Chop Suey ~

One of my favorite memories is of Halloween.  Oh, the costumes, the fun, the Trick or Treating, those are all great, but I am talking about the meal.....my Mom had "accidentally" started the tradition of making Chop Suey for dinner on Halloween.  I say accidentally because she would never cop to doing it on purpose.  When we were old enough to notice and remark on it, she would say, "don't be silly, it is just a coincidence", but she always had this little glimmer in her eyes when she would serve it to us with the packaged dried chow mein noodles that my brother Bobby had dubbed "fried worms".  We would look forward to our steaming, fragrant bowls of "Slop Chuey and Fried Worms" with almost the same glee as we did the trick or treating that we knew would come afterward.  Dad would roll his eyes at this silliness, but he would tuck into it with the same enthusiasm that we did.  It is a wonderful and easy meal and may be my all time favorite comfort food.

Depending on the amount of vegetables you usse, it can be considered either a soup or a stew.  I think it falls somewhere in between. 



Ingredients:




1 pound  boneless pork, cut into bite sized pieces

2 tablespoons Olive oil

1 cup celery in thin slices cur on the diagonal

1 onion peeled and cut in thin slices

1 tsp powdered Ginger

1 cup sliced mushrooms, (optional)

1 small can Water Chesnuts, drained

½ pound bean sprouts

8 cups, (roughly) of Chop Suey or Stir Fry Vegetables.  You can usually find these fresh in the produce section, pre-bagged, but if you can't, chop some Bok Choy, Napa Cabbage, Snow Pea Pods, Carrots... Really any veggie that sounds good to you.  8 cups sounds like a lot, but they will cook down nicely.

1/4 - 1/3 cup Soy sauce.  Start with 1/4, add more to taste if desired

4 cups chicken or beef stock

1 Tbl Cornstarch or Arrowroot to thicken

Heat oil in large suacepan , brown pork in small batches with the onion and celery and remove to bowl as needed to keep from crowding the pan.  When the meat is all browned, drain any excess fat from the pan, but leave the browned bits in the bottom of the pan.  Put the pan back on the heat and add the broth to deglaze.  Return the celery, onion and browned pork to the broth in the pan, add the soy sauce and let it simmer for about 30 minutes, or until the pork is cooked through.  Taste for seasoning and correct if needed.  Add the chopped vegetables (and the optional water chestnuts and mushrooms if desired).  Simmer for another 15 minutes or until the vegetables start to cook down and soften.  Take about 1 cup of liquid from the pan and stir in the Cornstarch or Arrowroot until it is dissolved and has no lumps.  Return this thickened liquid to the pan and stir well to avoid lumps.  Add the Bean Sprouts and simmer gently until done.

Serve over Rice, or Chow Mein noodles.  The Pennsylvania relatives love it over Mashed Potatoes.  No matter how you serve it, it is delicious!