Once you master the stir-fry technique, you can take it out of Asia and transport classic combinations from other cultures to the land of delicious in a wok or large skillet. How about Eastern European Cabbage & Kielbasa as a stir-fry with some apples and onions tossed in for accents?
That's a new favorite around here. And, in keeping with my attempt to get some of you cooking without exact recipes, I'll tell you how I made it and you can ad lib around my theme.
- I sliced up a big, sweet onion and sautéed it in olive oil in my All-Clad Nonstick 12-Inch Fry Pan
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- I cut a ring of kielbasa into slices and added those to the onions to brown a bit and give off its fat and garlicky flavor to the pan. (I used a pork kielbasa but you can buy what you like: lite, low fat, turkey, etc.)
- As the onion and kielbasa started to color a bit, I added a sliced apple. (Use what you have– I had Granny Smith. Peel it or not, that's up to you.)
- Finally, I chopped and added a small head of cabbage (from the Prudential Winter Farmers' Market) to the pan, added some white wine, a few turns of black pepper, and stirred up the whole thing. I covered it and waited a few minutes for the cabbage to become wilted but still toothsome in places.
We had it with a hearty multi-grain bread.
Sometimes I substitute gin for the wine and add four or five crushed juniper berries to the dish. You could also add a can of crushed or diced tomatoes.
What changes will you make to this basic recipe? Let us know if you try it and how it turned out for you.
Related Posts:
Here are more of my non-recipe recipes and a few with traditional details.
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Words: Penny Cherubino
Photos: © 2012 Penny Cherubino