Side Items

[AFI82]

We're pretty content with the main courses that we rotate through. Salmon, flounder, steak filet, turkey filet, turkey burgers, chicken breast, chicken cordon bleu, flank steak stuffed with mozzarella and spinach, etc. The issue that we have is the side items that go along with it.

The main courses are pretty easy prep. Out of the fridge and in to the oven. So we like the sides to be the same.

It seems like 90% of the time we end up eating green beans, asparagus, and whole grain brown rice.

So what are some quick and tasty sides that you have with dinner? It could be something that you prepare minutes before, or something that you prepare days before and pull out of the fridge for dinner.

[LisaS]

1) Oven Roasted peppers & zucchini (olive oil & salt)
2) Garlic cauliflower mash
3) Oven Roasted broccoli with olive oil, garlic & red pepper flakes
4) Salad with all sorts of greens and raw veg (radish, peppers, cukes, red onion, etc)
5) Quick stirfry of the usual suspects with Asian flavors
6) Quick veg curry (Thai style or Indian style)

[tossedup]

Hey Lisa will you post the recipe for Quick veg curry (Thai style or Indian style) and peppers and zucchini? Both sound really good. I love Thai food.

[LisaS]

Peppers and Zucchini
Take 1 red bell pepper and 1 zucchini. Cut the zuc length-wise in quarters. Cut the pepper length-wise into 4-5 large "sides". Place all on cookie sheet, drizzle a little olive oil, plenty of salt and a little pepper. Roast in 450 oven for at 5 or 10 mins. You can finish with the broiler if it seems to need it. Can add different peppers (like pasillas) if you want a little change - but the thickness of red bells & quartered zucs seem to come out done at the same time. Green bells seem to have thicker fruit and take longer. If I was feeling decadent, I'd hit the zuc with a little parmesan at the end and broil a bit.

[LisaS]

Indian-style curried vegetables
Basically I would just riff off Alton Brown's basic recipe. Toast spices you like, add onions and garlic; nuke or steam frozen veggies (a mix that you like); make yogurt sauce. Mix veg into spices and add to sauce off the heat.

[Lost Dog]

Do you have a crockpot or slow cooker?

Black Beans with Sofrito

First, what's a sofrito? It's a blend of vegetables, herbs, and spices, cooked on the side and then stirred into the beans near the end. Seems like work, huh? It's worth it. Don’t shortcut and just dump it all in earlier. You might not think it matters, but trust me, it does.

I often make these in a slow cooker. When I do, I reduce the water by one cup. They have to cook for a lot longer, but you don't have to watch them to make sure they don't burn or stick.

If using a conventional pot, try to use one with a heavy bottom to insure even heat across the bottom. A thin-bottomed pot can cause the beans to stick in the center, then burn.

Pasilla chilis aren't too spicy, and you’re only using two for the whole pot. You shouldn't be afraid of the heat. But, they might be hard to find, I suggest two red bell peppers, instead. There will be a subtle taste difference, but they will be terrific. I can never decide which way to make them. Each way is different, but equally good.


Beans
1 lb. dried black beans
½ lbs. salt pork or a ham hock
1 medium white onion, finely chopped
7 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups water (5 in a slow cooker)
1 pasilla* chili, seeded and halved
2 bay leaves
1½ tsp salt

Sofrito
1 pasilla* chili, seeded and chopped
1 medium white onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp cumin seed, ground
1 tbsp dried oregano
1½ tsp. salt
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
chopped cilantro (optional)

* You can substitute other chilis, or even green or red bell peppers, if desired


Directions:

Pick through beans, discarding all non-bean material and any beans that are broken or strange looking. Rinse beans and add to the pot.

Rinse salt pork and add to pot. Add onion, chili or bell pepper, salt, bay leaves, and water.

Bring beans to a low boil, cover, and then simmer slowly, stirring occasionally until beans are the desired tenderness (tender but not splitting or falling apart), about 1 ½ to 2 hours. You may have to add more water periodically. The only downside, if you add too much is saucier beans…

Remove the chili/pepper and ham hock/salt pork. Unless the salt pork or ham hock is very meaty, discard it. If it is meaty and you actually like to eat it, you can cool it a bit and pull the meat off and shred it with a fork. Then add it back to the beans.

Make sofrito by sauteing the chili, onion, and garlic until soft.

Add the ground cumin and oregano and saute about a minute, until fragrant. Remove from heat.

Mash 1 cup of the beans with a fork or potato masher (or, alternately, lightly blend 1 cup of the beans and 1 cup of bean liquid in a blender). If you have a stick or immersion blender, use it now. Just stick it in and very briefly pulse 2-3 times. Careful, you can always do more later, but you can never bring the beans back if you do it too much.

Add mashed beans back to the rest of the beans in the pot (unless you used the immersion blender…)

Add sofrito to the bean pot.

Simmer beans, uncovered, another 20 to 30 minutes until thickened to the desired consistency.

Add lime juice and cilantro and stir.

In your world, you serve the beans over rice, if desired. In my world, I just eat them. Why waste calories on rice when there's a whole pot of beans?