pork chops for Tuesday

01-31-2011 Tue. mild, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with sweet & sour lotus root
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- tangerine
DINNER --- pan-fried pork chops | sauteed baby spinach with garlic | sauteed bean sprouts with red pepper and celery | rice | wine

• another quick meal. unseasonal warm for the end of January
  

sitr & fry

01-30-2011 Mon. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with curried beef stew
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- tangerine
DINNER --- stir-fried napa cabbage, shiitake, winter bamboo shoot, and smoked tofu | sweet & sour lotus root | scrambled eggs with tomato and cilantro | rice | wine

• quick meal = stir and fry, more than eight ingredients
  

a perfect winter afternoon for braising beef shank

01-29-2011 Sun. cold, sunny.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | Norwegian pancake with apple and brown sugar | orange juice | grapefruit
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea
DINNER --- baked Japanese sweet potato fries | pan-fried Brussels sprouts | curried beef shank stew with potatoes | rice | bread | wine

• beef shank is under-appreciated cut, so it is very reasonably priced. it is braised for hours in wine then seasoned with curry spice.
  

home-kitchen sous vide salmon

01-28-2011 Sat. chilly, sunny.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | homemade Swedish limpa bead with jam and butter | Chinese sweet rice dumplings | grapefruit
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea
DINNER --- steamed manila calms | sauteed young kale with garlic | black quinoa seasoned with sumac and nutmeg | yuzukisho and ginger scallion spiced sous-vide salmon | wine || basamic panna cotta | espresso

sealed in a bag, submerged in warm water (115 degree)

out of the bag and water after 30 minutes


pan- seared about 20 seconds


served with yuzukisho ginger scallion sauce


as happy as clams


basamic panna cotta, espresso

• continue to try out the recipes from NYT demonstration of "Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking".
• Sous Vide Salmon, basically a warm water poaching approach applied to the tender and fatty Icelandic salmon. the result is quite good, fish has very tender and silky texture, but not raw. the spiced butter searing part is substituted by very brief searing with olive oil and yuzukisho,ginger and scallion sauce.
  
• Basamic Panna Cotta, the key thing is to use citrus acid instead of gelatin or egg to set the cream. the result is a mixture of success and failure, the texture is no bounce alright, but way too dense and not soft. need to work on the proportions.
  

grilling & scraping cheese: Swiss Raclette

01-27-2011 Fri. mild, cloudy.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with sauteed Brussels sprouts
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
DINNER --- ( at Susann's) crackers with creamy crab meat dip | grape leaf wrap |champagne || homemade pretzel | bread | creamy spicy tomato soup with pan-seared shrimp | avocado and tender green salad | Swiss raclette cheese (table grilling) | boiled potatoes | pickled onion and cucumber | wine || fruit trio with cream and chocolate | rose hip tea

• Swiss Raclette cheese round was carried in by Susann, very soft and bubbling when grilled at the table
  

Brussels sprouts on the stalk

01-26-2011 Thu. chilly, rain.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with curried cauliflowers and pan-fried pork chop
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- tangerine
DINNER --- curried angel hair potatoes | steamed and pan-fried Brussels sprouts | marinated and seared scallops with green aioli sauce | rice | wine

• Brussels sprouts on the stalk are quite fresh and sweet.
  

home-cooking

01-25-2011 Wed. chilly, cloudy.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- (on plane) tomato juice | strawberry crepe
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- tea
DINNER --- stir-fried red pepper, shiitake mushroom, tofu skin and wood-ear | curried cauliflowers | rice | wine

• best food comes from home cooking
  

New New Orlean cuisine at Root restaurant

01-24-2011 Tue. cool and windy.



BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- ( from the traveler's pack) tangerine | strawberry crepe
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- strawberry crepe
DINNER --- ( at Root restaurant NOLA) Louisiana pickled shrimp with deviled eggs | Moroccan style lamb sausage, with pickled vegetables, bread chips and fennel marmalade | spicy baby eggplant and cauliflower, with toasted Indian spices and corn nuts |coriander scented grilled Gulf fish, with Lemongrass, Consommé, Satsuma Ginger Shrimp Salad, Udon Noodles made of fish paste | Cohiba Smoked Scallops, with Chorizo Dust, Caramelized Cauliflower, Fennel Choucroute | Lobster Lasagna: Butter Poached Maine Lobster, Fennel bacon Marmalade, Manchego Cream | wine || fruits and fancy marshmallows | coffee

amuse bouche


pickled shrimp & deviled egg


lamb sausage


eggplant & cauliflower



smoked scallops, not cigar


grilled Gulf fish+ shrimp salad+ fish paste noodles


fruit, syrup, sorbet, marshmallow, salt, micro green

• Root is a new restaurant in New Orleans, New American cuisine = anything goes as the chef feels like. The grilled Gulf fish is excellent by itself, minus the fussy shrimp salad and overly salty and dead shrimp paste 'udon noodles'. It seems that all vegetables need either to be caramelized ( and if no sugar comes out, just add sugar in), or pickled ( by salt and vinegar, a lot of both). Food at Root is like an over-dressed girl, pile on and layer on, all materials and all shapes, could use some editing.
  

NOLA still grillin' & chillin'

01-23-2011 Mon. warm, rain to sun.


BREAKFAST --- tea | tangerine | strawberry crepe
LATE-LUNCH --- ( at Acme Oyster House, NOLA) char-grilled oysters | local beer: Abita amber
DINNER --- ( from the traveler's pack ) homemade onion flat bread | tangerine | strawberry crepe | green tea

old man river Mississippi

French Quarter

ACME, still grillin' & chillin' for over 100 years

• NOLA , local oysters are plump and sweet, grilled without gooey cheese is a good choice.
  

homemade bread, at home and on road

01-22-2011 Sun. cold, icy rain.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | homemade orange bread | grapefruit
AFTERNOON LUNCH --- rice with kao-fu stew
DINNER for traveler --- apple | homemade Syrian sweet onion flat bread | strawberry crepe | green tea

• travel with homemade flat bread, just like travelers on the silk road.
  

seared frozen steaks: The Science of Cooking

01-21-2011 Sat. cold, snow dust.



WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | Italian bread | cheese | grapefruit | scrambled saffron eggs AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea
DINNER --- okra tempura with dashi dipping sauce | seared frozen rib eye steaks with wine mushroom sauce | baby potatoes with caramelized onion with porcini juice | wine

cast-iron pan searing the frozen steak

seared, ready to go in the oven


one hour later, out of low-temperature oven (200)


tender and flavorful, with mushroom sauce

okra tempura

• followed the Seared Frozen Rib Steaks recipe from NYT this week, which made from the giant book "Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking". It was a rather successful first try, the steak turned out to be juicy, tender, and flavorful.
  

Adapted from “Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking,” by Nathan Myhrvold, Chris Young and Maxime Bilet, with my notes from the experiment

Time: 1 hour 15 minutes, plus freezing time

2 bone-in rib steaks (about 1 1/2- inch thick and 1 1/2 pounds each) ( used New York rib eye steak, 1 inch thick, no bone )

Safflower oil (used canola oil )

Coarse sea salt and black pepper.

1. Place the steaks on a baking sheet and freeze them for 1 hour.( solid frozen)

2. Heat the oven to 200 degrees. Season the steaks all over generously with salt and pepper.

3. Heat a cast iron skillet until very hot, at least 10 minutes; add a thin layer of safflower oil. Sear the steaks, one at a time, on one side, until they form a golden crust. Transfer, seared side up, to a rimmed baking sheet. Alternatively, arrange steak on a rimmed baking sheet. Holding a propane torch six inches from the meat, run a flame back and forth across the surface of the meat, giving it an even crust. Make sure to sear the fatty edges and the bones. (You need to sear only one side and the edges.) (heavy cast iron skillet essential, pre-heated over medium heat for 15 minutes, very thin oil layer, meat seared nicely with some smoke, 10 minutes )

