stir fry

Decided to go pseudo-asian the other night.  Asian because it's a stir fry and I used soy sauce.  Pseudo because, as you can see, I'm totally making this up as I go.  None of that makes this any less yummy though.  What you'll need:

pork fillets
green beans
leaks
bean sprouts
green pepper
soy sauce, sesame oil, fish sauce
spices (I used Chinese Five Spices mix by Penzeys and cumin)
crushed almonds
and of course, olive oil, salt, pepper and turkish red pepper

Slice the pork fillets into thin strips.

Toss in a bowl with liberal amounts of soy sauce, a dash of fish sauce and a few drops of sesame oil.  Let it marinate while you do the rest.

Cut up the beans leaks and peppers into similarly sized strips.  Yes, I'm making fajitas here, but chinese ones.  The sprouts are already conveniently shaped perfectly.

Brown the meat and set it aside.  Sautee all the veggies minus the sprouts with another dash of all those aforementioned sauces and spices.  Not too long, we want everything to stay crunchy!  Add the meat back in and let everything blend.

At the last minute toss in your sprouts.  Serve in your favorite bowl or plate over brown rice, and add some crushed almonds on top.

comfort food in summer

A lot of my comfort foods are heavy on umami and feel like winter foods. Which is as it should be, because winter demands comforting. But I had a yearning for some favourites from childhood, and the veggies sitting in my fridge encouraged it.

I wanted bulgur. I also wanted the traditional rice with fried eggplant, which is eaten cold in the summer. So I combined them, and tweaked it some more to stuff it with more nutrients, because I refuse to make more than one dish a day in this heat. Last night I had it warm for dinner, and today I had it cold for lunch. Both were delicious.

ingredients:

• bulgur (2c)
• eggplant (1 large)
• green bell pepper (1 large)
• chickpeas (1 can)
• beef stock (2 c)
• olive oil
• salt & pepper
• red pepper flakes
• walnuts

Cut up the eggplant and the green pepper. Put them on a large oven tray - don't crowd them. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and some olive oil. Put them into a pre-heated 425 F oven and roast until done.

Put a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a pot. Add the beef broth. When it comes to a boil, add the rinsed bulgur. Cover and cook at medium heat until there is no liquid showing above the bulgur. At this point, it's done or almost done. Note that unlike rice, the bulgur generally likes a 1:1 water ratio.

Add to the bulgur the roasted vegetables and a can of chickpeas which have been rinsed. Feel free to substitute some other legume as the protein source. Season with salt and pepper. Let it cook about 20 minutes on the lowest possible heat, so everything has a chance to meld.

Before serving, sprinkle the top with red pepper flakes (Aleppo, of course) and add walnut pieces. Enjoy. And as usual, it's very low GI, so no guilt at all.