Oil Free Quinoa Salad

Ingredient:

Precooked quinoa

Freshly chopped baby arugula, romaine lettuce, red cabbage, tomato, cucumber.

Freshly squeezed lime juice 

1 tbsp grape jam

Raw unsalted pistachios

Raisins
Dates

A pinch of salt to taste

Toss them up and enjoy.

Fight Flu with Medicinal Perilla Leaf Dish

Ingredients: (2 servings)

3 medium size cucumbers, diagonally sliced

a bunch of perilla leaves, finely chopped

3-5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 tbsp soy sauce

1/2 tbsp vegan oyster sauce (optional, tastes slightly sweet)

With some oil in a pan, saute the cucumber slices until slightly brown and tender. 8 mins.

Add in chopped garlic, soy sauce, vegan oyster sauce. Stir to coat. 2 mins.

Add in chopped perilla leaves at the last minute before turning off the heat.

Medicinal fact about Perilla Leaf in Eastern Medicine:

The herbal name for perilla leaf is Zi Su Ye (紫苏叶) or Zi Su in Eastern Medicine. 

It is frequently used for cold and flu, especially with cough and stifling sensation in the chest, fullness in the abdomen, and nausea or vomiting. It can also be used to treat Restless Fetus Syndromes. The essential oil in perilla seeds is used to treat high cholesterol. 

Where to buy fresh Perilla Leaves:

Any major Asian market. (Chinese, Japanese, Korean)

Sesame Oil Cucumber Salad

Ingredients: (1 serving)

1 cucumber (roughly chopped)

2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)

1 tbsp rice vinegar

1/2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp sesame oil

2 tsp nutrional yeast

a pinch of fresh cilantro

salt and red pepper flakes to taste

Toss all the ingredients above together. Enjoy!

Traditional Beijing Salty Sweet Bean Paste Noodle

Ingredients: (Serving size 3)

2 cucumbers

8 shiitake mushrooms

1 firm tofu

5 green onions (1 bunch)

4 cloves garlic

bean sprouts (or other micro vegetable sprouts)

grated ginger

olive oil

rice cooking wine

salty soy bean paste

sweet noodle paste (see pictures below)

asian style wide noodles

3 secrects of this noodle dish:

1. 绍兴料酒

Shao Xing rice cooking wine

2. 黄酱( a salty fermented soy bean paste)

 pronounce: Huang Jiang 

direct translation: yellow paste

on the left

3. 甜面酱 (a sweet fermented soy bean paste)

pronounce: Tian Mian Jiang

direct translation: sweet noodle paste

on the right

As long as we use these 3 ingredients, we can change other vegetables in the dish and still make authentic Traditional Beijing Soy Bean Paste Noodle.

1. Heat up a pan with oil (larger amount is better). Add cubed firm tofu. Cook 5 mins until they start to brown on one side. 

2. Add chopped shiitake mushrooms, greated ginger and minced garlic. Cook 5 mins.

3. Add cubed cucumbers, 6 tbsp rice wine, 1 tbsp salty bean paste, 1 tbsp sweet bean paste.

Mix them well and cook 10 mins. Stir every 2 mins. 

4. Add chopped green onions 1 min before killing the heat.

5. Pour these veggies over the noodles. Top with some fresh bean sprouts.