Stir-Fried Beancurd and Beansprouts, Stir-Fried Chayote, and Fried Rice with Peas

Welcome to Myanmar, the Land of the Golden Pagodas! I didn't research Myanmar and learn this, I got it from the title of my cookbook The Food of Myanmar: Authentic Recipes from the Land of the Golden Pagodas

If you haven't picked up on this by now, we are trying vastly different cuisines from week to week for no other reason than to give our bodies a break! German week was heavy, lots of creamy sauces and meat, and my body is dying for some veggies that are not covered in butter. I love butter, butter is great, but my heart is begging me to stop.

This meal was quick and didn't require a lot of prep work; total time, with prep, was maybe an hour. What took the most time was making the rice but the recipe actually called for old rice so if you follow that, you'll cut your time in half.

Stir-Fried Beancurd and Beansprouts

The book says this is served as an accompaniment but we made it our main meal.

10 oz beancurd cakes, soaked. Beancurd is tofu. I used 16 oz because let's get real, it's tofu. Those extra 6 ounces are not going to kill you.

1/4 cup oil. I used sesame because I thought it would add some extra flavor.

1 tsp oyster sauce

1 clove garlic

3 cups beansprouts

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cornflour, dissolved in 1 tbsp water

1 tsp light soy sauce

Drain the tofu and pat dry with paper towels. Cut into cubes. The book said 36, I think I made 24.  Heat the oil, add the tofu, and deep-fry over medium high heat for 5 minutes, until golden on all sides. Remove and set aside. Stir in the oyster sauce and stir-fry the garlic. Add the tofu, sprouts, and salt. Cover and cook for 3 minutes. Add the cornflour paste and soy sauce. Stir-fry for another 5 minutes and serve.

Stir-Fried Chayote

I'd never had chayote before so I was really looking forward to trying out this new squash!

4 1/2 oz boneless pork, diced. I used a half pound.

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp rice wine. Btw, rice wine and rice vinegar are the same thing. I learned this after only seeing rice vinegar at the grocery store and then I Googled it. What would we do without Google??

1 tbsp oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups chayote, peeled, deseeded, and sliced into 2 inch strips. I probably used 2 1/2 cups but it was fine.

3 tbsps water

1 tsp cornflour, dissolved in 1 tbsp water

1 tbsp light soy sauce

Marinate the pork in the salt and rice wine for at least 10 minutes. Heat the oil over high heat, stir-fry the garlic and pork for 3 minutes. Add the chayote and water and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the cornflour paste, soy sauce, and a pinch of salt. Stir-fry for another 5 minutes.

Fried Rice with Peas

The books says this is a common breakfast dish. I'd be okay with eating this for breakfast all the time!

1 cup dried whole green peas or pigeon peas, soaked overnight. I used frozen peas.

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

5 cups water. If you're using frozen peas, you don't need the baking soda, salt, or this much water.

1/4 cup oil

2 tbsp finely sliced onion

1 tbsp light soy sauce

3 cups cooked rice

1/2 tsp salt

Drain the peas and transfer to a large pot with baking soda, salt, and water. Bring to a boil and cook for 15 minutes until tender. Or do what I did and throw the peas on the skillet, pour a little water, and wait for them to thaw out. Heat the oil and stir-fry the onion until golden brown. Add the peas and soy sauce, cook for another 3-4 minutes. Add the rice and salt, cook and stir gently for another 5 minutes.

It's not a colorful meal but it made up for it in flavor! It was a little salty but that's because everything had soy sauce. I really liked the chayote though. It was a little crunchy, don't know if that's how it's supposed to be or if I just didn't cook it long enough, but it was good. The baby really liked it and preferred it over the rest of the meal. It was a little sweet so I'm sure that's part of why she liked it. The three year old didn't touch anything except a few peas and pork. The sprouts and tofu grossed her out and she spent most of dinner talking about how she didn't like it. I love that she doesn't have a problem with voicing her opinion but sometimes I wish she'd shut up. I know that's not nice but luckily she can't read this so I can say whatever I want. I need to enjoy her illiteracy while I can.


The meal was good and not too complicated. Yesterday didn't go as I had expected so I was a little frazzled. I had planned my day to where I'd have an hour or two to just relax but that didn't happen and I ended up driving all over Austin unexpectedly. I wasn't really looking forward to cooking but luckily this was an easy meal and I was still able to talk to my husband and kiddos while cooking. Sometimes the recipes are so involved that I have to focus, which takes time away from catching up with the husband when he gets home from work. Those are my least favorite recipes but this one allowed us to be a family and for that I'm grateful.

Wow, that was so emo! *flips bangs*