Chinese Banquet
It came to 10 points for the whole thing (so between 1.5 and
2.5 per person depending on servings.)
Menu for 4 - 6 people (depending on how hungry you are)
Crispy Wontons
Spare Ribs
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Chicken Wonton Soup
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Pork & Ginger Stir-Fry
Thai Green Chicken Curry
Plain Chow Mein
Special Fried Rice
Crispy Chicken Wontons
Makes 40
1 packet of wonton wrappers*
3 chicken breasts
2 tsp crushed garlic
2 tsp crushed ginger
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dark soy sauce
Place the chicken breasts on a chopping board and with the largest, sharpest knife you have, chop them until they are minced. (You can use a food processor for this if you want but it’s actually quicker with a knife.)
Put the chicken in a bowl and mix in the garlic, ginger, salt and soy sauce, mix well.
Lay the wonton wrappers out on a clean surface and place a teaspoon of the chicken mixture in the centre of each wrapper. Brush the edges with water and bring them up to form a little pouch. Pinch firmly to seal.
Place the wontons on a baking tray sprayed with Fry-Lite. Spray the wontons and bake at gas mark 5/1900C for 10 – 12 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the pasty is crisp and golden.
Serve as a starter with a dipping sauce of dark soy and thinly sliced chillies.
*Wonton wrapper are available either fresh or frozen in Chinese supermarkets. They are made from the same ingredients as pasta and do not contain oil.
Menu for 4 - 6 people (depending on how hungry you are)
Crispy Wontons
Spare Ribs
-//-
Chicken Wonton Soup
-//-
Pork & Ginger Stir-Fry
Thai Green Chicken Curry
Plain Chow Mein
Special Fried Rice
Crispy Chicken Wontons
Makes 40
1 packet of wonton wrappers*
3 chicken breasts
2 tsp crushed garlic
2 tsp crushed ginger
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dark soy sauce
Place the chicken breasts on a chopping board and with the largest, sharpest knife you have, chop them until they are minced. (You can use a food processor for this if you want but it’s actually quicker with a knife.)
Put the chicken in a bowl and mix in the garlic, ginger, salt and soy sauce, mix well.
Lay the wonton wrappers out on a clean surface and place a teaspoon of the chicken mixture in the centre of each wrapper. Brush the edges with water and bring them up to form a little pouch. Pinch firmly to seal.
Place the wontons on a baking tray sprayed with Fry-Lite. Spray the wontons and bake at gas mark 5/1900C for 10 – 12 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the pasty is crisp and golden.
Serve as a starter with a dipping sauce of dark soy and thinly sliced chillies.
*Wonton wrapper are available either fresh or frozen in Chinese supermarkets. They are made from the same ingredients as pasta and do not contain oil.
Spare Ribs
Serves 4 – 6
1kg lean pork ribs
100g hoi sin sauce*
½ tsp Sichuan pepper
½ tsp Chinese 5-spice powder.
Trim the ribs of any excess fat.
Place in a large pan and cover with cold water, bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes. Drain the pan and discard the water, leave the ribs in the pan.
Mix the hoi sin sauce, pepper and five-spice and pour over the ribs. Mix well and leave to marinade for 2 hours.
Heat the oven to gas mark 6/2000C. Place the ribs on a roasting rack over a tray. Pour any marinade left in the pan into a small bowl and use it to brush over the ribs.
Turn the heat down to 4/1800C and cook for a further 40 minutes. Check the ribs every now and then and brush over any marinade you have left. If they look like they are getting too brown turn the heat down a little.
Serves 4 – 6
1kg lean pork ribs
100g hoi sin sauce*
½ tsp Sichuan pepper
½ tsp Chinese 5-spice powder.
Trim the ribs of any excess fat.
Place in a large pan and cover with cold water, bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes. Drain the pan and discard the water, leave the ribs in the pan.
Mix the hoi sin sauce, pepper and five-spice and pour over the ribs. Mix well and leave to marinade for 2 hours.
Heat the oven to gas mark 6/2000C. Place the ribs on a roasting rack over a tray. Pour any marinade left in the pan into a small bowl and use it to brush over the ribs.
Turn the heat down to 4/1800C and cook for a further 40 minutes. Check the ribs every now and then and brush over any marinade you have left. If they look like they are getting too brown turn the heat down a little.
Chicken Wonton Soup
Serves 6
For the Wontons
1 packet of wonton wrappers*
3 chicken breasts
2 tsp crushed garlic
2 tsp crushed ginger
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dark soy sauce
This will make 40 wontons; you will need 4 per person as a starter or 6 per person as a main course. The remaining wontons can be stored in an airtight box in the fridge or used to make crispy wontons.
