Mexican Night

Once a month, we invite my family over for a potluck dinner.  We usually pick a theme and everyone must make a dish from scratch.  It's a lot of fun to see what everyone ends up bringing and the best part is eating them!  So last night was Mexican night.  Not many of us eat out at Mexican restaurants or cook Mexican food at home so we decided to give this a try.  We had a lot of food for just the five of us - Mexican rice, black beans, pork carnitas, and spicy pork soft tacos.  I also made guacamole and fresh tomato salsa to compliment the dishes.  

My brother's spicy pork soft tacos was pretty popular.  He actually used a Korean recipe for the pork which required marinating overnight.  I would've liked it even spicier.

After dinner, everyone played a competitive game of Naruto on Xbox.  I'm not a big fan of video games so I just watched them play.  Then it was time for dessert.  My sister made tres leches which means "three milk" in Spanish (I forgot to take a picture).  She made a butter cake soaked in three kinds of milk - evaporated, condensed and regular milk, and topped it with whipped cream.   I could hardly move after dessert was over. 

My sister really liked the guacamole I made one time so she requested I make it again.  She asked me to use less onions this time so I decreased it by half.

Perfect Guacamole
Recipe Adapted from Simply Recipes 

Ingredients

• 2 ripe avocados
• 1/4 red onion, minced
• 2 serrano chiles, minced (stems and seeds removed)
• 2 T cilantro leaves, finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 T lime juice
• 1/2 tsp coarse salt
• A dash of freshly grated black pepper
• 1/2 ripe tomato, chopped (seeds and pulp removed)

Directions

1. Cut avocados in half and remove seed.  Scoop out avocado from the peel and put in a mixing bowl.
2. Mash the avocado with a fork.  Add the chopped onion, chiles, cilantro, garlic, lime juice, salt and pepper and mash some more.  Adjust to taste.
3. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.  Right before serving, add tomatoes and mix. 

Kona Kitchen

I'm discovering more and more food establishments serving up local dishes native to Hawaii here in Washington, especially the signature plate lunch with two scoops of rice, mac salad, and a hot entree. I usually rely on word of mouth from people who have actually lived in Hawaii before I decide to give these restaurants a try. I hope to see more eateries like these pop up so I can pig out on some of the popular foods I miss from Hawaii.

Last night, we went to Kona Kitchen near Northgate and got a good fix of local kine grindz and entertainment. While not the best food I've tasted compared to home, the atmosphere was laid back and relaxing which I really enjoyed. Not to mention there was a live band performance that night which was a big plus for me! I was almost transported back to Hawaii, but I think they could have played a little more Hawaiian music to make the experience even better.

Back to the food. Hubby and I shared the loco moco and the huli chicken. The hamburger patty was dry but otherwise, I don't see how you can mess up a loco moco. The huli chicken was tender and tasty which made up for the other dish. Next time, the Mr. wants to go back for lunch to eat Da Kanak Attack! I feel sleepy just talking about it.

Jajangmyun (Korean Black Bean Paste Noodles)

I had a hankering for noodles and Korean food last night so I made jajangmyun and dukboki (spicy rice cakes) for dinner. According to wikipedia, jajangmyun is a popular Korean noodle dish that originated from the Chinese zha jiang mien. The sauce of the jajangmyun is made with black bean paste called chunjang, which can be purchased at any Korean market, and usually stir fried with ground meat and diced vegetables. The sauce is served hot on top of Korean wheat noodles. The first time I had jajangmyun was from Nong Shim - yes, instant!


Now I make my own at home. It is very easy and effortless to make this dish. I don't remember where I got the original recipe but here is my adaptation.

JaJangmyun (Korean Black Bean Paste Noodles)
Serves 4

1 package Korean noodles (or thin udon)

vegetable oil
4 T chunjang (Korean black bean paste)
1/4 lb. ground pork
1 medium onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 T garlic, minced
1 T ginger, minced
2 tsp sugar
1 cup water

1 T cornstarch
2 T water

cucumber, shredded
green onions, chopped

1. Heat a small skillet with 2 T oil and stir fry jajang over medium high heat for about 1-2 minutes, drain extra oil and set aside
2. Boil water in a large pot and cook noodles according to the package for a few minutes, then drain and rinse in cold water so the noodles do not stick (you may have to reheat noodles to eat hot later).
3. Heat 1/2 T oil in wok or large skillet and stir fry garlic and ginger until fragrant. Stir in ground pork and keep cooking until almost cooked.
4. Add diced onions and carrots until everything is cooked. Stir in jajang, 1 cup of water, and sugar. Keep cooking until water boils vigorously.
5. Mix cornstarch with water and slowly stir into the sauce until the mixture becomes a thick and heavy consistency.
6. In a bowl, place cooked noodles and pour jajang mixture over and garnish with cucumbers and green onions.

