Easy Oatmeal

This is mainly for my own reference if I go a while without making oatmeal for breakfast! I've got my two favorites here for now, but if I remember any others - or new ones arise! - I'll get them added to this post. I love old school oatmeal, but what's here is for a quick, hearty breakfast on a less than relaxing morning. The peanut butter oatmeal recipe is entirely my own, but the maple pecan one is based on Yumna Jawad's recipe.

Siga Wot' / Spicy Ethiopian Beef Stew

This dish - ሥጋ ወጥ in Amharic - is another old favorite from Ethiopia, and turns out beautifully tender using the pressure cooker. The core of the recipe is from Ato Daniel's classic Ethiopian cookbook, but I've tweaked it here and there to work better for me. The end result still tastes like the original to me, and is well worth a try if you already love Ethiopian food or are looking to try it out at home!

Tex-Mex Dal

This dish is one of those that was born out of need. We had forgotten to go to the grocery store and I was out of peanut butter for my usual vegan breakfast go to (peanut butter oatmeal), so I was rooting around in the cabinets for something quick 'n easy before I had to start teaching...and behold, split red lentils! I didn't quite have everything to make a normal dal (again, the grocery store situation), so when I found salsa in the fridge an idea - no, a star! - was born.

Easy Potato Salad with Sesame

Some days there's time to do a recipe...but most days there's not. This is definitely a recipe for one of those latter days! It's vaguely based on Korean Bapsang's lovely potato salad recipe, but with so many modifications that I hesitate to attribute this to her. Definitely try hers out if you want something more authentically Korean! And if you want to try a vaguely East Asian-inspired potato salad recipe, then try out mine. Either way, enjoy!

Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup

This is a recipe that looks daunting at first glance, but is actually quite easy and straightforward. It might require some shopping if you don't have the basics of a Chinese pantry, but most of those "unusual" ingredients get used quite a bit in other Chinese dishes. (When my husband and I got into cooking more of his food after we left China we used to joke that everything used the same four or five ingredients, just in differing amounts - it's funny 'cause it's kinda true!) I've used the wonderful recipe at the Woks of Life as a base, but adapted it somewhat to my family's tastes. Definitely go to the source if you're wanting to work with a more authentic recipe!

Musabaha

This recipe is a recreation - to the best of my memory, and with some tweaks to make it more convenient, accessible, and affordable - of one of my favorite Syrian dishes introduced to me by a lovely family from Aleppo. Every since I first had it I've been wanting a recipe, and I recently came across Luay Ghafari's great recipe and realized it was pretty close to perfect. I can't claim any authenticity for my version, but it is a deliciously vegan dish that I crave whether I'm off meat or not. I hope you like it as much as I do!

Chili Garlic Noodles

This is another experiment in quick, delicious meals. The lovely original recipe is from Aaron and Claire and is very Korean thanks to the gochugaru, but I've found these also taste gorgeous with a more Chinese twist using the Chinese chili flakes. This is usually a go to for me on fasting days, but they're quite lovely with meat as well. However you make them, I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Spicy Mixed Noodles

This is another gorgeous cold noodle dish from Korea, 비빔국수 (bibim guksu when transliterated). These noodles are perfect on a hot day and pair beautifully with a ginger ale or a beer if you've got either one kicking around. I've combined Korean Bapsang's recipe with Maangchi's more streamlined recipe with one or two tweaks, but obviously do what works for you! I hope this helps cool down your summer as beautifully as it does mine!

Cold Soy Sauce Noodles

It's finally starting to feel like summer where I'm living at the moment (why yes, it is mid-June, why d'you ask?) and so I've switched from all things soup to craving cold dishes and refreshing foods that help beat the heat. This particular dish is a lovely cold noodle dish from Korea - I mostly followed Kimchimari's great recipe, but took some inspiration from Aaron and Claire's recipe as well. It's simple, straightforward, and deliciously refreshing on a hot day. I hope it helps you chill out as much as it has me!

Deviled Eggs with Soy Sauce 'n Sesame

I will never not crave deviled eggs, but even I occasionally tire of the divine dill (gasp! I know!!!) deviled eggs I usually make. The other day I started pondering what a vaguely East Asian deviled egg would taste like...and then I did some googling and came across Eric Kim's awesome recipe and it just had to be! What follows is mostly his recipe, but with a couple of adaptations to make it better fit my family's tastes. If you love deviled eggs as much as I do definitely give this a try, I don't think you'll regret it!