Around the World in Seven Meals

In this series of guest posts, the team from Vegecation Melbourne shows us how you can take your family Around the World in Seven Meals, with produce from your own garden.

Stir Fry Sunday
Home grown Hero: Chilli
Region of Influence: China

Stir frys are great throw-together meals at the end of the week and are also great to combine your homegrown herbs and veggies in. Throw in coriander, chillis, onions and basil to this recipe and see how the fresh flavours work together. Don’t forget to deseed your chillis when cooking for the little ones.

Growers' Tip: Grow your chillies in a relatively warm sheltered location away from hot winds. While there are many types of chilli, Jalapenos are great for home veggie gardens as they are quite mild. Don’t be surprised if your second harvest bears different types of chillis, as they are famous cross-pollinators.

Chilli Beef Stir Fry
Olive oil spray
2 x 180g scotch fillet steaks, fat trimmed, thinly sliced
1 red onion, cut into thin wedges
2 red capsicums, deseeded, sliced lengthways
250g green beans, trimmed, cut in halves
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 large red chillies, deseeded, finely chopped
1 tbs salt-reduced soy sauce
1 tbs brown sugar
1/2 bunch Thai basil, leaves picked
Steamed basmati rice, to serve

Method
1. Heat a wok over high heat. Spray with oil and stir-fry beef for 2 minutes until browned. Remove from wok, cover with foil and set aside.
2. Add the onion, capsicum and beans and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add garlic and chilli and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
3. Return beef to wok with soy sauce and brown sugar. Toss well. Add basil leaves and gently toss. Serve with rice.

Vegecation: Oriental Garden is a school holiday program that aims to teach children what happens in their garden and encourage outdoor play. Running from April 10 – 14 at Centro Box Hill Shopping Centre in Melbourne, children will have the opportunity to meet the critters that crawl in their backyards, participate in live performances and plant their very own Asian vegetable seedling to take home. For full event details visit www.centroboxhill.com.au.

EVENT INFORMATION
What: Vegecation - a fun and engaging community school holiday activity
Where: Centro Box Hill North Precinct (opposite the food court)
When: Tuesday 10 – Saturday 14 April 2012
What time: 11am to 2pm each day, interactive play times: 11.30am and 1pm
Who: Aimed at children aged six – 15 and their families
Price: FREE to attend
Extras: Every child receives a FREE apron and book bag