hi Karen,

I have before me a most incredible sounding recipe for Wasabi Crusted Sole. This crust for the sole involves "wasabi peas" which are ground then the sole is dipped in egg, then the ground "peas". Then fried in oil. Served with citrusy glazed endives and garnished with lots o' cilantro

Are wasabi peas simply peas seasoned in wasabi? Are they fresh green peas (lower carb) or dried peas (higher carb)? Maybe ground almonds seasoned with wasabi powder would be better?

The recipe is from the summer edition of Food & Drink magazine, published by the LCBO


Doreen

Wasabi peas are a Japanese snack that you can buy in Chinese and Japanese grocery stores. The brand name is "Kasugai Peas & You". Go figure!

I used to eat a lot of them in the "olden days"

Maybe finely ground soy grits with wasabl would be a better substitute? I recently found some toasted soy grits but haven't tried them yet.

Karen

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but......I remeber SUGAR featured in the ingredient list. I COULD be wrong.. it's been a long time!!

Hmmm .. I wondered about that too. I think I like Karen's idea to use ground toasted soy grits, or maybe plain toasted soy nuts, seasoned with wasabi powder.

Haven't had the chance to try this yet, but I'll post when I do how it turned out.


Doreen

I saw Wasabi Peas at the health food store ... the nutrient data said 10g carbs, 1.8g fiber per 28g (1 oz) serving. There was no sugar of any kind in the ingredients list. Still .. 8.2g ECC is too high for a single ounce, which would probably measure about ¼ cup or just enough for one large fillet.

Maybe OK for Maintenance or a higher carb program such as Sugar Busters or Schwarzbein.


Doreen

In light of the high ECC for the wasabi peas ... I opted for toasted soy nuts, to which I added wasabi.

The soy nuts are (per oz) ... 7.3g carbs, 2.9g fiber .. so 4.4g ECC. I double-checked, and the fiber was not pre-subtracted, so the ECC is correct.

I ground one ounce in the food processor, and added a heaped tsp prepared wasabi (from powder) while processing .. this made sure the wasabi got well-mixed in with the crumbs.

I had 3 average-sized sole (flounder) fillets ... dipped in beaten egg, then pressed in the wasabi crumbs on a plate. Sautéed in ½ Tbsp each ghee and canola oil over medium heat for about 2 minutes each side. Sprinkled some minced cilantro on top and served with a salad of julienned daikon, red pepper, green onion ... drsg: tamari, lime jce, canola and sesame oil, dot of stevia.

It was delicious. The wasabi added a nice bite without being overwhelming. The crumbs were good, but "heavy" ... like nuts or cornmeal, definitely not "light" like breadcrumbs or cornstarch.

You definitely want to use thin fillets that cook quickly. Even over medium heat, the soy crumbs tended to burn quickly.


I'll make these crumbs again ... I'm thinking as a topping for broiled scallops and/or shrimp.


Doreen

You may want to try lightly crushed TVP. It's a lot lighter in texture.

Karen