Comfort healthy food-peasant/home Asian style

[shootingstar]

Tonight's dinner-- brown rice, lightly sauteed spinach and bok choy in small amount of oil and water for 5-8 min.. In white bowl, is steamed egg (actually egg white, but one can use 1 egg with yolk. It would look more aesthetically yellow. :o) with chicken breast slices flavoured with 1 tsp. of soy sauce, 1-2 slices of minced ginger root, abit of onion, 1/8 tsp. of oil and sprinkle of flour for marinade.

Whole egg dish puffs up when it's steamed in bowl. Easy to make, very little oil/fat. About 15 min. It is a savoury egg custard. I recall seeing a savoury egg custard done on Foodnetwork, by an Iron Chef. Wouldn't be surprising over 50% of the viewing audience didn't even understand the concept of a savoury egg custard dish. But it's an old, old recipe.

Sure, healthy food can look so ..plain. But it is comfort food for me from childhood..to now. It is brown rice --if you compare colour against the white bowl.

[smilingcat]

looks alot like my dinner with exception of the egg. :D :D

We still eat meat too at my house but per day consumption is less than 4 oz for each of us. Together less than 8 oz total. Some days, we are vegan.

good eats!!

[badger]

have you ever tried "chawan mushi"? it's a similar Japanese dish but the custard bit is very smooth. Most often there's pieces of chicken (or shrimp or no meat), gingko nuts, some sort of aromatic leaf like cilantro (but it's not) and maybe a slice of shiitake mushroom.

I haven't had it in years and like you it's comfort food from my childhood. You can buy it pre-made from Fujiya to heat up in the microwave, or you can go to Shiro on Cambie/W. 15, they make pretty decent ones.

[shootingstar]

have you ever tried "chawan mushi"? it's a similar Japanese dish but the custard bit is very smooth. Most often there's pieces of chicken (or shrimp or no meat), gingko nuts, some sort of aromatic leaf like cilantro (but it's not) and maybe a slice of shiitake mushroom.

I haven't had it in years and like you it's comfort food from my childhood. You can buy it pre-made from Fujiya to heat up in the microwave, or you can go to Shiro on Cambie/W. 15, they make pretty decent ones.

Thanks for another suggestion. Gingko nuts is something I haven't heard of in Chinese savory egg custard dishes. Yes, another variation is to slice thinly 1 shitake mushroom. Is it ever served on a Japanese restaurant menu in town here? Shrimp inside the dish would taste good also. The amount of chicken in above photo is less than 1 fist-size.

Still another dish variation, is to omit the egg. Then it's simply a steamed chicken dish with all the flavourings I described earlier.

Certain I've eaten gingko nuts in various dishes at restaurants over the years but had no clue what I was eating sometimes. :rolleyes: To this day, there are certain things I ate as a child, but now I still can't name its English term nor remember the Chinese word. So all the fuss, I see kids nowadays insisting on knowing what it is they are eating, etc....Well, my parents didn't even know the English translation for certain foods. Hence, us kids had no clue what we were eating! If it tasted good and it was recommended by parent, ok. Not a big deal. Truly.

That's why as a teenager, I thought North American style roast beef dinners were....boring. I inadvertedly became a foodie early in life :o ...because of the large multi-course Chinese banquets at New Years', weddings, etc.

[badger]

Is it ever served on a Japanese restaurant menu in town here? Shrimp inside the dish would taste good also.


As I mentioned earlier, Shiro on Cambie and W. 15th does. Other authentic Japanese restaurants may, too, but I haven't actually been to one in quite some time.

[PamNY]

So all the fuss, I see kids nowadays insisting on knowing what it is they are eating, etc....Well, my parents didn't even know the English translation for certain foods. Hence, us kids had no clue what we were eating! If it tasted good and it was recommended by parent, ok. Not a big deal. .

That is so sad! But I'm sure your parents didn't mean any harm. This is the type of situation where stereotypes and cliches do a lot of damage, unfortunately.

My parents were also subject to certain stereotypes and cliches but lucky for me, they did not include food. They indulged my curiosity and passion for unusual foods and we had so much fun.

When I am shopping in Chinatown I bring my recipe books along -- luckily there are very good photographs in the books specifically focused on Asian vegetables and this helps with identification.

