Category Archives: Side Dishes

Karl’s Asian Pear-apple , Radish and Arugula Salad

I was looking for a vegetable side dish to go with my meatloaf. A few weeks ago, I discovered that letting the root vegetables marinate in a marmalade base worked really well as a salad dressing.  This is what I settled on for tonight’s salad.

Karl’s Asian Pear-apple , Radish and Arugula Salad

Karl’s Asian Pear-apple , Radish,
and Arugula Salad

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Filed under California Fusion, Green Vegetables, Salads, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Karl’s Couscous Florentine

I wanted a starch dish to go with my fried salmon. I wanted something that was quick and easy. Couscous cooks in just minutes and can be a very versatile starch. A bit of this and a bit of that and viola, dinner is served.

Karl’s Couscous Florentine

Karl’s Couscous Florentine

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Filed under California Fusion, Green Vegetables, Side Dishes, Starches, Vegan, Vegetarian

Karl’s Carrot and Spinach Salad with Orange Tarragon Dressing

This week I wanted a fast weekday meal. Fried salmon, a quick starch dish, and a simple salad. This does not mean that I could not be creative. In a burst of inspiration, I came up with a new way of  making salad dressing.

Karl’s Carrot and Spinach Salad with Orange Tarragon Dressing

Karl’s Carrot and Spinach Salad
with Orange Tarragon Dressing

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Filed under California Fusion, Green Vegetables, Salads, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Karl’s Weekday Quick Beef Chili

While I like slow cooked chili with tender chunks of beef, I sometimes just want a quick meal for a weekday. While I have been known to simply use a brand name chili, sometimes I like to go just a step further. This may take a few more minutes than simply opening a can, but the flavor is worth the effort.

Karl’s Weekday Quick Beef Chili

Karl’s Weekday Quick Beef Chili

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Filed under Beans, Beef, Main Dishes

Karl’s Cellophane Noodle Salad with Shrimp

The NYTimes sends me emails with recipes several time a week. A recent email was all about cold noodle dishes. As I read through them I got a hankering for cold noodles, but none of their dishes really suited me. I borrowed a few ideas from their cellophane noodle salad, but mine is based more on my Vietnamese summer rolls.

Karl’s Cellophane Noodle Salad with Shrimp

Karl’s Cellophane Noodle Salad with Shrimp

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Filed under California Fusion, Main Dishes, Salads, Seafood, Shrimp, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Karl’s African Spinach Soup

I wanted to make a Sub-Saharan side dish to go with my West African chicken stew. I knew I wanted to use garbanzo beans and spinach, but all the dishes I found on-line threw in peanut butter to “make it African.” Since my chicken dish already contained peanut butter, I did not want to use it—two dishes that taste too similar is not interesting. I had to find another way to make my dish “African.”

Karl’s African Spinach Soup

Karl’s African Spinach Soup

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Filed under Side Dishes, Soups, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Karl’s Garlic Lemon Barbecued Corn

I am barbecuing chicken wings for this Sunday’s Dinner and I needed a vegetable side dish. While Jan like corn on the cob, much of what you find in the stores has already gone moldy—pull back the top leaves and take a sniff. My wife will not touch it when it is that state. Fortunately, there is an Summer vegetable stand near us that has really fresh corn.

Karl’s Garlic Lemon Barbecued Corn

Karl’s Garlic Lemon Barbecued Corn

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Filed under California Fusion, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Karl’s Sautéed Red Radishes and Greens

Usually when you buy radishes from the supermarket—and even from the farmer’s market—the leaves  are almost always wilted and sorry looking—good only for compost or the trash bin. Yesterday, a new farmer had shown up at my local market and he had really fresh radishes.

Karl’s Sautéed Red Radishes and Greens

Karl’s Sautéed Red Radishes and Greens

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Filed under California Fusion, Salads, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Karl’s Chinese Poached Chicken Salad

Since I have been writing this blog, I have felt pushed to constantly upgrade my skills and recipes—new, different, better. I read Cook’s Illustrated and I get e-newsletters from NYTimes and Serious Eats—to the point that my inbox is full of posts that I do not have the time to read. I mine these posts—not so much for recipes—but as a source of new ideas and techniques.

Karl’s Chinese Poached Chicken Salad

Karl’s Chinese Poached Chicken Salad

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Filed under California Fusion, Chicken, Main Dishes, Poultry, Salads, Sauces and Spices, Vegetables

Karl’s Salt Pickled Cabbage with Pickled Ginger and Japanese Chili, Kyabetsu Shio-zuke Tsukemono

Japan has many tsukemono, literally “pickled things.” When my father came back from Japan in the Fifties, he introduced my family to Japanese cuisine. One dish that he learned to make was salt pickled cabbage (kyabetsu shio-zuke; キャベツ塩-漬け ).

Karl’s Salt Pickled Cabbage with Pickled Ginger and Japanese Chili, Kyabetsu Shio-zuke Tsukemono

Karl’s Salt Pickled Cabbage
with Pickled Ginger and Japanese Chili
Kyabetsu Shio-zuke Tsukemono

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Filed under California Fusion, Green Vegetables, Pickles, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian