Tag Archives: chinese food

Chinese Eggplant & Ground Pork

pork & eggplant 2So maybe you’ve had a similar type dish at a Chinese restaurant? Well, no need to go out now when you can make it at home!

I love cooking Asian style at home because I think you can get really great authentic flavors. And this recipe is very flavorful and super easy to make. Plus, it’s a little different than your typical teriyaki chicken. If you’re not a pork person, feel free to substitute the pork with ground chicken.

Chinese Eggplant & Ground Pork

  • 1 lb. ground pork
  • 2 Chinese eggplants, halved & then cut into half moons
  • 1/2 white onion, chopped
  • 1 tbsp. canola oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp. soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp. sriracha
  • 1/2 c. hoisin sauce
  • 1/8 tsp. white pepper
  • dash of salt
  • pinch of dried crushed red peppers
  • 2 green onions, sliced
  • 1 tsp. sesame oil

Heat a wok or skillet over medium heat and add canola oil. Add in the ground pork making sure to break it up as you cook it. Let pork cook for a few minutes, and then add in the onions. Once pork is almost cooked through, add the eggplant. While that cooks, mix together the garlic through the crushed red peppers in a separate bowl. When the pork is cooked (no longer pink) add in the sauce and stir together to combine. Let cook for a few more minutes to absorb the saucy goodness. Turn off heat and add in the green onions and drizzle the sesame oil. Stir and then serve immediately.

chinese eggplant 2chinese eggplantpork & eggplant 3pork & eggplantI like this served along side some rice while my husband likes this served on TOP of his rice. This would also be great in a lettuce wrap. Enjoy your homemade take out!

P.S. Sorry for missing pics of the actual cooking process. Must’ve been very hungry and slightly delirious. But at least you know what a Chinese eggplant looks like!

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Me Love You Long Time, House Special Chicken!!

I was craving Chinese food last night. I actually crave it often! Want to know why? Well that’s because I live very close to a Chinese restaurant, like 5 minutes walking distance, and a lot of time when I’m outside, I can smell what they’re cooking. And it smells so good! So yesterday as I got out of my car, I was overwhelmed by the aromas wafting my way and decided that Chinese food must be had by all, well, at least all the people in my house.

Again, I’m going to mention budget friendly. This is my thing people. I like to recreate dishes that I’ve eaten at restaurants, and spend a fraction of what it costs to eat out. Now don’t get me wrong, going out for a meal is great. You have someone else waiting on you, someone else cooking the food for you and someone else cleaning it all up too. But there’s also that price tag at the end that pays for all those services. At home, I’m all those people, waitress, chef and dishwasher. But on the bright side, I am saving a lot of money, still eating a delicious meal, and bonus, I can wear my pajamas if I want to. If you enjoy cooking like I do, this isn’t a bad deal at all. And if you want less work? Have your husband or kids do the dishes. I prefer to do my own dishes as I have serious issues with my dishwasher. Like, I don’t like anyone touching it, or loading it. I am the only person who knows how to load it efficiently. I can come to your house and show you how to efficiently load yours too?? I’ve actually done this before. I’m sorry, you know who you are.

So, this recipe is for House Special Chicken, and if you’ve ordered Chinese take out before, you know about this dish. If you’ve never had it before, think along the salty and sweet lines. And you will get those restaurant flavors at home with this recipe, I promise!

house special chicken 2

Where are the green onions, you ask? Well, I never claimed to be perfect!

House Special Chicken

  • 3/4 c. soy sauce
  • 1/2 c. packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. onion powder
  • 1/4 tsp. ground mustard
  • 1/4 tsp. white pepper
  • 1/2 inch piece fresh ginger, minced (omit this if you’re not a ginger lover)
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 tsp. sriracha
  • 1 -1 1/2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
  • Canola oil
  • Cornstarch
  • 2 green onions, sliced
  • Toasted sesame seeds

Whisk the first 8 ingredients together and set aside. Heat approximately 1/2 inch of oil (this is a shallow fry) in a skillet, on medium high. (I used a 12 inch cast iron skillet) Dredge chicken cubes in cornstarch, and shake off excess. (I used 1/2 a box of cornstarch and it was a perfect amount) Add chicken to heated oil and shallow fry for approximately 3-4 minutes, stirring the chicken around to make sure it evenly cooks. You will have to cook the chicken in at least 2 batches, depending on the size of your skillet. Using a metal slotted spoon, set cooked chicken aside. When done cooking all of your chicken, heat a separate pan (a wok works perfectly for this), and add sauce. Heat to boiling, and carefully add cooked chicken. Add sliced green onions and stir to coat. You can add toasted sesame seeds, if you would like, either in the pan or when you plate. Also, if you like things spicy, red chili flakes would be great in this!

house special chickenVoila! It looks like you ordered that in a restaurant. Oh, me love you long time house special chicken. Hope you love it long time too!