In an attempt to amuse myself while barely surviving this period of unemployment, I spent some time wandering the aisles of one of my favorite places to kill time, Assi Market. This is a Korean market that also specializes in amazing fresh produce, fresh, AFFORDABLE cut to order seafood, and about every Asian grocery item you could imagine. There is also a spot that sells small wares, in case you decide you suddenly need a set of matching chopsticks or a rice cooker. AND they have a food court, with, as you can imagine, some of the freshest food around.
Back to the snowstorm. I didn't want to make chili. I wanted to keep it lighter, and do something new.
So I bought a sixpack of ramen noodles, some dried shiitake mushrooms, a pack of fried tofu, and bean sprouts. I had miso in my fridge, and plenty of other seasonings at home. I also had some wild salmon filets in the freezer. See the plan coming together yet?
When cooking with ramen noodles, always follow this important step 1. Open the wrapper, break the noodle block into pieces before cooking, and THROW AWAY THE SEASONING PACKET. Have you ever looked at the sodium count? Yikes!
Let's see if I can remember the steps in order...
Cook the ramen in boiling water until soft, drain, rinse in cold water and set aside.
Soak the mushrooms in hot water until soft. Remove the stem and slice into strips. Or whatever other shape you fancy. Don't throw that soaking liquid away! Pour it through a coffee filter (to grab any dirt that may have been on the mushroom) into a small sauce pot. Use this as the base of the miso broth.
Miso is really easy. Since I had the mushroom liquid, I added a bit of water and whisked in some miso paste until I like the flavor.
Salmon filets have been thawing. I marinated them in a little sesame oil and soy. Then I broiled them. (heading outside the grill is not an option at this time)
I diced to tofu small, and rinsed off the bean sprouts. I blanched a couple asparagus spears I had.
Then I put it all together. The salmon was topped with a shake of my sesame/seaweed rice seasoning, and I swirled a bit of Sambal Oelek into the broth for a little heat.
No disrespect to chili, but geez, this was good. And easy. And not expensive. And pretty. And..ok I'll stop tooting my horn and post a picture.
Next time I'll show you the awesome Indian food I made last night.
Peace.
