Ground Pork Skillet with Maitake Mushrooms, Cabbage and Cashews

This tasty skillet recipe is a new family favorite. I fear the name of the recipe may not get your taste buds buzzing, but trust me, it’s a delicious warm bowl that hits all the categories – protein, fat and fiber with some serious umami. It’s healthy, balanced and the perfect answer to that take out craving we all get from time to time.  I cannot stomach the refined oils that are often used in take out and get headaches from the MSG, so take out is rarely an option for me. Plus, dishes like these allow you to add so many healthy ingredients to the dish that don’t look a whole lot different than the take out option. My kids ate this with no knowledge or detection of mushrooms at all.  I certainly wasn’t hiding this nutritious ingredient, but if they took one look at the maitake mushrooms there’s a good chance they’d hesitate trying this dish.  Those are some funky looking mushrooms!  One of my kids even commented how much he liked the cabbage – just like the cabbage in the chow mein take out dish he likes so much.  Nutritionally speaking, this dish is worlds away from any take out variety. 

While I enjoyed this dish over a big pile of arugula (my favorite green!) that slowly wilted as I ate, my kids ate this sans extra greens.  Seeing as though there’s a ton of wilted cabbage for added fiber in this dish, it’s a great stand alone meal and everyone wins.  Don’t forget your favorite hot sauce – it makes the dish!

Cheers,

Christina

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Ground Pork Skillet with Mushrooms, Cabbage and Cashews

This quick and satisfying skillet can be thrown together in well under 30 minutes and it's a hit with my family. A high quality ground protein, fiber and healthy fat mixture served on top of a pile of arugula is the perfect quick and healthy meal. I like a generous drizzle of gochuchang sauce or sriracha as well as an extra sprinkling of cilantro.

Course: Main Course

Keyword: cashew, mushroom, pork, skillet

Servings: 4 servings

Author: Christina Shoup

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp avocado oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 oz maitake mushrooms, chopped, including stem shiitake or crimini mushrooms are great options
• 1 lb ground pork chicken or dark turkey will work great, too
• ½ inch knob of ginger, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp reduced sodium soy sauce, add more to taste for a gluten free option- use coconut aminos, to taste
• ¼ cup raw cashews
• ½ head cabbage, shredded
• handful of chopped cilantro
• arugula

Instructions

• In a large skillet, heat over medium and add avocado oil. Add onion and a pinch of kosher salt and ground pepper. Saute until golden and translucent.
• Add mushrooms and continue cooking until mushrooms are golden.
• Add ground pork, breaking up as it cooks. Be sure to cook until no longer pink, and then another 4-5 minutes. This additional time allows the protein to caramelize and add great flavor.
• Add garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant. Add liquid aminos or soy sauce. Continue stirring to combine flavors.
• Make a well in the center and add the raw cashews. Allow them to toast briefly and toss to combine.
• Add shredded cabbage, stir to combine and cook until cabbage is wilted.
• Add chopped cilantro and taste for seasoning. Serve pork mixture on top of a bed of arugula and drizzle desired sauce on top.

Notes

*To make this dish quicker than quick, Trader Joe’s is a good place for packaged shredded cabbage and even chopped onion.  My favorite items to keep on hand for a quick dish are their frozen cubes of ginger and garlic.  You can use 2 cubes of each to replace the fresh garlic and ginger in this recipe.  With these quick shortcuts, this dish can be on the table in no time at all.