Basic Soy Dipping Sauce

On the list of vegetarian dishes, it is indispensable to have a very familiar dipping sauce which is soy sauce. Everyone thinks it's just a cup of soy sauce, a little chili, garlic, lemon and sugar, but in this ready-made soy sauce recipe, it will save lots of time for each meal. This basic soy sauce can be used for many other dishes, such as the Korean dish called Mayak; it is eggs soaked in the soy sauce. This dish is very popular in Korea. It doesn't take much time to make this soy sauce to prepare each meal. In Vietnam, the green papaya can be soaked in this basic dipping sauce to make a wonderful side dish for the Vietnamese Banh tet or banh chung.  For vegetarians, this dish is full of nutrition, so I think this is an indispensable dish in a vegetarian cuisine.

Ingredients:

1 cup soy sauce

1 cup water

1/2 cup vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients in a sauce pan and bring to boil. Simmer for 5 minutes or until the sugar dissolves. Let it cool. Pour the soy dipping sauce in a jar with lid.

To make Korean Mayak 

5 eggs

1 shallots, sliced

2 green onions. Sliced

1 tbs roasted sesame seeds

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 fresh red chilis, sliced

2 tbs sake

1 cup ready-made soy dipping sauce

Directions:

In a pot, put 2 cups water and add 1/4 cup vinegar, 1 tbs salt and 1 tsp baking soda. Bring to boil. Carefully add eggs into the boiling water and turn to medium heat. Use a spatula to turn the egg around in the pot. This technique will make the yolk remain in the center of the egg.  Let the egg cook for 7 minutes.  Remove and let egg soak in cold water for 15 minutes. Remove the egg shells.

In a container with lid, combine the rest of the  ingredients and submerge the eggs into the soy dipping sauce. The eggs have to be completely covered by the soy dipping sauce. Refrigerate overnight to get the best results for this dish.

To make the Green papaya:

1 green papaya (about 1/2 to 1 lb., peeled and sliced)

Minced garlic, sliced red chilli, and chili flakes

Soak the green papaya in a bowl of water with 1/4 cup of salt for 1 hour. Wash the soaked papaya and squeeze out the water.  Place the green papaya in a jar with lid with the chilli, garlic and chili flakes and pour enough basic soy dipping sauce to cover the papaya. Close the lid. It will ready in one day and the flavor will improve each day.

Chicken Stir-Fried Vegetables

Chicken stir-fried vegetables is a delicious dish in many ways. This dish is also a very forgiving dish. It means that the vegetables can be a combination of whatever vegetables that suits your taste. The choice of stir-fried sauce can be easy to prepare by simply using a broth, fish sauce, soy sauce, and sugar. For a taste of Chinese stir-fried sauce, oyster sauce and sesame oil can be added. The spicy ingredients are always the onions, garlic, and ginger. I like to prepare this dish because it is quickly made and can be served with steamed rice, noodles, or by itself. For this recipe, I use frozen vegetables that sold at Costco or Sam’s Club. 

Ingredients:

300 grams of chicken meat (breast or thighs), sliced

Marinade ingredients:

1 tsp soy sauce

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp cooking wine

1 tsp cornstarch

1 tsp oil

Vegetables:

3 cups frozen stir-fried vegetables

Stir-fried sauce ingredients:

1/4 cup water

2 tsp soy sauce

2 tsp oyster sauce

2 tsp sugar

1 tsp sesame oil 

1 tbs cooking wine

1/2 tsp salt

Cornstarch for thickening

1 tsp cornstarch with 2 tbs water

Other essentials:

2 tbs cooking oil

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 piece fresh ginger, roughly chopped (1 tsp. ginger)

1/2 cup sliced white onions

Directions:

Place chickens in a bowl and add all the marinade ingredients. Mix well and let chicken marinate for 30 minutes.

Bring a pot of water to boil and blanch the frozen vegetables for a few minutes. Drain in cold water to stop cooking.

Heat a wok over medium high heat. Add oil and stir in the chicken. Cook the chicken until the chicken turns golden brown.

Add garlic, onions, and ginger. Stir and cook for 1 minute.

Add vegetables and sauce. Mix well the chicken with the vegetables. When the sauce starts to boil, stir in the cornstarch thickening. Cook for another 2 minutes.

