vegetarian Archive

vegetable panang curry

Let me tell you a little story about my favorite Asian grocery store, a failed attempt at green curry, and a successful “backup plan” curry.

It all started with Nich and I making a trip to Fubonn. Fubonn is a giant Asian grocery store, with items from Thailand, Korea, Japan, China, India, etc. We love to go and wander the aisles, while searching for new & crazy ingredients and stocking up our pantry with various Asian staples.

The reason for this past trip to Fubonn was simple: I had seen a recipe for Thai green curry paste that I wanted to make. I knew that I could get most (if not all) the ingredients for the curry paste at Fubonn; even some of the more obscure ones like fish sauce or Thai basil. Before we embarked on our journey, we had decided that we would use the green curry paste to make some sort of vegetable curry for dinner, and we wanted to make Vietnamese summer rolls to go along with it. (Thanks to my new blog friend, Sarah at Simply Cooked for the idea. I saw them on her blog, and knew I needed to make them!). It was decided that Nich would be on roll duty, and I would make the curry. Our plan was to whip up a delicious Asian dinner and enjoy it while watching Top Chef. It was going to be a great night.

Things didn’t exactly go according to plan. When we got home we realized that the salad roll wrappers I insisted on buying weren’t the right wrappers. Thankfully, Nich ran down to Fred Meyer, and they had the right kind of rice paper wrappers. Crisis averted. I left him to make the salad rolls and continued on with my green curry paste. I followed the instructions exactly. Well, maybe not exactly…there was a small matter of shrimp paste. When I saw shrimp paste in the list of ingredients I would need, I assumed that it would be along the same lines as fish sauce (which I use in Thai cooking often). However, when I opened the can of shrimp paste, Nich and I were horrified at the smell that immediately wafted from the tiny can. It was unspeakably bad. There was no way that shrimp paste was going anywhere near my curry. In any case, even without the addition of shrimp paste, the green curry was inedible. It looked like a sad, gloppy cold green soup (and that’s putting it nicely) and tasted foul. We had no choice but to toss it.

So, I went back to the drawing board. I had a can of Panang curry paste, a can of coconut milk, and a bunch of shiitake mushrooms. I was going to make curry, even if it killed me. So, I ran with the ingredients I had and whipped up a “backup plan” curry. Dinner didn’t exactly turn out as I envisioned it, but nevertheless the end result was fantastic. The curry was rich, hearty, flavorful, and oh-so-very spicy. I washed it down with some coconut lemongrass sake (!!!) and part one of the Top Chef season finale. The episode was strangely appropriate as the finale takes place in Singapore, and all the contestants were struggling with the strange flavors and ingredients that are so prevalent in Asian cuisine. (Especially Kelly. Poor Kelly, I know exactly how she felt!)

So, if you would like to make a delicious and Asian-inspired meal, I will save you the trouble of making an inedible green curry paste, and I will instead include the recipe for vegetable panang curry. Also, if you’d like to make Vietnamese spring rolls, I recommend you use Sarah from Simply Cooked’s recipe. The ones we made were a slight variation (vegetarian) of hers with baked tofu (marinated in ponzu and red chilies), spinach, Thai basil, cilantro, green onions, and carrots. I also make a yummy spicy peanut dipping sauce for them (my old standby peanut sauce. click here for the recipe!)

And, without further delay – here is the recipe for the curry that I made up on the spot.

Vegetable Panang Curry (aka Backup Plan Curry)
*Serve over white or brown rice

1 package shiitake mushrooms (approx 1 to 1.5 cups – washed & cut in halves or quarters)
1/4 to 1/2 can Panang Curry paste (*I highly recommend Maesri brand panang curry paste, available in most Asian grocery stores. Please note, this is a SPICY curry paste. Nich and I used 1/2 of a can and it was really spicy.)
1 can coconut milk
Soy Sauce, to taste (1 to 2 Tablespoons)
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1 T freshly grated ginger
1 small carrot, sliced thin
1 Thai chili, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup fresh green beans (or frozen & thawed)
Chopped cilantro, for garnish

Add a small amount of oil to a wok or skillet. Turn the heat to medium high. Sautee onion in the oil until translucent (a couple minutes). Add in Thai chili, garlic, and ginger. Continue to stir fry over medium high (be careful not to burn. turn down to medium if need be) for another minute. Add in mushrooms and sear for a minute. Add in curry paste, and stir to coat the vegetables. Add more oil if necessary.

