Vegetable Garden

Hot weather and lots of rain have been helping all of our plants to thrive. They grow so much in one day. It's fun to be surprised by their growth in the morning. Here are what we have so far.

Eggplant has a flower today.

Eggplant

Three different kinds of tomatoes. All doing well.

Okra. They look like they are doing better.

Looking more and more like shiso leaves! But they are still very small.

Tiger Lilies 

I think these are petunias. Love them!

Kona likes it when I'm outside with him.

Happy gardening!

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Hot Pot on Hot Day

I had to cook thinly sliced pork belly that was in the fridge before going bad. It's hot out there, but this hot pot is yummy on a hot day, too. I can finally tell my sister who has been raving about this dish that I made it.

Nourishing and flavorful

Pyenro (扁炉) Hot Pot

1/2 lb. thinly sliced pork belly (Shabu shabu meat)
1 head Nappa cabbage, cut in bite sizes
1 cup sliced shiitake mushroom
2-3 inches, dry kelp
2 balls mung bean thread noodles
6 cups water
4 Tbsp sesame oil, I know it seems a lot but good!
3 tsp salt, and adjust to your liking
Japanese chili pepper as a condiment
Ponzu, optional
Lemon, optional

In a large pot, add water, mushroom, kelp and nappa cabbage. Cook until the cabbage is welted. Add pork belly. Bring it to a boil and skim off any foam floating on the surface. Add sesame oil and salt. Continue cooking for 30 minutes or so until the cabbage is tender almost to the point of melting. Toss in mung bean threads. Add more water if it needs more liquid. Sprinkle Japanese chili pepper, squeeze a splash of lemon or drizzle ponzu before serving.

Shabu shabu style pork belly

Nappa cabbage

Shiitake mushroom

Dry kelp from Hokkaido

This dish is originally a Chinese hot pot with pork belly and chicken thighs, but I didn't have chicken on hand this time. It tastes just as delicious, though. The key is to use good sesame oil. Nappa cabbage absorbs the flavor from the broth and just melts in your mouth!

Mung bean threads

Adding pork belly

After cooking at least 30 minutes, toss in mung bean threads.

This makes a wonderful base broth for many other dishes. I like adding to this a bit of Korean Gochujan or Japanese Miso paste, too. I think my fave is just a splash of fresh lemon and Japanese chili pepper on top. Enjoy!

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Okra for the Vegetable Garden

So I went to the store to get a few more plants for our vegetable garden; okra and pimento pepper. Both are relatively easy to grow, free of care, and they are both heat-tolerant. Very important to consider when gardening in the south.

Okra in the back, pimento in the front.

Green okra

The store was running out of the okra plants, so I had to snatch them before someone else did. They look a bit sad right now, but I think they'll come back strong. Luckily, the weather is going to be good this week. I will make sure to water them well. 

Our new plant this year. Pimento sweet pepper.

"Mommy told me to stay out of the garden. She's no fun!"

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Vegetable Garden Update

We came back from a week of vacation and found that our vegetables had been doing well so far. They were growing so well, I had to snip flowers and "suckers." We have been blessed with rain in the past weeks.

"I love jumping in this garden bed so Mommy can chase after me."

Eggplants, peppers and tomatoes

Already some flowers on tomato plants

Mint

I transplanted this mint from the jungle in our backyard to this little planter a few weeks ago. I just pulled a few plants out the yard and planted in a pot with fresh soil. They didn't look like they were going to make it then, but they look thriving right now. The roots must have been pretty hearty.

Shiso leaves, still tiny!

Shiso leaves are still tiny, but they are starting to take the shape of shiso leaves. Gotta protect them from critters until they get a chance to grow bigger.

Shishito peppers

Smells so good!

Kona loves sniffing fresh-cut grass. Me, too.

Another raised garden bed ready for more vegetables!

We are thinking about planting okra for this smaller garden bed. Okra is easy to grow, almost no care required! Just the kind of vegetable I like!

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Jasmine and Honeysuckles

Our backyard is filled with weed along with some nice smelling flowers. It's nice to see the jasmine in spring that perfumes the air but in summer it turns our yard into a jungle. Ugh!

Jasmine smells so good.

Takes over the yard, though...

Honeysuckles

It covered up my sweet olive tree!

As much as I like honeysuckles, they need to be removed from my sweet olive tree. These vine-y bushes can be a headache sometimes.

Knockout roses

It really liked last night's rain.

Knockout roses are easy-to-grow, hardy bushes that keep flowering for a long time. We love having them in the yard.

Tiger Lilies

More Tiger Lilies!

Seems a bit early for Tiger Lilies: it's almost like spring and summer are happening at the same time. 

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