Another year, another rest and the dreaded return back to work. The break is always welcome and shows that the lunch-packing mojo is still going – though there are definite hints of influencers like manga and the local farm shop (who quite generously allow me to peruse their food mags even before they break it out of the plastic!)
January 4
First day back for the year and it’s a stew-off. Lunch is Italian-style namul (evo, garlic, salt), tomatoes, pickled radish, bread-and-butter pickles, beef stew and Mediterranean / ratatouille-style veggie stew. Hurray for leftovers!
January 5
Was inspired by the ebi furai entry in my copy of the Just Bento cookbook, but I don’t have panko or swiss chard.. Lunch is carrot and daikon remoulade, bread-and-butter pickles, spinach namul, tomato, goong sarong (prawns wrapped in rice vermicelli noodles) on red cabbage and spring onion, Mediterranean veggie stew and a pickled radish.
I need to season/flavour the prawns better, otherwise it’s perfect as a beer snack
January 6
I must admit that some recipes in “Addicted to Curry” are deliciously doable in real life, as with this one, but if only it wasn’t so blatantly sexist I’d recommend it as an excellent cooking manga. Lunch is South Indian prawn curry (vol 12, ch 125) with green capsicum*, celery leaves, steamed broccoli, tomato, piccalilli, carrot and daikon remoulade, pickled radish and Mediterranean veggie stew
*there’s no veg in the original but any capsicum would suit, I figured that green provides a touch of contrast over the sweet prawns and onion
January 7
As a wise dog may of said, I much excite: it must be bibimbap, woo! Toppings are red cabbage, onion, spicy beef, ginger carrots, yellow capsicum, spinach and zucchini namul with the usual “snotty” egg.
A welcome treat to pick one up from a shitty week; hope it doesn’t set the trend for the rest of the year :/
* the trick to eat it straight out of the box: don’t dump all the toppings on at once, then top up while eating. Omnomnom
January 8
A lazy lunch today since I went to bed and did the prep this morning. Lunch is pickled radish, coleslaw, mini burgers/meatballs, bread-and-butter pickles, tomato, stir fried zucchini and steamed purple sprouting broccoli. At least it’s rather colourful.
