Szechuan Green Beans with Ground Turkey

It's been a while since I posted a recipe....We've been enjoying this delicious dish over the past two days. It is very simple and takes only about 20 minutes to make but it definitely jumped into my top 5 favorite Asian recipes to prepare at home. The best part about it is that I got Graham to eat (and maybe actually enjoy) green beans! ;o) The recipes is nice and spicy and so we paired it with a Gewurztraminer. Try it!


Szechuan Green Beans with Ground Pork

1 pound lean ground pork or turkey
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
2 tablespoons peanut oil, divided
1 ½ lbs green beans
1 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh garlic, divided
4 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper, divided
4 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 cups hot cooked white rice

Combine the first 4 ingredients in a medium bowl. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add green beans and fry with ½ tsp garlic & ½ tsp red pepper flakes until beans crisp tender. Set aside in bowl.

Heat remaining oil in skillet and add pork (or turkey) mixture and garlic; cook 3 minutes or until meat loses its pink color, stirring to crumble. Add beans and toss to mix.

Combine hoisin and next 3 ingredients (through soy sauce) in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add hoisin mixture to pan. Cook 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring frequently. Serve over rice.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup pork mixture and 1/2 cup rice)