Gochujang dressing spices up tofu, lettuce, veggies and sprouts. (Photo by Tressa Dale/Peninsula Clarion)

Gochujang dressing spices up tofu, lettuce, veggies and sprouts. (Photo by Tressa Dale/Peninsula Clarion)

On the strawberry patch: Healthy life starts with healthy food

Gochujang salad dressing turns veggies and tofu into an exciting meal

Good health starts with good nutrition.

So many factors affect your health over your lifetime. Genetics, socioeconomic status, education, trauma and luck can all make a huge impact on how well your body functions. But if you make great food choices, you can give yourself the best possible chance to live a long life, no matter how your circumstances might change.

A recent snapshot of health care in Alaska showed approximately 18.5% of the population received their health care through Medicaid or CHIP. These programs are essential to provide our neighbors who are affected by poverty or disability with necessary medical and mental health care, bettering the overall health of our communities.

In an effort to improve health outcomes for Americans, and to ultimately reduce spending, Medicaid offers a nutrition counseling program, called Foodsmart, that operates through SNAP to empower beneficiaries to make and afford the best nutrition choices possible with plans created by registered dietitians, and arranged via online grocers to make the program effective and accessible.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

This week I’m partnering with Alaskans Take a Stand to spread awareness about Medicaid’s nutrition-focused operations here in Alaska, and to call for assistance in an important survey.

I filmed a cooking video for their website featuring a spicy salad dressing that turns raw veggies and tofu into an exciting meal. The recipe does not follow traditional measurements but uses a simple ratio instead. Just use the same spoon for each ingredient and you can’t go wrong. For a single serving, I would say a dinner spoon is an appropriate size to use.

Gochujang Dressing

Ingredients for the dressing:

1 heaping spoon Korean red pepper paste

1 spoon sesame oil

1 spoon rice wine vinegar or mirin

1 spoon soy sauce

1 spoon minced garlic

1 spoon minced fresh ginger

Ingredients for the salad for one:

1-2 cups spring mix

½ cup raw broccoli

1/3 block raw firm tofu

½ cup sliced cucumber

1/3 cup raw bean sprouts

A few cherry tomatoes

One stalk green onion

Sprinkle of sesame seeds

Directions:

Finely mince the garlic and ginger and add to a small mixing bowl.

Measure one spoon of sesame oil and add to the bowl. Doing the sesame oil first keeps the red pepper paste from sticking to the spoon.

Add one heaping spoon of red pepper paste.

Add one spoon each of soy sauce and rice wine vinegar.

Mix thoroughly into a smooth sauce.

This dressing is delicious on salads, but I also like to use it as a sauce for cooked, cold rice noodles. Mix to coat the noodles and top with bean sprouts, green onion, sesame seeds, julienned cucumber and carrot, and a fried egg for a delicious lunch.

If you have personal experience with Medicaid, Alaskans Take a Stand would like to invite you to participate in their survey to gather information about people’s lived experiences with Medicaid in the state.

Visit medicaidbarrierssurvey.org to take the survey. If you would like to learn more about how to help or donate, you can visit their website Alaskanstakeastand.org or you can visit their Facebook page for more information.

More in Life

A clay tea set on display at the Kenai Potters Guild exhibit, “River,” hosted by the Kenai Art Center. (Jonas Oyoumick/Peninsula Clarion)
Making art shaped by the river

Kenai Potters Guild Clay On Display exhibit focuses on a river’s effect on self and community.

A clipping from a Homer Death Cafe poster.
Homer group tackles death and dying through open conversations

The local group mirrors a growing worldwide trend of “Death Cafes.”

Peonies bloom on Friday, July 4, 2024, in the garden beside Cosmic Kitchen on Pioneer Avenue in Homer, Alaska. Photo by Christina Whiting
Homer chamber hosts 6th annual Peony Celebration

The weeks-long festival features art exhibits, events, flower sales, guided farm tours and more.

These fudgy brownies are a classic, decadent treat. (Photo by Tressa Dale/Peninsula Clarion)
Dessert for a thoughtful reader

These classic fudgy brownies are dense and decadent.

Volunteers scoop up ducks at the finish line during the annual Anchor River Duck Races on Saturday, July 5, in Anchor Point.
Locals win at 4th annual Anchor River duck races

The event is part of the Anchor Point VFW’s Fourth of July celebrations.

Photo courtesy of the Melchior Family Collection
Between 1879 and 1892, Stephan Melchior (far left, middle row) performed his mandatory Prussian military service. He was a member of the Eighth Rhineland Infantry Regiment No. 70 in Trier, Germany.
Steve Melchior: Treasured peninsula pioneer with a sketchy past — Part 1

Did anyone in Alaska know the real Steve Melchior? That is difficult to say.

File
Minister’s Message: ‘Be still and I will fight for you’

Letting go of control and embracing faith and silence can encourage us in peace and divine trust.

"Octopus" is an acrylic painting by new co-op member Heather Mann on display at Ptarmigan Arts in Homer, Alaska. Photo provided by Ptarmigan Arts
July First Friday in Homer

Homer’s galleries and public art spaces celebrate with new and ongoing exhibits.

Frank Rowley and his youngest child, Raymond, stand in knee-deep snow in front of the protective fence around the main substation for Mountain View Light & Power in Anchorage in 1948 or ’49. This photo was taken a year or two before Rowley moved to Kenai to begin supplying electrical power to the central peninsula. (Photo courtesy of the Rowley Family)
Let there be light: The electrifying Frank Rowley — Part 2

In July 1946, the soft-spoken Rowley was involved in an incident that for several consecutive days made the front page of the Anchorage Daily Times.

Most Read