vorace.: Quick & Easy Brown Rice Bowl

I just have to say it again! Happy spring! I am so beyond excited that spring is finally here. Winter here in the northern VA area was brutal. I know it was brutal all up and down the east coast, so I can only imagine folks up in Boston and NYC are feeling what us DC-metro areas dwellers are feeling times ten! Let's all take a collective exhale in gratitude for warmer weather and sunnier skies. Ahhhhh...

Because the weather is so beautiful right now, I'm trying to spend more time outdoors walking my dog and taking photos, like I did this past weekend during the Washington, DC Cherry Blossom Festival:

But spending more time outdoors cuts down on time available to spend in the kitchen. Therefore, I've been trying to stick with quick, simple meals and getting as much help as I can from prepared produce and my own food prepping - preparing something in bulk and storing it to use throughout the week in multiple dishes. This is always a good idea, but especially when you're short on time or want to be soaking up some rays instead of slaving over a stove.

One of my favorite go-to store prepared produce items is this Trader Joe's Asian veggie mix. They combine mushrooms, baby corn, snap peas, onion, peppers, and more in one package. So smart! I buy these regularly to make a quick stir fry or to toss into some Thai-style soup. I picked up one of these packages the other night with the intent of making my own brown rice, veggie, & fried egg bowl for my second installment of the Vegetarian April Celebration. I've actually been making a version of this with some Chinese take-out leftovers, but I wanted to try my hand at creating my own flavors and of course, having more control over the quality of ingredients. I have to say, this recipe turned out to be really tasty and oh-so-easy to make!

For this recipe I definitely took some short cuts with the pre-packaged Asian veggies and prepared brown rice and I suggest you do the same! Grab whatever similar pre-prepared (that is - washed & diced) veggies your grocery store has to offer and go with it. Really any veggies will work in this recipe. I also cooked some brown rice earlier in the week and made extra so I would have leftovers. That's what I used for this meal. Both of these tips cut down on cooking and prep time, keeping things nice and simple.

OK, let's get wok-ing!

Brown Rice Bowl
Servings: 1
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

Pan Sauce
4 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon yuzu juice
1 teaspoon garlic paste
1 inch fresh ginger (peeled)
4 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
1/8 teaspoon Chinese Five Spice
1/4 teaspoon ground fresh chili paste
4 teaspoons liquid aminos
Pinch of salt

1 cup cooked brown rice
1 handful kale leaves (removed from stems), chopped
1/3 of Trader Joe's Asian veggies mix, which amounts to approximately one handful of each of the following:
-Chopped bell peppers - I used red & green
-Chopped yellow or red onion
-Broccoli florets
-Baby corn, cut in thirds
-Sugar snap peas and/or sweet peas in the pod
-Mushrooms - variety of your choosing
1 egg
Pinch salt & pepper
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Sriracha to taste

Start by placing a wok or pan with high sides over medium-low heat.

Add the sesame oil, yuzu, and garlic paste and stir to combine.

Let that cook for a minute, stirring constantly.

Next, use a microplane or fine grater over the wok to grate the ginger, and then add in the rice wine vinegar. Stir.

Sprinkle in the Chinese Five Spice and stir.

Add the chili paste, liquid aminos, and a pink of salt. Stir.

Let this cook for another two minutes, stirring constantly.

Now add all of your veggies to the wok and stir to thoroughly coat them in the sauce.

Let the veggies cook for five minutes, stirring occasionally.

During this time, toast your sesame seeds. Add them to a small frying pan to toast them on the oven over medium heat, or toast them in the toaster oven for about two minutes, until they've turned golden brown.

Remove from the heat and set aside.

Once your veggies have been cooking for about five minutes and started to soften, add the cooked brown rice and stir it to mix in with the veggies and sauce.

Saute the rice with the veggies for another five minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the rice is cooking, make your fried egg.

Place a non-stick pan over medium heat and add 1/2 teaspoon olive or grapeseed oil. Allow the oil to heat up and distribute to cover the surface of the bottom of the pan.

Crack your egg directly into the pan, careful to avoid any shell pieces falling in.

Sprinkle with a pinch each of salt & pepper.

I like my egg more over medium than sunny side up or runny at all, so I cooked it for about two minutes on the first side, then gently flipped it to cook for an additional minute on the opposite side. For a runnier egg, cook on the first side one minute, then flip and cook the second side one minute. Or do the whole sunny-side-up deal, and leave it to cook on the first side to your desired runniness. Just please make sure you don't get salmonella, k?

Once your egg is cooked, your veggies/rice should be done as well. Turn the heat off on the egg and leave it in the pan until you set up your veggies/rice.

Scoop the veggies & rice into a serving bowl.