Cookin' with Wood

Sausage with Rice and Broccoli

I had no idea what I wanted for dinner. I looked in the freezer and saw some sausage, so I yanked it out of there and thawed it in the microwave. Now the problem was: How am I going to prepare it? Well, there was no way I was leaving the house, so I had to use what was already in the cupboards. Luckily, I'm well stocked, so I just had to look around a little to find some other ingredients that would compliment my sausage. I had this bag of broccoli in the freezer for I don't even know how long, so I figured I'd better use it soon. More specifically, I'd better use it now. So that's how broccoli got in there. Rice would round out the dish.

Knowing that the rice would take the longest to cook, that's what I started with. I didn't want to use a lot of pots and pans, so I just made the rice in the skillet. I put the water in the skillet and brought it to a boil, added the butter, and stirred in the rice. I put the lid on, lowered the temperature to a simmer, and let it cook for about five minutes. Now, as you may already know, the secret to cooking rice is to not open the lid until it's done, but I didn't have that option, as I had other ingredients to add. To compensate, I let it cook a little longer.

After five minutes, I added the frozen broccoli and the sausage, then sprinkled some garlic salt on the sausage, and put the lid back on. I decided that I would do nothing more for the next ten minutes. They were the longest ten minutes of my life. Not only was I very hungry, I also experienced a lot of anxiety about not looking at my food for that long, not knowing what was going on in there. I don't normally worry about too many things, but not allowing myself to lift that lid for ten minutes just about sent me to the loony bin. But alas, all turned out well when I did finally look inside. As if nothing had happened, I just stirred everything around a bit and put the lid back on. Within ten more minutes, everything will be done. If there seems to be a little too much water in the pan, take the lid off and simmer until enough of the water evaporates. Whew! I had no idea how it would turn out, I had no idea if everything would be cooked thoroughly, I had no idea what I even wanted to eat when this whole thing started. Boy was I happy when I realized that I'd been successful. Not only was everything done, but it tasted great. Later, I thought, "I should've added a small can of sliced mushrooms."

That's why mushrooms are listed in the ingredients as "optional."

You also have the option of growing them yourself instead of buying them by the can. Serve and enjoy!

Bob is the author of "Don't Fry Bacon with Your Shirt Off!  A Single Man's Guide to the Kitchen"  a PublishAmerica book.

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Member Comments

View Comments: | 1-3 | Post a comment

woodles84
07-30-08 8:42 PM »Report Abuse	Hope you two know everyone can read your postings! lol Love your column, Bob! You sure do paint a picture with your colorful description. Keep up the good work.
pressmanbob
07-23-08 6:46 PM »Report Abuse	As it turned out, I had leftover rice and broccoli after I'd finished all the sausage, so I'll probably yank some more out just to use up the leftovers. It's not like you can make a rice and boccoli sandwich.
alicia
07-22-08 11:02 PM »Report Abuse	I likesd how you "yanked the sausage out" Please do that again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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