A Simple, Colorful Side Dish, Easy Too

I just added our New Deli Pesto Chicken recipe to my recipe website, but a friend spotted the veggies in the picture and wanted to know how we cooked those up. So here's the low-down about those veggies...

I know that many times, people "par-boil" veggies first, and that could work. But I don't like the idea of wasting any flavor by pouring off the cooking liquid, so I use the microwave to pre-cook the carrots just a bit- about one minute per carrot. I usually poke the zucchinis too, and then give them maybe a minute a piece in the microwave, for medium larger ones.

Meanwhile, I dice red and/or green peppers into large pieces (the red ones add a lot of color). Then I get my iron pan good and hot, adding the microwaved carrots, sliced into circles. I also add a decent splash of water so that the carrots can cook a little longer and tenderize a little more. (The carrots take the longest to cook, so letting them steam a bit before adding other veggies helps.)

When the water's about evaporated, I throw in the microwaved zucchini, sliced, the diced chunks of peppers, and a drizzle of olive oil. No need for more water at this point; the peppers and zucchini have enough water in them anyway; plus, you want them to start browning. They don't need to get turned a lot, or they'll never brown on one side. But once they have browned on one side, give the pan of veggies a good turning, to brown the rest a bit.

Turn the heat down lower if you want, depending on how quickly you want those veggies done. I am amazed at how good the veggies, just plain veggies, ARE! I make extra when I'm cooking up dishes for dinner orders, because I know I can make a meal of leftover veggies later. Plain and simple, yet... wow. So good!