Nothing says comfort to me like take out. I have a favorite take out spot where I can order things that won’t break the rules. But it seems this establishment knows all too well how healthy and delicious they are. Does that give them the right to charge an arm and a leg? Nnn, well yes I guess it does 🙁

Good news though! I’ve learned how to make my favorite take out dish at home. And now I’m going to show you how to do it, too. Save some money and have leftover sauce to use later in the week with this delicious and super-flexible recipe.

GINGER MISO QUINOA BOWL RECIPE

(gluten free + dairy free + inspired by The Plant Cafe Organic, San Francisco, CA)

Prep time: 15 minutes

Total time: 30 minutes

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS: Use organic whenever possible.

For the sauce:

• 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil (first cold pressed)
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1/2 cup red or white miso (usually near the butter at your natural food grocer)
• 1 tablespoon agave nectar
• 1/2 cup low sodium vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup ginger, peeled and chopped
• 1 tablespoon gluten-free tamari soy sauce

For the stir fry:

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 8 cups mixed vegetables, and cut into bite-sized pieces

Try to use seasonal veggies. For the Fall version I used broccoli, mushrooms, yellow squash, bell peppers, and roasted butternut squash.

Protein add-ons:

• Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey!
• Baked tofu
• Shrimp

Directions:

Start with the sauce. Heat the oil in a sauce pan over medium heat. Sautee the onion and ginger until they begin to brown. Remove from heat. While the sautee is going add all of the other ingredients to a blender. Throw in onion and ginger mixture into the blender when it has cooled slightly. Puree until smooth and set aside.

Now the veggies. Heat a large sauce pan (or wok) over medium-high heat. Add the oil and garlic, cook for about 30 seconds (careful not to burn it). Add the vegetables one at a time starting with the ones that take longest to cook. For my mixture, the order was as follows: broccoli, bell pepper, mushrooms, yellow squash, and butternut squash last just to warm.

Add 3/4-cup of the miso-ginger sauce if you like the flavor mixed in. I prefer to drizzle the sauce on the finished plate. You can do either. If you’re adding in turkey or shrimp (or any protein), now would be the time. Continue to cook until protein is done.

To serve I grabbed large bowls, added cooked quinoa (recipe linked) to the bottom. Stacked the veggies on top and threw in some baked tofu (recipe linked). The ginger miso sauce was passed around the table so everyone could add their desired amount of flavoring.

Cook’s Note:

As usual this recipe is gluten free. It’s also vegetarian if served with tofu. Use the left over ginger miso sauce (if there are leftovers :)) as a glaze on salmon later in the week to keep things interesting. Get directions on how to make the quinoa, tofu and roasted butternut squash by hitting the links to these basic recipes.

Enjoy! Let me know how it turns out and how you chose to modify things.

Shannon