Clean Out the Fridge Stir Fry + Reading Issues

This past weekend, I had a serious jonesing for some vegetables, coupled with an overflowing refrigerator. We had so many leftovers that we had taken from various holiday celebrations, not to mention some containers of chopped up vegetables that we had eaten with spinach dip a few days before. My solution? Mix up those veggies in a stir fry!

 

I really love stir fry, mainly because I could eat just about anyting coated in soy sauce. The fact that it's a healthy and tasty way to get some veggies is just the icing on the cake. Don't tempt me with cake right now.

 

I had a can of bean sprouts in my pantry and am always stocked with soy sauce, hoisin sauce and sesame oil. If you ask me, this turned out to be one fancy little stir fry for a Saturday afternoon!

Clean Out The Fridge Stir Fry
any vegetables you have in your fridge (I used a mix of chopped baby carrots, bell peppers, onions and celery)
bean sprouts
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 C soy sauce, preferably low sodium
2 Tbsp hoisin sauce
freshly cracked pepper

Heat both oils together in a skillet. Add vegetables, sprinkle with black pepper and saute until they begin to soften. Stir in soy and hoisin sauces and cook until soft. At the very end, add in the bean sprounts (drained from the can) and cook for just a minute more (I like them to have a little crunch!). Serve as is, or over your favorite grain. For this recipe, I used quinoa cooked in low sodium chicken broth.

It doesn't get much easier than that, my friends! I even had a bit of the leftover stir fry alongside my scrambled egg whites the next morning. Delish.

 

Moving on from food...can we talk about books for a moment? I've kind of been radio silent on the reading thing for a while now. Over the last month, I've been reading book 2 in the Game of Thrones Series, A Clash of Kings.

It's taken me a little while to get into the book, I think because I broke the cardinal rule of book reading. I watched the first book enacted on television (as an amazing show on HBO) and went straight into reading the second book...without reading the first book. I had never done that before, and I'm pretty sure it's hindering my enjoyment of book 2. I am having a difficult time keeping the characters straight (there are so many!) and just getting into the book. Sooooo. I'm debating going back and reading book 1 so that I can get the full treatment! I hate it when I try to take the easy way out and it doesn't work! :)

What are you reading right now? I might need some other suggestions to break this up!

What is your favorite way to 'clean out the fridge'?

Monday's Simple "House of Tsang" Stir Fry

Another cloudy day and another rough Monday morning. This weekend I ordered Indian food, watched eps of True Blood Season 1 (now awaiting disc 3...Netflix better kick into high gear so I can get my Bill fill), barbequed, and stayed out way too late on Saturday celebrating my sister's birthday. Since I'm still sleepy and gluttonously full from my super fun weekend, tonight will be spent doing laundry, writing up a storm, and making a low key dinner for hubby and me. I'll be making one of my Monday night faves, Asian stir fry starring my new favorite sauce, House of Tsang Stir Fry Sauce. Packed with vegetables, this easy recipe is healthy, savory, and a sure fire crowd-pleaser. Please take note that this recipe has little measurements in it. I typically just eyeball everything and throw it into a wok or pan together.

Rachel's Spicy Stir Fry
Ingredients:
1 lb cubed chicken
1/2 onion, minced
Olive oil
Brown rice, cooked (about 1 C per person)
String beans, washed and tips cut off
Broccoli, washed and cut into florets
Carrots (I use bag of baby carrots, available from Fruit Guy at $1/bag)
Cauliflower, washed and cut into florets
Basically any other vegetable you want in your stir fry
House of Tsang Stir Fry Sauce
House of Tsang Spicy Stir Fry Sauce
Salt & pepper to taste

Saute cubed chicken with minced onion in a bit of olive oil. Sprinkle on salt and pepper to season. Once cooked through, remove from wok or saute pan. Add cut, washed veggies to pan over medium heat. Add stir fry sauce to taste (I use half regular, half spicy for a bit of a kick without lighting my mouth on fire). Mix well, cover, and cook vegetables in sauce until tender. Add chicken back into pan, mix well, and cook another few minutes. Serve over brown rice.

Note: Since I enjoy my food completely doused in sauce (after all, isn't the food just a vehicle for the sauce?), I'm not recommending amounts of the stir fry sauce, but instead suggest adding to your own taste.

*Special thanks to Alicia Durand for introducing me to the House of Tsang family of Asian-inspired sauces.
*House of Tsang sauces can be found in the International aisle of your grocery store