Back to My Lotus ROOTS (Renkon No Kinpira)
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, Korean Banchan, 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.
Enjoy!
Simmered Lotus Root (Renkon no kinpira)
Ingredients
The Star
- 2-2.5 cups lotus root peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 Cups water or enough water to cover lotus root
- 2 Tsp vinegar
The Supporting Cast
- 1/2 cup carrots julienned
- 1 T dried cloud ear mushrooms Once soaked will yield about 1/3 cup
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp mirin
- 2 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
To Finish:
- 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
- dash of chili flakes or 1 small fresh chili pepper, thinly sliced, for milder version de-seed and de-vein pepper optional (shichimi togarashi is recommended)
- 1 stalk green onion, diced optional
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.