a salad without a name. it wasn't bad, though.

i only have the word of two mathematicians to tell me that this salad was good. actually ..

[re-counts]
.. three mathematicians.

sometimes i forget that i count, too. this is the sort of salad which might be easier to eat with a spoon than with a fork. thinking about it, it would work well as a topping on crispbread.

anyway, here's the recipe.

"i don't know but it might be good" salad.

INGREDIENTS:

• one package pea pods, from a farmer's market.
  
• 1/2 can of black beans that you're trying to get rid of
  
• 3/4's a bunch of curly parsley, finely chopped
  
  (i saved 1/4 in case i needed it later in the week. as long as the food is good, there's nothing wrong with holding out on dinner. it's your groceries after all.)
  
  
• one package cherry tomatoes, cut in halfs and quarters and sixths
  
• two handful of walnuts, pan-toasted.
  
• olive oil
  
• rice vinegar
  
• salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.
  

[remembers]
.. f*ck! i forgot the diced red onion!!!!
i was wondering if it would taste good if i added some ..

.. no matter.

DIRECTIONS (of which there are few):

i boiled the peas in their pods for 4 minutes, in the event that my company didn't like raw peas, and then i popped them out of their pods. this is quite easy, because after boiling, the pods are very soft whilst the peas are not.

(they're easier than edamame and fava beans, at any rate.)

as for toasting walnuts, take out a frying pan, set to medium, and add walnuts. NO OIL. shake the pan every so often. when you smell a nutty smell, count to 30 and then remove from heat.


MOTIVATIONS:

1. if i didn't use the peas, then they would go bad. the same goes with cherry tomatoes. it's a sin to waste food from a farmer's market.
   
   
2. i'm on a curly parsley kick since my ann arbor days, because so many places there make good tabbouleh. to name a few, jerusalem garden, pita kebab .. and that place on south university avenue which used to be a hole in the wall but has remodeled to be a sit-down place and won't give you free baklava with a large wrap anymore ..
   
   .. i really liked the free baklava. it wasn't great baklava, but there was this crunch and hint of honey that would be good with afternoon coffee ..
   
   
3. the black beans were left over from when i made .. er, never mind. it wasn't very good -- one of my culinary experiments to which i refuse to subject others. i vowed, however, to make something better with the latter half of the can.
   
   
4. rice vinegar isn't necessary. any acid would work: balsamic vinegar, perhaps apple cider vinegar .. heck, even lemon juice or lime juice. i draw the line at orange juice, because the sweetness would overwhelm the salad.

thoughts after: food, inc.

for the type of film that it is, food inc. is rather watchable. i wouldn't call it a balanced opinion .. not that i want one, of course.

what struck me, though, was that they made a lot of use of commercial-ish images and video footage in a way which resembled brainwashing, or rather, debrainwashing.

in tv commercials, one watches people eating hamburgers with enjoyment and gusto;

everyone eating a hamburger in this film appeared doing so out of habit and certainly not out of joy. that, of course, is reality. there are a lot of hamburgers and fast food out there and people do eat them regularly.

as a film, it followed a core agenda: industrial food. they did it quite well.

the end guidelines -- suggesting what we can do to make healthy food accessible and affordable -- included cooking for and eating with your family.

fine and dandy:
the problem is, how do you start?

it's not hard to learn how to cook. it's not easy to learn how to cook well, without help. it's not easy to learn how to cook well and fast, without practice. barring a really good, quick recipe -- of which many do exist, but you have to look for them -- a beginning home cook cannot compete with restaurant food.

there are several dice loaded into this. what's the point of going to a farmer's market if you can't cook?

there goes another guideline.

restaurants are really good at their job, which is making tasty food. if it's a question of immediate gratification by taste, the restaurant will win, even if it's less healthy and bad for the ecosystem / farmers / health / world / etc.

i guess i was hoping for a few words like "starting out, it's not going to be easy, but you'll get there." it's hard enough for people to gain enough momentum to try to change ..

you say dinner, i say breakfast ..

so far i've nothing but breakfast food, today.

breakfast: coffee, doughnut
lunch: spinach-mushroom omelette with a green salad
just now: whole grain bagel

to be honest, i'm tempted to go home and make myself oatmeal now -- maybe with some brown sugar, cloves, and cardamom. (-:

choy, glorious choy!

these days a lot of supermarkets sell bok choy and napa cabbage, and broccoli rabe is a reasonably good substitute for gai lan.

nonetheless, there are plenty of types of asian greens which never find their way into suburbia. the contrast is striking when you realise that, in new york chinatown, they will sell these otherwise-rare veg ..

