"Japanese Cucumbers" recipe

Hello everyone, it's the weekend!

The votes are in from this week's poll and it was a tie between "Japanese cucumbers" and "Hunter stew." The Japanese cucumber vote came first so I've created a step-by-step video for anyone interested in trying this simple yet tasty cucumber recipe. This is a vibrant, sour-spicy side dish which punches flavor into any meal, particularly any blander item such as sticky rice.

The finished product.

Our inventive household term for this recipe is "Japanese cucumbers," though you can also use English ones in a pinch. It's probably the rice wine vinegar and sesame oil we focused on when dubbing a 'common' name for the dish.

We found a simplified version of this recipe in the "Cook This, Not That" book, but added a few special touches of our own. I've shared this dish with friends and professors and have always gotten favorable reviews.

I highly recommend this dish be prepared at least an hour in advance of the meal you intend to eat it with so the cucumbers can steep and absorb the dressing. This is entirely optional, however.

Let's get started!

YOU WILL NEED:

1-2 Japanese (or English) cucumbers
1 shallot (or 1 small red onion)
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp sugar (or 3 packets of sugar)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp red pepper flakes

DIRECTIONS:

        Vegetable prep
Wash the cucumbers thoroughly, then take a fork and scrape grooves in the skin. This will allow the dressing to really permeate and infuse the cucumbers with flavor. After scraping all along the length, slice the cucumber to the desired size of thickness. I usually like to slice them fairly thin to make it look like there are a lot to go around. Then dice up the shallot. Again, your preference on how chunky you want to go here.

        Dressing
Combine the ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. There's no special order, though I usually save the shallots and cucumbers for last. The pepper flakes can be apportioned to preference. Experiment and see what you like.




Leave the cucumbers in the fridge to steep and enjoy with a meal or snack at your leisure. Enjoy!

Happy Sunday.

The trend begins

It's a new year. Well, rather late into a new year to get started, but I'm starting now anyway.

You know how dogs pick up a scent and run with their noses to the ground? I feel like a lot of people run through life this way; we pursue this goal with our heads down and forget to look up to see what's surrounding us. That was me last year until I took this trip. Blindly charging forward, not even knowing what I was chasing, probably following this scent in circles and not really going anywhere.

The game changer.

Until I stopped. And looked up.

I can't be the only one who feels like 2014 is a breath of fresh air. Maybe its the nice seven "2014" makes or because the Magic Eight Ball told me so--but this year has got some mojo to it.

And you know the Magic Eight Ball don't lie.

But change is on the horizon. A good change. Here are some resolutions I wrote on a 3x5 card for this year verbatim--feel free to steal a few for yourself:

-12 months, 12 books, no excuses! (5/12)
-200+ minutes of exercise/week (I already biffed on this one, but every week is a new week)
-Get into grad school  
-Get a book published (or at least secure an agent, come on)
-Write an original piano piece  (And it was terrible! More on this later...)
-Online writing, peddle your craft, be serious! 
-Sing more, get out more, LET IT GO (Yes, Elsa left a profound impression on me)
-Learn a new skill
-NaNoWriMo 2014, you know which one (No, I don't.)

I came to the realization a lot of successful people already know and that's 'Life is what you make of it.' I never really grasped this concept so fully until I actually stuffed my inhibitions and really put myself out there. I made new friends and we went places and did things I never would have done otherwise. What you're willing to put in is exactly what you will get out of it. So I've resolved to be a producer this year. Hence the spine for this blog.

I've had this trend for the last month at least where I was doing something every weekend; hiking, writing group sharing, convention-ing and I figure, heck, why not share a bit about the experience? You've talked about maintaining a blog and you want to be a producer? Post something every week!

So that's what I'm going to do.

Tomorrow I'm hanging out with friends and finally hiking the Pillboxes in Lanikai.

While I won't carpe diem every diem, I will make a sincere effort to keep my nose off the ground and look up. Come with me--it's the weekend!