This recipe for Ants Climbing A Tree has been sitting in my Pinterest to-make list and finally I had an opportunity to make it. What enticed me was my husband's and I's love for Sichuan food. Both of us are not big fans of Chinese food (apart from Dim Sum), especially as the offerings are usually horrible greasy western versions of traditional dishes. However, there is a local joint that is Proper, with a capital P, Sichuan cooking. How do we know? The clientele is a big hint (no one speaks English as well as the staff!). We love the spicy, numb your mouth spices although we HATE the super s-l-o-w service!
So instead of waiting around, I decided to make this dish based on its ingredient of spicy fermented bean paste - I have no idea if I bought the right thing but based on the ingredient list I have to just cross my fingers...
Yay or Nay: Nay
It looked so promising, the ginger and spicy sauce making everything a hot shade of red. The flavour is spicy yes, but doesn't have that much depth. It's kind of bland, it could be because I didn't have the two types of soy sauce and just used one, or the paste was the wrong kind but it was a big disappointment. Lesson learned, don't be fooled by styled food pictures!
Some call it Chow Fun, I am more familiar with Ho Fun and some probably know it as beef noodles. Whatever it's called to you, it makes for a top pick for a Saturday night take-away (take-out). I remember a cheap dive in London's Chinatown called Wong Kei where my cousin and I would go for a uni lunch. The service was poor, infamous in fact, but the food was cheap and delicious (especially as money poor students). You could order this wet (with a sauce or gravy) or dry depending on your mood. This version of Ho Fun/Chow Fun promised the taste of a take-away and the ease of a ready meal so I definitely wanted to give this a go.
Yay or Nay: Yay
Tasty and satifying it is well worth the effort to make the marinade and then cook. I did only marinade the beef for 15 minutes while I exercised so maybe I will try a little longer next time. I cooked the noodles but didn't bother to chill them as she suggested and it made for a sticky layer of noodles semi-permanently stuck to my sieve. Don't panic if the noodles don't separate as adding the leftover marinade helps break it apart nicely. Also, does flank steak cost an arm and a leg where you are???
UPDATE: Here are the missing pics I promised!
While surfing Pinterest for dinner ideas I must have come across cashew chicken as an option. I was either looking for slow cooker/crock pot ideas or just anything that would jump out. I asked the Hubby what he thought and it was a surprising yes! Originally I found a recipe somewhere else, but after endless scrolling and clicking just to find it again I found Cookie Rookie's version; 1. It was easy to follow, 2. It was similar to the one I found initially and 3. I couldn't be bothered to look elsewhere at that point.
Yay or Nay: Yay Yay Yay!
It's always good to find something unexpected that is easy, tasty AND is exactly what the recipe promises. Cookie Rookie says that it is SUPER EASY and it is exactly that! I would say it is not worth searing the chicken beforehand if you're short on time as you can leave it in a little longer in the crockpot to cook. Also, I had an excess of ginger so I put waaaaaay more than is in the recipe and I have to say it does add more of a spicy flavour. Apologies for the rushed and dodgy plate pictures! TRY THIS NOW!!
