New Year's resolutions and a store cupboard clear out

This year, I'm about New Year's resolutions I can cope with keeping. Last year, I only made one resolution - learn how to play mah jong - and I couldn't even keep that, despite having a rather lovely mah jong set in my possession. Nyargh.

So this year, it's all about the food. I eat food every day, so making food resolutions kind of builds in keepability. (OK, maybe I'm being a bit optimistic here, but I'm also optimistic that keepability is a word, so let me enjoy my delusions for a bit).

Here are my not-very-challenging resolutions:

1) Declutter the kitchen. Use up more of the foods that have been hanging around in the store cupboards and fridge for too long.

2) I've got two folders full of recipes I've printed out from websites or torn out from magazines. The folders seem to get fuller and fuller without me cooking any of the dishes. New Year's resolution number two - cook more of them, and ditch the failers.

3) Feel the food fear and do it anyway! Cook more recipes that I've avoided because I thought they were too complicated, or because they use foods I think I wouldn't like.

So, this post sorts out both number one and number two resolutions - it uses a recipe I printed out, and helps use up a pantry over-stayer, fermented black beans.

For MoFo last year, I tried cooking with fermented black beans a couple of times, but ignored them after October was over (through lack of inspiration, rather than lack of enjoyment, I hasten to add). During MoFo, I printed out a recipe using the fermented black beans from the LA Times site - Vegetarian Hunan-style tofu - but never got around to using it.

Time to tackle that situation. I made the recipe, but swapped out the shiitake mushrooms for other veggies (I love shiitakes, but Mr Flicking the Vs fears them). 

Here's what happened:

This one is a stone-cold winner! Again, I'm kind of puzzled why, given that fermented black beans are awesome, I don't cook with them that often. Or at all since October, in fact. This recipe didn't even take too long to make, and only involved one pan. What more can you ask for? Roll on more New Year's resolution keeping!