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spork said:
1. pork in red chile
2. trash of tortilla and smoked gouda
3. tears of salad greens, tomato in dressing
4. plain greek yogurt and raspberry jam
5. lemon ice tea

My neighbors somehow acquired the chile sauce from a restaurant in Santa Fe, New Mexico called Tomasita’s. It’s really good. I portion it, and horde it in the freezer. Target stores in my town began stocking fresh groceries. They’ve been sending coupons in the mail for free food, like eggs and tortillas. I wasn’t impressed and doubt I’ll ever shop there. Salad greens in a bento box will keep a bit better if dry and this is my usual way to separate a dressing. The jam is from my neighbor, too, a canner and baker, both of which I am not. A lunchbox cobbled together with whatever is in the frig.
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That looks wonderful, Spork! Love the cheese and tortilla idea. I have two pounds of provolone to take care of...

I was given a 1/2 pound of fresh cherry tomatoes, a couple spring onions and a small tomatillo. I'm going to make a fresh salsa with it and a little chipotle powder for some heat and smoke, topping a chicken breast and a green salad for my next bento. I'm trying real hard to cut starches out of my diet for a while.
 
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1. egg drop soup, with mochi rice dumplings
2. Thai larb, ground pork
3. butter lettuce wraps
4. Greek yogurt, with diced apples
5. iced coffee

Thai larb is meant to be eaten at room temp, so it's great for lunch boxes. The lettuce will wilt a bit by lunchtime, which makes it a better wrap for scoops of larb anyway. Soup is from a powdered bullion labeled 'consomme' with a splash of soy sauce. Mochi flour is glutinous rice flour, super easy to make them into soft chewy dumplings. My market had another apple I'd never heard of called "Swee Tango." Mild sugar and citrus flavor, very crisp with high water content. I also mixed a little honey into the yogurt.
 
I also wait for cooler temps to cook because we don't have central a/c at the farm and the kitchen really heats up if the oven is used during the summer months--we have "smart meters" in Ontario, so power is more expensive before 7 p.m. during the week. I do my "big" cooking on the weekends. I also turn off the hot-water tank during peak hours. There is many a day when I'm eyeballing the clock so I can turn on the hot water and take a shower and do the dishes.
 
PF--I hear you. When I get up in the morning (2-4 a.m. to work), the house is freezing--as am I and I have to bundle up while waiting for the wood stove to heat the house; but when I go to bed, the bedroom is so hot I've had to turn on the window a/c--even on the nights when there have been frost warnings! My DH has suggested I buy a fridge to sleep in!
 
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1. somen noodles
2. soba soup from pork stock
3. salmon tatsuta nuggets & sweet egg omelet
4. pickled vegetables & corn+grapes+trout
5. mugi-cha, roasted barley iced tea

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I've been playing around with this side for a year or two. Corn, red pepper, shallot and dill, sauteed in butter. Add seedless green grape halves and shredded trout. Finish with lemon squeeze. Served warm or cold. If you can suggest a way to improve it, I'd appreciate it. I also need a good name for the dish.

My monthly fuel bills are insane all year long, so I just surrender and cook all year too. I'm definitely looking forward to winter though...
 
spork said:
1. somen noodles
2. soba soup from pork stock
3. salmon tatsuta nuggets & sweet egg omelet
4. pickled vegetables & corn+grapes+trout
5. mugi-cha, roasted barley iced tea

I've been playing around with this side for a year or two. Corn, red pepper, shallot and dill, sauteed in butter. Add seedless green grape halves and shredded trout. Finish with lemon squeeze. Served warm or cold. If you can suggest a way to improve it, I'd appreciate it. I also need a good name for the dish.

My monthly fuel bills are insane all year long, so I just surrender and cook all year too. I'm definitely looking forward to winter though...
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OMG, spork! You sure do eat well!

That looks fantastic!

I love all of that! Yum city! :chef:
 
Kongo tomorokoshi is a good working title. Thanks, Fi. I used leftover salt-broiled trout, but smoked trout when I can find it makes a big difference. I've also been playing around with "trout sushi," but haven't yet created any combinations that I've felt is special. Its working title is "Montana Roll." ;) Timo, if you have any suggestions off-the-cuff, you can bet I'll try making it...

Here's a pic of my favorite summer drink, mugi-cha.

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The whole roasted barley is economical, takes about 1/2 cup boiled in 1 liter. The House brand is widely distributed, so you might actually find this tea in the Asian aisle of your supermarket. Its packets are coarsely ground and can be simply soaked in cold water for about 2 hours. It tastes like beer, without the fizz and buzz. That's probably why I like it. :stuart:
 
I was going to go look for mugi-cha, but if it tastes like beer...I'll stick with my regular teas.

It was fruitless to locate a word for trout, should Anglicize it and include the corn and since your dish did not have any rice...

I'm not sure how to string this together: ureshi o-naka tomorokoshi - happy belly corn
 
That's perfectly strung together. naka means "inside," like California roll no naka wa crab, avocado and cucumber desu. onaka is "stomach."

The Japanese don't eat much freshwater seafood. No tilapia, no catfish. Broiled or hibachi trout -- masu -- is often served as a specialty of country inns located near picturesque inland rivers, but otherwise not commonly found in market shelves.

I enjoy fishing for trout. Another reason why I'm looking forward to winter!
 
spork said:
I've also been playing around with "trout sushi," but haven't yet created any combinations that I've felt is special. Its working title is "Montana Roll." ;) Timo, if you have any suggestions off-the-cuff, you can bet I'll try making it...
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Well, this is a favorite of mine that can be made with any mild flavored cooked fish or even stronger flavored fish like smoked salmon.

This will work best as an inside-out roll.

Prepare young cucumber so that it is peeled and cut into 1/8 inch wide strips. Cut the peel into very thin strips. This will be the light green/dark green contrast for the face of each piece.

Cut the cooked trout so that it is in 1/4 inch strips and pat it as dry as possible with paper towels. If you don't do this with cooked fish, it makes the rolls mushy and less appealing to the mouth-feel.

Prep some nice 1/8 inch strips of red bell pepper.

Prep some thin strips of cream cheese.

Prepare the rice on the seaweed. Then flip it for filling.

First, lay a scattered bed of cucumber peel for the rest of the items to lay on. This will make an outer circle of dark green in the finished roll.

Then, the strips of fish, cream cheese and red bell pepper and cucumber meat on top of the cucumber peel, making sure each item is aligned as much as possible.

Finish the roll and it's press.

Cut into good bite sized slices and arrange the slices on a serving plate. Use a white plate if possible, it makes this roll stand out nicely.

Drizzle a thin pair of sriracha lines across each piece, with a wide part in the middle left bare. Then put two dots of thin mustard spaced evenly in the middle of each piece.

The sriracha and mustard are for slight flavor and decoration. Use only enough to make it appear. Too much will over-power the other flavors.

A little bit of lettuce strips cut very thin and arranged around the outer edge of the plate is good for display. You could even dot the lettuce with sriracha. It's a great bite between bites of roll and refreshes the mouth.
That's just off the top of my head though......hehe ;):chef:

Please let me know how you like it if you do try it.
 
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