Quick Quinoa Stir Fry

Sonny left today for his annual man trip- a weekend of hanging out and fishing in the streams of Southwest Virginia.  Buddy misses him already...

 

But, why is this a win for me?  Hopefully, Sonny will be returning from the trip with a cooler full of delicious freshwater trout so we can stock up our freezer for the winter...YUM!  Look for trout recipes to come!

But tonight, it's just Buddy and me.  So, while Buddy is content with a bowlful of dog food, I decided to create a hearty, balanced meal with the random items I found in the fridge. 


I found some leftover quinoa (made earlier this week) and some delicious, fresh and local NC veggies that we got in The Produce Box delivery we received this week.  Some beautiful yellow squash, a crisp green bell pepper, a yellow onion and some leafy green tatsoi just begging to be eaten!  You can certainly substitute any vegetables you have on hand. 

Not familiar with tatsoi?  This delicious leafy green is often used in Asian cuisine in salads or stir fries, similar to how bok choy may be used.  Unlike the mild flavor of bok choy, tatsoi has a spicier, mustard-like flavor.  Perfect to add some zest to my meal. 

Get a sauté pan nice and hot over medium heat and add in some oil.  I used peanut oil to contribute to the Asian flavor.  Olive oil would work as well.   I chopped my veggies while my pan pre-heated.  You are looking for about 6 cups chopped vegetables.  I started my onions and peppers first since they take the longest to tenderize.  After about 4-5 minutes, I stirred in my squash.

After another 5 minutes, I stirred in my peppery tatsoi, along with a touch of low sodium soy sauce and lime juice.  Stir for about 1-2 minutes, just until the greens start to slightly wilt.  Remove veggies from the pan and set aside.

Keep your sauté pan over medium heat.  Add a little more oil and scramble some eggs right in the hot pan.  When eggs are set, add in leftover quinoa, along with roasted garlic and ginger (both the minced, jarred varieties to save time), a little more soy sauce, sriracha (gotta have a little heat), and some peanuts for texture. 

Now all that's left is to stir your veggies back into the pan.  Mix together just until heated through. 

Who said comfort food had to be heavy and high in fat?  And I have more than enough for lunch leftovers tomorrow.  The beauty of this recipe is that you can make so many substitutions depending on what you have on hand.  Don't have onions, bell pepper, and squash?  Use broccoli & carrots.  Don't have tatsoi?  Use spinach, bok choy or swiss chard.  Don't have quinoa?  Try leftover brown rice.  Don't have peanuts?  Try sesame seeds or cashews.  You get the idea... enjoy!

 



Quick Quinoa Stir Fry
6 cups chopped vegetables of your choice (any combination of onions, bell peppers, carrots, scallions, broccoli, water chestnuts, leafy greens, eggplant, cauliflower, etc)
2 cups leftover whole grain (quinoa, brown rice, wheat berries, barley, etc)
1 Tb peanut oil, divided (may use olive oil)
2 Tb low sodium soy sauce, divided
1 Tb lime juice
3 eggs
1 tsp sesame oil (optional)
1 tsp sriracha
1 tsp minced roasted garlic
1tsp minced ginger
1/4 cup chopped peanuts
ground pepper to taste

1. Heat 2 tsp peanut oil in sauté pan over medium heat.  Cook your vegetables in hot oil until crisp tender.  Stir in 1 Tb soy sauce and lime juice.  
2. Remove veggies from pan and set aside
3. Add remaining tsp peanut oil to pan and scramble your eggs.  When eggs are set, add leftover grains, sesame oil (if you have on hand), sriracha, garlic, ginger, peanuts and ground black pepper.   Enjoy!