Tag Archives: vegetables

CSA Vegetable Chicken Stir-fry

Posted on by — 7 Comments ↓

I’ll admit that I’m not the wok-master of the house. DH makes some great stir-fry, and when we got this week’s veggie box, I knew that he was going to have a fun assignment. The funny part was trying to convince him of what needed to go in the wok.Throw in the peas! And carrots! And OMG slice the kale thinly and it’ll be awesome! I’m such a backseat chef sometimes.

Needless to say, he made this fantastic stir-fry and the instant reaction was that it was a total winner. We used the sugar snap peas, carrots, green onions and kale from this week’s CSA box, and it was all just heavenly. Better still, after two adult portions (and small amounts siphoned off by the kiddos), we had two nice lunch portions.

And before anybody gets crabby about this being on white rice, I’ll have you know that dh made sushi rice in the Zojirushi, and OMG was that awesome, too. It was just one of those dinners where it all came together perfectly, and the only thing we were wishing we could do differently is not have eaten all day so we could just stuff completely. Another positive side-effect of loading up on the CSA veg is that it enabled us to be completely full from just under 4oz chicken each. That totally works, too. Not that I don’t love my poultry and all, but there was something insanely fun about just piling the veg high on the counter and watching dh go to town with the wok.

Note: if you don’t have a wok, I recommend that you try this type of recipe in a large, high-sided skillet. The wok is still the best starting place, but a large skillet that allows you to stir a serious quantity of food without spilling will work in a pinch.

Note, pt. 2: don’t feel compelled to make this with chicken. Make it vegan by ditching the chicken and either upping the veg or throwing some firm tofu in there. Just remember that the tofu shouldn’t need anywhere near the same cook time as the chicken. The point is that veg + wok = heaven.

Note, pt. 3: also, don’t feel compelled to use canned mushrooms. This was a nod to “it’s a weeknight and the kids are chafing at being in the grocery store when they’re hungry and I need to get them home so dinner can be made and BLARGHWHERETHE$*%&ISACANOFSHROOMSSOICANGOALREADY?!”

 

CSA Vegetable Chicken Stir-Fry

JUST. SO. GOOD.

 

Prep Time: 30 mins

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Serves: 4

 

Ingredients

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts (cut in 3/4″ cubes)

1/4 cup hoisin sauce

2 Tb canola oil

2/3 lb snow peas, washed, stemmed and stringed

1/2 lb carrots, washed and cut into 1/4″ rounds

15 oz can sliced mushrooms, drained

8 oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained

1/4 cup teriyaki sauce

1/4 cup green onions, washed and chopped

4 oz kale, washed, stems removed, and cut into 1/4-1/2″ strips

1 Tb cornstarch

2 Tb water

 

Make it Happen

1. Heat the canola oil in a wok over high heat until the oil smokes.

2. Add the chicken and hoisin sauce; stir frequently until the chicken is cooked thoroughly.

3. Simultaneously, steam sugar snap peas and carrots. Steam for 3-5 minutes, until they just start to lose their crispness.

4. Once the chicken is cooked, add to the wok the mushrooms, water chestnuts, the steamed sugar snap peas and carrots, and teriyaki sauce. Stir to combine.

5. Cook the mixture for 2-3 minutes, then add green onions and kale; stir to combine.

6. In a small bowl, mix together cornstarch and water. Stir until the cornstarch is fully dissolved, then add this mixture to the wok and stir to combine thoroughly. Remove from heat and serve immediately.

Wilted Mustard Greens

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

If you want to get some concentrated nutrition really quickly – and inexpensively – wilted greens are just a fantastic solution. I’ve thrown together wilted spinach many times as a quick and easy green side for dinner parties, and you can’t beat the nice pop of color on your plate. Even better, it’s stupid-easy to make; there’s really nothing to it.

This recipe was made with the red mustard greens we got from our first CSA box from our local farm, and it can easily be scaled up to meet the needs of a larger crowd.

Follow along with me, if you will…

Wilted Mustard Greens

Nutritious and tasty – such a great combination!

