Unquiet
Things

I kinda lost my kitchen mojo there for a while. Maybe not “lost,” exactly, but I guess it got buried under new interests and enthusiasms and deadlines and research, and before you know it, we’re eating random cans of beans for dinner because I just can’t be fussed to cook. (Exaggerated for effect, of course; I am a Taurus, I would never eat an unseasoned can of beans.)

Anyhow, in the last few weeks, I’ve felt a shift and suddenly Kitchen Sarah (who is a fun-loving, free-wheeling fuckup, unlike Everything Else-Sarah, who is a rigid, neurotic rule-follower) is back! Last Friday, I made falafel from scratch and some Roman chicken dish and gluten-free peanut butter cookies (which were close to the best cookies I have ever had!!), and this week I have been doing what I love most: using up bits and bobs and scraggles and scraps, no recipes, just vibes, and conjuring delicious meals out of next-to-nothing.

Pictured here is a sort of breakfast okonomiyaki made with sourdough discard (why did I never think to do this before?) It was really good.

[EDIT] I know I said there was no recipe for this, but I posted the same photo with the same caption on social media, and, of course, someone asked: “…Could you post the recipe, please, or link to it?” (Sigh…insert something something about the literacy crisis.)

But I’m a good sport, so here’s what I roughly did…

Mix together: one shredded carrot, one cup shredded cabbage, a dozen small green onions, chopped green part only, 3/4 cup sourdough discard, dashi powder, baking powder, and one egg. Fry in a pan 2-3-4 minutes per side. Serve with okonomiyaki accouterments and a fried egg on top, if you like. That’s a very loosey goosey approximation of what I did! If you want to make traditional okonomiyaki, there are tons of recipes, and they are all pretty much the same. There are even kits that you can buy, like this one.