one-skillet meals Archives - Good Food St. Louis

Italian Zucchini

Cuisine Vegetable

Ingredients

2 Tbs. olive oil or vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves minced
1 carrot sliced on diagonal
1 large onion sliced and cut into semi-circles
3-4 small zucchinis thinly sliced (or mixed with yellow squash)
¾ tsp. salt or to taste
½ tsp. pepper
¼ cup fresh Parmesan cheese or to taste
Dash of hot sauce if desired

Instructions

Pour oil in large skillet. Sauté garlic and onion several minutes till soft. Add squash, salt and pepper and hot sauce, if desired. Continue cooking about 10 minutes. Adding a lid part way through will hasten cooking time. Top with Parmesan cheese just before removing from skillet.
Serve alone or over noodles.
Kitchen Notes: If adding the carrots---which I recommend for color and sweetness---either slice them very thinly or partially cook whole carrots for several minutes before slicing into skillet. To make this a one dish meal, add ground beef and/or cooked spaghetti noodles. I often add grated cheddar along with the Parmesan.

Chef Bernie Lee touts his Malaysian Curry Chicken in a recent Facebook post.

I paused to drool over this photo of Malaysian Curry Chicken, a creation of Bernie Lee, the owner of Hiro Asian Kitchen. He was serving the tempting dish that night in his trendy Washington Avenue restaurant. I looked at my watch. It was about 7 o’clock and the place is located some distance from me in downtown St. Louis. It was too late for me to make the trip. And, besides, I didn’t want to miss Rachel Maddow.

Chef Bernie Lee happily concocts a stir fry dish several years ago at a house party.

What Would Ina Do?

As I gazed hopefully into the refrig, I shifted into Ina mode. What would the culinary goddess do? The veggie bin was crammed with carrots, corn, potatoes, spinach, squash, peppers, garlic and onions in various stages of aging.

Hmm. . . with my assorted vegetables, a few spices, and a can of garbanzo beans, I could make my own curry dish in time to watch Rachel. But, doggone it, I had no chicken.

Not to be Deterred

Nonetheless, I soldiered on. I chopped up a soffritto (garlic, onion, and ginger) and got it whizzing nicely in the skillet. Then I browned the chopped veggies, spices (curry powder, turmeric, red pepper flakes) and a bit of burger leftover from the previous night. I added a splash of chicken stock and let things simmer along for 10 minutes or so.

Normally, I’d cream up such a mélange with some coconut milk, but I was without. Instead, I added a jolt of Vietnamese nuoc mam, which always stokes the umami flavor. Though not as creamy as I would have preferred, the dish smelled and tasted divine. I had a big spoon of it plated and ready to eat just in time for the broadcast. (These days, one needs comfort food while watching the evening news.)

A one-skillet meal loaded with vegetables.

When I have coconut milk the dish turns out creamier.

My make-do “Clayton Curry Sans Chicken” (as I dubbed my creation) was quite good for a last minute concoction. Even so, I’m sure Bernie’s Malaysian Curry Chicken includes more exotic spices—and certainly some poultry parts. My inner-Ina tells me I should check out Bernie’s version the next time I’m at Hiro.