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Cilantro

Dinner, Korean, Lactose Free, Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies

Asian Cucumber Salad

January 24, 2021

Asian Cucumber Salad

This is a quick (10 minutes max) cucumber dish that is perfect to serve alongside teriyaki meat sticks, lemon grass tofu, and Korean hamburger patties.  It’s a very refreshing salad that everyone will enjoy.

Japanese Cucumber, Cilantro & Gochugaru

Japanese cucumbers are the best choice for this salad.  They are super crispy with tender skins and have very few seeds.  I always have a big jar of gochugaru (Korean chili flakes) on hand.  The chili flakes add a subtle heat and beautiful pop of color to salads like this one.

Asian Cucumber Salad

We have some beautiful cilantro growing in the garden so I added a few tender leaves to the salad.  If you’re not a fan of cilantro, use thinly sliced green onions or chives.  If you are not planning to eat the salad right away, store cucumbers and dressing separately until ready to serve.

Asian Cucumber Salad with Tofu & Rice

Asian Cucumber Salad
 
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Author:
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 1 Japanese cucumber (about 5 ounces)
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce (Kikkoman recommended)
  • 2 tablespoons rice vinegar (unseasoned)
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • ½ teaspoon gochugaru (Korean red chili flakes)
  • ¼ - ½ teaspoon roasted sesame seeds
  • few sprigs of fresh cilantro torn into pieces (may substitute thinly sliced green onions or chives)
Preparation
  1. Slice the cucumbers into thin rounds, about ⅛th-inch thick.
  2. Combine the soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sugar in a small bowl. Mix well until sugar has dissolved. Mix in gochugaru and and most of the sesame seeds.
  3. Place cucumbers in a low sided bowl. Spoon sauce over the cucumbers. Sprinkle remaining sesame seeds over the top followed by the cilantro.

 

Beans, Dinner, Lactose Free, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Falafel

June 7, 2020

Beautiful Falafel

I have always loved falafel though it’s not something you find often in Hawaii, and especially where we live, Maui.  Cook’s Illustrated developed their recipe a few years back and I finally got around to making it.  Maybe it took so long because in my mind I thought it would be a time consuming and fussy recipe.  But once I made my own falafel, it was so delicious I was convinced that it was worth the effort and as it turned out, it’s not very fussy at all.

Soaking Dried Chickpeas

One of the important things to know is that dried chickpeas rule in this recipe.  I soak them in the evening before I go to bed, then drain them in the morning.

Fresh Parsley, Cilantro and Mint

Good falafel is full of fresh herbs and spices like cumin, coriander and a bit of cayenne pepper.  The herbs make for a gorgeous color and terrific flavor in each bite.

Fresh Parsley, Cilantro, Mint, Onion, Garlic & Spices

Falafel Mix

Cook’s Illustrated incorporated the Asian bread-baking technique of using tangzhong in their falafel. This helps to make a cohesive mixture that ensures the falafel is moist and tender once cooked.  The tangzhong for this recipe, consists of flour, water and baking powder.  Try to work quickly once the tangzhong is ready. The baking powder is full of life.

Tangzhong Paste

Beautiful Falafel

These beautiful falafel patties are crisp on the exterior with tender interiors.  They cook quickly and evenly and are easy to stuff into soft, warmed pitas.  I pan- fried my falafel in a bit of oil, however, the original recipe instructs you to deep fry the falafel.  You may prefer to follow this step if you shape your falafel into balls rather than patties. Serve the falafel with tahini sauce.

Falafel with Tahini Sauce in Pita Bread

Falafel with Tahini Sauce

Falafel
 
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Delicious falafel adapted from Cook's Illustrated
Author:
Serves: 20
Ingredients
  • 8 ounces dried chickpeas, picked over and rinsed
  • 2 ounces fresh herbs: Italian parsley, cilantro and mint
  • ½ cup chopped onion (fine)
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • ¾ teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper (up to ¼ teaspoon for spicier falafel)
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • oil for shallow frying or more for deep frying
Preparation
  1. Place chickpeas in a large bowl and cover with water by 2 to 3 inches. Make sure your bowl has plenty of space for the chickpeas to expand. Cover and soak in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours.
  2. Process Italian parsley, cilantro, mint, onion, garlic, coriander, cumin, salt and cayenne pepper in a food processor for 5 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Continue to process until the mixture resembles pesto, about 5 seconds longer. Add drained chickpeas and pulse 6 times. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Continue to pulse until the chickpeas are coarsely chopped and resemble sesame seeds, about 6-10 more pulses. Transfer mixture to a large bowl and set aside.
  3. Whisk flour and ⅓ cup water in a bowl until no lumps remain. Microwave, whisking every 10 seconds, until mixture thickens to stiff, smooth pudding-like consistency that forms a mound when dropped from end of whisk into bowl; 20-40 seconds. Stir baking powder into the flour paste.
  4. Add flour paste to chickpea mixture and using a rubber spatula, mix until fully incorporated. Divide mixture into 20 pieces (24 if forming balls) and gently form into a patty shape. If making balls, roll mixture into golf ball-size spheres. Transfer patties to a parchment paper-lined rimmed baking sheet. The formed falafel can be refrigerated for up to 2 hours, covered.
  5. Heat enough oil to reach ¼-inch up the sides of a wide high sided skillet (mine has 3" sides) over medium to medium-high heat. (If deep frying, heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat to 325 degrees and fry half at a time for about 5 minutes until deep brown in color). Once the oil is hot, add patties and fry, turning the falafel to ensure all sides have browned nicely. You may need to turn the heat down if it's too hot (medium). Transfer cooked falafel to a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Serve with tahini sauce (see link to recipe above).

