This was a dish that appeared easy and delicious, and something we could make quickly to accompany our meal. The directions are straight forward, and the twist of using vinegar to season the veggies appealed to us in many ways.
Sauteed vegetables are one of the easiest side dishes that go with every entree. They are used in many restaurant menus, banquet hall menus, and at home. In the warmer seasons, grilling the vegetables may replace the fry pan method, but even then, you can put the frying pan on the grill! So, the biggest appeal about this recipe was the variety of vegetables that you can use, and, of course, the balsamic vinegar glaze.
Balsamic vinegar has so many healthy properties. It is made from grapes, as is wine. That is the first indicator that there may be a healthy side to it! Throughout history, different vinegars were used as medicine to address specific ailments. The Greeks, for example, used cider vinegar to treat respiratory illness. But, what is different about balsamic? Balsamic vinegar starts with grape must. It s cooked into a syrup and then aged. Over the course of ageing, the alcohol created from the cooking process is then transformed into acetic acid. It is that acetic acid that gives the benefit to maintaining cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar levels. Think of it this way… we use vinegar and water to clean our houses, and if we eat vinegar, it can clean our systems!
So, picking the right vegetables to carry this strong cleaner through our systems will be key to this recipe. There are many vegetables that you can add to this recipe. We used the basics, trying to keep it simple.
For this recipe, you will need the following:
oil for sauteing
1 onion, sliced
1 bell pepper, sliced
1 zucchini, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
3 TBSP balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
First, start by cutting up all the vegetables and the garlic. If everything is cut up and ready, you will have an easier time to figure out what cooks faster or slower, and you will be able to time the cooking process.
Saute the onions in a small amount of oil. You can use vegetable or olive oil. Make sure the pan is hot so the vegetables will cook quickly, and maintain a little of their texture.
Add the peppers. Get the peppers cooked half way before you move on to the next step of adding the zucchini. You will see the peppers turning brighter in colour, whereas the onions will become more translucent and golden. When you see the colour change, add the zucchini.
Cook this for about 5-10 minutes to make sure all the vegetables are cooked. You can cook them longer or shorter times, depending on how much crunch you want them to have. Then, add the garlic. If you want a subtle garlic flavour, you add the garlic in the beginning of the cooking process. If you are going for a stronger garlic taste, add the garlic at the end of the process.
Now, pour the balsamic vinegar all over the vegetables. You will see that there is a rapid change in colour, from the bright vegetable colour to the brown hue of the balsamic. Mix this well so that all the vegetables are coated. Lower the heat to a medium-high, and cook this until the amount of liquid in the pan is reduced by half. That means, let the pan cook until the liquid goes away.
When the liquid is reduced and the vegetables are cooked, you may see a dark colour on the bottom of the pan that looks like something burned. Not to worry, this is the reduced balsamic vinegar (after you remove the vegetables and plate them on a dish you can use a splash of warm water to deglaze the pan and use the sauce on the vegetables).
This is the point when you add salt and pepper to your liking to season the dish. Then, serve this hot, right from the pan to the plate. It is a lovely recipe. The only down side of this recipe is that the beautiful bright colours of the vegetables turned brown -- all of the vegetables turned brown. That was unfortunate. We found that the balsamic vinegar gave us the tangy taste that we expect from vinegar along with a sweet after taste that we like from balsamic vinegar. The combination of tangy and sweet made this a great complement to a simple rice. We would definitely make this again.
"When hungry, do not throw yourself upon food - else you will overload your heart and body. Eat slowly, without avidity, with reflection to the glory of God, remembering the God Who feeds us, and above all His incorruptible food, His Body and Blood, that out of love He has given Himself to us in food and drink, remembering also the holy word of the Gospel."
From St. John of Kronstadt (My Life in Christ: Part II, Holy Trinity Monastery pg. 273)Source of quote: http://theodorakis.net/orthodoxquotescomplete.html
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