Quick soup

With some fish left over, I sautéed the bones and used them to make the soup base with a little ginger. The soup then is brought to a boil and sliced fish and cilantro are added quickly to make this very refreshing soup.

Hot Pot

Everybody knows too few people having hot pot is not a good thing and here is an example. A big pot of water but just a plate of red snapper, beef, tofu, mushroom and chrysanthemum greens. Not bad but can be so much better. The beef though is good, one of them is directly from Kobe and cost an arm and an leg (only if my arm and leg worth that much...).

Quick Meal

A little quail marinated with ginger, sugar, pepper, soy sauce and garlic was pan fried. The lingcod was dusted with cornstarch, curry powder, salt and pepper and then panfried slowly. The eggplant is even simpler--steamed plain and then 'Chinese BBQ Sauce' 柱候醬 and sesame oil was mixed in. Easy as can be.

Pork loin

This is a just done pork loin, cooked to 165℉. After salt and peppering it, I smeared on dijon mustard, garlic, thyme and rosemary. Put into a 350℉ for until it browns a little and then turn it down to 300℉ until done. Just a hint on pink, very juicy.

Lingcod

I bought some frozen lingcod from Fresh Off The Boat in the winter market. Turns out they are not bad at all, not as good as the very fresh but better than almost all frozen ones I have had. Here I simply salt and pepper and sautéed it and added a little browned butter. Quite nice.

Sunchoke

Sunchoke is one crazy looking thing. It is good eating though. The winter farmer's market yield some wonderful pieces.












Mash is good and I like to cut it up with skin on, boil it until the smaller pieces are soft but there is still a little crunch with the bigger and pieces with skin. It is blended with a little milk and butter. The result looks like a nice mash potato but there are invisible slight crunchy sweet bits mixed in. It goes so well with this braised pork.

Braised Pork Shoulder

I figure that it is good with chops, it is probably good with larger cuts. The shoulder roast is cut into serving pieces, salt and pepper then browned. Onion is sautéed till brown, carrots, pine nuts, cloves, thyme, oregano, frozen cranberries, garlic and ginger are added. It is then deglazed with red wine vinegar. The pork is added, some water, season and bring to a boil. It is finished in a warm oven till fork tender.

Fine Snack

The Oyama Sausage Company must be one of the finest sausage maker in the world. There maybe better maker of this or that sausage or ham here and there, but to make thousands different kinds so excellently is just ridiculous but true. Here is have their Serrano style and Jambon des Ardennes. The cheese is a very ripe St. Alban. My own bread. Local Gala apple.

Wild Winter Mushrooms

Louis said he picked these winter oyster mushrooms out of the snow. They looked wet but turned out to be firm and nice. What a surprise.












Here I chopped them up and sautéed them with ginger, scallion and garlic before adding some xo sauce. Tofu went in with some chicken stock, oyster sauce and salt. A couple of minutes later, a warming and tasty dish is done.

Oysters

One of the great things about Vancouver in the winter is oysters. The water is cold and the oysters are sweet and crisp. I don't eat raw oysters in the summer because the taste tends to be murky and the texture chalky then. But now, they are all sweetness and freshness and crispness.

Seefood Pasta

I have so much stuffs in my ice box that I need to use them. A little frozen shrimps and a little frozen scallops are the main ingredients. A little garlic, chili, oregano, thyme and a few leftover canned tomatoes made the sauce. I also realized I still had quite a few of my own dried tomatoes, so I added that too. A hand full of parsley finish the thing. The sauce was so sweet because of the dried tomatoes, reminded me of the summer before last. I should start planning my garden now.

Sugar and Vinegar Pork

Usually this is made with spareribs. I have a large shoulder chop instead. Why not, I though. I browned the cut up chops light before adding ginger and garlic. When the garlic takes on some colour, I added sweat vinegar (baby vinegar), raw sugar, star anise, Shaoxing liquor, salt and dark soy sauce. The whole thing cooked for half an hour or so. It is very tasty indeed, the meat though is a little on the dry side because it is so lean. There is reason for things but sometime the alternative isn't as good but not too bad either.

Goating

I defrosted some goat meat and realized that it is more bones and tandons than meat so I decide to reverse the plan and use the meat as the flavour for tofu skins and bamboo shoots instead. Pretty much the classic recipe I posted here before but proportionally less meat and more other things. I didn't have sugar cane and water chestnuts either. Still, it comes out quite good. Because there is more skin, bone and tendon, the sauce is a little creamier, not a bad thing. Sort of a poor man's stew, if it were the old days, but now the vegetables are more expansive than the meat, so this may very well be the rich man's stew instead.

Something Old, Something New

Reheating the chicken and eat it with some sautéed potato and it feels like a new dish.

Bean Soup

I left the back of the chicken out of the chicken stew to make a soup. I browned the back pieces before adding water and bay leave to cook for a couple hours. Onion, celery, carrot and garlic are sautéed in the pressure cooker before tomato, the stock and soaked beans are added. It cooked under pressure for half an hour and voilá!

