One of the best things about joining a CSA is all of the new vegetables you’ll get to try! This can also be the most confusing – opening your box and scratching your head trying to figure out what to do with these new veggies takes some time. We make it really easy with our vegetable guide! Click on a picture to visit the information page for each vegetable.
Mizuna is one of those vegetables that a lot of people haven’t tried, but it’s easy to use and a great addition to any meal. Mizuna is an Asian green that is commonly found in baby lettuce mixes, but we put bundles of the mature green in our CSA share. It’s a mild tasting green that can be enjoyed raw or cooked. Here’s our favorite quick and easy ways to use it.
Salad. Wash and chop the salad into bite size pieces. Mix with lettuce or any greens for salad. Try spinach and arugula, or even by itself.
Pasta. Even Asian greens can be tossed with pasta and fresh parmesan. Our friend Emma paired bok choy with penne and parmesan recently for a quick meal! Boil noodles of your choice al dente. While the noodles are cooking sauté chopped mizuna in olive oil with garlic. When the noodles are ready, drain and reserve 1 cup of the pasta water. Toss the noodles, parm, and a bit of the pasta water together in a skillet over low heat. Add more pasta water if the mixture looks dry. Serve with crushed red pepper and extra cheese!
Risotto. Another Italian inspired use for mizuna! Stir chopped and cleaned mizuna into a batch of risotto at the end of cooking. It will wilt perfectly. Try pairing with mushrooms for an earthy dish.
Stir-fry. Asian greens are of course perfect for stir-fry! Pair with any vegetables in your share, lots of garlic and ginger, and your protein of choice. Here’s a recipe to get you started.
Soup. We love greens in miso soup, but feel free to toss them into any vegetable soup at the end of cooking. Mizuna would also pair well chicken noodle or lightly creamy soups.
Grain Salads. This Mizuna Quinoa Salad with Lemon Scallion Vinaigrette is sure to be a crowd pleaser! Toss raw mizuna with farro, quinoa, rice, barley, or any grain for fresh salad perfect for picnics and potlucks.
Sauté. The simplest is last! Wash mizuna and then toss in a pan with garlic and olive oil. Leave whole like in this side to local pork chops or chop into bite-size pieces.
Hey Readers!
If you’re in the Northeast or Northern Atlantic States in the US, Be sure to check out our amazing, awesome, super unique recipe kit company called Green Fork! It’s like taking a CSA one step further – we use all the local bounty to create amazing ready to make recipes delivered to your doorstep! Click here to hear a customer review!
