This Cheesy Stuffed Shishito Peppers appetizer is easy to make and a flavor bomb even with such simple ingredients - only two ingredients.
This appetizer should also work well with other mild-heat chili peppers such as jalapeno or Korean chili peppers.
Adapted from Oven-Style Ratatouille Roast, this Easy Sheet-Pan Vegetables, alike this Sheet-Pan Beans, Veggies and Sausage, cooks eggplants, tomatoes and bell peppers altogether to make a healthy vegetarian eggplant side-dish.
This side-dish component can be paired with grilled/oven-roasted tofu (recipe: Chimichurri Tofu) and steamed vegetables as a low-carb vegetarian meal, or customized to another low-carb protein meal (with chicken instead of tofu, for example).
One of my favorite ways to cook salmon (or other variety of fish) is using en-papillote/ parchment-cooking. This fuss-free and healthy parchment cooking method never fails. The salmon turns out moist and tender even when the oven time goes over by a few more minutes.
In addition to these chicken-themed grain bowls, you can switch up the protein in your grain bowls or veggie bowls by using seafood such as shrimps or fish. A quick and easy method to prepare fish using en-papillote/ parchment-cooking also means that your grain bowl is fast to complete and a meal ready in less than 30 minutes.
Atop the bed of gently steamed bean sprouts, broccoli and cabbage sits this healthily prepared steamed duck breast, topped with sweet mango, crisp cucumber and colorful bell peppers.
This warm Sliced Duck Breast Salad can be enjoyed as a side-dish; yet also satisfying as a one-dish salad entree.
It is personal preference to either cook the bean sprouts and Napa cabbage or keep them raw. Even when the bean sprouts and Napa cabbage are cooked, they are only gently steamed, so their inherent crisp and moist textures are not compromised. At the same time, the steamed vegetables bring a little warmth into the salad (that is how I prefer) when tossed with the sliced duck breast.
When I want to cook a fluffy moist scrambled egg, I prefer to use soft-textured vegetables such as spinach or tomatoes e.g. Tomato Scrambled Eggs. However, when gearing up for a drier egg scramble, I use firmer-textured, crisp vegetables such as celery and bell peppers. Fennel or fennel bulb can also be a good addition with its crunch and unique anise flavor.
For a quick egg scramble, I usually use green onions (instead of regular onions) to cut down
prep. and cooking time.
Good morning to a healthy 2019!
Hearty breakfasts like this Broccoli, Kale, Winter Squash with Egg should be done more often. Truth is, there is hardly any time to prepare so many ingredients (kitchen war zone evidenced below) before 7am.
But the breakfast spirit should live on, regardless of time. So I prepared THAT many ingredients and made breakfast-style lunch!
The trick to this dish is not to over-do the greens, yet give a little
more to the potatoes and hard winter squash.
For those who prefer grains in place or potatoes/squashes, try Broccoli, Kale, Quinoa with Egg.
This autumn-worthy fruit and vegetables salad complements with roasted salmon, herb-roasted trout, spiced-roasted chicken or any of these sandwiches and wraps.
Enjoy the burst of juice from the grapes and crunch from the apples while the salad is being enjoyed. The grapes, apples and tomatoes adds natural sweetness and tang to the salad, perfectly balanced with the sharper-pungent garlic and onions, salad greens, mild peppery spicy watermelon radish and sweet bell peppers.
This "golden" salad dressingis now the "liquid gold" in my kitchen, especially in my homemade salads and workout meals (e.g. Asparagus, Chicken and Potato Salad Meal, Mushrooms, Green Beans, Broccoli Salad Bowl) It is an easy and healthy upgrade from the basic extra-virgin olive oil-apple cider vinegar-garlic-salt-pepper vinaigrette-based dressing.
The gold? Turmeric.
Did you know that black pepper and turmeric is a perfect match which defies the good'ol equation of one plus one equals two? According to some research sources, piperine - the active compound in black pepper will increase and enhance the bio-availability of curcumin (active component in turmeric) hence boost curcumin absorption in the body.
Sometimes, I simply forget but whenever possible, I try to add turmeric in my cooking e.g. when cooking rice, and when preparing salad dressing.
If you enjoy these salad meals, or veggie grain bowls, do check them out here. Or if you prefer a shrimp-similar salad bowl, try this Mixed Veggies, Shrimps, Avocado and Radish Bowl.
Happy Lunar New Year of the Dog!
Today marks the first day of the Chinese New Year, and here's wishing everyone Good Heath and Happiness.
We start the year strong and healthy with this Prosperity Salad which has been adapted and modified to suit our family preferences. Raw fish (生鱼 Sheng Yu ) - which is why Prosperity Salad is also known as Yu Sheng in Mandarin. Fish 鱼 and abundance 余 also both sound alike in Mandarin, thus the tradition of having Yu Sheng is often interpreted as abundance, good fortune and prosperity in the new year.
First and foremost, one of the most symbolic ingredient - raw fish has been omitted from the salad as we do not consume raw fish at home. That said, it also means this salad is vegetarian.
No fish, but the colors galore and vegetables aplenty in this salad marks abundance in the best way (examples of ingredients and its symbolism here). Besides, with or without fish, it is the same act of using chopsticks to toss and lift the salad up high that symbolizes the shoring in of better luck and lifting of our high spirits and vigor in the new year. In other words, the higher you toss, the better luck you have.
In this salad adaption, I have also brought in long strands of noodles (means long-life noodles) which symbolizes longevity and good health.
During Lunar New Year, many Chinese families believe in shoring up good luck with food that symbolizes good health and prosperity.
With good health and happiness in mind, this easy and healthy vegetarian stir-fry is perfect for the Lunar New Year. We have broccoli, asparagus, bell peppers, beech mushrooms, and tofu all in a pot, symbolizing togetherness.
Quite different from the popular vegetarian dish Chap Chai(Braised Vegetables Combo) that often makes its appearance during Lunar New Year, this vegetable combo wins on the crisp fresh bites of vegetables and light-tasting flavors, unlike the soft meld-down texture and deep-layered flavors of a braised dish.
Each ingredient and its symbolism, in my own interpretation:
Mushrooms 鸿禧菇 = 鸿运当头 (Good luck)
Asparagus 芦笋（顺）= 事事顺利 (Smooth-sailing)
Broccoli 西兰花 = 花开富贵 (Prosperity)
Celery 芹(情)菜 = 心情愉快 (Positive mood, good health)
Orange bell peppers 橘（吉）色灯笼椒 = 大吉大利 (Auspicious)
Garlic/leek 蒜(算）头 = 有的算$ (Fortune)
Tofu 豆腐（福）=有福 (Good health, happiness)
Store-bought or roasted at home; freshly cooked or leftovers; thigh meat, or breast meat. You can work in any meat (or meatless) protein options into this platter or bowl of food which is often gloriously called - salads; or simply a one-dish meal.
From start to finish, this delicious and nutritiously balanced meal took only about 30 minutes to complete, with the help of good-quality store-bought rotisserie chicken from Whole Foods Market.
Not only it saves time, store-bought rotisserie chicken is also budget-friendly if you regularly prepare meals for a small family of two to four. Typically, a whole roasted chicken can be used in two-three meals for a family of two. The drumsticks and wings consumed on the day itself, and leftover chicken (thigh meat and breast meat) used throughout the week in sandwiches/wraps and in dishes such as Asparagus, Cauliflower, Chicken Quinoa Bowl, and Asparagus, Chicken, Potato Bowl.
This Farmers' Market Salad is made with organic salad vegetables, watermelon radish, sweet peppers - all from the farmers' market.
Piled below the grilled/roasted shrimps, eggs and avocado is a fresh mix of salad vegetables - organic heirloom red spinach, red dandelions, baby kale and lettuces.
From the farmers' market
Lately, I enjoy salads that can be partially prepared in advance e.g. radish and sweet peppers are prepared and sliced, set aside; eggs already hard-boiled (part of routine meal preparation).
Come meal-time, roast/grill the shrimps for a healthy, delicious and nutritious salad bowl meal e.g. Asparagus, Cauliflower, Quinoa Bowl, that can be assembled very quickly.
Mixed vegetables quinoa is a good starting base in salad bowl meals. Simply top it with tofu, tempeh or legumes/beans to create a meatless salad bowl meal; or pair it with roasted fish, shrimps, scallops, or roasted chicken.
Without the quintessential cilantro on-hand, it does not stop me from making Mexican Corn Salad. Well, let's hope this stays true to the essence of Mexican Corn Salad.
Compared to leafy greens salad like this Mixed Green Salad which is best consumed fresh, this bean and corn salad is sturdier and keeps well in the fridge for about 2-3 days. For meal preparation's sake, it might be worth making a bigger batch.
Other than making a healthy side-dish, this Mexican Corn Salad is also great in a bowl of salad greens e.g. Mixed Green Salad with Avocado Dressing. Salad on salad is still a salad, just a bigger better one.
This salad bowl meal alike Mushrooms, Green Beans, Broccoli Salad, or Asparagus, Cauliflower, Chicken, Sweet Potato, Quinoa Bowl, is substantiated with avocado and eggs, finished off in a simple basic extra-virgin olive oil, apple cider vinegar, black pepper dressing.
Salad-bowl meal is becoming standard lunch routine at least twice a week in my family. Not only it is healthy and nutritious, it is also a balanced meal if you build it correctly. This is also a great way to incorporate the day's veggie and fiber intake.
