weeknight workhorse

For today's Munchee Monday, I want to share more of a method than a recipe.  This is something you can adapt to a very wide variety of veggies.  I've done it with broccoli, summer squash, carrots, green beans, snowpeas - basically any vegetable you might want for a side.  It's a very quick method, so it's ideal for a weeknight when you may be crunched for time.

You need salt, pepper, olive oil, chicken stock, and your vegetable of choice.  I'll post my recipe for home-made chicken stock here sometime (again, not much of a recipe), but you could use storebought as well.  I like to pour it in ice-cube trays and then pop the stock cubes out and store in the freezer in a plastic bag to make it last longer.

Place 4-8 ounces of your vegetable into a pan with a lid.  Add 1 tablespoon oil, salt and pepper to taste, and 1/4 cup chicken stock.  Turn heat to medium.  Put the lid on.  Leave for about five minutes, or until vegetable is tender (this time will vary, depending on what kind of veggie you're using).  Then unlid and allow any remaining liquid to steam off, moving the vegetables around in the pan.  Depending on what you're using, you might finish with a squeeze of lemon.

That's it!  I seriously do this three or four times a week.  I like how it eliminates the need for a separate pot for blanching or steaming, and it produces very consistent results.