Wen's Chow Mein - Slimified!

So my cousin married the most amazing woman, Wen. She has become a good friend and a couple of years ago they came down to visit so she could give me some Chinese cooking lessons.  Her chow mein is out of this world, better than any takeaway and to watch her cook is such a joy.  She uses chopsticks for almost everything and has a natural instinct in the kitchen.

The recipe she gave me is so wonderful and versatile that it will really work with just about any meat and veg.  The version I post here is fairly true to Wen's method, only I remove the oil and the fried onions on top (moment of silence for the onions please...). I do add half a teaspoon of toasted sesame oil at the very end for the flavour of it, which is what really makes Chinese food. That is one syn for the whole recipe, which should easily serve 5-6 people.

Ingredients:

• Cooking spray
• 250g medium egg noodles (dry weight)
• 500g chicken fillets (sliced into thin strips)
• 2 carrots, peeled and cut into thin slives
• 1 large onion, sliced
• Beansprouts, half package
• Mange Tout, half packet
• 1 tbsp fresh garlic
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
• 3 tbs dark soy sauce
• 3 tbs oyster sauce
• sweetener (optional) to taste
• white pepper
• 1/2 tsp sesame oil

Cook noodles according to package directions, cut into smaller pieces, set aside to cool.

Spray wok with cooking spray and cook chicken slices until cooked through. Remove from wok.

Re-spray wok and cook carrots for a minute or two then add onions.  Cook until beginning to soften.  Add mange tout and beansprouts. Cook for a minute or two.  Add garlic and ginger and cook for another minute or two. Add soy sauce, oyster sauce and sweetener. Season with white pepper.

Add chicken and noodles to wok.  Stir fry and ensure the noodles are all coated in the sauce. If you need to, add a bit more soy and oyster sauce (equal parts).  Once ready, stir in sesame oil and serve. 

Slimming World 1/2 Syn Blueberry Muffins

I have a confession. I can't stand blueberries. Horrible tart little feckers that are creepy looking on the inside. No thank you. If I'm gonna eat fruit, it had better taste and look sweet and delicious. Blueberries do not fit the bill. However, put them in a big sugary muffin and it's another story altogether. I adore blueberry muffins and I make the best ones ever with a crispy sugary lemon topping. I wanted some of that and wondered could I adapt baked oats to suit.

I played around and came up with this recipe which was both filling and delicious. It serves one, makes two muffins and counts as your Healthy Extra B for oats. I do not syn the blueberries, because I don't feel this is a tweak... tweaks generally mean fecking around with ingredients to create something they're not meant to be, resulting in you overeating. Perhaps if I'd made a massive batch of these I would have syned the blueberries, because the propensity is there to overindulge, but I made two muffins with a handful of blueberries so feck it. I won't use all my syns today anyways, so they'll fit in regardless.  Do whatever you feel is right. A handful of cooked blueberries will probably work out between 1-2 syns. I did syn the sweetener.

Ingredients

• 40g porridge oats (about a teaspoon reserved)
• 4 tablespoons 0% fat Greek yoghurt
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon + 1 tsp sweetener*
• Zest of one lemon**
• Dash of lemon extract (optional)
• Handful of blueberries
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 200C/400F

Mix the oats-less the reserved portion, yoghurt, lemon juice, eggs, 1 tbsp sweetener, lemon zest, extract if using, and blueberries. 

Spray two muffin cups with cooking spray.  Spoon in the mixture.

Mix the reserved oats with the remaining sweetener and sprinkle on top of the muffins.

Bake 20 minutes or until risen and golden. 

* I used Sukrin available at Holland and Barrett in Clonmel

** To get perfect citrus zest without rind, every time, I use a microplane grater. I've had mine almost 20 years now. It's brilliant, wouldn't be without one.  

Syn-Free Beef Stroganoff and Wild Rice Pilaf

So… in case you hadn't gathered...  I joined Slimming World again, because why not? It’s the only program that lets me cook the same meals for the whole family and no one notices that it’s healthy and I’m allowed pasta. Nuff said. The challenge now is finding a way to cook normal food but in a healthier manner. We love beef stroganoff in this house and I daresay I make a mean one, full of butter and booze and gloriousness. I didn’t think a “healthified” version would make the grade, but nobody seemed to notice the difference, myself included.  I left out the flour and allowed the sauce to reduce, which as any chef will tell you, always results in much more flavour.

I served this Slimming World Beef Stroganoff with Wild Rice Pilaf, another family favourite that always brings me back to Michigan. In terms of Slimming World, this entire meal is syn-free and so delicious you will wonder how. I recommend filling up the plate with some steamed greens like asparagus, broccoli or broccolini.  Hope you enjoy and stay tuned for loads more SW-friendly recipes!