.. on street corners, by the pound.

---

when i was younger, supermarkets in nyc chinatown were rare. visiting now, i see more of them.

lao wai choi (老 外 菜), mostly.

11 & 1 o'clock: radish-like root veg,

then there are other asian sundries, like tofu, fresh rice noodles, as well as rice-flour wrappers used to make wontons:



soy sauce, anyone?

4 o'clock, green label: organic soy sauce!

while in harrisburg: burritos.

i had the strangest burrito yesterday, at a place called

(the neon sign, which resembles this graphic, caught my eye.)

as for the ingredients,

      * black bean hommos
      * "barbecue rice" [1]
      * cucumbers
      * sour cream
      * salsa of the day

so it was more like a wrap than a burrito. not bad, though.

---

it's a no frills place; a few tables outside, a few more inside, a few window stools and a thin table for loners. i've seen a lot of indie coffeehouses, but this was my first indie burrito joint.

also odd: for those of you who eat meat regularly, they offer a buffalo burrito -- not the sauce, but the animal meat.



[1] which was just rice with bbq sauce; i should have gone for the brown rice.

i said, "bring them back alive."

against my better judgment, i bought two herb plants yesterday:



you see, every plant for which i've cared has eventually died of negligence. [1] my initial thought was to name these two butch and sundance. [2]

then it occurred to me that almost all the plants that i've ever bought have been dead or dying. they're called grocery vegetables.

this improved my mood somewhat, so i have chosen more optimistic names:

reggie, the oregano plant, & rosie, the rosemary plant.

herbs and veg are funny. when they die, i don't feel that bad about it. maybe there's regret that it could have lived longer and i could have gotten more herb out of them.

in contrast, i don't think i could name deer that were about to be shot, or cows destined for the slaughterhouses.

[1] well, except one: i once drowned a plant. the pot was too big, i left it outside, and subsequently a downpour ensued.

[2] that wouldn't work, anyway. i already named my climbing shoes butch and sundance.

desperate times, lacklustre recipes.

last week i flew back into the united states, only to leave 12 hours later to attend a wedding.

i flew back home last night, to a refrigerator empty of anything fresh, much less vegetables. if i had eggs, i'd have fried some. i had even run out of frozen peas!

there is always something, though. it doesn't have to be amazing, but it has to be tolerable. so this is what i made.

---

bean salad.

ingredients
* several handfuls of dried lentils
* 1 can kidney beans
* 1 medium onion
* lemongrass powder
* cloves [1]
* salt and pepper and olive oil, to taste.

directions
boil the lentils in salted water, with the cloves, for 5-10 minutes. during the boil, (1) finely slice the onion while heating a non-stick pan, (2) fry the onion in olive oil, salt, lemongrass, and pepper, until it has color. drain the lentils of water and cloves, open and drain the tin of kidney beans. mix it all, dress with olive oil, and serve warm.

regrets
if i had any parsley i'd have chopped some and added it in. the same goes if i had a fresh tomato or a bell pepper or any sort of fresh veg.

oh well. sometimes one makes do.

---

(readymade) frozen gyoza.

suggestion/warning
microwave them first, then quickly pan-fry them for color. this shortens the cooking time, but due to the moisture from the microwave, beware of splattering saute oil.

oh well. at least i still had some sriracha sauce around, which goes wonderfully well with these things.