Method
Place the chicken breasts on a chopping board and with the largest, sharpest knife you have, chop them until they are minced. (You can use a food processor for this if you want but it’s actually quicker with a knife.)
Put the chicken in a bowl and mix in the garlic, ginger, salt and soy sauce, mix well.
Lay the wonton wrappers out on a clean surface and place a teaspoon of the chicken mixture in the centre of each wrapper. Brush the edges with water and bring them up to form a little pouch. Pinch firmly to seal.
For the Soup
1 litre of really good quality chicken stock**
½ red chilli, finely shredded
2 spring onions, sliced
½ stick lemon grass
1 garlic clove, lightly crushed
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp Thai fish sauce
Handful chopped coriander leaves
Pour the stock into a large saucepan, add all the other ingredients except the coriander and bring to a simmer. Simmer gently for 10 minutes the remove the lemon grass and garlic clove. Add the wontons and simmer gently for 3-4 minutes or until just cooked through. Stir the coriander into the soup just before serving.
* Wonton wrapper are available either fresh or frozen in Chinese supermarkets.
** Because the soup is very simple buy the best stock you can find, this is one recipe where cubes just don’t cut it!
Serves 6
For the Wontons
1 packet of wonton wrappers*
3 chicken breasts
2 tsp crushed garlic
2 tsp crushed ginger
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dark soy sauce
This will make 40 wontons; you will need 4 per person as a starter or 6 per person as a main course. The remaining wontons can be stored in an airtight box in the fridge or used to make crispy wontons.
Method
Place the chicken breasts on a chopping board and with the largest, sharpest knife you have, chop them until they are minced. (You can use a food processor for this if you want but it’s actually quicker with a knife.)
Put the chicken in a bowl and mix in the garlic, ginger, salt and soy sauce, mix well.
Lay the wonton wrappers out on a clean surface and place a teaspoon of the chicken mixture in the centre of each wrapper. Brush the edges with water and bring them up to form a little pouch. Pinch firmly to seal.
For the Soup
1 litre of really good quality chicken stock**
½ red chilli, finely shredded
2 spring onions, sliced
½ stick lemon grass
1 garlic clove, lightly crushed
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp Thai fish sauce
Handful chopped coriander leaves
Pour the stock into a large saucepan, add all the other ingredients except the coriander and bring to a simmer. Simmer gently for 10 minutes the remove the lemon grass and garlic clove. Add the wontons and simmer gently for 3-4 minutes or until just cooked through. Stir the coriander into the soup just before serving.
* Wonton wrapper are available either fresh or frozen in Chinese supermarkets.
** Because the soup is very simple buy the best stock you can find, this is one recipe where cubes just don’t cut it!
Ginger and Pork Stir-Fry
Serves 4 – 6
4 lean pork steaks
1 pack of mixed stir-fry veg
100ml hoi sin sauce (2 points)
2 tbsp dark soy
1 tbsp chopped ginger (Lazy Ginger is fine)
1 tbsp chopped garlic (Lazy Garlic is fine)
Slice the pork steaks into very thin strips. Mix the ginger and garlic together on a chopping board and chop until paste-like. Put all the ingredients except the vegetable mix in a bowl and marinade for 2 hours.
Put the vegetable mix in a colander and rinse. This will stop the bean sprouts tasting too ‘earthy’.
Heat a wok and spray with Fry-Lite, stir-fry the vegetable for 5 minutes, add the pork mix and stir-fry for a further 3-4 minutes until the pork is tender.
Serve with noodles.
Serves 4 – 6
4 lean pork steaks
1 pack of mixed stir-fry veg
100ml hoi sin sauce (2 points)
2 tbsp dark soy
1 tbsp chopped ginger (Lazy Ginger is fine)
1 tbsp chopped garlic (Lazy Garlic is fine)
Slice the pork steaks into very thin strips. Mix the ginger and garlic together on a chopping board and chop until paste-like. Put all the ingredients except the vegetable mix in a bowl and marinade for 2 hours.
Put the vegetable mix in a colander and rinse. This will stop the bean sprouts tasting too ‘earthy’.
Heat a wok and spray with Fry-Lite, stir-fry the vegetable for 5 minutes, add the pork mix and stir-fry for a further 3-4 minutes until the pork is tender.
Serve with noodles.