Hawaii Shortbread Cookies

Last week, my friend emailed me "...my sister brought something for you from Hawaii. I was suppose to call you and let you know until she reminded me recently...it's just something small!" So, I was expecting something "small" but when I went to pick it up today, I got this. Kona flavored shortbread cookies from the Honolulu Cookie Company! These pineapple shaped cookies came all individually wrapped with a variety of chocolate covered flavors including dark and white chocolate. What a nice surprise to brighten up this dark, cold wintery Sunday.

Banana Bread

This past weekend, my mom gave me some bananas to take home since they had a lot. Apparently, my dad saw a sale and bought a box full of them. They were pretty ripe so I decided to let them sit a few more days to make banana bread. This is a foolproof recipe and the bread is incredibly moist. Except one time I mistook tapioca starch for baking soda and I was puzzled for days before I realized why my bread didn't rise. Funny story. Anyway, I love this recipe because no mixer is needed which means one less thing to wash! I substituted 1/2 cup sugar with brown sugar and added some walnuts to the recipe.



Banana Bread
Adapted from Simply Recipes

Ingredients:
3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted [optional]

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. With a wooden spoon, mix butter into the mashed bananas in a large mixing bowl. Mix in the sugar, egg, and vanilla. Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in. Add the flour last, mix. Pour mixture into a buttered 4x8 inch loaf pan and sprinkle walnuts on top. Bake for 1 hour. Cool on a rack. Remove from pan and slice to serve.

Sweet and simple

My sister brought over some cinnamon rolls this morning on her way to work. I love it when she spoils us with her delicious baked goods! The rolls were all arranged perfectly in a cake pan. All I had to do was pop them in the oven at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.


Hot and fresh cinnamon rolls right out of the oven!


They were yummy! Thanks, J!

Tweeting grandma

I can't believe it's been over 2 years since I moved away from Hawaii. Everytime my cravings kick in for all the local grindz I can't get here in Seattle or hear Iz's "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" playing on the radio, I get extremely home sick. On most days, I still browse the Honolulu Advertiser online as if I still lived there. Today, as I was going through the Island Life section, I saw this really cute article. At 101 years old, this grandma sure can tweet. I especially loved reading the part about her favorite tweet subject - FOOD!

Pho (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup)

It has been cold and rainy lately which meant time for some nice hot noodle soup to warm up the body and soul. I had some beef bones in the freezer that I had been saving for a day like this. Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup was easier to make than I thought. I found a recipe from Steamy Kitchen which was adapted from Andrea Nguyen's "Into the Vietnamese Kitchen". Jaden Hair from Steamy Kitchen claimed that this was the best pho recipe she has made so I decided to give it a try. The soup takes at least 3 hours to slowly cook and release the flavors from the bones so plan ahead!




Pho (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup)
Adapted from Steamy Kitchen

Ingredients:
2 onions, halved
4″ nub of ginger, halved lengthwise
5-6 lbs beef bones, preferably leg and knuckle containing marrow
1 lb of beef meat – chuck, brisket, rump, cut into large slices [optional]
6 quarts of water
1 package of Pho Spices (yes, I took the short cut)
1 1/2 T salt
1/4 cup fish sauce
1 inch chunk of yellow rock sugar (about 1 oz)
2-16oz pkgs. rice noodles (dried or fresh)
cooked beef from the broth or beef balls [optional]
1/2 lb flank, sirloin or eye of round, sliced as thin as possible
Handful of mint, cilantro, basil, bean sprouts
2 limes, cut into wedges
2-3 chili peppers, sliced or jalapeno peppers
Hoisin sauce
Sriracha

Char the onions and ginger: This step is crucial. It helps to bring out the natural sweetness of the onions and ginger to the broth. Turn your broiler on high and move rack to the highest spot. Place ginger and onions on baking sheet. Brush a little bit of cooking oil on the cut side of each and broil on high until ginger and onions begin to char. Turn over and continue to char for about 10-15 minutes.

Parboil the bones: Fill large pot (12-qt capacity) with cool water to parboil the bones. Aim for clear broth by getting rid of the residue from the bones. Boil water, then add the bones. Boil on high for 10 minutes, drain, and rinse the bones. Rinse out the pot and refill pot with bones and 6 qts of cool water. Bring to boil then lower to simmer. Using a ladle or a fine mesh strainer, remove any scum that rises to the top.

Boil the broth: Add ginger, onion, spice packet, beef (optional), sugar, fish sauce, salt and simmer uncovered for 1 1/2 hours. If you used beef meat, remove and set aside. I omitted the beef meat and the soup still came out pretty good. Continue simmering for another 1 1/2 hours. Strain broth and return the broth to the pot. Taste broth and adjust seasoning – add a little bit of fish sauce, salt and rock sugar if you want a little more flavor to the soup.

Prepare the noodles & meat: Slice your flank/sirloin/eye of round as thin as possible (tip: freeze for 15 minutes prior to slicing to make it easier) or if you prefer, you can buy pre-sliced meat from the market. Cut or shred the beef meat from the broth to eat with your noodles. I added some beef and tendon balls to the soup 1/2 hour before serving. Arrange all other ingredients on a plate for garnish later. Follow the directions on your package of noodles since cooking time varies depending on the type of noodles you buy. Fill bowls with noodles, shredded cooked beef or beef balls and raw meat slices.

