Recipe: Stir-fry with Asian Greens

Credit: Renee Comet for USA WEEKEND

The bounty of spring reminds us that you don’t have to have a green thumb or be a budding chef to have the garden turn you into a cook. “Raising the ingredients yourself is inspiring and makes you want to be in the kitchen,” says author Barbara Damrosch, whose new gardening/cookbook is a primer for people who want to grow and eat their own food. “The vegetables are your babies, and you’re proud of them.” In this, her third book, Damrosch shares her best seasonal recipes — even if your produce comes from a farmers market or the grocery store. Because when you focus on what’s fresh and ripe, everything else falls into place.

Stir-Fry with Asian Greens

• 2 Tbs.toasted sesame oil or peanut oil
• 1clove garlic, peeled andm inced
• 1piece (1 inch long) fresh ginger, peeled and cut into thin matchsticks
• 8 ounces snow peas (about 2 cups), strings removed, if any
• 8 scallions, white parts and green tops chopped separately into 1-inch pieces
• 2 to 3 heads (about 8 ounces) baby bok choy (pac choi),white bottoms and green tops chopped separately into 1-inch pieces (you can substitute coarsely chopped leaves and stems of swiss chard, broccoli florets or cauliflower florets)
• 6 medium-size red radishes, thinly sliced
• 1Tb. soy sauce

Heat the sesame oil in a large skillet over medium heat until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly, to flavor the oil.

Immediately add the snow peas, scallion whites, and bok choy bottoms.

Stir-fry until the vegetables are tender but still  have some crunch, about 3 minutes. Add the scallion greens and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the bok choy tops, stir-fry for 30 seconds, and then remove the skillet from the heat. Add the radishes and soy sauce, and stir to combine. Serve immediately.

Note: To make this a main dish, add seafood or chicken (4 to 8 ounces per person); brown separately and then add in at the end.

Yield: 4 servings as a side dish

Per serving: 116 calories, 10g carbohydrates, 3g protein, 7g fat (1g saturated), 4g fiber, 0mg cholesterol, 277mg sodium