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The Vegan Ronin

No Meat. No Masters.

January Vegan Supper Clubs

Posted on January 6, 2016January 18, 2016 by theveganronin

I’ll be doing some new food training in February, so grab a seat for some great supper clubs this month!… Read more January Vegan Supper Clubs

New Supper Clubs & Classes!

Posted on November 30, 2015December 7, 2015 by theveganronin

  I’m very happy to get back into the supper club scene! I missed you and it seems you missed… Read more New Supper Clubs & Classes!

3 months at Veg Bar

Posted on October 20, 2015November 19, 2015 by theveganronin

Hello all! I can’t believe I haven’t let you Ronin-ites know all the news in the past three months. But… Read more 3 months at Veg Bar

Kale Volcano

Posted on July 3, 2015July 5, 2015 by theveganronin

When you’re in the checkout line at your local health food store and the guy in front of you buys… Read more Kale Volcano

Chinese New Year secret vegan supper club

Posted on February 2, 2015February 1, 2015 by theveganronin

I’ve been happy to constantly have supper clubs the past few months! It’s so much fun! The latest one is… Read more Chinese New Year secret vegan supper club

Tesco Vegan Wine List 2015

Posted on January 28, 2015September 7, 2016 by theveganronin

Update: Check out the 2016 list! If you’re in the UK , shop at Tesco, a drinker and/or buying wine… Read more Tesco Vegan Wine List 2015

Macaroni Monday

Posted on August 13, 2014August 12, 2014 by theveganronin

Psst. Yeah. It’s back. Macaroni Monday. So if you’re in or around London and want a relaxed (and inexpensive!) meal-… Read more Macaroni Monday

Smoothie Tip!

Posted on August 12, 2014August 12, 2014 by theveganronin

One day, I will write a real article on smoothies and how incredible they are and my favorite types and so forth.… Read more Smoothie Tip!

London: Skate For Oceans!

Posted on March 18, 2014 by theveganronin

  We all know and love Fat Gay Vegan, who has his fingers in all the vegan pies in London,… Read more London: Skate For Oceans!

Macaroni Mondays with VR Underground

Posted on March 17, 2014March 16, 2014 by theveganronin

Now presenting Macaroni Mondays! Get your week started right with an inexpensive relaxed evening with my favorite comfort food. All… Read more Macaroni Mondays with VR Underground

