Egg Foo Yung/Chow Mein

Egg Fu Yung is a Chinese style omelette, popular in American and British Chinese restaurants, usually served with a soy based gravy. 

Chow mein is a Chinese dish of stir-fried noodles with leftover vegetables, meat or tofu, also popular in America and the UK.

I thought I'd combine both Egg Fu Yung and Chow Mein to use up some leftover cooked chicken, and some eggs that needed using.  This recipe would work well with leftover turkey after Christmas.

Serves 4

3 layers medium egg noodles

4 eggs

300g cooked chicken, turkey, pork, beef, or prawns

1 onion, peeled & thickly sliced

1 garlic clove, peeled & sliced

100g frozen peas

1 chicken stock cube

500ml recently boiled water

2 tbsp oyster sauce

2 tbsp soy sauce

1/2 tsp turmeric (optional)

1/2 tsp paprika (optional)

1 tsp sesame oil

2 tbsp cornflour

Vegetable oil for frying 

Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions.  Leave to cool in a pan of cold water.

Heat one tablespoon of oil in a wok over a medium high heat.  

Beat the eggs, and fry in the wok like a omelette for a few minutes so you have a side plate sized disk of cooked egg. Flip the egg over carefully to ensure the egg is cooked through.  Slide the egg onto a plate, chop into bite sized pieces, and wipe the wok out with a piece of kitchen paper.

Heat another tablespoon of oil in the wok over a medium high heat.

Stir fry the onion for 1-2 minutes until it starts to soften or go golden brown.  Add the peas and garlic.

Crumble in the stock cube and melt in the oil and heat.  Add 500ml of hot water, oyster sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, turmeric and paprika.  Stir well.

Mix the cornflour with two tablespoons of cold water.  When the 'gravy' is boiling, pour in the cornflour mixture whilst stirring to thicken it.

Drain the noodles and add to the gravy together with the meat or prawns, and chopped egg.  Mix well and serve.

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Chicken, Sweetcorn, & Egg Noodle Soup

A quick filling soup made with leftover cooked chicken (or Christmas turkey). Vegetarian and vegan alternatives are detailed at the end of the recipe

Serves 4

3 litres chicken stock

3 nests rice noodles 

340g tin of sweetcorn or 1 mug frozen sweetcorn

2cm root ginger

1 large garlic clove

300g shredded cooked chicken

1 egg, beaten 

4 spring onions, chopped

Sesame oil

Chilli Oil

Liquidise the sweetcorn, ginger, and garlic with the water from the tin, or some warm chicken stock to thaw the frozen sweetcorn.

Bring the chicken stock to the boil. Add the liquidised sweetcorn and the noodle nests.  Cover, bring back to the boil, then turn down to a simmer. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions. I used Aldi Brown Rice Noodles which say take 5-10 minutes to cook, and in the end took 7 minutes.

Stir in the shredded chicken, turn up the heat a little, and bring back to the boil.  When bubbling, dribble over the beaten egg.  Leave for a minute for the egg to cook in the hot soup then divide into four bowls.  

Sprinkle a chopped spring onion over each bowl and drizzle with sesame oil and chilli oil to serve.

A vegetarian version can be made with vegetable stock and grated firm tofu instead of chicken.  And a vegan version can be made with vegetable stock, tofu, and 2 tbsp cornflour mixed with 2 tbsp cold water stirred in instead of egg to thicken the soup a little. 

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Christmas Minestrone

Hope it's not too late to save the cooking liquid from your Boxing Day ham? My Christmas Minestrone is made with ham stock (cooking liquid), leftover ham (or turkey, or pigs in blankets), Brussel sprouts (or cabbage).

Makes 4 hearty servings

1 large onion, peeled and diced
1 large carrot, peeled and diced 
1 large stick of celery, diced

1 large garlic clove, peeled and crushed 
100g leftover chopped ham, turkey, or pigs in blankets
1 can of tomatoes
1 can of beans (haricot, cannellini, kidney, whatever)
1 litre ham stock or chicken stock
2 heaped handfuls of finely sliced Brussels sprouts, cabbage, spring greens, kale, or spring greens
1 handful small pasta or macaroni
1 tbsp olive oil for frying
2 bay leaves (optional)

Parmesan or extra mature cheddar for serving

Fry the onion, carrot, and celery in the olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. When slightly coloured add the chopped meat.  Stir and put the lid on for a few minutes to let the vegetables sweat. 

Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to the boil. Simmer for 30 minutes with the lid on.  Stir from time to time to ensure the pasta is not sticking to the bottom of the pan

My mum always used to say that this soup was better the day after, as the flavours seemed to develop more, but I am never organised enough to do this nor have enough space in the fridge to keep it cool overnight. 

Serve with a grating of parmesan or extra mature cheddar.

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Chicken (or Turkey) Noodle Soup

This BBC Good Food Chicken Noodle Soup is so easy, and will work just as well with seasonal turkey leftovers. 

500ml chicken or vegetable stock (or Miso soup mix)

2 tbsp sweetcorn, canned or frozen

2-3 mushrooms, thinly sliced or a handful of sliced greens (pak choi, cabbage, kale) 

1 handful chopped cooked chicken or turkey

1 tsp chopped fresh ginger

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

Serving of rice, wheat or buckwheat noodles

2 spring onions, shredded

2 tsp soy sauce, plus extra for serving

Chilli flakes, to taste

 

Simmer the noodles, along with sweetcorn and mushrooms or greens in the stock until cooked according to the instructions on the packet.

When cooked stir in the remaining ingredients and tuck in.

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Leftover Roast (Pork, Turkey, Chicken, Nut Roast) Fajitas

Wraps are a big favourite in our family, and fajitas turned out to be a handy way to use up our leftover roast pork from Christmas Day.  Big Boy is now vegetarian, and had his with reheated nutroast crumbled in, although I did have a back up can of black beans as a Plan B vegetarian option.

Serves  4

Large onion, peeled and thinly sliced

Red pepper, deseeded and cut into strips

1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp chilli

1 tbsp sunflower oil

1 lime or lemon, juiced

8 wraps
Lettuce leaves, washed & torn

One small handful of roast per person

Sour cream or Greek Yoghurt (optional)

2 avocados, destoned & sliced

Fresh chilli, deseed and thinly sliced (optional)

Fry the onion and red pepper over a gently heat until both are soft and slightly brown.  Add the garlic, spices, lime juice, and leftover roast and fry to reheat the roast.

When ready, assemble your fajita as desired. 

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Homemade Katsu Curry

This has now become our 'standard' Katsu curry at home.

I buy quick fry turkey steaks, breadcrumb them, pan fry and serve with rice and homemade Katsu sauce.

I have also made this with chicken nuggets, meat free nuggets, and an unbreadcrumbed version with chicken thighs in the slow cooker.

Serves 4

4 quick fry turkey steaks, or 2 chicken fillets halved, chicken nuggets, or Quorn nuggets
None of the following required if using chicken or Quorn nuggets;

4 slices of white or brown bread, processed int breadcrumbs
1 egg, beaten
50g plain flour
8 tbsp plain flour
pepper
salt

Katsu Sauce
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped
5 garlic cloves, peeled & chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp medium curry powder
500ml boiling water
1 chicken stock cube
1 tbsp garam masala
2 tbsp plain flour
1 tbsp honey
2 tbsp soy sauce

Start with the sauce.

Fry the onion over a gently heat until soft.  Add the carrot and garlic and soften for a few more minutes.  Stir in the curry powder then add the water and stock cube when the smell of the cooking curry powder hits you.  Cover and simmer for 20 minutes to soften the vegetables.  Take off the heat.

Sprinkle the flour over the sauce then liquidise carefully with a stick blender.  Add the honey and soy and simmer gently, stirring from time to time, until the sauce has thickened slightly.  Cover and leave to one side.

Boil a kettle and put the rice on to cook.

If using chicken or Quorn nuggets, bake in the oven according the packet instructions.  

If using chicken or turkey steaks, put a large frying pan on the hob and line up 3 shallow bowls next to the hob.  Put breadcrumbs in the one closest to the cooker, then beaten egg, and then the flour with a pinch of salt and pepper mixed in.  

Heat the oil in the frying pan over a medium heat.

Lie the first turkey steak in the flour, coating both sides, then dip both sides in egg, and finally coat the steak in breadcrumbs.  Lay in the frying pan away from you (to avoid hot oil splashing you) and start to fry.  Continue flouring, egging, and bread crumbing the other steaks and placing in the frying pan.  The steaks take about 5 minutes a side.  Turn when the breadcrumbs are lightly browned and fry the other side for the same amount of time until browned as well.

Rice can be shaped in a small bowl to serve.

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Turkey Rogan Josh Curry

Another curry made with leftover turkey.  In this case it was a pack of minced turkey as we didn't buy a turkey this year.  It could be made with leftover roasts, mince or cubed meat. And I padded this out with a small butternut squash to feed a family of five.

I made a Rogan Josh curry paste off Jamie Oliver's website but was a little disappointed with the strength of flavour.  So if you can't be bothered to make a curry paste, just buy a commercial ready made one.

Serves 4-5

500g turkey mince
500g butternut squash, blitzed in a food processor to the size of the mince
1 onion, finely diced
1 carton of tomato puree
1/2 a carton of recently boiled water
1 tbsp sunflower oil

Jamie's Rogan Josh Paste 
2 cloves garlic
1 thumb-sized piece fresh root ginger
75 g jarred roasted peppers
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoons groundnut oil
2 tablespoons tomato puree
1 fresh red chilli
1 small bunch fresh coriander
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon black peppercorns

Start by making the curry paste.  I cut a few corners in Jamie's recipe, not roasting spices, using a fresh pepper rather than roasted peppers, and not using fresh coriander, and just whizzed it all up in a mini food processor.

Gently fry the onion in the sunflower oil until it starts to look clear, then add half the curry paste, stir and fry until it sizzles.  Add the meat, breaking up the mince if using.  Add the butternut squash and the rest of the ingredients and bring to the boil.  Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the butternut squash is soft.  Season to taste and serve with basmati rice.

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Curried Stir Fry Noodles

Tonight I experimented with Curried Noodles.  It was inspired by Jamie Oliver's Ham & Egg Curried Noodles in his new book 5 Ingredients, and Singapore Noodles. It was also a chance to use up some leftover Brussel sprouts, carrots, and turkey.  But this dish could easily be done with just carrot and cabbage, the meat could be left out, replaced with egg, and vegans could leave out both egg and meat.

Serves 4
4 nests of medium egg noodles
1 large handful leftover roast turkey, chicken, beef or pork
1 large carrot, grated
1 handful of Brussel sprouts, cabbage or leafy greens
1 small onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 cm root ginger
1 tbsp curry powder
4 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp sunflower oil

Cook the noodles according to the instructions on the packet.  Once cooked, rinse in cold water and leave in a pan on cold water.

Thinly slice the Brussels, onion, garlic, grate the carrot, finely dice the ginger, and cube the meat if using.

Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan over a high heat.  Add the garlic and ginger, stir, then add the onion, stir again, then add the rest of the vegetables.  Keep stirring and then add the meat when the vegetables look like they have started to wilt a little.

Add the noodles to the wok straight from the pan, reserving the cooking water, and the curry powder. Add half a mug of cooking water and the soy sauce.  Mix thoroughly and heat through.  Serve immediately.

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