This week, I received my first RN job offer in the Burns unit, where I currently work! While this is truly an amazing offer that I intend to accept, it makes me realize how I am so close to jumping headfirst into adult life, and I am absolutely terrified. I have to choose insurance, have a 401(k), get all of my crap together, and organize myself in a way that makes it look like I know what I’m doing. I am scared to go out and be a nurse completely on my own. I have my days on the unit when I feel as though I can handle it, but recently I have been feeling like I still don’t have my time management and priority setting skills right.
I’m not ready to enter adult life, so I am always looking for tasks to ease me into the “adulting” process. One of these tasks happens to be preparing food, an important skill to have for future life. It destresses me getting a jumpstart on it right now, so the recipe I made today was Kung Pao Chicken. Adapted from penneylane.com, this is the first “real” recipe I made when I moved to my apartment that had its own kitchen. I was a professional spaghetti-maker at that point, and I thought I would try my hand at a decent stir-fry recipe. Lucky for me, this recipe turned out exceptionally well. I have been making it at least once a month ever since.
Stress level: 3/10
Yield: 4 servings
Time: 35 minutes
Ingredients:
Directions
I’m not ready to enter adult life, so I am always looking for tasks to ease me into the “adulting” process. One of these tasks happens to be preparing food, an important skill to have for future life. It destresses me getting a jumpstart on it right now, so the recipe I made today was Kung Pao Chicken. Adapted from penneylane.com, this is the first “real” recipe I made when I moved to my apartment that had its own kitchen. I was a professional spaghetti-maker at that point, and I thought I would try my hand at a decent stir-fry recipe. Lucky for me, this recipe turned out exceptionally well. I have been making it at least once a month ever since.
Stress level: 3/10
Yield: 4 servings
Time: 35 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tsp corn starch (marinade)
- 1tbsp balsamic vinegar (marinade)
- 1 tbsp soy sauce (marinade)
- 1 tsp sesame oil (marinade)
- 2 tsp corn starch (sauce)
- 2 tsp balsamic vinegar (sauce)
- 1 tbsp soy sauce (sauce)
- 1 heaping tbsp hoisin sauce (sauce)
- 1 tsp sesame oil (sauce)
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 bell peppers, I use one green and one red
- ¾ tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 cloves minced garlic(less if you aren’t a fan of spice)
- 1 tsp freshly grated ginger
- ¼ cup dry roasted, lightly salted peanuts
Directions
- Combine the corn starch, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, and sesame oil for the marinade, stir until the corn starch has dissolved. Cut the chicken into 1 inch sized pieces and let soak in the marinade for 15 minutes.
- Combine the corn starch, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and sesame oil for the sauce in a small bowl, set aside.
- Coarsely chop the bell peppers, set aside, then grate the ginger to also set aside.
- Heat the vegetable oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the crushed red pepper and sauté for one minute. Add the bell peppers and cook, stirring frequently for 3-4 minutes or until soft.
- Add the garlic and ginger, stir for one minute.
- Add the chicken with all of the marinade into the pan. Cook for 5-6 minutes, flipping the pieces in between and stirring the bell peppers.
- Once the chicken is cooked through (not pink in the middle), add the sauce and the peanuts. Stir to coat for one minute. Remove from heat and serve over cooked white or brown rice.
Since this was one of the first recipes I got comfortable with on my own, it seemed appropriate that I made it while I was working through my post-college opportunities. After I made it, I did seem less stressed. I felt accomplished that I had acquired the skills and knowledge of cooking each of the components of this meal to combine it as one dish. As I go deeper into this cooking project, I realize that a lot of the spices and amounts different ingredients can vary just depending on individual preference. The original recipe told me to only put in ½ tsp of crushed red pepper flakes, but I like things a little on the spicier side. Therefore, I increased the amount of the spice to tailor it to my tastes. You can make smaller portions of this by reducing each ingredient by a little bit, and you can make more by increasing everything. This isn’t baking, so it isn’t an exact science.
One of my favorite parts of cooking now is messing with the spices to see what tastes good and what doesn’t. If you felt so inclined, you could sprinkle some fresh cilantro to the top of this recipe to give it a fresher flavor. I also think a squeeze of lemon would brighten it up as well, but I have not actually tried that variation yet. Green onions would do very well as a topping to this recipe, but I also always forget to buy them when I gather my ingredients. I find that the creativity involved in cooking is also a good stress-relieving part of the entire activity. Doing the physical motions of stirring, chopping, etc. are wonderful, but when you actually use your mind to craft some new ways to liven up a dish, it becomes a fun challenge. New stress level: 3/10.
One of my favorite parts of cooking now is messing with the spices to see what tastes good and what doesn’t. If you felt so inclined, you could sprinkle some fresh cilantro to the top of this recipe to give it a fresher flavor. I also think a squeeze of lemon would brighten it up as well, but I have not actually tried that variation yet. Green onions would do very well as a topping to this recipe, but I also always forget to buy them when I gather my ingredients. I find that the creativity involved in cooking is also a good stress-relieving part of the entire activity. Doing the physical motions of stirring, chopping, etc. are wonderful, but when you actually use your mind to craft some new ways to liven up a dish, it becomes a fun challenge. New stress level: 3/10.