I had a craving for Sinigang (a Filipino dish) and one of the ingredients I purchased to cook it was Kangkong 
(aka Ong Choy, Water Spinach, etc.). I just used the tips and leaves and saved the bottom stems. I then cut the bottom about .5 inch from a node so the stem can easily soak up water. I’m planning on trying to plant this if it roots.
The next day, I was really surprised to see some of the stems already rooting, just one day after I placed them in water.
I love Kale Chips and made a batch yesterday. I didn’t have much Lemons, so I used some freshly squeezed Kalamasi juice which worked as well.
I had a lot of stems left and I didn’t want to waste them, so I sliced them thinly, boiled them until tender, then sauteed it in Olive Oil with Red Onions, Garlic and some Sesame Oil. It turned out pretty good…
I was surfing the web and discovered another Kale recipe that I would love to try called Massaged Kale Salad. It’s made by Aarti Sequeira (winner of last year’s Food Network Star). Click the link below to watch a video of her make the salad.
Quite a few people have been asking me how to make this dish that I make that is kinda like a casserole, but thas sushi ingredients. I don’t know what it’s called, but I call it my Sushi Casserole.
I quickly wrote the recipe below so I can give it to a some friends and relatives. I’ll have to find photos I have taken and add them to this post to illustrate the steps. For now, I added some links to photos I found online… I hope the recipe below makes sense…
Ingredients:
Make the Sushi Rice:
First, cook 3 cups of Sushi Rice. When I don’t have sushi rice, I just mix together 1½ cups regular Rice (Jasmine or Calrose) and 1½ cups Sweet Rice (the sticky short grain kind).
While the rice is cooking, mix about 1/4 cup Seasoned Vinegar (this is the kind I use) and 1/4 cup Sugar. Heat it up in the microwave for about 15 seconds or until the sugar dissolves. Once the rice is cooked, mix the sweetened vinegar to the rice and mix well.
Flatten the rice onto the bottom of 2 to 3 qt. Glass Casserole Dish (our’s looks like this) and cool.
Make the Crab Topping:
Take a package of Imitation Crab Meat Flakes (I usually use the one that looks like this). Mash it up with some Mayonnaise until you get the consistency of a crab salad. I’m not sure exactly how much mayonnaise to add, I just put a little bit at a time until the mixture feels right.
Assembly:
Once the rice in the glass casserole dish is completely cooled down, top it with the imitation crab salad mixture. Flatten, then sprinkle a generous amount of Seto Fumi Furikake (Seasoned Dried Bonito and Egg Mix) (this is the kind we use) to completely cover the whole dish.
You will also need some Nori (Seaweed) Strips. I like to use the seasoned ones like the Yamamotoyama Teriyaki Nori Seaweed that comes in a jar. They even have hot and spicy ones. If you can’t find these, you can use regular Nori sheets and cut them into 1½ x 4 inch strips.
How to Eat:
To eat, scoop out about a tablespoon or so of the Sushi Mix (make sure to get all the layers), place it in the middle of the Nori Strip and fold the Nori around the mixture. Dip in Soy Sauce and Wasabi if you like and enjoy.
If you happen to make this dish and like it, please send a photo of it to me. Also Facebook Like it, Tweet or Google Plus it below.
I like Mixed Bean Soup… *fart* …
This evening I made hearty Potato and Cauliflower Curry Soup. I didn’t really follow a recipe. I just kept adding whatever I felt like to the pot.
Ingredients include: chicken stock, water, onions, garlic, olive oil, ginger, carrots, celery, potato, cauliflower, barley, garam masala, fennel seeds, bay leaves, parsley, cumin, salt, pepper and of course curry powder.
It was really good and hit the spot :)
A few days ago, I saw a friend Meighan’s photo of Mango Mochi that she made. I searched online for recipes and saw a bunch of recipes for Red Bean Mochi… which gave me an idea to use a Mung Bean filling (like in Hopia) instead of the Red Bean. So I set out to try to make my version of Mung Bean Mochi.
I wanted to make one of my favorite Indian dishes called Panak Paneer, which is Spinach and Paneer Cheese in a Curry sauce. I’ve purchase the pre-made packages from Trader Joe’s, but my Mom and other people in my family can’t really eat it, because it’s too spicy, so I wanted to try to make a mild version of it. I didn’t have much of the ingredients like the ground coriander and garam malasa, but I improvised.
My recipe is loosely based on this recipes from allrecipes.com:
Absolutely Perfect Palak Paneer
