Poke Bowls, Ponzu & Beet Yogurt Dressing

Poke Bowls, Ponzu and Beet Yogurt Dressing & Dashi

“POH-keh.”  Poke means “to slice or cut” in Hawaiian and refers to chunks of raw, marinated fish — usually tuna — which is then tossed over rice and topped with vegetables and umami-packed sauces. It is great for all three meals. For breakfast add sweet potato and for lunch, add an egg or wild salmon or mackerel or oysters or halibut or calamari. For dinner add avocado and beets and cooked greens. And this is more of a non recipe, meaning that there is a list of ingredients and you add as you wish. For protein, raw fish is great, but so is lightly cooked salmon (as in, the middle should be bright pink and transparent. But cooked chicken, quickly cooked calamari, a poached egg, sliced beef and lamb work well too. Make Ponzu and Beet Dressing and it can be used for all sorts of toppings. Ponzu is great. And the beet yogurt dressing; try it on salads, seaweed salads are great, or cucumbers with feta, and just baked potatoes are pretty ridiculously good too! 

This is more of a non recipe, meaning that there is a list of ingredients and you add as you wish to your cooked rice. 

Base white rice-  basmati or jasmine- a long grain rice 1 cup rice / 1.5 cups water

Sauce: Ponzu or Beet and Whey Dressing or both

Avocado, Daikon Radish, Cabbage Carrots, Cooked Spinach, Sliced Green Onions, Cooked Mushrooms, Cucumbers, Sprouts, Beets, Seaweed

Color: Sweet Potatoes, Purple Potatoes, Broccoli, Squash, Pumpkin

Protein - Fish, Egg, Grass Fed Beef or Lamb (cooked), Cooked Poultry 

Herbs and Garnish:  Sesame Seeds, Nigella, Cilantro and Parsley and Fennel Fronds

Use Fermentable Ponzu or beet and whey for dressing.

Beet and Yogurt (or Whey) Dressing

This recipe was originally created for our ReSet Class. One of the healthiest foods ti include in a regular diet is 100% full fat A2A2 yogurt. Many asked about Greek Yogurt and where the question of Greek Yogurt came up.This makes about 2 ½  cups

Very simple. Very colorful and perfect for a poke bowl. 

Once you master this recipes, you can expand this with using one whole lemon- cut up

Ingredients

1 cup of chopped raw beets  (about 1 large beet).

3 tablespoons  apple cider vinegar 

1 cup yoghurt or whey (note: whey is much thinner than yogurt, so add the water to thin if using full fat yogurt) 

1 medium shallot, minced 

1 clove garlic, minced 

Place all in a blender and blend well.

Wait What: what’s wrong with Greek Yogurt?: Nothing, if you make it yourself! Simply buy 100% grass fed full fat yogurt and strain in with a strainer or cheese cloth.  What is left is real greek yogurt! And the whey- which is loaded with good stuff like protein and minerals! So use it for a dressing. Check your labels on all Yogurt: look for the word SKIM Milk (which has taken some of the benefits of full fa yogurt, and most likely added sugars, and stabilizers and others stuff that has no place in a whole food diet. The best yogurt will be from animals grazing on grass closest to your home.  And start the conversation with your farmer about A2A2 cows! 

Manufactured  Greek yogurt is not all that you think it is: Most manufacturers do not just strain the yogurts. Instead they use skim milk, “Greek-style” don’t follow traditional methods and instead take shortcuts, like adding thickening agents such as condensed milk, corn starch (GMO) , carrageenan or gelatin. And worst: the FDA doesn’t regulate the term “Greek-style,”

And if that’s not enough: Greek Yogurt is creating an ecological nightmare:one ounce of creamy Greek yogurt uses three ounces of milk,, and the excess milk which is left at the end of the process is so acidic that it cannot be dumped in down the drain ( Hint: but it is great for pigs and goats!)  Greek yogurt has grown into a $2 billion a year industry and that’s alotta whey!

Ponzu Dressing for Poke Bowls and Salads

Ingredients

1/4 c. ponzu (recipe below or Eden is a good brand)

2 tsp. rice vinegar

2 tsp. sesame oil

We 3 Tablespoons  freshly grated ginger

Sliced very thin Jalapeno

2 green onions, thinly sliced, 

1 tsp. toasted sesame seeds, plus more for garnish

Nori sheets- break up and garnishes

Dashi This broth is a  stock of fusions of umami-rich foods such as bonito fish flakes, dried kombu (sea kelp), dried shiitake mushrooms, and dried whole sardines or bonito flakes. It is loaded with minerals and the flavor is subtle and soft. Keep a quart in the fridge ready to steam and wilt spinach or broccoli to cook, or add cabbage and an egg for a dashi meal. This is great to have available as a base as stock or in poaching vegetables.

1 package kombu (about 2 ounces, which is the size of a many packages)

4 quarts water

2 cloves garlic

2 1⁄2 cups dried bonito flakes

1⁄2 teaspoon chile flakes

1⁄4 cup dried shiitake mushrooms

Break the kombu into a few pieces and add the dried mushrooms. Put in a pot with about one gallon of water and bring to  a simmer,  and let simmer for one

minute. Turn off heat and allow it to rest for 40 minutes. Heat the broth again to a simmer, add garlic, bonito flakes, and chile. 

Once the binto settle, you can strain - about 15 minutes. 

Drain through a colander into a

bowl. Put it in a jar. This will last for one week.

Ponzu

Yummy Japanese condiment that you will want to make a gallon of! 

Seriously, keep it on hand for everything: splash on broccoli, rice, seared meat, chicken and of course, rice! 

1 cup dashi (recipe included) 

1 cup lime/lemon fresh juice- If you can find fresh ponzu citrus or meyer lemon

1 cup tamari

2 tbsp rice vinegar

½ tbsp fish sauce

Combine all ingredients and store in a jar.