Late spring or summer is just the right time to start an indoor herb garden. The longer daylight hours and warmer temperatures are kinder not only to outdoor plants but also indoor potted ones. I developed a love for gardening during my stay in the UK and with a large back garden to learn from and experiment with. Herbs are just another type of plants that I enjoy looking after. But the real impetus for growing herbs, personally, is the convenience of being able to pick or cut the right amount as and when I need them, without having to buy a big bunch or or packet when I would only use a quarter or less each time. Leftover fresh herbs can be frozen (as noted in this previous article) but it does not work well for all herbs. Woody herbs like rosemary and thyme freeze best, and parsley will do OK, but tender ones like basil don't do so well. 
If you have some space in a garden outdoors, all to the good. Find a sunny or partially sunny spot and have a little herb garden. They need very little attention and will reward you with fresh herbs year after year. If you plant the herbs now (well grown ones, not little seedlings), there is still time for them to become established and develop good root systems to survive the winter and regrow next year.
But even if you don't have the luxury of an outdoor garden, herbs are pretty easy to grow indoors, either on a patio/balcony, a sunny window sill or any location that is bright. Most herbs love the sun but the small pots of soil can dry out quickly in direct sunlight, in which case watering needs to be carefully monitored. Partially sunny spots and bright locations with no direct sunlight will do just fine.
My herbs are placed on a ledge indoors that get bright light through the day. Most of them were bought as seedlings from the garden centre back in early-April and I have found it very satisfying to watch them grow over. But very young plants that are not well established can be quite tricky in terms of over or under-watering. You may find it easier to buy fairly well grown herbs in pots and just maintain them that way.
Parsley is a multipurpose herb that do well in most Western type cooking. Chop them up and add them at the end of cooking or just before serving, on stews, pasta and soups. They work really well as garnish, especially if you just need to add a few springs in bento (again, the convenience of growing your own). 
Chives have a mild onion flavour, often used in French cooking and complements cheese and cream sauces well. 
Oregano is widely used in Greek, Spanish and in Italian cuisine, especially in tomato sauces, and grilled or roasted meat. 
Basil is a culinary herb that features prominently in Italian cooking. Unlike other herbs such as oregano and rosemary, whose flavours intensify with drying (so dried herbs will still work well), dried basil loses most of its flavour and fresh really is best. Italian basil is also known as sweet basil, which is different from Thai basil, lemon basil or holy basil used in Asia. Italian basil tend to be eaten raw in salads or added to the end of cooking as the heat destroys the flavours easily. 
Thyme is widely used in cooking and works particularly well with lamb, chicken and fish. It tends to be added early in the cooking stage as its flavours take time to infuse the dish. 
Rosemary is used frequently in traditional Mediterranean cuisine and one of the most hardy herbs. It goes particularly well with chicken and also good in stews. 
To harvest the herbs, snip off individual springs or cut off the tops. Frequent trimming this way encourages offshoots and more healthy and bushy plants with tender leaves. I water my herbs roughly twice a week and feed a weak liquid fertiliser once a month. Some plants are more thirsty than others (e.g. thyme and rosemary need less water compared to basil), Google for more specific information on growing different types of herbs.
Actually, I do hope that my herbs are still alive! I have been out of the country travelling for work (thus the lack of recent updates) and the husband had been given instructions on how often and how much to water. He does his best of course (bless him) but watering plants for someone else is always difficult to gauge. The most recent phone call suggests that my thyme is on its way out, and one or two stalks of basil are looking rather unhappy. Still, these efforts are well worth it to have my own fresh stash of herbs for whenever I need them. And I hope that you will also feel similarly inspired to start growing some yourself.
Wednesday, 15 July 2009
Indoor herb garden
Sunday, 28 June 2009
Chicken and vermicelli salad
This is a dish that I made for a friend's BBQ yesterday. Burgers, sausages and kebabs are great on the BBQ but side dishes are also important for rounding up a meal nicely, both in terms of nutrition, variety and textures. A green salad is always a good option. But I thought I would make something a little different and opted for a chicken and vermicelli salad that has protein, carbohydrates and vegetables that covers all the bases. This makes a nice meal in itself on a hot day.
Vermicelli noodles are also called bean thread noodles. They are often found in Chinese, Vietnamese and Thai cooking. Unlike rice vermicelli/noodles that are equally fine, the strands of noodles are translucent rather than white, and made from mung beans (or green beans) and not rice. They are sold dry in small bundles. Preparation is simple, just soak them in hot water for about 10 minutes (until tender and translucent), drain and they are ready to be used in your recipe.
This vermicelli salad is particularly good for using up leftover chicken, in which case there will be no cooking involved. Just combine the ingredients and serve. 