Pam

[smilingcat]

have you ever tried "chawan mushi"? it's a similar Japanese dish but the custard bit is very smooth. Most often there's pieces of chicken (or shrimp or no meat), gingko nuts, some sort of aromatic leaf like cilantro (but it's not) and maybe a slice of shiitake mushroom.

I haven't had it in years and like you it's comfort food from my childhood. You can buy it pre-made from Fujiya to heat up in the microwave, or you can go to Shiro on Cambie/W. 15, they make pretty decent ones.

chawan mushi:

one egg
3 to 4 TBS of chicken stock (prefer consomme)
bite size piece of chicken breast (don't use leg or thigh too much fat)
small shiitake mushroom sliced thin use fresh or reconstitute in minimal amount of water and save the water.
pinch of two or three celery leaves

for best result remove as much fat as possible.

method:

beat the egg. mix in the stock and beat some more. try not to incorporate too much air into the mixture. If you used dried mushroom, you can mix stock and the water used in the rehydration of the mushroom. Just make sure you are only using 3TBS to 4TBS of liquid total. Too much liquid and the custard will not set.

drop the meat into the bottom of the chawan mushi ceramic cup(can be a straight sided coffee mug) drop the shiitake slices into the cup, add the egg mixture then drop in the celery leaves. put the ceramic lid on top (or use an aluminum foil over the coffee mug)

steam gently for about 10-15 minutes.

too gentle and it will be runny. increase heat and continue to steam until custard forms. Should be very soft consistency

steam too hot and the custard will be very hard and the consmme will separate out. Also the custard will have lots of air bubbles. next time reduce heat.

Will double check on the amount of stock used tonight.

[shootingstar]

That is so sad! But I'm sure your parents didn't mean any harm. This is the type of situation where stereotypes and cliches do a lot of damage, unfortunately.

My parents were also subject to certain stereotypes and cliches but lucky for me, they did not include food. They indulged my curiosity and passion for unusual foods and we had so much fun.

When I am shopping in Chinatown I bring my recipe books along -- luckily there are very good photographs in the books specifically focused on Asian vegetables and this helps with identification.

Pam

:confused::confused: Perhaps I wasn't clear --what I meant was that as children even though we didn't always know exactly what we were eating, we ate it anyway. As children, it made us more fearless and exploratory in eating a broader range of new things which carried over as adults in broadening our palate to other cuisines.

One tactic a parent did do, was for an expensive tropical fruit, etc. bring it home and explain to us in a showcase/highlight way, as we tried a piece of it.

Smilingcat: I'm lazy, I just use water to mix into the egg mixture. :o But a bit of soup stock would deepen the dish hflavour and make it more interesting. Yes, you're absolutely right about the undercooking or overcooking a steamed savory custard.

I use any ceramic like dish with sides. The white dish where the egg dish is in, is the original dish that I also used to steam it. I just lifted it out of the hot water bath in the stovetop pot, when it was done. I don't use a bamboo steamer.

[surgtech1956]

reminds me of when I microwave an egg - it puffs up. Looks yummy - never had bok chok - is it cabbage?

[shootingstar]

I've never microwaved eggs before. Most of our cooking is from scratch. Microwave is handy for certain leftovers.
This egg dish I made, should be eaten up lst time. It wouldn't taste as nice as a leftover next day.


This link is useful for all sorts of unknown veggies and fruits as a starter since it gives photos.

http://www.foodsubs.com/Cabbage.html

Bok choy is always recommended cooked. It doesn't take long..just a small amount of oil, chopped bok choy (in large chunks after it's washed and leaf stalks separated), add if you want, abit of chopped onion, 1 smashed garlic and sautee/stir fry lightly. Add some water and abit of soy sauce (1 large jot, that's all). For 1 person, a small boy choy bundle size of your fist or bigger, will shrink down in cooking.

Cooks in less than 5-8 min. for 1 serving. You still want the leaf quite green, but soft in texture. If it's dull green, that means it's overcooked.

I was even lazier --I didn't add any onions, garlic. Of course, you can stir fry marinated meat slices and add bok choy later. Very versatile.

