Everything but the...

You guessed it - this quick, easy, Monday-night meal got its name because you can pretty much put anything into it, except maybe the kitchen sink. B and I made this on a whim for our parents the Wednesday night before we got married. They were all in town, and we wanted to cook for them, but my lovely dear picky mama makes cooking difficult sometimes (Sorry - I really do love you, Mom!!).

Stir-fry seemed the easiest, most customizable meal we could possibly find for feeding a varied and picky crowd. The first time we used chicken, and we added green beans, zucchini, baby corn, water chestnuts, peanuts, mushrooms, broccoli, and red pepper - maybe. That entire week was one giant blur, so I don't exactly remember. What I do remember is that our parents wolfed it down, and we were wildly, pleasantly surprised at how good and easy it was - and what good leftovers it made.

The true beauty of this recipe is that you can modify it to include whatever you've got on hand - no extra trips to the grocery store for that one forgotten ingredient. This time we used pork, and added onion, zucchini, snow peas, shredded carrots, shredded broccoli slaw, mushrooms, baby corn, water chestnuts, and cashews.

Sub in and out ingredients depending on your family's tastes or what you've got in the kitchen. There really is no wrong way to do this. I know people say that all the time about recipes, but this time it's really true. Make it as exotic as you like, or simply use it as an excuse to clean out the fridge: the choice is yours. Kitchen sink optional.

Kitchen Sink Stir Fry

Ingredient options:
Protein: Chicken, beef, pork, shrimp, scallops, tofu
Veggies: Broccoli, green beans, zucchini, bok choy, onions, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, baby corn, carrots, red peppers, green peppers, mushrooms, snow peas, sugar snap peas, lemongrass, pineapple,
Extras: peanuts, cashews, sliced almonds, chow mein noodles
Sauces: Trader Joe's General Tso's sauce, Trader Joe's Sweet Thai Chili sauce, soy sauce, red pepper paste, hoisin sauce
Starches: brown rice, white rice, lo mein noodles, rice noodles

Directions:
Choose ingredients.
Chop. Dump. Saute with sauce.
Serve over desired starch (if you even desire starch. We usually do).
Enjoy again for lunch the next day - I promise, it really is THAT GOOD left over after the sauce has had a chance to really soak into the veggies and meat.