The more often I make salad-bowl meals e.g. Chicken, Veggies and Potatoes with Turmeric Dressing, Mixed Green Salad and Egg with Avocado Dressing, the easier it gets.
This is typically how I create my salad-bowl meals with an emphasis on vegetables, packed along with lean proteins, fiber-packed grains and good fats.
Vegetables - Target a variety by using colors e.g. red (bell peppers, beets), orange(carrots), yellow (corn), green(broccoli, green beans, zucchini), purple (cabbage) etc.
Proteins - Egg is typically my first choice as it is the easiest complete protein to prepare. Add legumes/beans, tofu/tempeh, or your choice of lean protein (e.g. chicken breast, wild salmon, sardines)
Grains /complex carbohydrates - Quinoa, millet, potatoes,sweet potatoes, brown rice, wheat pasta, legumes/beans, lentils
Good Fats - extra-virgin olive oil which typically manifests as the salad dressing; avocado which can also be salad dressing or stand-alone as an element to the salad bowl. Lean protein such as salmon or sardines is also a form of good (omega-3) fats.
Excluding sesame oil, the only Asian cooking sauce stocked in my pantry is soy sauce. In Asia, most vegetables stir-fries call for oyster sauce but without that, I have to create some kind of "sauce" base when making vegetables stir-fries (e.g. Sweet and Sour Tofu Stir-Fry) and tomatoes come into the picture.
Tomatoes not only sweeten up the entire dish naturally, the combination of tomatoes and soy sauce just means more flavor (more umami) for the dish.
The trick to a quick Asian stir-fry of a combo of vegetables is to cook each or some of the vegetables" separately' then combine them in a quick stir-fry towards the end of cooking. If you were to add the vegetables - in the sequence of which vegetables cooks slower (added first), to those that cooks fastest (added last), the heat of the pan is often brought down when you add in something raw, thus slowing down the cooking process.
In this stir-fry, the tofu was pan-fried, set aside. Bok Choy stems were also pan-seared to soften, then set aside. Thereafter, the actual all-in-one stir-fry begins.
Happy 2017 everyone! Thank you for sharing your thoughts and love here at my website throughout all these wonderful years. I wish everyone many healthy and happy years ahead.
Nothing fancy for the first post of 2017, just as my approach to home-cooked meals - simple and fuss-free; "simple" does not mean "done without deliberate thought". On the other hand, you have to put your heart and thoughts into preparing healthy and nutritionally-balanced meals, really.
The last time I made this ratatouille-inspired oven-roasted dish, I enjoyed it and wanted to make it again. This time, it is a vegetarian heartier lot with autumn/winter squash, heirloom carrots, green and red bell peppers, eggplant and Tokyo Negi (similar to leeks - leeks have flat green tops rather than the tubular tops of Negi). Tokyo Negi may be sharp pungent onion/leek but similar to leek, it mellows down to sweetness when slow-roasted or cooked.
Roasting packed the vegetables and squashes with natural sweetness, imparting full-bodied flavors to the entire dish.
Do not be afraid to load up the oven. It saves energy (your energy + the utilities bill of course!) and is a brilliant way to incorporate a variety of vegetables, a huge batch of vegetables; let alone the roasted vegetables coming together in an awesome medley of flavors, deliciously sweet in a savory way.
Tomato Fried Eggs 番茄炒蛋 may sound ordinary but this simple classic Chinese home-style dish is nutritious and delicious. Very often, tomato fried eggs is prepared as a side-dish typically paired with steamed rice or rice congee/porridge.
How about turning them into a one-dish pasta meal today, with additional sauteed garlic kale and sweet peppers.
Homey delicious, and homey good.
Ever since I successfully made zucchini noodles, I wanted to have a similar dish again but with more colors (which means more nutrition!), layered flavors and versatility.
So here today, I made zucchini noodles with mushrooms, plus multi-colored bell peppers. This dish can be enjoyed with steamed rice or tossed with noodles/pasta to make vegetarian noodles or noodle-salad.
With pesto, I do not even have to cook a sauce for pasta anymore! Okay, quite frankly, some of my pasta dishes e.g. Roasted Vegetables with Pasta, Kale and Tomatoes with Pasta, do not need sauces. Sometimes, a glorious vegetables-saute or vegetables-roast is good enough to be the "sauce" for pasta.
But if there is homemade pesto, ready in the fridge waiting for you, why not use it to make a good dish better?
Think of pesto like a salad dressing, a spread, a dip, a sauce - it is very versatile in appetizers such as Pesto Cucumber Bites, Pesto Pita Bites; side-dishes e.g. Hasselback Potato with Yogurt-Pesto Dressing, and entrees such as Pesto Chicken, Pesto Pizza.
