Product Review: Chinese Food For Dinner Tonight! Trader Joe's Kung Pao Chicken Vegetable Fried Rice and Chicken Potstickers

 If you are luck enough to have a Trader Joe's store in your area, here is another amazing product review.

If you buy both the Kung Pao and the rice it is around $9 for both. Add the pot-stickers that are under $4 and you have an amazing meal. Tastes better than take out, cheaper and healthier!

The Kung Pao chicken came in 5 packages as shown. Chicken, veggies, sauces and peanuts separate.

Just a little oil on the bottom of the pan on med high heat approx 8-10 min till chicken starts turning a golden brown.

Once the chicken is browned add the frozen veggies.

I thought that the package looked small, but honestly it was a good veggie to chicken ratio. Although, I am a sucker for those veggies!! And I really loved the color that was added to the dish.



Add a little oil to another pan and on med/ high heat the rice 8-12 min.

* I cooked mine on high last few min to give it that "fried" rice taste and added crushed red pepper flakes, since we like things spicy.




You can stop here and add the Kung Pao sauce to the chicken and serve... or...

True to my nature.... I had to kick it up a notch. All great fried rices have fried egg in it, right?...

1 egg in a cup with little salt and pepper, beat quickly with a fork and poor into the pan you had the rice in and swirl the pan around, so you get this nice thin egg pancake.

 Just a minute or two on each side This is a very thin egg pancake.

When the egg is done. I chop it up. ( I use my kitchen shears.)

And add the egg to the rice.

If you get the pot-stickers, they are just around $4 depending on the kind you get. Mine are chicken.

Follow the directions of preference on the package, use either of the previous pans used filled with enough oil to cover the pot-stickers or do as I do.





I use my deep fryer and in about 10 min have beautiful crispy potstickers.

The sauce packets were frozen. I put them in a cup of warm water to thaw. Don't worry about adding it cold to the chicken in the pan. Add the peanuts if you like. Serve the chicken on top of the rice.

Better and less expensive than take-out!

Potato Chip Topped Baked Tilapia

This is a really inexpensive, good for you "Easy Breezy" dinner.

Tilapia is easy to find and inexpensive. It's a great fish for a novice cook because it is easy to season and cooks quickly.

I am still learning to work with seafood. But this dish is so simple, fast and yummy.

You can put any seasonings on it. I will use any of these 3 usually. Lemon Pepper, Asian Lemon Ginger and Caribbean Jerk. You can also marinate in some orange juice or any of the store marinades that go on sale all the time.



Pat the fish dry.

Dry season or marinade at least 5-10 min before you cook. This allows the seasonings to soak into the fish.

I am using the dry jerk seasoning in this dish.

Preheat oven to 350. For easy clean up I lined the baking sheet in foil and lightly greased it.

For fun, I topped the fish with some crumbled potato chips. You can also crumble the chips and coat the fish this way on both sides for a crunchier coating.

Put in the oven for 15-20 min. You can also fry on each side for 2-3min depending on the thickness of the fish. I baked it to make it healthier.

15 min later you have a beautiful crunchy dish. I add a $2.00 bag of salad. Cut cucumber, tomato and an onion into it and walla! Dinner well under $10 and made in under 30 min. With the foil lined baking sheet, it's super quick clean up too!

Loaded Potatoes (Mashed)

The loaded mashed potatoes are super easy and super-fast. From start to finish these should not take you longer than 25-30 minutes, and most of that is the cooking time.

I eye all the ingredients. No need to get technical here. Feel free to make this recipe your own and add more or less of any item.

Ingredients:

6-8 small/medium potatoes

6-8 strips of bacon (see How-To “Bacon Bacon Bacon" to cook in 6 min)

1/4 cup of shredded cheese of choice (I use 2% light blended)

2 spring onion/ green onion stalks

 1 clove of garlic

2 tablespoons of butter (I use “I Can't believe It's Not Butter")

3 tablespoons of sour cream (I use fat free)

Approx. 1/4 cup milk or chicken broth (I use skim milk) this you will add in stages

I clean the potatoes well and leave the skin on. It is more nutritious this way and of course quicker But feel free to take the time to peel them if you would like. Cut into about half inch cubes. The smaller you cube them the quicker they will cook.  Add a pinch of salt and set on med high to high flame. I leave mine uncovered this way they do not boil over, but make sure to keep an eye on them. The potatoes should take about 20 minutes to cook. You know they are done when a fork goes in easily.

While the potatoes are cooking, cook the bacon (see How-To Bacon Bacon Bacon recipe to cook in 6 min), or cook it your preferred method. Let cool.

In the meantime cut the green onions and chop the garlic finely (can substitute garlic powder, but real garlic tastes best)

When the potatoes are done, drain the potatoes in a strainer or use the lid of the pot. Careful of the steam, so you do not burn yourself. And move them to a bowl.

Add all the chopped ingredients and the shredded cheese. Add the butter and sour cream. Add a little bit of milk or broth in and mash with a potato masher. Add milk as needed to get the desired creaminess. Add salt and pepper to taste.

If you do not like green onions you can add cilantro, or parsley.  Don't like bacon? Add pieces of ham or pepperoni. You can add crumbled blue cheese or feta. The sky is the limit. That is why they are called loaded.

It's a great way to use up little odds and ends in the fridge too. You can put broccoli in there. God, knows I try and sneak a veggie and/or garlic in just about everything. And I try to use the lightest versions of items such as light or fat free.

 I bought a slab of pre-cooked ribs on sale for $7.99 they took 10 min in the oven. Took a bag salad, cut a tomato, cucumber, onions and added croûtons. And dinner is served in 30 minutes. "Easy breezy".