Sesame Prawn Stir Fry

Today I really am starting to be good.  I indulged a little too much (again) this weekend but am determined to lose 2lb this week.  It doesn't help when we have an open bottle of wine from Sunday that just has to be finished off on Monday... fortunately hubby and I did the bottle of Red yesterday with his slow cooked veal ragu (v yum indeed) so there is no excuse tonight and no cheeky little glass of wine with our meal. 

I think the thought of a stir fry makes you feel healthy.  Seeing all those colourful vegetables gives you instant gratification that you are putting something good into your body.  I decided to couple my stir fry vegetables with prawns this evening as they are very low in fat and cook quickly.  I'm using a bag of frozen raw tiger king prawns from the supermarket which defrost during the day.  I've also discovered the convenience of supermarket packs of stir fry veg.  The pack I used (from Tesco) had lovely julienne carrots, tenderstem brocolli and pak choy.  Dinner tonight was literally thrown together in under 10 minutes!

You'll need for 2:

• 250g raw tiger prawns
• Half a punnet of chestnut mushrooms, sliced
• 1 supermarket pack of stir fry mixed vegetables
• 120g dried egg noodles or other wheat based noodles (such as Udon)
• 2 tsp sesame oil or groundnut oil
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tsp root ginger, finely chopped or grated
• Pinch of chilli flakes or a fresh red chilli depending on how hot you like it
• 1 tbsp runny honey
• 1 tbsp dark soy
• 1 tbsp light soy
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tsp sesame seeds, lightly toasted in a hot dry frying pan

What to do:

Place the noodles in a pan with boiling water and cook according to the pack instructions. Drain and rinse under cold water.

In a wok or frying pan heat the oil. Add the garlic, ginger and chilli and stir.  Next add the vegetables and stir fry on a high heat.  Add the prawns, the dark soy, honey and rice wine stirring until the prawns have turned pink and are cooked through.  Throw in the drained cooked egg noodles and toss together.  Finish with by topping with the sesame seeds and serve into bowls.

WeightWatchers ProPoints Per Serving: 12

Asian Steamed Cod with Stir Fried Rice

Every so often I do a trip to an Asian supermarket and stock up on authentic storecupboard ingredients such as dark and light soy sauces, fish sauce, herbs & spices, Sake, noodles and pastes.  It's much cheaper then your local supermarket and these ingredients keep really well in your cupboard. 

The last time I went, I picked up a large bamboo steamer and I really do get my moneys worth from it!  If you don't have a bamboo steamer you can use a regular steamer or you can even bake in a foil parcel creating a steam effect in the oven.

You'll need for 2:

• 2 x 130g cod loin
• 4 spring onions, chopped
• Handful of fresh coriander, chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1 tbsp Sake
• 2-3 tbsp light soy sauce
• 2 tsp lazy ginger
• 1 tsp lazy garlic
• 1 tsp groundnut oil, or oil of your choice
• Pinch of chilli flakes
• Pack of pak choi
• Half a punnet chestnut mushrooms
• 125g brown basmatti rice, cooked and cooled

What to do:

On a plate place the cod loins.  Scatter over 1 tsp ginger, lime juice, sake, 1 tbsp soy sauce, a small handful of spring onions and a sprinkling of fresh coriander.  Place in the bamboo steamer over a pan of boiling water and steam for 7-8 minutes until the fish is opaque throughout.

At the same time as getting the fish on, heat the oil in a wok and stir fry the vegetables with the garlic, 1 tsp chopped ginger and chilli until beginning to colour.  Season using 1-2 tbsp of soy sauce.  Add the rice and stir continuously until the rice is fully heated through.  Sprinkle with the rest of the chopped coriander.

Carefully lift the cooked fish out and place on top of the rice.  Pour over any remaining juices from the steamer.

WeightWatchers ProPoints Per Serving: 11