Omurice

Omurice- A Japanese fusion dish consisting of fried rice wrapped in a thin omelet and usually topped with ketchup.
I made some for lunch today, and I was a bit skeptical with the recipe I used that called for ketchup in the fried rice, which would make the rice saucy (not what traditional fried rice should be). However, it's what goes into "traditional" omurice, so I went ahead with the recipe. And my, oh my, it was not bad at all. The rice actually soaked up the ketchup and bonded all the savory flavors of the veggie bacon that I used and the sweetness of the peas. It was very good.
Setting the rice aside, I made a thin omelet, placed the rice filling in and wrapped the omelet around it. Served with a little ketchup and I fell in love with this dish. The flavors are so well balanced; sweet, tangy and savory, which all ties in so well with the fluffy omelet wrap. I will definitely be making this again.
Recipe: Chicken Version

Poached Egg Bites

I was hungry...and I did not feel like cooking up anything fancy. I had homemade bread in my fridge, free-range eggs and sun-dried tomato paste. In a desperate attempt to throw something together for a late night snack, I toasted thick slices of the bread, poached some eggs, and whipped up a simple sweet n tangy mayo spread. THE SPREAD WAS DIVINE. And it is so simple, it's ridiculous! Definitely making a jar of this for future sandwich usage.

Sweet n' Tangy Mayo Spread

 ¼ cup Canola Oil Mayonnaise

2 tbsp Japanese Mayo (Kewpie Mayonnaise)

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp stone ground mustard

1 tsp ground black pepper

Whisk all ingredients together. Done.

 

 

Look at that yolk!

Mommy, I Made Pho

This is the first time EVER that I made pho all by myself, without the help of my mom, who is not back from Vietnam yet. Today is my dad's birthday and his favorite dish is Pho. If you do not know, pho is a Vietnamese noodle dish consisting of rice noodles, spiced beef broth, beef slices, beef meatballs, beef brisket, beef tripe and tendons, accompanied with white onions, basil, mint leaves, bean sprouts, lime, chili peppers, cilantro, green onions, culantro/Eryngium foetidum (ngo gai), hoisin sauce, chili sauce and fish sauce. A lot of ingredients, I know. The pho I made only featured rare beef slices, beef meatballs and beef tendon.
There are many other variations, such as chicken pho or seafood pho but traditionally, it is beef. Sometimes an egg is added for EXTRA protein haha.
The most crucial part of a good bowl of pho is the broth. The criteria includes it being clear NOT MURKY, aromatic and full of flavor from hours of simmering beef bones, charred yellow onion, charred ginger and toasted spices such as cardamom, cinnamon sticks, star anise, cloves and coriander seeds. The entire dish took me 3-4 ish hours to prepare...phew.
Also, beef tendons are a bitch to cook. It takes waaaay more than 3-4 hours to get soft all the way through, so I suggest you put it in a slow cooker and cook it over night if you ever want to make pho. PAH.
No, this is not a quick dish.
Why did I want to go through the endeavor to make it from scratch? Because I am passionate about my food and it's my daddy's birthday. It's worth it either way. Plus my brother slurped up his entire bowl of soup, so I know it is good (he never slurps up an entire bowl of broth if it is not good, no matter who makes it).
So, if you want Pho without cooking it, go ahead and go buy a bowl at a Viet restaurant. I assure you they use msg, sweeteners and not a lot of good ol beef bones for the broth. Or, if you want to make it, then go ahead and go buy those pre-packaged pho spices and add it to a pot of ready made beef broth from Campbell. I promise you, it won't be the same.

Broth for two people:

1-2 lbs of beef bones
1 lb of oxtails
half a small cabbage

1 medium yellow onion, unpeeled
1 medium sized knob of ginger, unpeeled

4 sticks of cinnamon
5 anise stars
4 black cardamom bulbs
1 tsp of cloves
1 tsp of coriander seeds

1 tbsp brown sugar
Salt and mushroom granules for taste

In a large pot that can hold up to 6 cups of water, bring the bones with 1 tbsp of salt to a boil and skim off any foam and fat that emerges to the surface. Add in the cabbage once there is no more foam to skim and simmer for 30 minutes.
During the wait, char the onion and ginger on a grill or over a mesh on a gas burner until the onion skin and ginger are almost completely black and become aromatic. Let cool and under running water, scrap and peel off as much of the blackened bits as you can. Add to the pot of broth and simmer for 30 minutes.
Dry roast the spices in your oven or in a skillet over the stove until aromatic. Let the spices cool and tie it up in a spice bag or make a spice package with coffee filters, tied with kitchen twine. Plop that into the broth and simmer under medium-low heat for 1-2 hours. DO NOT COVER with a lid. If you feel there is not enough water, then you better turn the heat lower and add more water.
After 1-2 hours, broth should be aromatic with the spices. Gently stir in sugar and season with salt and mushroom granules to your taste. If you don't have mushroom granules, then salt should just be fine. Turn the heat to high and bring to a quick boil. Spoon hot broth over cooked rice noodles and your choice of toppings. Best served hot ;)
Enough for four servings.

