Smoke Salmon and Shiso Toast Points
This is just an ode to shiso–a lot of people don’t know what to do with it, but here’s a simple way I love to have it for a quick lunch or snack.
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i hope you eat good food, grow beautiful things, and have more love than you know what to do with.
asian
Mei Gan Cai (Fermented Dried Mustard Greens)
Sometimes I fall down the rabbit hole of making things traditionally in order to experience and understand the work and history that goes into food (and subsequently culture.) Mei gan cai kou rou (梅乾菜燜肉) is a dish my mom and grandma used to make–soft fatty …
Spicy Salmon Chirashi
My kids love sushi. Actually, let me amend that. My kids are crazy about raw seafood and raw red meat–like ceviche, sushi, sashimi, carpaccio, tartar. Sometimes when I am too lazy to cook, I’ll set a pot of rice, grab some frozen salmon or frozen …
Braised Garlic Mustard Side Dish
Everyone hates garlic mustard, generally. I know I wasn’t a big fan even after turning it into pesto because there really is only so much you can eat of it before you can’t. It’s considered a noxious and invasive weed, crowding out everything in it’s …
Minced Indian Aster (Ma Lan Tou) Cold Dish
It’s kind of hard to explain the flavor of indian aster, Kalimeris indica, also known as Ma Lan Tou (馬蘭頭), herby and little cooling on the tongue, a hint of bitterness that you’re almost not quite certain is there, but refreshing and somewhat addictive. Most …
Savory Stuffed Yomogi (Mugwort) Rice Cakes
Around now (March) is when mugwort is popping up in the garden which means it’s time to start weeding it. If I don’t, it inevitably becomes an unmanageable mess, and most people view it as a noxious and invasive weed. It is and it isn’t, …
Braised Soy Garlic Eggplant
I made this a lot last year when I was growing eggplants and it is still one of my favorite ways to use up a vegetable I otherwise don’t pay much attention to. Cold or hot, over some white rice is just an absolute divine …
Fresh Sea Urchin with Yuzu Kosho Mignonette on Eggplant Tempura
I went with my mom to the supermarket yesterday and discovered the one slightly further into Flushing had… fresh sea urchin. As in unopened spiky globes hiding delicious roe goodness. Of course, me being me, I bought four (My mom said “I knew you’d be …
Enoki Nametake (Seasoned Enoki Mushroom Rice Topping)
My oldest loves nametake (although she’s generally a fiend for all mushrooms)–and at 9 years old it’s really easy for her to grab some rice from the rice cooker and top it off with some for an after school snack. I make a few jars …
O-Ah Jian (Taiwanese Oyster Pancake)
This is a recipe that had been on my list for a while, but I was intimidated by it (as I often am) because how does one create the authentic “taste” that can’t be found elsewhere in the world? When I was little, my family …