Tag Archives: rice

Bok Choy Rice Bowls

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IMG_20190925_121921318 (3)When I picked up my share this week Paul handed me two huge, beautiful bunches of bok choy. They are one of my favorite greens to cook with, and are really two vegetables in one. The leaves are tender and vegetal, and the stems have a great, slightly watery crunch (but aren’t nearly as fibrous as chard or kale stems). I often stagger the cooking of the stems and greens as I’ve done in these bowls so the greens don’t overcook. Besides in stir fries, bok choy is great in soup, or can be roasted to up the crispy factor.

These bowls are my perfect weeknight meal. They come together in the time it takes to cook rice, are packed with vegetables, have a flavorful sauce, and are easily adapted at the table to each diner’s personal preference. (Not everyone likes as much chili crisp as my husband…) I love a good tofu bowl, but sometimes draining, marinating, and roasting is just not what I have energy for.

My full Potter Hill share this week was lettuce, bok choy, eggplant, onions, kale, cherry tomatoes, savory, and apples. I used the lettuce and apples in a big salad with cucumbers and lentils with a green dressing very similar to this one. I just snacked on the cherry tomatoes, but they would be great in couscous salad, a big salad with ranch dressing, or pizza. The eggplant is destined for moussaka, but you could go for vegan teriyaki eggplant (double the sauce) or not-at-all-vegan eggplant and roast beef sandwiches. Kale and apples make for a great autumnal salad. Kale is also one of my favorite greens to pair with eggs (exhibits A, B, and C). I just bought some vinegar powder that I’m very excited to experiment with, and I’m going to dust some roasted potato wedges with savory.

Bok Choy Rice Bowls

Serves 4

Adapted from Dinner by Melissa Clark

Notes: The photo above differs slightly from the recipe below. It was dark by the time I finished cooking dinner, so I waited until lunch to take photos. I forgot to bring the kimchi and sauce to work 😥 so those are absent, and I made a 6 minute egg instead of a fried one. What is written below is how I will be remaking the recipe.

  • 1 cup brown rice
  • 1¾ cup water
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon peanut oil, divided
  • 1 large bunch bok choy (mine was 14 ounces)
  • 4 eggs

Sauce:

  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 4 teaspoons grated ginger
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • A pinch of salt
  • 3 tablespoons peanut oil
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

For Serving:

  • 1 cup chopped kimchi
  • 1 scallion, sliced
  • Sesame seeds
  • Furikake (optional)
  • Chili crisp or your favorite spicy condiment (optional)

Bring the water and salt to a boil in a small pot with a lid. Add the rice, stir, cover, and reduce heat to medium low. Cook for 40 minutes.

Put all sauce ingredients in a jar and shake to combine.

Cut off the base of the bok choy if it is a single plant. Separate the stems from the greens. Chop the greens and wash. Wash the stems and cut them into ½” inch pieces (slice the stems in half lengthwise first if they are more than 1″ thick).

Heat a large pan over medium high heat. Add 1½ teaspoons oil, and when hot add the Bok choy stems. Cook for 5 minutes, until they begin to soften. Add the greens and stir. Cook for another 5 minutes until wilted. Place in a bowl and wipe out the pan. Heat and add the remaining oil. Fry the eggs to your desired doneness (I recommend over-easy).

Serve bowls with rice, greens, eggs, sauce, kimchi, scallion, sesame seeds, furikake, and chili crisp.

 

 

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Athena Bowls

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IMG_6979 (3)When I came home with my CSA share I laid the mountain of vegetables out on my kitchen table and started pulling out cookbooks. I was paralyzed with dinner indecision, but after much perusing I saw a recipe in Plenty  for “mixed grill” with parsley oil, that was essentially grilled eggplant and zucchini with a parsley sauce. I loved the idea but knew that I didn’t have quite enough vegetables for dinner and lunch leftovers. That recipe reminded me of my favorite root vegetable bowls with parsley sauce, which combine starchy vegetables and chickpeas to make a bright meal. Plus there was feta in those bowls, which paired with eggplant screams “Greek!”

