Anyway.
Still studying, still busy, but I thought I would do something to reassure the public about my well-being.
Ahem.
I am ok.
...
I could be pill and leave it there, but here's a bit of something to make this post worthwhile.
I have discovered, in my efforts to both manage my time and money, a very convenient vegetable to pack inside a bento. Healthy and quick, I can have this baby ready in about two minutes flat, freezer to lunchbox.
Of course, I speak of green beans, or インゲン.
Of course, you can do all sorts of things to make these tasty little suckers non-economical--buy them fresh, for example--but we won't be talking about that sort of nonsense here.
Oh no, this is strictly for those of you who want quick, easy and cheap.
And who doesn't want that when they're making a lunch/dinner/thing right before work, really?
Anyway.
Buy yourself a bag of frozen green beans. I prefer whole, but you can get French cut if you'd like. I'm sure it doesn't change much besides the cooking time (I would try a bit less, for instance.)
Take out a serving size, and then put the rest into a plastic, freezer-safe baggie. I got three servings out of the last bag of green beans I bought (though I was eating them as a small side dish) so try to work with that guesstimate. You can take as many as you want out of the baggie later, close it up and save the rest so long as you don't let them thaw, so you don't have to do all your portioning ahead of time.
Now, if you have a nice glass dish with a lid, you can use that as your cooking vessel. If, however, you are like me, and prefer the simple and cost-effective route... go for two plates, one with something of an indentation if you can get it.
This sort of depth will work, though if you can get deeper, I would recommend it. The top one should be a similar shape, so that when you put them together like a clam-shell, you have a nice space in between for your green beans.
Now, place your green beans on your designated bottom dish. As they are frozen, they should have some ice on them--this will work as your steaming "liquid." Cover them up with the desginated top dish, and carefully place them inside your microwave, or 電子レンジ.
Yea, that's right kids. We're cooking with microwaves. We have truly crossed into the realm of convenience and speed.
I usually put a good handful of frozen, whole green beans in for two minutes (I think on high, though I admit I've never confirmed that.) You might want to put in French cut for 1:30 and then check them. Heck, depending on the strength of your microwave, you might want to put whole beans in for 1:30 and check them, just to be safe--its always best to get to know your microwave before you begin to trust it.
After you have decided that your beans are done enough for your taste (how do you know? eat one, for goodness sake), remove the top plate and add your desired toppings. I usually stick with plain old table salt--tasty and easy. Healthy, maybe not, but certainly no extra calories!
I usually pop these into my bento right out of he microwave, then into the fridge--you can eat them cold, room temperature, or warmed up (again in the microwave).
And there you have it: Edo's Super-Easy, Super-Convenient Recipe for Frozen Green Beans.Try it at home, and be amazed!
... or just be satisfied with the fact that you got a serving of vegetables for cheap, and in under three minutes of prep time.
... yea. Maybe we'll stick with that second one.
This is Edo, signing off thinking that she needs to work on her marketing skills before writing any cookbooks.
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