the curse and the ramen: a story of noodles and the consequences thereof

 

cucumber gimlet : lemonade : mint cucumber fizz

 

spicy beef udon

 

tokyo ramen (pork, bamboo) : miso ramem (chicken, corn)

 

okonomiyaki (japanese pancake)

 

We all went to Boom Noodle today (I’m up seeing Paris and Nat Nat) and the curse hit again. Every time I eat out with ONLY Paris and Tara, I inevitably order the least yummy thing out of the three of us. Apparently, the curse has grown now, and it affecting me when just with Paris and any other person. Although my tokyo ramen was good, it was no where as awesome as the other two noodle bowls.

Major highlight though: the japanese pancake. I used to have a little ghost place in my neighborhood that served these things. So delicious! They are sprouty egg cakes, griddled, with fish flakes, japanese mayo, a brown sauce and lots of other goodies on top. Kind of difficult to find, but this Boom Noodle did a wonderful job.

One Saturday evening in May

   

 

 

 

 

 

Red Lentil Curry

These last few weeks I’ve probably made this lentil curry stuff around two or three times a week. It’s so easy and delicious and is a good source of fiber (among other things I don’t know about). Plus this whole meal probably costs less than $3.00. I know mama makes something similar, but I needed a little guidance because cooking with things like turmeric and cumin can get a little out of control fairly easily.

So, to get started, rinse the red lentils and cover with water and cook until tender. Basically they get mushy and turn into something that looks like puke, which is normal.

While that’s happening, I make the curry flavoring sauce stuff. One chopped up onion, a few cloves of garlic, some chopped up ginger (I like a lot of ginger), some oil, and sauté until you get tired of waiting for it to brown or whatever is supposed to happen.

Then you add the spices! This is the only part I would use actual measurements for, because one time I didn’t, and it turned out weird.

2 tbsp of curry paste (I just use curry powder)

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 can tomato sauce

Mix that all up, let it cook for a bit, then mix it into your fully cooked lentils! It ends up looking even more like puke, but it’s really yummy!

Peter likes his as is, with just a little cilantro.

I like mine with a lot of cilantro, lots of lime, and with some steamed rice.

And there you have it folks! The whole thing takes maybe a half hour, but probably more like 15 minutes if your not intermittently playing battlefield.

Mmmmhmmm! Now that’s some good eats!