Turn the heat down to medium low and add in the coconut milk, green beans, and soy sauce. Go light on the soy sauce (as you can always add more later). Simmer in the wok/skillet for 30 minutes to an hour (whenever you think it tastes good!. Serve over rice, and garnish with fresh chopped cilantro .

cabbage slaw with fennel, apple and jalapeno

I don’t know if it’s the same in every family, but growing up my family had a habit of making up strange names for common foods. For example, “bagels and cream cheese” somehow morphed into “beagles and clam cheese”. I don’t know if one of us kids said it this way once and the terminology just stuck – or if my parents made it up just to mess with us. Whatever the case, there were just certain things we said. It was the Strannigan way.

But, now I am a grown adult and most of the strange terms from childhood have faded away. But there are the few that linger. Specifically, the term cold slop. In my family, coleslaw was known as cold slop. To my young brain, it made complete sense. I mean, think about it. Coleslaw isn’t usually very attractive: its made of limp, sad bits of shredded cabbage that are doused in some sort of soupy mayo-based dressing. It generally resembled slop. (To be fair, I am not insulting my mother’s cooking. Quite the contrary, I am referring to church potlucks and styrofoam bowls of KFC coleslaw.)

All that to say: it’s time that I put my childish views of coleslaw (ahem…cold slop) behind me. This summer, I decided to make an awesome coleslaw.

I have to thank Grant Butler for this recipe. He writes a column in The Oregonian’s Food Day called “Going Vegan” and did a feature on vegan slaws a few months back, and I loved it. While he dreamed up many slaw recipes, the one that got my attention was this – Endive, Fennell, and Apple slaw. What is not to like about that?

So I tried it (and loved it). I’ve been making versions of his Endive, Fennel, and Apple slaw all summer. I will say, that I’ve tweaked the recipe a bit and have made it my own. While I love endive, it can be expensive and I found that it didn’t quite have the crunch of cabbage. And, for girl’s night this week we had pulled pork sandwiches – and I felt that a cabbage slaw would hold up better with the pork. Feel free to make the original version of the slaw – the recipe can be found here.

Or, if you’re feeling sassy, you can make my version, which is below.

Cabbage Slaw with Fennel, Apple, and Jalapeno

For the slaw:
1 small head of purple cabbage
1 pink lady apple
1 medium to large fennel bulb (reserve some fennel fronds for the dressing)
1 jalapeno

For the dressing:
1 small shallot, diced
2-3 Tbl apple cider vinegar
1 – 2 Tsp of chopped fennel fronds (from the top of your bulb)
salt & pepper to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
**Optional ingredient: 1/3 cup Vegenaise or Mayo (I happen to like my coleslaw a little creamy so I use a little Vegenaise. If you make the slaw without mayo, just up the amount of olive oil and cider vinegar)

Using a food processor (with a slicing blade), a mandolin, or a sharp knife, cut the cabbage, apple, and fennel into thin strips. (I find that a food processor is the fastest, but it also makes for an uglier slaw. I like to use a knife because I cut things thin & pretty!)

Dice the jalapeno (include seeds and membrane at your risk/desired heat level). Add 1/2 the jalapeno to the slaw now, and once you’ve dressed the slaw taste and see if it needs more spice. If so, add the rest of the pepper.

Mix the dressing ingredients (shallot, fennel fronds, vinegar, oil, s&p and mayo if using). Pour gently over the cabbage mixture. Use enough dressing to just coat the cabbage, you don’t want a soggy slaw.

Potato Salad with Yogurt, Arugula and Dill.

How on earth is it Labor Day weekend already? No, seriously. Can someone explain this to me?

I am simply not ready to admit that summer is nearly over, as it feels like it never really began. Between moving into a new house, getting my wisdom teeth out, a business trip to Atlanta, and the very early birth of my niece – my summer was ridiculously busy.

That being said, Nich and I are disappearing to Prineville for the weekend to visit his parents. My in-laws are such lovely people, who live a quiet life in the country. They have a few horses, a crazy dog, and an amazing garden (my mother-in-law’s gardening abilities are unbelievable). I look forward to sleeping in, drinking giant mugs of french press coffee, doing crossword puzzles, and enjoying long talks with my in-laws.

