Healthier Asian noodles

I love Asian noodle dishes. Most of them are actually acceptable on an acid reflux diet, but I developed my own recipe for completely different reasons. The Mei Fun from the Chinese take-out place near my office is delicious, but I always end up getting the shakes afterwards from the ridiculous amount of salt. I’ve stopped ordering Lo Mein from my neighborhood restaurant because of the greasiness. And the Pad Thai from my local Thai place is strangely sweet.

This recipe is by no means authentic. I created it myself, based on what I know about cooking pasta. I wanted to make a delicious noodle dish that is a healthier alternative to take-out, and I think this one does the trick. This recipe does have a decent amount of sodium, but I promise – you will not get the shakes. It is a bit complicated, but not that hard – e-mail me if you have any questions!

Chicken Mei Fun (serves two)

Ingredients for chicken marinade:
• One teaspoon soy sauce
• One teaspoon cooking sherry (or rice wine vinegar)
• One teaspoon water

Ingredients for sauce:
• Quarter cup chicken broth
• Two tablespoons soy sauce
• One teaspoon sugar
• Two cloves garlic, minced

Other ingredients:
• One skinless, boneless chicken breast
• Two eggs
• One clove garlic, minced
• One tablespoon canola oil
• Half teaspoon soy sauce
• Cooking spray
• Chopped vegetables of your choice, as much as you like (great options: carrots, mushrooms, broccoli, snow peas, asparagus)
• Mei Fun noodles (one large fistful – I like Annie Chun brand )

Slice chicken breast, marinade for twenty minutes.

In a wok or large sauté pan, spray pan with cooking spray, brown chicken on each side but do not cook through. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside. Beat the eggs in a small bowl with half a teaspoon of soy sauce. Spray the pan again and scramble eggs. Remove the cooked eggs and set aside. Clean the pan with a paper towel.

Add one tablespoon canola oil to the pan, sauté one clove minced garlic. Add vegetables, coat with oil, then add sauce. (Sauce recipe above) Turn burner on medium-high and bring sauce to a boil to cook vegetables through.

To cook the noodles, place them in a large mixing bowl. Pour boiling water over the noodles to soften. Depending on the brand, this can take one to five minutes. Once noodles are just soft, shock the noodles with cold water to stop the cooking. (Alternatively, time the noodles so they soften just when the vegetables are nearly done.)

Once vegetables are nearly done, add noodles and let them soak in the sauce. Return chicken and eggs to noodles, mix together and let everything come together for about a minute.

Mock Decadence For Sensitive Bellies

Recently I was at one of my favorite Italian restaurants in NYC. I tried my friend’s pasta dish – it was absolutely heavenly! Corkscrew pasta with prosciutto and peas, in an over-the-top butter and truffle oil sauce. A few days later, I decided to adapt it. This version is dairy-free. Plus, even with lots of olive oil, it is still lighter than the original version.

Penne with Turkey Bacon and Peas (serves 2)
Ingredients:
• One cup dry penne (I used Barilla Plus, you can use whole wheat if you like)
• Three strips turkey bacon, sliced into thin strips width-wise
• Two cloves garlic, minced
• Quarter cup frozen peas
• Three tablespoons olive oil
• Two teaspoons non-dairy light buttery spread
• Salt to taste
• Reserved pasta water

Cook pasta to al dente, per directions on the box
Defrost peas in microwave, about thirty seconds on high
Heat skillet on medium heat, add olive oil, turkey bacon, and garlic to pan.
Once bacon is cooked and garlic is sweating but not brown (about 3-4 minutes), toss in penne and peas.
Add salt to taste.
Mix in buttery spread and two tablespoons pasta water.

Taco night, on the grill

Now that it’s warm out, there’s nothing I like more than grilling. Luckily, I’m allowed to eat hot dogs. But who wants to host a boring BBQ? Spices, tomatoes, and lime juice usually mean that Mexican food is out of bounds, but I can still eat other Mexican ingredients like cilantro, avocado, roasted garlic, and tortillas. So, this past weekend I hosted a GERD-friendly Mexican theme night. I grilled shrimp and vegetables, made a GERD-friendly guac, and let my guests assemble their own tacos with extras they can eat.

For guacamole:
• Two Haas avocados
• Four cloves roasted garlic (recipe below)
• Two tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
• Table salt (too taste, about ½ teaspoon)

Remove avocado from skin with a spoon, smash all ingredients together with a potato masher.

For tacos:

• 12 large shrimp, deveined with tails off
• Two sliced bell peppers – whichever colors you like
• Two sliced zucchini (green and yellow)
• Two cloves chopped garlic (optional)
• Two tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
• Two tablespoons olive oil
• Kosher salt
• Nine corn tortillas

Put shrimp and vegetables into a mixing bowl
Pour olive oil over shrimp and vegetables
Add two tablespoons cilantro
Add one teaspoon kosher salt
Mix with hands, coating shrimp and veggies
Skewer shrimp for easy grilling
Vegetables will take about 12 minutes to grill in a grill basket, shrimp will take about 3 minutes on each side

To serve:
Warm tortillas by heating them on the top rack of the grill
Spread one tablespoon guacamole on each tortilla
Fill tacos with veggies and shrimp
Add extra loose cilantro and extra guac if you like
Let your guests add whatever they like, such as salsa, jalapeno peppers, or cheese

To make roasted garlic:
Place full head of garlic on heavy duty aluminum foil
Cover with olive oil, sprinkle with kosher salt
Tightly wrap garlic with foil
Cook in oven at 350° for one hour
Once garlic cools a bit, the cloves will pop right out
Roasted garlic is very easy to make and it can be used in lots of recipes!

Chicken with Quinoa Pilaf

I know, quinoa sounds all “health-foody.” It’s like the scene in Annie Hall when Alvy sits down at an L.A. restaurant and orders “alfalfa sprouts and mashed yeast.” But don’t let the strangely-spelled word fool you. If made correctly, quinoa is incredibly tasty – as yummy as a well-made rice or pasta dish. The fact that it is much healthier than rice or pasta is just a nice bonus.

This recipe is a full meal in one pot, and it only takes ten minutes to prepare and twenty minutes to cook. It serves two people and you will still have leftover quinoa to use as a side dish. The onions and garlic are optional, if you can’t handle them. The fresh herbs and bay leaves give this dish a fabulous flavor that is friendly to the belly.

Ingredients:
One chicken breast (You can use boned chicken, or a larger and thicker boneless/ skinless one. Do not use tenders or thin cutlets.)
Quarter cup chopped onions (optional)
Quarter cup chopped celery
One clove garlic, minced (optional)
Half cup sliced crimini mushrooms
Two tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Two bay leaves
Two cups chicken broth
One cup quinoa
One tablespoon canola oil

Use a medium to large size pot - a pasta pot or rice pot work nicely.
Over medium heat, sauté mushrooms, celery, onions, and garlic in canola oil.
When vegetables are slightly softened, push them to the side of the pot.
Add chicken to pot and brown on both sides (add more canola oil if necessary).
Add two cups of broth, fresh parsley and bay leaves.
Bring to a boil.
Add one cup of quinoa. Cover and simmer.
When quinoa has soaked in all of the broth, dish is done – about twenty minutes.