We are always looking for ways to increase our veggie intake. Part of the problem is our everyday veggies are BORING. Let me clarify, Veggies aren’t boring, it’s our method of prep. We should be arrested for vegetable prep neglect and indifference. We often find ourselves nuking frozen corn or mixed veggies as we sit down to eat. Veggies are a sad afterthought.
No More
Expanding our veggie-verse has become a priority. What we have discovered are the veggie-centric dishes such as Chinese Cucumbers, Indian Dal,Aloo Gobi, KoreanBanchan, or Japanese Tsukemono. Make batches ahead of time so dinner on a busy night means pulling out the Tupperware from the fridge. Win-win!
One of my favorites is Kinpira Renkon or Stir-fry lotus root. Make a batch and store it in the fridge. Super simple to make and a delicious accompaniment to rice. I tweaked the recipe to include carrots and cloud ears (black cloud mushrooms). Look for fresh lotus root in Asian supermarkets, it is mild in flavor, crunchy, and delish. It also comes vacuum-packed, sliced, and ready to use. If you can’t find it, Jicama might work.
Slice the lotus root and place it in water with a touch of vinegar. Julienne the carrots, and soften the cloud ear mushrooms in warm water. That’s it. The veggies are then sauteed’ in soy sauce, Mirin (cooking wine), and sesame oil. Easy peasy.
Keyword black fungus, Carrots, Kimpira, lotus root
Prep Time 15 minutesminutes
Cook Time 5 minutesminutes
Ingredients
The Star
2-2.5cupslotus rootpeeled and thinly sliced
2Cupswateror enough water to cover lotus root
2Tspvinegar
The Supporting Cast
1/2cupcarrotsjulienned
1Tdried cloud ear mushrooms Once soaked will yield about 1/3 cup
1tbsptoasted sesame oil
1tbspvegetable oil
2tbspmirin
2tbspsoy sauce or tamari
To Finish:
1tsptoasted sesame seeds
dash of chili flakes or 1 small fresh chili pepper, thinly sliced, for milder version de-seed and de-vein pepperoptional (shichimi togarashi is recommended)
1 stalkgreen onion, dicedoptional
Instructions
Soak the lotus slices in cold water and vinegar for 10 minutes and drain and rinse a couple of times.
In a large saucepan over high heat, warm both oils. Once hot, add the lotus root slices and cook until they become soft, 4-5 minutes. Add carrots halfway through cooking time. Stir in the mirin, soy sauce/tamari and reduce heat to low. Add cloud ears when you add the sauce ingredients to pan.
Simmer until the marinade has almost disappeared.
Remove from heat, sprinkle with sesame seeds and shichimi togarashi prior to serving.
As I was driving home the other day I called the Hubster and asked “What’s for dinner?”. The retired guy replied, “I thought you were making dinner”. Excuse me? Moi? The person driving home after a full day at WORK?
Fine, I’ll make dinner but you are on cleanup…
A pack of spareribs, cut crosswise into thirds (thanks Asian market), a knob of ginger and bunch of scallions in the fridge-time to make Irene Kuo’s 12345 Spare Ribs from Food52. The rest of the ingredients are in my pantry, soy sauce, vinegar, rice wine and sugar, that’s all I need. Oh, and my trusty Instant Pot.
I added the step of browning the ribs with ginger and scallions just to give it a flavor boost. Feel free to skip this step and start by putting the ribs and braising liquid in the instant pot without frying. Add a couple of minutes to the cooking time.
Set time for 15 minutes and let your IP do it’s thing. Meanwhile make some rice and veggies, any greens will do nicely. Give it a couple of minutes before releasing the pressure on your IP. Remove ribs. switch to sauté and reduce sauce until it thickens to a syrupy consistency. Add the ribs back in and stir to heat and coat them with sauce.
Scoop rice into a bowl, top with the ribs and greens, and garnish with green onions. Enjoy!
Epilogue
Me? I headed to the couch, turned on the telly, and relaxed while the hubs did the dishes!
The ingredients for these ribs can be found in most Asian markets. Use Shaoxing Wine (Chinese Sherry) or dry sherry. Dark soy sauce has added molasses, don’t substitute regular soy sauce which is actually saltier than dark soy. Favorite brands include Koon Chun or Lee Kum Kee.
Adaptation of Irene Kuo's 1-2-3-4-5 Spare Ribs. Sweet, savory braised ribs, delicious with a bowl of rice. Using a pressure cooker will keep ribs moist and shorten the cooking time.
Course Drinks, Main Course, Meat
Cuisine Asian, Asian-American, Chinese
Keyword Instant Pot, spareribs
Prep Time 10 minutesminutes
Cook Time 18 minutesminutes
Equipment
1 Pressure Cooker I use an Instant Pot
Ingredients
Fry It Up
1 1/2poundspork spareribsask the butcher to cut the slab of ribs crosswise into 3 pieces. You can cut them into individual ribs at home
1stalkscallion, cut into 3 inch lengthsoptional
2slicesfresh ginger, smashedoptional
Braising Liquid
1tablespoondry sherrypreferably Shao Xing Wine
2tablespoonsdark soy sauce
3tablespoonscider vinegar
4tablespoonssugar
5tablespoonswater
Garnish
1-2stalksgreen onions, sliced diagonally in 1/8-1/4" pieces
Instructions
Instant Pot Directions
Set Instant Pot on saute'. Once heated add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. Toss in ginger and scallions and saute' briefly (30 sec) then add spareribs. Fry until the ribs lose their pinkness.
