Chicken Bok Choy Stir Fry, Produce Rotation, and My Pal Mac

Note to self:  If I get through this post without throwing the computer in the pool, I can throw myself a coronation as the Queen of Awesome Everything.  ((My buddy Mac the Mac Book is driving me insane with freezing up.  What?  You don't name inanimate objects?  You should start.  Yes, I know I'm weird.  It's part of my "charm."))

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Now that we are all on a clean living streak and totally over and beyond all the boozy desserts, let's play a game of Clean Out the Crisper!  Because I am on continual produce overload around here, I have worked out some ways to prevent having to throw things away.  It works fairly well...  Basically, I have my refrigerator set up into a rotation system.  The stuff that I have had the longest and that needs to be used first is on the top-most shelf of the fridge, to the left.  I then place the newer stuff to the right.  ((There are studies somewhere that show that if produce is visible at eye level, it is much more likely to be used but I don't have a source to cite other than common sense.))  I keep stuff that really doesn't go bad in the vegetable crisper... stuff like onions, garlic, ginger, etc.  If I were being responsible I would tell you that when you bring everything home, you should douse it in a vinegar wash prior to putting it away, but no one is really going to take the time to do that.  I don't.

Produce stays best in the "green bags" that you can find at the dollar store.  They are recyclable, blah blah Al Gore blah.  Hefty also makes a special vegetable baggie now.  Those work quite well and I usually buy those.  The other tip would be to put a dry paper towel in the bag.  It will absorb any moisture and keep stuff fresher for longer.  Just replace it whenever you dip into the bag.  

No, I'm not showing you a picture of my refrigerator.  If I open the door, stuff is going to fall out.  

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Anyway!  Let's make something healthy so that we don't feel bad about those two glasses of wine that we have later with the excuse of red wine is heart-healthy because Dr. Oz told me to.  Let's do a stir fry which is always a good way to get rid of stuff that needs to be used.

Chicken Stir Fry

What you need for two servings:

2 chicken breasts

1 clove minced garlic

3 green onions, chopped

2 cups of broccoli, made into little trees

2 carrots, sliced quite thinly

1 small bunch of bok choy, chopped

3 slices of pineapple, diced

soy sauce

salt and pepper

chicken broth  

Okay, cook something:

Start by heating your large skillet over medium heat.  Spray it with cooking spray and throw in your green onions ((the white part with the stringy roots cut off)), the garlic, and your chicken breasts.  Cover and let it cook for about 2-3 minutes per side, depending on how thick they are. 

Chicken with garlic and green onions

Remove the chicken to a plate and throw in the "hardest" vegetables, meaning the stuff  that takes the longest to cook.  From the list above, that would be the carrots.  Throw that in, splash in a little bit of chicken broth ((like maybe 1/8 cup)) and let them steam for a couple of minutes.  Add in the broccoli, add more broth ((or just water)) if necessary, recover, and allow to steam for another couple of minutes.  

((We aren't trying to turn things into a goopy mess like you see at restaurants...  We want them to still resemble what they used to be.  This means they are retaining more nutrients and they taste a lot better too.  That's why we aren't cooking the living shit out of these.))

Add in the bok choy and another sprinkle of broth or water if necessary and allow to steam together for about 2 minutes.  ((What looks like a lot of bok choy cooks down to not that much...))

While all this is working, cut up the chicken into bite sized pieces.  Add them back into the pan with the pineapple.  Crack some salt and pepper over the top and add about 4 tablespoons or so of soy sauce.

((Do NOT do what I did which is to forget that you have a new bottle of soy sauce that doesn't have a slow-moving spout.  If you do that, quickly tilt the pan to the side and baste some off or soak it up with a paper towel while swearing a lot.))  Let everything get good and hot ((maybe two minutes again)) and then serve over rice.  I also garnished it with some of the tops of the green onions because I thought I was fancy there for a minute.  It turns out that I am not.  

Nutritional Info ((minus the rice)):  Your trainer is happy!  325 calories, 3 grams of fat assuming a 4 oz serving of chicken.  

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I'm off to the gym...  Happy stir frying!