power for 1 1/2 minutes to warm through.
8. To serve, spread 1/2 teaspoon hoisin sauce (or more to taste) on each tortilla, then top with 1/2 cup of the pork filling. Roll up burrito-style (one end tucked in) and serve at once. Optionally, serve pork over cooked white rice, and use the hoisin as a dipping sauce.
Notes: You can use a 1-pound bag of coleslaw mix instead of the cabbage and carrots. Warehouse club stores usually carry larger bags at much lower prices than the smaller supermarket bags.
Review-
This is one of my favorite Asian styled recipes, next to Beefy Asian Rice (which you will see next week). It was this recipe that taught me that if you’re going to make Asian-styled food, then hoisin, sesame oil, soy sauce, garlic, and ginger are supreme MUST HAVEs. The combination of the flavors with the liquids from the mushrooms (minced finely for those who don’t care for mushrooms) and the pork is incredible! It’s like eating in an Asian restaurant, but with the satisfaction of creating something that seems more complicated than it is. This is another recipe that reheats really well, and I love to make Mu-Shu Pork for my house. In fact, my roommate loves it on the tortillas so much that we would never have tried it over rice if I hadn’t forgotten to write tortillas on my shopping list! However you serve it, this recipe is absolutely delicious, with bold flavors that you won’t regret later. :)
Lasagna Roll-Ups
Serves: 5-10 Prep Time: 20-30 minutes Bake Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
· 1 box lasagna noodles (NOT the ready to bake noodles)
· 1 lb. tofu, ground beef, or other meat
· Italian seasoning
· 1 15 oz. container of ricotta cheese
· 1 12 oz. bag of shredded mozzarella cheese
· 1 to 1 ½ cups of Parmesan cheese
· Pasta sauce
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Add about ¼ cup of pasta sauce to the bottom of a 13x9” glass pan, and spread it around the bottom until coated.
2. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese with a fork until all cheeses are well mixed. If using tofu, mix it into the cheese mixture.
3. If using ground meat, brown the meat in a skillet over medium heat, drain, and add it to the cheese mixture, along with 1 cup pasta sauce. This mixture will become your filling.
4. Set a pot of salted water to boil, and then cook your lasagna noodles. Each noodle will be one roll-up, so cook as many as needed from your box. Cook until al dente. Drain, rinse, and lay the noodles flat on a plate so that they remain easy to work with.
5. Spread the filling over one side of a noodle, and roll it up. Place the roll-up into the pan seam-down, and repeat this step for each remaining noodle. When the pan is full (I can fit about 20 into a 13x9” pan), pour the remaining pasta sauce over the roll-ups. Make sure to cover as much of the noodles as possible. If you have extra shredded or parmesan cheese, sprinkle it over the roll-ups.
6. Place the pan into the oven and cook for 30 minutes, or until the sauce is hot and bubbly. Remove from oven and let cool for about ten minutes before serving.
Review-
This is a house favorite. If you undercook the noodles a little bit, that’s alright; you can still lay them flat in the pan and make normal lasagna instead! To do that, just layer noodles and filling until you reach the top, and then top with noodles and sauce. The baking time remains the same. :) Also, if you don’t have time to bake them, you can prepare them and refrigerate them, microwaving them as needed. Since any meat inside will be fully cooked, baking isn’t necessary (though it will make your kitchen smell AMAZING).
This is a recipe that takes a little more time, but makes for some amazing leftovers. The roll-ups microwave remarkably well, and can be eaten as a meal or as a snack. If you have time to make this recipe, this is a great selection for the beginning of the week, when you can reheat them anytime throughout the week as leftovers. Also, this recipe is great for serving guests if you have the time, as many will appreciate the fun of lasagna in roll form. Enjoy!
Roasted Sweet Corn
photograph by me.
Serves: 4 as a side Start to Finish: 15 minutes
Ingredients:
· 1 bag of frozen sweet corn kernels
· 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
· Salt to taste
1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Rinse the corn kernels in a colander or strainer to partially thaw.
2. Pour the corn onto a cookie sheet, preferably one with a 1” tall edge. Drizzle the oil over the top, and mix the corn with it until thoroughly coated. Press into a single layer.
3. Put the corn into the oven and bake for 10 minutes, or until the corn begins to brown at the edges. When it is finished baking, pull the corn from the oven, let cool for about 5 minutes, and then sprinkle with salt to taste and serve.
Review-
I’ve always loved sweet corn on the cob, and sometimes I like corn kernels as a side. This recipe, however, is a fantastic way to cook frozen corn without losing the flavor or the sweetness of it. My roommate and I made this recipe last week as a side to a chicken soup over rice that I had made. Before the soup was finished, we had eaten most of the tray of corn between the two of us, simply because of how flavorful this recipe is. It would have been embarrassing if it wasn’t so good!
A little bit of salt over top adds a nice contrast to the sweetness of the corn, and the full flavor doesn’t get lost like it does when you boil corn. Needless to say, I already have another package of frozen sweet corn kernels in my freezer, and I’m going to be making it again very soon. :)
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