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Ginger Soy Pak Choi

January 5, 2012

Everything is green around here. Not with envy, or with money; but with vegetables. After a week of vacation, followed by the holidays, and all the food that is associated with those things, I’ve never been happier to fill my plate with green, leafy vegetables.

Lettuces, arugula, spinach and kale have been all over the menu lately, and I expect it to continue well into February.

I made this green dish before the holidays. Now that I’m back in the swing of things in the kitchen – and now that I’ve discovered our local Asian market carries Pak Choi – I will be making this one again.

I like to steam my Pak Choi just slightly – maybe a two to three minutes – before I toss it in the skillet. This isn’t necessarily required. However you choose to cook it, make eating more Pak Choi a New Year’s resolution.

Ginger Soy Pak Choi

1 bunch pak choi, 4-5 stalks
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp fresh ginger, minced
1 inch piece lemongrass, sliced
1 tsp raw sugar
¼ tsp dark sesame oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
Sesame seeds for garnish

Steam pak choi 2-3 minutes in a vegetable steamer.

Meanwhile, add the olive oil to a wok and heat to medium. Add the garlic, ginger and lemongrass to the pan. Stir in the sugar, sesame oil and soy sauce. Cook 1-2 minutes.

Increase the heat to medium-high, drain the pak choi and add to the wok. Turn to coat in the sauce. Continue to cook until pak choi reaches your desired tenderness. For me that’s about 1-2 minutes. Transfer to a plate and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serves 2 – 3.

Thanks for reading! All images and content are the property of Fake Food Free and Lori Rice unless otherwise stated. Please do not republish full recipes and images without written permission. What is okay? Feel free to Pin images, share links to my posts or share the photo in a round up post with the title of this recipe and a link back to the post. Confused about copyright and food blogs? Here is some helpful information on Recipe Attribution. If you want to use a photo or full recipe, just ask. I’m sure we can work something out.

Green Tea Bubble Tea

December 29, 2011

My fascination with bubble tea began towards the end of my time as an undergraduate at Purdue. Tucked in the corner, among the shops on Chauncey Hill, a new shop opened. For a while we wondered what this little place was which other students – mostly Asian – were flocking to.

At this point in time, although I was up to my forehead in food and nutrition from an academic perspective, I have to admit I knew nothing of food culture. My husband – then fiancée – convinced me to give it a try and my knowledge of beverages hasn’t been the same since.

I loved the texture and consistency; the almond, coconut and fruit flavors. I loved everything down to the big straws and the chewy bubbles. Simply put, it’s unique; I can’t think of anything like it in the U.S. In fact, most people I know would be turned off by chewing their beverages.

Bubble tea has been difficult to find since then. We were exposed to many more bubble drinks when we traveled around Southeast Asia a few years ago, but I’ve been interested in making my own to compensate for the lack of access here.

So when I was flipping through the cookbook Cooking WithoutBorders by Anita Lo with Charlotte Druckman, the Green Tea Bubble Tea caught my eye. Not only was this my chance to make it, but this version just happens to be a cocktail. And what better time for a cocktail than while ringing in the New Year?

Regardless of whether or not you like bubble tea – or even cocktails – this cookbook deserves some exploring. The fusion Lo creates in her recipes is remarkable. Take, for example, the Barbecued Squid with Edamame and Boiled Peanuts, Chilled Grapefruit and Ginger Soup with Sweet Avocado Mousse or Turkey with Spicy Black Beans in Tofu Dumplings.

The cookbook includes all types of meats from pork to rabbit, but it is the seafood dishes that stand out to me. You’ll find several varieties of ceviche, soft shell crab and halibut. The cocktail section is small, but unexpected and original, from the Celery-Dill Martini to this bubble tea.

In the book, Lo describes the drink as an Asian White Russian. I couldn’t agree more, and White and Black Russians just happen to be some of my favorite cocktails. I searched for green tea powder here with no success. Therefore, I brewed strong green tea and made that into the green tea syrup.

This is a strong, but sweet drink ending with the chewy bubbles. If nothing else, the black bubbles in the bottom of your cocktail will serve as a conversation starter.