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🌠Today was an amazing day spent with Haruko @londonkamoshidiary & Mizue @mizuekanazawa of @the_koji_fermenteria learning how to make miso from scratch! 🤩 They kindly put on a chef session where they were dealt with Chef William @chiw5072 and my's million questions and creative chatter 😁 📷 We had a taste testing of various types and ages of misos (I still love mugi, barley, the most). 🇯🇵 Haruko and her baby soy haccho miso. 🇯🇵 Homemade koji* inoculated rice (look at that fuzz!). 🇯🇵 Mix that koji with soybeans & salt and throw it in the jar (to get air out)! Now wait 10 months.👶🏽 🍱 Incredible lunch filled with shiokoji (salted koji) & spicy soy koji dressings! 🍱 The only natto (stinky but healthy fermented sticky soybeans) I've ever enjoyed! Marinated in koji dressing with okra and carrots. 👩‍👩‍👧‍👦 Group shot with our baby misos and when Sandy the dog was allowed to come in 🐶 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Highly recommended if you're interested at all in food, miso, fermentation and/or Japanese cuisine! They also have a koji market stall in North London (@the_koji_fermenteria for info). 💁🏻‍♀️ *Basic overview: Koji is steamed rice/soybeans/grains that's been treated with the spore Aspergillus oryzae. It then helps make fermented foods like miso, sake, amazake (a sweet, non alcoholic drink), soy sauce, mirin... Great for pickles too! It's a delicious way to add fermented probiotic food to your meals!
🌟Part 2: The Vegetable Whisperer 📷 Toshi Tanahashi about to grind The set up The master at work 🧘🏻‍♂️ The idiot at work 🤪 (🎥@wasabigrowersuk ) 👨🏻‍🍳 Also gracing my day at @wasabigrowersuk was the revered shojin ryori* chef Toshio Tanahashi. 🙌🏽 @tanahashitoshio. I was lucky enough to have eaten his food last year at London pop up @carousel_ldn, and now feel even luckier to meet and learn from him directly. 🙇🏻‍♀️ On the day we learned to make nerigoma (sesame paste). Toasted white sesame seeds are ground rhythmically by hand in a special grooved mortar (suribachi) and pestle (surikogi**). Tanahashi-sensei does this every morning for 2 hours as a meditation. 🧘🏻‍♂️ We took turns sharing this calming yet laborious task which then became a sauce to serve with lunch (added soy sauce and vinegar). We did it in the woods surrounding the wasabi farm where it was fresh and peaceful. 🌳🌳🌳 Tanahashi-sensei does everything by hand and uses no machines- ideally he would not even use a refrigerator. He asked us to "Think how the food feels. How would you feel (trapped and cold)?" 🤔 Other mindful advice was: ✨ "Good food, Good sound." (no loud machines, only natural crunches and pops.) ✨ "No stress for me or the ingredients." (If you are rushing, angry, not giving respect, appreciation or love to the ingredients, it will not taste as good.) ✨ Great things to think about! Thank you to the @wasabigrowersuk team for this opportunity! 🍅🍠🌽🥬 About Tanahashi-sensei: He learned to cook in a Buddhist monestary for years with nuns before opening an award winning restaurant in Tokyo. He now lives in Okinawa (tropical islands in the southern Japanese archipelago- a place with 2nd highest longevity rate!) which provides lots of fresh food (lucky!). 🤦🏻‍♀️ I wrote too much! Continued in comments:
Part 1: ALL ABOUT WASABI 🌟 I was so lucky to head down to @wasabigrowersuk farm last month to learn even more about their amazing wasabi! 👩🏻‍🏫 To see their passion about the plants, the land, their workers, the products and the community (chefs, farmers, local companies, etc) first hand was magical.✨ 🌱 So besides hanging out in repurposed Victorian watercress beds full of wasabi, what went on? 💁🏻‍♀️ 🌱 Nick giving a serious-looking talk on all parts of growing their wasabi. Did you know there are 50+ varieties of wasabia japonica? 🌱 Me not-so-seriously loving pulling a wasabi rhizome and looking at all the baby wasabi plants around the bottom👶🏽 (look at those hairy roots! They grow in stone beds.) They take 1.5 - 2 years to grow. 😲 🌱 A calm walk through the natural spring water that flows through all the beds. Did you know you can eat ALL parts of the wasabi plant? We nibbled on leaves as we walked. 🌱 Nick explaining wasabi science while grating fresh wasabi rhizome. The flavour changes so quickly from mild to zingy to zippy to a whisper in twenty minutes (which is why I always grate wasabi fresh in front of my guests- and the smell! 👃🏽😍💥) 🌱 Some of the amazing boutique @wasabigrowersuk products (mostly vegan, check for bonito stock). The drinking vinegars and mustards are really something special.🥃 🌱 An all vegan spread by @kyotokitchen (ARIGATO!) which was inhaled. 🍱 Check them out in Winchester! Not shown: wasabi-pineapple sauerkraut by @gustoorganic YUM. 🌱 And finally a sexy action shot of that fresh wasabi paste! ☯️ 🌱 HUGE thank you to Jon & Nick for their generous hospitality and bringing an amazing group of people together. 💚 Feeling inspired! Who's ready for more wasabi events?! 🙋🏻‍♀️🙋🏽‍♂️

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  • 🌠Today was an amazing day spent with Haruko londonkamoshidiary & Mizue @mizue_20 of the_koji_fermenteria learning h… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 1 week ago
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