Veggie Pasta

So today we will try to do a nice, simple, quick lunch.
Pasta is always good for that. It is fairly quick to do and when mixed with the right ingredients, it could become a healthy dish. This one in particular is already a frequent dish at home. We do it once a week, or something.

Ingredients

So, you will need:

• Pasta - It could be long pasta, like spaghetti, or even short pasta like fussili.
• Vegetables: Red/Green Pepper, Carrots, Onions, Bulbs of garlic, Broccoli.
• Soy Sauce - In our case low on sodium or "light" version.
• Brown Sugar
• Cooking Salt
• Sesame Oil

The main character of this recipe is the "wok".Yes, it is mandatory to have a wok. It is simply perfect. Cooks ingredients with the correct ammount of heat, and helps to keep the "crunchyness" of vegetables. Also, when it comes with a smal grill that you can put at the top of the wok, you have also a steamer, also amazing for cooking vegetables.

Alchemy Time


First of all, you need to start boiling the water were the pasta will  be cooked. Try to have enough water in order to avoid using oil. Add to the water pinches of cooking salt. Add the pasta once the water starts to boil. Make sure you stir the pasta every 5-10 minutes so it does not get sticky. Also, the quality of the pasta will determine how sticky or lumpy it becomes. The idea is to check the pasta after 10 minutes, and make sure you have it "al dente", which basically means that the pasta is not overcooked nor underdone. Drain the pasta and add some olive oil. Leave the pasta in the pot to maintain the temperature.

Slice all the vegetables. Get creative. If you picked short pasta, you can slice the vegetables in big chunks, squares or diamonds. If you picked spaghetti or long pasta, you could slice in strips, so it is easier to eat.

Pour some sesame oil into the wok, heat it at medium temperature. Add all the vegetables, starting with the onions and garlic (this will create a nice taste and smell on the oil) and after that the harder vegetables, like carrots and broccoli, and finally adding the red peppers and Soy Sauce and a pinch of brown sugar. Colors will start to jump to your eyes! Do not over-cook the vegetables. Do not make them loose their nutrients.

Pictures by Susan Sardiñas

Add your pasta to the wok. Mix it with all the vegetables. All the flavors that the vegetables provide will be added to the pasta. At this point, no heat is needed. Stir and mix everything and then serve it.

I love parmesan cheese. I know it is an eclectic mix, oriental/italian, but I added some parmesan cheese on top. This is how it looks once served: Please Enjoy!

Pictures by Susan Sardiñas