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 5 minutes

Serves: 2 (small side portions)

Ingredients

1 bunch mustard greens (approx 10oz weight, including stems)

1 small shallot

1 Tb olive oil

Balsamic vinegar

Sliced or slivered almonds (optional)

Make it Happen

1. Peel and slice the shallot; set aside.

2. Cut or chop the stems from the bunch (easiest to do while it’s still held together by a rubber band), then wash the leaves and let them sit in a colander to dry somewhat.

3. Add the olive oil to a large non-stick skillet and heat over medium heat.

4. Add the shallots to the skillet and toss to coat with the olive oil. Heat the shallots in the pan for approximately 2 minutes, until the aroma of the shallots really starts to come out.

5. Add the mustard greens to the pan and, using tongs, combine them well with the oil and the shallots.

6. Use the tongs to continue this combination for approximately 2-3 minutes, until the greens have wilted a good amount and their volume is greatly diminished (what once filled a pan is now easily compressed down to less than half of the pan).

7. Remove from heat and serve immediately. Apply balsamic vinegar lightly over top of the greens and (if desired) top with almonds.

Adventures in CSA (Year 2 Week 1): No surprises

Posted on by — Leave a reply

Color me completely unsurprised that this box wasn’t up to the price that I paid for it. Thinking back on last year’s CSA through work, the veggie box program that seemed destined to build my upper arm strength as I faithfully carried the boxes from my office building allllll the way to my car (not parked next-door), I remember those boxes being filled FULL of stuff. So, when I got this week’s box and it wasn’t nearly as heavy as I expected, and there seemed to be more air than I anticipated, I knew that something was up. In fact, I was fairly certain that I wouldn’t be earning back my $22 investment this week.

I was right.

Here’s how it came out:

Year 2 – Summer Week 1
Weight
(lb)		 Grocery Store Unit Price
(per lb)		 Grocery Store Total Item Cost
Strawberries (pint) 1.00 $3.50 $3.50
Sugar Snap Peas 1.00 $4.99 $4.99
Snow Peas 1.00 $4.99 $4.99
Zucchini 1.25 $1.99 $2.49
Spring Onions 0.31 $0.99 $0.31
Red Russian Kale 0.31 $1.29 $0.40
Red Mustard Greens 0.63 $1.29 $0.81
Carrots 0.50 $0.99 $0.50
Grocery Store Total Cost $17.98
Year 2 Summer Week 1 Savings (Deficit) ($4.02)

Now, it’s not like I’m anywhere near ready to throw in the towel. First off, I have until July 2nd to make a move on whether or not I want to get in on a full season at work’s program for the summer (I can just go month-by-month, otherwise, with no financial penalty). Second, it’s not like there’s a quality issue. This stuff is good, tasty produce. Third, my grocery store isn’t even great about stocking all of these things all the time. In fact, the mustard greens gave me a run for my money, since they didn’t even have them in store this week and I had to look at their price for their “To Go” program (similar to a Peapod-type service) to find out what they usually charge. Plus, my grocery store doesn’t carry Red Russian Kale. They carry (regular green) Kale. Period. That’s not a knock on them; it’s just a statement of fact. Lastly, I understand that the farm has to make money. Really, none of these programs survive if they give away more food than they can afford, offering boxes that routinely are worth more than they produce. I get the concept of profit margin, really I do.

What’s funny is how fast we’ve already gone through a few items. The mustard greens were cooked a day after we got the box (tasty, simple recipe to follow), and the strawberries are greatly depleted. This farm is our regular source for strawberries when they’re in season, and we’ve been going through about 1/2 dry gallon of strawberries every week for the last two weeks. DH had to act fast and stock up, since dd finally caught up to ds on falling in love with the tasty red berry.

So, we’ll see how week 2 goes. I’ve already threatened to use up the snow peas, carrots and kale on a stir-fry, so the week 1 box will disappear RAPIDLY. If week 2 goes similarly, my decision-making process on which box program to use (irrespective of the financial value) may be really tough.