It is a constant struggle to keep week day meals interesting. My mother, Claudia, was a strict budgeter; with 5 kids to feed she had to be. However, the result of this budgeting was that frequently you could tell what day it was by what was on the table. I had the same problem when I worked off shore, “If it is Tuesday it must be T-bone steaks.” No matter how good the food is, it gets boring if it is predictable.
Karl’s Tofu and Chinese Broccoli Stir-fry
Filed under Main Dishes, Vegan, Vegetarian MD
Tonight’s dinner was jiaozi (gee-aw-za, dumplings). This was a weekday meal so I did not make them myself. Jiapzi making is a major operation. The rolling out of dozens of little bits of dough becomes a social activity for a gathering (it is not really possible to make just a few jiaozi). To the Chinese, it is very similar to Mexicans and Christmas tamales, an activity that brings people together. For an everyday meal the Chinese cook will run down to the corner, where a jiaozi seller has parked their bicycles truck, and pick up enough for their meal.
Karl’s Spicy Chive Stem and Giant Bamboo Stir-fry
Filed under Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetables
Jan has put up with my meat eating for 35 years now (30 of them in the married state as of this month). She considers herself a born again carnivore, but she still misses being a vegetarian. Since she let me have lamb on Easter, I planned on a tofu stir fry for dinner tonight. Eilene, however, had some friend over and so I had to add some things to what I was planning to make to have enough for two adults and three hungry teen-aged girls. They must have liked it because they cleaned it down to the last noodle and scrap of vegetable.
[no picture, it disappeared too fast]
Filed under Main Dishes, Vegetarian MD
I needed a vegetable side dish to go with my twice-cooked tofu. In China, it is a very poor household indeed that has only one dish to go with their rice. Variety is the spice of life and the Chinese take their food very seriously. Like the French, if they are not eating, they are talking about food or thinking about food.
To make a change from what I made to go with the twice-cooked pork, I used celery as the foil to the giant bamboo in my side dish.
Spicy Giant Bamboo and Celery
Filed under Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetables
I needed a vegetable side dish to go with my twice-cooked pork. I wanted something with spice, color and crunch. I had some daikon radish, red bell pepper and green onions left over from another meal that would add the color. I only needed some chili garlic sauce to add the spice and some giant bamboo for the crunch.
Stir-fry on the right
Filed under Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetables
karllueck
Miriam
Jabberwocky Stew 