Patricia Chuey

Food and Nutrition Expert | Recipe Developer

Toasted Sesame Spinach Gomae

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Gomae with sauce

Gomae (pronounced go-muh-eye) is a Japanese vegetable dish, often served as an appetizer salad. You’ll find it on the menu at sushi restaurants. It’s very easy to make and possibly the yummiest way to get a dose of the iron, B vitamins, folic acid and minerals that are naturally found in spinach. Garnished with sesame sauce, simple spinach becomes a delicacy. It’s very easy to eat what will seem like a medicinal dose of this stuff. The sauce can be made up to a day ahead and any leftovers make a delicious salad dressing. Enjoy!

Gomae   Makes 8 servings, 2 pieces each

  • 6 Tbsp sesame seeds
  • 3 Tbsp soy sauce (use GF version if preferred)
  • 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
  • 1 Tbsp peanut butter or tahini
  • 1 tsp mirin
  • 1, 454 g bag of fresh spinach, well washed
  1. Toast sesame seeds. (Do not skip this step as it is vital for the flavour). Place sesame seeds in a frying pan over medium-high heat and cook, stirring occasionally for about 8 minutes or until golden and they begin to ‘pop’ in the pan.
  2. In a food processor, combine toasted sesame seeds, soy sauce, sugar, peanut butter or tahini and mirin into a smooth paste. Set aside.
  3. Very lightly cook spinach by microwaving in batches for 1-2 minutes. Allow to cool. Squeeze out excess moisture and then form into a log shape. Cut pieces, little piles of spinach, and place on serving platter or in small individual serving plates. (Google ‘gomae’ for a variety of presentation ideas.)
  4. Serve drizzled with sesame sauce. Keep refrigerated until serving as it is best nice and cold.

Cheers!

 

Salad In The Pink

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In our family, food is a big focus year round and especially at Christmas. My parents, 3 sisters and all of our husbands cook and help in the kitchen. The kids are right in there with us too! On Christmas Eve we celebrate with a traditional Scandinavian or Ukrainian meal. On Christmas Day, it’s turkey with all the trimmings. We always include a salad that’s dressed in its holiday finest. The salads are so good they’ve become as vital to the meal as the turkey. Here I reveal a secret family salad dressing we’ve been making for years thanks to Mom first discovering it.

Roasted Beet, Pomegrante and Greens in the Pink – Serves 4-6

  • ½ cup plus 2 tsp canola or olive oil
  • 3 medium beets, peeled, quartered and sliced thinly
  • sea salt, to taste
  • 2 Tbsp white vinegar
  • 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
  • ¼ cup red onion, chopped
  • ½ tsp each dry mustard powder and salt
  • 4-6 cups chopped Romaine or green leaf lettuce
  • ½ cup chopped fresh parsley
  • 4 green onions, chopped
  • ½ cup pomegranate seeds
  1. Roast beets: Toss beets with 2 tsp oil and a little sea salt. Place on a parchment or foil lined baking pan and roast at 350⁰F for about 35 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, prepare dressing: In blender or food processor, mix together ½ cup oil, vinegar, sugar, red onion, mustard powder and salt.
  3. Assemble salad: Toss together lettuce, parsley, green onion and pomegranate seeds. Arrange beets on top and drizzle with dressing.

Cheers!

Glorious Kale Salad

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Well-balanced mixtures of energizing carbohydrates, protein and quality fats make for ideal sustained fuel. Meals rich in colourful vegetables or fruit are abundant in disease-fighting nutrients that also help working muscles perform and recover well for subsequent day’s activities. Toss together this highly crave-able salad for high octane muscle fuel and a lighter option to much of the rich, comfort food of the Fall season. It definitely won’t be one you only ever make once.

Glorious Vegetable, Kale and Tofu Salad – Makes 8 servings

Recipe inspired by my dear friend Tori at Fraiche Nutrition.com and Whitewater Cooks, a gorgeous cookbook series created in British Columbia.

  • 2 Tbsp water
  • 1/3 cup nutritional yeast flakes (available in natural foods aisle)
  • 2 Tbsp sodium-reduced soy sauce
  • 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • ½ cup vegetable oil
  • 1 Tbsp tahini, peanut or almond butter
  • 8 cups cooked brown rice
  • 2 cups grated fresh beets
  • 2 cups grated carrots
  • 2 cups almonds, toasted and chopped
  • 2 cups fresh kale leaves or spinach, stems removed
  • 2 cups grilled tofu cubes
  1. Make dressing: In food processor or blender, combine water, yeast flakes, soy sauce, cider vinegar and garlic. Add oil in a steady stream. There will be leftover dressing for later use on another salad, quinoa, grilled fish or chicken.
  2. Assemble the salad in a large bowl or on individual plates by topping cooked rice with beets, carrots, kale, almonds and tofu. Drizzle with dressing to serve. Alternately, tofu can be pan fried in a bit of the dressing before placing on the salad.

Cheers!

Vietnamese Noodle Salad

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Just say no to salads that are merely a mix of iceberg lettuce with three flecks of purple cabbage. That’s about the same nutrition as in a glass of water. Ready-made salad mixes can be great time savers as the base of a salad. Select top notch ones like a kale-spinach combo, other dark green leafies or cabbage and build from there.  Here’s a fave from our home collection that always goes over stunningly at dinner parties and potlucks.

Vietnamese Noodle Salad – Serves 6

  •  juice of 2 fresh limes
  • 3 Tbsp fish sauce
  • 2 Tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
  • 6 cloves garlic
  • 4 cups cooked rice vermicelli noodles, cooled
  • 3 medium carrots, coarsely grated
  • 1 medium cucumber, peeled and cut into thin strips or slices
  • 1 cup chopped red or green cabbage
  • ½ cup chopped fresh basil
  • ½ cup chopped fresh mint
  • ½ cup chopped peanuts
  • 6 skewers of grilled chicken, pork, tofu or prawns
  1.  Make dressing: In food processor or blender, combine lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, cilantro and garlic. Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, combine noodles with carrots, cucumber, cabbage, basil and mint. Drizzle with dressing and toss well.
  3. Serve sprinkled with peanuts and topped with a grilled skewer of your choice.

Cheers!

Meet Patricia

Eating well is just one spoke in the wheel of health. An active life...

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