Put your kids to work!
Job Requirements:
Must be able to read a on 1st grade-level and follow simple directions
Must be good at cleaning
Must be a team-player (if you have brothers and sisters)
No experience necessary
What is offered:
Excellent working conditions, in your own kitchen
Hot nutritious meals
The gratitude of your family
A safe environment
Suggested tools:
An electric wok
An electric griddle (for future recipes)
An instant pot
A set of plastic kid's cooking knives
A Cutting board
Measuring spoons and cups
These tools can be ordered online through Target or Walmart. I found the wok, griddle and instant pot safe, but I do not use the instant pot to pressure-cook with children.
If your kids accept the job, I suggest starting with a fun, satisfying and nutritious meal. Depending on the age and ability of your SproutChef, you might want to work together for the first meal. Let your child do all the measuring and stir-frying. Depending on their age and ability, the adult may want to cut the garlic, ginger, carrots and meat.
Bee-Bin-Bop is a constant favorite in my classes. I think this is a great recipe to start with. Early in the day, an adult should help their SproutChef collect all the ingredients, cut the meat and start the marinade process. Even though this recipe looks complicated, it is actually quite easy, if the cook is familiar with the steps beforehand. I suggest that an adult be available for questions but pretend to be out of the way while they are cooking. There is nothing more intimidating than a hovering parent. New cooks will make mistakes. It's okay, as long as they are cooking safely. That is how we learn.
Bee-Bim Bop Recipe
Combine the following ingredients in a large bowl:
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup water
1/2 cup brown sugar
5 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves chopped
1 tablespoon finely cut up fresh ginger
Cut up:
1 lb of lean beef, cut in small strips
Put the meat in the bowl of marinade and refrigerate until ready to stir-fry, anywhere from 30 minutes to 12 hours.
Put:
2 cups of white rice
4 cups of water
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon oil in the instant pot (or on the stove) and cook at medium heat for 20-30 min. until tender.
Cut:
2 carrots, into julienned strips
Additional Ingredients:
1 bag of fresh spinach
1 bag of bean sprouts
4 eggs
salt and pepper, to taste
Vegetable oil for frying
Turn the wok on high or heat a nonstick frying pan on medium high.
Cook the eggs in a tablespoon of oil and set them aside, on a plate - scrambled or fried.
Sauté the meat until it is no longer pink and put it on the plate with the eggs.
Cook the carrots, spinach and bean sprouts individually with 1 tablespoon of oil each and add to the meat and eggs.
Once everything is cooked, combine everything in the pan, mix it up, with the rice, heat it through and serve immediately in bowls, with chop sticks if desired.
Optional ingredients to serve with bee-bim-bop could be Korean pepper sauce and/or kimchee.
Almost every Korean has their own version of this recipe. Bee-Bin-Bop means beef all mixed up.
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I will be back with another kid-friendly, easy meal. Most of my meals use fresh fruits, meats and vegetables, but I am going to focus on using non-perishable ingredients, so that we can store more food and stay out of the grocery stores.
My daughter told me to tell parents that their children are now their coworkers. We all have to work together as a team. Empower your children and give them the confidence to help get us through this. Kids can do it!