What's in Your Veggie Drawer?

There was a great post today by Mrs. Q on Fed Up With Lunch (love that blog btw, you should check it out if you don't read it) asking about what is in your refrigerator, with specific reference to the veggie drawers.

Now since we just got home, I had to go restock today anyhow, but this is a fairly normal food run for us.



In the drawer: 1 bunch of celery, 1 lb-ish green grapes, 2 bags of baby carrots, 2 cucumbers, 3 zucchini, 2 nectarine, 2 peaches, 3 plums, 1 apple, 1 onion and unfortunately, 1 head of cabbage b/c I was talking on the phone & grabbed that instead of lettuce (OK, seriously, what am I supposed to do with cabbage????)

Now on the shelf above that drawer, which I couldn't get a good picture of, we have: 2 containers of already sliced watermelon, 2 containers of strawberries, 2 containers of blackberries, 1 contained of mini cherry tomatoes and a bowl of black olives.

On the counter, also not pictured, I have: 1 cantaloupe, 1 honeydew, about a dozen yellow plums, and 2 bananas.

I also have a ton of containers of frozen blackberries, raspberries, blueberries & strawberries for emergency off season use. ;o)

I still need to wash & preslice the melon and clean the strawberries for the kids. I keep it cut in containers in the fridge so they can get their own snacks easily.

Comments

  1. How about coleslaw with the cabbage? You could shred some carrot to go with it. My favorite coleslaw dressing is mayo with teriyaki sauce (just enough mayo for the cabbage - add teriyaki sauce until it tastes good to you).

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  2. I have teriyaki sauce!

    I've never cooked with cabbage before. The darn grocery had lettuce right next to cabbage and I was juggling packages & talking on the phone. And obviously not paying attention.

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  3. Cabbage stirfry works too! I'll look for an easy recipe for you. I know I have one here somewhere...

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  4. a favorite recipe I have for cabbage that is a wonderful comfort food for me...

    brown 1lb of lean ground turkey, drain any juices.
    add shredded cabbage into skillet, reduce heat to low and cover. cabbage will wilt down so use more that you think you would need. Season with pepper to taste and sprinkle with a little shredded cheese at the very end.

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  5. Your produce drawer looks awesome! Thanks for sharing!

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  6. My brother is a chef and my SIL is a dietitian. Last week my parents and younger sister went to visit them. My brother had fixed tacos for dinner and when they went to put the lettuce on their tacos my parents and sister were shocked to find cabbage instead. My brother explained that cabbage 1- will keep in the fridge for months, 2- is more nutritious than lettuce, 3- pretty much is interchangeable with lettuce. They never ever buy lettuce anymore. My sister told me that you couldn't tell it was cabbage instead of lettuce in the tacos.
    I think I am going to try it, because I have often have lettuce go slimy because I am the only one that eats it.

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  7. The only way I can get my family to eat cabbage cooked is to fry it up quickly (trying to keep it from getting too limp) with some chopped up bacon. Otherwise, apple coleslaw: chopped cabbage and apple, dressing of a little brown sugar, mayo and apple cider vinegar.

    Btw, my fridge and counter are just as filled with fruits and veges as yours!

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  8. I love to make Bierocks! Its little rolls filled with cabbage and groubd beef and onions :) http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Runzas-Bierocks/Detail.aspx

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  9. I use it on fish tacos, although I usually buy red cabbage. Also shredded and added to salads is good, gives an extra crunchiness. You could use the cabbage leaves as wraps too, make a chicken or tuna salad, wrap in the leaf instead of bread. Very nicely organzied veggie drawer by the way!

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  10. Sharon, I saw your cabbage question on Fed Up With Lunch and followed you here. My favorite cabbage dish is Sweet and Sour Cabbage:

    Cut 6 to 8 slices bacon into 1-in. or so pieces. Put into a large pot or Dutch oven and cook until crisp. Meanwhile, rinse the outside of the cabbage and peel off any shabby outer leaves. Cut the cabbage into quarters with a big heavy knife. Slice the core from each quarter. Slice each quarter into strips half an inch wide or so (no need to be perfect). Once bacon is crispy, remove from pot with a fork or slotted spoon and set aside. Add cabbage to pot (do not drain) and cook over med. heat, stirring occasionally. While cabbage cooks, cut a large onion into med. dice and add to cabbage. Core 1 or 2 apples (any kind) and cut into med. dice (no need to peel) and add to cabbage. Stir the pot and cook a couple of minutes more just to bring the mixture up to med. high temp. Season with a little salt and pepper and stir. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and continue cooking over low heat for 30 to 45 min., stirring occasionally, until everything is wilted to your liking (the apple skin should have lost its color at this point). Sometimes I add raisins or caraway seeds toward the end of cooking but these are optional. If there's a lot of moisture in the bottom of the pot, remove the lid and continue to cook on low until the excess evaporates. Stir in 2 tbsp. vinegar (white or apple cider) and 1 tbsp. sugar (white or brown). Take a taste and adjust salt & pepper to your liking. Also add more vinegar or sugar to your liking. Transfer to serving bowl and sprinkle reserved bacon over top. This dish is especially good with pork. In summer, it's especially yummy with sausage cooked on the grill.

    Cabbage is a cruciferous vegetable; they are thought to have anti-cancer properties.

    I love your blog and follow it regularly even though I don't have kids. I'm trying to cut down on food waste and have recently started making bentos for myself. Your ideas (and kids!) are so cute and I get great inspiration from you. Keep up the good work!

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  11. Asian Inspired Coleslaw

    Dressing
    ½ cup plus 1 T rice vinegar (seasoned or unseasoned)
    1 T sesame oil
    ¼ cup sugar
    1 t grated fresh ginger
    salt and pepper

    Salad
    6 cups thinly sliced green cabbage (substitute some red cabbage if you like)
    3 cups shredded carrots
    2 cups spinach leaves, thinly sliced
    1 red bell pepper, julienned
    ½ cup chopped cilantro (optional)

    Mix salad ingredients together, top with dressing. I let the mix set for a few hours in the fridge to marry the flavors. It is wonderful during the summer.

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  12. We eat cabbage steamed with a teeny bit of butter and any other veggies around. It's delicious!!!

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  13. Thanks everyone! Going to run these by Shaun to see which one catches his interest. And next time, I think I'll doublecheck the wrapper on the green stuff. ;o)

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  14. Shannon, I called you Sharon yesterday. My apologies! I can't believe I did that! :o(

    Kim

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  15. AWESOME slaw for fish tacos (works well for wraps with roasted chicken or -- my kid's favorite -- leftover steak too). I will eat this stuff on chicken wraps for days on end:

    3 cups shredded cabbage
    2 small ripe avocados, cut into small pieces
    3/4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro leaves
    3 to 4 thinly sliced radishes (optional)
    1/4 cup finely chopped onion
    -- Juice of 4 limes or 2 lemons
    -- Drizzle of vegetable oil
    To prepare the cabbage salad: Combine all of the ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring until the avocado sort of melts into the dressing, if it's ripe enough. Season to taste with salt and pepper and add more oil if needed to bring the ingredients together.

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