Tamago Gochi

Yo Adrian!

Few things inspire uneasiness in the kitchen like raw egg. We handle them like glass, we clean up after them immediately, and we never ever eat raw eggs. Unless we want to be like Rocky, then we chug 6 of them at 4:30 in the morning before going on a run through Philly. Despite the advances in pasteurization we are still concerned about food poisoning - and we should be. I myself have had it a couple of times, and I will spare you the gory details but suffice to say it was not fun. So you can imagine my discomfort when I came across a Japanese breakfast that made use of a raw egg, and why it took me a few days to get over my fear and try it.

Tamago Gochi is a classic Japanese made - in it's simplest of forms - with only three ingredients: Cooked rice, a raw egg, and soy sauce. It is also simple to prepare. Cook the rice, place about a cup of this rice in a bowl and create a crater in the middle. Crack a raw egg in the crater, and splash with soy sauce to taste. Then take your chopsticks (or fork) and stir the egg into the rice. If you want to be fancy, you can toss some sesame seeds on top. Let's take a moment to contemplate this:

My first tamago gochi

That little egg down in there looks unassuming, but is in fact the engine that makes this little dish run. Consider what happens in the step following this one: That egg is beaten into what amounts to a liquid, and then comes into contact with every side of all of those freshly-cooked rice grains. As you stir, that heat that is stored in the rice permeates the egg, allowing it to become a rich and creamy sauce that is now fully cooked and absolutely delicious. This is similar to what happens in a pasta carbonara, if you are familiar with the dish. In a carbonara the eggs are cooked by the pasta and bacon fat in the pan, and not the rice. Different cuisine, same principle.

Tamago Gochi after stirring

For those of you on the fence about this dish, I heartily suggest you hop over. Sure the grass is the same color, but the tamago gochi is steaming hot, and ready to fill your bellies in the morning. This dish will surprise you in it's humble complexity, and is a great way to start any day - or even to serve at a brunch or lunch table. The egg sauce transforms the rice from humble bland grains into flavorful fuel for your day, and the feeling of cupping the bowl in your hand and eating the rice is second to none.

Will you or won't you? Share your experiences with this my new breakfast favorite in the comments below or on Facebook!

A quick tip for using onions

In my endeavors to try to have more cold or room temperature meals this time of year, I eventually run across recipes which use raw onion. It is great in a coleslaw, in a black bean salad, or in a cold veggie salad, but the strong taste is definitely not for everyone. Some people love it, others abhor it, but there is definitely a way to make (mostly) everyone happy.

Firstly, a note about cutting onions. If you just glance at an onion, you might think that chopping across the circles is the best way to cut an onion, but if you look a little closer you will see that the structure of the onion actually runs top to bottom. This means that cutting across the belly of the onion is actually cutting "against the grain" and will release more liquid, which will result in more tears. The best way to cut slivers of onion is to chop off the top and bottom of the root, and then cut lengthwise from one side of the onion to the other keeping your knife parallel to the grain of the onion. This will release less moisture, and result in less tears. If you really like to get those nice round circles, you are just going to have try my next tip for dealing with raw onions.

Another tip for serving raw onion is to give it a soak before serving it. Once you have it cut however you want it, give it a quick soak in some warm water for about 5-10 minutes. Giving it the warm water bath will pull out some of the sulfur-containing compounds that irritate the eye and the palate, and give a milder and less acidic taste.

Do you have any other tips for dealing with these veggies? Share in the comments below or on Facebook!

I love it when a plan comes together

Every week - usually on or right before the weekend - I set down and look at my week and come up with a meal plan for the week. I find that it helps me stay on budget for our food expenses, since it eliminates additional trips to the grocery store, and helps keep my head from spinning too much during the week. Most recently I did this on a Sunday morning with a plate of pared down huevos rancheros.

Fuel for the planning fire

I toasted three store-bought tortillas that had been leftover for a while now, dropped some salsa and shredded cheese in them, and topped with a pair of fried eggs and some chopped scallion. Very tasty I must say, and just the thing to keep me on track as I scouted out my meals for the week.

Perfect planning preparation place!

I take into consideration what is going on with everyone as I prep for the meals. Will the meals make leftovers for lunches? Is it something the kids will eat? If the kids won't eat it what will they eat instead? Are we skipping meals at home this week for parties or other events? All of these things are important, as well as any other things that could come up. This Friday is the final day of kindergarten for my 6-year old, so I decided to plan in a macaroni and cheese covered pizza - one of his personal favorites.

Do you plan out your meals? Share your thoughts on making a meal plan in the comments section below!

Ramen Reconsidered

Ramen. When most people think of ramen noodles, they think of poor college students heating water in the the tiny microwaves above their micro-fridges and slurping the noodles and broth like it was going out of style. I did too - until I starting thinking about how those noodles act as a perfect blank slate for any number of creative food tastes and pairings. So I started using my imagination and created, and this is what I have come up with: my ramen bowl.

Ramen reconsidered

This is ramen noodles cooked in lightly salted water (none of that super-salty broth) and drained, sprinkled with some sharp cheddar cheese, layered with with minced onions and red peppers, fried egg, and some chopped scallions. A few splashes of hot sauce round out the dish. When you cut into the fried egg, the runny yolk mixes in with the melty cheddar to make a sauce, while the egg white and veggies provide some body to the meal, and the noodles act as a medium for it all to be consumed.

Breaking open the fried egg

This is one of my favorite go-to meals to make for myself anytime I feel like I need something substantial for lunch. The great thing about this dish is that it is highly customizable. The veggies I used here can be swapped out for other veggies, the cheese can be whatever cheese you have on hand, and you can even add meat such as ham or cooked chicken to up the flavor also. If you don;t like eggs, you can omit the egg and just use some of the cooking liquid from the noodles to help make the sauce.

Share in the comments what your "ideal" ramen bowl would contain. Remember - use your imagination, and reconsider this versatile and inexpensive noodle.

I'll have what he's having

Lunches on the weekends around here are often scattered and disorganized. The 1-year old gets whatever he is eating at the time, normally some yogurt, possibly some leftovers, and fruit. The 6-year old has a grilled cheese, leftover pizza (if there is any), a sandwich, or some kind of pasta. My wife and I often look around for what leftovers we need to use up and try to eat those.

I am known for dressing up leftovers for myself, and often my wife will get leftovers for herself and then see what I made for myself and want me to make that for her instead. Today, I decided to make a double portion of the leftover upgrade for the both of us, and I used the carnitas that we made the other day to make some loaded nachos.

Loaded Carnitas Nachos

I started by putting a good layer of blue corn chips into an oven-safe dish. Then I topped with some shredded cheddar cheese, sliced cherry tomatoes, a healthy dose of leftover carnitas, and finished off with a little more shredded cheddar. This then cooked in the oven at 250 degrees for about 10 minutes or so - just to make sure that everything was warmed through and the cheese was nice and warm. Then I topped the whole dish off with a little of the salsa verde I also had laying around.

Fan. Tas. Tic. 

The perfect nacho bite - a bit of everything!

I mean, who can go wrong with a tasty meat smothered in cheese with some fresh veggies and a tasty sauce - especially delivered on a tortilla? No one can.