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Broccoli 9-1-1

It’s probably pretty obvious that I have not been doing much cooking or eating the past few days. Let me tell you, and I am not saying this to complain, but I have not ever felt as bad as I have this week, even when I had pneumonia in the fall. I am happy to say that I am feeling weak but slightly on the mend. There is light at the end of the tunnel, and with a very busy week ahead I could not be happier.

The one problem with not being able to cook was a fridge full of fresh produce and other items that needed to be eaten this week. While many of the vegetables like beets and carrots are going toward a health-boosting juice today, our almost-rubbery broccoli found itself in a spicy peanut sauce with tofu and noodles.

It was a Nasoya kind of meal, thanks to Market Basket’s large tofu selection and wallet-friendly prices.

Nasoya Extra Firm Tofu

I used an entire block of Nasoya extra-firm tofu and a container of Nasoya Chinese-style noodles.

Nasoya Chinese Style Noodles

In addition, I used several heaping spoonfuls of Trader Joe’s Valencia Peanut Butter.

Valencia Peanut Butter

A generous drizzle of sriracha. . .

sriracha

A head of almost-dead broccoli, cut into florets. . .

steamed broccoli

And a few splashes of Tamari soy sauce.

Tamari Soy Sauce

I started by pressing the tofu in a clean dish towel in a colander, draining off as much liquid as possible. Then, as I always do, I cut the tofu and left it to air dry for about an hour.

image

To assemble the meal, I cooked the noodles according to the package instructions. In a separate pan, I steamed the broccoli in a bit of water, then added in the soy sauce, sriracha, and peanut butter, mixing until a creamy sauce was formed. I tossed in the tofu and noodles, gave it a stir, let it simmer on low for 20 minutes so the tofu would absorb the flavors of the sauce, and served.

noodles and peanut sauce

It was a nice return to real food. The Doritos had to go at some point. They were good and all, but probably not the best food for me to recover from my flu.

What’s on tap for your Saturday?

Tags: broccoli, easy recipes, Food, Nasoya, noodles, peanut sauce, quick recipes, recipe, soy sauce, sriracha, tofu, Vegetarian, vegetarian recipe

Every day, I open up my laptop and I read some truly amazing blogs. I read the blogs that I read because I like the writer’s voice, I like the innovative spirit behind the blog, I trust that blogger’s recommendations because they are tried and true. Most recently, though I tend to make up a lot of recipes myself, I have been garnering meal-inspiration from bloggers. Last week, I made Michelle’s nut encrusted chicken (twice!), and I have been making mental notes of other blog recipes like crazy. On Saturday night, after a day on snowshoes, it was Elina who provided the inspiration. After reading about her Filipino Adobo Chicken, I could not get the photos of the flavorful brown sauce out of my head.

I am vowing to eat more meat between now and the Napa Marathon. It might not agree with everyone, but I feel like I need the added protein, and I am finding that organic, humanely-raised meat makes me feel more energetic.

We normally only eat chicken breast, unless I make a whole chicken, which apparently my husband doesn’t love because of all of the dark meat. Something about making a whole chicken just feels right in the wintertime though, so you will likely see at least once more before spring graces our doorsteps.

I followed Elina’s lead with the chicken and used drumsticks for a change. I also pulled out some organic apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, jalapenos, and bay leaves.

Chicken with Soy and Vinegar Sauce

After doing my best to skin the chicken (and some skin fell on my bare foot, EW!), I whipped up a marinade using the above ingredients. I really eyeballed it but made sure I used a lot of garlic and several sliced jalapeno peppers, seeds and all.

jalapenos

Once the garlic and jalapenos were chopped, I added the chicken, then poured in the liquid ingredients, using tongs to toss the chicken and to coat it nicely with the sauce. I set this aside for about an hour before putting it on the stove to cook for 45 minutes.

Chicken in Soy and Vinegar Sauce

As Elina’s posts mentioned, the meat fell off of the bone. Every time I opened my trusty Le Creuset pot the tangy smell that escaped was amazing. By the time the chicken was done, we were dying to eat.

Chicken in Soy and Vinegar Sauce

As we had a late lunch, a spinach salad with nuts, cheese, and fruit, I kept it simple and sautéed some mushrooms that I bought, already cut and cleaned, at Trader Joe’s. They cooked for awhile in a pat of butter, then I added them to the chicken and sauce. mushrooms

The combinations of flavors was intense and delicious! The meat was so rich, and the sauce had us using our hands, spoons, mushrooms, whatever we could to mop it all up. As a lover of vinegar, I was thrilled with the way this dosh brought a burst of flavor with each bite. I will definitely be making it again and again. Thank you, Elina, for the inspiration!

I feel like paying extra for mushrooms that are cleaned and chopped is totally worth it because I HATE getting the dirt off of mushrooms. I just don’t seem to get it all, and it disgusts me.

What convenience do you feel it is worth it to pay extra for? Grated carrots? Pom arils already removed from the pomegranate? Tell me I am not the only one!

Tags: bloggers, chicken, Food, jalapenos, mushrooms, recipe, soy sauce, vinegar

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