Whatever your plans may be, I do hope that you all have a lovely Labor Day weekend. If you are heading to a BBQ, picnic, or party, I highly recommend this potato salad. I’ve been making it for various gatherings all summer, and it never disappoints. I would call this a modern version of the classic potato salad. It still has the nostalgic taste of potato salad, but yet it tastes new and fresh. There aren’t many ingredients that go into the salad, but each individual ingredient works so nicely with the rest. This is one of those ‘summer in a bowl’ recipes. I love it.

Note: I got the original recipe from The Kitchn, but I made a few changes and/or improvements. Feel free to use my version or theirs! Happy Labor Day, everyone!

Potato Salad with Yogurt, Arugula, and Herbs
serves 4
1 1/2 pounds red potatoes, cleaned (skins on)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup greek yogurt
1/4 cup mayonnaise (or vegenaise)
2 small shallots (or 1 large shallot), peeled and diced
1 small bunch arugula leaves, finely chopped
1 small bunch fresh dill, finely chopped
1/2 of an english cucumber, diced (*I also chopped up a few of my homemade dill pickles and threw them in…it was a great decision)

Fill a large pot 3/4 full of water. Salt generously with at least 1 tablespoon of salt. Bring to a boil over high heat and add the potatoes. Bring back to a simmer and then turn the heat down to medium. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the potatoes can be easily pierced with a fork. Drain the potatoes and return them to the pot.

Use a fork to pull a hot potato out of the pot, and slice it into 1/2 inch cubes . Repeat with the rest of the potatoes, adding them to a large bowl as you cut them up. Let cool.

Whisk together the yogurt and mayonnaise. Once the potatoes are cool, toss the potatoes with this dressing, then toss with the shallots, arugula, cucumbers (and pickles, if using) and dill. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

pickled okra.

I hope that none of you were starting to doubt my commitment to the ‘summer of pickling’.

The pickling is still going strong, my friends.

Last week, Nich and I spotted some fresh okra at the local farmers market, and we knew immediately that the okra was going to be our next pickling project. I can’t say that I’ve eaten a ton of pickled okra in my 29 years, but what I’ve had has always been delicious. And, if we are being honest…I generally only eat pickled okra when it happens to be garnishing my bloody mary.

This recipe isn’t too far off from the other pickled veggies I’ve been trying my hand at. Most pickle brines are a combination of vinegar, water, sugar, salt, and spices. The kinds and amounts of vinegars, spices, etc, vary upon preference and type of pickle. I’ve learned that you really just need to make a few jars, eat them, and decide what you’d change next time. I’ve decided, for example, that I don’t like much garlic in my dill pickles.

Anyway, this okra recipe seemed very open-ended and somewhat free form. The original recipe calls for hot peppers, but states that they can be fresh or dried. My left brain only slightly imploded at that notion. Dried & fresh peppers taste very different and so I knew that whichever form of pepper I chose would have a big impact on the flavor of the pickled okra. However, I happened to have dried habaneros on hand, so convenience won out. The recipe also called for two to three hot peppers. But, I didn’t want to go crazy on my first try at pickling okra, and we all know that habaneros can be intense. So, I only used one habanero for fear of an overly-spicy okra. But, alas, they don’t seem to be super spicy and next time, I’ll probably kick it up a notch and use two. Just saying.

Pickled Okra.
(Adapted from Bluejeangourmet.com)

enough okra pods to fill the quart jar tightly packed

2-3 garlic cloves

2 sprigs of fresh dill

2-3 hot peppers, fresh or dried (I used one dried habanero)

1 cup white vinegar

1/2 cup water

1/8 cup salt

Rinse the okra and peel the garlic cloves. Scrub the jar, ring and lid and rinse in very hot water from the tap. When the jar cools enough to touch, pack the jar with whole okra pods stood upright. Pack in the dill, garlic cloves and peppers as well. Make sure nothing in the jar protrudes up beyond the lower edge of the lip of the jar.

In a medium pot, add the water, vinegar and salt to make the brine. Bring to a boil.

Pour the boiling brine into the packed jars. Make sure nothing in the jar is left uncovered. Seal the jars tightly. Wait a week to open. Best served cold after refrigeration.

tomato pie.

Tuesday it was a whopping 92 degrees in Portland.
And ok…I’ll admit it. 92 degrees isn’t that hot. But, for Portland, that’s pretty warm. I’m not complaining about it, though. This summer has been ugly and cloudy and manic, and I’m welcoming the hot temperatures. At least the sun is shining!