This all led to the happy invention of what could be called Greek burrito bowls, but that sounded weird, and since there was no exact Greek dish I was turning into a bowl, it needed a whole new name. And thus we have Athena Bowls! Greek inspired, summery, filling, and vegetarian (easily vegan). Perfect for August, when the humidity breaks enough that turning on the oven is a thinkable act.

My full Potter Hill share this week was eggplant, cherry tomatoes, tomatoes, shishitos, broccoli leaves, fresh onions, cucumbers, lettuce, thai basil and scallions. I’ve been eating the tomatoes and cucumbers in the morning over yogurt with Alison Roman’s savory granola from Dining In and it is heaven. The scallions went into a slaw for fish tacos, and the lettuce is went into BLTs tonight (first of the summer!!) with some charred shishitos and aioli alongside. If you need basil ideas I posted a bunch last week.

Athena Bowls

Inspired by The Mediterrenean Dish

Roasted Vegetables

  • ¾ lb eggplant, chopped into 3/4″ pieces
  • ½ lb cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 4 oz onion (1 small onion), chopped
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

Lemon Rice

  • 1 cup brown rice
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • 4 oz onion (1 small onion), diced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 ½ cups of water, plus water for soaking
  • ½ lemon, juiced
  • ½ teaspoon salt

Parsley Sauce

  • 2 cloves garlic
  • ¾ cup parsley leaves and soft stems
  • ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice (about 1/2 a lemon)
  • ½ teaspoon salt

For serving

  • 6 ounces full fat feta, crumbled
  • 1½ cups cooked chickpeas (from one 15.5 ounce can, rinsed and drained)

Preheat the oven to 425F. Toss the eggplant, cherry tomatoes, and onion on a baking sheet with the olive oil and salt. Roast for 20 minutes, then toss. Roast for another 15-20 minutes, until the eggplant is completely soft with some charred bits.

While the oven is preheating cover the rice in water and let soak for at least 15 minutes, then drain. In a small saucepan heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook for about 5 minutes (the onion should star to become translucent). Add in the rice and stir to coat. Add the 1 1/2 cups of water, cover, bring to a boil, and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 30 minutes, then remove from the heat and let sit for 10.

Turn on a food processor with an S blade and drop in the garlic cloves. Let them process until you can no longer hear them bouncing around, then turn it off and scrape down the sides. Add the parsley and salt and process until minced. Turn on the food processor and stream in the olive oil and lemon juice until it is a uniform sauce. Alternatively, mince the garlic and parsley, then stir in olive oil, lemon juice, and salt.

To serve prepare bowls with rice, chickpeas, roasted vegetables, feta, and parsley sauce.

 

 

Green Rice for Burritos or Whatever You Please

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IMG_6937 (3)This week feels like such a relief after the hot weekend. I even went so far as to roast vegetables for dinner tonight! I love roasted summer vegetables, but the opportunities to make them seem few and far between so they should definitely be embraced. This side is a great way to add a ton of fresh greens into a colorful side dish.

My Potter Hill share this week was red cabbage, basil, fresh onions, perpetual spinach, bok choy, zucchini, cauliflower, and lettuce. I used the red cabbage and lettuce to make an epic Cobb salad with my favorite bleu cheese dressing. It is the perfect time to make pesto (classic with basil, or mix it up with other herbs/greens!). Its the perfect time of year to make a batch of peanut sauce for the freezer to pair with summer rolls.

I put this green rice into burritos with roasted vegetables (zucchini, cauliflower, and onions), black beans, avocado, sour cream, and hot sauce. It would be a great side for tacos or chile rellenos, or a base for burrito bowls.

Green Rice

Adapted from Rachel Ray

Serves 6-8 as a side

  • ½ cup fresh cilantro leaves and stems
  • ½ pound tender greens, such as spinach, chard, young kale, or perpetual spinach
  • ¼ cup chopped green onion tops, scallions, or chives
  • 2 limes, zested and juiced
  • ½ cup water
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 6 cups of brown rice, cooked (from 2 cups uncooked)

Place the cilantro, greens, chives, lime zest and juice, half a cup of water and a tablespoon of oil in food processor or blender and process into coarse green paste. Stir the green paste into your cooked rice until it is thoroughly coated.