Prepare to eat: Bring the broth back to a boil and ladle into each bowl. The hot broth will cook the raw beef slices and warm up the noodles. Serve immediately with garnishes.

Makes about 8 servings.

Portland, OR

Two weekends ago, hubby and I ventured down to Portland for a much needed weekend retreat. Our main goal was to check out the booming food cart scene in PDX. Most of the places I wanted to take hubby were closed for the weekend. Timing was kind of bad since we trekked off the day after Christmas. Many downtown food stands catered mostly to the office lunch crowd so they were closed when we got there. Luckily, I had a long list of places to eat in case something like this happened. I'm so glad I was prepared.

We enjoyed a late lunch at The Grilled Cheese Grill located in the Alberta area. The guy taking our order highly recommended the Jalapeno Popper with roasted jalapenos, colby jack, cream cheese and tortilla chips. We settled on this and the Jersey which consisted of sauteed mushrooms and swiss on rye.




After we checked in at the hotel, we went to Biwa for dinner. We came across this Japanese restaurant that was known for its ramen in a magazine. We enjoyed the atmosphere but our food is nothing to write home about.

Biwa Ramen - dark & porky soy sauce soup with chasyu


Chasyu chahan delicious fried rice with barbeque’d pork


Potato bacon croquette


I really wanted to try the fries from Potato Champion. I read rave reviews on yelp about this place and it's open pretty late. We braved the wind and cold for some crispy fries before calling it a night. There were many sauces to choose from. We went for the rosemary truffle ketchup. I personally thought the rosemary was a bit overpowering for me but I really enjoyed the fries. I would come back here again and maybe try out the creperie next door. No freezing weather next time, please.




The next morning, we packed our bags for check-out before hitting the road for more yummy goodness. Our hotel offered a complimentary continental breakfast so we took advantage of that. We saved some room in our tummies so we could check out Pine State Biscuits. I wanted to visit the Portland's Saturday Farmers' Market where we can get some of their famous biscuits as well as sample other foods but the Market was closed for the season. Luckily, Pine State had a physical location on the east side of Portland. We found street parking right in front of the restaurant and ordered the Reggie. It was a biscuit sandwich with fried chicken, bacon, and cheese topped with gravy. It was more than I can handle myself so we decided to share.



I later found out that Pine State Biscuits was featured on Food Network's Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives with Guy Fieri.

Day 2 was all about breakfast. I'm glad hubby likes breakfast just as much as I do. After we checked out the Pittock Mansion and did a little bit of tax-free shopping, we went to grab a waffle to share. Portland is a waffle city and there are many specialty carts and restaurants serving "gourmet" waffle creations. We went to Flavour Spot and ordered a sausage and maple waffle sandwich. I think I know why Portlanders love their waffle sandwiches. It's quick, convenient, and tastes wonderfully delicious. The picture doesn't do much justice to the waffle...



Our final stop was The Big Egg at the Mississippi Marketplace. It's the third food cart pod we've checked out in Portland. This breakfast cart claims it uses "cage-free veggie fed eggs, local and organic produce whenever possible, antibiotic and hormone free meat and dairy". We tried The Mississippi Monte Cristo: one big egg, grilled black forest ham and gorgonzola, drizzled with maple glaze, stacked between two pieces crunchy vanilla cardamom brioche French toast and dusted with powdered sugar. Talk about a sticky mess! But it was well worth it.

Zucchini bread

Tried making zucchini bread and eating it for the first time tonight. I had all the ingredients on hand so it was calling to me to make it. I don't mean to toot my own horn but it was good. Making something for the first time without having it before has its pros and cons. This one was definitely a nice surprise. I liked it. The recipe asked for 1 cup of sugar but I reduced it to 3/4 cup since I don't like my bread too sweet. My sister immediately came over right after I told her that I had made freshly baked bread. She had two slices! On top of that, hubby tried it and said "not bad" and he hates zucchini! It must be good, right?

Free cheeseburger

Hubby saw a deal for free cheeseburger at the Daily Grill if you mention "burgertweet". So off we went after work for a nice little cheap date. We still ended up paying $15 for a drink and soup plus gratuity. It was still worth it since the meal woud've cost us $13/person. After dinner, we checked out some stores in downtown Seattle and to walk off the massive 12 oz cheeseburger, fries, and coleslaw we consumed.

Cheapo cereal

I scored a box of Kashi cereal last night for just $0.39! 40% off plus a $2 off coupon! If only it was warmer in the house...I could eat cereal everyday at 39 cents!

I heart ramen

2010 is hitting off to a great start. Nothing satisfies me more than ono food and great company. Had my first bowl of ramen this year. A-W-E-S-O-M-E-!