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We could all probably use more vegetables right now. Here’s one way to make them delicious.

This recipe is there for you when you need a quick, somewhat healthy meal at home.
 
Tampa Bay Times
Published April 14, 2020

The coronavirus pandemic has inspired all sorts of strange thoughts. Some are dark and scary; others are small and fleeting.

And then there is this one I had the other day: “Wow, I really miss vegetables.”

As the way we obtain our food has changed, so has the content of our meals. In those first few weeks of shopping madness, while stocking up on enough paper products and nonperishables just in case, I kept forgetting to buy things I used to buy before all of this. Things like fruit and vegetables.

Stores have not been low on these items. In fact, fresh produce is the one thing reliably stocked every time I go to my local grocer. But it’s harder to buy foods like this frequently when you’re also trying to limit the number of times you shop. Even when you dutifully place herbs in a zip-top bag with a wet paper towel, they only last so long.

But after weeks of fun and games and homemade bagels, my body had had enough.

“Please stop feeding me loaf cakes,” it said. "I desperately need a cruciferous vegetable."

Fine!

Related: Foods for your pantry

I placed a grocery store pickup order for a rather large quantity of fresh produce. Miraculously, I got almost everything I ordered: broccoli, cauliflower, scallions, jalapenos, tomatoes, asparagus, avocados, strawberries, onions, sweet potatoes.

It took about two minutes for me to realize I panic-purchased, and had loaded up on at least three weeks’ worth of stuff that would not keep for more than a week. It’s a bad habit, I know, but I’ve found myself doing this a lot, as grocery shopping gets more and more stressful.

In an effort to not be wasteful, and also to ensure I had options to counteract the fistfuls of Goldfish crackers I’ve been pounding, I came up with a couple of recipes that would use a lot of vegetables and keep for a while. Freezer-friendly items I wouldn’t get sick of after the second helping.

One of them is this one-pot recipe that I first made approximately 8 million years ago, before all this started.

The star of this dish is the sauce, which is made mostly from pantry ingredients you likely have on hand. If you don’t have coconut milk, consider stocking up on a few cans if you see it next time you’re out. It’s versatile for sauces like these and also things like smoothies, curries and stews.

The term “adobo” refers to the practice of marinating meats or vegetables in a sauce, and that’s the basic premise here. The beauty of this recipe is that you could substitute the cauliflower for just about anything you have on hand. Broccoli? Yeah. Carrots? Of course. Pieces of chicken or tofu? You bet.

Feel free to double the sauce, too. That way, no matter what you manage to score at the grocery store, you’ll have something delicious with which to douse it.

Cauliflower Adobo With Rice

1 large head cauliflower, cut into florets

3 tablespoons canola oil or extra-virgin olive oil

Black pepper

¾ cup soy sauce

⅓ cup distilled white vinegar

½ cup canned full-fat coconut milk

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¼ cup honey (you could also use 2 tablespoons granulated sugar)

½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 small shallots, quartered

6 cloves garlic, minced or grated

4 dried bay leaves, optional

Cooked white or brown rice, for serving

Green onions and limes, optional, for serving

Preheat the broiler to high. On a large baking sheet, combine the cauliflower, 2 tablespoons oil and a pinch of pepper. Spread the cauliflower in an even layer. Transfer to the oven and broil for about 5 minutes, until the cauliflower is just beginning to char. Keep an eye on it!

Meanwhile, in a large glass measuring cup, combine the soy sauce, vinegar, coconut milk, honey, red pepper flakes and ¼ cup water.

In a large skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the shallots and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and pour in the soy sauce mixture. Stir in the charred cauliflower. Add the bay leaves, if using.

Bring the sauce to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium. Simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes, until the sauce is thickening slightly. If the sauce thickens too fast, add ¼ cup additional water. If the sauce is not thickening, simmer an additional 10 minutes. It’s better to have more sauce than less sauce.

Remove the bay leaves and discard, if using. Serve the cauliflower and sauce over rice and top with green onions and a squeeze of lime juice, if using.

Serves 4.

Source: Adapted from halfbakedharvest.com