Where do you draw your inspiration from? I’ll be honest, sometimes I just use whatever has been hanging around in my fridge for a while. Nothing like cleaning out the fridge, I say. Sometimes I have the urge to tackle a new recipe, or type of food to use up ingredients that I don’t necessarily choose for myself – otherwise known as something that I don’t usually eat that finds it’s way into my home and fridge via my CSA share.
Usually what I’m trying not to hear when I cook something is “what… is… this…?“ as it’s poked with a fork. I didn’t hear that tonight, instead I heard “is this Chinese food…?” I said it wasn’t. I was surprised that I wasn’t the only one eating the bok choy, but apparently the leaves were less offensive than the stems…? Go figure. I guess if I get that again from the CSA I’ll cool it with the stems and make my dish leaf heavy… A clean plate, in my opinion, means that the food was not too bad.
Broken Bulgogi
adapted from korean beef
1 Tablespoon sesame oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound lean ground beef
In a skillet, warm oil on a medium-high flame (use whatever “high smoke level” oil you have on hand, sesame is preferable) and add garlic and warm until tender and the oils of garlic are combined with oil. Add ground beef and break down and cook through. Drain oil/grease from pan, turn to low heat.
1/4 cup, minus 1/2 tbspn brown sugar (depending on how sweet you’ll want it, play with this)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
1/2 – 1 teaspoon crushed red peppers, depending on how much you like the spice!
salt and pepper
In a separate bowl, or 2 cup measure, combine the above ingredients, and taste. Check and manipulate the additional pinches of this or that til you are sure you like the taste. Add to beef and mix to combine.
1 large green onion, sliced thin to garnish
This happens to be for taste and look, in my opinion — it’s something you might not want to skip.
Stir-Fried Snow Peas and Bok Choy
adapted from Playing House
1 tbspn, high temp cooking oil (
2 medium sized cloves of garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger (or 1/8 tspn powdered/dry ginger)
3/4 pound baby bok choy, leaves separated, or regular-sized bok choy : sliced
1/2 pound snow peas
1/2 cup vegetable stock or water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Get stock ready, boil water, or whatever you have to do to get a 1/2 cup of vegetable stock, add 2 tbspn soy sauce and mix.
In the same skillet you used to cook beef, cleaned out, put oil, garlic, and ginger – heat medium-high. Add the cooking oil, garlic, and ginger into a wok or large frying pan. Turn the heat to medium-high. When garlic is cooked down and very aromatic, add the bok choy and snow peas – toss to combine and coat evenly.
Stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add vegetable stock and soy sauce mix and bring to a boil. Cover and cook for 1-3 minutes until the bok choy is crisp-tender at the stem. Ladle out with slotted spoon so your dish doesn’t get all soggy.
These went nicely with sticky rice. So far the amount that works best for the two of us to eat dinner (without a second helping of rice…) goes as follows:
In a small sauce pan put 1 cup sticky rice. Mix with 1-1/3 cups water. Bring to a boil (without a cover on) and then once it’s boiled, turn to low heat, simmer for about 20-25 mins or until the water has evaporated. Fluff a little with a fork and serve, or stick it in a 1 cup measure cup like I did and plop it on a plate and toss some other food around it and you’ve got a meal!
inasmallkitchen 
Posted on June 28, 2012
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