Ssamjang Tomato Stir Fry

Next time with toasted sesame seeds on top?

I had a hot tip that green beans were good with ssamjang, and I've been waiting for this summer's garden green beans so I could try it. I came across this recipe and was intrigued by the inclusion of fresh tomatoes, so I used it as my starting point. My changes were baking the tofu (with olive oil and salt) instead of steaming it, skipping the black pepper, and adding a chopped thai chili that I'd found in the garden when I went out for the green beans.

I think there's room for more experimentation, and I'm thinking it'll be a drizzle of sesame oil at the end, plus some toasted sesame seeds on top. But I love the richness of the tomato+ssamjang, and it was a great spice level.

The Recipe:

2 handfuls green beans, trimmed

1 fresh chili pepper, minced

1 block tofu, cubed and fried or baked

2 whole tomatoes, boiled a few minutes until softened

1/2 onion, sliced

1 tb ssamjang

salt, to taste

rice, for serving

In a pan, saute onion until translucent.
Add the chili and green beans. Saute until green beans are bright green.
Squeeze the juice of the tomato over the beans, then drop the whole tomato (minus the skin if possible) into the pan.
Add the tofu, ssamjang, and salt. Stir to combine.
Serve over rice.

The Verdict:

Overall grade: B+

Overall reason: Easy and healthy and quite good, but I think I can make it better.

Time to prepare: 20 minutes

Husband quote: Can we eat lots of green beans with sticky asian sauces this summer?

Comments

Kitchen renovation!

BEFORE: AFTER: Still to come: a beautiful new induction range and some wood shelving on the left side, above the backsplash. And maybe the shelving unit on the wall facing the cabinets should be green, but we're going to live with a while before making that decision.

Curry Fried Rice

Excited for these leftovers. One of the things I wanted to try with my new jar of curry powder was fried rice. Years ago, Miles got fried rice at Korea House and it was the best fried rice I'd ever had. I suspected there was curry powder in it, but at that time I had never really cooked with curry powder, so I tucked that knowledge away for a later date. After reading a few recipes, I went rogue on this one. I couldn't even begin to effectively guess at what proportions I ended up with, so the recipe below is more of a rough guideline of ingredients. The "Recipe" (sorry no quantities; follow your heart): leftover jasmine rice tofu, cubed and crisped in the oven with avocado oil and salt vegetables: garlic, onion, cabbage, red bell pepper salt curry powder (I used a Vietnamese one) soy sauce sugar sesame oil future topping ideas: runny egg, sesame seeds, green onion Saute the vegetables in avocado oil until softened, and salt them to taste Add the tofu and toss to...

Samosa Burritos

Imagine a pile of plain yogurt and some Indian pickle for dipping I saw a Pinterest recipe for samosa-filled quesadillas, which led me to this recipe from Nadia's Healthy Kitchen for baked samosas using tortillas, which led me to just use the giant tortillas I had in the fridge and make them into full-sized burritos. They were a hit! I largely followed the recipe from Nadia's Healthy Kitchen, but I added some potato, omitted the chana masala powder and just added a bunch of cumin instead, added bell pepper and fresh chilies, didn't bother with the "sealing paste," and basted them in a little bit of melted butter (omit for vegan version). Everyone except the 5-year-old liked them! The Recipe (adapted from Nadia's Healthy Kitchen ) 2 cans (30 oz total) cooked garbanzo beans, rinsed (I eyeballed the equivalent from dry beans) 1 small onion, chopped 4 garlic cloves, minced 1 thai chili, minced 1 bell pepper, chopped 1 potato, baked until soft (or microwaved for...

Adventures of a healthy-ish pseudo-foodie

Search This Blog