Cabbage

Tuna Tacos

Tuna Tacos

1-2 tuna steak, 10-12 ounce each, approximately 1 inch thick
The juice of 1 lime
2 tablespoons olive oil
Chili spices

  • Combine juice and spices in a shallow dish.  
  • Lay the tuna steak on the sauce. 
  • After 10 minutes, flip over.
  • Prepare a non-stick skillet over med-high heat.
  • When hot, spray with cooking spray. 
  • Remove steak, blot dry, and place in skillet. 
  • Turn after 1-2 minutes.
  • Steak is done in another 1-2 minutes. Properly cooked, it should be deep pink to red in the center.
  • Slice it into ¼ slices.

  • Assemble with your preferred ingredients (lettuce and tomato, onion and cilantro, or with a Cabbage/Lime/Jalapeno slaw.)
Nutritional data will depend on your specific ingredients and how much of each you add to the tacos. Those are choices you will make for you and your family.
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Choices are a common theme on my Make Your Someday Today podcast, because we all make choices every day, all the time. Who we become is a recult of our choices. Who do you want to become?

Cabbage, Lime and Jalapeno Slaw

Cabbage, Lime and Jalapeno Slaw
Approximately 10 portions, 1/2 cup each

This recipe combines all the great food experiences. It has the creaminess of the sour cream, the tang of fresh lime juice and lime zest, and the heat of the jalapeno. And you can pump the heat up by using a habanero instead of jalapeno, or adding Sriracha for another layer of flavor. It is a perfect paring with seafood, especially a meaty fish like tuna, or with smoky BBQed pork ribs, or a battered and fried chicken. Such delicious foods, such a versatile side dish!

½ cup sour cream (or plain Greek yogurt)
2 tablespoon mayo
The juice of one lime
The zest of one lime
1 bag of pre-shredded cabbage (9-12 ounces by weight)
1-2 fresh jalapeno, minced
4-6 green onions, sliced, white and green parts
Salt and pepper to taste

  1. Mix together first four ingredients
  2. Mix in the cabbage, onion and jalapenos
  3. Season with salt and pepper as needed.
  4. This is better if you make it one day in advance.

Nutritional data:
Calories:       29
Fat:               1.4g
Sat fat:          0.8g
Chol:         4.2mg
Sodium:   15.1mg
Carbs:           3.6g
Fiber:            1.1g
Protein:         0.9g
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My Make Your Someday Today podcast is committed to helping people achieve success, in any goal: weight loss, physical fitness, business, happiness. Part of that is finding good foods that will support your health, reduce your workload, and still taste delicious!

Classic Borsh (you might call it Borsht)

Borsh
Serves Many! (Approximately 24 portions, 1 cup each)

Some people and cookbooks call this “borscht”. My Ukrainian-born friend who gave me this recipe says that it is supposed to be “borsh.” She was a Captain in the Israeli Defense Forces, and is a fierce woman. Who am I to question her?

Well, actually, I question her quite a bit, when I interviewed her for my podcast, Make Your Someday Today (abbreviated as MYST). You can hear the complete interview at MakeYourSomedayToday.com/JulieSheranosher

Ingredients:

2 pounds (1kg) top loin steak or round steak. Use a lean cut, and trim excess fat. Cut this into squares 1″ (2.5cm) on a side
2 cans/bottles of beer (Do not use a very hoppy beer. A simple pilsner would be best.)
2-4 cloves garlic, or more to preference
6-8 black peppercorns
1 big or 2 small onions, diced
2 large beets, peeled and grated
2 large carrots, peeled and grated
3 large potatoes, peeled and cut into 1″ cubes
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 small cabbage, thinly shredded (or use a 12 ounce bag of pre shredded cabbage)
2 red bell peppers, diced
fresh parsely, 2 large handfuls 
1 tablespoon white sugar
sour cream and fresh chives for garnish.
  1. Put the meat in a big pot. Add beer, garlic, black pepper and 2 cups water.
  2. Bring to boil, cover and lower the heat to a medium flame and allow to cook for 1 hour.
  3. Add the beets, carrots, onion, potatoes and salt (optional). Add 1 cup boiling water if needed to cover.
  4. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and cook for another 30 minutes
  5. Add the tomato paste, cabbage and peppers. Stir to combine.
  6. Bring to a boil and allow to cook for 15 minutes.
  7. Add the sugar and parsley. The parsley is NOT for garnish. It is necessary to complete the flavor profile.
  8. Cook on a medium flame for another 20 minutes.
  9. Cover, cool and place in refrigerator overnight. (Required for full flavor!)
  10. When serving, reheat over medium, and serve with a tablespoon sour cream and freshly chopped chives.
Nutritional data (not including sour cream or bread):
Calories:    161
Fat:            8.1g
Sat fat:       3.1g
Chol:        33mg
Sodium:   48mg
Carbs:      10.6g
Fiber:         2.3g

Protein:    11.3g

Do me a big favor? Please leave a comment here for Julie and her recipe and tell us when you have or will make it!