Add braising liquid ingredients. When the liquid comes to a boil, stir well to coat the ribs, turn off saute function, and place lid on Instant Pot.
Set IP on high pressure (use Meat setting) and adjust time to 15 minutes. When it is done, wait a couple of minutes before CAREFULLY releasing pressure to your Instant Pot.
Remove ribs from pot. Set Instant Pot to saute' and reduce remaining liquid to a thick syrupy sauce. Turn it off and add ribs back into pot, stir to coat the ribs. Spoon ribs onto a serving plate.
Garnish with scallions. Serve immediately with rice.
Stovetop Directions
Put the ribs in a skillet or saucepan and set it over high heat; add the rest of the ingredients and stir to mingle. When the liquid comes to a boil, adjust heat to maintain a very gentle simmering, and cover and simmer for 40 minutes. Stir and turn the spareribs from time to time.
Uncover and turn heat high to bring the sauce to a sizzling boil; stir rapidly until the sauce is all but evaporated. Garnish with scallions. Serve hot with rice.
Notes
Using a pressure cooker not only shortens the cooking time but ensures tender and moist ribs.
I have taken over tomato duties from the hubby who has given up on becoming an urban farmer. We just haven’t had any luck with turning our garden into a summer veggie paradise. My bounty from 5 tomato plants so far has been a grand total of 4 tiny red orbs 🤦🏻♀️
FORTUNATELY, we have a wonderful farmer’s market in town.
My haul from last week’s farmer’s market included a variety of cherry tomatoes including Bronze Torch Cherry Tomatoes (pictured on the right above) from Live Earth Farm in Watsonville. We have been buying Live Earth produce since my kids were toddlers and they’re in their twenties now! The Bronze Torch Cherry Tomatoes are simply AH-MAZING. Sweet, tomatoey, delicious.
Tomato Trifecta
I am a big fan of Eric Kim. He writes regularly for New York Times Cooking and just published a wonderful cookbook, Korean American. It is hands down one of my favorite books. His recipes are easy and delicious and his writing is even better. You can also find him on YouTube making many of his recipes, he’s funny, personable, and charming. I went to his book signing at Omnivore Books in SF, fun, I’m such a food groupie.
I love his Grape Tomato Quick Kimchi which I make all the time. Serve as Banchan (side dish-pictured on the right above) one day and as a sauce over noods the next day. It is downright delicious. As soon as I saw his Cold Noodle with Tomatoes recipe I jotted it down on my MAKE ASAP list. It is so easy and incredibly delicious. It should go on your list too.
Start with cherry tomatoes, slice them in half, and sprinkle with salt. Let the tomatoes sit in the bowl while you put together the rest of the dish. No need to use a strainer as the juices from the salted tomatoes become part of the broth. Mince garlic, get out the rice vinegar, soy sauce, Dijon mustard, and sesame oil, and toss it all in a bowl along with the tomatoes. Next, add cold-filtered or bottled water to the bowl (use water that tastes good). Add diced scallions, and slices of radishes (the little red ones) or cucumbers to the broth. Set the broth aside.
Here’s the Hard Part
How to cook your somen. DO NOT COOK YOUR SOMEN while you are getting the other components together. Make the broth and set it aside. Focus on the noods so you don’t overcook them. For somen (thin Japanese wheat noodles), start with plenty of unsalted water. Somen has salt in it. If you use too little water, the noods will absorb too much water because of the salinity. Watch them like a hawk, and stir them with chopsticks or tongs while cooking to separate the noodles, this takes 3-4 minutes TOPS. Remove from heat, rinse thoroughly under cold water and drain well.
Before serving, twirl noodles into a bundle and place them in a bowl. Add crushed ice to the tomatoes and pour it over your noodles. Garnish with additional scallions and sesame seeds. It’s so refreshing, the perfect summer meal. Carnivores, feel free to add shrimp or chicken or half of a hard-boiled egg. Serve asap on a hot summer day. Sooooooo good.
BONUS, Ottolenghi’s Charred Tomatoes and Cold Yogurt. Yes, my trifecta of tomato recipes. Tomatoes, roasted with thyme, cumin seeds, lemon, and garlic, served over yogurt or Labneh. It’s my go-to party appetizer, especially in the summer. It’s “lick the bowl clean” good. A showstopping, easy dish. Make it, you’ll thank me.
Refreshing, delicious, and easy to prepare, Eric Kim's Cold Noodles with Tomatoes
Course noodles, one bowl meal, pasta, Soup
Cuisine Asian, Asian-American, Korean
Keyword cherry tomatoes, Cold noodles, Cold Noodles with Tomatoes, soup
Prep Time 15 minutesminutes
Cook Time 5 minutesminutes
Ingredients
The Star
2pintsripe cherry tomatoeshalved
2teaspoonskosher salt (Diamond Crystal)
The Noods
12 to 14ouncessomyeonsomen, capellini or other thin wheat noodle
Soup and Seasonings
¼cuprice vinegar
2tablespoonssoy sauceKikkoman, Sempio 501 or 701 or LKK Premium Soy
2tablespoonsgranulated sugar
1large garlic clovefinely grated
½teaspoonDijon mustard
½teaspoontoasted sesame oil
2cupscold filtered wateror bottled water of your choice.
