How A Sprained Ankle Helped Clean Out My Crisper

I don't know why a sprained ankle would cause me to crave stir-fried food, but it has. For the past few days, I've been limping around thinking about using up the odds and ends in my fridge by tossing them in the wok with soy and oyster sauce, chopped ginger root, chili sauce, and sesame oil.  And so, the napa cabbage, celery, carrots, and snow peas that needed to be used before they ended up in the withered state that always makes me feel so wasteful, found their way into a few nice meals.  I didn't spend much time on them, cursory chopping sufficed.

I served the dish pictured above yesterday. I call it my Cobb Salad pork, because I chopped carrots, onions, celery and snow peas in small cubes, then stir-fried it with ground pork left from when I made Wonton Soup. 

But, my favorite dish was the Chicken With Napa Cabbage I made on Friday.  It's not as colorful as the Cobb Salad Pork, but since I love cabbage, it was quite satisfying. 

And now, my crisper no longer is filled with aging veggies, reproaching me every time I open the fridge.  Vegetable guilt...not a good thing.

The following recipes are merely a suggestion. Use whatever vegetables you have on hand.  You don't need many different kinds. If you want a large variety--fine. But if you only want to use one or two along with the meat--no problem.  This is your stir-fry.

Cobb Salad Pork

(By Me)

Around 1/2 pound ground pork, crumbled (could be sliced or cubed and it doesn't have to be pork--try tofu)
Veggies of your choice diced small.  I used:
             2 carrots
             2 stalks celery
            1/2 onion
            a handful of snow peas
Garlic, minced--as many cloves as you want. I used 4
2-6 Tablespoons oil
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons oyster sauce
1 teaspoon chili sauce. If you don't like it, don't use it--or use more or less as you prefer
1 Tablespoon chicken stock
1 Tablespoon dry sherry (optional)
1 teaspoon minced ginger root
1 teaspoon sesame seed oil

Combine the soy, chili, and oyster sauces, stock, and sherry in a small bowl.

Heat 2 Tablespoons oil in a wok or large skillet until it shimmers. Add a little of the garlic and ginger root to the oil and then add the pork, cook quickly, stirring constantly.  It should only take a few minutes.  Remove to a small bowl.

Add at least 2 more Tablespoons oil to the wok, and heat until it shimmers then add the carrots, celery, onion and the rest of the garlic and ginger. Stir fry for a minute or two, then add the meat back to the pan.  Stir-fry for barely a minute, then add the soy mixture and cook barely a minute. Then add the snow peas, stir to heat through and remove from the heat. The snow peas will continue to cook from the heat of the food.  Add the teaspoon of sesame seed oil and serve on rice or noodles.

Serves 2 people as the sole dish or 4 with other dishes.


Napa Cabbage Chicken

(By Me)

About 2 cups of sliced or diced raw chicken meat, white or dark
1 small head of Napa cabbage, sliced about 1/4 inch wide 
1 large carrots, sliced in thin strips
1/2 thinly sliced onion
2-6 cloves minced garlic
6 Tablespoons oil
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablesppons oyster sauce
1 teaspoon chili sauce. If you don't like it, don't use it--or use more or less as you prefer
1 Tablespoon chicken stock
1 Tablespoon dry sherry (optional)
1 teaspoon minced ginger root
1 teaspoon seseme seed oil

Combine the soy, chili, and oyster sauces, stock, and sherry in a small bowl.

Heat 2 Tablespoons oil in a wok or large skillet until it shimmers. Add a little of the garlic and ginger root to the oil and then add the chicken, cook quickly, stirring constantly.  It should only take a few minutes. Remove to a small bowl.

Add at least 2 Tablespoons of the oil to the wok and heat until it shimmers.  Add the carrots and onion, garlic and ginger root and stir-fry for  1 or 2 minutes, then add the meat mixture and stir -fry for about 30 seconds. Add the soy mixtures and sir-fry for about 1 minutes. Then add the cabbage and sir-fry quickly. The napa cabbage will wilt very quickly, in less than a minute. Remove from heat, drizzle the sesame seed over it, toss and serve on rice or noodles.

