Fresh produce: Walking the wok

So, you talk the talk. Do you walk the walk?

That idiom has been around for ages, and is dredged up on occasion, including in the produce aisle. And I must point out, in this occasion, the challenge is self-directed.
In the hundreds of columns scratched out over the years, it occurred to me that I don’t think I’ve ever described a single meal I’ve personally fixed that included lots of produce. And though I do love eating fresh produce, my natural tendency is to lean toward the “bad stuff” — cakes, pizza, ice cream … guilty as charged.

As an on-the-sales-floor super produce salesperson, on the other hand, I’ve doled out plenty of fresh-produce eating advice: how to prepare an artichoke, how best to de-pit and cube a mango or quickly cut up a pineapple. Everything I could do to answer customers’ questions; explaining the best way to dice up romaine for a salad, to describing how easy it is to steam up a skillet of greens and top with a generous topping of freshly chopped onions.

Related: The power of ads

However, I have a favorite, go-to recipe that I liked to rattle off, when encountering the frazzled evening shopper. You know the one: the mother of three teens who has worked all day, stopped dead in her tracks with the glazed-over look. Who, when prodded, admits she needs an idea — something to fix for her family that is going to be good, easy to prepare and not too expensive. Also, healthy would be nice.

This comes to mind because it’s something I prepared this week: a simple stir-fry.
I offered this idea to the willing customer, who you might guess was all too eager to accept the suggestion. “That hand basket will be ready to go in two minutes,” I’d say. “Let’s start with some bok choy. The customer instantly backed away. “Don’t worry, you don’t have to buy the whole thing. It’s sold per pound,” I assured her as I peeled off two or three ribs. Then, I took out my ever-present trim knife. “About a quarter of napa cabbage is wonderful. Ever try it?” I said. I took a moment to offer a sample. “Crunchy, and sweet, right? If you have any leftovers, it makes a great salad addition — or as a midnight sandwich, all on its own.”

Then, I did a quick escort down the wet rack. “The sky’s the limit here,” I’d say. “What do you like? A few snap peas? A bell pepper, some mushrooms?” I snapped off a few celery ribs. “Here’s a clove or two of garlic, a small chunk of fresh ginger to grate into the dish, a fistful of broccoli crowns, green onions.” With hand basket about three-quarters full, I mentioned how it might seem like a lot, but the stir-fry cooking process would reduce the volume by roughly a third or so. Then, I’d say it’s her preference, but I like to swing by the meat case, grab about a pound of nice pork or stew beef. “Cut that into bite-sized chunks, salt and pepper and saute in a big pan or wok until almost done.”

I did my best to describe how I like to use peanut oil, but any vegetable or canola works well, too. Heat the pan, add oil and, right after the meat is ready, drop in all the wonderful, chopped-up veggies and stir for a few minutes at medium to high heat. Set up a side pan with some minute rice, have some soy and hot sauce at the ready and voila! Dinner is served.

So, how’d I do? I fixed stir-fry one night this week for my family (protein included), and I spent exactly $30. It fed four hearty appetites, and we had leftovers for another meal. That’s plenty of fresh produce servings, eight servings for about $3.75 a plate.

In a period of so much unrest, not to mention unbridled inflation of so many items, you might say I, uh, at least tried to walk the wok.