A great way to use up a big head of Napa cabbage as well as many other ingredients from your box. Make a big batch at once and keep it in the fridge for lunches all week long.
(makes a big bowl)
1 head Napa Cabbage
1 bunch scallions
1 bunch carrots
Any left over radishes or turnips from previous weeks
6 cloves garlic or 1 bunch scares
1 or 2" knob of ginger
3 t. salt
3 T. toasted sesame oil
3 T. rice vinegar
2 t. fish sauce
Crushed red pepper or hot sauce
Peel off and discard the outer storage leaves from the cabbage. Slice into very thin strips and place in a large bowl. Toss with the salt and set aside.
Chop up all the other vegetables into very thin slices. Toss with the cabbage, along with the sesame oil, vinegar, and fish sauce. Add hot sauce or red pepper flakes to taste.
Keeps well in your fridge as the flavors will continue to blend and mellow over time. Great for brown bag lunches throughout the week!
BOTofu: Bacon, Onion, Tomato, Tofu
one block tofu - we used organic silken tofu
♥ 2 Tbs grated ginger
♥ 1/4 cup sesame sauce - we used gomadare, a Japanese dipping sauce (substitute: tahini)
♥ tiny dash or mirin - optional
♥ one small red onion
♥ 2 strips of cottage bacon(substitute: 4 strips regular bacon or 2 slices ham)
♥ 3 tomatoes
directions
♥ Slice the tofu into 4 flat rectangles. Drain the excess water out of the tofu.
♥ While the tofu drains, make the tofu marinade: combine ginger, sesame sauce, dash of mirin.
♥ Marinate the tofu. I marinated it for an hour. I recommend at least 15 minutes for good flavor penetration.
♥ Grill tofu. (Or pan sear it.)
♥ Grill the bacon. (Or pan sear it.)
♥ Slice the onions and tomatoes. Chop the bacon into strips.
♥ Arrange on a plate - we did tofu on the bottom, then bacon, with tomatoes on top. The onion went on the side; we weren't sure if our dinner guests wanted to eat raw onions.
tips
♥ on draining tofu: I like to wrap the sliced tofu in a tea towel, put it on a plate, and put another plate on top - 10 minutes. Or you can drain it for 30+ minutes in a colander. Or wrap it in paper towels and nuke at 70% power for 1 minute.
♥ on grilling tofu: put the tofu slices on non-stick foil and put the foil on the grill. Eliminates sticking and it won't fall into the ashes that way! Even with the foil barrier you'll still get a good char and smoky grill flavor.
♥ on onions: we used young baby onions so they didn't have much of a sharp bite. If yours do, you can grill them lightly before slicing. Or, you can slice them and throw them into cold salted water for 10-15 minutes. It'll take out the sting and lightly pickle them.
Baigan Achari
(Eggplant cooked in the pickling style) From an Indian cooking class Pete's mom took in England.)
1/2 in. cube of fresh ginger
3 garlic cloves
1 oz. water
1 lb eggplant
1 1/2 T. oil
1/2 t. whole fennel seed
1/4 t. whole onion seed
1/2 lb tomatoes, chopped
1 T. ground coriander
1/8 t. turmeric
Chili powder to taste (or fresh, hot peppers)
1/2 t. salt
Oil for frying
Blend ginger, garlic and 1 oz. water together to form a smooth paste.
Cut eggplant into long, thick slices. Deep fry the eggplant in hot oil until just browned. Remove to drain.
Put 1 ! T. oil in heavy skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add fennel seed and onion seed and cook for just a few seconds. Add tomatoes, ginger/garlic mixture, coriander, turmeric, chili powder or hot peppers, and salt. Stir and cook until the mixture thickens to a paste.
Add cooked eggplant slices and stir gently. Cook over low heat, stirring very gently, until eggplant is cooked. Remove from pan to serve, leaving as much oil behind as possible.
Serve with roast lamb, or over leaves of lettuce as an appetizer. Great cold with meat or as a snack on chapati.
Eggplant Curry
From Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon
2 medium-large eggplants, cut into 1” cubes
2 onions, chopped
1 t fenugreek seeds
1 T ground coriander
1 T ground cumin
1 t ground turmeric
1⁄4 t ground cayenne pepper
1 t freshly grated ginger
4 medium tomatoes, chopped
1⁄4 c fresh cilantro, chopped
1⁄2 c olive oil
Sprinkle eggplant with 1 teaspoon salt and let stand for 1 hour. Rinse and pat dry.
Cook eggplant in olive oil over high heat until browned but still firm. Set aside. Sautee onions with spices until onions are tender. Add remaining ingredients except fresh cilantro. Simmer for a few minutes. Add cooked eggplant, mix well, simmer for up to one hour. Serve over rice, garnished with chopped cilantro.
Samosas
From Moosewood Cookbook
2 lg. potatoes, cooked and mashed
1 cup minced onion
2-4 cloves, crushed garlic
1/2 tsp fresh grated ginger
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 cup diced carrots, cooked until tender
1/2 cup cooked green peas
1 tsp salt
juice from 1/2 lemon
2-4 tbs. butter
cayenne pepper to taste
Heat butter in heavy skillet. Add garlic, ginger, onion, salt and mustard seeds. Saute 6-8 mins or unti onion is soft. Combine all ingredients except peas, and mix well. Fold in peas last, try not to smash them.
PAstry:
2 cups white flour
1 tsp. salt
4 tbs. melted butter
1/3 cup yogurt
water
Mix together flour and salt. Add melter butter , yogurt and enough water to make a stiff dough. Knewd until smooth and elastic. Roll out very thin (1/4 in.) on a floured surface and cut into 4 in. circles. Roll and cut all the dough. Plasce a tbsp. of filling in the center of each circle, leaving edges free. Brush edges with a little water, fold over, and seal with a fork.
heat a 3-in pool of vegetable oil in a heavy skillet. Make sure oil is hot enough . Fry samasoas until golden. Drain well and serve!