Hello and welcome back to The Stone Soup Cook–so glad you’re here!
When I was a junior in college, like so many other college students at that age, my friends and I moved into an apartment off campus. It was a good move for us–we were all pretty responsible, got on reasonably well and as fate would have it, that’s where I met Mr. Stone Soup. He also lived at the apartment complex and we met at the pool. I had a really neat black swim suit and he was cutting class–and the rest is history. It took him eight months to ask me out and about eight minutes to ask me to marry him. As you can guess, I said “yes,” and never looked back.
But I digress.
My friends and I had never really lived on our own. Sure, we’d lived in the dorms on campus, but that’s basically just moving out of your parent’s house where you actually have to do some of your own laundry and keep your room tidy; but critically, someone else takes care of meals and any household issues at the dorm, so this was a big change in our lives. But, as I said, we were all responsible and more to the point, we were all ready for an adventure.
I was already an avid cook when my friends and I moved into our apartment, and I volunteered to cook dinner for the four of us if they would do the dishes. Against all odds this turned out to be a very workable and practical plan. There was a grocery store down the street and we were able to keep costs down by doing weekly grocery runs and splitting it four ways. My mom and I came up with some basic, easy meal ideas that turned out to be crowd pleasers among my roommates, and we actually all had fun sitting down to a little make-shift family meal where we shared things about our days and laughed and commiserated.
Three of us had similar upbringings–dads worked outside the home and moms stayed home and took on traditional caretaking roles. But one roommate, Susan, was what was known as a “latch-key kid.” That is, a kid who let herself into her empty house after school and fended for herself until her parents got home because both her parents worked. Susan’s dad was a college professor, and her mother was a placard-waving feminist whose job it was to organize and set up farmer’s markets in small towns in northern Texas. Susan had tales of sitting in front of the TV after school, watching re-runs of Gilligan’s Island while eating Tang with a spoon straight out of the jar. Her life was a world away from mine. Not only did both of her parents work, but they had a role-reversal that I had not encountered at the tender age of 19: Susan’s dad did the cooking and much of the nurturing, while Susan’s mom went and led rallies at the state capitol.
Susan’s dad would occasionally have business at our college and would visit, frequently cooking for us. I got some of my early “new” recipes from him and I still use them to this day because they were easy, tasty and God knows–I made them all the time in college.
One of those recipes was the one I always use for a basic stir-fry–the ingredients change depending on the season and protein I have available, and, indeed, on what’s in the refrigerator at that moment–but the basics of the recipe are still the same ones that Susan’s dad, Sam, taught me all those years ago.
This week, I’m featuring pork spare-rib stir-fry because I had a good bit of leftover meat from those spare ribs I made last week, and I have to say–this is one of the BEST stir-fries I ever made. It features fresh, crisp broccolini, red bell peppers and, of course, that yummy, smoky pork spare rib meat.
But you can make stir-fry from anything–trust me! A good stir-fry needs some basic aromatics like onions, garlic, ginger and celery, but after that, it’s about tossing in whatever you’ve got available as a protein and a vegetable at the appropriate time. Oh…and bacon. Because everything’s better with bacon, right?
I always serve stir-fry with rice, but it could just as easily be served with udon or soba noodles, or without starch if you’re watching your carbs.
This is a great, easy recipe, and as I mentioned earlier, it’s a great recipe for using up whatever you’ve got in your fridge. As a college student looking to stay within budget, this meal was put into frequent rotation at the apartment and trust me–it continues to be a champion in the fridge clear-out challenge to this day!
Tune in tomorrow for a salad that pinches the pennies until they squeal while also satisfying even the pickiest of palettes!
Until then.
Peace, love and good food,
Keri