[1] if i had bay leaves, i'd have used them. no luck in the pantry.

you call that minimizing? (:

from bitten, the NYT food blog --

there was a post today about how how they were minimizing the Minimalist:

Mark Bittman advocated broccoli rabe with pasta, and Edward Schneider advocates rabe on toast, like a bruschetta.

well, i claim to have further minimized this iterated minimization.

it's happened several times that i cooked broccoli rabe with garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, and olive oil, and ate it straight from the pan.

heck, i even ate with the chopsticks with which i stirred the rabe!

granted, this happened at an instant of laziness. it was 2am and i had planned to fry an egg and boil up some udon noodles to go with it.

by the time the rabe was ready, though, i decided against the extras.

---

this, i think, is not such a strange phenomenon. i grew up in an immigrant cantonese household, where choy was a part of many meals i ate as a child.

also, broccoli rabe is the closest western version to gai lan (芥蘭) (or "chinese broccoli") that i know of, which means that it holds a dear place in my heart.

ironically enough, broccoli translates to "lao fan gai lan (老番芥蘭)" in cantonese, which literally means Western gai lan.

vegetarianism in catalunya.

i'm unimpressed with how vegetables are cooked in catalunya .. or rather, in the campus cafeterias at universitat autònoma de barcelona.

the salads are plain things:
undressed iceberg with a few tomato decorations.

as for cooked vegetables,
i have seen only grayish cadavers,
their culinary lives cut short by a death from zealously boiling waters.

then again, this doesn't mean that catalunians don't understand vegetarian food. i had this for dinner, for example:

clockwise from left: vegetable tempura, hommos, salad, spinach pudding;
middle: spoon of unknown but tasty sauce;
upper-left corner: a local draft beer called cruzcampo.

comments: i suppose that "tempura" has a fancier name, but these were veggie fritters -- good, but not tempura.

the term "pudding" refers, i think, to the british terminology; like yorkshire pudding. it tasted like a mediterranean spinach pie but more substantial and without the puff pastry.

all in all, though: a good meal.

don't be a hero: splurge on salt.

currently i'm in barcelona for a mathematics summer school. the host university has put us up in apartments with fully stocked kitchens .. except for food, of course.

so if i've learned anything from these past few days, it's this:

always buy salt.

it's worth it.
nothing replaces it, not even freshly ground pepper.

today i made a quick soup of new potatoes, lentils, and onions, doing everything i could to infuse flavor. (i didn't buy broth, either.)

i flavored the broth with stalks of parsley.

i made garlic into a paste and stirred it into the soup.

i added pepper to the point where there was a definitive layer,
floating on the water surface.

when it was done, i served it with shavings of cheese on top.

it still tastes bland. it needs salt.

not exactly gnocchi; close enough.

sometimes i feel like gnocchi, but then i realise how much time and effort is required to make the dough.

(refridgeration is required, at some stage, otherwise one puts glop into boiling salted water instead of pasta.)

then i think harder:
all i really want is that potato taste.
so, why not?

for lunch today:
parboiled, braised potatoes in pasta sauce.

a quick veggie snack.

there's a scene in one of the episodes of "jamie @ home" (feat. jamie oliver) where he criticizes iceberg lettuce. at the end of the scene, he tosses it outside to feed the chicken hens.

i'm not a big fan of iceberg lettuce on salads,
but i wouldn't go that far.

for example: in an informal setting, they make great wrap covers.

lettuce hommos wraps:

* several leaves of iceberg lettuce, rinsed
* a tub of hommos (flavoured, if you like)
* pepper and olive oil, to taste
* some chopped salad vegetables, to be eaten raw:
      e.g. tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers

directions:
make, as you would a taco or burrito or any other sort of wrap.
just don't be afraid of getting a little messy.

---

to make this a meal, here's a side or two:

southwest salad, small pieces:
* (tinned) corn, rinsed,
* red onion, finely chopped
* chopped and peeled celery
* black and kidney beans, cooked and cooled
* coriander, finely chopped
* salt and pepper, to taste
* optional: diced tomatoes and/or finely chopped red chiles

directions:
stir together, serve in bowls.
this might be good with tortillas or chips.


corn bread: i don't know how to bake, so find your own recipe.

i learned two things today.

1. never make a salad with savoy cabbage. it's like chewing ribbed, mildly good-tasting rubber.

2. strawberries make fine vinaigrettes. here is a quick recipe, which can be made with a mini food processor, or possibly a blender.