1tablespoontoasted sesame seeds
The Garnishes
2radishesthinly sliced, or cucumbers work in a pinch
2scallionsthinly sliced at an angle
2cupscrushed or cubed ice
Omnivore Options
cooked shrimp or shredded chicken
hard boiled eggs, but not too hard-boiled lol
Instructions
In a large bowl, toss together the tomatoes and salt. Let sit until juicy, about 10 minutes.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the noodles according to package instructions, drain and rinse under cold water. Set aside. See post for how to cook somen noodles.
Add the vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, mustard and sesame oil to the tomatoes, and toss with a spoon until well combined. Stir water into the tomatoes and sprinkle the surface of the broth with the sesame seeds, radishes and scallions.
Right before serving, add the ice to the broth. Divide the noodles among bowls, and ladle in the broth and any unmelted ice, making sure each serving gets a nice sprinkling of tomatoes, radishes, scallions and sesame seeds.
My best description/translation of a favorite Chinese pastry, 叉燒酥 (Char Siu Sou) is Chinese bbq pork hand pie. Flaky, tender pastry surrounding a sweet-salty filling of bbq pork, and onions. Char Siu Sou can be found in tea houses serving dim sum and in Chinese bakeries.
Surprisingly, there is quite a selection of pastries made with the Chinese version of puff pastry. More often than not, they are savory. Traditional Chinese pastry is made with two doughs, wet dough and a short dough, laminated together. Folks used lard back in the day which made for a very flaky and flavorful crust.
E-pie-phany
One of my favorite recipes from King Arthur Baking is their Blueberry Hand Pies. The dough made with sour cream is easy to work with and makes a tender, super flaky, buttery shell. When I make hand pies this is my go-to pastry recipe. I’ve used fresh peaches, strawberries, and preserves for the blueberry filling. “Hands” down, a winner.
Char Siu Soul- I Did It My Way
Instead of the traditional Chinese pastry dough, I decided to make the hand pie dough recipe. It’s fewer steps and WORKED like a charm, flaky, buttery goodness, callin’ it Char Siu Soul. Visions of the possibilities like curry beef, Bulgogi, or Vietnamese Caramelized Ground Pork as fillings danced in my head. Yum.
Good Things Come in Pastry Packages
The dough comes together easily. If you are a novice, check out King Arthur Baking’s Martin and Arlo videoon making hand pies. The keys to success are cold butter, working quickly, not overmixing, and letting it rest. The crust can be made by hand, by pinching the butter with the flour mixture. You’ll end up with butter flakes coated with flour, a key to creating the flaky layers.
If using your hands to mix the butter and flour, cut the butter into slices instead of cubes. Much easier to pinch. If using a pastry blender cubes are fine.Add sour cream and stir until mixture is shaggy. Don’t overmix! Pour onto a counter or flat surface to press the dough into a rectangle. Roll out to form an 8×10 rectangle.Fold the dough in thirds, like an envelope. Helps to use a pastry or bench scraper to gather, fold and square off the dough.
Fold the dough a couple of times and then CHILL the dough until set or firm. If you are making the dough early, take it out of the fridge and allow it to soften just enough to make it easy to roll out.
Make any shape you want. Rectangles, squares or triangles work well, no leftover scraps of dough. Cutting out circles will leave scraps of dough that can be re-rolled (more work). Place approximately 1 heaping teaspoon of filling, egg wash the edge, fold one side over and crimp the edges.
Cha Cha Char Siu
Trust me, you don’t have to make your own char siu or bbq pork. Plenty of Chinese delis make delicious bbq pork. But it’s not hard to make, I have 2 versions to make your own, oven-roasted or braised BBQ Pork. Make a batch, you’ll have plenty for Char Siu Soul and for Pork Buns, Fried Rice, sammies, scrambled or steamed eggs. It freezes well, so make a big batch.
The filling is easy to make. Make sure it is cool before filling the pastry. Dice the char siu small, don’t mince. You don’t want a mushy filling. You can use either yellow or white onions or shallots for the filling.
Use a handy dandy fork to crimp the sides. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
I’m Okay, It’s Okay (A Nod to the K-Drama)
Need these delightful pastries in a hurry or on short notice? Feel free to start with frozen, pre-made puff pastry or pie crust (won’t be quite as flaky) for the pastry. Finally, buy Char Siu, Chinese delis make fantastic bbq pork, a huge time saver. It’s okay!
Classic dim sum or tea house dish, bbq pork filling encased in a tender, buttery, flaky pastry.
