RECIPE of the Day - 3/31/2007

One thing we love to cook at our house is chinese food. This is really delicious and you can also add zucchini or eggplant strips to give you even more flavor and texture.



PEKING STIR-FRY

1 oz. dried black mushrooms (Shitake), available in specialty or Oriental food shops
1 1/2 c. chicken broth
Peanut oil
3 whole boneless and skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch strips
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and cut into julienne strips
3 stalks celery, cut on the diagonal 2 inches long and 1/4-inch thick
10 whole scallions, 4-inch of green left on
2 med. carrots, cut into julienne strips
1 head bok choy (Chinese cabbage), washed & coarsely chopped
1 can baby corn (7 oz.), drained
1/3 lb. snow peas, strings removed
1 oz. fresh ginger, peeled & minced
4 lg. cloves of garlic, peeled & minced
2 tbsp. dry sherry
1 1/2 tbsp. soy sauce
Dash of hot chili oil (optional)
1 c. salted peanuts

Place mushrooms in a small saucepan. Cover with chicken broth and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let soak for 30 minutes. Drain mushrooms and reserve liquid. Cut stems off mushrooms and cut tops in half. Reserve.
In a large skillet or wok, heat 4 tablespoons of peanut oil until very hot. Saute the chicken strips in small batches until just cooked through and tender; add more peanut oil as needed. Remove chicken strips from skillet and keep warm.

Add 4 more tablespoons peanut oil to skillet and heat until very hot. Quickly saute pepper, celery and scallions for 1 minute. Add carrots and cook 1 minute more. Add bok choy, corn and snow peas; cook 1 minute longer. With a slotted spoon, remove all vegetables from skillet and reserve.

Add reserved soaking liquid, ginger, garlic, sherry, soy sauce and chili oil to skillet. Cook over high heat for 1 minute to thicken. Return vegetables to skillet and quickly coat with sauce.

Arrange chicken on the bottom of a large serving platter. Arrange vegetables on top of chicken and sprinkle with peanuts. Serve immediately.

Serves 6 to 8.