In the evenings I don't always have the time or inclination (let's just say that sometimes I'm too lazy) to prepare fresh vegetables for dinner. I've found that an easy way to have some ready pretty quickly is to keep a big bag of frozen veggies in the freezer.
True, you can't beat fresh vegetables in terms of nutrition and flavor. Some of that is lost or degraded when you freeze things. However it's worse when you get it out of a can, and not nearly as bad as going without vegetables at all.
You don't even need to know how to stir-fry (which is really simple BTW). You just need to have a little steamer. If you don't have one, invest in one. The smaller ones don't take up much room -- it basically consists of a pot to hold water, a second, flatter pot with holes in the bottom, and a lid. The lid fits both parts, so you can use the water-holding part as a regular sauce pot.
On many occasions I've opened the freezer, grabbed the bag of frozen veggies, tossed a bunch into the steamer, and 15 minutes later it's done. You can do other things while it's steaming because you don't have to be there while it cooks. It's awesome.
I've heard some rice cookers have optional steaming pans you can put in to use it as a steamer. It's worth looking into because it saves a lot of time if you don't feel like cooking.
4 comments:
We have a rice cooker and it's fantastic for steaming vegetables and it's easy to manage. I need to do vegetables more often, especially considering how much I like them.
If you like them then you have no excuse not to eat 'em! :) Most people have problems eating them because they just don't like them.
I have two double-decked steamers, one stainless steel and the other bamboo. That really shouldn't surprise you at all, eh?
Next time you buy fresh broccoli, don't chuck the stem: slice em lengthwise and steam till tender. Much tastier than asparagus. Oh, cauliflower greens steam nicely and are tasty.
Ooh a bamboo steamer, not even my Taiwanese mom has one of those.
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