Put some fun and creativity into grocery shopping

What I like to do, and this certainly isn’t for everyone, is walk around a grocery store and find either through a sale or what looks fresh, and build a meal off what I see. I usually start with two ideas and hash them out as I go. Sometimes I end up with two dishes, other times just the one. But it’s an interactive way to develop dishes by thinking through what you can create with what you’re pulling together.

Household regulars

Everyone has their go-to items they always need to have in their pantry or refrigerator. For me, it includes some kind of spicy pepper, green BP, onion, garlic, lemon or two, cucumber, fresh tomatoes, a leafy green (bok choy, kale, mustard greens), and some ginger. Anything outside of those is a special treat and I always enjoy going outside of my comfort zone.

Throwing a Dish Together

The importance of grocery shopping also pertains to flavor. Understanding what is bitter / sweet / earthy / vegetal / spicy / bright / acidic / tangy is essential to combining items you have in the fridge and pantry into a dish.

The other day, I had some things that looked like they were close to turning and I should use them up. Of the ingredients I was looking at and playing the Rule of Elimination, I only knew I wanted to use bok choy. From there, I pondered through what would work well.

After my adventure through my fridge, I came out with this:

I have part of a red bell pepper, most of a jalapeno, ginger, garlic, red onion, carrot, lemon, and some frozen shrimp. Frozen shrimp is great to have on hand at all times; quite versatile.

As for the backdrop of the dish, I needed a sauce. Asian sauces are very easy to make and build great depth full of flavor.

Let’s Cook

First I place garlic in olive oil and bring up the heat slowly so the garlic encompasses the oil. Always looking to add flavor each step of the way, the little things matter.

Turn the heat up a bit, add onion, ginger and jalapeno. Sprinkle salt.

Turn the heat up a little more after a few minutes, add red bell/carrots. Shrimp’s coming in next and can either be sauteed or steamed. Shake the pan to ensure everything is still being cooked evenly (should be a pretty hot flame underneath).

Next pull the shrimp out when they’re finished (juices will have departed), and begin adding the sauces.

A combination of mirin (deglaze), soy sauce, rice wine vin, hoison and chili garlic paste will provide an umami matrix that will swoop into those aromatic fish oils and combine for an all-encompassing, bold flavor.

Let this simmer for a few minutes.

The bok choy comes in next, cover and cook down. As the bok choy releases some of its water which will add to the sauce, into a broth.

Finally, place the shrimp back in the pan and squeeze a lemon over the top. Dish complete. Cheers!