4. Cook steaks until they reach a core temperature of 122 degrees for rare, about 30 minutes to 1 hour. (Or leave it in the oven until it’s done to taste.) Let stand 10 minutes before thinly slicing. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt and serve immediately. ( cooked for an hour, most evenly medium rare, bottom slightly well done. the oven temperature could have been a bit lower to 180 )

starch three ways

01-20-2011 Fri. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- mushroom pizza
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
DINNER --- oven-baked Japanese sweet potato fries | pan-fried lotus root chips | sauteed young kale with garlic | sauteed taro roots with scallions and minced chicken | wine

• starch in sweet potato, lotus root, and taro root.
  

Kao-fu is like sponge for flavors

01-19-2011 Thu. cold, sunny



BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- steamed dumplings
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- tangerine
DINNER --- stew of kao-fu (wheat gluten), with shiitake mushroom, eggplant, winter bamboo shoot, citrus lily buds, and wood-ear | boiled pea leaves with roasted garlic sauce | Chinese taco buns with braised beef | rice | wine

kao-fu

• Chinese comfort food. the porous structure of kao-fu takes in flavorful broth.
  

steamed dumplings

01-18-2011 Wed. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- tong-hao porridge over rice
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- tangerine
DINNER --- steamed dumplings with fillings of minced chicken, shiitake, and bok choy | tomato soup with shiitake mushroom and pea leaves | wine

• make dumplings from scratch and ready in less than a hour on rehearsal evening
  

Chinese taco buns

01-17-2011 Tue. mild, rain.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with stew of winter root vegetables
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- tangerine
DINNER --- steamed Chinese taco buns with wine-braised beef, caramelized onion and cilantro | Tong-hao porridge with crushed peanuts, over rice | wine

• quick meal, it is Tuesday. the beef was prepared a day before and chilled, as "cold cuts"
  

winter bamboo shoots

01-16-2011 Mon. cold, sunny.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | scallion pancake | apple | grape fruit
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea | tangerine
DINNER --- hot & sour clay pot stew: taro root, winter bamboo shoot, lotus root, beech mushroom, scallops, with fresh chili, lemon juice, lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves and ginger | stir-fried "three-delicous": Chinese yellow chive, winter bamboo shoot, smoked tofu, with napa cabbage and dried shrimp | rice | wine

shelling winter bamboo shoots


stir-fry three-delicious


hot & sour clay pot

• winter bamboo shoots in season, go into stew or stir-fry.
  

lamb ragu pizza

01-15-2011 Sun. cold, sunny.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | Shanghai-style pan-fried pork buns | apple
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea | tangerine
DINNER --- olives and marinated mushrooms | roasted garlic with salt and olive oil | homemade pizza, with toppings: spiced eggplant, porcini mushroom, lamb ragu, caramelized onion and two kinds of cheese | wine

• lamb ragu works well as pipza topping.
  

steamed short ribs with grounded rice

01-14-2011 Sat. cold, sunny.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | apple | homemade orange bread
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea
DINNER --- steamed manila clams with ginger and cilantro sauce | sauteed pea shoots | steamed short ribs with grounded roasted rice and carrots | rice | wine

• this is another Shanghai special, short ribs coated with seasoned, roasted and grounded rice ( coarser than bread crumbs) and steamed in bamboo steamer for about two hours. the results are extremely tender, juicy meat on the bone with the grounded rice and carrots ( as the bottom layer under the meat in the steamer) soaked with meat juice and full of flavor.
  

shabu shabu for a cold night

01-13-2011 Fri. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- pasta with ragu sauce
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- earl gray tea | apple
DINNER --- shabu shabu ( hot pot ) : thin sliced lamb | chicken and scallion meat balls | napa cabbage | cilantro | winter mushrooms | young mustard green | tahini and sha-cha dipping sauce | wine

all going into hot pot

• "shabu shabu" in Japanese ( or "shuan" 涮 in Chinese) is the sound of swishing ingredients in the boiling broth of the hot pot on the table.