Tuna & Soybean Rolls

Alrighty.. gotta eat up all the soybeans I boiled the other day.
So, I decided to get a little creative and made tiny tuna rolls with soybeans instead of rice.
Remember how I recommended having some precooked soybeans in the refrigerator?  Well, they come in handy and you can mix things up to give soybeans a different flavor and texture to keep things a bit interesting.

Some background info on this recipe.
I used low sodium tuna that my wife picked up from Trader Joe's.  One of the key elements of my lifestyle was to go low sodium.  Doctors say that low sodium diets are good for the heart, kidneys and it also eliminates excessive water weight.
I also used soybeans instead of rice to add more protein while lowering my carb intake.  However, remember to still have a healthy portion of carbs from food such as whole wheat bread or old-fashioned oat meal.  I usually start my day with a cup of steel-cut oats.  (I'll share this on the next blog post).

Ingredients
1/2 cup of soybeans (150 calories)
1/2 cup (small can) of white tuna (120 calories)
3 sheets of sushi seaweed paper (30 calories)
2 tsp of Vietnamese hot sauce - Sriracha (10 calories)
1/2 tsp of minced garlic (10 calories)
1/2 tsp of sesame oil (20 calories)
Total Calories = 340

First, prepare the soybeans by blending them into a paste.  I used a hand-held blender/wand to do this.  The soybeans can be a bit thick for it to blend well, so feel free to add a tablespoon or two of water.  When completely blended, it should be the consistency of a thick guacamole.

Next, prepare the tuna by mashing the tuna, garlic, hot sauce and the sesame oil together with a fork.
Finally, once the two main ingredients are prepared, cut the seaweed paper sheets into 4 quarters.

Here is what I made, but without the Sriracha to avoid the sodium.  However, I noticed that Sriracha only has 100mg of sodium per teaspoon, so I added some later while eating them.

The tuna is on the left and the soybean mixture is on the right.


Now, all you need to do is, sit down and start rolling your own miniature rolls by spreading the soybean mixture on the seaweed paper followed by a layer of the tuna mixture.  This recipe should make about 8 to 12 rolls depending on the amount of filling used. 

Here is a picture of my stack of seaweed paper and my first roll in progress. 

And...  this is what it looks like when it's rolled up.

Enjoy this healthy and creative harmony of tuna and soybeans with a serving of vegetables from the sea!

Soybean Salad

Hello everyone.
It's been a while and I apologize...

Let's open up with a very simple soybean salad that I enjoyed for lunch yesterday.
As shared earlier, soybeans are excellent sources of protein and fiber.
This bowl of soybean salad is about 550 calories.  Some might argue that a small hamburger can also be around 550 calories, but as shared before, these are very nutritious and healthy calories instead of the fatty calories that are in burgers.  Remember, not all calories are created equal.  We must weigh out the nutritional value of the food we eat along with the calories.  The sweet yellow peppers contain tons of vitamin C and tomatoes contain a good amount of vitamin A and C.... all with 0 grams of cholesterol. 

Now, enough with the lecture (nagging)... here is the quick recipe.

Ingredients
-  1 cup of cooked brown soybeans.  (376 calories)
-  1 Roma or medium size tomato (20 calories)
-  1 yellow sweet/bell pepper (50 calories)
-  1 tsp of sweet-hot mustard (10 calories)
-  1 tsp of lemon juice (5 calories)
-  2 tsp of olive oil (80 calories)


Mix the sweet-hot mustard, lemon juice and the olive oil in the bowl you will eat out of.  This is your dressing.  Then,  throw the cooked and chilled soybeans into the same bowl along with the diced tomato and peppers.  Try to dice them into sizes no bigger than the soybeans.  Now, toss the salad and enjoy!

Quick Tip #1: It's good to have some precooked/boiled soybeans in the refrigerator.  You can blend it as a quick homemade soy milk or use it in a simple salad recipe like this one. 

Quick Tip #2:  My wife and I came across this brand of sweet hot mustard.  It is the best I've had so far.