Monday 11 January 2016

Rocket & Roses Thai Scented Veggies (vegan & gluten-free)

Rocket & Roses Kitchen Play List:

Mr Bowie ~ What In The World
Styx ~ Babe
KT Tunstall ~ Hopeless
Gregory Porter ~ I Fall In Love Too Easily
Bizet ~ Marche: Carmen
Kay Starr ~ If I Could Be With You 
Blackberry Smoke ~ Crimson Moon
Neal Schon & Beth Hart ~ I Wanna Know You
Willie Nelson ~ Georgia On my Mind
Truth Hurts ~ Addictive
Blur ~ Country House
The Beautiful South ~ Dream A Little Dream
KORN ~ Got The Life
Beethoven: Piano Sonata#14 in C Sharp "Moonlight"

Shortcuts! A necessary evil in my kitchen right now. I will happily harvest fresh herbs and spend time chopping them up and filling bags and stashing them in my freezer. When I am well enough...so buying the vastly overpriced frozen packets of the same thing from the supermarkets always causes me to twitch with horror. But I do cruise those frozen aisles and check out if they have anything new. And a recent visit to a supermarket near us I found something new indeed. Waitrose have started selling a frozen Thai Mix which has blend of chopped lemongrass, garlic, chilli, coriander and ginger. How could that be wrong in the world of cooking shortcuts? 

I often crave the scents and intense Thai flavours but setting about with the often lengthy list of ingredients is beyond my capabilities right now. So a bag of ready chopped Thai basics seemed like heaven to me. I had a stash of fresh veggies that I wanted to use to cook in a coconut milk sauce. When buying this shortcut I also picked up some beautiful little baby potatoes and a box of rainbow carrots. I decided to forego the usual noodles or rice to accompany this type of dish and go for the root veggies and enjoy them without guilt. Its all about balance, eh? 



Rocket & Roses Thai Scented Veggies (vegan & gluten-free)

Rocket & Roses Thai Scented Veggies    Serves 4
(Original recipe from the Rocket & Roses Vegan Kitchen)

1 tbsp coconut oil
1 large onion, sliced  
4 tbsp Waitrose Thai Mix 
2 cups baby potatoes, left whole

3 long thin orange carrots, trimmed and sliced
1 long thin yellow carrot, trimmed and sliced
1 long thin red carrot, trimmed and sliced
OR 5 long orange carrots
1 cup fine green beans, cut into 1" pieces
6 thick asparagus stalks, tips removed & set aside, stalks cut into 1.5" pieces
1 heaped cup of frozen edamame beans
1 cup hot veggie stock
2 cups Brussels sprout tops, finely sliced or other dark green
1 14oz tin of coconut milk
1 1/2 tbsp hot chilli paste
large handful chopped fresh coriander
8 fresh Thai basil leaves, finely sliced
freshly ground black pepper - to season

Heat the coconut oil gently in a wok or skillet. Add the onion and saute until softened. Add the Waitrose Thai Mix to the onions and evenly distribute. Add in the potatoes and stir well to coat. Cover and cook stirring frequently for 5 minutes. 

Add in the carrots, green beans, asparagus stalks, edamame beans and the stock. Stir well. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook 3 minutes

Stir in the coconut milk and chilli paste, cover and cook for 5 minutes or until bubbling. Sprinkle the sliced greens and asparagus tips over the top and cover again. Leave to cook for 5 minutes. 

Stir in the fresh coriander and Thai basil leaves and season with freshly cracked black pepper. Spoon into serving bowls with extra coriander scattered over the top. 

Enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope your week is a good one.  

~Red~

NB: This is my creation. I have no problems with you using it or sharing it. I simply ask that you give credit where its due and provide links back to this posting. Namaste...~R~