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I Made This – Ahi Poke Deluxe on a Crisp

Canela — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 00:36:56 +0000

There are no words to describe the perfection you see before you. My friends have dubbed it “the best thing ever” after my last dinner party. I really hesitated in posting this one because you know a Gurlz gotta have some secrets but what the heck, I’m feeling generous (lucky for you). Here’s the hook up on my “cheats can be fabulous” version of Ahi Poke Deluxe on a Crisp….. made with a little help from my beloved Fish King.

Fish King sells an amazing already marinated and diced Ahi Tuna Poke. For those geographically challenged, the ingredients according to Fish Kings label are Ahi tuna (raw diced), soy, ginger, and green onion. However, I’m certain there is a bit of sesame oil added in as well and I suspect FK wants to keep a few secrets of their own. At home I add diced avocado and tomato and serve it on a crisp wonton skin. You can either fry the won ton skins lightly (the yummy way) or bake them as I did (the I’m trying to pretend I’m healthy way). I baked mine at 375 degrees on a baking pan lightly sprayed with canola oil. The tricky part here is to keep a close eye on them because they can burn very quickly as I found out. Timing is crucial; you have to pull them out just before you think their done because they continue to cook a bit when you pull them out. I also spray the tops with cooking spray before putting them in and add a touch of salt.

There you have it! Now you too can impress your friends and family. BTW, you’re welcome.

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I Made This – Sashimi at home!

Canela — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 19:40:02 +0000

Do you hear that? It’s the theme to Disney’s Aladdin playing in my head…. A Whole New World!!! Truly the dawning of a new era. No longer will we need to suffer the sushi bar wait and high ticket price for a fresh fish buzz. All thanks to my neighborhood fishmonger Fish King. Fish King oh Fish King how do I love thee let me count the ways. I’m so lucky to live 2 minutes away from this food palace. I’ve been patronizing Fish King for years and had heard that you could order fresh sashimi grade fish cut to order but had never done so. Earlier on this fateful day I had been to Marukai Market and picked up some sweet looking Uni and Shiso Leaf and thought hmmm what about a whole sashimi dinner at home? Fish King to the rescue! I ordered 1/3 lb. Hamachi 1/3 lb. Salmon and 1/3 lb. Ahi (Maguro) sliced and served it with some ponzu sauce. We paired this with a lovely dry Spanish Rosé and it really worked well. Let me add here that I would consider us sushi snobs and I tell you the quality was right up there with the best of the best sushi joints we’ve been to. I have since refined this by adding some of their delicious Poke, succulent Albacore and radish sprouts. Heaven!

Hamachi, Salmon, Ahi and Uni Sashimi with Rosé

Good with Sashimi and very reasonably priced

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Drink – Two Lebanese and a Korean walk into a bar….

Canela — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 00:12:25 +0000

On one of our trips to HK Market, Daughter and I got to sample an unusual but tasty beverage made of a Pomegranate flavored vinegar syrup called Hong Cho. Here’s the description from their website….

“Drinking Vinegar – Hong Cho” is a well-being vinegar brand that can be enjoyed without its sour taste produced through vinegar fermentation technology accumulated for 30 years.”

Daughter has also been on an “add rose water to it” kick as of late. So in honor of her I tinkered a bit and came up with this light refreshing non-alcoholic beverage. But what to call it? Any suggestions?

Add cap full of vinegar, dash each of orange blossom and rose water to glass of water

On the rocks with a sprig of mint et Voila!

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Dump Day! – Dumpling 10053

Canela — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:49:37 +0000

Next up Dumpling 10053 in El Monte. After reading rave reviews about their pork, shrimp and sea cucumber dumplings, Sis and I were very intrigued. We’ve never eaten sea cucumber before and thought this could be a good low risk way to pop our cherry. Well, the aforementioned dumplings did live up to the hype. We ordered them boiled and they were indeed excellent. I’m still not sure exactly what sea cucumber tastes like now but it seemed to add a nice creamy like texture to the mix. I am now curious to try it alone.

Crispy Pork Dumpling- good not great we’ve had better

Boiled Sea Cucumber, Crab and Pork Dumplings- The star of the show, a must try.

Steamed Shrimp and Pumpkin Dumplings- disappointing, too much pumpkin. They used a puree instead of chunks and it overwhelmed the mix.