Course Biscuits and scones, dim sum
Cuisine Asian, Asian-American
Keyword Bbq Pork Pastry, Char Siu Sou
Prep Time 45 minutesminutes
Cook Time 20 minutesminutes
Chilling time for dough (min) 30 minutesminutes
Ingredients
Pastry
2cupsAll-Purpose Flour (8-1/2 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached
1/2teaspoonsalt
1teaspoonsugar
1/2teaspoonbaking powder
1cupcold unsalted butter16 tablespoons
1/2cupcold sour cream
Char Siu Filling:
2tablespoonswater
1tablespoonsugar
1tablespoonhoisin sauce
1teaspoonoyster sauce
½teaspoonsoy sauce
1teaspoonhoney or agave syrup
½teaspoontoasted sesame oil
2teaspoonspeanut or vegetable oil
¼cupfinely chopped yellow onionor shallots
1teaspooncornstarch dissolved in 1 tablespoon water
4ounceschar siuChinese BBQ pork finely diced (homemade or store-bought)
Instructions
To make the pastry:
Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Add the butter, working it in to make a coarse/crumbly mixture. Leave most of the butter in large, pea-sized pieces.
Add the sour cream, and stir until the mixture starts to come together in chunks. Turn it out onto a floured work surface, and bring it together with a few quick kneads.
Pat the dough into a rough log, and roll it into an 8" x 10" rectangle. Dust both sides of the dough with flour, and starting with a shorter end, fold it in three like a business letter.
Flip the dough over, give it a 90° turn on your work surface, and roll it again into an 8" x 10" rectangle. Fold it in three again.
Wrap the dough, and chill for at least 30 minutes before using.
Char Siu Filling:
In a small bowl, stir together the water, sugar, hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, soy sauce, and sesame oil, and set aside.
Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and stir-fry for 3 minutes or until translucent. Stir the flavoring sauce into the onion and heat for 30 seconds or until bubbly.
Give the cornstarch mixture a final stir and add to the skillet. Cook for 30 seconds longer, or until the sauce has thickened. Stir in the char siu and remove from the heat. Cool to room temperature.
To Assemble and Bake:
To assemble and bake: Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll out the prepared dough into approximately 14-inch square.
Using a ruler, trim off the uneven edges to make a 12-inch square, then cut the dough in thirds crosswise and quarters lengthwise to make 12 (3-by-4-inch) rectangles.
Place 1 tablespoon* of the char siu filling across the center of each square leaving about ½-inch border on either side for sealing. Overlap the dough over the filling (like enclosing a photo in a letter). Press down to seal in the filling on all sides. If the dough isn't sticking together easily you may dab the inside edges of the pastry with water before folding it closed.
Flip the pastry over so the seal is on the bottom, and use the tines of a fork to seal the short edges. Place on the baking sheet and repeat with the remaining dough and filling, spacing pastries 1-inch apart on the baking sheet.
Brush the pastries with egg wash, then sprinkle them with sesame seeds. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until golden. Cool briefly on a wire rack. These are best served warm, but are good at room temperature.
Reheat in a toaster oven at 350 for approximately 5 minutes.
Notes
The pictured pastries are approximately 2 x 3 inches. Use a generous teaspoon of filling for this size.
I have a total backlog of recipes I want to share with you and this one is top of the list. I have made this as many times as I have made Eric Kim’s Quick Grape Tomato Banchan or Ottolenghi’s Charred Tomato and Cold Yogurt (so good) and that is saying a lot.
Do You Banchan?
Jangjorim or Soy Braised Beef can be served as banchan (those yummy little dishes that come with every Korean meal) or as a topping to a rice bowl or in a bento box.
I’m not a salad lover. Well, let me rephrase that, I’m not a salad maker…so much trouble. But banchan? Worth the trouble, I’ll make a batch of each, keep them in the fridge and pull ’em out for lunch and/or dinner. They go with everything, rice, noodles, or sammies. Want a little funkiness in your grill cheese, add kimchi (김치). Want crunch and spice in your noodles, add spicy cucumbers (오이무침). Pickled or braised veggies go so well with rice, maybe that’s why I like them.
Koreanbapsang’srecipe for Jangjorim is my starting point. First step, make the stock to cook the meat. The stock includes onions, scallions, garlic and Korean radish (mu,무). The radish gives the dish sweetness, I save the radish to serve with the Jangjorim. It’s delicious.
Shank-alicious
Next, cut beef into cubes and simmer in the stock. Use brisket, flank, chuck, or my favorite, shank. Shank is both flavorful and economical, win-win. For those not familiar with shank, it comes cut crosswise into pieces with the bone in the center. Remove the meat from the bone and cut it into pieces. Throw the bones into the cooking broth for extra flavor. I’ve also used pork shoulder or butt as a substitute with nods of approval from the fam. After simmering, remove the meat and place it in another pot along with 2.5 cups of the original stock and add the seasonings. Reserve the radish. Cook meat on medium heat for approximately 20 minutes. Then add shishito peppers, boiled, peeled eggs, kelp (optional), and the reserved radish. Cook for another 10 minutes or until meat is tender.
Shishito peppers can be a bit spicy, so if you have little kids or big kids that are spice averse, use bell peppers or Anaheim peppers, and cut into manageable bite-sized pieces. Cook eggs as you would six-minute ramen eggs. Chill eggs thoroughly before final braising to avoid overcooking the eggs. Normally, the eggs are hard-boiled but jammy eggs are my jam.