I’ve been craving Tomato Pie all summer long. But, thanks to the crummy weather this year, the tomatoes haven’t been ripe until recently. Instead of eating and/or making this glorious tomato pie all summer, I’ve been reminiscing about past summers (when I could make this pie in July!).

This pie is a classic southern recipe and isn’t particularly healthy – you take a wonderful healthy ingredient like fresh tomatoes and pair them with pie crust (i.e. butter), cheese, and sour cream and/or mayo. But who’s counting calories anyways? I’m certainly not. The pie tastes absolutely delicious and its a great way to use up some of your tomatoes (because, lets face it…we have tomatoes coming out our ears!).

I took the cheater route and bought pre-made pie crusts from Trader Joe’s. I must say, I really love their pies crusts (and I’m not ashamed to admit it!). They taste great, they’re cheap, and are great when you’re in a hurry. I had to whip up this pie in the small window of time I had between work and girl’s night – so crust from scratch was not ideal. However, due to the heat yesterday, my TJ’s pie crusts thawed realllllly quickly and ended up being a pain to work with (I can’t imagine that making a pie crust from scratch in this heat would be any easier). I should have put the crusts in the pie tins and then chilled them for a bit – but I didn’t think about that before I put them in the oven to par bake for 10 minutes. Instead of nicely arranged (with pinched edges), my crusts sunk down into the bottom of the pie tins. I had a bottom crust and that was it. Needless to say, I was annoyed. But, what can you do? I was going to have thick crust on the bottom and none on the sides. And that was that. So, my beautiful tomato pie quickly turned into an ugly tomato tart. I sucked it up, piled the tomatoes, onions, basil and bacon on top of the crust and topped it with cheddar and sour cream.

And you know what? It tasted just fine. In fact, the 7 girls at my weekly girls night managed to devour both tomato pies (and here I thought I’d have leftovers to bring to my sister in the hospital. Guess not?). The crust was a little gummy (because it was so thick) but the flavors of the ‘pie filling’ were fantastic. The juices of the tomatoes always make this pie a little runny anyway, so it’s never very pretty. But I don’t mind, because it tastes so darn good.

Tomato Pie
Adapted from several blogs, online recipes, and my own brain.
*Makes 2 small pies
2 pie crusts (pre-made or your favorite recipe. I usually use Mark Bittman’s recipe.)
5 – 8 fresh ripe tomatoes (I used a variety of sizes and colors of heirloom tomatoes.)
1.5 cups of grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup of sour cream (or mayo. most recipes call for mayo, but I prefer using sour cream)
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
1 sweet white onion, sliced thin
6 strips of bacon, cut into lardons (*optional, you can skip if you’d like this pie to be vegetarian)
salt & pepper to taste

Cut the tomatoes into thin slices & de-seed the slices (if possible. The seeds made the pie more runny, so less seeds is better. You don’t have to be TOO thorough.) Place the tomato slices into a colander and lightly salt. Let drain for 30+ minutes.

While the tomatoes drain, prepare your pie crust. Place into 2 small pie tins, and prick the bottom of the crust with a fork several times. Par bake the crust at 375 for 10 minutes.

While the pie crust bakes, crisp your bacon (if using). Cook the bacon pieces over medium heat until cooked all the way through (to your liking). If you so desire, you can sauté/caramelize the onions as well. (Last summer, I didn’t pre-cook the onions before baking them in the pie. This summer I decided to slightly caramelize them before baking. I don’t honestly think it makes a huge difference.)

After 10 minutes, remove the crust from the oven. Let cool slightly. Add a layer of fresh tomato slices on top of the crust. Dot with fresh basil leaves, and season with salt and pepper. Add a small layer of onions and bacon on top of the tomato slices. Repeat (tomato slices, basil, s&p, bacon, and onions) until the pie crust is full. You can usually only fit 2 or 3 layers.

Stir together the sour cream and grated cheddar. Season with pepper (I also added a little smoked paprika). Using your hands (yes, hands! they work best for this.) place small dollops of the cheese mixture on top of the pie. Spread as evenly as possible, until the mixture covers (more or less) the top of the pie. If it doesn’t look perfect, that is ok – the cheese will melt together when baking.

