Moyashi. Remembering the myriad of ways my host mothers in Japan prepared moyashi, and seeing some very fresh bags of it in the store I thought it was time to make some as a very healthy side dish. Moyashi means "sprouts" in Japanese, but most often it means mung bean sprouts, and these may be prepared any number of ways and still be called simply "moyashi". Because these sprouts are rich in vitamins, and low in carbohydrates they are favored by Japanese mothers all over, and health enthusiasts in the US.

So last evening I baked some Costco sourced breaded halibut, and paired it with a simple "Moyashi and Yellow Peppers with Teriyaki sauce". The complete dinner is pictured above. You flash stir-fry the vegetables hot-crisp to maintain their texture, and more importantly, more of their vitamins.

This is also my entry into this week's Weekend Herb Blogging hosted by Ulrike of Kuchenlatein.

Oprah's site lists sprouts as Superfood No. 9. Grow Youthful points out that sprouts are high in enzymes lacking in unsprouted grains, which may be hard to digest. The World's Healthiest Foods site also has good things to say about sprouts. One pound of seeds produce about six pounds of mung bean sprouts! These beans are also used to make Chinese clear "cellophane noodles" popular in simmered dishes.

So on to my easy recipe. First I assembled the easy ingredients, a yellow bell pepper, a bag of fresh mung bean sprouts, and some teriyaki sauce. Not to forget some oil for the wok. I used about a tablespoon of safflower oil, simply because it was on the shelf, and a tablespoon of toasted sesame oil for flavoring. I chopped up the pepper and rinsed the sprouts. Heating the oil in a wok over a burner on high, I waited for the oil to be hot, but not smoking before I put in the sliced yellow pepper in for a quick stir or two before throwing in the entire basket of mung bean sprouts. After wok tossing until the sprouts were slightly limp, but still crisp, I added about two tablespoons of the teriyaki sauce and tossed a few more times before putting it all in the serving dish.

Be sure not to overcook these fresh ingredients which kill the enzymes and destroy the vitamins. It is of course best to eat these immediately, and not hold leftovers. The leftovers will be tasty, however the enzymes and vitamins will disintegrate rapidly with time. I've often observed these cooked with simply some sesame oil, salt and pepper as well. A little garlic, and mixing in some green cabbage also makes a nice tasting and enzyme packed version too. Enjoy moyashi as a versatile and healthy addition to your dining repertoire!