v:gourmet

I like this recipe for a number of reasons. First, it’s a great detox when you are feeling in the need for some cleansing. Second, it’s a great way to clean out the refrigerator when you’ve got odds and ends of kale, broccolini, mushrooms, green onions, whatever. Third, it’s a great way to carry any elemental, delicious, nurturing stock whether veggie, mushroom, or dashi. I adapted it from a new cookbook call A Love For Food. I went to London this past December with my Global Alliance for the Future of Food hat on, for a meeting on the true cost of food – check out what HRH The Prince of Wales has to say on the subject – and we were given the cookbook as a gift. It’s full of all sorts of British fare like Welsh Rarebit and Chutney, Bubble and Squeak, Pan Haggerty … you get the picture. Use the recipe below as a guideline but use your imagination and whatever happens to be  left in the back corners of your fridge.

2 tbsps olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

Various quantities of various vegetables (carrots, brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale, celeriac, celery, leeks, etc.), chopped finely or shredded

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 tsps fresh ginger root, minced

6 cups stock, veggie, mushroom, or dashi

bunch cilantro, chopped

bunch parsley, chopped

bunch of basil, chopped

sea salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot. Add onion and shredded vegetables, garlic and ginger, and cook until soft, about 6 minutes. Add stock and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to low and let simmer while vegetables continue to cook and flavours meld, about 6 minutes. Add herbs, salt and pepper to taste. Adjust seasoning and serve.