Fresh Spicy Cucumber Salad

This cucumber dish is good for when you are craving a refreshing, crunchy side dish. It goes with many main dishes!
If you want more of kick to the salad for a stronger taste you can add more garlic, salt, vinegar and red pepper powder.


Ingredients:

2 English cucumbers or 5 regular pickle cucumbers
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cloves garlic. minced
1 green onion
1/2 tsp. agave nectar
1 1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp. red pepper powder
1/2-1 tsp. roasted sesame seeds






Direction:

Cut cucumbers long way, in half and then slice cucumbers to half moon shape.

Add to medium size bowl and sprinkle salt on cucumber then toss all together. Let it set for 20 minutes, drain water from bowl and add the rest of ingredients and mix with spoon. May serve right away but if you want stronger flavor then let it marinate for 20 min. before serving.

Zucchini Hummus Veggie Roll

I am so excited share this dish with you! It's very easy to make it and so delicious and so pretty as well.

You can even create your own version of veggie rolls to add your favorite vegetables! I love it!

Have a fun making it!

Ingredients:

Basic Hummus with flax-seed oil (or store bought)

1 medium Zucchini

1 carrot

1 cucumber

1 avocado

Optional: handful of bean sprouts, any colors of bell pepper or your favorite vegetables....

Directions:

Peel zucchini as wide as you can with vegetable peeler

Julianne cut carrot and cucumber to twice wider than zucchini

cut avocado same length but thicker

spread hummus on the zucchini peel, add avocado, carrots, cucumbers, bean sprouts on the top of hummus 

Gently roll zucchini peel with vegetables all the way end of zucchini peel

Place on the plate! Serve with extra hummus dip or any other dressings will be great as well!

What a beautiful, simple and fancy dish! All we can enjoy it!

Basic Hummus with flax-seed oil

Basic Hummus with Flax-Seed oil

I LOVE this hummus! Even if hummus is not your favorite you must try it!  

Soak 1 cup of Garbanzo beans overnight and discard the water, rinse well.

Cook them with 1/4 of roughly cut med size onion, 1/4 teaspoon sea salt and 3 cloves of garlic in 1 quart of filtered water until the beans are soft. Save 1 1/2 cup of liquid and drain rest of them.

Add:

1/4 uncooked chopped med size onion

2-3 fresh minced garlic

1/2 to 1 cup flax seed oil
1/4 cup Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

4 Tablespoons lemon juice or juice from 1 lemon 

1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or according to taste)

1cup (or more)  liquid they were cooked in

Blend in a Vita Mix or your regular blender. Add the liquid until desired consistency. Set a side for an hour before you eat it for best results! If it is still too thick then you can add more flax seed oil or liquid from the beans.

Ideas for serving:

* With flat bread wraps or veggies such as cucumbers, spinach, tomatoes, carrots, sprouts, lettuce and sweet red peppers.

* No bake hummus pizza
* Sandwiches.

* Hummus zucchini veggie rolls

* Also you can eat with chips, pita bread or you can use it as a veggie dip for carrots and celery. 

Bulgogi ( Marinated korean beef)

Bulgogi  

(Korean marinated beef)

Whenever you are craving meat and want to make it extra special, this is one of my family's favorite beef dishes to share with our dinner guests.  Remember to plan ahead and marinate the beef early so your meat will be ready on the day you are preparing this delicious meal.

To marinate beef:
1 pound beef tenderloin, top sirloin, or skirt steak, slice into paper thin 1/8 inch thick (frozen 2 hours- easier to slice)

4-5 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoon Bragg's aminos
2-3 tablespoon sugar or Agave nectar
3 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1-2 teaspoon sesame oil

2 green onion, chopped
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

Optional: 
May also marinate or cook with 1/2 of a sliced yellow onion

*Use less sugar and add 1/4 minced onion and minced Asian pear to marinate the beef.

Directions:
1. Trim the fat off and slice as thin as possible against the grain. (more tender to eat)
2 inches long by 1 inch is a good size for tacos and lettuce wraps.



    *Ask the store that if they can slice meat paper thin.  It's so lucky to have it done if they can slice it for you to save extra time.

2. Combining the garlic, soy sauce, sugar, water, black pepper, sesame oil in a medium bowl. Mix it well with a spoon and add the sliced beef. Mix well.




