I frequently buy locally raised organic produce through a little mom-and-pop delivery service in my area. I only buy one bag of produce at a time, since I’m the only one in my household.
The service cannot guarantee what will be in the bag of 8-9 items, but they list on their website every week what they think they’ll be able to deliver. This week, one of the items they listed was Bok choy. I decided to get some vegan sausage to cook with the Bok choy, so I ordered sausage for delivery from Whole Foods, along with some other items.
One of those items was a head of Romaine lettuce, since my lettuce garden is at the end of its production, and I wanted to make some salads. I will plant more lettuce soon for a Fall crop.
When my bag of produce arrived, there was no Bok choy. However, they sent 2 heads of Romaine lettuce! Now, I had 3 heads of Romaine lettuce. I can’t eat that much salad, so I decided to braise a head of the lettuce, like the Chinese do. The Chinese rarely (if ever) eat raw lettuce.
The recipe below is the result of my experiment, and I found it to be delicious and satisfying.
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of grapeseed oil
1 medium clove of garlic, minced or use a garlic press
1 tablespoon fresh gingerroot, minced
2 stocks of green onions, white and green parts sliced
2 links of vegan sausage, sliced crossways in bite-sized pieces
1 head of romaine lettuce, sliced into good size chunks (larger than bite-sized), stem end removed
2 teaspoons of sesame oil
1 tablespoon of light soy sauce
1 teaspoon of Hoisin sauce
Quinoa or brown rice, cooked according to package directions
Directions:
Add grapeseed oil, garlic, gingerroot, and sausage to a medium covered saucepan. I like to use Field Roast Vegetarian Grain Smoked Apple Sage Sausage from Whole Foods, but you can use any link sausage that appeals to you.
If your sausage is precooked, cook over medium heat until sausage is browned, stirring frequently. If your sausage is not pre-cooked, cook according to package directions.
In a small bowl, combine sesame oil, soy sauce, and Hoisin sauce.
Add the green onion and lettuce on top of the sausage mixture. Spoon the sesame oil mixture over the lettuce.
Cover the pan to let the lettuce steam for a few minutes. As the lettuce wilts, you’ll have enough room to begin to incorporate the sausage mixture underneath into the lettuce. Cook only until the lettuce is barely tender. Give it a final mix before serving.
Serve:
Spoon over quinoa or brown rice.
Serves 3-4.
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