Bake for 30 minutes (or until the top is browned) at 375. Remove from the oven, and cool slightly before serving.

24 hour dill pickles.

I can’t stop pickling.
No, really, this is my new favorite hobby. Take a delicious vegetable and make it even more delicious by soaking it in vinegar and spices. Genius!

Since I’ve been having so much fun pickling veggies this summer, I knew I need to make the ultimate pickle classic: the dill pickle spear.

I stumbled upon this recipe and I knew that this was the dill pickle recipe I was going to try first. The photos were gorgeous and the recipe looked fresh and simple. So I set about finding some pickling cucumbers (Fred Meyer does not carry them, but Trader Joe’s does. And I was too impatient/craving pickles so I chose not to wait 5 days until the farmer’s market. Don’t judge.)

However, conquering the classic dill pickle spear made me slightly nervous. You see, my husband LOVES dill pickle spears. He even has theories on which brand of pickle spears are the best. He only likes the pickles that come from the refrigerated section and swears that they are crunchier than the sad pickles on the regular old grocery store shelf. He’s really into pickles.

I was worried that mine wouldn’t compare. And while it was my first attempt (and should be granted a small margin for error), I still wanted to make the perfect pickle. I wanted my pickle-enthusiast husband to really, truly love my dill pickle spears. And, guess what? He did love them. And I love them. And everyone who has tried them has loved them (my friend Priscilla requested a jar of these dill pickles for her birthday. They are that good). So, the next time I am at the farmer’s market, I am stocking up on pickling cucumbers. I will forewarn that once you open a jar of these, they disappear quickly. I’d recommend making two jars (or more) at a time. :)

24 Hour Dill Pickles (aka refrigerator pickles).
Adapted from Blondies Cakes

4 cups water
1/2 cup white vinegar
2 tbl kosher salt
1 tsp white sugar
4-6 cloves of garlic, sliced thin (or if you’re lazy like me, you’ll just smash them with your knife and throw them in the jar)
5 or 6 pickling cucumber, cut into quarters
1/2 tsp allspices seeds
1/2 tsp black peppercorns
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
6 sprigs fresh dill

Combine water, vinegar, salt, and sugar in a small sauce pan. Bring to a boil, then set aside and let cool.

Add the mustard seeds, peppercorns and whole allspice to a large mason jar. Pack in as many cucumber spears as will comfortably fit in the jar, and then pack in the dill sprigs and pieces of garlic.

Once the water & vinegar mixture has cooled (i.e. the brine), pour the liquid over the cucumbers in the jar. Seal with a clean lid and refrigerate for at least 24 hours before eating.

pickled red onions

So, remember a while back when I said this would be the ‘summer of pickling’?

I wasn’t lying.

I want to pickle everything!

Granted, my tiny little container garden isn’t producing enough to really justify pickling a whole bunch of things. But, I’ve been keeping my eyes open at the farmers market – and when I get a good deal on veggies, I’ll buy some extra for pickling. Because, sometimes, a girl just wants to have a bunch of pickled goodies on hand.

And, so, when I went to the Montavilla Farmers market this last Sunday (my new neighborhood market!) I was pleased to see an abundance of beautiful red onions. I’d just eaten some pickled red onions with my bagel & lox on Saturday (at Kenny & Zukes), and to be honest – I didn’t like them all that much. They were sweet pickled onions. I wanted them to be tangy and zingy and full of life! And so, since I didn’t get the pickled onion experience I was looking for at Kenny & Zukes (to be fair – everything else was remarkably delicious!), I knew that I had to make my own.

And so I did!

And they were everything I hoped for. They were tangy, and zingy, and delicious. I’ve seen a lot a variations on the pickled red onion, and so I am eager to try all different kinds. For now, here is the recipe I tried:

(Tangy) Pickled Red Onions

1 red onion, sliced thin
10 – 15 whole peppercorns
10 – 15 coriander seeds
1 bay leaf
Red wine vinegar to cover (I used a mix of pomegranate infused red wine vinegar and normal red wine vinegar)

Put sliced onion, peppercorns, coriander seeds, and bay leaf in a clean jar. Pour red wine vinegar over to cover. Shake the jar a few times, and refrigerate for at least 3 days before consuming (but lets be honest, you’ll want to try them the next day…).

**I had a few of these pickled onions on a salad with greens, tomato, and feta – and I must say, it was quite perfect.