Jangjorim can be served at room temperature to warm as banchan or over rice. The meat can be shredded or sliced. It’s so flavorful, a little bit goes a long way.
Jangjorim or Soy braised Beef, adapted from Korean Bapsang, is a delicious Korean side dish that works well in a bento box too!
Course Meat, Side Dish
Cuisine Asian, Korean
Keyword Banchan, Korean, shishito peppers
Prep Time 10 minutesminutes
Cook Time 1 hourhour
Ingredients
Da Stars
1.5poundsshank meat or beef brisketyou can sub pork shoulder or butt
10 to 12Shishito peppersor other fresh green peppers Use less and cut into halves if using large peppers
3boiled eggs*peeled
Da Stock
1/2medium yellow onion
2stalksscallions white part onlysave green parts for garnish
6ouncesKorean radish (about 1/4-1/3 of one radish)mu, cut into big chunks
7clovesgarlic
3slicesthin ginger about 1-inch round
1/2teaspoonwhole black peppersor ground peppers to taste
Da Sauce
5tablespoonssoy sauce
2tablespoonssoup soy sauceguk ganjang, 국간장 (or use more regular soy sauce)
3tablespoonssugar
3tablespoonsrice wine or mirin
1piece3-inch square dried kelpsubstitute a bay leaf
Instructions
Cut the beef into 2-inch chunks. This recipe is very flexible. You use brisket or flank. I love beef beef shank which is very economical. It has great flavor and texture. You could even use pork shoulder or butt. Delicious!
In a medium pot, bring 8 cups of water and Da Stock ingredients to a boil. Cover and continue to boil for 5 minutes over medium-high heat.
Drop the meat into the pot. Bring it to a gentle boil, and remove the scum. Reduce the heat to medium. Boil, covered, for about 30 minutes.
Remove the meat. Strain the cooking liquid into a large bowl, and then add 2.5 cups of the liquid back to the pot. (You can save the remaining broth to make a soup or stew later.)
Add the meat and sauce ingredients to the pot. Bring it to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, and boil, covered, until the meat is tender and the sauce is reduced to about ⅓, about 20 minutes. You can cook longer if the meat is still not tender enough.
Add the optional dried kelp, peppers and eggs and continue to boil for about 10 minutes. Discard the kelp, and transfer everything else to an airtight container for storage. Cool before storing in the fridge. Shred the meat and pour some sauce over to serve.
Optional: Serve the radish and onions with this dish! Normally, the meat is shredded, and served with shishito peppers and eggs.
Notes
Refrigerate in an airtight container. It will keep for a week. If you want to keep it longer, boil the meat and sauce again after a few days. The meat will become hard in the fridge. You can soften it by leaving the shredded beef out at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes, or microwave for about 20 seconds to soften.
From one of my favorite sites, Two Plaid Aprons, a vegetarian version of Unagi Don! Eel grilled with a sweet and savory sauce or “tare” is called unagi. Don is short for donburi, which refers to the bowl and rice that serves as the landing spot for toppings like unagi. Rice bowls, in my humble opinion, scream comfort food and this riff is no exception. If you are looking for some protein try a fam fav like Oyako Donburi, a Chicken and Egg Donburi.
Grilled and sauced unagi yields a smoky, savory-sweet, melt-in-your-mouth bite of deliciousness. Eggplant braised in the same fashion makes a great stand-in for the unagi. According to the hubster, the resident carnivore in my house, this will satisfy any meat-eater. The tare is made with soy sauce, Mirin (sweet sake), sake, and sugar; ingredients found in most Asian grocery stores. I like substituting dashi soy for the soy sauce which is a blend of soy sauce and fish stock that gives the eggplant a hint of brininess.
Anyway You Slice It
Leave the skin on the eggplant if you like. The other thing you can do is score the eggplant crosswise to mimic the striations on unagi. Fry the eggplant until nicely charred, lower the heat and pour in unagi sauce and green onions. Cover and let the eggplant braise for 5 minutes or until tender but not mushy. As the eggplant braises, it picks up the flavor of the sauce and becomes tender and soft like…eel. YUMMO.
Take the eggplant out and place it over your rice. Garnish with green onions and toasted sesame seeds. Serve immediately. OR, take it over the top with a runny, sunny-side-up egg. Enjoy!
2Japanese eggplant or Chinese eggplantwashed, sliced in half lengthwise and crosswise if they are long.
4cupscooked white riceFeel free to use whatever grain you like, brown rice, farley, quinoa (not my choice but hey)
Da Sauce
4tbspsake
4tbsp soy sauce regular or low sodiumor Dashi Soy
4tbspgranulated sugar
2tbspmirin
2stalksGreen onion, sliced
1/8tspdashi powder or granules optionaluse with low sodium soy sauce
Da Garnish
Toasted white sesame seed, sliced green onions
Instructions
Unagi sauce:
In a small bowl, mix together sake, soy sauce, sugar, mirin and dashi if using. If you use Soy Dashi, skip the powder. Set aside until needed.
