Quarantine Cuisine
By Emily Ko, News and Buzz Editor | She/Her/Hers
Prior to corona-time, my Instagram Explore page was filled with intense gym workouts, beautiful sceneries from hikes, party outfits, etc. The classic Pacific Northwest college girl’s Instagram. But if you were to check my Instagram Explore page now, it is endless scrolling of food recipes.
As a recent Zoom University transfer student, I am slowly adapting to my new academic life. The walk to class from my bed to my desk burns at least five calories, and as someone is health-conscious, high snacking levels are needed to sustain my energy.
The week following Washington State Governor Jay Inslee’s “Stay at Home Order,” I noticed my usual loose-fitting jeans hugging my hips more than before… “I’m not hungry, I’m bored. I’m not hungry, I’m bored.” (Thank you Tik Tok)
I needed to find the Middle Path in my relationship with snacking: eating, while and still fitting (most) jeans. Searching for a way to fuel my intense studies without overindulging, I found cooking.
I never was the chef of my family. I had no secret ingredient to my secret ingredient soup that had my relatives begging me to share - I literally learned how to make pasta my freshman year of college! But now, with COVID-19 yielding a completely different schedule, I find myself developing my culinary skills and exploring beautiful vegan, gluten-free Japanese recipes. Deeply invested in preparing my meals, carefully reading, and following a recipe. My dinners now take about an hour and a half to create, instead of twenty-minute rushed meals.
As I’ve traversed into cooking, I’ve obtained unexpected enjoyment in our chaotic, confusing new reality. Sitting down the other night eating dinner, I thought to myself: why am I truly cooking?
Maybe I’m cooking to suppress my boredom.
Maybe it’s to control one thing in my life.
Or, maybe it’s to overcome my acute nostalgia for my family’s home-cooked meals.
Many college students went home after schools shut down, but there are others, such as myself, away from their families. My apartment is only fifteen minutes away from my parent’s house, but in our current situation, sometimes it feels further away. I’ve noticed my food reflecting my homesickness, as I’ve recreated childhood favorites.
COVID-19 has greatly disrupted our lives, either drastically increasing or decreasing our free time depending on your career. Interested in how food is reflecting the change in other people’s lives, I asked a few young adult Buddhists to participate in a “Quarantine Cuisine” project. Food tells a story.
I thank everyone who contributed.
“Cooking well does not mean cooking fancy” - Julia Roberts
Emily Ko | Seattle, WA
Gluten-Free, Vegan Tofu Katsu Curry Noodle Bowl
“I found this recipe online and this was my first time using panko with tofu, after becoming vegan at the beginning this year! I used an oat milk/cornstarch combo as a substitute for coconut milk because I’m allergic to it. Although I almost burnt my eye frying tofu, I would make again because of the crunchiness!”
Mark Inouye | Hilo, Hawaii
Lemon Grilled Salmon
Create a fire, a grill also works if you don't have or want to make a coal fire
Pick some herbs, I used basil and lemongrass
Be sure to wash them before use!
Make a little boat/capsule out of foil to hold your fish
I used kajiki bc that was the first fish I found in my grocery store lol
Be sure to line the bottom of your foil with some type of oil, not butter because oil has a higher burning point
I threw some lemon slices and the herbs on the side for flavor purposes
Cook to desired doneness but be careful of overcooking since fish can be painfully dry if overcooked
Add 2 slices of butter while cooking on the herb sides and squeeze any extra lemon you have
Wrap the sides of the foil up to steam
There aren't really measurements for that part
But I made a lemon beurre blanc on the side using 2 teaspoons of finely minced onion, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of condensed milk (but heavy cream works too), and 1/2 cup of white wine
The condensed milk is optional but makes it a bit richer at the end
Place everything in a saucepan at medium high and bring to a simmer until about 1/3 or 3/4 remains
Bring to low heat and slowly incorporate butter chopped into cubes 2 cubes at a time
You can use a whole stick of butter (abt 4 oz) but I only used 3.5 oz
Pour on top and your herb roasted kajiki with lemon beurre blanc is done
I made this because cooking is really fun and now that I'm home I get a chance to cook with fresh local ingredients and things grown on my farm
Matt Nitta
Poke Bowl
We made poke bowls because it's fresh and easy to make at home. We love eating fish any chance we can get and it’s nice to try and do something a little bit fancier since we’re stuck eating at home everyday.
