Tag: lentil

Spring chrysanthemums – 春菊

When you can feel that winter is still here but you slowly get tired of the cold winds… the plum trees start blooming and the spring vegetables are arriving. I harvested already some time ago the first wild spring vegetables: fukinoto and canola will arrive soon, but today I want to talk about a winter vegetable which name says it all: Shungiku, that I like to translate literally by “spring chrysanthemum” (which made its entry in the glossary page) and I like to eat in the end of winter, is actually known more as “crown daisy”. Eaten in Japan in the winter until very early spring it has a very strong flavor, very characteristic of chrysanthemum hence probably the name, though it belongs to the daisy family. Usually used for nabe and rather thick and stiff, it is actually not easy to find smaller tender ones. The soft ones are much nicer and easier to prepare in more inventive recipes. And for some reasons, I find them more easily in the late season. I personally like to use them in replacement of spinach or as herbs.

I tried two different preparations that were both simple and in which the strong flavor was perfectly balanced by the other ingredients.

The first recipe is with lentils, turnip and shiitake; the second recipe is with red cabbage and penne. How do you like to cook your crown daisies???

Lentil and crown daisies

– 120g of lentils (green or brown)

– 2 shiitake

– 3 turnips

– a handful of crown daisies

– 1tbs if miso

Boil the lentils. Wash the vegetables, slice the shiitake and cut the turnips in small bites, chop in 2cm long the crown daisies. In a greases frypan at medium to high heat, cook first the shiitake, then add the turnips, when almost golden add the crown daisies, stir well, add the miso and 1tbs of water, stir gently while cooking for 2min. Serve the lentil, add the vegetables. That’s it!

Red cabbage and crown daisies (2 servings)

– 1/2 red cabbage

– 2 handfuls of crown daisies

– 125g of penne

– olive oil, salt and pepper

Boil the penne. Wash the crown daisies. Chop the red cabbage. In a large frypan greased with olive olive oil start by cooking the red cabbage. The add the crown daisies, finally add the boiled pasta.

Stir well until the vegetables are soft. Add salt and pepper and serve… well that’s it!

Lentil curry

Well well well, it’s getting cold and gloomy today in Tokyo and rain and snow are on the forecast for tonight after weeks of dry and sunny weather… I guess that’s it… every year is basically the same… after the brilliant days of January cold, the gloomier days arrive, colder even… To warm the mind and the body, there is nothing nicer than a hot plate of slightly spicy curry with plenty of vegetables, and to make it a little fancier, replace the rice by lentils. So I made a big pot of it, and used the leftovers for another version with even more vegetables inside and a brighter note of anis seeds. Here are both recipes. Enjoy and keep warm!!!

Lentil curry (2 servings+leftovers for the next recipe )

– 150-200g of brown or green lentils

– 1/3 cabbage

– 2-3 carrots

– 1.5tsp of curry powder

– 3 pieces of thin aburage

Boil the lentils until just soft, but not too much. Drain them. Wash and chop the cabbage and the carrots. Chop the aburage. In a frypan greased slightly and heated start cooking the vegetables. Stir regularly. Add 2cup of water and cook at high heat. When half of the water has evaporated add the curry powder, stir well, and add the aburage. When the water is almost all gone add the lentils, a bit of salt and stir. Serve and eat immediately.

Spinach and potato curry (2 servings)

– leftovers of the above recipe

– 2 potatoes

– a small bundle of spinach

– 1tsp of curry powder

– 1tsp of anis seeds

– 2 pieces of fresh cod (optional)

Peel the potatoes and slice them. Wash and chop the spinach. Chop the cod in bite size and remove bones and skin if any.

In a grease wok or large pan star by cooking the potatoes. When they start to golden add the fish and the lentil curry leftovers. Stir well. Add 1/2 cup of water, the curry powder, the anis seeds, the spinach. Cook at medium to high heat until most of the water is gone. Serve and eat immediately.

A soup version is also possible by adding more water and stopping when the water level is just at the vegetables level.

Some new greens

Every season brings a new kind of greens to the table, not just seasonal but also things I have never seen or cooked before. That’s what is fun with shopping at local farmers markets. Each one has some different products. When I shop in Ohara, I don’t find the same things than when I shop in Kuniyoshi, 10km inland or in Ohtaki, just a little further inland. There is always something I have never seen, or something rare in Ohara. For example cresson cannot be found easily in Ohara but inland yes!!! This time I’ve found a new type of green with beautiful thick and shiny green leaves and hollow stems. I used them like spinach somehow but it has a more grassy taste. And with the heat settling in Tokyo I prepared a simple dish with French green lentils, this new green blanched with okra, olive oil and curcuma.

Stay cool!

D-9 before the opening!