Eggplant Prep
Cut off stem of the eggplant and peel the skin with a vegetable peeler, this is optional, if you like skin, save yourself a step. Cut the eggplant in half crosswise, then slice each half evenly lengthwise. Lightly score eggplant crosswise every 1/8-1/4 inch, don't cut thru! This makes it look more like unagi.
Cookin' It
In a 10-inch shallow pan over medium high heat, add a couple tablespoons of oil. Once the oil is hot, place eggplant flat side down and sear until golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Flip eggplant and sear the other side for a minute or two until golden brown.
Stir the prepared unagi sauce and pour it into the pan. Reduce heat to medium/medium-low to keep the sauce at a simmer. Place a lid on the pan and cook eggplant slices for 5 minutes.
After 5 minutes, remove the lid and flip eggplant slices to their flat side. Add half of the sliced green onions to the sauce and continue simmering for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the eggplant slices are tender and the sauce is reduced to a thick glaze. Remove pan from heat.
To Serve:
Scoop a serving of hot rice into each bowl.
Place two slices of eggplant unagi flat side up on each bowl of rice. Garnish with the remaining green onion and sesame seeds. Bowl food is soul food!
Scrambled Eggs and Beef over Rice (The Slippery Slope of Waat Dan Fan)
Waat Dan Fan (滑蛋飯) is one of my absolute all-time favorite down-home Cantonese dishes. The literal translation is Slippery Egg Rice. This version includes beef so it’s called Waat Dan Gnow Yuk Fan (滑蛋牛肉飯). Although it comes together quickly, it can be a little tricky to get the texture of the eggs right. Don’t let that put you off though, it is well worth it. It may take a couple of tries, as it did with me, but the return is HUGE. You will be rewarded with a homey, satisfying, tasty dish of stir-fried beef nestled in a pool of silky, scrambled-swirled eggs flavored with scallions and ginger. Soooooo good! 真好吃!
Don’t Slip Up on the Mise on Place
Everyone thinks stir-frying is quick and easy, although the cooking portion is quick, it’s the prep that takes time. Everything has to be ready for the stir-frying to look effortless. This dish is no egg-ception.
Slice and marinate your beef and put it in a bowl to the side. Note, the oil in the marinade goes in last AFTER the beef has sat for 15-20 minutes and absorbed the marinade.
Crack your eggs into a bowl and whisk them with a pinch of salt. Set it near the beef and close to the stove.
Slice your green onions and set them aside.
Have your 1/2 cup of stock to which you have added the sugar and salt along with the slurry of cornstarch and water ready.
Place the prepped ingredients next to the stove.
You’ll thank me
This is a classic Cantonese dish, the epitome of soul food. I love serving it in a bowl with a spoon. Looking for a vegetarian rift? Try Tomato & Egg Rice. Enjoy!
4ouncesFlank steak, flat iron or sirloin, thinly sliced
2largeeggscan use extra large or jumbo
1/2cupwater or chicken stock (low sodium)
2tbspsliced green onions
1/4tspsalt
1/4tspsugar
peanut oil
1tspcornstarch + 3 tbsp waterMIx in a small bowl and set aside
Mainade for Beef
1tbspsoy sauce
1/2tbspoyster sauce
1-2slicesfresh ginger, julienned
1tbspsugar
dash of white pepper
1tbspShaoxing wine
1tspcornstarch
1tbsppeanut or vegetable oil
3tbspwater
Serve over hot rice or rice noodles
2-3cupsof steamed white rice
Instructions
Slice the beef to 0.2 mm thick, add the marinade ingredients except for the oil, marinade for 20 minutes. As the beef sits it will absorb alot of the water. Add oil after the beef has sat. Set aside.
In a small bowl, beat eggs with a pinch of salt. Set aside.
Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat, add beef, stir-fry until it is no longer pink. Remove the beef and set aside. If beef has a lot of liquid, pour it into a strainer placed over a bowl to drain.
Pour the broth or water into the pan used to stir-fry the beef, add salt and sugar, and bring it to a boil.
Add the cornstarch water mix, and bring to a boil again. The mixture will thicken to a thin sauce consistency. Lower the heat to medium-low.
Pour the eggs into the sauce in a stream moving around the pan. Let it set a bit and then stir gently to allow eggs to continue to cook and set a bit more. It will still be very loose and the stock slurry will still be visible.
Add the beef and sliced scallions and cook for 30 seconds to one minute, stirring gently to blend the sauce and eggs. The mixture will be saucy.
Spoon cooked hot rice into shallow bowls large enough to hold 1-2 cups of rice. Pour the beef and egg mixture over the rice. Garnish with additional sliced scallions and cilantro. Serve immediately.
I LOVE fried rice. Posted on 3Jamigos are my favorites, my Dad’s Fried Rice and Kimchi Fried Rice. Until now, I was very content with these two recipes until…..I came across a video from Lucas Sin, chef/owner of Junzi’s Kitchen in New York/New Haven for Golden Fried Rice. Golden Fried Rice? Say what?
The key to this dish and why it is called Golden Fried Rice is uncooked egg yolks are mixed into the rice BEFORE cooking. The egg yolk surrounds each grain of rice, like a protective rain slicker. When the rice is cooked the grains stay separate, and take on this wonderful satiny loose texture and light golden hue. It’s nuanced but mind-blowing, and that’s coming from a fried rice freak.
