Get Your Chopsticks Out! Part II

Sorry for leaving your chopsticks hanging in mid-air for a while like that... Don's niece, Jaime, (remember her from my trip to Calgary?) was staying with us all of last week. Wow! What a truly incredible time we had! I may have been away from my computer, but certainly not from the kitchen counter. Wait 'til you see all the gorgeous foods we prepared! But let's get back to today's post first...

Now where were we? Ah yes, Asian entrees 'in the Raw'!

Spring Rolling
I just looooooove coconut wrappers! They have such a delicate flavor and can make a delicious, light snack in a few minutes! As Vanessa points out, you can use whatever veggies you have on hand as filling for these. For our part, we like to put a little lettuce or arugula, add a few scoops of Chop Suey, roll up and munch away. Mmmmmmmmmm


Vietnamese Spring Rolls with spicy citrus dipping sauce
By Vanessa Sherwood
Posted on GLiving GreenChefs

If you don’t feel like making the coconut ‘rice’ wrappers, you can either use the lettuce as a wrapper, or just use regular store bought rice wrappers that you’ll find in the Asian section of most grocery stores.

Coconut ‘rice’ Wrappers
1 Cup Young Coconut Meat
1/2 Cup Coconut Water
1/4 Cup Flax Meal (Optional)
Pinch of Salt

Filling:
Butter Lettuce
Cucumber, thinly sliced
Scallions, thinly sliced lengthwise
Bean Sprouts
Star Fruit, thinly sliced
Basil
Cilantro
Mint Leaves

Nuoc Cham (spicy citrus dipping sauce):
Lime, Juiced
1 1/2 Tablespoon Nama Shoyu
3 Tablespoons Water
1 Serrano Chili, minced
1-2 Cloves Garlic, minced
2 Teaspoons Agave
1/4 Teaspoon Salt

For the Coconut ‘rice’ Wrappers:
In a Vita Mix or high speed blender, blend everything until completely smooth. Now comes the tricky bit. You should be able to make four wrappers on each teflex lined tray of your dehydrator, unless you want to make one huge wrapper on each tray- it’s your choice. Pour out 2-4 tablespoons of the coconut custard and spread out thin with a spoon or spreader/spatula. Dehydrate at 105- 110 degrees until completely dry, 6-12 hours. When they are done, you will be able to peel them off of the teflex sheet.

For the Filling:
There are no rules here. You can put whatever you want in the wrappers.

Fill the coconut wrappers with the veggies. If you are using the coconut wrappers, be warned that they will get soggy quite quickly. It’s best to roll them as you are eating them. If you are using the lettuce as your wrapper, it won’t be an issue.

For the Nuoc Cham (spicy citrus dipping sauce):
Whisk all the ingredients together. This is your dipping sauce.


Where's the Wok?
If you haven't experimented with marinating yet, here's a perfect opportunity! The marinating process really works magic! Not only does it give veggies a wonderful flavor, it changes their texture as well. The following recipes are a variation on a theme; similar veggies, different marinades. Pop these in the dehydrator for a few hours to get an authentic 'just out of the wok' look!

Chop Suey
We may not have been very adventurous food wise in my family's household, but the one 'exotic' dish my mom used to make regularly was Chop Suey. (Go figure!?!) When I first tried a raw version, I just couldn't believe how much it resembled its SAD counterpart. Here are a couple of Chop Suey versions I've made recently. Once you get the general idea, you'll soon be coming up with countless variations of your own.


Easy Chop Suey
By Carmella Soleil

Veggies:
Baby Bok Choi, sliced
Broccoli florets and chopped stems
Carrots, julienned
Celery, sliced diagonally
Green onions, sliced diagonally
Mung bean sprouts, washed and drained
Mushrooms, sliced
Red or yellow peppers, sliced or chopped
Snow peas, sliced diagonally
Zucchini, julienned or cubed

Marinade Variation I:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons tamari or Nama Shoyu
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 orange, juiced
1 or 2 garlic cloves
1 ” chunk of ginger, grated
Dash of cayenne
1 tablespoon tahini

Marinade Variation II:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons tamari or Nama Shoyu
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 lime, juiced
1/2 orange, juiced
1 or 2 garlic cloves
1 ” chunk of ginger, grated
2-4 soft dates, to taste

Finely chop or julienne veggies of choice.

Blend marinade ingredients until smooth.

