When I was kid my mom had 3 deep freezes. Really, I”m not kidding, 3 of them. And they were all packed full of veggies we had frozen from our garden, bags of veggies she had gotten on sale at the grocery store, meat bought in bulk, plus all sorts of other things. She loved that just about anything could be frozen and it’s freshness preserved until a later date.
My freezer, even though I just have one now, is packed to it’s capacity with frozen vegetables, meats and lots of other goodies too, just like Mom. I also love that freezing can preserve the freshness of fruits and vegetables until we’re ready to use them in the future. I make sure to watch sales and pick up frozen foods on sale, plus buy fresh sale fruits and veggies to freeze myself.
And since I have such a love and appreciation of the freezer, I am so excited to announce that I’ll be partnering with the National Frozen and Refrigerated Foods Association & Easyhomemeals.com this year as part of their new food panel!
Next to fresh, frozen vegetables are the best. They are harvested and quickly frozen, so that their freshness and nutrition is preserved. And even though I buy lots of in season fresh vegetables, I do rely heavily on the frozen foods isle for inexpensive and convenient fruits and vegetables especially when the fruit or vegetable I’m craving is not in season.
Frozen foods can also be a great time saver when you want to prepare healthy meals in a snap. In this recipe, I’ve incorporated several different Pictsweet brand vegetables from from the frozen food isle to create a delicious and nutritious fast stir fry dinner. These vegetables are a mix of my family’s favorites, asparagus, broccoli and snow peas. There are lots of stir fry frozen vegetable mixes on the market, but none of them have the exact mixture of vegetables my family likes, so I get a few bags of their favorites veggies instead.
For the chicken, I used Tyson’s Grilled and Ready chicken breasts strips. These are available in the frozen and refrigerated isles of your grocery store. These are so easy and delicious, I’ve been using them in just about every recipe that calls for grilled chicken strips. They are perfect for pizzas, fajitas, tacos, salads and stir frys. And all you have to do is heat them through.
Yield: 6 servings
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce
1/2 cup water or chicken stock
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 clove garlic, grated
1 teaspoon fresh from frozen (or fresh) grated ginger
1 (22 oz) bag Tyson Grilled and Ready chicken breasts strips (refrigerated or frozen and defrosted)
1 (8 oz) Pictsweet steam bag Asparagus spears, cut in bite size pieces, defrosted
1 (10 oz) Pictsweet steam bag broccoli florets, defrosted
1 (10 oz) Pictsweet steam bag baby sugar snap peas, defrosted
1 cup from 1 (12 oz) Pictsweet bag seasoning blend, defrosted
6 cups cooked white or brown rice
1/4 cup chopped green onions for garnish, optional
Combine teriyaki sauce, chicken stock or water and cornstarch in a cold skillet. Whisk well to combine and place over medium heat. Add garlic and ginger.
Whisk sauce until it comes to a boil and starts to thicken. After sauce has thickened, add chicken, asparagus, broccoli, sugar snap peas and seasoning blend. Mix well and heat through.
Serve over cooked rice. Garnish with onions if desired.
NFRA is a non-profit trade association representing all segments of the frozen and refrigerated dairy foods industry, including distributors, logistics providers, manufacturers, retailers/wholesalers and suppliers. Headquartered in Harrisburg, PA, NFRA is the sponsor of March National Frozen Food Month, June Dairy Month, June/July Ice Cream & Novelties promotion and October Cool Food for Kids educational outreach program. NFRA provides consumer information such as food safety guidelines, meal preparation tips, recipes and sweepstakes opportunities at EasyHomeMeals.com.
For additional information on NFRA or to find recipes or tips, visit NFRAweb.org or EasyHomeMeals.com.
This post sponsored by NFRAweb.org. All opinions 100% mine.
