i hope you eat good food, grow beautiful things, and have more love than you know what to do with.
Goosefoot, lambsquarter, and fat-hen all refer to the edible weeds of the genus Chenopodium. This is one weed I don’t pull, as it is an edible and mild flavored dark green, used anywhere you would use spinach (and, like spinach, is high in oxalic acid …
For those who grow their own onions, shiso, chives, etc., and collect their own eggs (duck or otherwise) this is a great recipe for those days you’re craving something a bit more savory and substantial. Gyudon is a Japanese beef bowl meal–the suffix “-don” (short …
A friend of mine came over the other day and gave me cucumbers and carrots they grew, two things I did not have the chance to plant this year (nor do I have the space, currently, as the annual bed is full.) I can understand why he wanted to give them away, as what amounted to 2 bags of carrots and one bag of cucumbers were indeed, a bit much. Thankfully, I had just the recipe I was craving to use up a portion of it.
This is one of my dad’s favorite dishes, and I like it very much too because it reminds me of my childhood. Oddly, it’s quite delicious during the summer months and refreshing, despite the spiciness of it. Zha Jiang Mian has many different recipes depending on where you are (and there is even a Korean version), but this is the one I grew up with.
My husband, who is on a low carb diet, forewent the noodles and replaced it with more shredded carrots and cucumbers.
Recipe
This can be made in a vegetarian version, without meat as well.
1. In a pot, sautee garlic, minced green onion, and ginger in vegetable oil over medium high heat until aromatic, about 3 minutes, stirring often to prevent burning.
2. Add ground pork and sautee together until cooked. Add finely diced Five Spiced Tofu.
3. Add Dou Ban Jiang, spicy broad bean paste, Tian Mian Jiang, sweet bean sauce, water and flour mixture, Szechuan peppercorn, and simmer until sauce is thickened.
4. While simmering, prepare noodles according to package instructions, and scramble an egg.
5. When noodles are done, arrange in a bowl topped with shredded or julienne cucumbers and carrots, the scrambled egg, and ladle zha jiang sauce over it.
6. Serve with optional rice wine vinegar (at the discretion of the person who is eating.)
Celery is something I don’t usually touch, having been traumatized by too much celery dumplings as a kid. However, occasionally recipes call for it, and because I don’t like it, I never have it in my fridge even when I need it. In comes Lovage, …
We’re getting into the swing of tomato season and these plump, juicy fruits (which are actually classified as berries) are great during the summer months when the heat has robbed us of our appetite. Coupled with that, basil plants should be full and bushy right …
Whenever anyone asks me what to do with shiso, my first instinctive reaction is tataki. Or any form of carpaccio or chilled dish because of the refreshingly minty, citrus-y bite it gives, but a lot of people turn to the wall and despair when it comes to it because they are a little unsure as it’s dealing with the realm of rare/raw meat.
I’m here to tell you it can be done, and in the comfort of your own kitchen no less!
I know I shouldn’t have to say this, but I will anyway: Use meat/fish that is graded for rare/raw use. With that said, here is my tuna tataki recipe (beef, salmon, or even tofu works great for this dish as well.)
I keep ahi tuna steaks in my deep freezer and this is something I make often enough (at least once a week) during the hot summer months. The husband loves it because of all the protein it gives him (as only one who both practices/owns a martial arts school does) while remaining lowfat in nature. I will usually pair this with white or brown rice.
Ingredients:
Sauce Base:
1. Heat a well oiled pan (any kind of oil will do except perhaps coconut because of the strong taste) on medium high and sear frozen (this makes it easier to slice thin later) ahi tuna steak on both sides to desired done-ness. Immediately remove and slice thin and let rest while preparing the sauce.
2. Mix all the ingredients for the sauce base well and place at the bottom of a shallow bowl or dish.
3. Arrange the cucumbers and sliced seared tuna over the sauce and garnish with pickled ginger and shiso. Serve immediately.
***You can use fennel, basil, mint, scallions, or any combination thereof for the garnish in place of shiso for a different flavor.
Hamburger steak is a western inspired Japanese meal in which a hamburger patty is cooked, swimming in gravy, with a side of rice and sometimes salad… and it is delicious. I suppose people might think it’s weird–like a poor man’s version of a steak dinner, …
One of the plants I grow every year is the tomato (solanum lycopersicum). My husband is part Italian, and although when I was younger, I didn’t like tomatoes at all, it has grown on me, especially when sliced thick and paired with a nice wedge …
Week 1 (7/7/2017 – 7/13/2017)
Chippy officially hatched on Friday, the 7th of July. She was given water supplemented with electrolytes and niacin, and provided unmedicated organic (no special reason, was the only feed the store had) chick starter/grower.
On day 3, I let Chippy outside for a little bit because the outside temperature was 80+. She seemed to really enjoy exploring but would come back to sit by my feet if she got cold.
My other ducks ignored her until she started chasing them (she’s not imprinted on us and flock instinct is strong) and my older ducks, oddly, ran away from her. They screamed bloody murder as if a ghost was after them! I ended up taking Chippy back inside.
On Day 4 I moved her into the larger brooder since she was physically fit enough to run around with all the space (I kept her in the small tank on the counter for observation at first, especially since she had to learn how to walk.) She started to jump and at one point was hanging off the side of the small tank so she was definitely ready for the big brooder.
We gave her an old infant toy that had a mirror on it so she wouldn’t be too lonely, and my daughter gave her a stuffed Daisy Duck toy she has.
At the end of Week 1, on Day 7, Chippy is almost double the size she was when she hatched. Her egg tooth fell off, and she is SUPER FLUFFY. Her down is tightly packed to give them the appearance of a puff ball and to keep them warm.
Like most muscovies, she does not enjoy being pet or touched from the top. Their prey instinct is really strong and they don’t like anything coming on to them from above. She seems somewhat amenable to getting scratches under her chin, but it’s not something she thoroughly enjoys.
She’s not imprinted on any one of us, but will follow us as a herd/flock instinct. While most ducklings would recognize their mothers by sight and sound, unfortunately, muscovies do not seem to adapt that to human parents the way mallards and geese do.
Â
Â
7/18/2017 – It’s with a sad news that I update everyone on Chippy, who was killed after a raccoon ripped through the wire mesh around her outdoor crate late this afternoon. RIP Chippy.
Muscovies have a reputation for being difficult to incubate and hatch, but because the eggs I have are fertile (thanks to my very enthusiastic male), I decided to try my hand at them. It takes on average 35-37 days for them to hatch. A few …