Prawn Stir Fry and Family History

In a couple of days we're going to the island of Jersey, in the English Channel for a bit of a holiday.

Ever since we started working on having a family, I've also been working on my family tree.  I think the connection is fairly obvious.

My Grandmother's grandmother emigrated to New Zealand from Jersey in 1874 as part of the government assisted immigration scheme.  She was 22 and as far as I've been able to tell from the passenger list, travelling alone.

Within three years she was married to another Jersey immigrant and had borne her first child.

While I've found a lot of information about my Jersey family history online, I am hoping to spend some time in the archives solving some mysteries.  Like, did she really travel to the other side of the world alone?  Did she know her husband in Jersey before they married in New Zealand?  

In any case, we skipped our veg box this week because we're going away. There was a bunch of veg to use up and a late yoga class so wanted a quick dinner solution.  

Enter the stir fry.

I never liked Chinese stir fry from restaurants or takeaways - they were always too salty and greasy for my tastes.  It took me a while to come around to making my own.  

I seldom use much oil (even coconut oil), instead dry-frying the veg for some colour then lobbing in a splash of water so the ingredients sort of steam in the wok, but this time I used a bit of toasted sesame oil and lime juice for taste.

Fertility Focus

Broccoli, is a plant source of calcium and like all cruciferous veg contains compounds that help balance oestrogen levels.

Carrot contains the antioxidant beta carotene which protects cells from free radical damage.

Prawns are rich in zinc which is essential for healthy sperm.

Ingredients

• Cooked frozen prawns
• Toasted sesame oil
• Lime juice
• Onion
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Broccoli
• Carrot
• Celery

Method

1.  Rinse and drain the prawns.  

2.  Drizzle with a little sesame oil and squeeze lime juice over.  

3.  Set aside to 'marinate'. 

4.  Chop all the veg into bite sized bits.  

5.  Heat the wok and add onion, garlic, ginger, broccoli and carrot.  

6.  Stir the veg constantly until the broccoli is bright green and the veg has gone a bit brown on the edges.  

7.  Add the celery and a splash of water and continue stir frying the veg in the steam until nearly done. 

8.  Toss in the prawns and stir for a minute or two until heated through.  

9.  Serve and squeeze over any remaining lime juice.