How much vegetables in my diet?

Posted on Sep 8, 2009 in Hiroko's Blog, Recipes

I am not a vegetarian, but I do love vegetables and fruits.  So, vegetables and fruits occupy 50% of our diet.  The other 50% is consists of protein and wholesome carbohydrate.  Summer is one of the best time to enjoy an extensive variety of vegetables.  And, the most important tip is that you are not eating just a few kinds of vegetables in your salad.  In your preparations you should employ vegetables from all categories, such as

root, leaf, fruit and herbs and spices, in order to get balanced nutrients, color, texture and flavor.  Here is Stir-fried Summer Vegetables Flavored with Miso recipe from The Japanese KitchenUsing this recipe you can enjoy summer vegetables again and again and again until they disappear from the market!  The prparation processes I present here are little different from the originals in my book.  Tossing the vegetables with vegetable oil before adding them to the wok (instead of adding vegetable oil to the wok) is a good idea.  Every vegetable piece is lightly coated with oil and this helps to produce better cooking results.  Adding miso sauce to the empty heated wok surface creates better flavor through caramelization.  But please be careful not to burn it.

Sauce:

1 tablespoon akamiso (salty brown miso)

2 tablespoons sake or dry white wine

1 teaspoon shoyu (soy sauce)

1 to 2 teaspoons toban jiang hot chile-bean sauce or Sriracha

2 teaspoons rice vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

In a small cup combine all of the ingredients.

 

1.3 pound mixed summer vegetables (yellow or green zucchini, red bell pepper, carrot, onion, Russian kale, string beans, white mushrooms, fennel bulb,….)

3 tablespoons vegetable oil or olive oil

Two pinches salt

2 garlic clove, minced

1 thumb size ginger, finely julienned

1 teaspoon shoyu (soy sauce)

Cut all of the vegetables into 1/3-inch slices or 1-inch rangiri cut (see The Japanese Kitchen) and toss them with 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a bowl.  Add two pinches salt and toss them again.  Toss the minced garlic and julienned ginger in a cup with remaining 1 tablespoon vegetable oil.  Heat a wok or a deep skillet over high heat until very hot.  Add teh ginger and garlic mixture to the wok and cook ti over medium heat until ginger and garlic are fragrant.  Add the vegetables and cook them, stirring from time to time, over medium heat until the vegetables are cooked crisp.  Push the vegetables to one side to make a space and add the miso sauce to the empty spot.  Cook the miso sauce over medium heat for 5 seconds.  Push the vegetables toward the miso sauce and toss the vegetables with the sauce.  Add the shoyu and toss it again.  Serve the vegetables hot, with plain white or brown rice or whole wheat toast.