Sauteed veggie dish is abit pointless to save as a leftover for next day. It would disappear into something pathetic in microwave. Its nutrient profile: http://nutrition.about.com/od/fruitsandvegetables/p/BokChoy.htm

I haven't had cabbage..in years, except sauerkraut which we buy. :o We don't make any slaw at home.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I love stir fried bok choy. I planted some in my garden and hope to get a harvest this summer! :)

[shootingstar]

I'm sure BleeckerStgirl the boy choy will thrive well under your watchful eye.

I don't know anything about gardening, but I've heard it can grow well in temperate climates.

[badger]

I microwave my eggs all the time, especially on weekends when I want a quick and easy breakfast. You just crack an egg into a bowl, mix it with a bit of milk or soy milk, and nuke it for a minute or so. It's not left overs.

[Eden]

Our favorite sushi joint does a very nice chawan mushi. Their normal one has a shrimp, a small piece of chicken, a slice of kameboko (fish cake) and maybe a slice or two of shitake. In the fall for a short period of time only he does matsutake chawan mushi - oooooooooh heaven.... the only thing better that you can do with those shrooms is shred them up and quickly broil them with just a little salt and yuzu juice.

I like bok choy fine, but prefer sum choy (often sold as "baby" bok choy). Little tiny ones stir fried whole in a little sesame oil - tasty indeed.

[Reesha]

I like making kimchi/tofu soup with brown rice. It's so good! I've never tried a bibimbap with brown rice because I can't get the crispy stone bowl effect at home :( but the soup I can manage. So good!

[badger]

mmm, I haven't had bibimbap in a long while. I love the little pickles they serve while you wait for your dishes.

[smilingcat]

Our favorite sushi joint does a very nice chawan mushi. Their normal one has a shrimp, a small piece of chicken, a slice of kameboko (fish cake) and maybe a slice or two of shitake. In the fall for a short period of time only he does matsutake chawan mushi - oooooooooh heaven.... the only thing better that you can do with those shrooms is shred them up and quickly broil them with just a little salt and yuzu juice.

I like bok choy fine, but prefer sum choy (often sold as "baby" bok choy). Little tiny ones stir fried whole in a little sesame oil - tasty indeed.

Waaaa!!!!! they are the betest mushrooms ever. But at nearly $100 per pound I can't afford it!! I went mushrooming for those in Colorado but the squirrels, bunnies and all the other forest creature would get to them before I got to it. Waaa WAAAAAA!!!!

[Eden]

Waaaa!!!!! they are the betest mushrooms ever. But at nearly $100 per pound I can't afford it!! I went mushrooming for those in Colorado but the squirrels, bunnies and all the other forest creature would get to them before I got to it. Waaa WAAAAAA!!!!

Yoshi spoils us :D

Uwajimaya (a large local Japanese grocery) up here has piles of them in the fall. They range from about $48 to $90 per pound depending on the grade. If you only buy one or two (mushrooms that is - not pounds!) it doesn't seem so outrageous..... (Yoshi tells me the big ones, while not being the favored A grade, taste just as good).

I can also get *real* fresh wasabi root there. Now that is something special - absolutely nothing like the green colored horseradish that every restaurant serves. I can understand - the stuff is way, way too pricey to give away like that, also around $90 a pound, but again you only need a little piece and its worth it once a year or so. It's grown down in Oregon. There was even an article in Saveur magazine about the owners of the farm and how they employed Japanese women to do a bit of undercover work for them to find out how to grow the plants. The farmers wouldn't tell them the Americans anything, but couldn't fathom that these Japanese ladies could possibly be doing a bit of "agricultural espionage".

[smilingcat]

Yoshi spoils us :D

Uwajimaya (a large local Japanese grocery) up here has piles of them in the fall. They range from about $48 to $90 per pound depending on the grade. If you only buy one or two it doesn't seem so outrageous..... (Yoshi tells me the big ones, while not being the favored A grade, taste just as good).

I can also get *real* fresh wasabi root there. Now that is something special - absolutely nothing like the green colored horseradish that every restaurant serves. I can understand - the stuff is way, way too pricey to give away like that, also around $90 a pound, but again you only need a little piece and its worth it once a year or so. It's grown down in Oregon. There was even an article in Saveur magazine about the owners of the farm and how they employed Japanese women to do a bit of undercover work for them to find out how to grow the plants. The farmers wouldn't tell them the Americans anything, but couldn't fathom that these Japanese ladies could possibly be doing a bit of "agricultural espionage".

