by : Reiko Pasta/Noodle/Rice, Soup, Tofu, Vegan, Vegetarian

Tantan Ramen
担々麺

There are now a handful of restaurants that serve ramen in our neighborhood.

But there are still large gaps in quality from one restaurant to another.

And it is hard to get a table if you want good quality ramen.

I’m happy to see that ramen is becoming popular in the U.S., but it’s also frustrating that you can’t just go get good ramen any time you want.

So once in a while I do make my own ramen.

My vegan tantan ramen starts with marinating deep-fried tofu.

The broth is rich, creamy, and has depth of flavors.

I found these noodles at a local Asian market.

They were selling them as “Chinese noodles”, so I thought it would be perfect.

It also looked more yellowish through the packaging.

I particularly picked this brand because the yellow color was added by turmeric and not artificial dye.

When they were cooked, the color was almost gone, and I also realized that the noodles were rather flat and wider than I thought when they were before cooked.

I was a bit disappointed, but they still tasted good.

Baby bok choy is one of my favorite green leaves.

These are not only pretty but also very flavorful and refreshing.

I was so happy with the result.

Tantan Ramen – Vegan

1 package deep-fried tofu, crumbled
marinade (soy sauce, maple syrup, garlic powder, onion powder)
canola oil
1/3 cup chopped scallion
1 teaspoon chopped ginger
1~2 tablespoon tobanjan (豆板醤Doubanjiang: chili bean paste)
700 cc water
1~1.5 tablespoons white vinegar
1~1.5 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
3~4 tablespoons tahini
1 teaspoon miso
200 cc soy milk
salt
sesame oil
garlic chili paste
Chinese noodles, cooked
baby bok choy

1. Marinate crumbled deep-fried tofu in the marinade mixture overnight.
2. Cook scallion and ginger in oil. Add the crumbled/marinated tofu and tobanjan. Continue to cook over high heat. Stir constantly. Salt and pepper if needed. Set aside 2 tablespoons.
3. Add water and boil. Turn down to low heat.Skip the foam from the top.
4. Add vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, tahini, miso, milk, and salt. Add soy milk. Heat up the soup.
5. Place cooked noodles in a bowl. Pour the soup over the noodles. Put the tofu/ginger/scallion mixture that was set aside on top. Serve with sesame oil, garlic chili paste, and baby bok choy.

by : Reiko Pasta/Noodle/Rice, Potato/Squash, Vegan, Vegetarian

Kabocha Sushi Roll
かぼちゃ巻き

Thanksgiving Thursday: Thanksgiving food.

Black Friday: Thanksgiving leftovers, plus freshly made gravy

Saturday: Kabocha Sushi Roll!

Many people are probably eating turkey sandwiches, but when the main cook of the household is Japanese (and vegan), you’ll end up with a sushi roll like this (lol).

And by the third day, I crave for fresh crisp veggies like lettuce and cucumber.

It has been a while since the last time I made sushi rolls, but it’s like riding a bike.

You don’t forget once you master it. (And it’s really not that hard.)

Complete!

This is how it looked when sliced and plated.

But I wanted to dress it up a little bit.

These are tangy mustard sauce and sweet miso.

Drizzle the sauce like painting a picture.

Cooking is definitely in part art, if you ask me.

Bon Appetit!

Don’t forget a cup of hot green tea.

I didn’t go shopping yesterday (Black Friday), but today I did, and oh boy, did I find things!

I came home with two jackets, a sweater, and a blouse.

They were all 40% off, and I’m super happy with my purchase, although I am planning to stay home tomorrow (so that I won’t spend more money!).

by : Reiko Leaf Vegetabes, Pasta/Noodle/Rice, Tofu, Vegan, Vegetarian

Ginger Tofu Dumplings
生姜豆腐ダンプリング

Terry and I are both huge dumpling lovers.

You can use really anything as filling, but this time I decided to go for tofu as a base.

I then added a few more ingredients, minced ginger, garlic, and cooked and chopped cabbage.

I was going to use regular pot-sticker wrappers, but then I noticed that I had some egg roll wrappers in my freezer, and I thought it would be fun to experiment with them.

Dumplings are much easier to make than most people assume.

Especially when you use this large-sized wrappers, the process goes really quick.

I get my side dish ready.

Aren’t they beautiful?

I cooked them in boiling water.

I was afraid that the filling might come out while cooking, but it stayed inside, and I was relieved.

Generously drizzle sesame soy sauce (sesame oil, soy sauce, maple syrup, white vinegar, garlic chili paste) and then sprinkle sesame seeds and scallion.

This was a big hit at our house.

Can’t wait to make these again.

Have a great weekend everyone!

by : Reiko Leaf Vegetabes, Mushroom, Pasta/Noodle/Rice, Vegan, Vegetarian

Mushroom Spinach Lasagna
きのことほうれん草のラザニア

I like noodles and I make pasta a lot, but lasagna is a different story.

For some reason, it’s something I only make for a special occasion.

Well, for one thing, it includes multiple steps, a lot more than a simple pasta dish.

So I made lasagna for dinner, but of course it took longer than I expected, and it was too dark for me to take pictures when it was finally ready.

