Ginger Rehab

You know you're cooked when you get that little tickle in your throat. Too late for the echinacea, too late for the Vitamin C. You just gotta stock up on the tea & cough drops and hope your schedule allows for a day or more resting at home. Mine didn't this time around. I had a 3-day retreat that I'd planned for my department in Albany, New York and a big party at home that Saturday night--neither of which I could cancel. Unfortunate, because in my experience, if you try to work through sickness with medication (my preferred coping meds are a steady stream of DayQuil and NyQuil), you're just staving off symptoms and your cold lasts longer. And that is, indeed, what happened.

What made this cold a tiny bit more bearable was the fresh ginger I picked up at the Albany food co-op. I'd never seen it before, and the co-op workers told me they wouldn't have it for long. I bought enough to do three things: make some ginger-tofu stir fry, stick one of the little root ends in water to see if it would grow, and cut little slivers into throat-coat tea all week. Delicious.

Don't Cry Over Spilled Hato Muji

I found this grain--Job's Tears, or hato muji, at the Albany food co-op several months ago. I'd never heard of it before, and it was supremely expensive, so I just had to try it. It is an ancient grain that looks and acts like barley, but isn't. It has all kinds of uses (medicinal, nutritional, artistic), but I planned to use it for a cold summer salad.

Ever since I stopped eating quinoa (here's why) I've been searching for an alternative grain. While hato muji is almost prohibitively expensive, it is really tasty.

I couldn't find a recipe for it anywhere, so I made one up based on a recipe I found for barley salad.

Apricot-Grain Summer Salad

1 1/2 cups hato muji

8 cups water

1 cube bouillion (veggie, mushroom)

[or you can use 2-4 cups of stock in place of the same proportion of water]

1/2 cup sliced dried apricot

1/2 cup shredded carrot

1 cup diced yellow pepper

1 cup finely diced onion

4 cloves diced garlic

1 tbsp diced ginger

2 tbsp olive oil, or toasted sesame oil (or a combination)

1/2 cup sliced toasted almond

Combined water/broth with the hato muji and bring to a boil. Simmer for at least an hour (frequently checking toward the end) until the grain is firm but chewy. While the grain is cooking, sautee in a cast iron pan the onion, garlic, and ginger in olive oil until tender and just beginning to brown. When the grain is done cooking, toss in a large bowl with the sliced apricots, shredded carrot, and the sauteed onion mixture. Quickly sautee over high heat the diced yellow bell pepper until some of the pieces are singed. Toss into the grain. Garnis with toasted sliced or chopped almonds. It's a nice alternative to a potato-based dish for a main dish of pork loin or ribs, or just on it's own.