EDITOR'S NOTE: This service no longer appears to be in business. We're leaving this post on the site so that those of you who may be looking for this information will be able to find it. Thanks.
CONTRIBUTED BY KELLYERACE
So, I’m drifting into a good snooze on the couch with my little baby curled in my arm when the doorbell rings. I’m slightly annoyed by the interruption and it takes me about a hundred years to motivate myself off the couch. Is it a repairman? A guy trying to sell me paintings? I open the door and there, standing before me is…a pretty blond lady holding a brown bag with my name printed on it. She smiles and says something like, “Hi, I’m Melody.” I stare blankly. “Here are your vegetables.”
Ahhh…My vegetables. My fresh vegetables. My fresh locally grown vegetables that I had ordered a few days ago off the internet to be delivered direct to my doorstep. And here they were, now on my doorstep! Awesome.
I’d almost forgotten that I had placed an order for my produce from a nifty little service called Fresh In Oki just a few days before. You see, there was this link that I found in a discussion about produce in our own little HaiSociety page. I clicked it and suddenly a little vegetable stand was right there in my living room!
So, what’s the deal? Well, you can read about it in detail on her website www.freshinoki.com. But, basically Melody, in search of an alternative to our commissary produce offerings, went hunting around the island for a place to buy locally grown fruits and vegetables. She found it in a farmer’s market about 30 minutes north of Kadena. Then she went on to propel her discovery into a bright idea. Why not bag that food up this healthy and eco-friendly food and bring it down to the people? Folks can buy a bag (or half bag) of whatever the produce is in season and have it delivered to their doorstep weekly or bi-weekly. Genius!
Now, I will admit that I have a vegetable stand pretty near my house. I could go there and fill my own bags with veggies. And occasionally I do. Hey, it’s cheaper. But often, I forget to take that route home, or I’m too tired to stop. Or my kid is crying in the backseat. Or I don’t have any yen on me. But here’s this entrepreneur woman telling me she’ll pick out my food for me and bring it straight to my kitchen? And I just have to hand her a twenty? Oh Convenience, you sweet temptress.
Okay, so lets take a peek at what we got here? Here’s the outside of the bag. Look at the cool packaging. See that label? There’s a recipe on the other side. Love that.
And here are the contents of my brown paper bag. I got the half bag, the MiniOki. Unpacking it was almost like Christmas. What's inside? What should I make? (Hmmm...just checked her website where someone suggests bruschetta. There's an idea.)
Here’s a picture of Melody’s truck. Wow! It’s full! She said that her orders had jumped from 15 to about 50 in just a week. See those flowers at the top? If you order the full bag you get some of those. Almost makes me want to upgrade.
Here's a picture of some other lady's Veg Bag.
While all too often my half-ripe commissary vegetables languish, forgotten in my crisper, this week I actually find myself inspired. I want to cook healthy things. What is this new and unusual feeling? I hope it stays with me and my veggies are spared the fate of my commissary goods. Last night I made a yummy salad though, so we're off to a good start.
P.S. Let me know if you've got any good green bean recipes.
Okay, so I’m already in love with this service. The green leaf lettuce, amazing tomatoes and crisp cucumbers made a great salad. We’ve made the goya champuru with the goya. The mini bell peppers, onions, and any tomatoes that didn’t end up in my salad went into a vegetarian chili. The inspiration didn’t stop there. I made chicken stew and beef curry with the carrots and potatoes. I haven’t decided what to do with the kabocha yet. Now, if only I had a dishwasher…
I love this post! I’m moving to Oki in August and have really been wondering about organic and locally grown produce. Having it delivered in such a nice package is just even better. And I have a really delicious green been recipe for you. I love this one.It’s from the South Beach Cook Book with a little personal tweak.
1 pound Green Beans
1 Tbs olive oil
1/2 cup chopped shallots
1 Tbs finely chopped fresh ginger
1/2 tsp grated orange peel
1/4 cup orange juice
Simmer the beans for 5 minutes and drain. Brown the shallots in the olive oil, add beens and other ingredients to the pan. Toss well and serve warm. ~Enjoy
I am LOVING my vegatables. I love the fresh-from-the-ground-dirt smell! A favorite recipe of mine (you can use any vegetables is):
Pour olive oil in the bottom of a pan
cut vegetables in thin circles
eggplant
tomatoes
an onion
any peppers
zucchini
grate cheddar/or any kind of cheese over the top
pinch of sea salt
cover w/foil and simmer
Very good. It’s an easy way to get TONS of vegeatbles in your diet.
