Simple, Easy Egg Foo Young

Ingredients

• 8 eggs
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup bean sprouts
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
• 1/4 cup diced green onion
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 8 teaspoons sesame oil, divided

Steps

In a large bowl, beat 8 eggs. Add all vegetables and the soy sauce and stir to combine.

Heat 1 teaspoon sesame oil in a skillet on medium heat and add about half a cup of the egg mixture to the pan (exact amount will vary). Cook each side until golden brown, flipping once or twice.

Repeat with remaining sesame oil and egg mixture until batch is complete.

 

Miso Starts with Koji

While preparing to make miso, I went into the pantry and discovered that my oats had been fully inoculated with koji.  I have no plans of throwing out this inoculated oatmeal because it contains healthy active koji spores that I plan to use in my next batch of miso.

Definition:  Miso, a staple in Japanese cuisine for thousands of years, is a salty paste made from fermented beans or certain grains, such as fermented barley, rice or oats, mixed with salt plus a key bacteria called koji.  Miso is one of the best condiments to keep on hand, as it’s versatile in recipes and packed with healthy probiotics.

 

Make Your Own Miso

VIEW ALL PHOTOS HERE

      

Ingredients
2 pounds non-GMO dried soybeans
2 pounds basmati rice koji
14 ounces fine white sea salt

Note:  Overall this process will take three to six months to complete

STEP 1 - Rice Koji
4.5 cups basmati rice
1.5 teaspoons koji starter

Directions

• Rinse rice in cold water until the water is no longer cloudy
• Soak rice in water overnight 
• Drain water from rice
• Line a steamer with fine-mesh cheesecloth and steam rice for one hour (note, mutimple batches may be required depending on the size of steamer)
• Remove rice from steamer
• Once cool enough to touch, use clean hands to stir and work out any clumps that have formed Continue to stir until rice has cooled to 110°F
• Add koji starter to rice and mix thoroughly for 3-5 minutes
• Cover with a clean and damp cloth
• Incubate at 86°F for at least 12 hours (you must control your incubator's temperature based on the internal temperature of the rice)
• After the first 6 hours, stir rice and break up any clumps that have formed
• Cover and return to incubator for another 6 hours
• Stir rice again; if its drier than before, re-dampen cloth, cover, and return to incubator for another 12 hours (note:  rice should smell faintly sweet)
• Stir rice one more time and then create 2-3 trenches or furrows in the rice bed. 
• Make the trenches halfway deep with a goal to create as much surface area as possible
• Cover and incubate for 12 more hours, ensuring that the temperature remains near 86°F (30°C)
• Occasionally, check rice and dampness of cloth
• Rice should smell sweet and fragrant and have signs of a white fuzzy mold beginning to form. Cover and ferment for another 12 hours.
• Once white mold has stretched across the rice bed, remove from incubator
• Break up the rice clumps, and bring to room temperature
• Use rice koji immediately, refrigerate or freeze in a sealed container, or slowly dry for 1-2 days 

STEP 2 - Beans

• In a large pot of cold filtered water, soak the soybeans for 24 hours
• Drain the beans and return them to the pot
• Refill the pot with water to about 5 inches above the beans
• Bring to a boil over high heat, lower to a simmer, and cook for about 6 hours (or more) until the beans are soft
• Drain the cooked beans and mash into a coarse consistency

STEP 3 - Miso

• Pour in rice koji
• Sprinkle in 3/4th of the salt
• Knead well to distribute the rice koji and salt with the mashed beans
• Place a large crockery pot or food-grade plastic vat on the floor on top of plastic sheeting
• Using your hands, form a palm sized spheres of bean mash and throw them into the container until half filled
• Pat down the surface of the bean mash with the flat of your palm and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4th of salt
• Smooth a clean muslin cloth across the surface of the mash and let it drape down over the sides of the container to keep out flying leaves or other debris
• Place a wooden or plastic drop lid on top of the cloth-covered mash surface
• Weight it evenly with 4 1/2 pound (flat weights or rocks)
• Cover with one more large muslin cloth and wind string around the pot to tie the cloth in place; the cloth is needed as a mold barrier 
• Let the young miso sit undisturbed (a warm place indoors or in a shaded area outside in spring/fall)
• About once a month stir the miso; if you see any mold on the surface, carefully scrape it off
• Once prepared, put in storage containers or jars; Miso can be stored for years

Grow Your Own Bean Sprouts At Home

Bean sprouts are one of the most nutritious foods on earth and are relatively simple to grow.  What you need:  Beans, Bowl, Mason Jars, Cheese Cloth, Water

Directions:

1. Rinse the mung beans thoroughly until the water runs clear Mung beans get much bigger once they sprout, so be careful not to make too much)
2. Place the rinsed beans in a clean, clear bowl 
3. Pour enough cold water to immerse the beans
4. Soak for 10 hours; the beans will swell. 
5. Drain and rinse the beans in cold water then drain again
6. Place the swelled beans in a mason jar and cover with a cheesecloth (DO NOT use the jar lid)
7. Store in a cool, dark, dry place
8. For about 3-5 days rinse and drain the beans  twice a day (restore in the dark space)
9. When you see the beans sprouting to the length you want, eat and enjoy!  You can eat raw, in soups, stews, eggs and more

    

  

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup carrots, peeled and sliced
• 3 stalks celery, sliced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 quarts homemade chicken broth
• 3 cups egg noodles, uncooked
• 3 cups cut up cooked chicken meat
• handful parsley, chopped
• pinch salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

• In a large stockpot, melt butter with olive oil over medium low heat. 
• Add carrots, celery, onion, 
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Cook about 10 minutes
• Add broth, turn heat to high and bring to a boil
• Reduce heat to a gentle simmer, stir in chicken and parsley and cook for 5 minutes or until chicken is heated through. 
• Cook noodles on the side and as per bowl

Authentic Pho Soup

A hearty, healthy soup

Ingredients

• 12 ounces lean beef sirloin, fat trimmed
• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 large onion, halved
• 1 4-inch piece ginger, unpeeled, halved
• 3 cups beef broth
• 5 star anise pods
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 scallions
• 2 jalapeno peppers, preferably red and green
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
• 2 to 4 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 cup fresh bean sprouts

Directions

1. Place a large pot over high heat
2. Tenderize the beef and season with salt and pepper
3. Sear the meat for 2 to 3 minutes per side, then transfer to a plate
4. Add ginger and onion to the same pot; cooking about 4 minutes
5. Add the broth, 3 cups water, star anise and cinnamon, reduce heat and simmer about 20 minutes.
6. Thinly slice the scallions and jalapenos 
7. Chop cilantro
8. Thinly slice the meat against the grain
9. Add the fish sauce to the broth and boil 5 minutes
10. Discard the star anise and cinnamon stick

To serve:  Pour broth, beef, scallions, cilantro, bean sprouts, jalapenos and onion in a bowl; add noodles if you like.