Serves 2 people as the sole dish or 4 with other dishes.

Comments

[Katie]

Carrots add such nice color to stir-fries - which is a good thing because I always seem to have 1 or 2 moldering in the fridge.
Great way to use up the odd bits!
Hope the ankle is on the mend...

[e]

Your Cobb Salad pork looks remarkably similar to one of my favorite dishes at Erawan, my favorite Thai place in Philly. You're making me so hungry!

[Kalyn]

Sorry the ankle is still bothering you, but at least you're eating well in th meantime! They both look yummy.

Now, sit in your chair and read. Stay off the ankle!

[Anh]

Sher, stir-fry dishes are in my comfort zone. Yours sound delicious! Hope that the ankle will be better soon.

[Lydia]

Hope your ankle feels better soon. Meanwhile, I love what you're cooking -- real comfort food!

[Butta Buns]

Man, even a sprained ankle won't keep you out of a kitchen. That stir fry looks very toothsome and I hope it made you feel better.
Get well soon. And stay off your feet!

[janelle]

Yum! So sorry about your ankle, I sprained mine last November and had the whole air cast thing going (along with a healthy dose of self-pity, of course!). It is all better now! I hope yours heals quickly, and that your vegetable guilt stays at bay:)

[Ivonne]

Oh you poor thing! I hope the ankle is feeling better. I know that I'm feeling very hungry after seeing this incredible stir-fry!!!

[sher]

Katie,

Thank you! The ankle is a little better. Yes, I wind up with withered carrots, all too often!

e,

Thank you. I love that kind of Thai stir-fry in lettuce leaves--yum.

Kalyn,

I have been sitting with my leg up a lot, but it's sooooo boring! :)

Anh,

Yes, I love stir-fry too. (Obviously!) I have ever since the first time I had it.

Lydia,

Thank you. I could swear comfort food makes you heal better, right?

Butta Buns,

(Whining!) But, Mommmm--I'm so bored! Can't I go out and play with the other kids???

Janelle,

I certainly hope this all ends soon. Unfortunately, I injured this ankle years ago playing tennis, and it's never been the same. Now, if you look at it wrong, it decides to sprain itself!

Ivonne,

Well, it better get well, because I'm going to be standing on my feet making a certain hazelnut crepe cake! :):)

[Tanna]

Those are both beautiful! You are way outdoing me on that carrot cube that's more than cursory chopping in my book! Somehow it seems your sprained ankle has charged your kitchen battery both of these are inspired dishes.
Hope the ankle is feeling better!

[gattina]

Tell me Sher, why I just woke up am already longing for one, no, actually two, bowls of this rice?!!! I crazy for napa cabbage too! Also hope your ankle recover soon!

[Jennifer]

I'm so lazy I probably would never make it but man! That looks delicious! I hope your sprained ankle heals up soon! :(

[angie]

Oh dear! Hope your ankle will get better soon.

Both bowls of rice are certainly drool-a-licious :)

[Willa]

I'm with Tanna- those chopped carrots are so precise! And you made hungry.

Sorry to hear about Sundance's halter. We had a halter for our house rabbit, but when we took her out in it she became a lump- wouldn't move at all.

Willa

[Patricia Scarpin]

This is perfect, Sher - the first dish for my husband and the second for me. :)

[Gigi]

Mmm...the pork cobb salad looks yummy!

[Glenna]

Both of those look really yummy and thanks for inspiring me! I need to clean out my crisper too and you've given me great ideas.

[Kristen]

Oh yummy yummy yummy! That looks so good.
Hope your ankle heals up soon.

[Rurality]

Just wanted to let you know that I made the Napa Cabbage Chicken last night (with a few small variations) and it was fantastic! I'll definitely be making it again. Thanks!

[Zoe]

I just made the napa cabbage chicken, with a couple small adjustments based on what I had (biggest was using an orange bell pepper instead of carrots) and it was great! Husband especially raved over it -- said it was restaurant-good. :-)