This week I’ve considered adding potatoes to the ‘long lasting veg’ list – preboiling a large batch at the start of the week they can transform into mash or salad more quickly.
After the delights of the slow cooked pork belly came to an end during the previous week, the comedown to mince was easy – it’s reliably easy to find where I’m located*. The following few days stop short of making other obvious applications of mince: ragu and chilli though like the potatoes it is pretty easy to divert from cooking the meat plain then transforming it. (* I’d love to find cheap seafood, think sprats or squid, around here)
Apart from the ‘surf and turf’ seaweed salad, I attempted to make home-made pickled ginger (gari-style) but my previous experiences with the mandolin has created slices not thin enough. I’ll wait a while for the flavours to develop more then shred them to compensate.
February 9
Feeling like a lurgy is coming but it’s slow to set in. At least there are a few sides to repeat tomorrow. Lunch is soy simmered “surf and turf” (sea: hijiki & kombu; land: carrot & black cloud fungus), steamed yellow carrots, soft boiled egg, cheese stuffed meatballs, steamed broccoli, broccoli stem kimpira and crabstick onigirazu*.
* Yes, I did forget which direction to get a cross-sectional cut. Thanks for the reminder
February 10
I still don’t have a name for this dish inspired by something my dad makes but it does resemble soboro. Lunch is beef & eggplant soboro, steamed broccoli, broccoli stem kimpira, raw green capsicum, “surf and turf” salad and soft boiled egg
February 11
Not succeeding with reducing the oil in the eggplant dish, so hopefully steamed veggies to the rescue. Lunch is steamed broccoli & hitomoji guruguru with sumiso dressing, meatballs, pickled cucumber, “surf & turf” salad, braised eggplant with doubanjiang* and kombu no tsukudani
* Doubanjiang was picked up ages ago, but its maiden voyage in the kitchen left us with ‘secodary experiences’. With more research to its uses I think I might try using it more often (though not in massive quantities!)
February 12
A very bleak looking day is brighter with a colourful lunch: “surf & turf” salad, Korean-style minced beef, garlic & ginger carrot, braised eggplant with doubanjiang, stir fried onion, garlic broccoli and a soft boiled egg: another delicious and attractive bibimbap, but accidentally heavy on the garlic.
Though I had a separate jar, I forgot to sprinkle more sesame seeds on top at the end!
February 13
It’s another example of a beef mince item, which next time will be sped up as the cooked leftovers are portioned in the freezer. Lunch is garlic carrots, broccoli namul, “surf & turf” salad, polenta-crumbed croquettes and homemade pickled ginger