Slimming World Beef Stroganoff

• fry-light
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, diced
• 1 shallot, diced
• 1 packet of mushrooms, sliced
• 400g thinly sliced lean beef steak, thinly sliced*
• salt and pepper
• 250 ml beef stock (made using two stock cubes)
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 3-4 tablespoons 0% fat Greek Yoghurt
• Parsley, chopped, to garnish
• Salt and pepper

Heat a large skillet and spray liberally with fry-light.

Add onions, garlic and shallot and cook down until onion is just softened. Add mushrooms and cook until liquid is cooked off, stirring to ensure nothing sticks.

Season steak liberally with salt and pepper.

Add beef and fry until just browned. Add stock and Worcestershire sauce. Turn up the heat and allow to reduce by half or more until slightly syrupy. Stir occasionally scraping the bottom of the pan, where all the flavour is. This can take awhile if the mushrooms are still releasing liquid.

Once sauce is thickened, stir in 3-4 tablespoons of the Greek Yoghurt and cook for another minute or two, longer if you prefer a thicker sauce. Stir in some fresh chopped parsley and serve immediately.

You can use fillet for the leanest option, but sirloin or round steak is more flavourful and if sliced thin enough, you can’t tell the difference. If you throw the steak into the freezer for 30 minutes, it’s easier to slice. Just be sure to trim all the fat.

Slimming World Wild Rice Pilaf

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup dried wild rice*
• Fry-light
• 1 carrot, peeled and diced
• 2 stalks of celery, diced
• 1 small onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, finely diced
• 1 cup of basmati rice
• 250ml chicken or vegetable stock (made with two stock cubes)

Heat a small pot and bring some water to a boil.  Cook wild rice for about 30 minutes, or according to package directions.

Meanwhile, spray a pot with fry-light and add the carrots, celery, onion and garlic and cook for a few minutes until softened. Do not let brown.

Add the basmati rice with a few tablespoons of stock and cook for a few minutes to coat rice until stock is gone. Stir in the now cooked wild rice. Add enough stock to barely cover the rice. Put a lid on the pot and turn down to the lowest heat. Leave for 15-20 minutes until rice is cooked through.

Remove lid and fluff rice with fork and season with salt and pepper.

* Can be obtained from most health shops, alternatively use a wild/long-grain mix

Healthy Hashbrowns with Sauteed Spinach, Eggs and Tomato Confit

I miss blogging and people keep asking for recipes, so here I go again!  This is a pretty simple recipe that results in a fairly gourmet breakfast and it's healthy to boot, what's not to love?

I made the hashbrowns, topped with sauteed spinach and tomato confit and then topped with poached eggs. You HAVE to try my poached egg trick. Small mug, fill halfway with water, crack egg into it and microwave for 1 minute with a saucer on top. Perfect poached egg every time! You may need to play around with the cooking time a bit, but one minute seems to be the trick for all the microwaves I've used.

So first up... hashbrowns. Who doesn't love a good ole greasy hashbrown? Well I daresay these homemade ones are not only better, but greaseless and good for you. They could easily be made with a mix of root vegetables or even sweet potatoes.  I make a kilo of potatoes worth and freeze the ones I'm not eating right away.  They can be thawed and reheated in a pan with some cooking spray later.

Syn-Free Hash Browns

Ingredients:

• 1 kg (2lb) potatoes, peeled
• 1 white onion
• salt
• pepper
• cooking spray

Pre-heat oven to 180C/350F

Boil the peeled potatoes until partially cooked, about 8 minutes.  Set aside to cool until you can touch them.

Grate potatoes into a bowl. Grate onion on top of potatoes.  Season with salt and pepper and mix.

Spray baking sheet with cooking spray and spoon 4-5 inch patties of potato mixture on top. Spray patties with cooking spray.

Bake 20-30 minutes, turning 2/3 of the way until they are as brown as you like them.

Serve immediately or allow to cool and freeze separating patties with parchment paper.

Piccolo Tomato "Confit"

This is my new favourite side, it goes so well with eggs and breakfast foods but also works wonderfully with chicken or fish.  So simple yet tastes divine.  Aldi do beautiful piccolo tomatoes on the vine that are sweet and delicious.  Any cherry tomato will work, but you will always get better flavour from tomatoes still on the vine.

Ingredients:

• 1 package of piccolo or cherry tomatoes
• cooking spray
• 3 tbsp white wine vinegar
• pinch sweetener/sugar
• salt and pepper

Halve the tomatoes.  Heat a frying pan and spray with cooking spray. Add tomatoes and cook for a minute or two, add vinegar and sweetener. Cook for a few minutes until juice slightly thickens but tomatoes are still visible and not cooked down. Season to your taste.

Sauteed Spinach

Another ridiculously easy yet delicious healthy staple.  Great with eggs, or fab with sweet potatoes or as a dinner side. Can also add onions and lemon zest for even more flavour.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 package baby leaf spinach, washed
• 1 garlic clove
• Cooking spray

Heat pan, spray with cooking spray and add spinach and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently until spinach wilts. Season with salt and pepper.

Let me know how you get on! <3