So the pictures had to be wait until the next morning.

With a few pieces missing (lol).

But actually the lasagna tastes better the next day, if you ask me.

The layers are beautiful!

You take a piece, microwave it, and it’s ready to go.

No wait!

We have to get the table ready first.

This is one of my favorite retro plates.

I like the color and the design, but I like to use this plate for blog pictures because of its unique size, not too big and not too small.

I found these cool glasses at a restaurant that we had dinner at in Door County, WI, a few years ago.

The food was not that memorable unfortunately, but I loved these glasses, and luckily I was able to buy them at their little souvenir shop.

To me this carbs x carbs is a “no-no”, but I understand some people like to have a slice of bread with lasagna (or any dish).

We use these glasses mostly for drinking wine.

For some reason we hardly ever use an actual wine glass with a long stem.

Oh, I know why “I” stay away from those glasses; I’m always afraid that they tip over easily.

Mushroom Spinach Lasagna

red sauce
-olive oil
-5 cloves garlic, chopped
-1 onion, chopped
-2 cans tomato sauce
-2 cans tomato paste
-1 large can crushed tomatoes
-sugar
-2 bay leaves
-Italian seasoning
-onion powder
-salt and pepper

homemade vegan cheese x 2

olive oil
3~4 cups chopped mushrooms
1 large bag spinach
salt and pepper

no boil lasagna noodles

chopped fresh basil

1. Make red sauce. Sautee garlic and onion in olive oil. Add the rest of the ingredients. Boil and then simmer.
2. Make vegan “cheese”.
3. Sautee mushrooms and spinach in olive oil. Salt and pepper.
4. Preheat oven to 475F.
5. Assemble in a 13×9 lasagna pan. A little red sauce at the bottom, lasagna sheets (1/3), red sauce, mushrooms, spinach, “cheese”, lasagna sheets (1/3), red sauce, mushrooms, spinach, “cheese”, lasagna sheets (1/3), red sauce, cheese.
6. Cover and bake for about 1 hour (or follow the instructions on the lasagna box; mine said 45 minutes, but it needed to cook a bit longer for the lasagna noodles to be fully cooked). Uncover and cook for another 15 minutes.
7. Serve with fresh basil.

2 Comments
by : Reiko Beans/Lentils, Bento/Lunch Box, Pasta/Noodle/Rice, Tofu, Vegan, Vegetarian

Soboro Bento Box
テンペそぼろ弁当

Today it is well known that Japanese people eat with chopsticks.

But did you know that they “cook” with chopsticks, too?

For cooking we use larger sized chopsticks like these.

I do cook with tongs and wooden spoons, but my go-to cooking utensil is still my old chopsticks that my mom got for me.

I was in a mood for a Japanese Bento lunch.

This Bento is called “Soboro” Bento in Japan.

Typically ground meat is cooked with soy based sweet sauce and then placed on top of rice along with eggs and vegetables.

My version is 100% plant-based, so what you see here are tempeh “soboro”, sugar peas, cumin tofu, and carrots.

This is how you use the big chopsticks (called “Sai-Bashi” in Japanese).

I can’t think of using any other utensils to do this.

Voila!

The colors are so appetizing.

If you take it to work, school, or a picnic, you want to wrap it like this.

The best part of having a Bento is this moment.

It’s always exciting to open it (especially when someone else made it and you don’t know what’s in it).

Well even when I know exactly what’s in it, it’s still a fun moment (lol).

This Soboro Bento is relatively easy to make, as you can prepare some of the toppings the day before.

And it’s nutritious enough as it is, so you just need some fruit or soup to bring with.

Have a great weekend everyone!

by : Reiko Breakfast, Pasta/Noodle/Rice, Potato/Squash, Root vegetable, Soup, Vegan, Vegetarian

Kon-Sai Soup
根菜汁

This soul-warming vegetable-packed soup definitely reminds me of home.

Kon-Sai means root vegetables in Japan.

One of the root vegetables in this soup is Daikon radish.

I found this beauty at the local farmers market.

This is called konjac and it’s a popular ingredient of this type of soup.

Konjac is not a root vegetable but it’s a product made of a root vegetable, Konjac potato, and it has a very unique soft texture.

These were the main ingredients that went into the soup: Daikon, konjac, carrots, and Kabocha squash.

And don’t forget the Daikon stalks and leaves.

Many places sell their daikon without stalks/leaves, but if you find one with them, get it.

They are tasty, and I like to add them to the soup at the end.

I ended up with a potful of delicious soup!

This soup is perfect to be part of a healthy and satisfying breakfast.

When I make something like this, I can showcase my Japanese plates and dishes, and I always have fun doing this.

Looks very Japanese, doesn’t it?

A bowl of brown rice with Umeboshi (Japanese salted plum).

Roasted Nori (seaweed sheets) is a must for the traditional Japanese breakfast.

This particular Nori sheets are Korean style and are flavored with sesame oil.

As you can see this soup is packed with vegetables.

It has been unusually warm in Minnesota the last few days.

It was over 90 degrees yesterday, and I was sweating like crazy when I went for a walk in the afternoon (not the best idea).

But I’m not complaining, because we’ll not have this kind of weather for many months…