Revenge of the Leftovers!!!

Okay, you didn't think there could be just one leftovers post, right? 'Cause that would be ridiculous. One meal out of leftovers? What are you going to serve for Thanksgiving? A canary?

The further you get from that original meal, the further you want to be from that original meal. In that spirit, today's offering is taking you from Plymouth to Peking. Welcome to the world of Asian turkey. Via pizza.

Yeah, pizza. Read the name of the blog again. Okay, fine, you don't want pizza? Change it up. This makes a great sandwich, open faced on some good crusty bread, or toasted in a sub roll and closed up with a little Asian slaw on top. Or stuck in a pita pocket. Or slapped together, spread with butter and given a turn around a hot pan like a grilled cheese with a serious twist.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Okay...start with the bread. I'm going back to that great PennMac crust I used the other day. But use what you've got. Frankly, I'm anticipating some leftover Italian bread, so this could turn into a nice long pizza boat for me, almost a bahn mi of leftovers.

Now we address the sauce. I got some spicy orange sauce in the Asian section at Wegman's the other day, and I've been dying to try it on something. This seemed like a good opportunity. I painted it on the crust liberally, and topped it with the turkey.

I went heavy on the turkey, because I had a lot of turkey. If I had it (and frankly, it would have been great, but I actually didn't have all of the veggies I'd have liked), I'd have then added red pepper strips, matchstick carrots, broccoli, maybe some bok choy. If you like it in a stir fry or with your fried rice, throw it on.

Then we look at cheese. You want something mellow. A cheddar wouldn't fit. A mozzarella would be okay, but you want something that will harmonize with the Asian flavors. So...I used up the brie I had leftover from the the other day. Hey, leftovers! Gotta use 'em up, right?

It's pretty, isn't it? Okay, maybe pretty is a stretch. I was really wishing for some green onion when I pulled it out. But damn did it taste good. Asian flavors and French flavors are great pairings. They took the turkey to a completely different place than the Thanksgiving table it started.

So throw together a pizza. Or a sandwich. Or a pita. Just don't listen to what you tell your kids. Play with your food.

Asian Fusion

This is where I admit that I do not personally have a picky eater. My 2-year-old son would eat caterpillars and gravel if I gave them to him with green beans. He doesn't turn up his nose at anything. Nothing. At all. Okay, beef liver and mangoes, but for a kid who has been eating table food since six months, I think that's pretty darn good.

But the best example I can ever find of his open-minded, open-stomachedness is clearly a Chinese buffet.

He cheerfully chomps his way through absolutely everything. Scallops, crab legs, shrimp, broccoli, pepper steak, lychees, California roll. You name it, he wants a bite of it. And then he will take it away and eat it for you.

My siblings did not come to Chinese food this easily. My middle sister, who will be 32 next month, has only recently embraced the idea of chicken lo mein.

My picky eater experiences are valid. All of these recipes have been tested on actual picky eaters, old and young, and have changed hearts and minds along the way. So if you have someone who is turning up a nose at moo shu and General Tsao's, give this a try.

Chinese Chicken Pizza

1 pizza crust
½ c. tomato sauce
¼ c. hoisin sauce
1 T. soy sauce
1 T. honey
2 t. sesame oil
1 t. grated gingerroot
White pepper, just a dash
1 pound cooked chicken (Leftover dark meat is great, but rotisserie or pre-cooked strips like Louis Rich’s work well. I've even done it with breaded chicken fingers cut in pieces.)
1/3 c. chopped green onion
1 red pepper, sliced in rings
1 c. broccoli florets, blanched, steamed or stir-fried
½ c. mozzarella cheese
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place pizza crust on baking sheet.
In a bowl, whisk tomato sauce, hoisin, soy, honey, sesame oil, ginger and pepper. Spread half over crust. Arrange chicken on pizza, drizzling remaining sauce on top. Scatter vegetables evenly over surface. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake 15-20 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted.