Vegetable rolls

It has been incredibly hot these days and I even have lost my appetite and gotten sick because of it during last week. I used to (shamelessly) boast to everyone here about my tropical nature that makes me almost heat-resistant and prevents me from getting the commonly known "natsu bate" in Japanese, or in my understanding, "summer sickness". And boy, this time, I was wrong. Very very wrong. It all started with me loosing appetite and not eating enough, continued with frequent dizziness, stomach aches, and fatigue, and ended with laying on my bed for two days realizing that after all these years, the heat finally beat  me. What healed me? A bowl of super fiery spicy hot chicken curry. I don`t know if that was because I finally got hungry at that point or the soup really brought back my appetite, but the bottom line is I got well very soon after the soup treatment. I really don`t know what I will do without chili and ginger in my kitchen.

Now, with my appetite fully functioning, I finally have something fun and colorful to share with you. This is actually only my second time making Thai-style vegetable rolls, or third time if preparing the make-yourself rolls at a Thai buffet restaurant counts, but I think I really should make them more often. 

Start with making the sauce. For this kind of rolls, I want the sauce to be light, sweet, savory, slightly spicy, and tangy. You can use your favorite sauces or condiments, but I used my leftover tsuyu or light soy sauce infused with dashi. Tsuyu is usually served with cold noodles like soba or somen, but I think it has a light sweet savory taste that should go well with the rolls. For the heat, I add Sichuan-style chili sauce or tobanjan.  I also add lime juice to give some refreshing tartness.

Stir everything well and keep the sauce in the refrigerator.

I chose the all-plant option for the filling, so I used julienne bell peppers, carrots, and cucumbers. It is common to include shrimps for the rolls, but I think meat should be great too.

My baby veggies. Look at these colors. 

And these.

And these too.

What you don`t need to julienne are lettuce leaves and cilantro. I really love the lemony note from the cilantro. If you haven`t tried using it for making the rolls, then you should. Really.

 

After all the vegetables are prepared, immerse a sheet of rice paper in lukewarm water for a minute or until it has slightly softened (or follow the instruction on the pack). Overdoing this will make the paper too soft and very easy to get torn. But really, this is not about perfection (obviously, this is me talking), so a few holes here and there should not be problems as long as you can use it to wrap the veggies.

Spread the softened sheet on a chopping board or counter and arrange vegetables on it. I placed them on the middle, but slightly closer toward me. Also, I arranged some part of the veggies so that they came out from both ends.

Start rolling away while carefully wrapping the veggies as tight as possible and secure the edge by sealing the sheet with water.

Wet the blade of your knife with water and cut the roll to your preferred size. 

Arrange the rolls on a plate and serve with the chilled sauce.

What I have here is a plate of the successfully made rolls (or at least I think so) and another one of random-looking rolls. Both looks clearly didn`t bother me and my husband (thank you, sweetie) because we just kept eating and eating. 

Now, my friends, dip the rolls in the sauce and enjoy the crunch and yum moments!

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VEGETABLE ROLLS

Serves 2-3 people 

Ingredients:

1 red bell pepper

1 yellow bell pepper

3 carrots

2 cucumbers

5-7 lettuce leaves

Cilantro

For the sauce:

100 ml tsuyu (light soy sauce with dashi for cold soba or somen)

1 tsp chili paste

1 tsp lime juice

Method:

1. Prepare the sauce by combining the tsuyu, chili paste, and lime juice. Keep in refrigerator until serving.

2. Julienne all vegetables, except the lettuce leaves and cilantro, and set them aside.

3. Wet the rice paper in lukewarm water until slightly softened and carefully spread it on a chopping board or clean counter.

4. Arrange the vegetables horizontally on the paper with some parts of the vegetables coming out from both ends.

5. Start rolling away and seal the edge with water.

6. Cut the rolls to the desired size and serve with the chilled sauce.

Spicy vegetable soup with grilled turmeric shishamo

I think March is probably the most memorable month in a year for me and my husband as it reminds us of many important episodes of our lives. For now I`m not going to talk further about the personal sides, but Japanese academic and fiscal years start in April and end in March, so March is kind of the year-end month where people usually get busier to finish their works and anticipate the upcoming schedules for April as the New Year. And climately speaking, March is also the month when people prepare to welcome the beginning of spring where the snow melts quicker and the trees start to seem alive again. 

Now, to celebrate the end of the frosty winter, I`m going to share one Indonesian-ish dish that I usually cook when I feel the urge to consume fibrous meal and one fish dish to make them as a beautiful set.

Let`s start with the soup first.

Heat a bit of oil on medium heat and saute onion, garlic, ginger, coriander, chili, and chili powder until fragrant.

Stir in shrimp paste. For whatever reason you have, you can substitute it for dried shrimp or anchovies (I sometimes do this) or omit it (sometimes I do this too), although it will slightly alter the final taste.

Pour in water-preferably hot-, stir in coconut powder until completely dissolved, and let it simmer. 

If you use liquid coconut milk, pour in the coconut milk first, and add water until the liquid volume reach about 2 cups in total. You can even add water in the last step instead. We are going to add quite a lot of stuff to the pot after this, so you don`t want to overfill the pot with liquid right now.

 I believe I don`t have many recipes here that include this bamboo shoot despite how frequent I use it. The only bamboo shoots sold in the our nearest store is the one that is ready to use packed in bag filled with water. According to the pack, that white powdery stuff sticking on the bamboo shoots is a kind of amino acid and thus no need to remove it. I hope you can find this bamboo shoots at the stores in your area. Too bad that I never buy fresh bamboo shoots so I have no idea how to handle it.

Anyway, cut the bamboo shoots-in random shapes, as you can see- and add to the simmering liquid in the pot.

Have you met nameko? My husband dislikes this mushroom for its sliminess, but I LOVE it for the same reason. The mushroom is covered with a slimy gelatinous layer, but crunchiness stays even after cooking. It kind of has a distinctive smell that some people probably are not fond of, so you might want to check it first before adding to the whole dish. I usually quickly rinse them with hot water and add them to whatever I`m cooking. Nameko work nicely in stir-fried dishes, but when you add them to soups, they will make the liquid thicker.

So, here is the soup already with nameko and bamboo shoots in it. Oh, I added shimeji mushrooms too but I didn`t have the picture.

Next is konnyaku. If you`ve been following my blog, you probably noticed how I often have konnyaku in my soups. It is recommended to blanch the konnyaku in hot water for a few minutes to remove unpleasant odor, but I usually dice it up, rinse under hot water, and add the cubes to the pot.

Adjust the seasoning with salt, pepper, and a pinch of sugar while keeping the soup simmering.

When you`re done with the seasoning, put frozen long beans on top, remove from heat, and cover with lid for 5-10 mins until the green beans are softened.If you are using fresh long beans, cook it on low heat with the lid on for 5-10 mins depending on your liking of mushiness or crunchiness.

The soup is done! If you have omitted the shrimp paste or dried shrimp, it means your soup is a vegan version. But if you`re like me who still can`t fully commit to 100% vegan lifestyle, you can continue prepare this side dish. 

I used shishamo fish, but you can use your own choice of fish. I use this turmeric seasoning recipe for many kinds of fish, or even chicken, and it always worked in our house. My husband especially is a fan of this turmeric seasoning. It`s quick and simple, but the result is very rewarding.

Wash whatever fish you use and pat dry before starting the seasoning. 

Then, if you use small fish like these shishamo, just dump them in a bowl, add olive oil, turmeric, ginger powder-or grated ginger, even better!- pepper, and salt. Mix together everything until each fish is evenly coated with the seasoning.

Line a baking tray with aluminium foil and arrange the turmeric-coated fish onto it. Grill it for 20-30 mins or until the skin has crisped up.

Ah, look at this pair. If you`re an Indonesian, I`m 200% sure you`ll remember about sayur lodeh and ikan asin. But if you`re not, it means you need to give these dishes a try and see if you enjoy them as much as we do.

Happy Sunday!

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SPICY VEGETABLE SOUP

Serves 3-4 persons

Ingredients:

5 cloves garlic, minced/chopped

1/2 cut onion, chopped

2 tsp grated ginger

1 tsp coriander, minced/milled

3 chilies (remove seeds for milder heat)

1 Tbs chili powder

1 tsp shrimp paste

2 cups hot water*

1/2 cup coconut milk powder*

150 g bamboo shoot, chopped

100 g shimeji mushroom

80 g nameko mushroom

100 g konnyaku, diced

100 g frozen long beans

Salt

Pepper

A pinch of sugar

*Note: If using liquid coconut milk instead of powder, adjust the volume into 2 cups

Method:

1. Heat a bit of oil on medium heat and saute onion, garlic, ginger, coriander, chili, and chili powder until fragrant.

2. Stir in shrimp paste.

3. Pour in water and stir in coconut powder until completely dissolved.

4. Stir in the mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and konnyaku.

5. Adjust the seasoning with salt, pepper, and sugar while simmering.

6. When finished with seasoning, put green beans on top, remove from heat, and cover with lid for 5-10 mins until the green beans has softened.

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GRILLED TURMERIC SHISHAMO

Makes 12 grilled shishamo

Ingredients:

12 shishamo, washed and patted dry

1 Tbs olive oil

1 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp ginger powder

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp salt

Method:

1. In a bowl, mix together shishamo with the remaining ingredients until the fish is evenly coated.

2. Grill for 20 mins or until the skin has crisped up.

Gyoza soup

Winter hasn`t officially come yet, but I`ve been starting making soups these days. One of them is this gyoza (Japanese dumpling) soup and this was my first time making it because I usually pan-fry them. Ever heard this?

"Who doesn`t love dumplings?"

For the soup, I prepared a very simple dashi (Japanese stock) using dried shiitake mushroom and dried kombu (sea kelp). Unlike the shiitake mushrooms, kombu can be used readily during the boiling, so it will appear later in the process.

According to the instruction, the mushrooms have to be rehydrated for at least 3 hours (overnight in the fridge works best) to help release the umami and soften the mushrooms. What I usually do is I immerse 4 or 5 dried mushrooms in 2-3 cups of water, place a mug or this Rilakkuma tea cup atop to keep them under the water level and let it sit while I prepare the other ingredients or go out for shopping. Or check out your new posts. Or sleep. 

Now let`s work on the filling. When I prepare pan-fried gyoza, I want the filling to be flavorful so I used more ingredients in it. But, since this one comes with soup, I liked the filling to be simpler and lighter in taste and let the soup enrich them.

Chopping time, everyone. Chop up this maitake mushrooms....

...cabbage (in the bowl-forgot to take the picture)...and this garlic chives (nira in Japanese). If you asked me like 7 years ago what that was in my hand, I would super confidently answer, "Grass.". Lesson for me: Sometimes it`s good to look back and see how much we`ve learned all these years.

Back to the filling where we need one more thing, konnyaku noodles. Usually konnyaku needs to be blanched in hot water for a few minutes, but I just go with hot water from my tap. You don`t have to be like me, you know that. 

And to make life easier, use a kitchen scissors and snip the noodles up.

Combine all those ingredients in a bowl and lightly season the mixture with salt and pepper, if you want to.

The wrapping is my least favorite part, but I know it`s worth the effort. For the wrapping steps, please see here.

This time I didn`t bother pleating the edge. Next time I will...I think.

Alright, the wrapped gyoza is done and let`s move on to the soup.

Heat a bit of oil over medium heat and saute garlic and chili until they are fragrant.

Pour in the mushroom stock, chop up the mushrooms, and throw them in the soup.

Add dried kombu to the soup, red chili flakes (if you want it to be red and spicy), chopped carrot to enhance the aroma (no picture here, sorry), and season with salt and pepper. Let it simmer for a while. 

My soup was so frothy I almost thought I added soap too! But I believe I didn`t (I didn`t!), so I just used my skimmer to make the soup clearer.

By the way, this stage is where you should be done with the seasoning and stirring, because after this....

...we need to add the dumpling and stirring the soup with the dumplings in is not a very good idea, unless you are fine with having a bowl of soup with your dumplings torn apart. Also, you can not keep leftover because the dumplings will absorb the soup while getting mushier and mushier. I learned these lessons in a hard way.

But, I had nothing to complain about because I was too busy slurping and chewing all the goodness in this bowl. The gyoza were so soft that it kept slipped away from my chopsticks and obviously I should have used a spoon instead. But even so, I finished this soup in my bowl within seconds! And just for an idea, I think adding the pan-fried gyoza in the soup will work fantastic too!

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GYOZA SOUP

Makes 2-3 cup soup

Ingredients:

#For soup

5 dried shiitake mushrooms

1 dried kombu (sea kelp)

2-3 cups water

1 tbs olive oil 

4 cloves garlic

2-3 dried chili (remove seeds for milder heat)

1 tbs red chili flake

1 carrot

Salt and pepper to taste

#For gyoza

Gyoza wrappers

Cabbage

Maitake mushrooms

Garlic chives

Konnyaku noodles

Salt and pepper (optional)

Method:

1. Rehydrate 4 or 5 dried mushrooms in 2-3 cups of water and let it sit for several hours while preparing the other ingredients.

2. For the filling, mix chopped cabbage, garlic chives, and konnyaku noodles in a bowl. Lightly season with salt and pepper if necessary.

3. Place 1-2 tsp of the filling on a gyoza wrapper, wrap into half-moon shape, and seal the edges with water.

4. Heat a bit of oil over medium heat and saute garlic and chili until they are fragrant. 

5. Pour in the mushroom stock, chop up the mushrooms, and throw them in the soup.

6. Add dried kombu to the soup, red chili flakes, chopped carrot, and season with salt and pepper. Let it simmer for a while.

