Jambalaya! Sparks style.....

We kinda went meat crazy while shopping this week and got more than we normally eat.  To use some of it up, I think I'll make one of the family favorites and throw together a pot of jambalaya.... Of course, I'm allergic to shellfish, so it will lack shrimp or other crustaceans that people love so much.  This is a hearty, spicy melange of rice and beans with a few different meats.  Great on cold days, or to stretch a small amount of meat to feed a family (or if you're like us, and just don't like every meal to be heavy on the meats.)

A simple one pot meal that takes little effort to be outstanding.  Also, like most things we make, be creative and change it up.  Heck, I won't link the vegetarians here, because of the amount of meat and meat products in this version, but you could make an all veggie version of this as well, simply substitute the chicken stock for vegetable stock, and use heartier veggies like chunks of portabello, beets, carrots, cauliflower and turnips, chick peas and other beans; I just might have to try that.....

Cost: around $7 for the potful
Time: About an hour
Difficulty: 2

Thursday: Tofu and Veggie Stir-fry

This stir-fry takes a little bit of planning.  Marinate firm or extra firm tofu in a mixture of soy sauce, seasoned rice vinegar, a dash of sugar and sliced fresh ginger overnight first.  Well worth the effort.

Carrots, celery, onions, lots of broccoli, yellow peppers, fresh ginger and marinated tofu.  Heat wok and a separate pan of oil.  Toss veggies in wok starting with onion, then work your way from densest to least dense.  While that's going, fry the tofu in peanut oil until firm and toasty on the outside.  Once ready, add it to the veggies.  Done. I add a dash of soy sauce and a little seasoned rice vinegar while cooking to get the liquid out of the veggies.  This one is missing baby bok choy, but there was none when we shopped.  You can thicken the sauce with a little bit of corn starch shaken with some water.  Served with steamed white rice, as plain as can be.  Does it get any easier? 

Cost: $7 or so for a big wokfull.  3 meals and leftovers for lunch.

Time: 20 minutes from start.  Lots of chopping involved.

Difficulty: 2 Seriously, just chop it up and toss it in.  Just remember to marinate your tofu the night before.

Monday: Pan Seared Chicken with Rice and Veggies

On Monday we made pan seared chicken with broth steamed rice and vegetables for dinner.

This is a fairly straight forward dinner.

I marinated the chicken in a battibecco rub for 2 days prior.  Rubbed it under the skin to really season the meat.  Then I pan seared it over medium high heat in a cast iron skillet. I left the skin on for the first round (20 minutes or so, turning once midway through), cooking with a lid on and pulled the skin off and removed the lid at the end and browned the bare chicken (5 minutes per side).  This way it can cook all the way through without burning, and I can control the sear on the final step.

The rice was just steamed with chicken stock (a staple for the house, next time I make it, I'll post)

The veggies were simple. I parboiled the Brussels sprouts to about halfway cooked.  Then finished them off in a hot pan tossed with extra-virgin olive oil and more battibecco.  I cooked the onions and carrots with the chicken early on so they steamed while the lid was on the chicken.  Then I added them to the pan with the Brussels sprouts and tossed together for a magnificent side dish.

Cooking time: 35 minutes from start to finish
Cost: $9 made enough for four plates
Skill level: 3