Pho with beef balls, rare beef slices and beef tendon.

Egg-stravaganza!

Geese egg, duck eggs, factory-produced hen eggs, quail eggs

I am always amazed at the selection of eggs available in the markets in Vietnam. You get the factory produced eggs, the range eggs, duck eggs, quail eggs, geese eggs, ostrich eggs and of course, different types of balut (which I will not discuss now).
Anywhos, I went out and got a few selections and the kinds I fancy most are duck eggs and geese eggs. Duck eggs are hard to come by in the western world and geese eggs are just as rare.

During my stay in Vietnam, I had nice sunny-side up hen eggs with Vietnamese baguette. Yet, since I have adventurous culinary-blood, I decided to poach duck eggs and soft boil geese eggs in the following days, to see what the difference in texture and taste would be like. And I must say...poached duck eggs are supremely delish and geese eggs have a fantastically big, rich yolk.

Hen Eggs

Sunny-side up hen eggs

 Duck egg-whites are firmer than hen eggs and the yolk is much bigger. To some, duck eggs may have a distinct smell, most likely due to the fact that ducks are water birds.

poached duck eggs

 

Look at the gooold!!

 I soft boiled a geese egg but forgot to take a picture...oops. Geese eggs are not "smelly" like it's duck counterpart and are much larger in yolk size. The yolk thickens quicker though, so eating it is tricky when you have so much gold to mop up with your bread :)

Nested Egg (Attempt #1)

This idea was introduced to me by a co-worker. It's a rendition of "toad-in-a-hole" or "eggs-in-a-basket" with the yolk and white separated. The white is whipped into a meringue and then filled into a hole in a slice of bread. the yolk is gently placed into the meringue then baked until the meringue is golden brown. I made this for a quick breakfast for myself and my best friend. I also sauteed some portabella and tempeh together for a quick side.
I liked how the presentation looked but I think this is something I need to try again, as in better meringue and other preparations.

Gourmet Bún Riêu Cua B**ches!

Yeah, you read right: gourmet bún riêu cua, a noodle dish that is one of the top vendor foods in Vietnam. The original vendor dish is made with grounded paddy crabs, tomatoes, deep-fried tofu and an egg and shrimp paste mixture. The dish is sometimes known as tofu-curdle noodle soup, since the chunky eggs in the soup resemble curdled milk. The broth is colored with annatto seeds to produce a bright orangy-red color to the broth. Other ingredients such as pig blood is sometimes also added. The dish is accompanied with a variety of condiments ranging from chili pepper paste, fermented shrimp paste, limes, bean sprouts, shredded banana flower, spearmint, shiso leaves, and/or exotic leaves called rau kinh giới (Elsholtzia ciliata).
My mom made an incredible version using an amazing load of real crab meat, crab brains/innards, and crab paste, all of course, with tomatoes and egg (for lunch). It was basically a crab extravaganza! Served over vermicelli, this piping hot dish was so vibrant and aromatic that I almost gave in to its' temptation (even though I disliked this dish as a child and still do even if it was vegetarian-friendly) but I stood my ground!

Fun fact(s): "Bún" (boom) literally means noodle and "Riêu" (reew) means to simmer at low heat. "Cua" (goua) basically means crab so the dish is literally, "Simmering Crab Noodle" which explains the process of cooking: at low-medium heat to slowly simmer all the flavors of the crab and tomato together. Claaassic!!!

Caramel Flan

Caramel Flan with Spun Sugar

I am a flan lover. I LOVE flan. It's basically a custard dish that is baked using the Bain-Marie or water bath technique. I have always thought it would be difficult to make so I always buy the ready-made flan at my local Asian Market. Today, I finally decided to make it after doing a lot of research on recipes, variations and techniques. I found a simple recipe/method on YouTube and so here is my first attempt EVER, at making flan. AND IT WAS A SUCCESS!!
I made the basic caramel flavor and it was awesome. I also tried my hand at spun sugar, which was a bit of a hassle since it was also my first time and I didn't have enough patience to properly set up an area to "spin" the sugar. I burnt one finger because I forgot how hot the sugar syrup would be...silly me.
Recipe for the flan is written below.