* 6 ripe strawberries, stems removed,
* guts of 2 on-the-vine tomatoes,
* salt & pepper to taste,
* enough balsamic vinegar as you see fit,
* enough extra virgin olive oil, as you see fit.

serves: 4 medium salads.

CAUTION: if you plan to make some and save the rest for later, blend everything EXCEPT the olive oil. measure what you will serve, then add it.

as for why, olive oil will congeal into lumps when left in the fridge, and thawing takes a while.

late night canned "salad"

1 tin chickpeas / garbanzo beans
1 tin diced tomatoes
1 fistful of cilantro, chopped
olive oil
fresh ground pepper
salt:

stir well, and eat. q:

(toasted pita bread might be a nice add, here)

is there anything broccoli can't do?

huh. i wouldn't have thought of it, but it makes sense: lately i've been inclined to add rice wine vinegar to my stir-fry broccoli, and leftovers are succulent.

so i might try this; sometimes you gotta love the NYT food section.

It’s made from uncooked broccoli tossed with an assertive garlic, sesame, chili and cumin-seed vinaigrette slicked with good extra-virgin olive oil and red wine vinegar. The acid “cooks” the florets a little like ceviche. After an hour, the broccoli softens as if blanched, turning bright emerald, and soaking up all the intense flavors of the dressing. Fresh, crunchy and deeply garlicky, it’s easily the most addictive vegetable in my repertory.

from "Raw Broccoli by Another Name" by Melissa Clark [link]

in which i criticize other people.

i've lately spent much time procrastinating on goodreads. among other diversions, i've written a few reviews for some cookbooks i've browsed.

[here's the link]

a rice bowl recipe.

the following recipe is simple, but tasty. it's quick to make, and good after a long day of staring at small font on a computer screen. i like to think of this as the rice bowl equivalent of an omelette.

caveat: you'll need some spices which may be non-standard, and we will denote them with an asterisk (*). also, if you don't own a rice cooker, then i hope you know how to make stove-top rice.

flavored rice with tomato, mushroom, and egg (like i said: simple)

ingredients for rice:

• 1-2 servings of brown rice
  
• a few sprinkles of dried lemongrass*
  
• a dash of garam masala* (nutmeg will also work)

ingredients for tomato-egg sauce:

• 1 medium tin raw crushed tomatoes,
  
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed and minced,
  
• 2 large eggs, beaten
  
• 1 handful of your favorite mushrooms**
  
• 1 dollop of cream, milk, or soy milk,
  
• i green onion stalk, thinly sliced (any angle is fine)
  
• sprigs of cilantro* or parsley, well-chopped (optional but good)
  
• salt and pepper to taste,
  
• oil for stir-fry.

** i suggest against anything too delicate, like chanterelle or field mushrooms. you shouldn't stir-fry them anyway. standard white mushrooms are fine and so are portobellos. i used chinese straw mushrooms from a tin can.


directions:

1. the rice is simple if you have a rice cooker. wash the rice first, drain, add spices, add the right amount of water, and let the cooker do its work.
   
   as for the rest ..
   
   
2. beat the eggs, add the milk, beat some more, and set aside. then start chopping the veg. as i've learned from bakers, warm eggs cook more evenly than cold eggs.
   
   
3. i like to stir fry in the following order: first garlic,
   then mushrooms with salt/pepper (until they show some color),
   then green onions (for a few seconds; don't overcook them),
   then egg mixture (until it starts to hold its shape, but NOT dry),
   then cilantro/parsley (for a few seconds; again, don't overcook),
   then tomatoes.
   
   stir well; the final mixture should be stew-ish, so add water if it looks too sticky and dry (and stir very, very well). when the tomatoes start to simmer, then remove from heat, and let cool.
   
