I enjoy planning the Thanksgiving menu almost as much as I enjoy cooking it. Almost. Thanksgiving is one of my very favorite holidays, naturally - I spend every day contemplating food and saying "thank you" many more times than necessary, so an entire holiday focused on cooking and being thankful? My holiday heaven.
So I settle in, with magazines, cookbooks, Pinned recipes, and favorite food blogs close at hand, to plan our Thanksgiving menu over many happy evenings of contemplation. This year I even have a cute little menu planner printable, and I have color-coded each category of Thanksgiving dish in order to streamline menu revisions. The OCD has reached new levels of insanity. ;-)
Amidst all this color-coding and menu-revising up until the very day of the holiday, I am sadly not one of those food bloggers who feature Thanksgiving recipes on their recipe well in advance of the holiday. Additionally, I always violate the cardinal rule of entertaining and fix brand new dishes, for the first time ever, the day of the holiday. Living on the edge, culinary style.
So, instead of the comfort of a traditional Thanksgiving dish, I can offer you comfort food of a very different sort, with origins in a different continent than mine... While this dish bears little resemblance to any of the flavors with which I was raised, the minute I took my first bite the dish sang culinary comfort to me. Warm, flavorful, soothing comfort food, Malaysian-fusion style.
Malaysian-Style Taro Rice and Beans
Adapted from http://rasamalaysia.com/yam-rice-recipe/2/
5 dried shiitake mushrooms
2 1/2 tablespoons dried shrimp (Optional - leave out if you are a vegetarian.)
12 oz. taro, cut into small cubes
2 tablespoons sweet soy sauce (kecap manis)
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce (make sure to use a vegetarian version if you are vegetarian)
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon sesame oil
3 tablespoons coconut oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped3 cups cooked brown, red, or black whole grain rice
1 (15oz) can navy beans, drained
~ Soak the dried shiitake mushrooms and dried shrimp in warm water, drain, and roughly chop. Set aside.
~ Either in a pressure cooker or large pot of boiling water, cook the taro until tender. Drain and set aside.
~ While the taro is cooking, whisk together the sweet soy sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, honey, and sesame oil, and set the mixture aside.
~ In a large skillet over medium-high heat, sauté the garlic, onion, and reserved shrimp and mushrooms in the coconut oil until the onion is limp and translucent.
~ Reduce the heat to medium, and stir in the taro, cooked rice, and beans, along with the reserved sauce mixture. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until heated through. Serve warm!
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