Quick and Easy Green Beans and Dried Shrimp a la Chinoise

Maybe you're missing a little green for your table, but there's not much time to cook. Or you've adjusted well enough to working from home to realize that you don't want to spend your free time cooking, but would rather give your children or pets your full attention instead. Whatever your situation, if you have restrictions on going out shopping, you're probably looking for ways to turn the ingredients you have on hand into quick meals. Green beans and dried shrimp are a winning combination that can be seasoned in either Chinese or Japanese style, and if you're using frozen green beans, the whole dish takes less than five minutes to prepare.

Boil the dried shrimp on high heat with cooking wine, a dash of soy sauce, Okinawan mixed spice, garlic (powdered is fine), black pepper, and Chinese five spice for flavor penetration.

While this is going on, defrost the green beans. If you're using fresh ones, here's your chance to wash and chop them.

When the green beans are cooked, it's done. If you like them a bit al dente, that cuts down cooking time even more.

It's hard to beat this dish for the pop of green and pink color and sheer dependable solid ease of preparation as a vegetable side. Make it in bulk and top rice with it, or put it on pasta for a quick and easy "fusion" dish. Green beans and dried shrimp together are a good trick to have up your sleeve if you're busy AND lazy, but still want to eat well, like me.