In Japanese cuisine, konjac (known as konnyaku) appears in dishes such as oden. It is typically mottled grey and firmer in consistency than most gelatins. It has very little taste and is valued more for its texture than flavor.

Konnyaku made in noodle form is called shirataki – You may recognize the jelly noodles that soak up all that lovely sauce at the end of your sukiyaki and has a rubber band like texture.

It has no fat, sugar, or starch. It contains zero net carbohydrates and zero calories, no gluten and no wheat. I’ve personally been enjoying these for years and it is great in Asian soup broths.

This company has started producing shirataki noodles in all different shapes and sizes to resemble fettuccine, rice, macaroni and angel hair. Would you be willing to give this a try?

http://www.miraclenoodle.com/recipes-preparation.html

When my friend Adam Lane (ex Ivy Teppanyaki / Nobu London) told me about the new venture “Love Lunch” he’s involved in, I was immediately warmed to the idea. Love Lunch specializes in organic, low fat, dairy, gluten and meat free meals that are delivered to your door step.

Does this mean I can have my cake, and eat it too? (The cake being gluten free, of course!)

Little did I know, “Adam’s friend Annalise” was actually the famous model/actress, Annalise Braakensiek. Over 10 years ago when I used to sell gourmet olive oils and expensive French truffles at Olivier’s & Co, I used to admire her amazing figure (evident from a healthy organic diet?) when she frequents the neighbouring salon upstairs to have her long blonde locks styled.

Annalise grew up on a biodynamic farm where access to fresh organic produce was so easy, she began cooking at a very early age. With support from her uni friend Bill Granger, she has decided to launch Love Lunch as a proper business venture.

At this early stage, it is only available on a weekly basis. An email is sent out by Annalise every Thursday with her weekly dish, and I place my order by Friday. She then shops accordingly, personally selecting delicious premium organic seasonal produce, and cooks up lovely meals, ready for Tuesday deliveries.

Last week’s love lunch was:

Low fat Malaysian mixed veggie and tofu curry- LOW FAT!!! Yes, I use organic malt free soy and rice milk instead of coconut cream, no oil, and no animal fats…just seasonal organic veggies and non GMO tofu, traditional Malaysian spices, fresh ginger, lemongrass and kaffir lime from our garden, and of course, always my main ingredient: lots of LOVE!

Served on a bed of steamed jasmine rice, sprinkled with fresh coriander and a wedge of lemon or lime (I’ll see whichever is better at the organic markets on Saturday) to squeeze over just before devouring.

I ordered 5 to be delivered (fresh!) to my office and my creative colleagues prepared some papadums (cooked with the microwave, burnt a few and also set off the smoke alarms, oops), sliced cucumbers and yogurt dip.

The feedback was all positive! I never knew curry tasted so good made with soy & rice milk – the flavours were rich and the spices were fragrantly balanced. The chilli had a good kick and my colleague loved the fresh herbs on top.

All the packaging is environmentally friendly too!

To read more about Love Lunch visit: http://www.lovelunch.com.au

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This was one of our favorites from November 2009:

Quinoa and roast vegetable salad – of 100% certified organic quinoa. A gluten free, cholesterol free, high in both calcium and protein ancient grain from the Andes, (for those of you not familiar with it, its similar to cous cous) and certified organic roast pumpkin and seasonal veggies, baby spinach, rocket, Rosnay organic kalamata olives, and my home made dressing of Rosnay organic olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Maldon salt and cracked pepper, fresh herbs from our garden and of course, always my main ingredient, lots of LOVE! (This is a vegan dish.)

Vitamin water is presently one very popular product on the market, due to the efforts many people are taking towards healthy nutrition and hydration habits. Nevertheless, there are several objections to the extended or exclusive use of vitamin water on a regular basis.

Upon reading the label, the second ingredient is crystalline fructose. That’s high-fructose corn syrup (which I use in Korean cooking) and there’s about 32 grams. It’s not much difference to drinking a can of soft drink.

There are plenty more nutrients in a glass of fresh juice!

Voted 19th on the unhealthiest drinks in America: (Men’s Health)
130 calories
33 g sugar

“Vitamins and water might sound like the ultimate nutritional tag team, but what the label doesn’t say is that a bottle of this stuff carries nearly as much sugar and calories as a can of Coke. Makes sense, though, since this so-called functional beverage is produced by our often-sugar-crazy friends at The Coca-Cola Company. “ 

My thoughts?
It’s a great drink to replace high-sugared soft drinks
but an awful replacement to water, especially after excercising.

It’s Calorie Free
For people watching their caloric intake, using Truvia™ natural sweetener instead of caloric sweeteners is an effective way to help reduce calories in their diet. As a result, Truvia™ can play a role in weight management.

It’s Natural
Rebiana comes from the leaves of the stevia plant, which has been used around the world for centuries. used around the world for centuries. Stevia, a shrub in the chrysanthemum family native to Paraguay, was discovered more than 200 years ago by the Guarani natives who used the leaves to sweeten drinks. Japan has been using stevia commercially for more than two decades, and today, stevia represents 40 percent of the country’s high-intensity sweetener market. Stevia is found on grocery store shelves in Asia and South America in products such as yoghurts, teas and pickled foods.

Too good to be true?

