That's so Asian.

I don't know that I've ever met someone who doesn't like Chinese takeout, or any other kind of Asian food, for that matter. But nearly everything I want when I order Chinese is deep-fried, so I decided to make my own healthier version tonight.


And just a quick rant before we begin the formalities: I don't know why everyone around here loves the Super Giant. Every time I have gone there looking for some special ingredient - usually on the advice of someone else - THEY NEVER HAVE IT. Nary a wonton wrapper did they have. I'm just going to learn my lesson and stick with the good old Food Lion. 


This was inspired by Sunny Anderson's "Cooking For Real" show on Food Network. She knows what she's doing - and I'll be using more of her recipes for inspiration in the coming months. 


The Meal: Pork Pot Stickers with Vegetable Stir Fry

The Ingredients: Wonton wrappers
                               1/2 pound boneless pork chops
                               4 green onions
                               1 tbsp. soy sauce
                               3 cloves garlic, minced
                               2 tbsp. vegetable oil
                               Ice cubes


                               Dipping Sauce:
                               1 green onion, finely chopped
                               2 tbsp. soy sauce
                               4 tbsp. chili sauce
                               Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
                               2 tsp. freshly grated ginger
                               Splash chicken stock


                               Stir Fry:
                               1 tbsp. vegetable oil
                               2 broccoli crowns, cut into florets
                               1 dozen peeled baby carrots
                               Small yellow onion
                               1 can baby corn, drained
                               1 cup bean sprouts
                               1/8 cup chicken stock
                               2 tbsp. chili sauce
                               1 tbsp. soy sauce
                               Salt
                               Pepper


The Directions: Finely dice the pork chops and green onions. Combine in mixing bowl with soy sauce and garlic. 

Place one teaspoon of pork mixture into middle of wonton wrapper. Moisten two sides of wrapper with water. Fold over and press edges together with finger, forming a triangle. Make sure to squeeze all of the air out, or they'll burst open in the pan. This should make about 20 pot stickers.

Preheat large frying pan with vegetable oil. Cook on one side until brown, about 3-4 minutes. Turn pot stickers over and add a few ice cubes to the pan and immediately cover with a lid, allowing them to steam and brown on the other side for an additional 3-4 minutes.

Preheat a wok (or another frying pan) with vegetable oil. Cut broccoli into florets, carrots in half, and onion into large chunks. Saute until broccoli becomes a vibrant green color, about 6-8 minutes. Add baby corn, bean sprouts, chicken stock, chili sauce, soy sauce, salt and pepper. Saute for an additional 5-6 minutes, until all veggies are cooked al dente.

For the dipping sauce, simply whisk all ingredients together in a small until well-incorporated. Serve with pot stickers.

However tasty it may be, this meal saved me a trip to the China Garden - and probably a whole lot of additional calories. Enjoy!