Option 1: To enhance more flavor, add sliced and fine minced, green onions and add smashed or minced roasted sesame seeds.




Option 2: 1/2 onion, thin sliced and add to meat and marinate together.











3. Marinate at least an hour. For best taste marinate overnight.
It can be saved for 3 to 5 days in refrigerator.

4. Cook marinated meat on medium high on stove using a frying pan. Cook until tender and juicy. Or a grill.

5. On serving plate; Serve garnished with roasted sesame seeds, sliced green onions on the top.





* After marinating over night, if you are using it later, store flat in a freezer bag in the freezer. you can keep it for a month.  You should thaw before cooking frozen marinated meat.

Ideas for serving:

Serve with rice and Kimchi  (Korean fermented cabbage),
Korean street taco, Japchae Noodles
Korean beef lettuce wrap with ssamjang (seasoned miso deep)
Beef Bi-Bib-bop (rice bowl with cooked vegetables)

Thanks everyone for visiting my blog :)
 I will keep adding my recipes as fast as I can so you can have fun and enjoy it!

Korean Tacos with Beef or Tofu

Korean Tacos with Beef or Tofu

Time for party! I did Korean tacos at my son's graduation open house and also my friend asked me to make this at a new year's party. You can make it for 10 people (family size) or 100 people very easy. You can use beef with bulgogi recipe (posted earlier this week) and not spicy or spicy pork. You could even use teriyaki chicken (using same marinate as beef -bulgogi). 

For a healthier choice, if you don't want meat you can use the Tofu taco recipe below. 

Ingredients:

1 package Corn tortillas
1 lbs Organic marinated beef ( couple hours or overnight)
2 heads Romaine lettuce, thin sliced
1/2 Red onion sliced (soak 10 minute rinse and drain)
1 Avocado, diced
1 Cucumber, sliced
1 Cilantro
2 Limes, wedged

* Korean spicy sweet sauce
Toasted sesame seed for garnish

* Korean spicy sweet sauce: Makes 1 cup
In a pint jar put 1/2 cup Gochujang (korean red hot paste), 1 tablespoon sesame oil, 2 tablespoon Agave nectar, 1/4 cup water, mix well together and garnish with 1/2 teaspoon roasted sesame seed.

* Cilantro onion salsa:
1/2 red onion, minced, 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon cilantro, 1 fresh lime juice, pinch or 1/4 teaspoon sea salt. Soak minced onion to vinegar, 15 to 30 minute. rinse and drain with cold water. Add cilantro, lime and salt.

* Tofu taco:
Fried tofu with ghee (clarified butter), use extra firm tofu, open the package and drain the water.
Dry the tofu with a paper towel letting the paper towel absorb most of the moisture for 30 minutes.
Cut into bite size pieces. Then fry tofu with 1/2 teaspoon of ghee (clarified butter) on frying pan, sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper, fry until brown and crispy both sides. You may use Southwest Chipotle seasoning (my son's favorite) or any other kind of seasoning you like for extra flavor.

How to serve:
Warm the corn tortillas with foil in the oven 275* for 30 minutes or if you are using fresh tortillas, cook them in a frying pan on the stove.
I used fresh corn tortillas.














Assemble all the ingredients you prepared with corn tortillas and prepare as follows:
On one cooked fresh corn tortilla (if you are using tortillas from store, use 2 regular tortillas to hold ingredients more securely). Put lettuce, Bulgogi (marinated Korean beef), cucumber, avocado, sliced onion, or cilantro onion, salsa and drizzle spicy sweet sauce, garnish with toasted sesame seed.
Writing this right now is making me want to eat this right of the screen! SO delicious! MUST TRY THIS!
Please feel free to make a comment if you have any questions.

I will post the recipe for Spicy Pork soon so stay tuned.

Baked Vegetables with Rosemary

Baked Vegetables with Rosemary

This dish is my all time favorite! All seasons, for party and summer BBQ side dish when you don't know what to cook on the day of the potluck dinner or any meal.... perfect for every where every time any where....
This is a very simple dish you can make in just over an hour.
I have had many people ask how to make this, so I put it here for everyone to enjoy!