Real wasabi is very different than the green colored horseradish very true. Its milder and has a bit of citrusy feel to it. Natural habitat is on a edge of a clear cold stream. The tap root takes like 5? years to grow.

Well for consolation I do have sansho trees. They were illegal up untill 2005 to grow here in the states.

I think you'll really love the ground sansho pepper. Nothing like it. Bit of sharpness like ginger but not as strong. it is very aromatic, intoxicating-ly refreshing scent similar to citrus scent yet very different. SPICE hmmm sounding lot like Sci Fi novel "Dune".

[OakLeaf]

Can you freeze wasabi?

[smilingcat]

don't think its a wise idea to freeze any vegetables. Wasabi is a root just like carrots. and the water inside the plant may destroy the wasabi when it freezes.

Like any root vegetable, if you want to keep it for a while, wrap in dark heavy paper loosely and store it in cool damp dark place in your fridge. I think they hold up as well as carrots.

[shootingstar]

Real wasabi is very different than the green colored horseradish very true. Its milder and has a bit of citrusy feel to it. Natural habitat is on a edge of a clear cold stream. The tap root takes like 5? years to grow.

Well for consolation I do have sansho trees. They were illegal up untill 2005 to grow here in the states.

I think you'll really love the ground sansho pepper. Nothing like it. Bit of sharpness like ginger but not as strong. it is very aromatic, intoxicating-ly refreshing scent similar to citrus scent yet very different. SPICE hmmm sounding lot like Sci Fi novel "Dune".

What type of dishes is sansho pepper used for? Maybe someone else here might know if there is a Chinese name equivalent. (As I said, I don't always know what I'm eating, but I usually agreeably eat it anyway. I'm a good guest. :rolleyes: Truly.)

Wonder if the real wasabi root would have the same effect on me as the horseradish with green colour that we often see --if I take in a large swab with sushi, the concentrated bomb gives me a temporary headache for 5 seconds. Then I recover..:p

This is not wasabi..but there is a traditional German horseradish soup that dearie tried making once. Once. Whoaaaaa..:p He used a real horseradish root.

[Eden]

Well for consolation I do have sansho trees. They were illegal up untill 2005 to grow here in the states.

I think you'll really love the ground sansho pepper. Nothing like it. Bit of sharpness like ginger but not as strong. it is very aromatic, intoxicating-ly refreshing scent similar to citrus scent yet very different. SPICE hmmm sounding lot like Sci Fi novel "Dune".

I think I was first familiarized with it as "Sezchuan pepper". I used to work with some people from China and people in the company traveled back and forth a lot. One of the Chinese employees brought some back once (I think it was still illegal at the time! - apparently because of the possibility of spreading a tree disease). She said that all the Sezchuan food in the states was just wrong because they couldn't get the pepper. Now I can get it locally. It is very interesting. It kind of numbs your tongue a bit. The aroma is amazing. I have it in a spice grinder like regular pepper and grind my own.

[smilingcat]

Yes.. its part of the chinese 5 spice pepper ingredient. Had to check first :p

Shootingstar so it is in part of your heritage.

Japanese use it on grilled eel sushi with the sweet savory sauce. We sprinkle bit of the powdered pepper on the eel. The pepper and the sweet savory sauce creates a wonderful contrast in taste sort of Yin and the Yang.

We also use it in miso soup.

I would have to ask my mother for more uses. What I really need to do is sit with her and write down lot of her "old" knowledge before she loses them. From what it was like growing up in the 1930's through the war ... the recipe for family dishes... family history...

[OakLeaf]

don't think its a wise idea to freeze any vegetables. Wasabi is a root just like carrots. and the water inside the plant may destroy the wasabi when it freezes.

:confused: It just breaks the cell walls, is all, doesn't "destroy" anything else - if you plan to grate it before serving, then cell walls aren't necessary. I often use frozen ginger in Indian dishes where it's grated then fried, and don't notice a difference in the flavor. Ginger tends to sit a long, long time between orders in our local grocery, so I like to buy a lot when it's fresh and freeze it.

Reason I ask, is it's a long drive to the Asian market in the "big city" :rolleyes: and they don't always have fresh wasabi when I go there. I might be able to get it once or twice a year tops. Eden Foods has powdered dried real wasabi, but obviously fresh is way better.