   
4. spoon out rice, top with tomato-egg-mushroom. if you have leftover green onion and herb, sprinkle some on top, take a photograph, and email it to me.
   
   it usually makes for a fine picture!

modifications: like omelettes, you can rearrange the ingredients to your liking. for instance, you can wilt spinach instead of frying mushrooms, or perhaps sear up some well-chopped eggplant or asparagus.

as for a variant on tomato, i haven't thought it through: i suppose something like coconut milk could work, but that might taste rather rich and more like a curry. this also comes to mind: pureed eggplant?

the eggs are there for protein and a cohesive. imitation eggs would work if you're a strict vegetarian. i suppose leftover cooked and smashed lentils could also work, but the texture wouldn't be the same.

back.

potatoes are roasting in my oven,

and i'm eating bowtie pasta, al dente,
topped with raw tomato and sauteed kale (with garlic).

last night i ate leftover mujaddhra,
topped with eggs fried with chopped curly parsley.

it's nice to be back in my own kitchen. q:

new years, with rapini.

happy new year, everyone.

last night was mellow and drunken and we ate much italian food. giancarlo made gnochhi and kelly made these wonderful meatballs, the size of a fist.

yes, it's not terribly vegetarian,
but then again, i'm not much of one.

also, tucker brought some panettone, an italian type of christmas bread (think: challah bread + fruitcake). it would have made decadent french toast, had we not run out of eggs ..

at any rate, a veggie appetizer would fit perfectly to this sort of thing. so here's what i made:

RAPINI & PORTOBELLO TAPENADE [1]

for those in the know, rapini is an italian analogue to chinese gai lan, and is cooked similarly in italian cooking! some traditions are universal, i guess. (:

ingredients:

• 1 bunch rapini (or broccoli rabe), chopped (see below)
  
• 1 pack baby portobello mushrooms, chopped in quarters
  
• 1 medium red onion, diced.
  
• salt, red pepper flakes, dried lemongrass [2]
  
• olive oil
  
• water (or vegetable broth; your choice).
  
  
• 1 regular baguette
  
• 1 wedge of a hard cheese with mellow flavor;
      i used parmesan reggiano, myself

instructions: this is essentially chop, saute, & simmer, but just to avoid any confusion ..

1. preparing rapini: since this will be a topping on toasted baguette, i suggest chopping the stems more finely than the leafy tops. the leaves will wilt like kale, but not as intensely as spinach, so use your own judgment.
   
   ** also, these greens can somewhat bitter for the uninitiated; if you're cooking for such a crowd, then before the saute you might want to blanch the chopped rapini for 20-30 seconds, but no longer. otherwise, all the nutrients will be drained away from those wonderful greens.
   
   
2. saute order: if you choose to chop as i have chopped, then i suggest SAUTEING THE STEMS first, because they are tougher and will take longer cooking times.
   
   the full order: rapini stems, then salt & pepper, then mushroom, then oil, then lemongrass, then onion, then rapini tops. lastly, add liquid and let simmer at low heat.
   
   
3. toasting bread: it doesn't matter if you cut the baguette lengthwise or in slices. (i find it easier to eat the first way, myself, because the texture is more uniform: in slices, one bites through the crust, and then the soft bread flesh tends to fall apart on you.)
   
   at any rate, warm the pieces of bread in a tray and into the oven -- no need to brown it. when they look crisp, white, and warm, remove from oven, sprinkle with cheese, and return into the oven for 1/2 to 1 minute -- just enough time to soften the cheese, maybe melt it a little.
   
   then pat bread&cheese pieces with the saute, and serve. top with olive oil, if the saute looks dry.

modifications (which i didn't try)

1. any recipe for kale can be used for rapini, so you can saute more coarsely chopped rapini with bacon or parma ham or pancetta, or even thinly sliced beef. i chose otherwise, because when someone else is making fist-sized meatballs, it might be good to balance the meal with a lighter dish.
   
   
2. i forgot to add any (minced) garlic to this, which would have added even more flavor. then again, with the sweetness of the red onion, the savory flavor of the mushrooms, and the heat from the red pepper, this ended up having plenty of taste anyway.

[1] if you trust the wiki, then i should have added olives in this. myself, i use the word tapenade rather liberally.

[2] this can be found in many asian groceries and occasionally, in international foods sections of large supermarkets. if you still can't find it, then zest the skin of a lemon, which is probably better; i chose not to do this because .. well, i'm lazy.

"a quick one (while he's away)"

plain yoghurt,
ripe peaches,
a slight drizzle of honey,
a shake of cardamom ..


.. great stuff!