Ingredients:
Vegetable oil
2 tbsp dried shrimp (soaked, then finely minced with a knife)

Sauce:
1 tsp XO sauce
1 tsp grated fresh garlic
1 tsp yuzu
1 tsp tamari
1/2 tsp fish sauce
dash of seasame oil
dash of xiaoxing wine

Heat wok with vegetable oil, add dried shrimp, and 30 seconds later add vegetables. Toss.
Add sauce, mix it evenly and cover for 2 minutes.

The minced dried shrimps give it a great texture, different from when shrimp paste is used. Other suggestions: Snake beans, baby bok choy…

Scale, debone and Skin Salmon

Marinade fillet with 1 tbsp Tamari, 1 tbsp Fish sauce, dash of mirin, dash of yuzu in a bag, and refridgerate for 30 mins

Pan fry fillet for 2 minutes on each side

Immediately wrap fillet inside a foil “boat” and let it sit – so it slow cooks itself with the existing heat

Pan fry salmon skin, and throw inside oven with the grill on for a few more minutes

I served it with a side of carrot and zucchini ribbons (lightly blanched, dressed with sea salt, pepper and olive oil) and topped with thin strips of crispy salmon skin. I pan fried the rest of the zucchini (it was just leftovers from “ribbon making” that I didn’t want to waste).
The result? Really amazing, moist, medium rare flesh better than poached salmon, and topped with the crispy skin that we love so much from fried salmon. Thanks Woo Weeee

Warm Salad of Asparagus, Oyster mushrooms with ‘Zucchini chips’

Ingredients:
Baby roma tomatos: half lightly grilled in oven, other half thinly sliced, for a combination of sweetness and texture
Young asparagus (fresh from the grower’s markets) cooked with olive oil and and a drizzle of aged balsamic
Oyster mushrooms, shredded, wok tossed in rice bran oil, mirin and seasame oil
Zucchini ‘chips’: lay flat on baking paper, rubbed with sea salt and brush with extra virgin olive oil. Grill in fan forced oven for 5 minutes and allow to rest until crispy
2 organic eggs, over easy with a liquid yolk.
Carrot – Julienned
Baby salad leaves with Japanese wafu goma dressing.

Oyster mushrooms can be replaced with Chicken
The crispy zucchini chips really added to the charm of the texture. The soft running yolk complemented the asparagus (shame I didn’t have any truffles). The oven grilled tomatos exploded with juice upon bite while the raw tomatos were cool and fresh against the salad leaves. Oyster mushrooms are a great alternative for vegetarians as its texture is a quite similar to meat… in a ’stringy’ nature.

Voila, Lunch!
Our checklist: low carb, low calorie, wheat free, gluten free, diary free, vegetarian – most of all, edible AND enjoyable!

Hairy Cucumber (節瓜) and White Turnip Soup

1 Hairy Cucumber
1 Chinese white turnip
8 dried scallops
3 dried figs
4 dried chestnuts
1/4 Leek
Handful of skinned almonds
1 corn, halved
1/2 cup Cloud ear fungus
1/2 kg Pork bone
Handful of chinese roots which I can’t describe at the moment

Hairy cucumber is known to be rich in potassium, beta-carotene, calcium, phosphorus, iron, vitamin C and AB. It is a great diuretic and has slimming properties. Chinese white turnips are low in calories and high in nutrients – and like allcruciferous vegetables, loaded with cancer-fighting phytochemicals. Double score! (pics to come later)

Ingredients:
Silken Tofu (ready to eat out of the pack)
Wakame (soaked)
Corn Kernels
Edamame beans (boiled and shelled)
1 tbsp Soy or Tamari
1 tsp Mirin
1 tsp Rice vinegar
Yuzu and Japanese sesame dressing (Drizzle to taste)

For some reason I totally forgot to add my edamame beans into the salad before I left the house yesterday morning. You should also add bonito flakes and toasted sesame seeds for added texture. This is very quick to prepare before running out of the house in the morning.

Oh… by the way, my diet’s going quite well! I can fit into my pants again!

The Corn and Basil soup from Plan B by Becasse today, was AMAZING, and only $5 for a large bowl!

I also bought the Coronation Chicken Sandwich, and the BLT for my colleagues. They both said it tasted amazing, but I wasn’t quick enough with the camera before it was both wolfed down. (so it’s got to be good!) Sandwiches are $8 each. (photo link here)

Plan B are best known for their Wagyu Burgers – but alas, not part of the current diet plan, girlfriend!

So my partner ended up contracting an awful stomach virus, and in order to hydrate and re-nourish the body with nutrients I made a simple soup. If we were really adhering with rules from Chinese medicine, chicken probably should be replaced with pork bones, but Chicken cooked a lot faster (I got home at 7:30pm and the soup was ready in an hour) – probably because I only used the leg.

Ingredients:
4 grain-fed chicken drumsticks, skin removed
1 carrot
1 leek
2 small potatoes
1 small onion
1 bulb of ginger
1/4 celery
1/2 can of organic peeled tomatoes
handful basil
season with salt, pepper, paprika and dried oregano

Pre boil chicken to remove impurities, re-add water into pot, and combine all ingredients (which are all diced). Bring to boil, and then simmer in medium heat for 40 minutes. Debone and shred meat from chicken before serving.

And fortunately, it became a great low-cal, low-carb office lunch!