dipping – Well Dined

Shrimp and Strawberry? Do you think I sound crazy right now? Trust, young padawans, and learn the ways of combining sweet and savory. Rice noodles, pickled veg (and mango!), basil, mint, scallions, shrimp, and strawberries are combined in a rice wrapper for the ultimate summer freshness. Served with a delicious peanut sauce for dipping – get in my face!

I had seen a blog photo ages ago that I loved on this site, but I was scared to try it because I had never made summer rolls before and it seemed finicky. Then I was over at a friend’s house for dinner and that is what we made! It was a bit tricky, but not as scary as I had imagined. She was a pro, so I asked her to help me make my shrimp and strawberry rolls. Then I looked at the recipe for the photo I loved, and wasn’t a big fan of the ingredients. I wanted noodles instead of cabbage, and mango instead of bell pepper. So I switched some things around.

Then we got to work! She was skeptical of my flavor combo, but ended up loving it. You can see the progression here from back to front where I put the ingredients on in the wrong order so the pretty parts didn’t show, then exploded one, then finally got some decent rolls. The good news is – it doesn’t matter if you don’t get the best looking rolls, they still taste amazing! (more…)

It’s time for another Try The World review (see my first here)! In my Japan box, I had: Otafuku Foods okonomiyaki kit; Aoi Tea blueberry match tea; House Foods ginger paste; Takaokaya seaweed snack; Akagi soba noodles; Kasugai gummy candies; and Morinaga milk caramels. I thought that those butter coconut cookies came in the box, but I actually must have picked them up at the Asian grocery store. So, ignore those (but really don’t, cuz they are super awesome and yummy).

The caramels are are firm and not super sweet, I like them a lot. I haven’t tried the tea, gummies, or okonomiyaki kit yet; but I used the rest to make Zaru Soba.

Zaru Soba is a cold soba dish usually made in the summer (whatever, don’t judge me). The noodles are cooked, then rinsed, chilled, and drained. Normally, you would serve them on a woven bamboo mat that lets the extra water drain out; but I don’t have those! So I dried them on paper towels.

The noodles are topped with seaweed and sesame seeds just before serving, and dipped in a sauce made of dashi, soy, mirin, sake, sugar, and ginger paste. Wasabi and scallions are served on the side and mixed into the sauce to taste. (more…)

Well Dined

Tag: dipping

Shrimp and Strawberry Summer Rolls

Try The World – Japan; Zaru Soba