Fried Rice

3 C cooked rice (cooled, preferred)

1/8 to 1/4 C cooking oil

3 eggs

1.5-2 tbsp oyster sauce

2-2.5 tbsp soy sauce

Black pepper to taste (1+ tbsp.)

Sesame seeds to taste (1+ tbsp.)

3 C chopped vegetables (I like cabbage, bell peppers, bamboo shoots, and/or water chestnuts)

Sesame oil to taste (1-2 tbsp)

     Scramble the eggs, cook like an egg only omelet, and set aside.  Heat the wok over high heat, add cooking oil and allow the oil to heat up briefly.  Add rice followed immediately by the oyster sauce,* soy sauce, black pepper, sesame seeds, and any woody vegetables (i.e., bamboo shoots or water chestnuts).  *Note it helps to pre-mix the soy and oyster sauces since the oyster sauces are thick and hard to pour quickly. 

     Keep the rice moving in the wok until it has been toasted, just starting to blacken, and is no longer as clumpy, about 5 minutes.  Don’t rush the rice cooking step.  Then add the vegetables and the eggs, keep them moving, and cook until the vegetables are softened and lightly charred in places.  Remove from heat, add sesame oil, mix and serve hot.

Marinated Chuck Roast

1/2 C Orange Juice

3 tbsp. soy sauce

2 tbsp. brown sugar

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 boneless beef chuck roast (3-4 lb) 

In a large zip bag, combine the OJ, soy sauce, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce & mix well. Add the roast. Seal bag & turn to coat; refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.  (I usually turn it every now & then) 

 

Pour the marinade into a Dutch oven. Bring to a boil; boil for 2 minutes. Add roast to the pan. Cover & bake at 325 degrees for 3-3 1/2 hours, or until the meat is tender. Let stand for 10 min before slicing. Thicken juices for gravy if desired (I've never had enough juices to do this with).

Alternative: Add the marinade and meat to a crock pot and cook on low for 8-10 hours.  Transfer the juices after cooking to a saucepan and boil to reduce & form an au jus or boil & thicken for a gravy.  

Yields 6-8 servings.

Baked Pasta

Brown 1-1.5 lb ground beef, turkey, or Italian sausage.
Slice and sear 5 green bell peppers.

In a large (about 7 Qt) Dutch oven place:
Olive oil 

1-1.5 lb of uncooked pasta (I like rotini)

4 x 24 oz jars of pasta sauce
2 x 14.5 oz cans diced fire-roasted tomatoes
1 quart of heavy cream

2-2.5 lb shredded mozzarella


Make the sauce by mixing the tomatoes, pasta sauce, and cream.

Oil the inside of the Duch oven.

I like to layer the ingredients with 1/3 the peppers, 1/3 the pasta, 1/3 the meat, 1/3 the sauce, 1/3 the cheese and repeating the layers twice more.  Making sure the top layer is cheese.  Also, make sure to leave an inch at the top of the Duch oven so that it does not overflow.
 

Cover the Dutch oven and place in the oven at 350 °F until the mixture is really bubbling thought out, likely about 2+ hours.  Then uncover and bake until the cheese on top is golden brown.

Yields 8-12 servings.