Napa Cabbage Harvested Too Late

Napa cabbage that didn't form a head in December.
Through January and February, instead of forming a head, it kept spreading its leaves, flattening itself against the ground.
Like spinach and other greens, it was enduring the cold.

I hoped it might turn into a fine head of cabbage once it got warmer, but that didn't happen.

The outer leaves were already starting to wither, and it looked like it was about to send up flower stalks.
I decided to harvest it.

I decided to make one of my few specialties, "Pork Belly and Napa Cabbage in Starchy Sauce." It's based on a recipe by Chizuru Ohara, and the key is adding oyster sauce.

The leaves were green and a bit tough. It no longer looked like Napa cabbage.

Since it had endured the cold winter, I hoped it might have become incredibly delicious, but that wasn't the case.

When I tasted it midway through, it was tough and didn't taste good. I thought, maybe this is inedible.

I consulted ChatGPT. It suggested adding water and steaming it slowly over low heat. It also suggested chopping it up and putting it in gyoza if that didn't work.

I simmered it slowly for another 20 minutes or so.

Surprisingly, it became tender and actually started to taste pretty good. It was more like bok choy than Napa cabbage. It was a stir-fry of pork belly and bok choy with oyster sauce.

It seemed edible, but it was a bit disappointing as a main dish for dinner.

As I was wondering what to do, my mother said, "Why don't you mix it into yakisoba?" and took something out of the freezer.

A miraculous oyster sauce connection. It might be just right. I didn't know this was sleeping in the freezer.

I decided to serve the "Pork Belly and Bok Choy (Napa Cabbage) Oyster Stir-fry" on top of this yakisoba. For a side dish, I made seaweed and egg Chinese-style soup.

It was actually delicious. It didn't feel out of place at all. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it Chinese-style starchy sauce yakisoba.

Even with pre-packaged food, adding a homemade touch makes for a truly rich meal. I could really feel the power of the vegetables from the garden.

When I finished eating, everything felt settled.
I felt a little bit happy.

I was able to eat the late-harvested Napa cabbage deliciously. By being creative, I didn't have to throw it away.

When I can do things like this, I feel a sense of everything falling into place.

Perhaps this is what "abundance" is.