In a large bowl, toss veggies in marinade of choice. Cover and put in dehydrator for 2 hours at 105-110.

Alternatively, you can skip the last step, but leave the veggies to marinate for at least 3 hours on the counter for flavors to blend.

Serve topped with sesame seeds and/or cashew pieces.



Vegetable Teriyaki
Adapted from Wyjoz's recipe, posted on Raw Food Talk

Marinade:
2 tbs Nama Shoyu (or tamari)
2 tbs honey
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 " piece of ginger root, grated
2 tablespoons lemon juice (or you could use part apple cider vinegar too)
1/4 cup orange juice

Vegetables:
Broccoli florets and chopped stems
Green onion or leek.
Baby Bok Choy sliced (the taste is much milder than mature Bok Choi)
Red Pepper sliced
Celery, sliced diagonally
Mushrooms, sliced

Toss veggies with the marinade in a bowl. Then pop it, covered, in the dehydrator for a couple of hours. Alternatively, you can skip the D; just marinate the veggies for a little longer.

Serve with rice of choice and top with a few cashews.


Stir Dry
And last, but not least, a colorful 'Stir Dry' with an exotic twist. This recipe was inspired by The Raw Gourmet's lovely Asian dressing.

Veggies of Choice:
Baby Bok Choi, sliced
Broccoli florets and chopped stems
Celery, sliced diagonally
Green onions, sliced diagonally
Mung bean sprouts, washed and drained
Mushrooms, sliced
Red or yellow peppers, sliced or chopped
Snow peas, sliced diagonally
Zucchini, julienned or cubed

Asian Dressing
By Nomi Shannon

6 Tbl Tahini
1 c. water
3/4 c. Nama Shoyu
3/4 c. scallions
3 Tbl flaxseed oil
3-4 Tbl honey
3 Tbl grated ginger root
3-4 cloves garlic
3/4 tsp Chinese 5-spice (I use less as I find this can easily overwhelm the other flavors)
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp ground cumin

Toss all ingredients into blender and blend!

Assembly:
Put the veggies in a large bowl and coat with dressing. Cover with a plate and pop in the dehydrator for a couple of hours at 110 degrees.

Asian Platter: Ginger Un-Steamed 'Rice'(Yet again! What can I say, it is THAT good!), Marinated Bok Choi and Stir Dry:

I guess I've pretty much covered it all: soups, salads, side dishes, entrees...

Hey, hang on a second! I was about to forget something! No post on Asian cuisine 'in the Raw' would be complete without sushi!


Raw Sushi
This is a different version of sushi than the one I've previously posted, using 'rice' instead of pate. For a detailed description of the sushi making technique, complete with photos, see this post.

Ginger Un-Steamed 'Rice'
1 1/2 - 2 cups cauliflower
1 1/2 cups parsnip
Salt, to taste
2 heaping tbs of almond butter or tahini (I used both)
1 T grated fresh ginger
A little lemon juice

Process cauliflower and parsnip in food processor until rice-size.

Mix other ingredients by hand.

Veggies:
Carrot, julienned
Red and/or yellow bell pepper, julienned
Green onion, julienned
Cucumber, julienned
Avocado, sliced

Alfalfa sprouts
Sunflower or Radish sprouts (opt)


Assembly:
First, put a nice layer of alfalfa sprouts, covering nearly half of the nori sheet.

Spread 4-5 tbs. of the rice mixture along the edge, on top of the sprouts.

Make a little indent in the rice and put veggies on top.

Top that with a few pieces of avocado.

Finish off with a some sunflower or radish sprouts. (opt)

Roll it up! You can roll the sushi with a sushi mat or use your fingers. I like to use my fingers. Use your thumbs and fingers and roll it up, tightening the roll as you go.

Wet the top part of the nori sheet with a little water so as to seal the sushi.

Let the roll sit for 5 minutes before cutting.

Using a sharp knife, cut the nori roll into 5-6 equal parts. Use a see-saw motion to make it a perfect smooth cut.

Voila!

Serve with dipping sauce of your choice. One of my favorite is the Boutenko's posted here.


OK, NOW we're done! Woops, no, dessert is missing...

Hey, how about some scrumptious Mango Pudding with a nice big dollop of coconut vanilla cream? Yummo! But that recipe will be in my ebook, coming out later this month. 'Til then, here's something to fill your dreams...;-)