As many of you may know, I’m a roboticist, cooking is just a hobby. I am the head of 20 people research lab in a national university in Tokyo. Just google me to check!! My days are pretty full with my job but I can’t help doing more than my shre and taking opportunities to do new things, to learn new things. This time, as I mentioned before, I am leading the preparation of an exhibition at our science museum where some colleagues and me will exhibit some of our research work. This keeps me even more busy: preparing the website, thinking about the layout, the exhibits… I’m hoping to make something where people entertain themselves while they learn about human and robots. And the opening is only in 9 days, or almost 8 now, and there is so much left to do!!! Obviously my cooking time has decreased significantly and it is rather simple comfy food that I prepare. I use a lot of legumes these days, because they are versatile, nourishing and easy to accommodate with vegetables. I prepared a simple warm soup with peas, lentils and barley, added a big tomato, a carrot, and finished with some fava beans. Topped with or without cheese. Dimply delicious, and ready to continue working!!!

Mini vegan burgers

Oops! I did it again!  with some leftover boiled lentils I had, I made some vegan burgers!!! Well or some sort of burgers because I use my seed preparation as the base of my burgers and then just add a spread of avocado to glue them together. This time I was running out of time so I couldn’t blend the lentil to puree, so I used the whole boiled lentils, flax seeds, and a handfull of vegan burger mix to have some texture to work with. I assume that some flour of any kind would work as good. Added some warm water and worked it into a sticky paste. Then I added a tea spoon of paprika, a bit of chili pepper, and a bit of all spice. I finally formed small patties (4-5cm of diameter) that I cooked in a frypan greased with olive oil at low-medium heat until crispy and brownish. For the spread I used one avocado ripe and soft that I roughly pureed with a knife, the added chopped fresh coriander, salt, pepper and curcuma (tumeric)  powder. Once the patties are well-done I topped them with the spread and pile two of them in a plate. Add some blanched fresh green peas and a 1/2 Japanese cucumber diced. Enjoy the soon coming weekend!!! 

Lentil vegan one-plate

With a fridge almost empty because I long to go shopping at the countryside farmers market, I’m using up my stock of seeds, beans, lentils… and just add some fresh blanched vegetables and raw sprouts.  It perfectly suits the super warm weather toeat some light and fresh meals, just seasoned with salt, curcuma and olive oil. For this one plate meal I used French green lentils cooked al-dente, blanched baby spinachs and peeled and blanched horse beans. I topped the lentils with fresh sprouts and added some sunflower seeds to add some some crispy texture. So very simple and delicious!

Warm soup for cold day

Since I was in France in November when it snowed in Tokyo, today was the first snow of the winter for me. It only snowed to be cold, wet but not white, but I don’t mind because we ste going to the mountains soon and we will have plenty if snow and white there! But damn, how this rainy-snowy weather plus A. Away make me feel cold and gloomy!!! I needed a warm colorful soup to cheer me up before my late night meeting. So after browsing the fridge I decided to prepare a warm soup with some fresh sunny taste. I used coconut oil, fresh ginger and a zest of lemon for the sunny and warm side, together with a red carrot and two leeks for the winter side. And because I’m busy running here and there, I added some green lentil. That’s it! So simple to cook. In a large heated pan I put 1/2tsp of coconut oil,agg the leek cut in small sticks, then add the carrots cut in small sticks too. Then 2 large zest of lemon, and a piece of ginger peele and cut in small pieces. When the water comes to a boil I add 2 small handfuls of green lentils, a pinch of salt. Cook for 10min (the lentils must not be over cooked and too soft, it’s better if they are slightly undercooked). Serve and eat rigt away!!!

A little soup

With some yellow carots, red carrots and normal carrots, some lotus root, some potatoes, and with some Italian beans soup mix that I cooked for lunch, I made for dinner this warm and rich vegan soup. Very very simple and so quick if you have cooked the beans before (optimally leftovers). In a large pan I put the cooked beans, water, quite a lot, and then cut the veggies and add them. I like both when it’s overcooked and veggies melt in the mouth, or when they are still crunchy, in particular the carrots, so I adjust the insertion time in the pan and the cooking time depending on that. I served warm, optionally with some gratted parmegiano, a good preparation foe our stay in Sicily!!!

Multigrain risotto with burdock

As I was telling you, I really love the mix fresh parsley and burdock. May be because it makes the burdock taste even more artichoky, a vegetable I love but that is not common in Japan (though I’ve spotted some lovely artichokes plants in my neighbor’s potager garden!). As we will be traveling to Sicily, I know I’ll have opportunities to eat plenty of delicious artichokes very soon! Yet, I prepared burdock with parsley in an Italian manner with a mix of grains for Italian soup (from last year Italian holidays!) and carnaroli rice, prepared like a risotto. I cooked in a bit of olive oil the burdock peeled and sliced, then add the rice and the grains, finally cover with water. Cooked until the liquid has vanished, add generously some fresh ciseled parsley, serve immediately. Perfect with freshly grated parmegiano if you like.

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