The dish is ready to serve.

Oatmeal Cookies

I am very happy to share this easy oatmeal cookies recipe. It is easy because it contains very few ingredients. Also, it does not need so many tools for preparing it. This recipe can be in the healthy category; it can served as a snack or even at breakfast for people who are busy in the morning. Taking a few of these cookies with a cup of Joe will start your day with more energy.

Ingredients:

1 cup self-rising flour

1 cup rolled oats

1/3 cup melted coconut oil

1 egg

1/3 cup brown sugar or white sugar

1/2 cup of dry fruits, such as raisins, cranberries, or chocolate chips (your choice)

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

2. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients. Mix well until combined.

3.. Add in the dry fruit or chocolate chips.

4. Take a small portion from the dough. Roll to form a round shape (1 inch diameter).

5. Then press it with your palms to flatten it and make a circle (around 2.5 inch diameter). Repeat with the remaining dough and make all the cookies similarly. You should get 12 cookies.

6. Bake in the preheated oven for 18 minutes.

 7. Allow cookies to cool for 5 to 10 minutes on the baking pan, and then place them on a wire rack to cool completely.

8. Store them in an airtight container. 

These cookies will be gone in a few minutes if you have family members or guests in the house.

Tip: If you do not have self-rising flour, add 1 tsp baking powder to the recipe.

Vegan Mung Beans, Coconut & Sticky Rice Cake --Bánh tét chay

From ancient times immemorial, every family in Vietnam has to have prepared banh chung and banh tet every time when the Vietnamese New Year, Tet, comes.. This is not just a traditional ritual, but it also shows a nuance of the Vietnamese Nation through this unique cuisine. Banh Chung is known by the North, and the banh Tet that I want to introduce to you today is a cake of the South Vietnam. However, if you follow the traditional method to make this cake, it is very complicated because it needs banana leaves, and string ties made of young bamboo, and the way to wrap the cake is also quite sophisticated and requires a certain technique. In this recipe, I want to use the simplest way that people living far from home like us can still enjoy the taste of the Lunar New Year. That is to use the things of Western baking, such as the parchment sheet, foil, or food wrap. In the past, cooking this cake took a lot of time. Today, we will use a pressure cooker to finish this cake. With this recipe, you probably won't have to wait until the Lunar New Year to enjoy, but because it's so easy, you can make this cake more often.

Ingredients:

2 cups sticky rice soaked for 6 hours or overnight

1 cup dried skinless split mung beans soaked for a few hours

1/2 cup dried black beans soaked for a few hours

1 cup sweet coconut flakes

1 can coconut milk

1/2 cup water

Salt & sugar to taste

1 tsp pandan paste or green food color (optional)

Supplies:

Parchment paper, foil, and string to tie the cake

Directions:

1-Drain the soaked sticky rice, and both of the beans

2-Place the black beans’s like in the pressure cooker. Pour in enough water to cover the beans. Cook for 8 minutes then drain.

3- In the rice cooker, add mung beans and add water just enough to cover the beans and turn the function cook-rice on. When the cooking time is done, remove.

4- When the mung beans are still warm, mash the mung beans using the blender or mashed potato stick. Put the mashed mung beans in a sauté pan. Cook the mashed mung beans over medium high heat. Add 2 tbs coconut oil to the beans and some sugar for your taste and salt.

5- In a large sauté pan, add the soaked sticky rice, coconut milk, and salt and cook until all the rice absorbs the coconut milk. Add sweet coconut flakes and drain cooked black beans. Mix well. Adjust the seasoning with salt and sugar for your taste.

6- Divide the mung beans paste equally and shape the beans paste into the cylindrical tubula, about 2 inches long. You can cut a piece of the food wrap to guide you for making this tubula.

To wrap the cake:

1-Cut the parchment paper into a square or rectangular shape about 5 x 11 inches for each piece, and the foil each piece the same size as the parchment paper, the length as follow the size of your parchment paper. Spread the sticky rice on the parchment paper, then arrange the mung beans paste now is the tubular on the center of the sticky rice.