Vegan Tofu Bowls with Citrus Tahini Sauce

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tofu bowl 2What should make when you need a reset after weekend eating? When you aren’t fully inspired, but have a fridge full of random vegetables? Or, when you feel like there is nothing in the fridge? When you have a bunch of diet restrictions at the dinner table? When you want to eat something incredibly satisfying and delicious?

Tofu bowls.

I’ve been making some variation of this bowl almost monthly for years. Tofu, rice, and the sauce are constants, but toppings always fluctuate depending on the season and what is in the fridge. If the ingredient list for the sauce seems long (or maybe contains nothing in your normal pantry), know that almost all the ingredients keep very well, so once you invest in them once you can make these bowls whenever the craving strikes (which will be often). The sauce is the great unifier and elevator that takes this from a bowl of health to a delightful dinner you really want to eat.

I like to use a mix of raw and cooked vegetables for textural contrast, but you can literally use whatever you fancy. Cucumbers, carrots, radishes, salad turnips, and avocado all make great options for a raw component. For cooked I’ve used many different types of greens (kale, collards, radish, turnip, chard), cabbage, Brussels sprouts, summer squashes, winter squashes, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, and eggplant. Don’t feel limited by these options, use what you’ve got. This is also a great time to utilize leftover cooked vegetables from another meal.

This is the tail end of my CSA and my final week included celeriac, sweet potatoes, radishes, parsley, scallions, and lettuce. I used the lettuce in a salad inspired by this recipe with roasted carrots, couscous, and yogurt. It is an excellent time of year to make these root vegetable bowls.  If you haven’t yet, it’s time to make the celeriac slaw from a couple weeks ago (I’d throw in the scallions too), or this excellent winter chowder. If you want to see the whole season of CSA recipes, they are under the Potter Hill tag!

Vegan Tofu Bowls with Citrus Tahini Sauce

Serves 6.

Tofu marinade and method adapted from Thug Kitchen, sauce just barely adapted from Bowl + Spoon (which is also posted here). I’ve written this to serve 6, but if you want to scale this assume ¼ cup uncooked brown rice (1 ½ cups total) and ~2.5 ounces tofu per serving.

Marinated Tofu

  • ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce
  • ¼ cup rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon grated ginger
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon garlic chili sauce (or, 1 teaspoon grated garlic and 2 teaspoons sriracha)
  • 1 14-ounce container extra firm tofu

Citrus Tahini Sauce

  • 1⁄3 cup fresh-squeezed orange, clementine, or tangerine juice (you only need a little, so go the distance)
  • ½ cup tahini
  • 2 tablespoons honey, maple syrup, or agave
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon sriracha
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper

For serving:

  • Cooked brown rice or noodles (see head note)
  • Raw vegetables and herbs (for these I used 1 small bunch radishes (sliced), pickled onions, scallions, and avocado)
  • Cooked vegetables (for these I used 1 large sweet potato which I cubed and roasted with the tofu, plus the radish greens which I threw on the same pan as the sweet potato in the last 2 minutes of cooking)

Remove tofu from container and drain all liquid (don’t discard the container!!!). Wrap tofu in a clean cloth napkin or dish towel, and place on a bowl/plate. Top with another bowl/plate, and place a weight on top (such as a full can of beans). Let drain for at least 30 minutes, but longer is great.

While tofu is draining place all marinade ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine.

Remove tofu from the napkin and slice into 1/4″ planks width-wise (you should have 10-12 planks total). Return planks to their original container, and pour marinade over them. Poke in between the slices so the marinade can mingle. Let tofu marinate for 30 minutes (flip the slices over halfway through if you can remember to).

Preheat oven to 450F. Spread out tofu slices (reserving additional marinade) and roast for 15 minutes. Flip, spoon extra marinade over each slice, and roast for 10 more minutes. Flip one more time, spoon any remaining marinade over, and roast for 5 minutes more.

Whisk all sauce ingredients to combine. Prep vegetables for serving.

Serve bowls with rice, tofu, raw and cooked vegetables, any extra marinade, tahini citrus sauce, and extra sriracha. For maximum meal flexibility let diners assemble their own bowls.