7. Carefully add the gyoza to the soup and let it cook until the skin has turned translucent and soft.

8. Ready to serve.

Stir-fried shrimps with vegetables

Stir-frying is probably the most frequent cooking method I use at home. I mean, why not? With stir-frying, we can whip up descent, if not fabulous, meals in a matter of minutes from almost any kind of food, be it vegetables or meat, whole food or processed ones. But there are times when my stir-frying rituals run a little slower than usual, especially when the ingredients need some extra time for the preparation.  Like for today`s dinner where I used fried eggplants as one of the ingredients. Plus, I used shrimps, which also means extra work for me to devein them. But even so, I usually end up forgetting all the fussy preparation when I start the cooking.

So, shall we cook now?

Wash eggplants and cut them into your desired shapes. For me, I quartered them lengthwise and then halved them crosswise. Usually people deep-fry the eggplants to make the "fried eggplants", but I always shallow-fry them because I`m too stubborn. If you too want to shallow-fry them, heat oil enough to coat the eggplants on a pan and do the frying in batches. Just make sure you don`t put too many pieces at once because the frying is supposed to give the caramelized bits, not to steam them. Another thing is, the eggplants will absorb the oil very quickly that you might need to add more oil every time you fry the fresh batch.

Set aside the fried eggplants. Honestly, I can just gobble these guys up only with a drizzle of soy sauce.

Next ingredient: shrimps.  I didn`t remove the shells as I wanted to get more flavor and to prevent them from curling in too much, but I cut open their backs and discarded the veins. And washed them, of course.

On the same pan used for fyring eggplants, heat oil and fry the shrimps. I think the smell and the changing color are what I love the most from frying shrimps.

Flip over the shrimps and throw in garlic. I usually mince the garlic, but this time I just bashed the cloves and used them right away. Oh, this smells even better!

Then, throw in shiitake mushroom slices and keep stirring until the mushrooms shrank and wilted. Now the smell is getting double-better!

Slowly stir in the fried eggplants and season it with soy sauce, salt, and pepper. The fried eggplants are very soft, so be careful not to break them apart during stirring.

Final touch to add the greeny look: broccoli. The stems and florets. Please use them all. Now, since I love the broccoli to stay crunchy, I usually just throw them in the pan, cook for like 30 secs, turn off the heat, and put a lid on the pan to trap the heat inside and thus steaming them  for a few minutes.

This looks like a cooked salad, I know. But I loved every bit of it that I finished this whole plate without even remembered that I didn`t eat rice with it. Juiciness, crunchiness, and bursts of flavors blended beautifully in this dish. The fussy work on cleaning the shrimps was definitely gone far from my mind when I devoured everything on this plate. What fussy work?

Happy Saturday and enjoy your weekend feasts!

Ingredients:

Shrimp, washed and deveined

Garlic

Eggplants

Shiitake mushrooms

Broccoli

Soy sauce

Salt

Pepper

Typhoon potato

What a (weird) name. I know. I`m just having trouble with the naming. 

Anyway, yesterday a typhoon came from the south and we had an unbelievably cold raining day as the temperature suddenly dropped from 33 to 21 C. So, for the cold evening, I made this potato dish  (hence the name is) with boil-and-saute technique, which I learned from Jamie`s 30 minute meals. His clever and quick methods to prepare everything within 30 mins might not be applicable in my kitchen that only has a single stove, but still I really love learning about his recipes and watching how quick he moves!

First, boil washed potatoes in enough water. You can peel the skin first before or after boiling later, but I just left it as it is.

While waiting potatoes boiled, chop up some shiitake mushrooms...

...and garlic too. Sauté them altogether with a bit of olive oil. 

Keep sautéing until the mushroom get wilted and the smells of garlic and mushrooms combine beautifully.

Remember the potatoes? Try poke them in in with a fork to check if they are tender enough.  If they are, drain and put them in together with the garlic and mushrooms. And by tender enough, I mean according to your preference.

Chop the potatoes up with your spatula. This is easy to do if the potatoes are soft enough. 

 Keep chopping up until the potatoes turned into smaller chunks.

Add parmesan cheese (generously, if you`re a cheese lover) and season with nutmeg, thyme, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper and stir until all the potatoes are well coated. 

The potatoes are ready, but I added chervil to dress them up a bit.

Yum yum yum! Let`s dig in!

P.S. If you make this as a side dish, you might want to consider making this spicy wings too to get the party started.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Potatoes
Garlic
Mushrooms
Parmesan cheese
Nutmeg
Thyme
Cayenne pepper
Salt
Pepper
Chervil