Ingredients:

Approx. 2 Cups of each vegetable

Root vegetables:
Red potatoes
Onions
Carrots
Sweet potatoes
Parsnips .....


Green vegetables:
Broccoli
Green beans
Bell peppers (any color)
Leek
Aspragus
Kale
Cabbage ....

Seasonings:
2 TBSP Olive oil
Salt to taste
Black pepper to taste
Rosemary (use fresh or dry)


Directions:

Wash all the vegetables and first cut root vegetables to bite size. In a big bowl toss with olive oil, salt, pepper & rosemary.

 Bake at 400* for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare green vegetables the same way and set aside.

Add green veggies and bake another 30 to 40 minutes or until all the veggies are cooked and little crispy & brown.

Serve with sriracha or any hot sauce you like!!!

Stir fry vegetable with baked potato and yam

Stir fry vegetable w/ baked potato and yam
or with brown rice

Serve 4

After the October cooking class friend Becky told me that her husband can't digest raw vegetables.

Right then, I knew what I would make for the November cooking class So she can make it for her husband.

This is another old recipe my brother in-law Blair used in his cooking class a long time ago. Thanks again to Blair! He wrote;

"This is a meal you will never tire of because you can constantly vary the vegetables in the stir fry.

We try to maintain a mix of about 12 vegetables, some toifying and most dispersing.

If you choose organic vegetables, they will be four time more nourishing than non-organic vegetables. Vegetables are extremely mineral rich, in fact, they are our best source of minerals.

Our body can manufacture most vitamins, but we can't manufacture a single mineral. If you desire great health, vegetables need to make up 30% -40% your diet.

If your time is limited, buy the vegetables one day a week; sock in salt water, clean them, and cut up enough to last for seven days (at least one gallon per person). You can store them, after you divided it up according to your family size for one meal, folding them up with cheese cloth or a dish cloth and in a tightly sealed plastic gallon bags.

You give up some food value by cutting the vegetables in advance, but it allows you to put a meal on the table in about 10 minutes total time whenever we need it. For some this is very important. 

Most people seldom get his kind of nourishment and you'll feel fantastic when you try it. Your body will let you know how thankful it is."

It was another beautiful Saturday in Cheyenne. I harvested carrots, beets, kale, and tomatoes from our garden for the cooking class this morning! 

It's tiny carrots and beets but taste amazing! It's fresh, tender and sweet.

This dish doesn't require any cooking skills besides cutting vegetables.

Also it is perfect for who can't digesting raw foods. You can call it "cooked vegetable salad" :)

Ingredients:

1 cup brown rice (soak over night and cook with 2 and 1/2 cup water, boil and simmer 40 min.)

2 Yam and potatoes (bake 375* an hour) or steam it on stove.

4 medium sized shiitake mushrooms

1 medium carrot

1/2 small onion

1 small stacks of celery

1/2 or 1 small head of broccoli 

1/2 peppers (red, yellow, or orange)

1 small zucchini

1 handful spinach

1or 2 cloves of garlic

Optional possible ingredients: 1/2 cup cooked Spelt

1/4 Diakon ( Asian radish,  white round and long)

cabbage, bokchoy, kale, beets with green.... also why not with quinoa!

Directions:

1. First 1 cup of water in the wok, stove on high heat and put in the shiitake mushrooms in the water so they can get moisturized.
 chop the onions, carrots, celery and daikon put them in the boiling water. You can add potatoes if you are not baking potatoes with this meal.

Don't forget to put the lid on every time after the add vegetables.

2. Then keep on cooking, and pepper, asparagus, and cabbage are cut, put those in too

3. In the mean time cut and add squash broccoli and cauliflower..  Now that the shiitake mushrooms are moisturized take them out and cut them. You can keep add more water as you need it.

4.  Last you put in spinach and cook this stir fry for 30 second to a one more minutes with lid on.

4. Add fresh minced garlic and mix it together.

Once that is done drain the water in the jar and keep it in the refrigerator to use as vegetable broth.

5. Serving:

Put stir fry on brown rice or as a side dish. Add flax seed oil, and Bragg's aminos (natural soy sauce), and hot sauce ( we love sriracha!)

even on the baked potato and yam!

Bake 375* yams and potatoes in foil around an hour.
The baking time varies on the size of the vegetable.
or steam them on the stove until soft.