Young Guns Breaking the Mold
I follow more than a couple of Asian-American chefs, cookbook authors, and bloggers on the scene now. I’m so impressed with not just their cooking but their ability to utilize social media and non-traditional avenues to highlight Asian cuisine. They have found ways to navigate and adapt to the pandemic. I’ve posted about many of these kids and their work.
The new guard includes Lucas Sin, Deuki Hong, Eric Kim, Brandon Jiu, Cynthia Chen McTiernan, Joy Cho… The old guard, who paved the way, include Roy Choi, David Chang, Eddie Huang, and Joanne Chang. They are not just making great food but highlighting social and environmental issues that impact all of us.
It has been a difficult time compounded by the anti-Asian sentiment in this country, it’s good to see Asian Americans use their platforms to support the community and bring to light many of the issues that folks of color, not just Asian American faces. I’m proud to be Asian-American. #veryasian
Going for the Gold-en
I don’t even need to do a rundown of the recipe if you watch this video! But I will.
Mise En Place is the name of the game.
Get all your ingredients prepped before you get near your stove. This holds true for any stir-fried dish. Make sure you have all your ingredients cut, and prepped, and your seasonings on hand. Stir-frying is that point of time where Scotty takes us into warp speed. So you better be ready to go.
Rules of the Game
After Mise En Place. Use a large, flat-bottomed pan to stir-fry. Face it, most of us don’t have stoves that generate enough BTUs to do real wok cooking, a flat-bottom maximizes the surface area in contact with your flame.
The very basic dish is rice, egg, and the flavor trinity of ginger, onions, and garlic. Oh, and of course, salt and peppa.
Add-itionally
Most people aren’t purists, at least not all of the time. Let’s talk adds. Anything goes with fried rice, any veggie, any protein, any condiment..it’s all good, which tells you just how perfect fried rice is. I am no exception, my favorite additions to fried rice are Lop Cheung (Chinese sausage), bbq pork, and shiitake mushrooms. All adds should be at least partially cooked before adding to the rice. Because you will add your options right before you plate the dish. Your fried rice is just about done and boom, hit it with diced veggies and protein, give it a minute or so of frying to heat everything through, and you’re done. That is unless you are adding sauce (catsup (my fav), hot sauce, XO Sauce, Buffalo Wing Sauce per Lucas) which you would add NOW.
Fried rice taken to a new level with the addition of egg yolks to the rice before it is cooked.
Course One dish meals, Rice
Cuisine Asian, Asian-American
Keyword eggs, Golden Fried Rice, Lucas Sin
Prep Time 20 minutesminutes
Cook Time 7 minutesminutes
Servings 4servings
Ingredients
4cupschilled cooked short-grain white ricecan use long grain, preferably day-old rice
4large eggsyolks and whites separated
4Tbsp.vegetable oildivided, plus more for drizzling
Asian Trinity Plus
½small yellow or white onionfinely chopped
1 inchpiece gingerpeeled, finely chopped almost minced
3clovesgarlic finely chopped
4scallionswhite and pale green parts separated, finely chopped, dark green parts thinly sliced,
Flavor Adds
1tspKosher saltto taste
1tspsugarto taste
1/8tsptumericif you want to enhance the golden color of the rice, this is the trick
white pepperto taste
The Options: Sky's the Limit
1cupBbq pork, shiitake mushrooms, Chinese sausage, shrimp, peas, any diced vegetables-squash. Last night's roast chicken, diced. Any of these should be diced and at least partially cooked. This is your chance to clean out the fridge! Add right before the rice is done and stir fry any adds for a minute to heat and combine distribute evenly in the rice. To preserve the texture of the rice, your additions should not be too wet, which is also why you should use pre-partially cooked items..
Instructions
Separate egg yolks from whites, placing yolks in a medium bowl and whites in a small bowl. Add rice to bowl with yolks and mix to break up any clumps and coat each grain with yolks (take your time with this as any clumps will cook together); set aside.
Stir 2 Tbsp oil into egg whites and season lightly with salt. Heat a dry large nonstick skillet over high. Add egg white mixture and cook, pushing around constantly with chopsticks or a heatproof rubber spatula, until gently set, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a plate. Wipe out skillet if needed.
Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in skillet over medium-high. Add ginger, stirring, until very fragrant, about 20 seconds. Add yellow onion, season with a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring, until onion is translucent, about 1 minute (remove from heat if onion starts to go past golden brown). Add reserved rice mixture, sprinkle with sugar, and season with salt. Toss to combine, then cook, undisturbed, until rice is beginning to warm and crisp underneath, about 1 minute.
Push some of the rice to the side to clear a few inches in skillet. Drizzle a bit of oil into the clearing. Add scallion white and pale green parts and garlic and cook, stirring, until just softened and fragrant, about 45 seconds. Toss into rice mixture and cook, tossing occasionally, until warmed through and rice is crisp and chewy, about 3 minutes. Return cooked egg whites to pan and cook, tossing and breaking up with spatula until distributed.
Now is when you would add extras...veggies, protein, and then condiments. Stir fry additional minute to combine and heat through.
