The leeks are finally ready! I am pretty excited about these, as it was our first attempt at them and we started them indoors from seed. For a while it seemed they wouldn't make it, but it turns out they just take a long, long time to get established. We got lazy though, and didn't mound up enough dirt around them so only the very bottoms are white.
I made these this morning to put in my lunch - and while this looks like dinner it really only took about 10 minutes to make. I am in the process of moving house, so nearly all of my pantry is packed up and the only things left are salt, pepper, and whatever is left in the fridge/freezer. I boiled the leeks for 4 minutes in water with some japanese pickling liquid I happened to have in the fridge. Yes, that sounds strange to me too. Once done, I drained the liquid and in the same pot added some butter and salt & pepper to quickly brown them up. While I was working on the leeks I quickly fried a pork chop. This lunch was based on the fact that I had defrosted meat in the fridge that needed to be cooked, and not much else in the house at all.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Garden Leeks
Monday, June 1, 2009
Back on Track
I'm attempting to lose some of the winter padding now that summer is around the corner (although, with the threat of frost tonight it certainly doesn't feel like it). Bringing lunch to work everyday definitely helps with that, and helps keep my pocketbook full as well.
- 1 large pesto garlic tortilla with lettuce, 1/2 can tuna & 1 tsp caesar dressing, 1 small gherkin, 1 slice onion
- 1 kiwi fruit
- 9 grape tomatoes
- 2 rice crackers with nori
In the tuna salad I used caesar salad dressing in place of mayonnaise, which I rarely have. I can't finish more than a quarter jar before it spoils so I just don't bother buying it anymore. The caesar dressing was a great substitute, as it provided all the seasoning as well .
Monday, March 30, 2009
Bento Week! - Friday
My camera died on me, so I wasn't able to take photos on Friday. The only downside to having a camera that charges via USB is me losing the cable half the time. Luckily, the battery lasts a very long time so I don't often have to deal with this. So instead of Friday's lunch you get Monday's... masquerading as Friday's.
Friday's lunch:
- Pork & Asparagus Stir Fry (20g pork & 60g asparagus)
- 2 quail eggs, hard boiled
- kabocha miso mash (1/4 squash)
- 1/8 small canteloupe, cubed
- 2 small chocolate chip cookies
The kabocha miso mash takes about 5 minutes to make in the microwave. Just cut the squash in quarters, wrap in cling film and microwave on high for 4-5 minutes. Scoop the flesh into a bowl and mash with a small knob of butter and a tablespoon+ of miso (per full squash) to taste. This works with butternut squash as well, as it has a very similar flavour to kabocha.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Bento Week! - Thursday
I'm being a bit sneaky here, because I actually didn't bring a lunch today - I had dinner plans so only brought fruit for a snack. This is one of last week's lunches; the fish is leftover from the previous evening's dinner and then I cooked the vegetables in the morning before work. While it might seem like a pain cooking in the mornings, it is just as quick as putting together a good sandwich or salad, and because I enjoy cooking anyway it just makes me look forward to lunch all the more.
Thursday's lunch:
- 1/3 piece misoyaki fish
- grilled mushroom, zucchini & asparagus tossed in sesame oil with sesame seeds
- mandarin orange
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Bento Week! - Wednesday
This is basically a "dinner for lunch" kind of bento. I have class tonight and won't have a chance to get home for dinner after work, so I've brought a pretty big lunch. The sandwich has a leftover pork cutlet from last night's dinner, apple slices cooked with a knob of butter, and brie. I am anticipating lunch already, and I've just had breakfast!
Wednesday's lunch:
Bento 6
- 1 medium carrot
- 1 herb ciabatta bun with pork cutlet, apple, lettuce, brie & wholegrain mustard
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Bento Week! - Tuesday
I have been craving cold soba for weeks now, and finally gave in. It's really best in summer, but this winter is dragging on for so long that I just can't wait. This is quite a large bento, and has room for a snack as well as lunch.
Tuesday's lunch:
-65g soba with dipping sauce
-1 blood orange, sliced
-1 medium carrot
-cucumber & wakame pickles
The recipe linked above for the pickles is from Just Hungry - I love being able to make them in only a couple of hours!
Monday, March 23, 2009
Bento Week! - Monday
I have a love of cute things, so it is no surprise that I adore bento lunches. I certainly don't put a lot of effort into them, though; while the complicated character bento are amazing to look at, I have no patience to do it for myself. All I want is for my lunches to be colourful and tasty.
Monday's lunch:
- 1/2 cup edamame with sea salt
- 3 small onigiri with nori (about 3/4 cup cooked rice)
- large lettuce leaf
- 3/4 cup strawberries tossed in rice wine vinegar
For once, I didn't make my lunch in advance, so this was a quick 5 minute lunch. I make my onigiri (rice balls) in advance and freeze them, so I always have something to fall back on when I haven't prepared anything or don't have any leftovers. They are just wrapped in cling film to freeze and defrosted in the microwave before packing.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Pork and Asparagus Stir Fry
I bought a giant bunch of asparagus when it was on sale, and now I feel like it's all I've been eating for the past week. In attempting to do something a bit different from what I normally have (either roasted or Norm's Jamies's version), I threw this together last night. If you wanted to do a spicy version of this, you could replace the sesame oil & sesame seeds with chili oil & crushed dried chilis. Or, presumably, it would be just as good with green beans or broccoli.
Pork & Asparagus Stir Fry (serves 4 as a side):
3 tbsp vegetable oil
450 g asparagus
200 g finely chopped pork
2 garlic cloves, squashed
1 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp cornstarch
ground pepper
1 tbsp sake
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp sesame seeds
In a bowl, mix the pork, soy sauce, cornstarch, and pepper and let marinate while you prepare the asparagus (break off the woody ends and cut in 5cm/2" lengths). Heat 1 tbsp oil in a wok and add the asparagus. Cook for around 3 minutes, until done but still firm. Remove the asparagus, add the remaining oil to the hot wok and then add the marinated pork and whole garlic cloves. Stir fry for 3 minutes until the pork browns, then fish out the garlic. Add the asparagus back to the wok, pour over the sake, sesame oil, and sesame seeds and stir to combine.
This also makes a great addition to a bento (I'm going to have a good lunch today!). The one pictured below has 1 serving of the stir fry, 2/3 cup rice, 2 hard boiled quail eggs (with sesame seeds & salt in a furikake shaker), and 2 small chocolate chip cookies.