Make Your Someday Today is a twice-weekly podcast, where we talk to successful people in all walks of life and around the world on Monday, and then on Thursday, I take a specific message from the previous guest and give my “Trevitorial”, where I help you apply that message to your life. The entire purpose of the show is to help all of us overcome our challenges and fears and become the person we want to be, the person we deserve to be.

Asian Chicken Salad

Asian Chicken Salad
Serves 2

Remember Last Friday’s recipe? The Grilled Chicken and the Hoisin BBQ sauce?

Well, this recipe uses 2 left over chicken quarters and the remaining Hoisin BBQ sauce.

Skin the chicken and remove the bones. Roughly chop the chicken. Pour the BBQ sauce over the chicken and stir to coat. Warm in the microwave until it reaches the temperature you want.

Make a salad on a base of thinly sliced Napa cabbage (yes, the same as in the Kimchi recipe.) On the bed of Napa, add your preferred vegetables:

  • Peeled, seeded and chopped cucumber
  • Shredded carrots
  • Chopped bell pepper
  • Onion (white or green)
  • Chiles
  • Snow pea pods
  • Mushrooms
  • Bean sprouts
  • Bamboo shoots
  • Water Chestnuts
Think of your favorite Asian dish. If you liked the veggies in it, you will like it on the salad.
Top your veggies with half of the chicken/BBQ mix. If you want more dressing, you can use your favorite Asian-style salad dressing, or simply make more of the BBQ sauce.

Since the calories and other nutritional data will vary based on what you choose and the quantities used, I am not going to give any nutritional data. Like any salad, the calories are concentrated in the dressing. Use as little as you can get away with, and you will have an full-flavored, low calorie meal, that uses up leftover chicken in a way that maybe you never considered.

Kimchi


Kimchi
Make 2-3 quarts

1 head (1.5 to 2 pounds) napa cabbage or green cabbage, cut into 2 by 1-inch pieces (reserve 2-3 large leaves, uncut). Note: You can also substitute bok choy in place of cabbage.
2 tablespoons kosher salt
3 large cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
1 teaspoon sugar (alternatively, use 1 apple or pear).  I used 1 apple, cored, but not peeled
3 tablespoons Korean chile pepper flakes or paste (gochugaru).  I used 1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce.
4 green onions, green parts only, cut into 2-inch pieces (optional, but I used it)
1/4 cup medium yellow onion, thinly sliced (optional, but I used it)
Optional:             a few large carrots, thinly sliced (I used this)
                           1-3 teaspoons fish sauce (I didn’t use this, to reduce the sodium content)

For extra hotness: add 1 chili pepper (doesn’t need to be gochugaru).  I used a dry Thai Birds-Eye pepper, shown in the foreground.
A three quart-size, sterilized mason jars (Place in boiling water, mouth down, for 10 minutes. Do this while you are preparing the garlic-ginger-chile paste.)

Yield: 1-3 quart-size jars (I made 2 quarts from a 2 pound head of Napa cabbage.)

What to Do
Wash all vegetables and premeasure all of your ingredients so you have them ready to go. Set aside a few large cabbage leaves (to be used at the end of the process).

Place the rest of the cabbage in the large bowl and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of kosher salt. Toss to combine. Cover the large bowl and allow its contents to sit at room temperature until the cabbage has wilted (expect this to take a minimum of one hour and as many as 12). As it wilts, the cabbage will release around a 1/4-1/2 cup of liquid. (To speed the process, place a plate on the cabbage and then put a weight on the plate. A gallon jug of water works perfectly.) Remember this could take as many as 12 hours, so give it time if it needs it! I think leaving it the full 12 hours under that plate created more juice and a better finished product.

Once the cabbage has wilted, drain it, set the liquid aside,and pat the leaves dry.

After you drained the cabbage, combine the garlic, ginger, chili pepper, carrots (if you’re using them), and sugar (or the apple or pear, if using) in the food processor or blender.


Process the mixture until it forms a rough paste (around 30 seconds if using a food processor or blender). Be sure to scrape the container’s sides as needed.

Thoroughly mix the cabbage with the paste. This is your basic kimchi mixture.

Pack the kimchi into the mason jars (try to avoid air pockets). Add equal amounts of the reserved cabbage liquid to each jar, making sure that each jar has at least an inch of head space (If needed, add some water to the jars to make sure the kimchi is completely covered by liquid.). Press the mixture down firmly using the wooden spoon, so that the brine covers the top.

Cover the top of each jar with one of the reserved large cabbage leaves.

Seal the jars loosely. (If you seal them tight, they will eventually explode.)  Let them sit at room temperature (65 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit) for three to five days. Taste the kimchi every few days; it will be ready when it has developed a sour, spicy taste and a texture resembling that of sauerkraut.  (I found that 7 days at room temperature was perfect. Also, I was out of town on days 3-7 so I didn’t really have an option. Fortunately, fermented foods are forgiving.)