Those carrots!
Had to think about what to do with these..
What to do- here’s what my mom made:
Carrots Vinegarette
1 pound carrots, peeled, julienned
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Place carrots in a large skillet. Add water to cover.
Cover skillet- heat to boiling. Boil until carrots are crisp tender, (3 minutes). Meanwhile, whisk remaining ingredients in a samll bowl until smooth. Drain carrots and toss with vinegarette.
Serve warm or cold.
I like them cold.
Am I evil for saying I’d make carrot cake? Or carrot bread? And pretend it was good for me?
Kelly, I made a green bean casserole for Thanksgiving that was a great fresh twist on the canned version.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_29178,00.html
And btw, foodnetwork.com is an amazing resource, just type in an ingredient and try something new!
Wow! It’s so cool to hear how the experience is on the other side of the door. Once paypal is set up it will be even easier. So I am gearing up for week three and have made a tiny change since last week: The flowers are no longer included but can be added for just $5 to any order. I myself got the TropOki and made banana bread, with nuts and dark chocolate chips. Yum!
I just got an email about this service earlier this week. Sounds awesome. So funny that it made it to the blog that quick…how cool is that?
I stir fry green beans all the time….a great way to eat them and they stay nice and crisp.
Oh my goodness, you guys. Awesome recipes. I made Staci’s veggie simmer thing last night. I put potatoes in it too and my husband and I husband and I both commented on how good they were. Who woulda thunk potatoes would be a stand out? Can’t wait to try the other ideas. Kandy, you went to town, girl. I wanna eat at your house!
OH Yes – I have one!!! Although, the amount is always up to you
Green Bean Salad
Green beans – Steam approx. 4 mins
Balsamic Vinegar – add to liking, maybe 1/4 cup
Garlic – prob. 2 garlic cloves (love that garlic!)
Feta Cheese – to your liking (1/4 lb?)
Cherry tomatoes – again, as you please
YUMMO!!
You CAN’T go wrong!!! I stole this off my best mate who is a gourmet chef down under!!
I wanted to share this awesome recipe – it’s always a winner and super quick to throw together! Enjoy!!
Cat!~
WOW – okay, this is exciting! We PCS in 8 weeks and have been living in Oregon (home of what my husband calls “the land of milk and honey), let’s just say we have become spoiled with the incredible amounts of fresh produce. The one thing I was worried about was “how am I going to go from this to commisary veggies?” now I know, I can do both, and there is a lot of fresh yummies right there at my fingertips! THANKS so much for the info (and the recipes). Another great site that I use constantly is http://www.allrecipes.com
We are PCS’ing this July and how I wish Fresh in Oki were here 3 years ago. Can’t wait to sign up and eat my veggies.
Welcome to all you newcomers!
We got corn in our bags yesterday!! WOOHOO!! We are big corn lovers here and hadn’t had anything resembling sweet corn since we arrived. But it was awesome!
I’m loving my Big Trop Oki fruit bag…and drooling over the persimmons, pears and pineapple! Totally worth the money; you couldn’t buy the same amount of produce at the commissary for the same amount of money, it wouldn’t be organic and you would have to go get it yourself! Wish I had signed up for this service while mangoes were still in season…
Can someone give me directions to the market?
WHERE HAS THIS GONE? there is a note on the website that they will not be accepting any new people due to an expectant mother. Does anyone know when they will be getting this service back up and running! I think this is the coolest thing ever and would LOVE to get on this delivery route!
Sarah, Tanya bought the service from Melody a year ago and is still deciding whether to resume it — she has two small kidss at home and a deployed spouse. But I’ll check with her and have her post a note here asap. Thanks!
I’d be interested as well if she decides to get this re-started. Sounds great!
Did anyone ever take over this business?
Joelle, can you ask Tanya for the directions on how to get to the fruit/veggie stand since she is not accepting any new clients. I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks!
Hello – we are starting a produce delivery service around August 2011 – if anyone is interested please check out the website. Our focus will be local and organic produce. Thanks! http://www.okinawaislandproduce.com