Special Shout Out to my favorite: catsup or ketchup, add it now. Start with at least 2-3 tablespoons and then add to taste. Fry to heat and incorporate catsup throughout the rice.
Divide among plates and top with scallion greens.
Notes
Note in the video, Lucas mentions a 2:1 ratio of salt to sugar. I started with even amounts or a smidge more salt, taste, and season to your preference.This fried rice does not use soy sauce at all. Most likely due to the color impact of adding soy sauce. I grew up with fried rice that was coffee with a bit of milk color. My Dad used soy sauce in his rice, a trick he probably picked up from Chinatown chefs. A simple variation of fried rice starts with butter or rendered chicken fat with dark and light soy to color and flavor the rice...so, so yummy.
I’m not a vegetarian but we are making a concerted effort to eat less meat and more veggies. Good for us and good for the planet. It’s much easier now with so many cookbook authors, bloggers, and chefs being much more veggie-forward.
The first new year recipe I tried was Cauliflower Steaks with a Smoky Tomato Rub from Cook the Vineyard. Delicious, off to a good start! I also received Hetty McKinnon’s To Asia with Love during the holidays. A nod to her Chinese roots, she has penned a beautiful cookbook that relies on vegetables. But before I even cracked open the book I found this recipe from her, Creamy Cashew Udon with Crispy Mushrooms, in Bon Appetit. It’s so good.
The recipe can be broken down into 3 parts. The creamy cashew sauce, the umami-filled chili crisp, soy, vinegar sauce, and the noodles.
Cashew Sauce
Who knew? Blending cashews with water, garlic makes an amazing, creamy, rich sauce that is the perfect stand-in for heavy cream.
It is super versatile, add herbs and spices for a sauce over roasted vegetables like carrots and broccoli. Or add some tahini for a sesame flavored sauce. Yummy. I know, cashews can be pretty darn expensive. I buy mine at Costco or local Indian markets which helps save some buckaroos,
The base sauce is cashews, water, garlic, salt, and a bit of oil. It’s genius. The cashews are hydrated first, in hot water, before tossing them in a blender or food processor with other ingredients and whirred into a sauce that provides flavor and a wonderfully creamy, decadent sauce. Shazam.
Chili Oil
The chili sauce comes together quickly and provides that burst of flavor that brings it all together. Use your favorite Chili Crisp Oil. I use either the OG of Chili Crisp Oils, Lao Gan Ma, or Momofuku Chili Crisp. Hetty McKinnon has a homemade chili crisp oil in her book. It’s on my bucket list of things to try.
The Noods
Udon noodles are Japanese wheat noodles that are thick and springy. Often overshadowed by its flashy cousin ramen. It is served in soup, hot or cold, and stir-fried. My fav is in soup with shreds of beef, Niku Udon, with Aburaage, fried tofu, or simply with an egg. Here is my Udon primer. It works really well in this dish, the creamy sauce coats the thick, sticky udon nicely. The noodles have a nice bite that compliments the mushrooms. BUT, you could use different noodles, keep in mind you’ll want a thicker noodle, one that can stand up to the sauce (so not thin vermicelli noodles). For a gluten-free option, a wide rice noodle would work well.
Not gonna lie, always going to love meat, but folks like Hetty McKinnon are making it much easier to make our meals much more veggie-centric. This pasta dish is going in the regular rotation!
1lb.oyster shiitake, crimini, or button mushrooms, cut into bite-size pieces
1clovegarlic finely chopped
½tsp.Diamond Crystal or ¼ tsp. Morton kosher saltplus more serving
Freshly ground black pepper
Noodles and Garnish
28oz.fresh or frozen udon noodlesSubstitute wide rice noodles for gluten-free option.
2scallionsthinly sliced
Instructions
Cashew Cream
Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil, then remove from heat. Add cashews and let sit until tender, 30–60 minutes.
Drain cashews and transfer to a blender (preferably high-speed) or food processor. Add garlic, oil, salt, and ½ cup water and purée until smooth.
Umami Sauce
Stir vinegar, chili crisp, soy sauce, sesame oil, and scallion in a small bowl to combine; set soy-vinegar sauce aside.
Heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Cook mushrooms, tossing every minute or so but leaving mostly undisturbed, until mostly golden and crisp, 5–8 minutes, oyster and shiitakes will cook quicker, while crimini and button mushrooms will take a bit longer. Add garlic and kosher salt, cook, stirring often, add additional tablespoon of olive oil if the mushrooms look dry.
Noodles
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook noodles according to package directions. You can use udon or any wide, thick noodle. For gluten-free option use rice noodles. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid.
Remove half of the mushrooms from the pan. Add noodles and cashew cream to pan with remianing mushrooms cook, stirring and adding reserved cooking liquid a little at a time, until cream is loose and coats noodles. Season with salt and pepper.
Divide noodles among bowls, garnish with reserved mushrooms generously drizzle each with reserved soy-vinegar sauce. Top with remaining scallions. Serve.
Notes
You could make this gluten free too! Use a wheat free soy sauce, like a Tamari Sauce and a rice noodle for the udon. Blend the cashew sauce well, preferably use a blender or food processor. Don’t be timid, you want a nice smooth sauce.
