Among the simplest and most common dishes in Hyrule, Fried Wild Greens embodies the resourceful nature of the kingdom’s people. Whether gathered fresh from the forests and fields or grown in quiet village farm plots, Hyrule’s bounty of wild vegetation, from fragrant safflina to the humble Hyrule herb, offers endless variety. Chopped into leaves, stalks, and bulbs and fried up in a cooking pot, these greens reveal their natural savor and vitality. The result is a humble and nourishing meal, a rustic staple as familiar to Hyrulean tables as Hylian Rice. While honey glazing and salt grilling are also favored preparations for Hyrule’s vegetables, a simple bowl of fried wild greens remains the dish most likely to grace any village dinner table.
"A healthy dish made by cooking mixed greens over a strong flame."
So this is a somewhat tough dish to attempt to recreate as the vegetation of Hyrule doesn’t necessarily have exact real world equivalents. Fortunately, the parts of the vegetables present in the in-game photo can be somewhat replicated with real world vegetables. Through a little analyzing, I matched them up as shown below.
So, to create this dish, the four small dishes I decided on were fried red chard, blanched and fried asparagus, simmered and fried bamboo, and pickled eggplant. Yes, one of those dishes is not fried, but the eggplant provides a nice balance to the other fried components. In the end, the result was a plate of simple (mostly) fried vegetables focusing on their inherent flavor.
Ingredients
Eggplant
10 Thai (or Kermit) eggplants
2 cups white or apple cider vinegar
3-4 cloves of garlic, smashed
3-4 thin slices of ginger
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 cups white or apple cider vinegar
3-4 cloves of garlic, smashed
3-4 thin slices of ginger
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
Bamboo
1 lb package whole bamboo tips, drained
2 cups water
2 tsp Hondashi granules
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 lb package whole bamboo tips, drained
2 cups water
2 tsp Hondashi granules
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar
Sesame oil
Red Chard
1 small bunch red chard
1-2 tbsp vegetable or olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tbsp mirin
1 to 2 tbsp soy sauce
Salt and black pepper
Asparagus
1 bunch of asparagus
1 tbsp olive or vegetable oil
Sesame oil
Salt
Salt
For the Eggplant:
The eggplant should be prepared 3 days ahead of the rest of the components. Remove the tops from the eggplants and slice them partially in half. Slice each eggplant about ¾ of the way through from the cut top. This will allow the pickling solution to get through.
Place a pot over medium high heat. Add the vinegar, garlic, ginger, sugar, and salt. Stir to dissolve the sugar and salt into the vinegar. Bring the vinegar to a boil, and then remove the pot from the heat. Allow the pickling solution to cool for about 20 minutes.
Add the eggplants to a jar with an air tight lid. Once the pickling solution is cooled, pour it over the eggplants into the jar, along with the garlic and ginger. Seal the jar tightly.
Allow the jar to sit on the counter for two days until the pickling solution turns the eggplant to a yellowish light green color, and then place the jar in the refrigerator for one more day. After this 3 day pickling period the eggplants are ready to serve.
For the Bamboo:
Add the water to a wide pot or pan over high heat. Add the Hondashi granules, soy sauce, and brown sugar. Stir the ingredients to blend and dissolve the granules; this will form a quick dashi broth. Bring the broth to a boil. Add the bamboo tips and allow them to simmer for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove the bamboo from the pot, place them on a plate, and pat them dry.
Add the water to a wide pot or pan over high heat. Add the Hondashi granules, soy sauce, and brown sugar. Stir the ingredients to blend and dissolve the granules; this will form a quick dashi broth. Bring the broth to a boil. Add the bamboo tips and allow them to simmer for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove the bamboo from the pot, place them on a plate, and pat them dry.
Place a pan over medium to medium-high heat. Add vegetable oil to coat the pan and then place bamboo in the pan. Sear the bamboo for one minute on each side to add color. Once seared, return the bamboo to the plate. Brush one side of the bamboo with sesame oil.
For the Chard:
Remove the thick portion of the stems from each leaf by folding the leaves over in half at the stem and running a knife along the edge of the stem. Rinse the kale and the stems in water to clean well. Dry the leaves and the stems. Chop the stems into bite size pieces, as you would celery. Lay the chard leaves atop one another, roll them up into a cylinder, and chop the leaves.
Set a pan over medium-high heat. Once the pan is warm, add the vegetable oil and swirl it around the pan. Add the chopped stems, and allow them to fry until softer, about 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds to a minute, until fragrant. Add the chard greens and toss the garlic and stems, through the greens to blend. Season with salt and black pepper and toss again. Allow the chard greens to cook until they have wilted, about 2-3 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat. Add the soy sauce and mirin to the wilted greens and toss them through to season. The chard is ready to serve.
For the Asparagus:
Set a skillet over medium-high heat and add a little vegetable oil and swirl it to coat the pan. When the oil is hot, lay the asparagus in the pan in a single layer and sear them on one side only for about one to two minutes, seasoning with additional salt, if needed. Do not flip them; just sear the asparagus on one side only. Remove the spears from the pan and let them rest briefly. While still warm, lightly brush the tops with sesame oil.
Cut the woody ends from the bottom of the asparagus spears, being sure to keep them uniform in size, and then peel each stalk below the bud so they appear smooth.
Bring a wide pot or pan filled halfway with water to a boil, and season it with 1 tbsp of salt. Stir the salt through to fully dissolve. Prepare an ice bath nearby in another bowl (water chilled with ice). Once boiling, add the asparagus to the pan, and blanch for about one minute, just until the color deepens to a bright green, then immediately transfer them to the ice bath to stop the cooking and lock in their color. Once cool, pat the spears completely dry with paper towels.
Set a skillet over medium-high heat and add a little vegetable oil and swirl it to coat the pan. When the oil is hot, lay the asparagus in the pan in a single layer and sear them on one side only for about one to two minutes, seasoning with additional salt, if needed. Do not flip them; just sear the asparagus on one side only. Remove the spears from the pan and let them rest briefly. While still warm, lightly brush the tops with sesame oil.
To plate, arrange a small pile of the chard toward the back of the plate. Lay a small stack of asparagus in front of the chard (tips toward the back), and two pieces of bamboo atop the chard and across the aspatagus. Place three halves of the eggplants near the tips of the asparagus and the bottom of the bamboo. Consult the in game photo for the proper, specific arrangement. Garnish the front of the plate with a small, raw chard leaf. Enjoy a simple plate of (mostly) fried wild greens!
Learn more about the Fried Wild Greens dish from Breath of the Wild at Zelda Dungeon.