Chicken Stew

This is kind of a franco-italian stew I suppose. Carrot, onion, celery and garlic are sautéed before browned chicken is added. A few tomatoes, white wine, salt, mushrooms, potatoes, bay leaves, thyme and oregano go in and the whole things cooks for 20 or so minutes. There is a nice freshness to this dish and it makes me forget that it is gray and cold outside.

Shrimp and Bittle Melon

This is a recipe from the Hong Kong celebrity chef Chow Chong. The shrimp is dusted with a little cornstarch and oil blanched for couple of minutes; the bitter melon is blanched in water. Pre-soaked dry orange peels, garlic, cured black beans are fried lightly in a little oil before the bitter melon is added. Cooked for a minute or so and add the shrimp with oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, touch of sugar, a little water and cook covered for 3 minutes. Thicken with a little cornstarch in cold water.

Ugly Food

I have this thick big squid in the freezer and I don't know what to do with it. I decide to just go and make some pasta with it. Unfortunately I realized too late that I don't have any dry paste left and it is too late to make fresh ones. I thought, well, why not some rice noodles? I blanched the diced up squid quickly. Garlic and chili pepper are sautéed with anchovy paste, the squid are then added with yellow pepper. The result if good but nothing exciting. I think it would be a lot better by itself, without the noodle. It is, however, a decent enough quick meal.

Fried Tofu

I usually deep fried tofu but this time I tries shallow frying and it works. Ginger, garlic, scallion, salt and chili pepper are quickly fried in just a little oil and toss in the crisp tofu. Good with beer.

Scallops and Tofu, Steamed

This is a simple but elegant dish--scallops are place on top of tofu pieces, cured black beans, ginger, garlic and just a touch of sugar are placed on top, steams for a few minutes until the scallop is just cooked. A few scallions are placed on top, a couple table spoons of hot oil is poured
over to bring out the fragrant. Good soy sauce finish the dish. Simple.

Fridge Special Fried Rice

Most days I decide what to cook and eat, but some days, like today, the fridge decides. Ground beef, celery, carrot, scallion and egg made this fried rice. Seasoned with a little soy sauce and sambol sauce. Simple and help clear the fridge a little.

Roast Chicken Thigh

The kitchen sink approach: ginger, garlic, scallion, salt, sugar, shaoxing liquor, soy sauce, sambol sauce and sesame oil make the marinate. The pieces are roasted hot 400℉ convected. It got a little smoky but the skin is crisp and the meat extra tasty.

More Double Boiling

This is the classic cough tonic: Ya pear, chuanbei and rock sugar. The pear is halved and cored, puts into the double boiling pot with chuanbei, hot water and rock sugar. The whole things is steamed slowly in a larger pot with the double lid of the pot closed. Takes a couple of hours at least but the result is just the most tasty.

Snow Mushroom

I am having a little cough so I bought out the small double boiling pot, into it went snow mushroom, chuanbei, aged tangerine peel, rock sugar and almonds. The snow mushroom is a fungus that grows on trees and comes from the store dry. You have to soak it for a good few hours before cooking it. It is one of the best soothing tonic in the fall. Chuanbei is the bulbs of a small plant that is excellent in calming the lung. It is all very good for you, and it taste great.

Slow-Roasted Lamb Shoulder

To go with the fall theme, this stuff lamb shoulder is filled with thyme, rosemary, sage, mint, garlic, salt, pepper, almond and dry cranberries before being roasted for 2 and a half hour in 300℉. It is browned in a pan first before carrot, onion, celery and clove are added to the pan, a little water is added and the lid is put on. The meat falls apart under the fork and it has the sweetness of fall. Warms the soul.

Double Boiled Soup

One of the most delicate and easiest to make soup is double-boiled soup. The principle is simple--slowly cook soup in a well sealed container inside a slow steamer. The cooking time is long, 4-5 hours in very low heat but it is simple to do. The meat (stewing hen and ham here) is parboiled for 10 minutes before going in. The Monkey-Head Mushrooms 猴頭菰 are soaked for a day and a half. Everything goes into this glazed clay pot inside a steaming pot with ginger, scallion, shaoxing liquor and hot water. The resulting soup is clear with all the goodness contained in the the soup. Chinese use this method to make the most delicate and healthful tonics.

Old Standby

When it is cold and rain outside, I want some old standbys. Spaghetti with meat and tomato sauce is just such thing. Here it is made with chunky carrots, celery, onion, ground beef, tomatoes, oregano, thyme, garlic, beef stock, milk and parsley. Finish as always with parmaggiano reggiano.

Experimental Egg Plant

This is a bit of a kitchen-sink approach. Ginger, garlic, scallion, chili, sugar, salt, vinegar, Sichuan Pepper, Shaoxing rice liquor and sesame oil. Too much vinegar.

Pork Shoulder Chops

I haven't cook shoulder chops for a long time so I thought October is just the time to do so. I browned the chops then added sautéed onion, garlic, ginger, dry cranberries and some chicken stock. Took a good 20-some minutes to cook covered but the result is fantastic--sweet, tender and rich. Just what a early cold day needs.