[Eden]

Wonder if the real wasabi root would have the same effect on me as the horseradish with green colour that we often see --if I take in a large swab with sushi, the concentrated bomb gives me a temporary headache for 5 seconds. Then I recover..:p

I hesitate to call it more mild, but rather I'd say real wasabi has more flavor and less punch than the horseradish based concoction. It still has some spiciness to it, but doesn't get up your nose quite the same way.

[PamNY]

This thread is going to cost me money. I'm trying to be frugal but the Korean restaurant is calling out to me, and I may need a trip to the Japanese grocery store. I've always wanted to try real wasabi.

We've been making ankimo when I can find monk fish liver and now I've started craving it quite seriously.

Pam

[Eden]

:confused: It just breaks the cell walls, is all, doesn't "destroy" anything else - if you plan to grate it before serving, then cell walls aren't necessary. I often use frozen ginger in Indian dishes where it's grated then fried, and don't notice a difference in the flavor. Ginger tends to sit a long, long time between orders in our local grocery, so I like to buy a lot when it's fresh and freeze it.

Reason I ask, is it's a long drive to the Asian market in the "big city" :rolleyes: and they don't always have fresh wasabi when I go there. I might be able to get it once or twice a year tops. Eden Foods has powdered dried real wasabi, but obviously fresh is way better.

The same company that provides the fresh wasabi roots does little tubes of grated wasabi - they sell it frozen, so it sounds like grated at least it will keep OK frozen. It only keeps for 30 days after you open it though. They don't mention if you can re-freeze it. Looking at the site a bit more it looks like they've stopped actually growing wasabi :(. They used to even sell seeds and wasabi plants along with grow your own instructions. Makes me wonder if I'll even be able to get fresh roots any more.

[shootingstar]

: Ginger tends to sit a long, long time between orders in our local grocery, so I like to buy a lot when it's fresh and freeze it.

Reason I ask, is it's a long drive to the Asian market in the "big city" :rolleyes: and they don't always have fresh wasabi when I go there. I might be able to get it once or twice a year tops. Eden Foods has powdered dried real wasabi, but obviously fresh is way better.

It does surprise me at least in many medium-sized or small cities in Canada that fresh ginger root can be found at least in a national/large grocery chain store. But your area may be different.

We've done alot of cycling through different parts of Canada and including a long drawn out car trip across Canada when I moved to Vancouver, where we hit alot of smaller cities. We often go to grocery stores to save some money (or get fresh fruit, etc.) instead of constantly eating out at restaurants /cafes.

Methinks my tastebuds have become overly acclimatized to ginger root. We use it nearly daily for Asian and non-Asian dishes. We buy approx. 1 pound since it's cheap for us locals, which sits on kitchen counter up to over 1 month before getting too dried out. As a teen, I used to slice finely and mince 3-4 slices for a dish serving 8 people since ginger root used to be hardly available. I could really taste the ginger then. Now same amount of ginger for dish serving 1-2 people, I barely taste it. :p :rolleyes:

I seldom use Sezchuan pepper simply because I haven't taken time to explore the whole breadth of Chinese cooking. Parents are from the province southwest of Sezhuan province where cuisine is less spicy/chili hot.

Interesting info bits in this thread ...on some stuff I didn't know what I knew all along. :confused:

N.B.: This steamed egg savory custard dish which can be a steamed only chicken breast dish..same steaming technique used for steamed sliced chicken liver, kidney, etc. that I did have as a kid. No, I don't prepare these dishes now.

[Biciclista]

That's one of the great things about my neighborhood. I can be fussy about asian vegetables. My favorite is Gai choy and i use it to make soup. We have giant piles of ginger in all the supermarkets.
I LOVE vegetables. I have to try that custard-thing, Eden the restaurant, it's called Yoshi's? (or is that Yoshi Aoki?)

