You know me, I am always looking for fun dishes and ways
to serve up food that makes it more entertaining.
One of our local Chinese restaurants, China Bowl, which is
no longer in business, was a favorite place to go for
inexpensive Chinese food. One of our favorites was
their appetizer called the Pu Pu Platter.
Wikipedia says a Pu Pu platter is a "tray of American Chinese
cuisine consisting of an assortment of small meat and seafood
appetizers."
(Pronounced with a long U so that makes the kids all laugh!)
What makes this such a fun Chinese Dish is that you have
a mini hibachi that you can heat things over.
Years and years ago I asked if I could purchase some of these
appetizer trays from them and we have enjoyed them
now for years.
I found them on
Amazon for you if you want to have
the platter and mini hibachi to use. They are so fun
for entertaining and often we would just buy the appetizers
from the restaurant and bring them home and serve them
on the platter set. I gave one to my sister Joni years ago too
What makes them heat up is that you place Sterno in
the mini hibachi and light it so that you can heat up all
of your precooked foods right there at the table.
This time we decided to make some things and to purchase
some things.
We made these Teriyaki Beef Skewers.
Teriyaki Beef Skewers Recipe
3 tenderloin steaks (you could use other
steak, but these make such a tender skewer)
bamboo skewers
1/2 C. soy sauce
1/2 C. water
1 C. brown sugar
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp. grated fresh ginger root
Soak the skewers in a pan of water for 30 minutes.
Slice the steak across the grain into thin strips. Thread
them onto drained skewers.
In a 9x13 inch pan mix the soy sauce, water, sugar, garlic and
ginger. Place the beef skewers in the pan, turning over to coat
all sides. Let marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes. Cook on
a grill until medium. Remove to a platter.
To eat, place them on the hibachi grill to reheat one at at time.
and we made Paper Wrapped Chicken.
Paper Wrapped Chicken Recipe
3 C. cubed raw chicken breast
1 T. oil
2 tsp. white wine vinegar
2 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. finely grated fresh ginger
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. white or black pepper
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. dark sesame oil
Tin foil, cut into 6x6 inch squares (I made 18)
Mix all of the ingredients together and place in refrigerator
for about 1 hour to marinate.
Place about 2 T.
chicken mixture into the center of each square of foil. Fold
the foil in half into a triangle and then fold the two edges
over a couple of times to seal them.
The traditional method is to deep fry the packets of chicken
at 350 for about 3 minutes,
but we like to place them on a baking sheet and bake at
400 for 20-25 minutes. Check one to see if it is done. If you
want the chicken to caramelize a little, you can bake it a
little longer. These are a big favorite.
(This recipe comes from Betty Crocker's Chinese Cookbook,
printed in 1981. I have had it since college.)
We pan fried purchased Potstickers
and deep fried purchased Egg Rolls.
Ham Fried Rice filled out the menu and it was finished
off with fresh pineapple and Strawberry Cheesecake.
Ham Fried Rice Recipe
6 C. cooked, converted brown rice (use 2 C. uncooked rice)
6 eggs, scrambled
1 C. ham, cubed
1 bunch green onions, sliced diagonally
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2-3 T. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. salt (if desired)
1/4 tsp. pepper
3 T. vegetable oil, divided
In a wok or large frying pan, heat 2 T. oil and add the cooked
rice. Stir fry it until the rice is dry and beginning to "pop" a little.
Remove the rice and add the remaining vegetable oil. Stir fry
the onion and garlic for one minute. Add the ham and stir fry
one more minute. Add the rice, eggs and stir fry for a minute and
stir in the soy sauce. Season with salt and pepper if desired.
(This makes enough for a crowd.)
This is a really fun meal and my daughter in law reminded
me that it had been way too long since I had cooked
this fun, interactive meal.
I will be posting with