Growing Cilantro - Method #2

About three days after I potted the cilantro seeds, I decided to put a few seeds into a damp paper towel.  I actually forgot about them until yesterday. 

I think crushing them first is the key to successful germination.

 

The roots are so long!!

 

With the encouragement of my sister Didi, I'm trying the colander method of growing . . . using a colander inside a bowl of water.  The gal in the instructional YouTube video says that as long as you change the water daily, you don't need to provide nutrients.

  

In the meantime this is how the potted seedlings are doing.

Dried Aku

My brother Cy went to Azama on 10th Avenue in Palolo Valley to pick up his fave dried aku yesterday.  Dried aku is actually not my thing, but I just wanted to share his pics.  

They also have fishcake, miso butterfish and lau lau!  I haven't been there in awhile.  I might need to pay them a visit soon.

Growing Cilantro

I'm a crappy gardener.  And I've heard that cilantro is very hard to grow.  But I wanted to try.

I got tips from the internet and from my friend Amy who grows the most beautiful, healthy cilantro.

Here are my sprouts today.  I planted the seeds 8 days ago.   Cilantro sprouts don't like to be transplanted so you should right away plant the seeds in a tall pot for their forever home.  Amy said to allow for long roots.  I used a 12-inch pot.  One source said to plant the seeds an inch apart.  I ignored that one.  I scattered the seeds and topped with around 1/4 inch of soil.

 

Amy said to use local seeds because "mainland seeds are hit or miss".  This pack was around $4.99 from City Mill.

   

It helps a lot if you crush them before planting.  It speeds up the germination time.  Each seed contains two seedlings.  I got my small suribachi in Japan.  Came in handy!

   

This might be the biggest tip of all.  Amy said to use the soil recommended by pakalolo growers.  Landon got it for me for Christmas.  It's from Ace Hardware in Kaimuki.  I think it was $60.

   

I added a lot of black cinder to the soil to help with drainage.  One tip that I saw online sticks to my mind because I tend to overwater, and the tip is to keep the soil "moist not soggy".

   

And finally, I added some worm castings . . . because somebody gave me . . . and it seems like a really good thing.   I would love any additional tips if you have them.  I think the hardest part is yet to come.

  

HIGOTO Japanese Eatery

Landon went to Kaimuki Shopping Center to pick up some fishing gear at J. Hara Store so he decided to go next door for some Japanese food.  Score!

Tofu Salad ($10.90). This actually is just part of the salad.  I already ate some before I thought to take pictures.  😄

 

Salmon & Ikura Cup Sushi ($14.90) 

 

Tenmusu ($3.80), Kombu & Harihari ($3.00), Tuna Mayo & Apple Cucumber ($3.00)

 

Miso Butterfish ($18.90)

  

Homemade Frozen Waffles

Cleta gave me a bag of frozen waffles that she had made from scratch and they came in so handy for a quick breakfast that after they were all gone I decided to make more.

 

I picked a buttermilk recipe from the allrecipes site.  It made 22 waffles.  They were a bit limp right off the waffle iron, but they crisped up perfectly after being frozen and popped into a toaster oven.

 

This was my setup.  I got the mini waffle iron from Ross awhile back for about $5.

  

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 2 tablespoons white sugar

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 2 cups low-fat buttermilk

• ⅓ cup melted butter

• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Gather all ingredients.

2. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl until evenly combined.

3. Whisk buttermilk and melted butter together in a separate bowl; whisk in eggs.

4. Stir buttermilk mixture into flour mixture until just combined and batter is slightly lumpy; stir in vanilla extract.

5. Preheat a waffle iron according to manufacturer's instructions.

6. To cook each waffle, pour enough batter into the preheated waffle iron to reach 1/2 inch from the edge. Cook according to manufacturer's instructions.

Wendell's Soy-Glazed Chicken

Wendell made this for his softball team and for his monthly gathering with classmates.  I got to taste one slice and it was goooood!!

The recipe is from Genio Ng at the Cooking with Genius site.

• 2 chicken thigh, with skin and boneless
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tsp of ginger
• 2 tbsp of soy sauce
• 2 tbsp of mirin
• 2 tbsp of sake
• 1 tbsp of honey or sugar
• Cornstarch, to coat the chicken
• Salt and pepper, to season

To garnish:  Sesame seeds, spring onions

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
2. Coat the chicken with cornstarch and shake off the excess.
3. Heat the oil over medium heat. Cook the chicken skin side down for 7 minutes, flip and cook the other side for 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.
4. In the same pan, saute the garlic and ginger until fragrant.
5. Add soy sauce, sake, mirin and honey. Give it a good mix and cook the sauce until it thickens.
6. Add the chicken back to the pan and baste the chicken with the sauce.
7. Serve with hot steamed rice, garnish with sesame seeds, spring onions and enjoy!

Sanbaizuke

We had leftover hasu when Wendell made nishime for New Year's Day so I bought additional ingredients from the swap meet and made this sanbaizuke.  I used Cleta's recipe here.  Came out good!

Swap Meet Buys

It's been awhile since I've shared what I bought at the swap meet.  Here's what I got this past Sunday.

Plates.  $1 each.

 

Almond Cookies.  Free!  Vender said I could have them!

   

Puzzle Book.  $1.

   

Thick/smooth paper for card making.  $4.

   

Squeegee.  $5.

   

Planter pots.  $1/all.

   

Libby's Corned Beef.  $5.

   

Binder clips.  $1.

   

Assorted vegetables.  $??

   

Fabric to sew bags.  $30/15 yards.

   

Colanders and bowls to grow cilantro in.  $1 each.

 

Cool lime-colored tub to put Kai's toys in.  $2. 

 

Cleta's Pickled Veggies

Cleta used a recipe from the Crave section in last month's Star Advertiser for this.  It's so awesome ono.

Ingredients:

• 2 medium sweet onions
• 2 medium bell peppers
• 1 small cauliflower

Sauce:

• 1 cup Japanese rice vinegar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Hawaiian salt
• 1 chile pepper, cut in half lengthwise, seeds removed

Directions:

Cut onions in half horizontally then cut each half in eight pieces to make 16 total wedges (about 4 cups). Cut bell peppers and cauliflower into bite-size pieces (2 cups of each).

Combine all vegetables in a large, non-plastic container. Combine vinegar, water, sugar and salt; stir to dissolve, then add chile pepper. Pour over vegetables and mix. Let sit at room temperature 8-10 hours, mixing occasionally. Water from the vegetables will seep into the sauce.

Distribute veggies and sauce into sterilized jars. Cover and refrigerate. Fills four 15-ounce jars.

Chili Pepper Plants Update

I threw them all away except for one plant.  Don't know if it was overwatering, underwatering, over fertilizing, thrip bug infestation or something else.

Miso Butterfish from Chef Zone

This was so so so so ono!  It was about $25 from Chef Zone. 

 

   

It came individually packed like this.

   

I added some of this and marinated for a few hours before broiling.

  

Kai and Big Lambchop

 You can click on the photo below to watch a video of Kai playing with his fave toy.

Wendell's Easy Air-Fryer Pork Belly

This used basically only five ingredients, and according to Wendell was so fast and easy to make.  And it was delicious.

I can't credit the source 'cause Wendell doesn't remember other than he probably saw it on Facebook.

   

On Da Desk

It's been awhile since I've art-ed.  I'm having fun doing this right now.  

BTW, Happy 2026!