Caramel Crust:
In a saucepan, melt around 3/4 cup sugar on medium heat until liquefied and caramel in color. Pour a thin layer into ramekins or custard cups. Set aside.

Custard:

3 eggs

50 grams sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract/essence

500ml milk

In a bowl, gently whisk eggs and sugar together until sugar is dissolved. Add in vanilla extract and milk. Strain into a large measuring cup to remove the egg white strands and skim off any froth that is visible.

Pour mixture into ramekins, leaving 1 cm space between mixture and rim. Place ramekins in a roasting pan or double broiler and fill pan half way up with boiling water.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius and bake for 45 minutes until set. Remove and let cool on a rack for 10 minutes before placing into the fridge to chill for 4 hours. 

Loosen sides and flip onto a  plate (you may have to tap or shake it a bit for it to slide out).

Garnish with whatever you like or just serve plain. 

SO RICH, SMOOTH AND CREAMY!! IT TASTES LIKE BLISS IN HEAVEN!

Lunar New Years (Vietnamese Customs)

So Lunar New Years has just passed but most Vietnamese households are still celebrating (such as mine lol).
In preparation for this huge celebration, my mom and I made traditional Vietnamese Glutinous Rice cakes (square, prisms, and log-shaped ones). Along with the traditional use of white sticky rice, my mom also used black glutinous rice, which gives a twist in color and in taste. Every New Years, my mom and basically the rest of the family set out to make these delectable cakes, a tradition that has been passed down throughout the generations of the Vietnamese people. A (variation of the) folk tale explains the origins of these rice cakes, and how they represented the Earth and the Heavens:
"There once was a King who was in constant pressure to choose an heir out of his several sons. A few weeks before the celebration of the Lunar New Year, he set up a contest for the young princes; their task was to individually prepare a special dish that is unique and delectable for the king to taste and which would make a fine offering to the ancestors. If the dish is successful and passes judgment, that respective prince will be the next heir. So thus, the princes split throughout the vast kingdom, in search of rare and exotic ingredients to prepare their dish. The youngest of the princes, stayed in the city. The Young Prince did not have as much wealth as his older brothers nor did he have any idea what to prepare because most of what he could think of did not seem unique or fitting for a king. The night before the contest, he decided to forfeit and not attend the taste testing. However, as he slept that night, a magical wise man came into his dreams and instructed him to make two different kinds of cakes made from glutinous rice. One would be in a square shape, wrapped in banana leaves with fillings of savoury mung bean paste and slices of fatty pork. This rice cake, banh chung, would be symbolic to the green rice patties fields found throughout Vietnam, thus representing Earth. The second cake, banh day, which is made from glutinous rice powder, is shaped into thick round patties. The whiteness of these cakes and it's blandness represent purity and the round shape represents how vast and full Heaven is. The magical wise man guaranteed that these cakes will impress the King and the court. The Young Prince arose from his sleep and quickly got to work that very night.

The variety of rice cakes

The next morning, the King and his court assembled and began the taste testings. His many sons presented him with many rare, unique and impressive dishes such as shark fin soup, tortoise stew, and etc. However, none of the dishes could pass the King's approval for they were rare and impressive but they were too luxurious, something the King have grown accustomed to, therefore it was not unique. The last dish was tasted but the Young Prince had not yet arrived. The older Princes jeered and protesting, appealing for the King to go ahead and choose a successor without the Young Prince, as they thought he had probably forfeited. Just as the King was about to give in, the Young Prince arrived, black bangs under his eyes for the lack of sleep (the rice cakes take from 5-12 hours to cook). The court was silent as the Young Prince knelt before his father, and offered his two simple dishes. The Older Princes took one look at his platter and jeered and snickered, muttering among themselves at how ridiculous and stupid the Young Prince is for offering such a simple and common dish. The King, who was also skeptical, asked the Young Prince to explain his dish and its contents. The Young Prince explained the ingredients and the symbolic meanings of each rice cake. The King nodded and gestured the prince towards him for the taste test. With one bite, the King smiled as the aroma and taste of the sticky rice embraced him, along with the savouriness of the fatty pork and the smoothness of the mung bean filling. The rice patties where eaten with a slice of Vietnamese Sausage, which added to the simplicity of the patty. The King proclaimed that The Young Prince was the winner and to honor such a thoughtful and symbolic dish, banh chung and banh day were to be part of the offerings to ancestors for every Lunar New Year to come."