Green Thai Chicken Curry
Serves 4 – 1 ½ points per serving
1 – 2 tbsp Thai Taste green curry paste*
1 large onion, halved and sliced
Small bunch of coriander, leaves and stems separated and roughly chopped
400ml Tiger-Tiger reduced fat coconut milk (6.5 points)
200ml chicken stock, cube is fine
4 skinless chicken breasts, cut into pieces
Basmati rice, to serve
Spray a pan with Fry-Lite, gently fry the curry paste and onion for 3 minutes until starting to soften. Stir in the coriander stems and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Add the stock and coconut milk, bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the chicken and simmer gently for a further 10 - 15 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Serve on top of the rice, sprinkled with the coriander leaves.
* Thai Taste brand curry paste, available in Red or Green, is the only paste I’ve found that doesn’t contain oil. All of the ingredients are NoCount (in fact they are all zero point items any way.)
It’s stocked in Sainsbury’s in the Special Ingredients section, if you use a brand with oil in it, adjust the points accordingly.
Serves 4 – 1 ½ points per serving
1 – 2 tbsp Thai Taste green curry paste*
1 large onion, halved and sliced
Small bunch of coriander, leaves and stems separated and roughly chopped
400ml Tiger-Tiger reduced fat coconut milk (6.5 points)
200ml chicken stock, cube is fine
4 skinless chicken breasts, cut into pieces
Basmati rice, to serve
Spray a pan with Fry-Lite, gently fry the curry paste and onion for 3 minutes until starting to soften. Stir in the coriander stems and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Add the stock and coconut milk, bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the chicken and simmer gently for a further 10 - 15 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Serve on top of the rice, sprinkled with the coriander leaves.
* Thai Taste brand curry paste, available in Red or Green, is the only paste I’ve found that doesn’t contain oil. All of the ingredients are NoCount (in fact they are all zero point items any way.)
It’s stocked in Sainsbury’s in the Special Ingredients section, if you use a brand with oil in it, adjust the points accordingly.
Plain Chow Mein
Serves 4 – 6
200g egg noodles
100g bean sprouts
1 medium onion
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
Prepare the noodles according to the packet instructions.
Wash the bean sprouts to remove the ‘earthy’ taste.
Thinly slice the onion.
Heat a wok and spray with Fry-Lite. Stir-fry the onion and bean sprouts for 2-3 minutes, add the noodles and soy sauce and stir-fry until heated through.
Special Fried Rice
Serves 6
Cooking oil spray
2 eggs, lightly beaten
6 – 8 small mushrooms, sliced
5 spring onions, ends trimmed, sliced
100g cooked ham
200g cooked prawns
135g frozen green peas
4 cups cooked basmati rice (cold)
1 ½ tbs dark soy sauce
Heat a wok over medium-high heat. Lightly spray with cooking oil. Add the eggs and swirl to cover base and sides. Cook for 2 minutes or until just set. Remove from the wok. Roll up and thinly slice.
Lightly spray the wok again. Add the ham and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms, spring onions and peas and stir-fry for a further 3 - 4 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Add the sliced egg.
Add the prawns, rice and soy sauce and stir-fry for 3 minutes or until hot. Divide between the serving bowls.
NOTE: the rice must be cold otherwise it won’t fry properly and will become a sticky mush.
Serves 4 – 6
200g egg noodles
100g bean sprouts
1 medium onion
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
Prepare the noodles according to the packet instructions.
Wash the bean sprouts to remove the ‘earthy’ taste.
Thinly slice the onion.
Heat a wok and spray with Fry-Lite. Stir-fry the onion and bean sprouts for 2-3 minutes, add the noodles and soy sauce and stir-fry until heated through.
Special Fried Rice
Serves 6
Cooking oil spray
2 eggs, lightly beaten
6 – 8 small mushrooms, sliced
5 spring onions, ends trimmed, sliced
100g cooked ham
200g cooked prawns
135g frozen green peas
4 cups cooked basmati rice (cold)
1 ½ tbs dark soy sauce
Heat a wok over medium-high heat. Lightly spray with cooking oil. Add the eggs and swirl to cover base and sides. Cook for 2 minutes or until just set. Remove from the wok. Roll up and thinly slice.
Lightly spray the wok again. Add the ham and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms, spring onions and peas and stir-fry for a further 3 - 4 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Add the sliced egg.
Add the prawns, rice and soy sauce and stir-fry for 3 minutes or until hot. Divide between the serving bowls.
NOTE: the rice must be cold otherwise it won’t fry properly and will become a sticky mush.
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