A kicked up beef stir fry party prepared in almost no time!

by DanO

For me, a really great beef stir fry consists of just a few basic ingredients. Those would include; steak cut into strips, sliced bell pepper, sliced onion and maybe a few stimulating aromatics including; a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce with maybe a dash of dried oregano and Rosemary. (The items in green are all growing in my raised beds and will be available for summer and fall enjoyment).

But, today Ive managed to get my big boy pants on, and this breakfast soirée is about to get much more interesting!

Please, everyone, welcome the new party crashers:

1 tbsp sliced mushrooms

2 tbsp diced cherry tomatoes

1 tbsp pineapple chunks

All, of which, is served on a bed of rice! [Man, this could get really interesting]! Is anyone hungry yet?

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Note: For those of you who haven't tried a beef stir fry like this, it's actually easy and very fast to prepare – (especially if you had the foresight to get most of the ingredients prepared the day before). Then, come breakfast time, it's really a simple dump and cook meal-deal! (I've actually cooked this meal and prepared a slice of toast in about the same amount of time)! Trust me....

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Preparing the instant rice was perhaps the most time intensive aspect of the entire preparation. After that, I just heated up some olive oil in a small frying pan and dumped in the meat, veggies and herbs – in just a few minutes it was set to hit the table! Note that I've limited my beef intake for this dish to just 60 grams! Please, give this one a try!

Growing healthy vegetables requires the addition of ‘dirty’ soil!

Most gardeners who start their own vegetables from seed know to use a sterile starting mix at the beginning of the process. This practice allows for a good environment for seed germination, free of bad fungi or microbes that are responsible for such problems as damping off. I generally like to use a potting mix like Miracle Gro’s Seed starting mix that contains a water-absorbent formula with sphagnum peat moss and perlite, specially blended for fast germination of seeds. It’s also enriched with Miracle-Gro® plant food to help build strong roots. This mix will ensure that your germination efforts result in good starts and the fertilizer will help insure some food for hungry roots to feed on.

However, in order to prevent certain ‘growth checks’ that can result in poor fruit production later on, you should consider seeding the soil with microbial inoculants. A mix of good ‘bugs’ which will help protect your seedlings sensitive roots from attack by ‘bad’ microbes and fungi later on. The easiest way to do this would be to go out to your existing garden and dig up a little soil there to add to the top of the sterile mix your seedlings are growing in. The microbes will multiply very quickly in the days to follow. Some of these actually get involved in the transport of nutrients into the roots themselves! Then, by the time you are ready to transplant the young seedlings in to the garden (assuming you properly harden them off) they will be ready and able to fight off problem microbes and should prosper.

Mind Your Taters

Of all the vegetables that are commonly grown at home, I would rank the humble potato as one of the most useful. Not only are they multi-talented in the kitchen, but they are also a breeze to grow. If you can make a trench in the ground you can grow tubers. Most nurseries and local markets have starter spuds ready to plant during the springtime. Just take them home and plant each piece about six inches apart in a row of any convenient length. Cover with some earth, then as they begin to send up shoots, just add a little more earth until you have a mound or hill established. The tuber will grow along the buried shoot. A few months later, you are ready for the harvest and the best part is that once dug up and cured, potatoes can last a long time before going bad. If you’re really lazy like me or a little tight for space consider using a plastic garbage can. Sometime in the spring just cut some circular holes in it big enough to admit your hand and then locate it in a sunny spot elevated on some paving stones. Next fill the bottom third with dirt, add a few starter potatoes with their eyes intact then cover with about three inches of soil mixed with straw or even shredded newspaper. After a week or so the tubers will sprout and break the surface at which point you will continue to add more dirt and paper or straw until they are just covered. Keep this up until the foliage has reached the top of the trashcan. Come fall reach in a hole with your hand to grab a potato or two for the dinner table. What could be easier?