Welcome to dinner: up to you. This is where I unload my various thoughts on the things I like to eat, the ways I like to cook, and what I’d like to learn. Feel free to stay and hang out.
Whoa - I barely cooked all last week. Work, conferences, laziness - oh well. However, it was 45 degrees this past Sunday in Chicago and you know what that means.
Soup season is officially upon us.
Keep reading to see what I made this weekend…
Read MoreOof. Here’s a controversial question for an Asian American to ask:
Do you like noodles or rice better?
My answer?
Noodles. Always noodles. 100% of the time.
I love noodles so much. Beef noodle soup. Dan dan noodles. Dan zai noodles. Pho. Bolognese. Spaghetti. Naengmyeon. All of it.
So in order to maximize my noodle intake, I’ve developed a new weeknight noodle that hits all the spots in just 20 minutes or less. It’s spicy, porky, and cooks in the time it takes to boil the noodles.
ground pork
ginger
garlic
chile paste (doubanjiang)
cornstarch
water
noodles
Start by boiling the water. If you’re in a hurry, boil the water in a tea kettle. It’s so much faster and you can just pour the boiling water into the pot when it’s ready. I know I put 20 minutes in the title, but with a tea kettle, these noodles can easily be done in 15. Mix a small teaspoon of cornstarch into some water to create a slurry and set aside.
Saute some finely chopped ginger (about 1 inch) and garlic (2-3 cloves) in a little bit of oil. The pork releases a good amount of oil so no need to put too much initially. Once the ginger and garlic are soft, but not browned, put in the ground pork. For two people, 1/4-1/2 lb is usually enough. These noodles are not meant to be covered in pork, just enough for flavor.
Once the pork is browned off, put in a tablespoon of the chile paste. I like doubanjiang but you honestly could go with any type of chile paste. Sambal oelek, harissa paste, black bean paste. Any type of funky, salty, spicy chile paste would work here. Mix the paste in with the pork until it’s cooked off for a minute or two. Fill it up with 1/2 (?) cup of water and let it simmer for 2 minutes.
Pour in your cornstarch slurry - the amount of liquid you put in will depend on how saucey you want the sauce. For example, I love super saucey noodles but my husband likes drier noodles. Therefore, we compromise and land in the middle. :) Noodles go in and mix it all up! Top with chopped scallions or cilantro.
Happy cooking!
I find that I do the bulk of my “leisure” cooking on the weekends as one does. So here is my Weekend Recap. I think this will encourage me to document more of my meals on here too. Aiming for more regular posts on here (heh sorry)! Read on for this past weekend’s meals…
Read MoreCooking has always been a form of stress relief for me. The routine feeling of chopping vegetables, sautéing onions and garlic in olive oil, stirrings yummy bits around a pot - these are all very calming activities for me after a long day of work. However, after those particularly long days of work and I’m ravenous, the last thing I want to do is spend over an hour making dinner. But what if I do want a slow-cooked dinner on a week night? What’s a girl to do?
Keep reading for a one-two weeknight dinner routine that has changed my views on a “quick weeknight dinner”.
Read MoreThis Labor Day ended up being more of a stay-cation. Friends that were originally going to visit us in Chicago had to postpone the trip due to Hurricane Dorian. :( Bummer.
Nonetheless, a long weekend means that lots of snacks and many glasses of wine were consumed throughout the lazy afternoons. Cocktail hour is a recent phenomenon in our house, an idea lifted from our dear friends in Milwaukee. I think its safe to say it will be here to stay - for the long haul.
Taiwanese lu rou fan. Braised pork on rice. Rou zhao fan. There are a handful of names for this dish but it’s basically Taiwanese comfort food. My mom and grandma made this all of the time when I was young and I finally asked them for the “recipe” a few years ago. Not surprisingly, their instructions were vague and contradicting. But a good home-cooked meal is all relative as everyone has their own preferences (hence the blog name). So after a few years of making this dish on the reg, this is my interpretation. Read on if you’re interested…
Read MoreLast Friday, I wanted to throw together a quick dinner before the husband and I went out with some friends for drinks. There was a pound of pork in the fridge that needed to be used ASAP - so meatballs it is! However, I normally only ever make the italian style meatball and was craving a new recipe to add to my meatball archives. Poking around in the fridge, I had enough ingredients to make it more of an Asian style meatball.
