I’m Rachel Belle, host of the James Beard Award-nominated podcast Your Last Meal and the Emmy-nominated TV show The Nosh, and author of the cookbook Open Sesame, and my dad just emailed me from San Diego to ask “Do they really smear cream cheese on hot dogs in Seattle?” (Yes, Dad, they really do!)
I watered my vegetable garden last night; tonight is a picnic at a park with friends; and I’ve been craving watermelon so fiercely, I’m worried I might be related to Gallagher. All signs point to summer!
As the weather gets spicier, and if you live in a Classic Northwest Home (no air conditioning!), you might be looking for some cool, refreshing meals that require as little cooking as possible. I thought I’d share a few of my favorites.
Weeknight Poke
Poke might feel intimidating, but it’s incredibly easy, impossibly delicious and a dish I serve guests when I want to impress with a gorgeous, colorful plate. I usually buy sushi-grade, pre-cubed frozen tuna at Central Market in Shoreline, but you can buy a filet of sushi-grade salmon or tuna at places like Uwajimaya and cube it yourself. If you use a rice cooker and steam your edamame in the microwave, you don’t have to turn on the stove! This recipe comes from my cookbook Open Sesame.
Weeknight Poke Bowl Recipe
Makes 2 bowls
1 cup short-grain Japanese white rice½ pound sushi-grade tuna, salmon, or a mix of both, or pre-cubed frozen, defrosted tuna or salmon1 avocado2 teaspoons soy sauce 2 teaspoons sesame oil½ teaspoon sriracha (optional)2 tablespoons finely minced yellow or sweet onion (from ½ small onion)2 tablespoons jalapeño, finely diced, seeded (from 1 medium-large jalapeño)2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds, divided (white, black, or a mix)Salt (bonus if you have Hawaiian sea salt!)½ cup prepared Japanese seaweed salad (also called wakame)½ cup shelled edamamePickled ginger, for serving (optional)
Instructions
Cook the rice per package directions. Fluff the rice and let it cool slightly so it’s warm or room temperature when served.While the rice cooks, remove the skin from the fish and cut it into ¾-inch to 1-inch cubes. Set aside in a mixing bowl.Cut the avocado into cubes or, if you want a fancy Instagram-worthy avocado fan, cut the avocado in half, remove the pit, and carefully peel off the skin. Place the halves flat side down and cut into thin slices, lengthwise, holding the avocado together. Use all your fingers to lightly push on the wide end of the avocado so it fans out. Leave the fans on the cutting board.Mix the fish with the soy sauce, sesame oil, and sriracha, then mix in the onion, jalapeño, and 1 teaspoon of the sesame seeds. Taste and lightly season with salt as needed.Scoop a bed of rice into two wide, shallow bowls. Top each with a mound of poke, ¼ cup seaweed salad, ¼ cup edamame, and some pickled ginger. Slide a chef’s knife underneath the avocado fan and gently transfer it to the rice. Sprinkle with salt. Sprinkle the remaining teaspoon of sesame seeds over the avocado and rice. Serve immediately with chopsticks.
A Weeknight Poke Bowl, featured in Rachel Belle’s cookbook Open Sesame. (Cha Burggraaf)Gazpacho
At its worst, this cold Spanish soup can give Big Salad Smoothie vibes. But the recipe I recently made, from Top Chef judge Gail Simmons’ excellent cookbook Bringing It Home, gets it right: a velvety puree with notes of roasted red pepper; bright, zingy vinegar; and – trust her on this – water-soaked crusty bread. Throw all the ingredients in the blender, top with tiny cubes of crispy cucumber (or hard-boiled egg, herbs, chopped prosciutto or crushed almonds), and dinner is ready in five minutes.
Belle’s take on Gail Simmons’ gazpacho. (Rachel Belle)Fresh Rolls
I usually go classic Vietnamese – thinly sliced cucumber, shredded carrot, cooked shrimp, fried tofu, vermicelli noodles and a pile of herbs like Thai basil, mint and shiso, served with a lime-spiked peanut sauce. But you can fill your rice-paper wrappers with anything you please! I like to make it an interactive experience – put out plates of ingredients, bring a bowl of warm water to the table for rice-paper dipping, and let my tablemates roll their own.
Fresh Vietnamese rolls. (Rachel Belle)Big Salads
Elaine had it right on Seinfeld – the big salad is queen on a hot summer day! But it’s got to have little treats and treasures scattered throughout – a chunk of avocado, a crispy wonton strip, a nugget of grilled chicken. One of my favorites is a salad niçoise – partly because it tastes good, but, let’s be honest, mostly for the aesthetic. The tidy, rainbowed rows, the rich orange of the fudgy eight-minute egg yolks contrasted with the verdant, crisp-tender green beans? It might be pretty enough to get Jerry to swap his cereal habit for a salad obsession.
Salad niçoise. (Rachel Belle)
For newsletter-exclusive content, including my Taste of the Town Q&A with a notable Pacific Northwest person (this week it’s KEXP DJ & Host Evie Stokes) subscribe here!
Have a food- or drink-related question (Need a restaurant rec? Have a mystery that needs solving?) Send me a note: rachel.belle@cascadepbs.org
XO
Rachel Belle
Rachel Belle is the host of The Nosh and the host and creator of Your Last Meal, a James Beard Award finalist for Best Podcast. She is an editor-at-large at Cascade PBS.
Rachel Belle is the host of The Nosh and the host and creator of Your Last Meal, a James Beard Award finalist for Best Podcast. She is an editor-at-large at Cascade PBS.