Miso Adventures

I know its been a very long hiatus. Let's just say things have gotten a lot busier around here than I had anticipated. Never the less, its not my intention to stop blogging...no not at all, in fact I've been taking this time to think about how to improve the blog; first thing, the pictures - I finally got a digital SLR! I just bought a Canon Rebel, amateur camera-yes, but a great camera and really all i want is to be able to take some decent pictures..now I just have to learn to use the thing. My first pictures i took are of the dinner I made tonight, but again I don't actually know how to use my camera (or my new computer really either for that matter), but I gave it a try anyway! I also am working on some new design elements on the blog, so there will be more changes to come.

So let's get back to tonight's dinner. I'm by no means a chef when it comes to cooking, but I am very passionate about food, and I tend to think that I know what tastes good together. My favourite way to cook is to improvise and experiment, so here's what I came up with tonight:

Miso/Ginger/Sesame Seared Cod with Quinoa Ginger Fried "rice" and watermelon salad

Miso/Ginger/Sesame Seared Cod Recipe

• 1 or 2 Cod Filets (easily adaptable to other types of fish as well)
• Fresh Ginger, finely chopped
• Miso Paste ( I picked up Amano's organic miso and have plenty left over for soups etc)
• sesame oil
• sesame seeds
• soy sauce
• cooking oil (I'm using coconut oil lately, as it stands up to heat better and also adds more flavour)

I've been trying to eat fish at least once a week, so I figured I would try out something new this week. This was my first time cooking cod and I have to say I think it's my new favourite fish. After venturing out to my favourite nearby fish market only to find that sadly it seems to have burned down, i picked up some cod filets from my grocery store which worked out fine.

First pour a little soy sauce over the filets and rub it in, put them aside in a bowl and refrigerate. To make the sauce, take about two tablespoons of miso and mix it with water to give it an almost runny consistency, next add chopped ginger ( I like a lot, so i used about 1 tablespoon), then add a few drops of soy sauce, sesame oil and enough sesame seeds that the consistency thickens to a paste. Take your fish out of the fridge and spread the sauce all over and set it back into the fridge until cooking time.

Meanwhile I was preparing my Quinoa in the rice cooker (I cook it just like regular rice and it turns out great every time!). Once the other dishes are pretty much prepared, you'll want to take a skillet and turn it to medium high with your cooking oil and place your fish into the heated pan. Sear the cod on one side until it begins to turn opaque, flip and sear until all of the fish is opaque. The fish will be nice and golden brown, and slightly crisp on the outside. 

Quinoa Ginger Fried "Rice"

• Quinoa - 1 cup
• Water, enough to cover the Quinoa by 1 inch in the rice cooker
• Ginger, finely chopped (about 1 tablespoon, unless you want more/less)
• Spinach
• 1 egg
• Soy sauce 
• Sesame oil

This time i actually did have a bit of rice left over so I threw it in, but usually i just use quinoa on its own. So, first cook the quinoa in a rice cooker, or if you have your own method in a pot. Then, in a skillet or wok, add some cooking oil (again I used coconut oil), add cooked quinoa, chopped ginger an spinach and clear an area in the middle of the pan and crack in the egg. You will fry the egg in the middle of the pan, while the quinoa fries surrounding it. Once the egg is mostly cooked, stir up the whole pan and add in a few drops of soy sauce and sesame oil. keep it simmering until the egg is all fully cooked. That's it!

Watermelon Salad

• 1/4 Watermelon
• 1/2 cucumber
• Fresh mint leaves
• Greek feta cheese
• Balsamic Glaze
• Olive Oil

If you don't find fruit in salad weird, then you'll love this refreshing summer salad. (If you do find fruit in salad weird, you'll probably just want to eat the watermelon). My friend Natalie posted a picture on instagram of a similar salad she made, so that's where my inspiration began.

Chop up the watermelon into cubes, chop the cucumber finely and place onto plate. Wash and chop some fresh mint (about a handful) and sprinkle it over the watermelon/cucumber. break up some feta cheese and sprinkle it over the salad. My favourite new ingredient is this balsamic glaze i bought at a local market here in Montreal. Sure you can spend hours reducing your balsamic vinegar, only to get a tiny amount of sticky hard to deal with glaze, or you can buy a whole bottle of the sweet wonderfulness and spend hours blogging having a life instead. Pour the glaze over the salad and finally drizzle a little olive oil over the salad and there you go! of course you will time this all perfectly so the fish goes in the skillet last, and everyone will tell you what a wonderful cook you are.