Like all new things I cook, there were a few errors along the way and I’ll probably change it up the next time I attempt these meatballs. I don’t believe in perfecting a “recipe” before sharing it since new ideas are too exciting to withhold. Cooking is forever a learning process but I’m a big fan of how they turned out.
Read MoreThis past weekend, my husband and I went up to Madison, WI for a quick one night getaway to check out the Dane County Farmers’ Market in Capitol Square. You guys. It was AMAZING. I ended up buying a bunch of heirloom tomatoes, a giant bunch of basil for $1 (!!!), and some sweet red onions, and fresh corn. I didn’t really think it through and the tomatoes and basil got a little bit dented and droopy on the way home. BUT THEY MADE IT. See what I made Sunday night with these farmers’ market goodies…
Read More
We are smack dab in the middle of summer and there are so many things I still need to eat. I’m all for winter stews that take hours to braise and steamy mugs of coffee…but summer. Fruits and vegetables taste significantly better during these summer months and I am determined to eat all that I can before we have to survive through the Midwest tundra again. Keep reading for everything I plan on making this summer…
All of the tomatoes. Sliced up, drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper. Maybe some basil. Maybe some mozzarella if you’re feeling fancy. Summer tomatoes are. my. jam. And they are necessary in the summer months when the farmers markets and grocery stores are overfilling with them (someone has to buy them and it should be you). Toast some sourdough bread in olive oil, spread a little mayo, slice some tomatoes, drape some prosciutto on top - perfect summer picnic lunch.
Homemade pesto. Earlier this summer, I wandered around the local farmer’s market and stumbled upon some garlic ramps. I had never used garlic ramps before and rarely (if ever) see them in the grocery stores. So I took some home and proceeded to make some pesto with it. Your standard parmesan, pine nuts, olive oil pesto but with garlic ramps. Holy cow it was delicious. I put it on everything - bread, pasta, thinned out as a salad dressing, as a dip. Highly recommend.
Grilled steak. I make steak in the fall and winter quite often, and always the same way. Seared to medium rare, basted with butter, rosemary, and garlic. This method doesn’t change in the summer months. But there is something about a summer steak with charred vegetables (scallions, asparagus, or bell peppers) eaten al fresco that just makes it feel that much more satisfying. Bonus points if its served next to a cool new cocktail you’ve been experimenting with.
Watermelon. A whole watermelon eaten in one sitting with some friends. Or big slices eaten outside on the grass with watermelon juice dripping down your arms. Or muddled with some mint for watermelon mojitos. Or tossed with some olive oil, red wine vinegar, mint, and feta. The opportunities are endless.
Corn. Throw it on a grill until the husks are blackened. Rub with unabashed amounts of good butter (my favorite is Irish Kerrygold) and salt. Or raw and chopped into a salad with lots of lime and cilantro. Or grill it Taiwanese-style! Make a sauce of sha-cha (Taiwanese bbq sauce), garlic, sugar, soy sauce, shallots. Baste it consistently until the entire corn is charred and basting sauce has caramelized. It’s so damn cheap in the summer that you can eat it all of these different ways without breaking the bank.
Sausages. The underdog of barbecues. People always wait for the burgers or the buttered corn but sausages are the secret weapon of all grillers when everyone starts to get hungry. Spicy italian, mild italian, brats - you name it, it’s all good. The trick is to boil them beforehand (~10 minutes, start from cold water). This way, they’re 85% cooked through before you throw them on the grill to get super caramelized and juicy. Pile on some caramelized onions on a lightly toasted bun and you’ll have a definite winner at your next barbecue.
Tacos. A summer taco party is always a fun idea for a group of friends. It’s not too difficult to put together and feeds a lot of mouths. Grill up some meat, dice it up to bite size pieces, pile on some slaw or pico and call it a day. Serve with lots of lime, cilantro, and plenty of ice-cod beer.
