Breakfast, July 13, 2011

Something decent is always nice even when there is not much time. On a chilly day, a warm soup is essential. Filling rice will keep you going on a 2.5-hour trip to Seattle. And something in season will waken your sense of season.

• Steamed rice with sakura ebi iri iritamago / scrambled eggs with sakura ebi
• Miso soup with daikon radish, carrot, satoimo baby taro root and mizuna
• Gomaae with fava beans and komatsuna / fava beans and komatsuna in sesame dressing

Root vegetables are substantial, even when relatively thinly sliced for quick cooking. They are also known to warm your body. Satoimo baby taro root is rich in potassium, which helps to eliminate sodium from your body. Daikon radish helps digestion. Carrot for vitamins and color. Mizuna picked from a raised bed adds a touch of green to the soup.

Mildly bitter fava beans are blanched and outer skin removed for a more tender texture. Because fava beans alone did not seem enough for the meal, komatsuna was blanched and added. The tahini-based dressing is rich, and a small amount is satisfying. Tobanjan, whose ingredients include fava beans, adds spiciness and compliments well.  

Oil-free scrambled eggs with sakura ebi boosts the overall nutritional value of this quick breakfast.