Tuesday 17 February 2015

Time to Have Sum Rice!

Choi Sum al Miso & Zenzero con Riso Fritto Piccante al Limone & Miso & Uova Strappazzate
Miso & Ginger Choi Sum with Spicy Lemon & Miso Fried Rice & Scrambled Egg

 

How wonderful that I can get greens like these, Asian "choi sum", locally grown, right here in Oberrad, Frankfurt in Germany! Thank you Mrs. Wong! Tiny, tasty, bright green, beautiful and delicious!

So mild and sweet are these leafy greens, that they can be used in any number of ways in such a wide variety of dishes- even in the way that I tried out this evening!


 

I am still experimenting with Japanese, red miso paste and am thrilled with the full-bodied flavor punch that it packs! Just 1 teaspoon of it made all the difference in both the greens and the fried rice this evening. But of course, there was a little more going on in this plate than that- so keep on reading if you want to find out!


2 cups of rice, 1 handful of sugarsnap peas, 1 carrot, 1 Spring onion, 1 lemon, 2 handfuls of choi sum, 2 eggs, 1 teaspoon of miso paste, about a 1" piece of fresh ginger, 1 chili pepper, 1 teaspon 5 Spice powder, a little sesame oil, a little Thai fish sauce, 1 teaspoon of sugar and last but not least, some fresh cilantro... those were the ingredients to make 2 servings!



The "scrambled"egg was the perfect addition to the rice and greens, to bring in the balance between the sweet, sour and spicy rice and rich umami flavor of the choi sum... simple food, but simply good!


The eggs were not really scrambled as such, they were much rather left in larger pieces, which made them easier to pick up with those chopsticks and also to scoop up the rice with- it's always good to have a bit of fun with your food! But yes- I have to admit that I resorted to using a knife and fork after a while, haha!

 

For the rice, you will need to chop up your ingredients finely- including a little lemon zest... The finer you chop- the quicker it will cook and the better it will be! And it's not like there's a lot to do there... so come on! Do a good job of it!

And in the meantime, boil up that rice! It will be good after 15 minutes- after which time, remove the lid, let it cool off and dry out and that way it will be better for frying. Alternatively- if you have left-over rice... perfect!



For the choi sum- simply pop it into a saucepan with about 1 teaspoon of the chopped ginger and a half teaspoon of miso. Stir the miso into the water, turn the heat up high and when it begins to boil, reduce the heat to a rolling simmer, pop on the lid and let the greens steam in there for 5 minutes, stirring and flipping it over halfway through.

 

After 5 minutes, take out the greens and let the broth keup simmering away whilst you take care of the rest... you can use that reduced miso to drizzle over the greens at the end!


Pop the choi sum into a frying pan with just a touch of sesame oil- mostly to cook away any excess moisture from the steaming, but also to give it a slight glaze and to get the ginger slightly toasted... then set to one side and keep warm.

Next, beat the 2 eggs and season them with about 1 teaspoon of Thai fish sauce, then pour them into the same pan and wait for them to begin to set. Add a drop or two of sesame oil and push and fold the egg together- don't scramble it all together too much! As soon as it's done, set it to one side with the greens and get ready to fry up your rice!



Pop all of the ingredients into the pan, again with a little sesame oil, and fry until they become shiny the onion and ginger begin to get slightly colored.


Add the other half teaspoon of miso paste and the juice of the whole lemon and stir together until the miso dissolves.

 

Add a teaspoon of 5 spice powder and a teaspoon of sugar and you are ready to go fetch that rice!

 

Add the rice and a good pinch of chopped cilantro and then stir everything together- add only as much oil as is necessary for the rice to fry nicely.... I hate having my food too greasy!

 

And last, but not least, once you have served everything up, add that last drizzle of miso for a final touch of richness- and maybe a light scattering of sesame seeds and a leaf or two of cilantro as a garnish... but enjoy!

 

And of course- this is neither "authentic"- nor "traditional"... but that was hardly about to stop me doing it! And thoroughly enjoying it too!

No comments:

Post a Comment