In article >, "Bob"
> wrote:

> I mostly agree with Sheldon's recommendations; here are a few minor
> differences of opinion:
>
> >> 2) Minnesota native grown wild rice ok with this instead of white
> >> rice?
> >
> > Not with the Asian flavored beef... I'd go with white rice... and stir
> > fry
> > the broccoli with some small shrimp and top with a Contonese sauce.
>
> I'd leave the shrimp off the broccoli. There are hundreds of broccoli
> options, but most of them hinge on whether you want this to be a
> Chinese-themed meal or a fusion meal. For fusion, I'd steam the broccoli
> and
> top it with a soy-lemon-butter sauce. For strictly Chinese, I'd stir-fry
> it
> with garlic and chiles -- unless you're going to be making the green
> beans
> with chile-garlic sauce given below; in that case, I'd steam the broccoli
> with soft tofu and sprinkle with soy and sesame oil.
>
>
> > You can serve stir fried green beens too, with black bean paste and red
> > pepper flakes... garnish with canned straw 'shrooms.
>
> Um...yeah, that's one option, but I find dry-fried green beans with
> chile-garlic sauce more interesting. Here's one such recipe from
> www.recipes4us.co.uk/
>
> Dry fried Green Beans
>
> Ingredients:
>
> 1 1/2 lb Green Beans
> 1 cup Vegetable Oil
> 2 Spring Onions, chopped
> 1 Garlic Clove, crushed
> 1/2 teaspoons Szechuan Chile Paste
> 2 tablespoons Soy Sauce
> 1 tablespoon Dry Sherry
> 1 tablespoon Sugar
>
> Instructions
>
> 1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan or wok until very hot but not
> smoking. Carefully add the beans and stir fry until lightly browned. This
> will take 5-7 minutes. Remove the beans with a slotted spoon and place
> in a
> colander to drain.
>
> 2. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the oil from the frying pan then
> reheat the oil until hot, add the onion and garlic and stir fry for a few
> seconds then add the chile paste and soy sauce and mix well.
>
> 3. Return the beans to the pan, add the sherry and sugar and stir for 2-3
> minutes until well mixed and heated through. Serve immediately.
>
>
> >> 3 ) Vinegar and oil dressing, or creamy dressing, for the cole slaw?
> >
> > Napa cabbage slaw... with a dressing of soy sauce, ginger, honey, white
> > wine, white pepper, peanut oil, sesame oil.... garnish with peanuts.
>
> That sounds fine. An alternative (which has always drawn raves when I
> make
> it) is this (which I got from this newsgroup, but I don't know who the
> originator was, so I apologize for the lack of attribution):
>
> Napa Cabbage Salad
>
> 1 package chicken-flavored ramen noodles
> 1 head Napa Cabbage
> 2 scallions, thinly sliced
> 1/4 cup butter
> 1/2 cup sesame seeds -- toasted
> 1/2 cup slivered almonds
> 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
> 2 tablespoons soy sauce
> 1/4 cup sugar
> 1/4 cup vegetable oil
> 1 tablespoon sesame oil
>
> Crush noodles, place them in a medium skillet and brown in butter
> over medium heat. Add almonds and sesame seeds. Stir often to prevent
> burning. Add seasoning mix from noodles (I use about half) and cool.

Hmmm, I've always put the seasoning mix in with the V&O.
>
> Make the dressing: In a small saucepan, heat vinegar, oils, sugar,
> and soy sauce. Bring the mixture to a boil, let boil for 1 minute.
> Remove the pan from heat and let cool.

Interesting concept -- I've made a similar salad but have never cooked
the dressing before using it.
>
> Combine dressing, crunchies, cabbage, and scallions immediately
> before serving. Serve right away or the crunchies will get soggy.
>
>
> > Dessert: premium vanilla ice cream with your own kumquat
> > preserves... perhaps hot oolong with almond cookie.
>
> Again, this depends on whether you're after a fusion menu or a
> Chinese one. Western palates don't really like most authentic Chinese
> desserts, so this is one area where I'd advise going the fusion
> route. Here are some ideas:

I'm after eating stuff that I know how to make from ingredients I will
have with minimal new purchases.
>
> * Make brownies (I *think* you have a recipe!), and add candied
> ginger and/or candied orange peel. Serve with Vietnamese coffee.

Gonna be McGarvey's Decaf, recently ground and residing in the fridge
right now.

This green bean treatment isn't going to happen. I'm not buying the
chili paste -- I'd never use it again and would never throw it out (that
would be wasteful.)

1/2 teaspoons Szechuan Chile Paste

I wouldn't desecrate my brownie recipe with candied ginger (I do have
some) or candied orange peel. Gack.

Thanks for the ideas.
--
-Barb, <www.jamlady.eboard.com> An update on 7/22/04.