When the kimchi is ready, remove the big cabbage leaves from the top of each jar and store the jars (tightly sealed) in the fridge. The kimchi should keep for several months.

Nutritional data: (1/4 cup, drained)
Calories:          17
Fat:                0.1g
Sat fat:              0g
Chol:              0mg
Sodium: 117.3mg
Carbs:               4g
Fiber:             1.3g
Protein:          0.7g

Pork Schnitzel with Sauteed Cabbage and Brussels Sprouts

Pork Schnitzel with Sauteed Cabbage and Brussels Sprouts
Serve 6

This is ridiculously easy to make.

24 ounces boneless pork chops (thin-sliced if possible)
1 egg white
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
Seasoning of your choice (I used 1/2 teaspoon of Penzy’s Krakow Nights, one of the rare salted seasoning blends that I use.)

  1. Separate egg, placing white in a bowl large enough to hold a pork chop.
  2. Mix seasoning with panko in a shallow dish.
  3. Dip pork chops in egg white.  Dredge through seasoned crumbs.
  4. Preheat a non-stick skillet over medium-high.  Place chops in skillet, turning when then begin to turn golden brown (4-5 minutes).
  5. Serve on the sauteed cabbage and Brussels sprouts. (I topped mine with a teaspoon of sweet and coarse German mustard.)

Nutritional data:
Calories:        286
Fat:              15.6g
Sat fat:           5.3g
Chol:              94mg
Sodium:       187mg
Carbs:           3.2g
Fiber:            0.2g
Protein:       30.6g

Sauteed Cabbage and Brussels Sprouts
Serves 6

1 tablespoon bacon grease (the fat from 3-4 slices)  Other oil can be substituted if you prefer.
1 cup onion, diced
3 cups shredded cabbage (I used red. You can use green if preferred.)
3 cups shredded Brussels sprouts
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 ounces beer (optional, but I used it.)

  1. Heat a large non-stick skillet over med-high heat.  Add bacon grease.
  2. When melted, add onions.
  3. Saute until they just begin to get translucent (3-4 minutes).
  4. Add cabbage and Brussels sprouts.  Toss together.
  5. Mix beer, vinegar and sugar together in a bowl until sugar dissolves. Add to cabbage/Brussels sprouts.
  6. Continue to cook, tossing occasionally. The goal is to heat them without frying them.
  7. Optional:  top each serving with crumbled bacon. I didn’t do that because my son ate the bacon while I was out of the kitchen at one point.

Nutritional data (about 1 cup):
Calories:        119
Fat:                3.6g
Sat fat:           1.3g
Chol:                3mg
Sodium:          43mg
Carbs:         18.2g
Fiber:            4.6g
Protein:         3.7g

Of course, serve all this with a good German beer!

Asian Chicken Salad

Asian Chicken Salad
Serves 2 (as a BIG main course salad) or 4 (as smaller side salads)

4 cups chopped Napa cabbage
1 cup chopped snow pea pods
1 cucumber, peeled, halved, seeded and chopped
1 cup fresh bean sprouts
1/2 cup bell pepper (red or yellow)
3 scallions, sliced (the white and green parts)
2 chicken thighs, chopped (I usually use thighs saved from a previous meal)
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tsp fresh ginger, minced

1.  Prepare all vegetables, and assemble on a large plate in the order given.
2.  Heat a non-stick skillet with the sesame oil.  When hot, carefully add the chicken and the minced garlic.  Saute until heated through.  Layer on the salad.
3.  Top with your preferred Asian-type dressing, or use the recipe below.  (That recipe is NOT low fat or low calorie, but is high in flavor.)
4.  As an option, add rice noodles for a little crunch.

Nutritional Data for the salad (no dressing or rice noodles):
Calories:        290
Fat:              13.2g
Sat fat:           2.6g
Chol:              49mg
Sodium:          86mg
Carbs:          25.8g
Fiber:             6.5g
Protein:        21.2g

Asian Vinaigrette with Sesame Oil and Peanut Butter
Serves 2

3 tablespoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
3 tablespoons water (I forgot this today, so my “dressing” looks more like a sauce on the salad–but it was still very tasty.)
2 teaspoons Hoisin sauce
1/4 teaspoon Chinese five spice seasoning

1.  Put the first three ingredients into a small microwave safe bowl, and warm in the microwave.  This will help you mix the peanut butter into the oil.
2.  Add the remaining ingredients, whisking after each addition.
3.  This makes about 1/3 cup per portion. That sounds like a lot, but the salad is big and almost entirely vegetables.  The dressing will add a huge punch of flavor and excellent fats (to keep you full for the evening.)

(Note: This is my preferred dressing. My wife like Kraft’s Asian Toasted Sesame salad dressing. Another option would be Newman’s Own Orange Ginger dressing.)

Nutritional Data for the dressing:
Calories:        422
Fat:              41.4g
Sat fat:           6.9g
Chol:                0mg
Sodium:        314mg
Carbs:          10.6g
Fiber:                2g
Protein:          8.6g