Ingredients (serve 8-10 as side dish):
200g bean thread noodles, soaked and drained
500g cooked chicken, shredded
1 small carrot, julienned
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
2 stalks spring onion, chopped
1 large red chilli, seeded and finely chopped (optional)
1 cup fresh coriander (cilantro), chopped
Juice from 2 limes
2 tbsp rice vinegar (or substitute white vinegar)
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1/4 cup (60ml) peanut oil
4 tbsp sesame oil
Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl. Toss gently to mix well and serve. The salad can be kept in the fridge for a day or two if you have leftovers (it works well for bento!)
Thursday, 25 June 2009
Basic rice bento
Rice is a staple for traditional Japanese bento. Although I pack all sorts of carbs such as bread, pasta, potatoes and couscous, I do pack rice quite often since I could make use of leftovers from dinners quite easily and it also makes for easier planning in terms of side dishes and portion sizes. An ideal Japense bento proportion is 3:1:2. That refers to 3 parts rice (or similar carbohydrates), 1 part protein (e.g. chicken, beef, eggs, fish), and 2 part vegetables and/or fruit. In the following lunches, you can see how I have used the same Lock & Lock container to pack according to those guidelines. Half the container is filled with rice and the other half with meat and vegetables (I try to pack more of the latter).
This container held a beef stir fry with sugar snaps, mushrooms, peas and sweetcorn (basically an all-in-one), short grain rice and a (big!) cherry tomato. 
A friend gave me a much-treasured jar of sambal belacan (Indonesian condiment made with chilli and shrimp paste) and I used it in a spicy stir fry of okra (lady's finger) and peppers. Leftovers became lunch: rice, chicken cakes and okra and peppers in sambal belacan. Hot stuff! (Note: The grass dividers need to be removed prior to reheating in the microwave.) 
I was going to cook more chicken to go with this next bento but having made extra chicken cakes a few days ago, I decided to use them instead. Today's lunch is chicken rice (rice cooked in chicken broth, minced garlic, ginger and pandan/screwpine leaves), chicken cakes, cherry tomato, pork and chive pan-fried dumplings and bak choy in oyster sauce. The chicken rice and bak choy were leftover from dinner. I just added the chicken cakes and dumplings from my frozen stash.
I have been working from home most days for this month and I have found that a bento works really well even at home. It saves me time from thinking about what to eat for lunch and putting things together. Being able to just have my lunch and then get back to work (just like in the office) also improves my work flow. I highly recommended it.
Monday, 22 June 2009
Bento with store-bought food
I often pack dinner leftovers for bento but sometimes store bought food provides a nice change and still saves us money from eating at cafes during lunch hours. This one had a sausage bun in the lower tier (Chinese/Asian bakeries have a great variety of bread with assorted fillings or toppings) and the upper tier had mixed salad leaves, cherry tomatoes and a container of garlic parmesan salad dressing.
It took less than 5 minutes to just put things into containers so this can be done even in the morning before going out to work. 
Wednesday, 17 June 2009
Summer Night Market in Richmond
Over the weekend, the husband and I went to the Summer Night Market in Richmond. Reputed to be the biggest night market in British Columbia, the market has been in the local news recently regarding the sale of counterfeit items such as 'branded' wallets, handbags, sunglasses, apparel and so on. I don't think the publicity is hurting the market, to be honest. I am sure we were not the only people reminded of the market who decided to head down that weekend! 
Richmond is a suburb of Vancouver, with a population that is about 60 percent Chinese. The food and products on sale at the market, as well as the majority of the crowd, are East Asian (Chinese, Korean, Japanese, also some Malaysian, Singaporeans, Thai, Filippino) and it really reminds me of 'home'. I mean, how much more authentic can you get than fake DVDs and handbags? ;) 
But the main draw has to be the food - street food from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Sichuan, Beijing, Mongolia and other parts of China. My only complaint was how expensive the food was (to me anyway). CAD$2 for a skewer of chicken/assorted meat (essentially a large satay)? $3 for a skewer of grilled tofu?? Certainly a far cry from actual prices in Asia but the atmosphere, smells, sights and sounds were certainly great.
I was really longing for a skewer of fried fish balls (pretty basic, if you ask me) but all I saw were curry fishball (very Hong Kong). Boo. 
Auntie giving instructions 
Korean food 
Takoyaki - a popular Japanese snack. Little balls of batter, diced baby octopus, and tempura scraps with assorted filling, topped with okonomiyaki sauce, seaweed flakes, mayonnaise, and katsuobushi (fish shavings). 
It was the official grand opening of the market for this summer so there were lion dances going from stall to stall. I had no idea why the drums and cymbals were much more muted compared to the heart-thumping ones in Asia. 
Soups and desserts, and many bubble tea stalls 
AP was going to buy something from this smoky stall, because they were $1 per skewer, and then changed his mind when he realised that they were items like chicken knuckles and pork intestines. 
