Stir Fried Veggie Beef and Green Peppers in Taiwanese Shacha Sauce 沙茶青椒素牛肉

It's hard to imagine I'd write a recipe using green bell peppers since I've refused to eat them most of my life! Mom used to make this dish (with real beef or pork sometimes), and I would always pick out the peppers. In fact, I hated any peppers. So how did I learn to like it? To be honest, I don't quite understand it myself! (?・・)σ I was watching a Japanese drama, which happened to be about food several years ago (are you surprised???). In one of the episodes, someone cooked a pork stuffed green pepper dish, which looked very delicious to me, and that was it! From then on, I decided that I like green peppers. Actually, I'll even correct myself, and say that I now LOVE green bell peppers! Isn't it funny how your mind can just change like that one day?

Chicken Over Rice Taiwanese style 雞肉飯

So here I am, after three months in Taiwan, I'm finally back! I know it's been too long to be away from the blogging world. I tried here and there to post something in between, but alas, no recipes. I can't tell you how much I missed writing and taking photos for my recipes, but I had no choice; I had to return home for some important family matters. It was a difficult time for all of us, and while there, I went through many different emotions: there was sorrow, relief, joy, tension, grief. It's hard to describe, it changed everyday. Thankfully, those emotions are slowly diminishing… Having gone through it, it's now time to go forward.

Three-Cup Chicken with King Oyster Mushrooms Taiwanese Style 三杯杏鮑菇雞

Three-Cup Chicken is perhaps one of the signature dishes of Taiwanese cuisine. It was a typical dish on our dinner table, and my all-time favourite from my mom!! I don't know any Taiwanese person who doesn't like this dish. With lots of ginger, rice wine, and dark sesame oil, it is supposed to be very warming for the body, and therefore is a must in the fall and winter. The dish gets it's name from the three key ingredients: 1 cup dark sesame oil, 1 cup soy sauce, and 1 cup rice cooking wine.