Monday, January 30, 2012

Dinner from the Garden

 We tried two new things in our garden last year one was Kohlrabi. I didn't really know much about kohlrabi and I had never tried it, so it was our experiment and this was my first time cooking it. I contemplated looking for a recipe online, but then I thought, no, I would just go for it with the idea I already had brewing in my head.  So I peeled and julienned it and of course tasted it raw. It tastes a lot like green cabbage and brocolli stems, but has the texture of an apple. Delicious.

Kohlrabi, I have learned is very rich in Vitamin C and also contains good amounts of the B Vitamins. It is high in fiber and of course is fat and cholesterol free.


 The second new item in our garden this past year was Rutabaga. We first tried this yummy veggie last year when I found an amazing Italian soup recipe that called for it.  It is delightful! I also peeled and julienned this rutabaga from our garden.

Rutabaga is a cross between a cabbage and a turnip. They are free of fat and cholesterol and are an excellent source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin C, Potassium and Manganese.




 From our garden I also harvested a bunch of brocolli, some carrots and a handful of snow peas. Here they are all chopped up. The dish I decided to make with all of these yummy veggies was a simple stir fry served over hot rice.



 I decided to add chicken to my dish, so I also cut up 3 small chicken breasts, which I stir fried in about a Tb. of olive oil. Once my chicken was cooked through I added in my carrots, kohlrabi, and rutabaga, put a lid on my pan and let them steam until they were about halfway done. Then I threw in the broccoli and snow peas and allowed them to steam until tender. Then I added a can of water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, and baby corns and allowed them to heat through.  Yum, doesn't it look delicious?


While my veggies where steaming I made my 
sauce. Here is the recipe:
 1/2 Cup Chicken Stock
1 Tb. Cornstarch
1 Tb. Oyster Sauce
1 Tb. Hoisin Sauce
2 Tb. Soy Sauce
1 tsp. Sugar
Whisk together and cook until thickened, stirring frequently. Stir in 1 tsp. of Sesame  Oil. Now just stir your yummy sauce into your veggies.




The finished product. It was so delicious and I was so happy to have harvested the majority of the veggies from my garden. The kohlrabi and rutabaga where great additions to this dish. Enjoy!


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