Three course meal: lemongrass pork belly, saute green beans and napa cabbage soup

What is worse than working in the weekend is ...... working on a beautiful Mother's Day weekend. While other moms are enjoying their Mother's Day celebration, I am stuck at work and missing out on the warm, sunny weather. Just in case you are wondering what kind of work I do, I am a "legal drug dealer" by day and a devoted homemaker by night:)! Let me tell you, it's not easy to hold two full-time jobs like that, but I manage.
So as you can see, being that busy, I have no time for fancy weekday dinner meals.  Quick and convenient recipes are what I try to aim for everyday after work. These were what we had for last night dinner, simple, quick and yet satisfying.
Well, at least for tomorrow night I don't have to worry about dinner since my kitchen is going to be close for Mother's Day. Daddy and the boys are going to take mommy out for dinner... Yay!!!
Being able to hangout and enjoy dinner with my boys is the best part of the day. No matter where we are or what we eat, as long as we are together, that's all that matters.

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there! Enjoy your beautiful day.

 Three course weekday meal:

1. Lemongrass pork belly:
- 1/2-1 lb pork belly, marinate with 1/2 tsp salt, garlic power, and pepper
- Deep fry the pork belly until crispy, set aside
- In another saucepan, add 1 tsp of oil and add in minced garlic, minced lemongrass, 1/2 dried red pepper flakes, 2 tbsp of soy sauce, 3 tsp of sugar, 2 tsp of water and black pepper. Mix well and saute until some of the liquid have evaporated (about 5-10 min). Turn off the heat and mix in the crispy pork belly to coat well with the lemongrass sauce.

 
2. Napa cabbage soup:
- 1/2 head of a napa cabbage (cleaned and chopped in to 1 inch pieces)
- 1 carrot, chop in 1/2 inch pieces.
- 1 packet of mushroom (any kinds)
- In a medium pot, add some oil and slices of shallot and stir it until slightly brown. Add in chicken broth and bring to boil. Subsequently add in some shrimp or pork (if desired, I did not use these), carrot, mushroom. Let boil for 10-15 minutes then add in napa cabbage. Turn off the heat and sprinkle with chopped scallions and black pepper before served.

3. Stir fried green beans with pork belly:
- 3 oz of sliced pork belly (marinated the bot nem and black pepper)
- 1/2-1 lbs of green beans
- Minced garlic, 1 tsp fish sauce, 1 tsp oyster sauce, bot nem, and black pepper
In a large wok, add some cooking oil and stir fry minced garlic until fragrant. Add in the pork belly and cook for about 5 minutes until slightly brown. Add green beans, season with fish sauce, oyster sauce, bot nem and black pepper. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes until green beans are crisp tender and remove from heat.

Serve all the dishes with steam rice. Enjoy!