Appetite for Reduction (14 page)

(CAN BE MADE GLUTEN FREE IF USING GF TAMARI IN PLACE OF SOY SAUCE)

F
ried rice is, well, really
fried!
This version tastes lighter, fresher, and delicious in its own right. Shallot, ginger, garlic, and green onion are all simple flavors that go a long way. Serve with
Hoison-Mustard Tofu
(page 153) or any Chinese-inspired feast. The reason it takes so long is because the rice needs to cool a bit before you saute it, but it’s really an easy recipe. To make it ridiculously easy, make the rice a day ahead. In fact, refrigerated rice gives fried rice the perfect texture, so it’s even preferable to do it that way.

1 cup brown basmati or jasmine rice
2 cups water
1 teaspoon sesame oil
⅓ cup minced shallot
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon soy sauce
½ cup finely chopped green onion

First, cook the rice as you normally would. I use a small enameled cast-iron pot with a cover, bring the rice and water to a boil, then lower the heat to as low as it will go and cook for about 35 minutes. Once most of the water has been absorbed, turn off the heat and keep the rice covered for 15 more minutes.

Transfer the rice to a baking pan and spread it out to make it cool faster. Ifit’s still steaming when you add it to the pan in the next step, it might get mushy.

Preheat a skillet over medium heat. Sauté the shallot, garlic, and ginger in the sesame oil for about 2 minutes. Add the rice and drizzle in the soy sauce. Toss to coat completely and cook for about 3 more minutes, until the rice is uniformly browned. Stir in the green onion and serve.

 

Variations:

 

T
his recipe is the very barest of bones, but you can add almost any veggie to bulk it up. A few ideas for ingredients to add a minute before you add the rice:

SERVES 4 • ACTIVE TIME: 15 MINUTES • TOTAL TIME: 1 HOUR

(CAN BE MADE GLUTEN FREE IF USING GF TAMARI IN PLACE OF SOY SAUCE)

I
love Bhutanese red rice here for the firm and flavorful and dare I say toothsome texture. It almost seems like it’s fried! Instead it’s just a way healthy and damn pretty whole-grain rice. If you can’t find this particular rice, brown jasmine or basmati will do.

1 cup Bhutanese red rice, prepared per package directions
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 small red onion, diced small
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced ginger
Pinch of salt
2 teaspoons Thai red curry paste
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons agave nectar
½ cup lightly packed fresh cilantro, chopped, plus extra for
garnish
1½ cups diced pineapple (about ½-inch dice)

Preheat a skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onion, garlic, and ginger in the oil with a pinch of salt for about 5 minutes, until the onion is translucent. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together the curry paste, water, soy sauce, and agave.

Add the cilantro to the skillet and sauté just until wilted, about a minute. Add the cooked rice and drizzle in the curry paste mixture. Toss to coat completely and cook for about 3 more minutes. Add the pineapple and cook just until heated through. Serve garnished with extra cilantro.

SERVES 4 • ACTIVE TIME: 15 MINUTES • TOTAL TIME: 45 MINUTES

Y
ou might know this dish as Kasha Varnishkes or you might be from western Nebraska and have no idea what I’m talking about. Either way, I can’t imagine kasha without mushrooms. Maybe in a knish, but that’s it!
If I am
going to make kasha, I am going to saute some onions and mushrooms, too, and that’s just the way it is. Kasha has such an assertive flavor that you really don’t need much else; a little sweetness from the onion, a little earthiness from the mushroom, and a little herbiness from the dill.

Serve this with some baked tempeh and greens, if you like. I often just eat a double serving as my dinner because I find it addicting. You’ll notice I use 2 teaspoons of oil here, and for this book that’s a lot, but I really do like to get the onion nice and brown or it doesn’t taste right to me. Two teaspoons does the trick!

1 cup coarse kasha, picked over and rinsed
2 cups water
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium-size onion, quartered and sliced thinly
½ teaspoon salt, plus a pinch for the kasha pot
1 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup chopped fresh dill

In a heavy-bottomed 2-quart pot, cover and bring the kasha, water, and big pinch of salt to a boil. Once boiling, lower the heat to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the kasha is tender. Remove from the heat.

Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onion for 7 to 10 minutes, until browned. Sprinkle with the ½ teaspoon of salt a few minutes into cooking, to draw out the moisture. Add the mushrooms and pepper. Sauté until tender and lightly browned, about 7 minutes. Add the kasha and toss to mix well. Toss in the dill, taste for seasoning, and serve.

SERVES 4 • ACTIVE TIME: 20 MINUTES • TOTAL TIME: 30 MINUTES

I
’m always on the lookout for ways to incorporate quinoa and other grains into my meals, so it’s pretty brainless to just make a traditional pasta sauce and toss it on a grain instead. If you’re anything like me, you always have a gigantic thing of capers and olives in your fridge (not to mention great bone structure and an impressive unicorn collection.) Puttanesca is a really quick way to put together a complextasting—passionate, even—dish with pantry staples. Its ingredients and method are simple enough that you can prep it, cook it, and clean up after yourself in a leisurely 30 minutes, and then get back to the matter at hand. Succulent, salty, and a little spicy, this is in the “sides” section, but really, it makes a great dinner on its own.

Preheat a saucepot over medium heat. Place the oil and garlic in the pot and stir for about a minute, being careful not to burn the garlic. Add the herbs, spices, and wine; cook for about a minute.

Add the olives, capers, and tomatoes. Cook for about 15 minutes.
You can serve by scooping quinoa into individual bowls and pouring the sauce over it, but my way is to just mix everything into a bowl together and reserve a little sauce to pour over my serving, because I like it extra hors d’oeuvre-y.

SERVES 6 • ACTIVE TIME: 30 MINUTES • TOTAL TIME: 30 MINUTES