Black Sticky Rice Banh Tet

The square cake has been "re-modeled" into a different shape in Southern Vietnam (the folk tale happened between Northern and Central Vietnam). Southern Vietnamese use the same ingredients to make a variation of the original cake; the shape is log-like and sometimes black eyed-peas are added to the glutinous rice (called "banh tet"). My mom makes her own variation by using black glutinous rice or "velvet" sweet rice in her sticky rice mix, which is mixed with coconut cream for extra flavor and aroma. She also makes a vegetarian variation for me, which she uses raw cashews as my source of protein, along with the mung bean filling (no photos). I love cashews.


Other offerings for ancestors include a platter of fruit that contains a soursop, a coconut, a papaya and mangoes. According to tradition, each fruit represents a slang used as a word of prayer for abundance in the coming new year.

 

There are a lot of special dishes during the New Year for us. Another main dish is Braised Pork with Eggs. It's basically fatty pork, cut into HUGE chunks, and braised in mixture of coconut juice, sugar and fish sauce, along with hard boiled eggs until all has a caramelized color and the pork can easily be pulled into threads (kinda like pulled pork). The traditional method of cooking this dish is on a stove for several hours but since we are more advanced here, we used a slow-cooker (or crock pot) for it. The meat doesn't dry out and stays yummeh! The pork threads are rolled with pickled bean sprouts in rice paper and is dipped into the braise liquid. it use to be my favourite dish before I became a vegetarian. But I also had my own vegetarian braised pork and eggs (I found some veggie pork chunks at an asian supermarket and the meat had layers of "fat" (made from konnyaku starch). It was sooo yummeh!

Veggie braised Pork and Egg with rice paper and veggies

Veggie Braised Pork (close-up)

Braised Pork and Egg

Pickled Veggies

And of course, the best part after stuffing our faces out was the lucky money!! And with that money, GAMBLING!! har har har!!

This year seems like it will be awesome because my celebratory days were fantastico!

(I know the lucky envelope is yellow, live with it. It was cute.)

Tempura Udon and Unagi Maki

So, for dinner today, I made Tempura Udon Soup and Unagi (Grilled Eel) Makizushi for my brother.
Udon is a thick, Japanese wheat noodle, almost equivalent to the Shanghai thick noodle. Broth for the soup was made from shiitake mushroom concentrate and seaweed broth; it was then seasoned with mirin, sugar, soy sauce and sake, along with salt and pepper. I bought new bowls to make this specific dish (mwahaha! I am such a nerd). Toppings included kamaboko (steamed fish cake; I accidently bought the white kind instead of the 'aka' or pink kind), naruto-maki, spinach, chikuwa, egg and shrimp tempura. Perfect for a cold night. (The broth was vegetarian so I added my own toppings that were non-meat/fish to it for myself).
For the side, I made Unagi Maki, which was a sushi roll filled with cucumber and sliced ginger and topped with grilled eel. Seved wtih pickled ginger and wasabi (on the new plate that matched the bowls mwahaha!). Yum yum!! My brother loved it!!

Fuzzy Melon and Egg Stir-Fry

 

I made this yesterday for supper. This is a household recipe that most Vietnamese families serve. The dish consists of a Chinese gourd called "Mo Qua" or "fuzzy" melon (because of the little fuzz surrounding the outside of the gourd) and eggs. Fuzzy melon has a very delicate texture when cooked, similar to cooked cucumber, and a subtle sweet taste. The gourd is known to increase metabolism and therefore, is a very beneficial health food if you are thinking about going on a diet. It is great in soups and stir fries.

Fuzzy melons

Fuzzy Melon and Egg Stir-Fry
2 medium-sized fuzzy melons, ends cut off and peeled
2 tsp salt or more to taste
2 tsp pepper or more to taste
3 tsp mushroom granules (optional)*
4 eggs, lightly whisked
1 tsp soy sauce
5 tbsp of cilantro, chopped

Slice the melon into half inch thick circles and then slice those circles into half inch thick strips. In a skillet or pan, melt 1 tbsp of butter until it starts to bubble. Add in the melon strips. Cook on high heat until the majority of liquid is evaporated and the melon begins to turn translucent. Season with salt and pepper and the mushroom granules. Lower the heat to medium. Mix soy sauce to the whisked eggs and add to the melons. Stir until eggs are firm and cooked. Remove from heat. Fold in chopped cilantro. Serve hot with steamed rice.

