Today, I decided to break my fast before I got another annoying keto rash. I had not eaten anything the past few days other than B-12 and mineral powders as well as algal Omega-3 tablets, and my friends and my brother kept talking about food, which was aggravating. Water was no longer cutting it.
I decided I was going to make more of the modified pico de gallo my best friend made while I was staying with her and her family. I substituted the bell peppers with jalapeños (the latter taste much better, to me) and used shallots instead of onions (to minimize the eye sting). Some chopped tomatoes and cilantro got mixed in with the other veggies. I seasoned the melange with salt, pepper, and lime juice. It was simple, fairly quick, and tasty. But I needed something else. That is, other than the dehydrated beets (if you try these, don’t be alarmed later… you’ll know what I mean…) I was snacking on.
I noticed a box of couscous from the Near East brand lying around. I read the cooking instructions, which were pretty straightforward. Temptation overwhelmed me. In a large skillet, I dissolved a vegan stock cube in two cups of water with a tablespoon of olive oil (I used the bottled one from Trader Joe’s). Once the water boiled, I added the couscous, removed the skillet from the heat, and waited five minutes before fluffing up the grains. I added the pico de gallo and some chopped Romaine lettuce. Behold!
When I noticed my brother walking downstairs, I offered him some after going over the ingredients. He didn’t hate it, and he said: “I wouldn’t be mad if you made this again.” Success!
I decided I wanted to start preparing a second lunch in order to avoid a heavy dinner later. With my brother’s reluctant help, I started to prep the other things we would need. We made some air-fried red potatoes with garlic and onion powder, olive oil, salt, and pepper. I chopped onions, garlic, and jalapeños and grated ginger to prepare a Teriyaki tofu stir-fry. (Side note: the garlic shake-to-peel trick works, but you need to smash the bulb against the counter and violently shake the cloves in a sealed container, preferably made out of metal or some other hard material, not soft plastic.) I have to admit that I cheated because I had bought Trader Joe’s Soyaki sauce to avoid blender cleanup if I made the sauce from scratch. Most of the preliminary preparations were done.
Aromatics went into the hot skillet with some olive oil. First, the onions with a sprinkle of salt and pepper for six minutes. I told my brother to stir them and to later put them to one side of the skillet. Once the timer beeped, garlic and ginger followed on the cleared side with an extra drizzle of olive oil. He tossed them around until the garlic started to get a nice golden color. At that point, I added a few drops of Bragg Liquid Amino seasoning to the garlic and ginger mixture. Then, I incorporated the chopped jalapeños (I made sure to also remove the seeds and white membranes, or ribs). Next, I proceeded to cube the tofu while my brother continued to stir everything else. We combined the tofu with the aromatics, and I added the sauce to one side of the skillet to heat it up slightly before it coated the cubes. It was tasty as is, but I added sesame seeds and chopped cilantro for garnish.
I also seasoned a few tomatoes with salt and dried oregano powder. More chopped Romaine lettuce, and we got this:
Here’s a better look:
That red sauce on the potatoes is a delicious (to us, at least) organic sriracha by Natural Value:
I kept asking my brother though how we could have improved it. He did not like the mushy texture of the tofu, so I added chopped almonds to his portion, and he enjoyed it much better with the crunch. I would personally add cashews, maybe peanuts, but we ran out of those.
I was full, yet not stuffed, for a few hours. Hunger came back eventually, regardless. Since I wanted more antioxidants for kicks, I made a matcha, turmeric, black pepper, and clove tea with molasses. The hot, dark water steamed gently in my mug. Who needs coffee when you have this? Just kidding. (I need to get Reishi mushrooms.)
There was still the issue of what was next. Nonetheless, I had told my best friend that I wasn’t going to eat anything past 7:30 P.M. Around 6:15 P.M., I decided I wanted something easy. A container of Israeli pearl couscous surprised me inside a cupboard. I didn’t want an exact duplicate of my earlier meal, though. In the basement freezer, I found a bag of frozen mixed veggies. In the other freezer, half a bag of frozen corn caught my eye. I heated the large skillet I keep washing over and over. Olive oil and chopped garlic came next. A sprinkle of sea salt (I need to keep track and maintain it below 2 grams per day) and black pepper coalesced with golden garlic. Later came the vegetables and two cups of water. I also dissolved another vegan stock cube, and when the watery mess boiled, I put the lid on it for a couple of minutes. Last, but not least, the couscous went in for 9 minutes. I stirred a couple of times, and yet some of it almost burned… HAHAHAHA! Anyway, it came out colorful:
Tomorrow, I need black beans and kale. The legumes are soaking overnight as we speak.
A Time to Try New Things 