What do I make when I’m starving but can’t be bothered? Eggs. Always eggs. And what do I always have in the fridge? Tomatoes.
Therefore, my go-to lazy meal? Eggs in tomatoes.
Keep reading for my ultimate easy meal if you’d like…
Read MoreOn my post about dinner party basics, I mentioned that dips are one of my go-to appetizers when entertaining. To be honest, I love dips so much that I will gladly have a lunch or dinner composed of just a few different dips. Keep reading for four of my favorite dips…
Read MoreMy parents are hosting machines. Some of my favorite memories as a child involved a giant dinner table with all of my cousins, my grandma, my aunts and uncles, and my parents. Relatives would waltz in and out of the house, sometimes popping in for dinner or right after, settling down around the dining room table as my mom brewed some tea for everyone. Wine glasses and stained corks would litter the table after late-night conversations. To this day, every year when I’m home for Thanksgiving weekend, my high school friends still congregate at the same table while my parents pop open a few bottles of wine. Everything seemed effortless. You can say I inherited the same hosting gene - but it took me a few tries to achieve “effortless”.
Over the years, I’ve found the best structure that works for my sanity. I’m able to cook what I want without driving myself nuts and I bake in enough time for myself to decompress before guests arrive. Here is a comprehensive timing guideline for a relaxed dinner party.
Read MoreRisotto is one of those indulgent meals that always seemed too difficult or time-consuming to make. After each failed attempt, I would throw my hands up in defeat and the bag of half-used arborio rice would sit alone in the pantry for months. But after a few more determined tries this past year, I think I’ve gotten the formula down to its simplest form. Practice a few times but as long as you get the general technique and structure down, you should be smooth sailing.
Read MoreOver the years, I’ve made a few key decisions in my eating and shopping habits that dictate the way I cook today. These decisions vary from what I use store-bought vs homemade, splurge vs. save, shortcuts I use, etc etc. Often times, these are suggestions or inspiration from others that went on to become a staple in my life. Keep reading for some of these lifestyle adjustments:
Read MoreHere’s something you might not know about me:
I love grocery stores.
Seriously. When I was 15, I had double dates with my high school best friend at the local grocery store. These days, if I’ve had a tough day at work, my husband knows to ask “Should we swing by Whole Foods on the way home?” It’s a thing.
There’s something calming about wandering aimlessly through the produce section, peering at each type of protein in the meat section (for the sales - duh), and poking around for interesting additions in the pantry aisles. I rarely go to the grocery store with a list - instead, I stock up on my essentials and leave it up to that particular store to inspire my next meal. With my essentials in stock, I know I always have something to fall back on for dinner. Here are some crucial items:
Read MoreWhat do you make for dinner? Week-night, post-work dinner? Friday night, celebratory dinner? Sunday-afternoon-all-I’ve-got-is-time dinner?
Welcome to my food blog. Is it a blog? I guess I see it more as a brain dump of all the things I like to cook. It’ll be a collection of the common things that land on our dinner table so that I no longer need to filter through my mental archives.
Growing up with a Taiwanese mom and grandma, instructions were doled out as “a small bowl of this”, “a handful of that”, “fry it until it’s this color” - never in cups, tablespoons, or minutes. With a working mom, dinner typically landed on the table within 30-45 minutes of my mom pulling into the garage, made of whatever she could find in the fridge. Today, those frantic, on-the-fly meals she whipped up are the ones I try to recreate as an adult.
This will be all of the tried-and-true dishes that are constantly on repeat in our house. It’ll be the mantras that I cook by and the techniques that I want to master. It definitely won’t be recipes though. I don’t even know how to write a proper recipe. Instead, it’ll likely be scribbled-down lists of ingredients, vague instructions, some tips and tricks, and my general thoughts on cooking. Because even with a detailed recipe, everyone has different tastes, different preferences, and different items available in the fridge. Cooking shouldn’t be about following strict instructions or buying every single obscure ingredient the recipe demands. Instead, it should be about what you prefer, and frankly, what you have on hand.
It should be up to you.