Fall Special

Got some giant halibut cheeks from Granville Island and with the last of the year's chanterelles, it is a classy fall special. The cheeks are simply seared and then left in the over for about 10 minutes. The chanterelles are sautéed in olive oil and butter, a touch of chicken stock and some parsley.

Korea-ish Stew

Bought some yellow Korean bean paste (Doenjang) so I made a soup stew with it and Gochijang, ginger, scallions, tofu, wakame and dice balls. It is warming and tasting in a cold day, very encouraging to rice-eating.

Steak Frites

The hot-sour-sweet tomato-corn salad is a good accompaniment to steak and home fries. The steak is a cheap cut pounded lightly and cooked medium rare. A very nice home meal.

Sweet Salad II

The fun thing about heirloom tomatoes is that they tends to go against expectations. Usually green tomatoes are unripe but his green tomato is ripe and sweet.

Sweet Salad

This is time for tomatoes and corn and they make a great sweet salad. I have tomatoes, fresh corn, cilantro, walla walla onion, fresh hot chili, lime juice, salt and pepper. Fresh and refreshing.

Old Fashion Curry

I usually make my beef curry in the pressure cooker, but this time I did it the old fashion way. I wish I had some carrots, but as it is--beef, tendons, potatoes, garlic, ginger, curry powder, curry paste and onion--it is pretty tasty.








With an old fashion dish, it is best served the old fashion way.

Nutty Mooncake

This is, I suppose, what may be called nouveau Suzhou-style mooncake--seaweed and seeds wrapped in flaky pastry. Fun

Heirloom Tomato

This is the time for tomatoes and I got these crazy looking heirlooms from the farmers market. They are meaty and very flavourful. This is a good example of the good of biodiversity, I think.

Balacan

Balacan is one strong smelling thing made from salted fermented shrimp pressed into a hard paste. And it is honest too, particularly when you cook it--smells just like what it is, strongly. Most commonly it is combined with garlic, dry shrimps, a little sugar and sambol to flavour vegetables like spinach, or, here, water spinach.

Unusual Mooncake

The Mid-Autumn Festival/Harvest Moon is coming soon and Chinese stores are filled with mooncakes for sale. Here is one rather unusual one--it has extremely light pastry on top, sweet paste made with mung bean is the main filling and a little savory pork is in the very centre. Interesting cake.

Back Home

Well, I am back home and back to the same olds. This time I have a funnily named vegetable: mucus vegetable 潺菜. It is so call because after cook there is a smooth creaminess texture on the leaves. It is actually a good thing. Here I make a soup with it and a couple of salted eggs. Very simple, very traditionally home cooking.

Dad's 70th

I went to Hong Kong for my dad's birthday and I cooked him a dinner. These are his orders.

He wanted seared foie gras. It so happens that it is wild mushroom season in Yunnan and some good selection available at Sogo. Here I sautéed four different kinds, boletus and chanterelles, with some shallots, red wine, salt and sugar, and added the oil from searing the foie also. The asparagus is there for colours only.





He also wanted oxtail. I stewed it with garlic, onion, carrot, red wine, tomato, rosemary, thyme, and sage. Served with a little wide egg pasta.

The meal was very good but everybody was so full that dessert--blueberry soufflé was called off. Pity.

Lei Yue Mun 鯉魚門

Lei Yue Mun is a great place to have seafood. The live seafoods are sold in shops and the restaurants only cook them. Here are a couple other dishes I had there. This is a giant razer clam steamed in spicy black bean sauce. One of my favorites.








This is one odd creature, oddly named too--Pissing Shrimp! It sort of looks like a cross between a shrimp and a termite. Taste wise it is a wonderful mix of shrimp and lobster. Here it is prepared with garlic, chili, and salt. Very tasty.








Steamed fresh abalone is a crowd pleaser. The mildly sweet meat is great in this simple preparation.

黄油蟹 Yellow Oil Crab

'Yellow Oil Crab' is one of those rare delicacies that is created by a freak event of nature. When the female crab are fat and ready to mate they sun on the beaches on the mouth of the Pearl River near Hong Kong. If they meet extremely hot and sunny days, the fat in the liver breaks up and seeps into every bit of the body. Yellow fat then shows in the meat and under the shells turning everything inside yellow. If the summer is not hot enough or if the heatwave does not arrive at the right time, there is no YOC at all. And even when the weather is right, only few come to the market.


I was in Hong Kong this August and was fortunately enough to have this true wild Yellow Oil Crab at Lei Yue Mun. The fat under the shell is creamy and rich, and the oil penetrated well into every bit of the crab. I was sucking flavour out of the tips well after I finished with the meat. The price is scary but definitely worth it.

There are a lot of YOC in Hong Kong these days but most of them are female crabs 'baked' under hot lamps. They don't achieve this level of penetration and the fat does not break down as well. Not really the same thing.