Evan Ko | Seattle, WA
“Stir Fry of Champions
This is the type of food that my Dad’s mom used to cook. It brings me good memories during this time.
Also my vegetables were going bad so it's a good way to use them up.
Alex Sakamoto | Issaquah, WA
Avocado Toast
I usually make avocado toast in the mornings for breakfast when I have enough time. I make it pretty simple and just add some salt and pepper to the avocado then spread it on the toast and top with cheese and sometimes an egg !
Koki Atcheson | Denver, Colorado
“When my roommate Bianca and I first learned about shelter in place, we both rushed to the grocery store to get staples that last. Pasta, curry, frozen veggies. We ate our typical meals but after a week or so, the tastebud fatigue set in. This meal is our first assemblage of new ingredients from our second grocery trip, when we tasted new flavors for the first time in a while. Bread, raspberry jalapeño jam, pickles, carrots, hummus, and a new type of seltzer all made for a new taste sensation. Variety may be the spice of life, but NAB for variety in spices.”
Jason Yokoyama | Seattle, WA
“Jason’s Spicy Chicken Teriyaki and Gyoza Combo”
Across the street from my work is a small teriyaki place called Midori Teriyaki. Located in downtown Seattle, it’s your typical fast food teriyaki joint so loving dubbed “Ghettoyaki” by people in the lab back in 2012. Since then it has been a favorite go-to spot for lunch for many people in the lab. One of main things people order is the spicy chicken teriyaki and gyoza combo. While I’ve never eaten there in my 6 years of service, I enjoy cooking. During quarantine, cooking has become my creative outlet so I took it upon myself to recreate the recipe so my coworkers could get their fix. Even though I don’t know what true Ghettoyaki tastes like, my recipe tastes good and is probably much healthier for you. It’s high effort, but it’s worth it!
How to Cook:
Prepare Spicy Teriyaki Sauce by combining mirin, soy sauce, sake, and sugar in a pot and cook down to burn off the alcohol. It will slowly reduce but be careful that it doesn’t burn or become too thick! Once it looks like it lightly coats the bottom of the pot, but is still mostly liquid, incorporate hot sauce. Remove from heat, cool, and then reserve a small portion for later. Use remaining sauce to marinate chicken thighs at 4C for at least 1 hour.
While thighs marinate, prepare gyoza filling by boiling nappa cabbage to cook. Never add uncooked nappa to your meat or else it will leach water when you cook your gyoza. Once cooked, squeeze out water, and dice into small pieces. Once diced, use a clean towel or paper towel to squeeze out any remaining water and place into a large bowl. Take a bundle of green onions and chop the green parts and add to the bowl. Take both ground meats and add to the bowl. Add sesame oil, a decent amount of pepper, and dash of salt, and hand mix to combine. Keep at 4C until ready to fold.
Alternatively: You can cook your filling prior to folding. This way you won’t have to worry about your meat being fully cooked when you cook your gyoza. However, I prefer to leave it uncooked. This allows juices to come out of the meat when you cook your gyoza.
Prepare gyoza sauce by combining rice vinegar, soy sauce, and chili oil. Add sliced or grated ginger if you’re feeling it. Store at 4C until it’s time to eat.
Cook rice in your preferred method.
Fold gyoza by taking a small spoonful of filling and placing it in the middle of the wrapper. Fill a small bowl with water. Dip your finger in the water, and run it along half of the wrapper to wet. Fold in half and begin to crimp, by pinching the front layer, folding it back, and sealing to the back layer. Shape into a “gyoza shape” after. I know that doesn’t make a lot of sense… so here is a youtube video on how to do it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uzGezdkuso You can also fold them however you want. You do you.
Pro Tip 1: You don’t have to use all the filling in one sitting. You can save it to use for another meal, like a nice stir fry. Or you could just fold a crap ton of gyoza and then freeze them. To do this, freeze them on parchment paper lined baking sheet. Once they are frozen remove them, and put them in a large ziplock back. Then you’ll have a cache of frozen gyoza you can eat whenever that are way better than store bought ones.
