Asian inspired Vegan Orange Chicken w/ Carrot Ginger dressing over Mixed Greens

Dear friends of the MotherDome, sorry it's been so long, and thank you for reading. I am learning quickly that what I post is actually being read. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that a lovely member of the Gardein family found my last blog, and gave me some coupons so that I could try out some of their other tasty items to share! Well I gotta say I was obsessed with their beefless beef tips, and now I have some other favorites to add to the menu. Starting with the Asian inspired Mandarin Orange Chickenless Chicken dish. I am not kidding when I say while eating this I kept thinking I was going to bite down on chicken gristle or fat (which usually happens when you order a chicken item from a Chinese restaurant, at least once) cause I kept forgetting this was not real chicken. The texture and taste was excellent! You coulda fooled me if I hadn't known, just saying...

If you like Orange chicken (a popular Chinese dish) I would say you may want to add some orange zest or a little fresh squeezed orange juice while simmering this, next time I make it that is what I plan to do. The Orange flavor is very subtle, which is actually good, because it makes this frozen entree a lot more moldable, and you can turn it into what ever you really want, and keep in the realm of Chinese inspired flavor.

I also always hate Asian inspired frozen entrees, I stopped buying them ages ago, because the sauces tasted too manufactured, even the PF Chang frozen meals tasted blah to me, and so processed and nothing like the restaurant Chinese food that I love.

To add to this I wanted something cold and fresh, again going with the Asian inspired dish. I took an idea to make a salad with fresh carrot ginger dressing (which you would usually get on a salad at a sushi or Japanese restaurant), I found several recipes online, but modified this one. Again the taste was amazing, I didn't know it would be so easy to make, and so yummy. THIS SALAD by the way is so so yummy, you could totally make it a main dish if you added some avocado and miso soup to go with it,

What you will need for Entree: This serves 2
1 package of Gardein Mandarin Orange Crispy Chick'n
Small package of sliced baby Bella mushrooms
Quarter of one large onion
Coconut Oil

For Salad Dressing:
Cheese Grater
Hand mixer
1-2 Carrots (grated)
2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger root (yes this will be wet and pithy)
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 Teaspoon lemon Juice
3 tablespoons of water
2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
Salt (to taste)
(optional) a little garlic salt or 1/4 of a clove of fresh garlic

For Salad:
Spring Salad Mix
cucumber sliced and seeded
carrots cut in strips
canned or fresh mandarin oranges (optional)
crunchy Chinese noodles


Although this does take a little more work than just slopping something in the microwave, it's well worth the time.

How to make Salad dressing: Take all the above ingredients place into a container and blend together till fully pureed. Set aside in an airtight container, an old glass jar works, and place in refrigerator till ready to use. This should yield a good cup of dressing or more.

The way I fixed this entree was by starting out with some Coconut oil in a frying pan, let it melt and add the onion, once the onion is caramelized, add the Gardein Crispy Chicken and let it all simmer for about 3-6 minutes, and then add the sauce and mushrooms till mushrooms are soft. Place half and half on two plates.

Salad: In a medium size glass bowl add all salad ingredients, and toss together with some of the dressing. Top with mandarin oranges and noodles, and ENJOY!

What are you eating? Gardein products are vegan (which means, no animal proteins). I think the major difference is that Gargein uses no synthetic colors, completely organic, and uses only plant based ingredients, I was very impressed with the quality of their products compared to other vegan meat replacements on todays market. (PS I plan to do more comparisons in upcoming blogs). It is good to know I know exactly what I am eating without a lot of confusion. Here is a photo of what all is in this entree, full of good proteins to keep you going, but non of the cholesterol that weighs your body down. I was also impressed, unlike most frozen Asian inspired entrees out there, this one has very little sodium.

I have decided (In the spirit of motherly ways) to help educate you and myself and bring wisdom of what certain things are that you are eating. Like Xanthan gum... I saw it in the list of ingredients, and I was like I see this in alot of products, is it bad for me? In truth, not really, although it's a processed product that is not synthetic, just a fermented derivative from either glucose, sucrose (sugar) or lactose (dairy), it's used to help thicken, and is completely naturally derived... Who'd of thunk it with a name like Xantham... To learn more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xanthan_gum

Brown Sugar: My husband actually didn't know what Brown sugar was, so I thought maybe other people don't either. It's just white sugar with molasses. Is brown sugar better for you, no, but blackstrap molasses themselves have certain qualities that are actually nutritious, and tasty if you are making your own gram crackers, or gram cracker crust... To learn more about BlackStrap Molasses Nutrition: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?dbid=118&tname=foodspice