Asian Dishes, Salads and Vegetables

Chinese Vegetarian

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A month ago I was fortunate enough to be invited to ab ex-colleague’s wedding. She and her husband are both strict vegetarians. In the West, vegan food would most likely be simply loads of garden salad and vegetables. In the East, vegetarian food are very creative! The food at the wedding banquet was exquisite. They are strict vegans, so no alcohol was used in the cooking as well, on top of no garlic and onions. But somehow, I suppose through lots of seasoning, the food turned out really really well. Or perhaps we were just so hungry. Eating vegetarian food like this can be tiring…all that chewing! In any case, I was thankful to be able to grace this wonderful joyous event and experience something new at the same time. Feast for the eyes.

Starters: Lots of yummy mushroom and beancurd starters. The surprise were these cut fruits made to look like chips. The seasoning on them were divine!
Starters: Lots of yummy mushroom and beancurd starters. The surprise were these cut fruits made to look like chips. The seasoning on them were divine!
The mushroom starters...yummey
The mushroom starters…yummey
Supposed to be fish. It's actually delicious crispy fried beancurd.
Supposed to be fish. It’s actually delicious crispy fried beancurd.
Mushroom vegetarian soup ... mmmm...eaten with a splosh of black vinegar...
Mushroom vegetarian soup … mmmm…eaten with a splosh of black vinegar…
Peking duck vegetarian style...yums
Peking duck vegetarian style…yums
Loads of beancurd, and yams and other root vegetables inside the mould.
Loads of beancurd, and yams and other root vegetables inside the mould.Vegetrai
Bread and Batter, Desserts, Japanese/Korean, Sides, Snack

Hoddeok – Korean sweet pancakes

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I love anything doughy and especially fried. Ever since I heard about these delightful Korean pancakes, I’ve been craving for them. It wasn’t  until a friend actually made them and testified that it was easy to make did I try it myself. There’s this lovely eccentric Korean woman on the web – Maangchi. And her recipe for this hoddeok is flawless. I made them a few weeks ago – twice! Do give it a go. Her recipe is here: http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/hoddeok

It’s not as difficult as it looks. The dough is soft, even when it’s a bit cold. Delicious!

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Places

Chicken Mattone: Eldorado Parkway, Frisco , Dallas

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One of the afternoons, The Man brought us to Frisco to a new halal eatery. The chicken was good as it was cooked over a grill. And no, The Man, if you are reading this blog for the first time, is not the man pictured below.

IMG_2913 We took the picture of our server because he looked so much like the kids’ uncle!
IMG_2911 Canolli. I didn’t like this at all because it was hard and dry. In my mind, when I watch Bobby from Cake Boss, I thought it’d be light and flaky. Obviously, they don’t make good canollis here.
IMG_2910 Chicken was goooood…
IMG_2909 I so love this beetroot salad! I’ll never make beetroot at home and this was delicious.
IMG_2908 The meat was good but but the pilaf was not. It was not seasoned at all.
IMG_2904 The kids looking at how the chicken is cooked.
IMG_2903 Chicken  Mattone. The name of the place.
Places

Red Lobster – Orlando

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In this post, I will share what we ate there. But, I will also make a promise that one day, one fine day, I am soon going to REPLICATE the RED LOBSTER CHEDDAR CHEESE BISCUITS, I KID YOU NOT!

People go there for the seafood. For me, the best thing I ate there were those darn biscuits! They were sooooooo delicious! Yes, The Man ordered lobster, and crabs and we had fish, I think, but the thing that stays in my mind, and the stuff I crave and dream about, are, yes, I shall shout it again, THE TO DIE FOR FREAKING GOOD BISCUITS! Pictures tell a thousand words, though you cannot begin to even imagine how sinfully delicious they are – warm, melts in the mouth, cheesy, savoury goodness. I rest my case.

Stuff of dreams... Stuff of dreams…
They give kids a bib...and adults too I think...Look at The Man reaching for them biscuits! They give kids a bib…and adults too I think…Look at The Man reaching for them biscuits!
Lobster...bleah...where are my biscuits? Lobster…bleah…where are my biscuits?
Crab legs...bleah...where are my biscuits??? Crab legs…bleah…where are my biscuits???

I’ll make them one day soon; I’ve downloaded some knock-off recipes and will try till I get a semblance of the heaven I tasted…

 

Meat

Texas Beef

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Texas. Land of beef. I wonder how vegetarians could live in a really carnivorous place. The beef here is very good. And luckily for us, there is a halal supermarket selling really good beef. When we went to Orlando, we found that the halal places there could not produce the same quality of beef in Texas. If you really love beef, then Texas really is the best place to be.

While we were there for that just few weeks, we were lucky because by then, The Man had learnt how to make pretty good steak. The meat itself is delicious on its own, and I never needed to eat it with any kind of sauce. The trick is to have high heat but staying in a hotel room where the smoke alarm is very very sensitive did result in it being activated and us sheepishly calling the hotel reception that we were just ‘cookin’ some steak’. I did see The Man marinade the meat using Lawry’s 30 min Steak Chop. Oh, man. I’m so missing a good thick Texan rib-eye now…

I just love the little fats to go with the meat. Juicy and sweet and melts in your mouth goodness fat...Mmmmmm
I just love the little fats to go with the meat. Juicy and sweet and melts in your mouth goodness fat…Mmmmmm

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