Pro Tip 2: People really like to eat gyoza, however it’s a pain to fold them all. Teach your friends how to fold, and then tell them “Each of you fold as many as you want to eat. I’m not folding all of these for all of you.” #gyozaparty
Midori deep fry’s their gyoza. To do this, heat up canola oil to appropriate temperature, and fry until golden brown and they float. Remove, let rest, and enjoy! However, I prefer to pan-fry and steam my gyoza. It’s also healthier this way. To do this, take a large frying pan with a lid, and add canola oil. Add gyoza to the pan on their flat side and cook until nice brown color develops on the bottom of the gyoza and it begins to blister. Once that happens, pour in a small amount of water and cover to steam. Be careful not to drown them! Once gyoza appear cooked (skin gets kinda translucent and you can see color of cooked meat), remove and enjoy!
Grill chicken till cooked. If you have a friend to help you, you can have them cook the chicken while you cook the gyoza or vice versa. Cooking with friends is fun! If you are alone, cook the chicken after you make the gyoza so you have something to eat while the chicken cooks. Once cooked, toss in remaining sauce if you want. You will probably have to reheat it on the stove for a hot sec. This is also a good time to adjust spice level if you want.
Plate in typical Midori fashion and enjoy!!
Ingredients
2 cups Rice
3 Chicken thighs
A pack of Gyoza skins (round)
Canola oil
Spicy Teriyaki Sauce
¼ cup Mirin (that contains alcohol not aji-mirin)
¼ cup Soy sauce
¼ cup Sake
1 Tbsp Sugar
2 Tsp Hot Sauce or to taste
Gyoza Filling
½-1 lbs ground pork
½-1 lbs spicy/hot ground pork
4-5 leaves of nappa cabbage
Green onion
Salt and Pepper
2-3 Tbsp Sesame Oil
Gyoza Sauce
3 parts Rice Vinegar
1 part Soy sauce
A few drops Chili Oil/ to taste
Sliced or grated Ginger (optional)
Sheera Yoshitomi | Oahu, HI
“Saimin and Fruit Jello Bars”
“I made saimin because my grandma and grandpa would always make it for me when I was a little girl. I would eat it for a snack after a long day at school. Now that [they're] not here anymore, I wanted to continue their tradition and make it for my parents so they can enjoy it after a long day from work! I also choose to make cream cheese jello bars because it’s a light and refreshing snack!”
Kallie Ochiai | Irvine, CA
“Mini Turkey Hambagu”
“Mini turkey hambagu’s are a go to when cooking during the quarantine because I have most of the ingredients are commonly found in my pantry and they remind me of my grandma’s “turkey burgers” when I was growing up!”
Samantha Honmyo | Renton, WA
“Pon de Ring Donuts”
“They are a donut recipe based off of the Japanese chain mr.donut that I’ve been obsessed about since visiting Japan back in middle school- crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside. They are similar to mochi donuts but this recipe is made with tapioca flour rather than mochiko. I decided on trying out the recipe because it’s been on my bucket list to do and quarantine has given me the time to explore my hand in frying. They turned out well but they last only a day before getting too hard to enjoy.”
Dylan Nishi | San Francisco, CA
“Eating totino's pizza is like eating the love child of a dominos thin crust pizza and the lunchables pizza.”
Nicole and Brianne Hanamoto | Fullerton, CA
“Baked Sweet Potato Fries”
Staying at home at first was a real shock [for] our family but we have made the most of our time by trying to eat healthy and exercise. Since we usually have very different schedules, it has also been really nice to [spend] quality time together.
Charlene Din
Matcha Strawberry Mille Crepe Cake
“Heyo! This is one of the many Tik Tok recipes I have decided to try during quarantine. Not the most visually appealing - “Just One Cookbook” has a prettier version, but super delish!”
Jin Swun | Cypress, CA
Swiss Roll Cake
“I have been cooking since I was six. During the school year it’s been hard to find time to cook and bake but quarantine has allowed time for me to get in the kitchen more than I usually do and even experiment with new dishes. The checkered matcha chocolate Swiss roll cake has a matcha chantilly and chocolate buttercream… It’s a new recipe I created while in quarantine”
Ashley Mauldian | Orange County, California
Oatmeal Cookies
“For my bit in quarantine cuisine, I made oatmeal chocolate chip cookies! I’ve been baking as a way to alleviate stress during quarantine and stave off boredom. I’ve made many different types of cookies - from chocolate chip to snickerdoodle, and this was my latest recipe that I tried! It was a lot of fun to make and I’m definitely going to be using this recipe again!”