 

Breakfast, Dinner, Eggs, Japanese, Korean, Lactose Free, Recipes, Rice Dishes

Instant Ramen Fried Rice

May 31, 2020

Ramen Fried Rice with Sunny Side Up Egg

I came across this recipe on the always interesting Serious Eats blog.  It seems that instant ramen fried rice is the latest food craze in Japan.  Everyone there has instant ramen in their cupboards, and so do many of us.  This dish is inexpensive, perfect for single servings, and most of all so tasty.

Bacon Spam & Kimchi Ramen

I added some Bacon Spam to my ramen fried rice for an extra umami boost but you may omit it to make things simpler and quicker. For just one serving, use your favorite flavor of Cup Noodles instant ramen.  I used Kimchi ramen since it was what I had available and it was perfect for the two of us.

Kimchi Ramen

Unlike many other ramen recipes that suggest you throw out the flavor packet and make your own soup, you’ll want to keep it this time.  This is suppose to be a no fuss meal after all.

Ramen Noodles

Crush the noodles into small pieces before adding the soup base and boiling water.

Crushed Ramen Noodles

Crushed Ramen Noodles with Soup Base

Pour just enough boiling water over the noodles and soup base to rehydrate the noodles.  You don’t want to use too much water which would lead to soggy fried rice. Give the noodles and soup base a quick stir, cover and let sit for a few minutes.

Ramen Noodles & Soup Base Rehydrating

Bacon Spam

With Spam (the unofficial state food of Hawaii), there are two options: either you like it (add it) or you loathe it (leave it out).

Ramen Fried Rice with Bacon Spam

Almost any type of rice will work in this recipe. I used 2 cups of cooked short grain brown rice.

Ramen Fried Rice with Bacon Spam

Since eggs are one of my favorite foods, I couldn’t resist frying up a couple of sunny side up eggs to eat with our ramen fried rice.  A good drizzle of sriracha sauce is the ideal accompaniment for this satisfying meal. Oishii!

Ramen Fried Rice with Sunny Side Up Egg

Ramen Fried Rice
 
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Adapted from Serious Eats blog
Author:
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 1 package (about 4.25 ounces) kimchi ramen
  • 2 cups cooked short grain brown rice
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 2 pieces Bacon Spam, diced small and fried until crisp (optional)
  • 2 sunny side up eggs (optional)
  • cilantro for sprinkling over fried rice (optional)
  • Sriracha (optional)
Preparation
  1. Crush ramen noodles and place in a bowl with soup base. Pour boiling water over noodles (just enough to barely cover the noodles) and give them a quick stir. Cover and rehydrate noodles while you continue with the recipe.
  2. Heat 2 tablespoons canola oil in a large (I use 11") non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add beaten eggs and scramble just until barely set. Add rice to the pan and heat through, breaking up any large lumps, about 1-2 minutes. Add cooked Spam cubes if using.
  3. Add noodles along with any liquid (you shouldn't have too much liquid left after rehydrating the ramen) to the rice and stir constantly until excess moisture has cooked off. Taste and season with salt if needed. Press the rice mixture in an even layer on the bottom and up the sides of the pan to allow crispy bits to form. Serve ramen fried rice with sunny side up eggs, cilantro, soy sauce and sriracha.

 

Mexican, Recipes

Salsa Fresca

September 27, 2012

With lots of Big Beef tomatoes in the garden now, we have sliced and layered them on toasted homemade country sourdough bread. I’ve made Green Beans with Olive Oil & Tomatoes, fresh pasta sauce and big, big bowls of salsa fresca.  Fresh salsa is nothing like the bottled salsa you find on the grocery store shelves which many times seem too “tomato pasty.”  Since fresh salsa is best consumed within a day or two, we have eaten many meals that highlight the salsa; tacos, quesadillas, tostadas and tamales.  A simple Sunday breakfast of scrambled eggs with a bit of extra sharp cheddar and topped with a good serving of salsa fresca is the perfect way to start your day.

I don’t follow a specific recipe because there are just 6 ingredients.  You can add as much cilantro, onion and jalapeño as you like.  The best suggestion I can offer is to use good juicy tomatoes (plum tomatoes seem too dry) and taste your jalapeños to see how hot they are since their heat varies considerably especially if using fresh jalapeños.  I prefer to used nacho jalapeño rings that John grows and cans each year. They are hot (!) and I can judge just how much I will need for each salsa recipe.  You can buy jarred jalapeños at the grocery store or canned, chopped jalapeños such as Ortega.  These will work fine.

These containers of salsa were sold to co-workers.  I will donate the monies collected to the 2013 Visitor Industry Charity Walk which is an annual event that helps hundreds of local charities throughout the state.

Salsa Fresca

Fresh tomatoes, cut into small dice with seeds removed

Maui onion or sweet onion finely diced

Chopped cilantro

Minced jalapeño

Fresh lime juice

Salt

This is so easy since there’s no specific measurements for each ingredient.  Once you chop the tomatoes you decide how much of the other ingredients to add to suit your taste.  Some of you may not care for cilantro so you might choose to leave it out, but I highly recommend you give it a try.  It adds a bright color and fresh flavor to the salsa.

It is best to eat the salsa the day you make it.  If you have leftovers use it within two days.

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