A Polka Dot Stir Fry

Every birthday I was allowed to pick a place to celebrate my birthday for dinner.  When I was younger, I always picked Asian restaurants - Chinese, Japanese, Thai.  There was a point where I went to the same sushi place four or five years in a row.  I wanted that melt in your mouth sushi and noodle dishes.  In addition, you got to sit in booths which closed. 

A couple of nights ago, I craved a stir-fry.  Luckily for me, I live within an area where there are plenty of ethnic supermarkets, especially Asian markets.  Any special ingredient I want, I can find for cheap.  Best of all, there are a couple within five minutes from where I live.  Mr. Polka Dot stated, “The samples are better than Costco,” after we left.  They had everything you ever needed for an Asian meal.  Want tofu – they had about 20 different varieties.  Want seaweed salad, here are 8 servings frozen in a bag.  After roaming this market, we picked up enough ingredients for this amazing stir fry and other meals. 

As for the meal - Mr. Polka Dot I agreed that this is my best stir fry ever.  Onto the recipe,

A Polka Dot Stir Fry

A Polka Dot Original

2 packets of Udon Noodles

1 package of Firm Tofu

¾-1 pound of Shrimp

¾ cup carrots

2 tsp of ginger

5-6 cloves chopped garlic (you can reduce, if you don’t like garlic)

1 small bunch of broccoli

1 small can of water chestnuts

1 large can of baby corn

1 pepper, cut into slices

1 ½ cups of chicken stock

1 cup of your favorite soy sauce and/or teriyaki sauce (I combined a couple of sauces)

2-3 tbsp of cornstarch

1 tbsp of vegetable oil

Clean and peel shrimp.  Cut up tofu into cubes and pat dry.  Cut carrots and broccoli into small pieces.  Prepare udon noodles by cooking them like pasta for about 10 minutes or until al dente. Heat 1tbsp of vegetable oil in wok.  When oil is hot, place shrimp in wok.  Cook shrimp on each side until pink.  Be careful, don’t cook too long, otherwise the shrimp will be rubbery. Take out shrimp.  Place ginger and garlic into wok along with the vegetables.  Cook for about 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure that all of the vegetables are being cooked.   Add tofu and cook for another 3-4 minutes.  Combine chicken stock, soy sauce mixture, and cornstarch together.  Pour into wok.  When it boils and the sauce thickens, add cooked udon noodles.  Let cook for another minute and add shrimp.  Let sit for another minute or until shrimp is warm.  Serve immediately. 

Zucchini and Eggplant Pasta

I’m always looking for new and creative recipes for dinner, especially ones that are relatively healthy. In addition, I love the flavors of zucchini and eggplant together in a tomato sauce. It reminds me of ratatouille. The original recipe had goat cheese sprinkled on top of this wonderful creation, however, my favorite sous chef and I both agree that the flavors were perfect just the way they were. This dish will definitely be a household favorite.

Zucchini and Eggplant Noodles with Shrimp

Inspired by Cara's Cravings

1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 of a small onion, thinly sliced
3 cloves minced garlic
1 lb raw shrimp, thawed, peeled, deveined
Freshly ground salt & pepper
28 oz diced tomatoes
Pinch of crushed red pepper
2 tsp chopped fresh basil
About 2-3 zucchini (make into noodles with a vegetable peeler, will look like pappadelle )
½ of an eggplant (make into noodles using a vegetable peeler, will look like pappadelle)


Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and saute for about 5 minutes, until softened. Add the shrimp and garlic. Cook the shrimp for about 1 minute on each side, until just opaque. Remove the shrimp from the pan. Add the tomatoes, crushed red pepper, and basil. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the zucchini and eggplant and saute over medium heat until slightly softened, about 3 minutes, then add the shrimp and heat through, about 1-2 minutes more.


***If you want to use a prepared sauce, remove the crushed tomatoes, crushed red pepper, and basil from the recipe. ***