Rice Salad with Sushi Inspired Flavors- A Great Use for Leftovers

I love rice salads for quick summer suppers or side dishes.  They are filling enough to be satisfying, but not too heavy for a hot day.  With temperatures in the triple digits on a consistent basis here this summer, cold suppers really hit the spot.

The dressing for this recipe is based on the sushi ginger dressing recipe from the Quinoa Salad in Canning for a New Generation.  I used some vegetables from the fridge that are commonly found in sushi rolls- cucumber and avocado- and paired them with the complimentary flavors of green onion, wasabi, and nori.  I used leftover cold salmon as the protein, but smoked salmon, shrimp, lump crabmeat, and tuna steaks would all work nicely in this recipe. Feel free to adjust the protein and vegetables around to use what you have on hand.  Shredded carrots, thinly sliced cabbage, and edamame would all be great additions.

For the Dressing:

•1/3 cup pickling liquid from a jar of sushi ginger

•1/3 cup minced sushi ginger

•1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard

•2 Tablespoons tamari, or soy sauce

•3/4 cup olive oil

•a small handful of fresh cilantro, chopped

•Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste

In a large bowl, whisk together the pickling liquid from the sushi ginger, the minced ginger, and Dijon mustard.  Add the olive oil in a thin stream, whisking to combine.  Stir in the cilantro.  Season to taste with the salt and pepper.  Set aside



•3 cups cooked rice, cooled

•2 leftover cooked salmon fillets, cubed (or use 1- 1 1/2 cups shrimp, crabmeat, etc.)

•1 cucumber, seeded and thinly sliced

•4 green onions, sliced

•1 avocado, cubed

•1 teaspoon wasabi, or more, to taste

•4 sheets nori, cut into 1 inch squares

Add the rice, salmon, cucumber, green onions, avocado, and wasabi to the bowl with the dressing.  Toss very gently with a spatula taking care not to smash the avocados.  Add the nori and toss gently to combine.  Chill for at least an hour before serving to let flavors combine.

Save those bones! How to make turkey or chicken stock in the crockpot

Most things just taste better when they are homemade and stock is no exception.  Many times foods made from scratch are way cheaper than prepared store items, and there is no doubt that they are better for you.  Making homemade stock is so easy there is no reason to ever let those bones go in the trash can again.  I like to put the stock ingredients in the crockpot right after dinner and cook it overnight.  In the morning it is easy to strain through a colander really quick and place it in a container in the fridge or freezer.  I use whatever vegetables I have on hand to season the stock.  These are always onions and garlic, but on occasion I'll throw in some carrots and celery if we have some, or even woody asparagus ends.  Work with what you have on hand. Either way, the stock always comes out way more rich and flavorful than store-bought and makes a wonderful addition to soups, stews, rice pilaf, and many other dishes.

•leftover turkey or chicken skin and bones
•chopped vegetables that you have on hand- onions, garlic, celery, and carrot are traditional
•dash of cider vinegar (about 1 Tablespoon for a small crockpot of stock, 2-3 for larger crockpots)
•1-2 bay leaves
•salt, to taste
•lots of ground black pepper

Place the poultry skin and bones in a crockpot, filling loosely to the top.  I find that one chicken will fill up my crockpot, but I will end up doing two batches of stock with a turkey carcass.  Add in a handful or two of vegetables.  Add the vinegar, bay leaf, salt, and pepper.  The vinegar helps to get the vitamins out of the bones so that your stock is more nutritious. (or so I've heard).  Fill the crock pot with water and cook on low overnight or all day, for about 10-12 hours.

Place a colander over a soup pot or a large container.  Ladle the stock into the colander to strain out the large pieces of meat and bones.  Some small pieces may sneak through the colander.  That's ok. They'll just add more flavor.  Chill the stock for several hours to let the fat rise to the top.  Remove the fat with a spoon, if desired.  I remove the fat from chicken stock, but the turkey stock had hardly any fat, so I skipped this step.  Freeze the stock in plastic containers or glass jars.