Orange-Sesame Tofu with Veggie Fried Rice

This evening I decided it was time for orange-sesame tofu again. I haven't made it for a couple months, so it was definitely time. I decided to make a simple veggie fried rice to go with it, along with a broccoli and red pepper dish. It was quite an involved meal to make, with lots of prep work. Since I've posted the tofu recipe before, I won't go into that part.

Yesterday evening, I decided to throw together some veggie fried rice to go along with the honey-baked lentils I had made. It turned out so good that I decided to make it again tonight. Here's what I did: First, I cooked my rice. That's one cup of long-grain brown rice brought to a boil with one cup of water and one cup of No-Chicken broth. Cover and turn heat to low, simmering for 50 minutes. In the meantime, I finely chopped half an onion and half of a red pepper. I sauteed those in oil until slightly browned and softened. (With a clove or two of minced garlic.) Yesterday when I made the rice, I used some diced carrots. I didn't have any this evening, so I improvised with the red pepper. When the rice was finished, I let it cool just a little, then added it to the hot skillet with the vegetables. I added a few splashes of shoyu, and that was it. I'm telling you, it's so easy and just amazingly good. Way better than the usually-greasy fried rice you get at a Chinese restaurant. I also made it with brown rice, so it's whole grain!

I saw a recipe for a sesame broccoli and red pepper dish in my Hippy Gourmet cookbook. Since I had all the ingredients on hand, I made it. I just steamed a head of broccoli. Then made a sauce with garlic, shoyu, rice vinegar, a bit of oil, and turbinado (raw) sugar. When it was ready, I added the thinly-sliced red peppers and a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds. I swear it was one of the best meals I've had in a long time. Wow.

I've still been kicking the Pandora classical Christmas station. I'm thinking that will be it for me until Christmas Day rolls around. By Christmas night, I'm ready for the whole thing to be over with. LOL!