Lisa as Intended (CE)

CHICKEN STRIPS & TOFU SZECHUANESE- (Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook)

This is an amazingly fun recipe and so easy to make! I actually followed the recipe with only using a couple of alternative minor ingredients and I got to use fresh ginger, which in the past I always short cutted and used the ginger in my spice rack...never again! Also, I got a new kitchen toy...a garlic press! Whoo hoo! As much as I use garlic you'd think I would have owned one already, but alas, no, always opting for the inept hand mincing...never again! I did marinate the chicken in lemon juice, rice vinegar, and olive oil all day, which the recipe didn't call for.

The recipe says that you can combine the lean proteins or make one or the other. I made both separately, I only had to pull and reserve some of the veggie mixture from the wok, before I added chicken. I may have slightly overcooked the veggies for the chicken version due to this; next time I will remove from heat sooner. I chose to use agave to sweeten the sauce, instead of honey, so added and extra tsp of that. When I tested the flavor, it didn't seem as zingy as I like, so I added an extra tsp of the rice vinegar as well. It was then served over steamed brown rice (I my steamer), then sprinkled with fresh chopped cilantro to garnish the top (which isn't called for in the recipe, however, I can eat cilantro on anything...it's my favorite herb).

The family really liked this and rated it an "8". My daughter Riann said she'd like it to be saucier and tangier and then it may get a "9", lol! I mentioned that maybe next time I could double the sauce recipe and squeeze the juice of a fresh orange into it, and even my husband agreed he'd like that, so we will be having this again. I really liked my tofu version as well, and agree, a little tangier would excite my taste buds.

The main thing I wish I had done differently is MAKE MORE so I could have some leftovers for lunch tomorrow!