*if you are going to use the mushroom granules, reduce the amount of salt used.

Instant Miso Ramen

Noodles, broth, coddled egg, naruto maki, chikuwa, and crab sticks

It snowed today in good ol' Edmonton and on cold days, I like to enjoy hot soups and drinks to keep me warm and cozy. I have been feeling better and decided to get back into the kitchen since I am getting very tired of rice porridge (or congee) with scallions....
So for dinner today, I made a quick miso ramen with vegetarian seafood toppings such as veggie crab sticks, veggie chikuwa (tube fish cakes), veggie naruto maki (pink slices) and for extra protein, a coddled egg. Ramen noodles was from a package of instant noodles (which I discarded of the powder). Quick miso broth made from water, miso paste, salt, pepper, mirin, sesame oil, mushroom granules and brown sugar. Brought to a boil, cooked the ramen in it, added in the toppings to cook and dumped all into a boil and arranged it. I boiled the egg separately and added it in. I know I lack actual vegetables but I didn't have any on hand.
Other than that, voila.
Instant Miso Ramen.

Balsamic Eggs Benedict

A Healthier Version of Eggs Benedict (if you can believe)

"In marble walls as white as milk,
Lined with a skin as soft as silk,
Within a fountain crystal clear,
A golden apple doth appear.
No doors there are to this stronghold,
Yet thieves break in and steal the gold."

What am I?

You probably guessed the answer: An Egg. 

 Ever since my first Eggs Benedict I have been addicted to poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. This time, I took a little twist on this classical dish and instead of using regular vinegar to poach the eggs, I used balsamic vinegar. The hollandaise I made this time is a bit thicker and healthier because instead of butter, I used extra-virgin olive oil (recipe adapted from Chef Gordon Ramsay). Also, I actually used English muffins instead of cut-out toast and instead of veggie ham, I used sliced hot house tomatoes. So, perfectly poached eggs on English muffins, tomatoes and smothered with hollandaise, a dash of pepper and drizzled with balsamic vinegar. The rich and creamy hollandaise goes well with the slight sweet n' tanginess of the balsamic vinegar.
I think next time I will make a balsamic vinegar reduction for extra flavor.

 Balsamic Eggs Benedict

Hollandaise Sauce

3 egg yolks

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

3 tsp lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

Pinch of cayenne powder (optional)

In a stainless steel bowl, place in egg yolks, and whisk for 3-4 minutes over a pot of simmering water until yolk mixture thickens and is a pale yellow.

Remove from pot and gradually add in olive oil, whisking constantly until fully incorporated.

Whisk in lemon juice and season to taste with salt, pepper and cayenne.  Keep sauce warm by placing bowl over a pot of low simmering water until serving. Best if served immediately.

Poached Eggs

2 fresh eggs

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

Bring a medium pot of water with 1 tsp salt to a high simmer and add in the vinegar.

Crack one egg into a custard cup or bowl. Stir water rapidly to create a vortex and gently slip egg into the water. Repeat with the other egg.

Cook for 3 minutes or until the eggs begin to float and the egg whites are set and firm. Remove eggs with a slotted spoon and dab on a towel to dry.

Preparation

1 English muffin, sliced in half or 2 crumpets, buttered and toasted

2 slices of hot house tomatoes

Salt and pepper

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

Place tomatoes on the toasted English muffin and dash with salt and pepper. Top with the poached egg. Drizzle with the hollandaise sauce and balsamic vinegar. Top with some black ground pepper.

Remember, the perfect poached egg is when you cut into it, and the yolk comes streaming out!

Enjoy!!

Eggs Benedict

Alright. I have never poached an egg before, nor have I ever made Eggs Benedict. This is my first attempt and it was quite successful. Instead of actual ham or bacon, I used slices of vegetarian ham, pan fried with butter for extra flavor. Also, I ran out of English muffins and there was not a crumpet in sight so I used what I had-whole wheat bread. I used the edge of a glass to cut out circles the size of the ham slices and toasted the bread. I somewhat over toasted the toast but it softened with the hollandaise sauce and yolk so it was all good. And the hollandaise sauce, one word: HEAVEN. I absolutely LOVE it! I will definitely be using this sauce for future purposes.
As for poaching the egg, I will have to time it a bit longer, since the white wasn't completely solidified in one of the eggs. I am hoping to poach eggs in wine or balsamic vinegar in the future for a different kind of flavor shot.

Eggs Benedict (on toast)

Show me the gold!!