bok choi + king oyster mushroom quinoa

Can I tell you how amazing it is to once again have fresh produce inspire my everyday meals. I really thought inspiration like this wouldn't be here again until late Spring. As I mentioned in Monday's post, I am lucky enough to have an amazing Winter Farmers Market just a short drive away. The number of Farmers and the amount of produce and veggies at the market had me in giggles, I was happier than a kid in a candy store.

One of the last farmers I visited had the most beautiful bok choi I had ever seen - I actually had never seen bok choi at our local farmers market. I was instantly drawn to the red choi - it actually looks more purple in color, but is part of the red choi family. Having no idea what I would make with choi having never cooked with them I bought three, I would figure out what to do with them later.

My very first find of the day was NH grown Mushrooms- SAY WHAT! Holy cow, we have someone in NH growing their own organic mushrooms - how did I not know this? Let me tell you, I could have spent a $100 with the mushroom man - instead I spent $17 on 4 gorgeous king oyster mushrooms and some other really fancy dried mushrooms that I plan on using this weekend (recipe to come!)

  So after our breakfast of champions I set to work on what to do with my market finds. When you have fresh, beautiful produce 9 times out of 10 simple is best.

This dish comes together so incredibly fast- even faster if you have some quinoa cooked and ready to go.

A simple Asian inspired sauce is whipped up with ingredients I am sure most of you have on hand, a quick stir fry in the pan and you are more than half way to lunch.

The one ingredient you may not have kicking around in your everyday pantry is the Umami Paste which is totally optional. Justin surprised me with the Umami paste for Christmas (he knows his way to a foodies heart) - you can find it here on amazon, it is a pretty cool product. No worries though, without it this dish will still taste amazing.

Is bok choi a familiar ingredient to you? For me it was a first but certainly not my last time cooking with this awesome green!

Are you lucky enough to participate in a Winter CSA or have a local Winters Farmers Market in your area?

Bok Choi & King Oyster Mushroom Quinoa

makes 2 servings

you will need:

2 King Oyster Mushrooms - sliced into rounds

3 small bunches Bok Choi - ends trimmed
1 tbsp coconut oil

1/2 cup quinoa rinsed well + 1 cup water

for the sauce
2 tbsp tamari

1 tbsp sweet white miso

1 tbsp rice vinegar
drizzle liquid sweetener
1/4 tsp umami paste (optional)
1/4 cup + 3 tbsp water

pea shoots

assembly:

in a small sauce pan bring 1 cup of water to a boil - add rinsed quinoa and cover. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Turn burner off and allow quinoa to sit covered, for an additional 5-10 minutes. 

In a medium bowl whisk all sauce ingredients reserving 3 tbsp of water - set aside.

Melt the coconut oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat - add the mushrooms to the pan and half of the sauce- pan sear mushrooms until both sides are golden brown, if needed add a tablespoon of reserved water to prevent sauce from burning. Add bok choi and reduce heat to medium/low, add remaining sauce and saute until bok choi is just wilted but still bright in color. Remove pan from heat.

Evenly divide quinoa amongst 2 bowls and top each bowl with bok choi mushroom mix*

If desired top with fresh pea shoots.
 
*(divided evenly between both bowls)

Enjoy!