Lately I’ve had a habit of eating little bits of all sorts of things for dinner rather than just sitting down to a huge portion of something. Especially when I spread it out over a few hours, I’ve found it to be more satisfying. I also eat less, I think, which is both surprising and unsurprising.
Tonight, though, I decided to go for a combo-plate type dinner. My combo plate made most things be about equal rather than having any one thing dominate.
Tonight’s menu:
- Korean mixed grain rice (Microwaveable in 1.5 mins — this stuff is magic. Find it at your local Japanese, Korean, or possibly Chinese market.)
- Ohitashi with bell pepper (Cooked spinach with soy sauce. Try microwaving washed spinach for 30 seconds, then adding a bit of soy sauce, a little lemon juice, and some sesame seeds for my favorite and super easy version). Both Japanese spinach and bell peppers from the garden!
- Tomato slices
- Tamagoyaki (Mix beaten eggs with mirin and soy– mostly eggs, a little more mirin than soy, cook in a pan attending frequently. Periodically lift up cooked egg and allow runny egg to flow under cooked. Fold the layers as you go occasionally, aiming to get a rectangular block you can slice. Cook until solid and with slight caramelization on either side.)
- South East Asian inspired salad, with most of ingredients from the garden: peas, radishes, baby mustard greens, cilantro, opal basil, and (not from the garden) grapefruit and green onions. Dressing: seasoned rice vinegar microwaved for 30 seconds with two coins of ginger to lightly infuse it and let cool before tossing the salad in it.
- Garnish: lemon slice and home grown shiso.
Pretty satisfying, and the whole thing took maybe 30 minutes to prepare and was vegetarian. And you can’t get much fresher than vegetables from the garden!
Nutrition tips I’ve learned lately: in order to absorb all the nutrients from dark leafy vegetables, make sure to pair them with something with vitamin C. Also, microwaving spinach is not only quicker and easier, but also retains the most nutrients!