[Eden]

That's one of the great things about my neighborhood. I can be fussy about asian vegetables. My favorite is Gai choy and i use it to make soup. We have giant piles of ginger in all the supermarkets.
I LOVE vegetables. I have to try that custard-thing, Eden the restaurant, it's called Yoshi's? (or is that Yoshi Aoki?)

the Chef is Yoshi :D, the restaurant is Hana (on Broadway). We sit at the bar and are regulars - we've gotten to know the chefs (who are also the owners) quite well - and indeed Yoshi does spoil us

[smilingcat]

the Chef is Yoshi :D, the restaurant is Hana (on Broadway). We sit at the bar and are regulars - we've gotten to know the chefs (who are also the owners) quite well - and indeed Yoshi does spoil us

That's the best way to dine at a sushi restaurant. And have the chef prepare things for you rather than telling him what you want. And you can always ask what's fresh for the day.

Wasabi seeds?? :eek: who?? where?? how can I get my little paws on the seeds or seedling?? yes my precious... precious wants seeds yes?? yes?? I'll probably fail but I think it'll be fun to try.

smilingcat

[Eden]

That's the best way to dine at a sushi restaurant. And have the chef prepare things for you rather than telling him what you want. And you can always ask what's fresh for the day.

Wasabi seeds?? :eek: who?? where?? how can I get my little paws on the seeds or seedling?? yes my precious... precious wants seeds yes?? yes?? I'll probably fail but I think it'll be fun to try.

smilingcat

We hardly ever ask for anything in particular at the sushi bar - we just let ourselves be fed. We learned early on that it is the best way to go. This place attracts regular customers - though we aren't among those who've been going the longest, we are probably among the most regular.... If you want to find us on a Friday night, its the best place to check.... We've even got our own masu :D

As far as wasabi plants go - they *used to* sell plants and seeds, but for some reason it appears they've stopped that and stopped even cultivating the plants themselves :(. They still have the info up about how to grow though - http://www.freshwasabi.com/growing.aspx

Now I did see little yuzu trees down at Uwajimaya the other day - that was pretty tempting.... I know there's no way that citrus can grow outside around here though and I'm pretty bad with house plants....

[smilingcat]

thanks, I'll check out their web site. I should acquire two yuzu trees for my yard. then I have fairly good selection of citrus trees.

pink lemon, meyers lemon, bears lime, washington navel orange, rio red grapefruit, and yuzu for future.

currently growing: shishito (japanese pepper), need to retry shiso both red and green variety, ginger and sansho trees. Shiso should grow in your area provided that the banana slug don't get to them first. Sansho tree should be better in your area too. It grows at my uncle's place in Japan. There, they get snow in the winter time and its very wet just like in coast of Washington. I'm not sure if you are in the shawdow of Olympic mtn range...

Well you may not be able to grow citrus trees. We on the other hand are bit out of luck for really good peach, pear, raspberries, blackberries most all variety of berries with exception of strawberries. Not as good as the Puget sound ?? variety. Its the small strawberry with really intense flavor.

still we are giving a shot at raspberries, blackberries and blueberries.

[OakLeaf]

Slugs don't touch my shiso. But we don't have banana slugs here, only the small ones.

The seeds need light to germinate, as well as the constant moisture that all seeds need. So it's notoriously difficult to start.

But once you've established shiso in your garden, let a plant or two bolt each year. Don't try to save the seeds, just let the plant mature and die in place. You'll have volunteers forever. :)

[Eden]

I don't know if it was slugs or not - but I had shiso one year and something chewed it right down to the ground :mad: What ever it is doesn't mind eating mint either! but it tends to just put holes in the mint. The shiso is seemed to be quite enamored with.

[badger]

I planted purple shiso in my patio planter this year.

My mother grew up on a mandarin orange farm in Odawara, Japan. You probably ate some of the oranges my grandparents produced back in the 60's to the 80's when they exported to North America. The farm's still there but it's not tended anymore as my grandparents are gone and my uncle also passed away last year. Kind of sad, actually.

[shootingstar]

Sorry to be so "narrow-minded" :p, but what does one use shiso leaves for? And do different varieties give different flavours?

[Eden]

Shiso has lots of uses - it is used as a garnish with sashimi. Chopped aji (spanish mackerel) with shiso, ginger, ponzu and green onions is divine. I have a terrific and easy recipe for blanched green beans with a dab of hatcho miso wrapped in shiso leaves and quickly sauteed in a little sesame oil - yum! I'm not sure, but I think the different colors taste the same... I think I've only seen the red leaves used to color and flavor ume (pickled plums) though.

I think it has a very unique flavor - I've heard it described as mint like, but personally I think it is very little like mint.