Put an Egg on It

I think I was vaguely inspired by bi-bim-bop for this protein-rich, one-bowl dish. But the following two versions require fewer ingredients, decidedly less time (30 min) and can be prepared with ease by any acoronaut. (They don't taste much like bi-bim-bop either, in fact.) All ingredients acquired at Hit, with the exception of sriracha & nori at the Asian markets— which you are welcome to get from me! I have plenty.

Put an Egg on It variant #1 (serves 2)

 Ingredients:

• 1 cup dry quinoa
• 1-2 ripe avocados
• arugula
• 2 eggs
• olive oil
• salt
• sriracha sauce

Directions:
Quinoa is a whole grain with a lovely texture and is also rich in protein. When cooked properly, it is sweet and has a little al dente crunch to it. Measure one tea cup of dry quinoa and rinse in an acora pot. This removes the bitterness from the grain. Drain the excess water, blocking the little quinoa grains from escaping with your hand. Add a little olive oil and salt to the pot, gently toast the quinoa on medium (2) for about 5 minutes while stirring. Add two tea cups of water, cover, and bring to a boil. Cook, covered, for about 15-20 min, or until the water is gone. Remove from heat and keep covered.

While the quinoa is cooking, slice the avocado(s).

Take advantage of the hot burner to fry your eggs, sunny-side up. (The runny yoke will make a sauce with the sriracha!)

Fluff the quinoa and spoon 1-2 cooked cups into each bowl. Spoon in the avocado, toss some arugula over it, and put an egg on it. Season with salt and sriracha sauce!

Tip:
Leftover quinoa makes a delicious hot cereal in the morning heated with milk, honey, nuts & fruit.


Put an Egg on It #2 (serves 2)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dry short grain sweet brown rice
• 1-2 ripe avocados
• nori (preferably seasoned or toasted)
• 2 eggs
• olive oil
• sesame oil
• brown rice vinegar, white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
• soy sauce
• sriracha sauce

Directions:
You can make this with quinoa as above, or try brown rice. Short grain brown rice will take longer to cook. Add 1 cup brown rice to 2.5 cups water in a small pot. Add a dash of salt, a little olive or sesame oil, and 1-2 tablespoons vinegar (optional). (The vinegar adds flavor, and the olive oil helps to keep the bubbles from spilling over the pot!) Cover, bring to a boil, and simmer for 30-45 minutes, or until the rice is soft. Keep an eye on it, as you may need to add more water. If you want it a little glommy, stir now and then while it cooks. Remove and allow to sit, covered.

Tip: You can also soak your brown rice the evening or the night before and it will cook faster. In this case, cover with 2 inches of water in the pot and leave for 8-24 hours in the fridge. If you want to be really nerdy about it, keep a 1/4 cup of the water used from soaking to cook the rice, and the rest fresh water. This is some microfermentation process that makes it more nutritious. But whatever.

While the rice is cooking, slice the avocado(s).

Take advantage of the hot burner to fry your eggs, sunny-side up.

Spoon 1-2 cooked cups of rice into each bowl. Sprinkle sesame oil, soy sauce, and a little more vinegar if you like on the rice, and stir. Spoon on the avocado, or another green veggie. Top it with some torn nori strips (if your nori is untoasted, you can freshen it up by hovering it a few inches over the hot burner for a few seconds until it turns bright green). Put an egg on it. Season with sriracha sauce if you like it spicy, or keep it mellow as it is!

Further variants:
Try adding thinly chopped carrots or julienned  zucchini. Or sliced cherry tomatoes to variant #1. Or leave out the egg in variant #2 and add strips of salmon lox or raw sushi-grade tuna, and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Or tell me what you improvise!