Monbento Original #28 (Double Tier)

Rice topped with seasoned laver, Korean pumpkin pancakes from Beyond Kimchee, an attempt at vegan tamagoyaki using a mung bean omelet, a dipping sauce (soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sriracha, a pinch of sugar, and water), improvisational coleslaw, wedges of five spice tofu over lettuce, apple slices, and almond butter.

This was one of those "use stuff up in the fridge before going to the store" kind of meals, but I'd been wanting to make those pumpkin pancakes for a long time. I managed to find a suitable pumpkin and a weekend I was feeling energetic enough to chop it up into fine matchsticks (I really need a proper food processor!). The spicy, salty dipping sauce was just the right balance for their sweetness. (And hooray for a back-to-normal tongue that can handle that!)

I didn't really like eating this tofu this way--the pre-packaged five spice tofu was very dense, and it really needs other things with it for more of a variance in textures. But it occurs to me that this stuff would also shred beautifully, like smoked tofu, and there might be possibilities with that.

The tamagoyaki needs work, mostly because I think I started rolling it too early and didn't season it quite right yet. But I'm not yet conceding defeat.

I had a work event for which we had catering, so I will have no lunch for you tomorrow, but I do have another breakfast compilation I've worked on for a while and I'm excited to share it with you. See you then!