2-You fold the two edges of the parchment paper together and then roll it tightly and evenly.  Now use the foil to finish wrapping around the cake. Use one piece of string to tie the middle of the cake and another string to tie in the long side of the cake. You do not have tie the cake because the foil is good enough. I still tie the cake to make sure the cake after cooking is in the good shape.

To steam the cake:

In the pressure cooker, add water (about 1 cup). Place all the cake into the cooker. Follow the cooking method for the pressure cooker. Steam the cake for 40 minutes.

The taste of vegetarian bean cake is very delicious with a soft sticky skin with coconut flakes, black beans, the fleshy taste of green beans inside. Definitely, this traditional cake will be a dish that makes your traditional New Year more meaningful.

You can enjoy this cake a few days left outside on the countertop or in the refrigerator for weeks. So many Youtubers have this recipe with more handy ways to wrap the cake. I suggest that you can learn the technique from them to make this cake turn out beautiful.

One Pot Vegan Black Beans & Rice

Rice and beans are great sources of protein for vegans. There are many recipes for making one pot of beans and rice; this recipe is the best tasting and easiest to make. The perfect seasonings will create a one pot meal in minutes. Frozen corn can be used while cooking or can be served with this wonderful bowl of rice and beans as a side dish and part of the meal.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups jasmine rice, washed and drained

1 cup cubed white onions

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup combination of red, green, and yellow peppers, diced

2 tbs olive oil

1 can black beans, drained 

1 ½ cups water or more 

Seasonings:

1 tsp of sugar, salt, mushroom seasoning, and smoked paprika

1/2 tsp of cumin, coriander, gloves, and cinnamon. 

Other necessities:

 Chopped green onion and cilantro

Rice cooker

Directions:

Use the sauté function when turning on the rice cooker.

Add olive oil, onions, garlic, and bell peppers. Stir and cook for 5 minutes.

Stir in the seasoning and the rice. Stir and cook for 7 minutes.

Add black beans and water.

Close the lid and change to the rice cook function.

After the rice cooker finishes cooking, the rice is ready to serve.

Adjust the seasoning again before serving. Sprinkle with green onions and cilantro.

Tips; the side dish can be avocado and salsa. For non-vegans, add chicken or shrimp while cooking. If using chicken, add at the same time with the bell peppers. If using shrimp, grill shrimp and add on top of the rice bowl.

 

Easy Humus (Turkish spelling for chickpea dip)

 

Ingredients:

One 15.5 oz. can of chickpeas

1/4 cup Tahini

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1 tbs lime juice

1/2 cup water

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

2 tbs olive oil

1 tsp chili flakes

Directions:

In a Vitamix® or other blender, combine all the ingredients and blend until smooth. Pour the humus into a jar with lid and refrigerate.

Lemon Cake

Desserts are what the people Westerners think about after a meal. They think about ice cream, pies, and, of course, cakes. There are so many choices for cakes, and it is hard to choose one or to make one to treat guests. Also, if you are living by yourself and having a couple of good friends stop by for afternoon tea or a light lunch, the dessert choices are even harder to make. Some people might think that it is best to buy one of the fine selections available from the grocery or a baker. However, if you are one of the people who love to treat your friends with your baking skills, then this is for you. This is another one of my series of small examples of baking, and it is extremely easy. If I can do it, then you can also.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour

2 eggs at room temperature

1/2 cup soft butter at room temperature

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup milk at room temperature

2 tbs vegetable oil

Zest and juice of one lemon ( about one tbsp of juice)

1 tsp vanilla extract

Supplies:

One 8” x 3” loaf pan

Parchment paper 

Directions:

Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the cake pan. You can use a small amount of soft butter to grease the cake pan and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine sugar, lemon zest, and butter. You can use a whisk to beat the butter and sugar until fluffy, or you can use a hand-held beater, if available. This will make it easier to perform this task.

Add one egg at the time and beat well.

Add milk, vanilla, and lemon juice. Beat well.

Add flour and beat to combine. Do not over beat the batter. You now can use a spatula to fold the flour with the egg-butter mixture.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan.

Bake in a preheated oven set to 350° for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

This cake can be served warm or cold with a scoop of ice cream. You can also sprinkle some powdered sugar on it before serving.

Tip:

If you do not have self-rising flour, you can add 1 tsp of baking powder and 1/4 tsp salt to the flour.