Well, this is a bit late . . . but what are you going to do?
This year, the Chinese New Year fell on February 10th, 2013, bringing us into the year of the water snake. Being a sucker for holidays, even ones outside of my own cultural traditions, I had a personal celebration. I decided to honor water snake by making a small painting, and I cooked up a bit of Buddha’s delight, a traditional vegetarian dish typically served during the Chinese New Year.
For my water snake illustration, I did an ink-blob sketch in my art journal. First, I dropped a bit of Dr. Ph. Martin’s liquid watercolor onto one side of the page. Next, I folded the page in half and pressed evenly in order to create somewhat symmetrical ink blobs. Then, I took out a black ink pen and let intuition guide me as a doodled a water snake.
I never really know what I’m going to end up with ink blobs and doodles, but I find the process so meditative, and I was happy to have a theme to inspire me.
For the Buddha’s Delight, I used a traditional recipe for inspiration but changed it up a bit to use what I had on hand and add a little health boost. First, I fried up some firm tofu in coconut oil and turmeric and set it aside. Then, I stir fried mixed veggies in coconut oil with garlic and ginger. For my veggies, I used shredded carrot, chopped celery, broccoli, rehydrated black forest mushrooms, mung beans, purple cabbage, and leeks. Yum. I used a wok on high heat to cook the veggies quickly and leave them a bit of crispness. While the veggies were cooking, I sprinkled on a bit of rice wine vinegar, tamari, white wine, sugar, and toasted sesame seeds. To serve, I topped everything with bit more tamari and toasted sesame oil. Toasted sesame oil isn’t a traditional addition to this dish, but I love its flavor and tend to add it to everything. The dish tastes perfectly good without it, too.
For more detailed instructions, check out the following recipes:
- Buddha’s Delight – Chinese New Year Recipes – Vegetarian Recipe.
- Buddha’s Delight Recipe at Epicurious.com.
- Buddha’s Delight Recipe | Vegetarian Times.
Happy New Year!
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