August 27, 2004

Inspired by Laksa's food blog on eGullet and by Russ Parson's article on Laotian vegetables in last Wednesday's LA Times (no link other than to the Food Section as they expire too quickly), I decided to buy "different" vegetables at the market today:



Clockwise starting with the herbs: parsley, cilantro, Thai eggplants, daikon, burdock root (labelled as "gobo" at the market), loofah squash (yes, just like the sponge!), bitter melon 1, bitter melon 2, jalapenos, and--on the plate in the middle--raw peanuts.

I really have no plan for these veggies but I've got some vague and rather nebulous ideas about what flavours I want. I did pick up some organic red lentils a few weeks ago and Wayde bought some halibut today. He's got his fish marinating in a sauce made of mayonnaise, sriracha sauce, and a whiff of soy sauce. I think the veggies will go well with those flavours. Maybe with some rice noodles?

We'll see!