roasted carrot & broccoli quinoa

back on my quinoa kick… toasted with some vibrant veggies!

this is a simple way to repurpose leftover apple-glazed roasted carrots and use up that extra broccoli that’s been sitting in the crisper in your fridge. oh yeah, and quinoa is a fantastic way to add a little fiber boost to a dish.

prep veggies:
– chop leftover roasted carrots into thin sticks
– cut broccoli into small florets

the quinoa:
– bring to a boil: 1 cup (250mL) organic quinoa & 2 cups water in a small pot (no cover)
– then reduce to simmer, cover pot and cook until the water is absorbed into the grains (approx 10-12 min). it’s ready when the grain is translucent.
– allow to cool, then fluff with a fork

the stirfry:
while the quinoa is cooking, start stirfrying the veggies.
– add broccoli florets to a large wok on medium heat
– add 1/4 cup water to wok and blanch broccoli until it turns a vibrant green and slightly tender
– heat up 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil in a large wok
– add 1/4 white onion (peeled, rough chop) to wok

– add a dash of sea salt
– add chopped carrots to wok
– season w/ ground black peppercorns
– stirfry for a few minutes until veggies are warmed up
– add 1.5 cups cooked quinoa and toss with veggies in wok, until quinoa is slightly toasted

cashew beef & veggie stirfry

one wok wonder. i love to cook, but i’m not a fan of cleaning up the mess in the kitchen afterwards. :) so i thought i’d take the challenge of cooking up a meal in one pot or pan to keep it simple. wok this way…

the beef:
– heat up 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil in large wok on medium heat
– add 2 sprigs of green onions (rooted stems removed, rough chop into sliced rounds)
– add 250g beef stirfry strips to wok
– season w/ ground black peppercorns
– add a dash of sea salt
– season w/ chinese five-spice
– stirfry beef until partially cooked

the cashews & veggies:
in the same wok, add the following ingredients to the stirfry beef:
– 2 cups broccoli (ends trimmed, chopped into small florets)
– splash of water
– 1/2 orange bell pepper (pitted, sliced)
– 1/2 yellow bell pepper (pitted, sliced)
– season w/ ground black peppercorns
– stirfry for 1-2min
– then add 1 cup crimini mushrooms (sliced)
– season w/ ground black peppercorns
– stirfry ingredients together in wok until well combined

chicken & chinese broccoli in black bean sauce

it’s chinese takeaway — minus the cool takeaway box, but homecooked with fresh ingredients.

one of my favorite things about holiday long weekends is indulging in fantastic, homecooked meals at mom & dad’s place. this thanksgiving long weekend, for pre-turkey-day eats, my dad cooked up his specialty dish — chicken & chinese broccoli in black bean sauce. so good. here’s the easypeasy recipe for this family fave…

the chicken:
– bring water to a boil in a large pot
– cut 3-4 lean chicken breasts into cubes
– add chicken cubes to boiling water and cook chicken for approx 10min
– remove chicken from water & set aside
– reserve chicken stock for the stirfry

(tip: stirfry chicken strips work well with this recipe, too.) 

the greens:
– bring lightly-salted water to a boil in a large wok
– add 1 bunch of gai lan or chinese broccoli to wok (bottom edges trimmed, leaves & stalks snapped in halves)
– blanch greens for 2-3min until water returns to a boil
– remove greens from boiling water, and transfer to ice-cold water to stop the cooking process
– allow to cool down in ice-cold water for a few min, until the greens turn a vibrant colour

the black bean sauce:
– soak 1 tbsp dried black beans in warm water for approx 8-10min

(tip: you can typically find dried black beans at the asian food market. another option is to use canned black beans, which you might find in the ethnic foods aisle at your local grocery store. if you use canned black beans, there’s no need to soak them first.)