If you haven’t noticed, my Aunts are a source for a lot of my recipes. In fact I think in my life time my mom has cooked a total of three full meals for my family. Two of them being for Thanksgiving and one for my Dad’s birthday once. It is not that my mom is a bad cook but she just doesn’t really have time. She is also a perfectionist which means that she spends a lot of extra time being precise with everything she cooks. That goes against my philosophy of cooking completely. I believe, especially when cooking for your family, be as unorthodox and not precise as possible without making the dish taste bad or different. That may sound strange but its not like you are preparing a meal for a king! You have other stuff to do!! You can’t be spending all of your time in the kitchen measuring the exact amount of everything into the bowl. Besides that sometimes recipes need to be adjusted. Do not be afraid to make substitutions or add different ingredients in. It will ultimately improve your end result and keep your family entertained! Below is a recipe that my mom actually can make that was given to me by my aunt. I have had multiple versions of this recipe and this is by far the best!
Asian Cole Slaw
1 16 oz package Cole slaw mix
8 green onions chopped
1/4 cup butter
1 16 oz broccoli slaw
2 3 oz packages Asian flavored Ramon noodles
1 c slivered almonds
1 c unsalted sunflower seeds
1/4 c sugar
1/4 c apple cider vinegar
1/2 c vegetable oi
l 1 tsp. soy sauce
In large bowl combine onions and slaw mixes. In large skillet melt butter and toast almonds seeds noodles (uncooked) and add half of the seasoning packets. Toast for about 8 minutes. In a jar with a tight lid combine sugar vinegar oil and the remaining seasoning packets and soy sauce. Seal and shake vigorously. Right before serving combine noodles, slaw, and dressing.
That last step is very important because if you mix them in too soon the noodles will get soggy no one wants to eat that! Also in order to “toast” something you should keep the burner around a medium low heat. It depends on your stove. As a rule of thumb I stay in the kitchen as long as I have some sort of food on a heat source. I believe in interactive cooking where you constantly are checking to see if it is exactly the way you want it to be cooking!
I tend to view this as more of a summer dish because I was first introduced to it on vacation two summers ago. However truly this would be a great side for pretty much any event any time of the year. If you have to bring a salad to a dinner this is a great alternative that is exciting and unique. It is also delicious! The nice thing about this is it seems much more impressive than a regular tossed salad but it is so easy…no one needs to know that!