Last night I participated in the weekly Twitter #VeganFoodChat (@VeganFoodChat). We were talking about summer foods we crave and cook and someone mentioned bulk cooking. To which someone else said they didn’t think of bulk cooking as a summer kitchen activity. I quickly replied that summer is the perfect time to bulk cook – heating your kitchen up once during a hot summer week saves energy, makes your home more comfortable on sultry days, and you have lots of quick and easy meals to pull together!
Here are some of the ways I’ve been doing bulk food prep – mostly with the pressure cooker, natch. Vegetable broth, mushroom rice (without the oil; not as flavorful but good), green peas, Italian lentils, stewed tomatoes, and quinoa. I also grabbed the food processor and made a double batch of North Meets South bean dip.
Ready for the week, here are some of the meals I pulled together.
Breakfast quinoa: quinoa reheated in rice milk and served with blackstrap molasses and pumpkin seeds (and a green smoothie!).
Salad with Italian lentils and a side of mushroom rice.
Stewed tomatoes, mushrooms and fresh oregano mixed with quinoa pasta pagodas and topped with collard greens sautéed in red wine, onion, garlic, fresh basil and tossed with almond slivers.
Savory Breakfast Bowl: I cooked sweet potatoes, carrots, celery, mushrooms, garlic and onion in the pressure cooker for three minutes in a veggie basket and tossed the veggies with reheated quinoa and peas and served with lemon juice and Bragg Liquid Aminos.
I took my Italian lentils to Mexico for a Taco Tuesday dinner. I sautéed the legumes with mushrooms and onion and served on a whole wheat tortilla and topped with raw onion, tomatoes and lettuce with a side of mushroom rice. And smothered fresh salsa over the tacos and rice.
Dave grilled asparagus and kabobs (portobello mushrooms, red pepper, and scallions and we served over a bed of reheated quinoa and peas.
And while this bean dip was a great snack with veggies,
it was also terrific on bread for sandwiches.
I used the homemade vegetable broth to cook the lentils, peas, and mushroom rice, to reheat food during the week, and as a liquid base to sauté veggies.
Do you bulk cook in the summer?
4 thoughts on “Bulk cooking in the summer? Yes!”
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Nice! Yes, JL, I do bulk cook anytime throughout the year, and I always think it’s a good idea. I pretty much try to make fun recipes on the weekends, to eat on the spot, but also make some big staple dishes to eat throughout the week, and/or freeze. I love your ideas and the things you made.
Love that you make fun weekend recipes, Patty! Dave gets pretty creative in the kitchen on the weekends, too!
Great list of recipes and inspiration here, thanks. It’s a great idea for summer, especially here.
Thanks, @disqus_63PLjK01bZ:disqus! Stay cool!