Happy New Year!

Green Tea Bubble Tea

From Cooking Without Borders by Anita Lo, reprinted with permission from Abrams Books

For the green-tea simple syrup:

1 cup sugar

¼ cup green-tea powder

Pinch of salt

1 cup boiling water

For each drink:

2 tablespoons black bubble-tea

bubbles, cooked, strained, and

rinsed according to package

instructions

Splash of amaretto

2 ounces vodka

1½ ounces green-tea simple syrup, or

to taste

2 ounces milk

Make the green-tea simple syrup: Whisk the sugar with the green-tea

powder and salt until no clumps remain. Slowly add the boiling water,

whisking constantly until dissolved. Strain if necessary to remove clumps.

Let cool.

Make the drink: Combine the cooked “bubbles” with the amaretto in a

rocks glass and fill with ice. Put the vodka, green-tea simple syrup, and

milk in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and strain into the rocks glass.

Serve with a wide straw.

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Shrimp Spring Rolls

October 2, 2011

I have absolutely nothing against cilantro. In fact, I love the stuff. But I fear I greatly offended the herb this week.

I have this very organized habit of getting all my ingredients laid out on the counter whenever I begin to cook. This leads to a bad habit of pushing things around to create space when I need it for doing things like, um, rolling up spring rolls.

How to Make Shrimp Spring Rolls | Fake Food Free

This was the first time I made spring rolls and I’m pretty darn happy with the result. I could use a bit more practice in rolling to get them tighter, but otherwise I claim success. Well, that is if you don’t talk to the cilantro.

As I proudly wrapped all the rolls and admired them sitting on the plate, I looked over and tucked away in the corner behind the coffee maker, was the cilantro! I had every intention of topping off my pile of filling with a sprig or two before rolling, but in my effort to create space I shoved one of my favorite herbs out of view!

So we’ll just have to enjoy it as a garnish in the photos. The good news is, if you don’t like cilantro, these spring rolls are great without it. If you do, they’ll be even better with it inside and not just sitting on the plate.

Shrimp Spring Rolls

2015-07-31 10:01:54

Makes: 6 to 7 rolls

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Ingredients

~3 oz rice sticks
1 tablespoon cooking oil
3 green onions, sliced
½ large yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
2 medium carrots, julienned (or if you are like me, as close as you can get to it)
1 ½ cups bok choy, greens only, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated
~ 25 cooked shrimp
Cilantro (optional)
6-7 rice paper wraps

Instructions

Place the rice sticks in a bowl and fill the bowl with hot water to cover the noodles. Allow to sit until tender, about 5 minutes. Cool, chop and set aside.
In a wok, heat the oil. Add the green onions, bell pepper, carrots, bok choy and garlic. Cook over high heat for only 1 to 2 minutes. If you want your veggies softer you can cook them longer. Add the soy sauce and the ginger.
For each roll, soften the rice paper wraps according to package directions. Lay the rice paper on a flat surface or plate. On one end pile up some noodles, veggies (cilantro) and 3 to 4 shrimp. Slowly roll up the spring roll, tucking in the filling and folding in the sides as you go.
Serve at room temperature or cold.

Notes

Serving Sauces: The sauces were quickly thrown together. Tasty, but nothing extravagant.
Spicy Mustard – Equal parts Dijon mustard and Sriracha
Peanut Chile – 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter, 2 tablespoons imported Thai Chili sauce (I like to get imported because it is usually free of HFCS), 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger, 1 teaspoon minimally refined cane sugar, 2 teaspoons soy sauce. Stir together the ingredients in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in water to reach the desired consistency.

By Lori Rice

Fake Food Free https://www.fakefoodfree.com/

Thanks for reading! All images and content are the property of Fake Food Free unless otherwise stated. Please do not republish full recipes and images without written permission. What is okay? Feel free to Pin images, share links to my posts or share the photo in a round up post with the title of this recipe and a link back to the post. Confused about copyright and food blogs? Here is some helpful information on Recipe Attribution. If you want to use a photo or full recipe, just ask. I’m sure we can work something out.

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