Since my children are now in high school and fairly independent, I am finding that I have more time to indulge in some of my hobbies. One of my hobbies that I am getting back into is gardening.
When we moved to the place where we now live, I had high hopes of creating a backyard garden where I would grow vegetables with my children. Unfortunately, this was one plan with great intentions that never came to fruition. All I grew were weeds.
Now, 14 years after moving here, I finally have time to garden a little and am currently trying to grow green onions, tomatoes, salad peppers, rosemary, chives, oregano, pineapples, kabocha, basil, wing beans, and bittermelon. I’m having a lot of fun.
My bittermelon finally seems to be taking root. I was able to harvest a couple of bittermelons the other day and decided to make goya champuru, an Okinawan dish that I love to eat.
Goya Champuru
Ingredients
1 block medium-firm tofu (drained)
2 bittermelon (Cut in half lengthwise, scoop out seeds and white pith, then cut into 1/8″ slices. Be sure to save the seeds for planting!)
1 package bean sprouts
6 oz thinly sliced/bite-sized pork
4 eggs (beaten)
oil, salt, pepper
dashi, shoyu
Directions
- Heat frying pan, add oil, and crumble tofu into bite-sized pieces. Let it cook until it is browned and much of the moisture has evaporated. Try not to move it around too much. Remove from pan.
- Add oil to pan and fry the bittermelon. After a few minutes, add the bean sprouts. Season with a little salt and pepper. Remove from pan. I added it to the same bowl with the tofu.
- Add oil to the pan and fry the pork until golden brown. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the tofu, bittermelon, and bean sprouts back to the pan.
- Add a packet of dashi and about 1-2 tablespoons of shoyu to the pan and toss.
- Add the beaten eggs to the pan. Shake the pan to get the eggs evenly cooked.
That’s it! Just serve with a sprinkling of katsuobushi (bonito flakes). Cooking what we grow. Comfort food at my house. Living Hilo Style.
Living Hilo Style 