Dao xiao mian (shaved noodle) is a northern Chinese dish. The chef holds a lump of dough in one hand and rapidly shaves slivers of thin noodles into boiling water. Every strand is different and has a slightly chewy texture. 
This is another stall that we tried. Not the octopus but the lobster balls. I did want some tofu but balked at paying $3 for a skewer of five... 
We finished off the evening buying a large pack of prawn crackers ($5) to take home and 4 DVDs ($20 total, so clearly not-that-ahem-legit). It would be nice to go out there again sometime during the summer, if just for the food and atmosphere.
Getting to the market:
Venue: 10-acre site at 12631 Vulcan Way (behind Home Depot on Sweden Way and close to Ikea).
Opening hours: Fridays and Saturdays 7pm to 12 midnight; Sundays 7pm to 11pm; holiday Mondays 7pm to 11pm.
Duration: May 15th to October 4th, 2009
Website
It takes a little effort to get to without a car (parking is $5 at the venue).
Via public transport from downtown Vancouver, the easiest way is to get into Richmond on the 98-B line Richmond Centre. Get off at the Capstan Way stop on No. 3 Road, then take the 407 Bridgeport bus on Capstan Way (across from Canadian Tire). (The bus direction might seem to be the opposite but don't worry the bus makes a turn later towards the east.) Get off at the Sweden Way stop (on Bridgeport Road, next to Ikea) and then walk north along Sweden Way to Vulcan Way - just follow the crowd!
To return, walk back to Bridgeport Road and take the 407 Gilbert across from Ikea. Alight at No. 3 Road and take the 98-B line Burrard back into Vancouver.
Friday, 12 June 2009
Panko breaded fish with no frying
I love breaded fish fillets but the thought of frying always puts me off preparing them at home. Having found a recipe for oven baked breaded fish, I tried it out last week and was pleasantly surprised to find how well that worked. It has a lighter taste as much less oil is used and oven cooking means no messy stove top or leftover oil to get rid of. One could say that it has less flavour in the breaded coating precisely due to the amount of oil, but that is a good enough trade off for me in exchange for more healthy eating and less cooking mess. You can add chopped/dried herbs and lemon zest into the bread crumbs to add flavour, if you wish.
I have used panko bread crumbs in this recipe since I have a pack at home. You can of course use regular bread crumbs (either store bought or home made). Panko is a type of Japanese bread crumbs that gives a much lighter and fluffier texture, which absorbs less oil. An opened pack will keep well in a resealable ziplock bag. Those of you who live in more humid climes might want to place the ziplock back in the fridge to help the bread crumbs maintain its crisp texture. 
Ingredients (serve 2):
2 fillets of meaty white fish, such as cod, seabass or snapper
2 tbsp olive/vegetable oil
1 egg, beaten
1 cup of panko breadcrumbs (or use regular)
Salt and pepper to taste
Lemon wedges to serve (optional)
1. Preheat the oven to gas 7/220 C/425 F. Lightly grease a baking tray.
2. Season the fish with salt and pepper and pat them into the fillets. Have one dish to hold the beaten egg and another dish to hold the bread crumbs. Add oil to the bread crumbs and season with salt and pepper.
3. Taking one fillet at a time, coat first with the egg and then with the bread crumbs. Pat the bread crumbs around the fillets to make sure they stick. Place the coated fillets onto the baking tray.
4. Cook the breaded fish in top shelf of the oven for 20 minutes until the breadcrumbs are lightly golden. Serve immediately with lemon wedges.
I served the breaded fish with oven baked potato wedges and sauteed courgettes (zucchini) and tomatoes.
Monday, 8 June 2009
Recent bento
The hot weather we've been having the past few weeks brought out a craving for sushi and onigiri. In this lunch we had onigiri with teriyaki beef filling, inarizushi, mini beef patties, peppers and grilled asparagus. 
I didn't previously use sushi grass dividers (baran) but after buying a cheap pack recently and using it a few times, I am really liking it. It is pretty useful in dividing food that might stick, helps with the layout of food and also adds a nice touch of colour.
~ ~ ~ 
Chicken and mushroom chow mein with a side of steamed broccoli florets. As usual, they were dinner leftovers and I just packed the noodles and added the broccoli when the husband was washing up after dinner.
~ ~ ~ 
Parsley couscous, grilled asparagus and chicken with sundried tomato and mustard sauce. Just about everything was leftover from dinner; it's a good thing everything tastes good hot or cold. I just cooked about double the amount and packed the rest into bento boxes. They were in the fridge overnight and then ready to eat the next day without reheating. I placed them in insulated bags during the day and that worked well.
~ ~ ~ 
Another leftovers lunch of kai lan in oyster sauce, cherry tomatoes and claypot chicken rice.
