Otsu Soba

Otsu Soba
Serves 4, 15 min
On days that I work, I don't get to eat dinner until I get home (around 10-11 PM). So the last thing I want to do is cook myself something that will take forever or keep me up too late from being too rich. Luckily, I came across this recipe online, originating from a small restaurant called Pomelo. It's a buckwheat noodle salad thats easy to make, full of flavor, light on the stomach and wallet. I didn't have a blender so after grating a few of the ingredients, I put the sauce in the microwave for 50 seconds so the honey was warm enough to mix with the rest of the ingredients.


Grated zest of 1 lemon
Fresh ginger, cut into a 1-inch cube, peeled, and grated
1 tablespoon honey
3/4 teaspoon cayenne
3/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup unseasoned brown-rice vinegar
1/3 cup shoyu sauce (wheat-free soy sauce)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

12 ounces dried soba noodles
12 ounces extra-firm nigari tofu
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cucumber, peeled, cut in half lengthwise, seeded, and thinly sliced
1 small handful of cilantro sprigs, for garnish
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds, for garnish

1.Make the dressing by combining the zest, ginger, honey, cayenne, and salt in a food processor (or use a hand blender) and process until smooth. Add the lemon juice, rice vinegar, and shoyu, and pulse to combine. With the machine running, drizzle in the oils
2.Cook the soba in plenty of rapidly boiling salted water just until tender, then drain and rinse under cold running water.
3.While the pasta is cooking, drain the tofu, pat it dry, and cut it into 1 inch cubes. Cook the tofu in a dry nonstick (or well-seasoned) skillet over medium-high heat for a few minutes, until the pieces are browned on one side. Toss gently once or twice, then continue cooking for another minute or so, until the tofu is firm, golden, and bouncy.
4.In a large mixing bowl, combine the soba, the 1/4 cup cilantro, the green onions, cucumber, and about 1/3 cup of the dressing. Toss until well combined. Add the tofu and toss again gently. Serve on a platter, garnished with the cilantro sprigs and the toasted sesame seeds.

Mix it up with BiBimBap

Bibimbap
Serves 1, 30 min
I was sifting through the fridge and found some left over side dishes and vegetables that were going to go to waste. I hate watching ingredients go unused so I decided to use them all up and make bibimbap. "Bibimbap" literally translates to "mixed rice" in Korean. Traditionally, bibimbap is a mix of cooked vegetables, meat, egg, hot chili paste and sesame oil. Here, I left out the meat but kept the egg (you can leave out the egg and it still tastes good). You can pretty much take any vegetable and stir fry it or keep it fresh and have bibimbap. Try it with fresh cucumbers, blanched spinach, fresh sesame leaves, etc. Two of the ingredients used today are things you probably never heard of.


Burdock root (on left)- This is the root of a Burdock plant, better known as a thistle. Its cheap and stays for a long time. I found it difficult to cut by hand so I made even slices by using a mandolin. Once cooked, its slightly sweet and becomes softer yet stays crunchy.
King Trumpet mushroom (on right)- also known as the "almond abalone mushroom" is a large mushroom that tastes slightly buttery once cooked and its texture is comparable to an abalone.


1/2 cup burdock root
1/2 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup zucchini
1 king trumpet mushroom
1 egg
1 cup chopped romaine lettuce
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 Tbs sesame oil
1-2 Tbs Korean hot chili paste

1.Remove skin from burdock by using a potato peeler. With a mandolin, shred burdock into matchsticks. Stir fry with little oil for 3-5 min until slightly tender. Add pinch of salt for taste.
2.Slice carrots into matchsticks and stir fry for 3-5 min until tender.
3.Chop zucchini into 1/4 inch half circles and stir fry. Remove excess water from pan and add a little salt for taste.
4.Dice the king trumpet mushroom into cubes and fry for 3 min, stirring occasionally.
5.Break egg into pan and pan fry, careful not to break the yolk. once the egg looks cooked on one side, flip the egg, again careful not to break the yolk. Don't let the egg to cook thoroughly, the yolk should stay a little runny.
6.Chop lettuce and set aside.
7.In a bowl, scoop the rice into the center, add the vegetables, and egg. Add desired amount of hot chili paste (the more you add, the spicier and saltier it will get) and drizzle sesame oil over everything. Mix well and enjoy.

Welcome!

I have decided to blog about my experience as a Pescaterian/Vegetarian! Since I don't consider meat to be a heavy part of my daily diet, it wasn't too difficult to omit meat completely. However, thanks to my new found love with sushi, I cannot bear with the thought of never eating it again (that, and eggs x__X but more on that later). I love cooking, so I hope to add favorite recipes I've tried as well as ones I have created. This way I save money and have comfort in knowing what I am actually eating. There will be times when I do need to eat out, so I'll add tips and thoughts as those occurrences happen. So, why have I decided to eat this way? There are several factors:

1) The Environment: Meat and other animal products are not sustainable. In order to keep up with the peoples demands for farming, we need to raise billions of animals every year which requires more land each year and produces green house gases. If these numbers continue to grow, the atmosphere, land, and water will not be able to handle it.

2) Health: Eating a meat-free diet can help reduce risk of certain chronic diseases, and help lose weight. My grandmother has had surgery because of bad cholesterol, and my mother currently has problems due to bad eating habits. Lately, I have been convincing my mom to eat healthier by cooking for/with her. Also, cooking your own food helps you control what goes into your body!

3) Money: Meat can get very expensive if its a daily routine. Also, cooking at home saves a lot of dough, as well as time, if done correctly.

4) Entertainment: I cant help but be entertained when I have someone eat vegetarian or pescaterian and are delighted that it doesn't taste like plain oatmeal. Also, since I like to try new things, restricting myself from eating meat has helped me expand my pallet.

So, there you have it! Happy Earth Day! Let the eating begin!