Ginger Soy Vegetable Stir Fry

Growing up, vegetables almost always played a secondary or tertiary role to meat, predominately beef, and starch, usually potatoes. Even with this limited exposure, I have always been a vegetable lover when fresh vegetables are served to me. However, when I'm planning out our weekly menu, I can sometimes fall back into the habit of forgetting to include a sufficient amount of veggies in a meal or week of meals.

Robert regularly asks for me to cook more veggies, and I am just now starting to discover meals that meet his request. Of course I'm benefitted by a husband who is willing to forgo meat from time to time if the vegetarian meal I place before him is flavorful and filling. This stir fry meets both requirements. The ginger soy and low-sodium soy sauces provide the veggies with a great flavor without compromising the health benefits and the veggies and rice are more than enough for a satisfying dinner.

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Ginger Soy Vegetable Stir Fry


Ingredients
1 small yellow squash, sliced
1 small zucchini, sliced
1 small head of broccoli, cut into florets
1/2 of a red onion cut into thick slices
3/4 cup sugar snap peas
1 package sliced mushrooms
3 green onions, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons of low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon ginger soy sauce
1 small can water chestnuts, drained
cooked brown rice

Instructions
In a large skillet or wok, heat the oil over medium high heat.

 Add the squash, zucchini, broccoli, mushrooms, snap peas and onions.

 Saute for 9 minutes then add the garlic and green onions.

 Saute for 2 minutes more then add the water chestnuts and stir to warm through.

 Pour in low sodium soy sauce,

 and ginger soy sauce.

 Stir well to combine and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve over a bed of brown rice for a healthy vegetarian meal.

Crunchy Vietnamese Steak Salad

I have searched high and low for a crisp, crunchy and flavorful Asian salad recipe. I have dined on many Asian salads in restaurants throughout the years, and I like aspects of most, but I would not say that I love any. I have also made quiet a few, all with the same humdrum results. Yesterday I stumbled upon this recipe on the Food and Wine  website (just flipping aimlessly through the recipes with pictures...yes...I am one of those people that will only make recipes with pictures!). I was intrigued by this Vietnamese version (pretty picture), I bought the few ingredients that I needed, I made the salad, and I have subsequently fallen in love with this light and bright creation!

Beautiful puppy Cort

I love her white stripe...it is almost like a painter painted this stripe!

We paired steak rather than chicken with this salad because we were really craving steak, but we didn't want an overly heavy dinner. I almost always associate steak with gluttonous over-indulgence (buttered potatoes, mac and cheese, bold red wine). However, with this salad, steak can be part of an everyday dinner that is tasty, comfortably filling and healthy!

Sweet Shafer

I omitted a few ingredients (serrano chile, mint, cliantro, shallots and onion) either because we do not like the flavor, or my grocery store did not have these ingredients on that particular day, and I was not motivated enough to go have a scavenger hunt for the missing ingredients. I also added shredded apples, Chow Mein Noodles (for crunch), used almonds rather than peanuts and used steak rather than chicken. I think it is so fun and important to be able to make substitutions based upon personal preferences and individual situations. I think it makes you a more confident chef and gives you ownership of your kitchen creations! What recipe can you change up to make it your own?

Getting into trouble together! Caught digging!

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Ingredients for Salad Dressing:
2 tablespoons of sugar
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon of Asian fish sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice
1 1/2 tablespoons of distilled white vinegar
1 tablespoon of water
1 small garlic clove, minced

Ingredients for Salad:
4 cups of green cabbage, finely shredded
2 carrots, finely shredded
1 apple, finely shredded
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons of sliced almonds
3 tablespoons of Chow Mein Noodles (crunchy noodles that you can find in the Asian section of your grocery store...even my tiny neighborhood grocery store had these!)
6 ounces of sliced beef tenderloin, cooked (you can use whatever type of beef you wish, or chicken)

Steps for the Dressing:
1. Gather all of your ingredients.

2. In a small bowl, combine the sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, vinegar, water and garlic.

3. Stir to combine and then set aside for at least five minutes.

Steps for the Salad:
1. Gather all of your ingredients. I shredded my cabbage and carrots myself, but you can easily by these items shredded to make your prep work a bit easier.

2. Combine the cabbage, carrots, apple, almonds, Chow Mein Noodles.

3. Toss to combine, adding the olive oil.

4. Add your sliced steak (or chicken).

I seared our beef tenderloin in a heavy pan on our range with a bit of olive oil and salt and pepper. 

It turned out really perfectly!

5. Add the dressing and toss to combine.

6. Enjoy with a crisp and clean Chardonnay!

Pork and Vegetable Stir Fry

Robert and I are at the tail end of a wonderful vacation in Ruidoso, New Mexico. As Suzie and I have mentioned, it's been a really hot summer in Dallas, nearly breaking the record for number of days with over 100 degree temperatures. When I was presented with the opportunity to take a short vacation between clients at work, Robert and I packed up our bags and headed to the mountains to my family's cabin.

We got in Saturday night and have enjoyed days full of golf, good food and family ever since. Robert is an avid golfer and has certainly enjoyed being able to play later in the morning than he has been forced to play during the Dallas heat wave. I'm still learning to play golf, and while it's still frustrating at times, I enjoy getting to participate in a game he enjoys.

 My grandparents spend most of the summer up here in Ruidoso, so we've also been able to spend time with them as well. Mimi, my grandmother, is an excellent cook and I spent many days in my childhood standing next to her in the kitchen while she crafted our family meals or baked cookies and other sweets. Last night, she prepared this wonderful pork stir fry and let me take pictures and help as we went along.

This dish is great for several reasons. To start, it's fairly simple and easy to put together, the most time consuming part is prepping the veggies. Second, it's quite healthy and also delicious. There aren't many Asian dishes in my cooking repertoire right now so I was excited to get to add a new one! I hope you'll enjoy it as much as we did.

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Pork and Vegetable Stir Fry

Ingredients
1 package of boneless pork chops, cubed
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 head of broccoli, cut into florets
1 package of mushrooms sliced
1/2 a yellow onion, diced
3 ribs celery, diced
1/2 cup sugar snap peas or snow peas
1 small can water chestnuts (optional)
1 12 ounce can bean sprouts
2-3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup low sodium beef broth, divided
cooked white rice

Instructions
Start by prepping the pork and vegetables.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. We used an electric skillet but a large skillet on the stove top would work as well.

Add the pork and cook for about 3 minutes, until almost cooked through.

Add 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and 1/4 cup of beef broth to the pork.

Add the onions and celery and saute for about 3 minutes.

Add the snap peas, broccoli and mushrooms and stir to combine.

Add the water chestnuts and bean sprouts.

Pour in the remaining soy sauce and beef broth and cover, cooking for about 10 minutes until vegetables are tender.

Serve over rice and enjoy.