baked rice paper rolls

I have a love of rice paper rolls.

But, Joel has an absolute love of spring rolls.

They are both great for dipping and serving as an entrée.

Not so long ago I wanted to see what it would be like to bake a rice paper roll, to see if it would be a healthier option of the greasy spring rolls. I was so surprised with the outcome. Retaining their freshness but still having a crunchy outer shell, they made for a great alternative.

When I gave one to Joel, he did his infamous “mmm tastey” and I knew I was on a winner.

It’s fun wrapping up the spring rolls, it can take a bit of practice but it’s super easy once you get the gist of what you are doing.

Keep in mind that these baked rolls don’t have to be Asian inspired, but could be filled with anything that you wanted really. You can even make ahead and freeze them ready for a party or impromptu entertaining.

Ingredients

(makes 20)

20 rice paper roll sheets

1 tblsp seseame oil

1/4 cabbage, finely sliced

4 spring onions, finely chopped

1/2 c basil leave

2 large garlic cloves, finely sliced

olive oil spray

Heat over to 180 C and line a baking tray with baking paper.

Heat oil in a wok and toss in cabbage, onions, garlic and basil frying for 3-5 mins until softened and fragrant.

Remove from heat and cool.

Place one of the rice paper sheets in some luke warm water to soften (I usually do this under the tap).

Once softened lay sheet on a plate.

Place a tablespoon amount in the middle of the sheet running the mixture vertically. Fold the bottom of the sheet towards the middle. Next fold the left-side so the crease is at the edge of the filling. Then fold the top down and roll the spring roll to the right.

Repeat method with the rice paper, until all the mixture is used up.

Place rolls on baking tray and spray ever so lightly with olive oil spray.

Bake for 20 mins.

Serve immediately.

sashimi with pickled ginger

We love our seafood. 

Seriously can't get enough of it.

And at least once a week, I make a dinner of sashimi.

I remember when we got into Japanese food, and thought it would be so dangerous to prepare sashimi at home.

But really, it's so easy!

You just need a nice sharp knife and a bit of bravery.

A visit to my local fish monger and I came away with some fresh tuna, blue eye cod and seaweed salad.

Sashimi

Method

fish of your desire (tuna, salmon, swordfish, blue-eye cod, marlin etc)

On a clean wooden chopping board, place the fillet*.

With a sharp knife, slice as finely as desired - against the grain.

Return to the refridgerator until required.

Serve with pickled ginger (recipe below), wasabi paste and soy sauce.

*Tip: you may find it useful to place the fillets in the freezer for 10 mins for ease of slicing.

Pickled Ginger

Ingredients

fresh ginger

mirrin

japanese vinegar

water

Finely slice the desired amount of ginger.

Fill a jar with the sliced ginger.

Then mix a third of each mirrin, vinegar and water.

Pour over the ginger until all covered.

Screw on lid and shake vigourously.

Leave to pickle the refrigerator for 4 weeks.

Then it's ready to serve.

As mentioned on my previous post, here is an example of what I used my sprouts for.

The spicy mustard sprouts go perfectly with the metallic taste of the tuna while the cress sprouts go so well with the butteriness of the blue eye cod.

wellbeing stir fry with green tea noodles

There are never enough hours in the day!

With my hours at work having picked up lately, I'm finding it a juggle to fit everything (fitness, blogging, housework, entertaining etc) into the limited time I have in the evenings. 

So, when I am time poor, I love a quick throw-together stir fry that has a rainbow of colours with minimal cooking time for a warm yet fresh dinner.

The more colours you can enjoy with your food the better.

Not only is it appealing to the eye, but also, each vegetable holds its own nutritional content and to combine and vary what you eat is great for all-round wellbeing.

Ingredients

(serves 2-3)

100g green tea noodles

1 tsp pure sesame oil

1 tsp fresh ginger, grated

3 garlic cloves, sliced

1/2 red hot chilli, finely sliced (optional)

1 tblsp soy sauce

1 tblsp mirin sauce

10 button mushrooms, finely sliced

2 bunches of baby pak choy, finely sliced

1 red banana pepper, finely sliced

4 shallots, finely sliced

1 c purple cabbage, finely sliced

1 tblsp dried wakame

1/2 c peas

1/4 c roasted cashew nuts

1/4 c fresh coriander, roughly chopped

Cook noodles in boiling water for about 5 mins - until tender.

Drain and rinse with cool water - set aside.

Next, heat oil in a wok and add ginger, garlic and chilli - cook for 1 min stirring constantly.

Then add the soy, mirin and mushrooms and continue to cook until mushrooms are softened and browning.

Then add the pak choy, pepper, shallots and purple cabbage and toss for a minute or 2.

Then toss through the seaweed, peas, nuts and coriander. 

Remove from heat and toss through the noodles*.

Serve and enjoy!

*You may need to re-rinse with cool water to prevent sicking.

raw kelp noodle salad

As lovers of Japanese food, we regularly consume sea vegetables.

I often add some wakame to a stir fry or grab some seafood salad from my local fish monger. 

Trying something a little different, a few months ago I ordered these raw kelp noodles from my favourite online raw food source.

Not cheap at $10 a pop, I hadn't ordered more until now. And let me just say these noodles are totally splurge worthy.

I was so excited when my recent order arrived in the post and couldn't wait to crack them out and eat them!

So, with the perfect meal in mind I dropped in at my local fish monger after work and picked up some fresh salmon, planning on serving it raw with the noodles.

 

Kelp Noodles are fat-free, gluten-free and very low in carbohydrates and calories. The healthful content provides a rich source of trace minerals including iodine which kelp is well known for.

It is recommended that you shouldn't consume too many sea vegetables in one sitting but as the kelp noodle isn't super concentrated, it's a perfect balance.

The taste, well, it's very neutral and mild with a crisp crunch when bitten into. 

 Ingredients

(serves 2)

340 g raw kelp noodles, rinsed

4 spring onions, sliced thinly

1/2 c peas, fresh or frozen

1 tblsp mixed sesame seeds

2 tsp sesame oil

2 tsp soy sauce

2 tsp mirin

1 tsp wasabi paste

1/2 lime juiced

salmon (optional)*

Combine kelp, onions, peas and sesame seeds in a large bowl.

Toss and set aside.

Next, combine oil, soy sauce, mirin, wasabi paste and lime juice in a small jug.

Whisk until well combined.

Pour over the noodles and sit in the refrigerator for 30 mins to allow flavours to infuse.

Serve.

*Optional: thinly slice some sashimi grade salmon and roll horizontally into a rose. Arrange on top of the kelp salad and serve with a sprinkling of wasabi sesame seeds.

Savour... xx