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It’s Saké O’Clock! – Wakatake Junmai Daiginjo Onikoroshi “Demon Slayer”

Canela — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 00:56:02 +0000

Saké, it’s the new black! Seriously, saké seems to have come into fashion in the US as of late and rightly so. Once you dive into the world of saké you see that it is as interesting, complex and varied as wine. For a short and concise quick-start guide to saké from the world’s leading non-Japanese saké guru John Gautner, click on the sidebar to the right and get a free download.

The Mr. and I have been afficionados for years and have come to take our love rather seriously. We often get asked by curious friends about our favorite saké. Below is one of our old faithfuls; relatively easy to find, mid priced (retail; price is often doubled in a restaurant) and always delicious. Now remember, premium saké is meant to be enjoyed chilled and this one is very easy to drink; dry, floral bouquet with a hint of melon. Enjoy!

Wakatake Junmai Daiginjo Onikoroshi “Demon Slayer”

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Adventures in Exotic Groceries – Square Market

Canela — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 17:14:31 +0000

After our visit to the food court Sis and I went for a stroll through Square Market (formerly 99 Ranch ) in Rosemead. I hear this is smaller and less glorious than 99 Ranch in San Gabriel but it was still quite exciting to me. Check it out…

Oooh Shrimp balls!

Fresh Sashimi!

Large Live Maine Lobster $6.99 a pound! I’m so tempted to get a lobster pot but still squeamish about having to actually kill it. I may have to get over that.

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I Made This – Steamed Black Cod

Canela — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 03:12:45 +0000

After an untamed year of wining and dining mischief, I realized that I needed to do something about my new buffet sized booty. Gotta streamline the junk. I’ll never fully give up my epicurean ways but there must be some balance and at times a bit of damage control is in order. So I stumbled upon the Ultrasimple Diet, sounds good I can hang with simple (and often do). I won’t go into all the specifics, you can look it up but it’s basically a dairy free, gluten free, sugar free, alcohol free, preservative/additive free, clean food kind of diet that lasts a week (I’m stretching it out a bit longer with cheat weekends). So far it’s worked out nicely for me and I am incorporating elements of this into my daily life. Lucky for me I live with a fisheterian who likes to eat healthy. Here’s a sample of one of my diet dinners…. Asian style steamed black cod with baby bok choy and mixed mushrooms.

Bottom tray of bamboo steamer- Black Cod, garlic and ginger slivers, green onion, pinch of sea salt, pepper and Braggs liquid amino’s

Upper Bamboo- Baby Bok Choy

On the side- Shimeji, baby king oyster and shitake mushrooms sauteed in garlic olive oil and Braggs liquid aminos

Steamed for 12 minutes and topped off with a touch of sesame oil. Mmm Mmm Good

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Dump Day! – East Dumpling King

Canela — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 23:46:36 +0000

Oh how I look forward to Wednesday’s, our beloved Dump(-pling) Day …. and now that I’m on a serious health kick this little cheat gets me through those lean days…..

Anyway, as I’ve said before, shopping in Asian markets and dumplings are two of my favorite things in the whole world. So imagine my glee when I stumbled upon Square Market (formerly 99 Ranch) in Rosemead; a two for one-derland. You see, Square Market has an attached food court and this ain’t your typical pizzahut/taco hell kind of joint. This food court is populated with an assortment of Asian “mom and pop” stands. A veritable cornucopia of culinary wonders, although I admit there’s really no ambiance to speak of- this is a down an dirty experience.

Last time I went to the market I was lucky enough to grab a quick snack at East Dumpling King which kept calling me back so, I knew I had bring Sis. East Dumpling King is run by one lady who does it all, takes your order and cooks it from scratch. They also sell frozen bags of dumplings. YUM!

The unassuming yet delicious East Dumpling King

Beef Roll- This is by far our favorite Beef Roll of all that we’ve tried, crunchy, chewy, succulent…we still dream about it.

Pan Fried Pork Dumplings- Another winner right up there with Luscious Dumplings.

Juicy Pork XLB’s- nice respectable but compared to the rest of the meal just aiight.

The secret black vinegar, soy and chili sauce given to you premixed

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Dump Day! – Mama’s Lu

Canela — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 19:33:36 +0000

Next on our weekly Wednesday tour of luscious San Gabriel Valley’s dumpling joints (aka Dump Day) is Mama’s Lu. Sis and I immediately appreciated the clean and relatively spacious room. Also, the clear easy to read menu was a plus; no translator needed. Overall comfortable and inviting.

We enjoyed the appropriately named Mama’s Lu; it’s like a homier version of Din Tai Fung. Everything was very good, solid but not knock your socks off. To be fair the competition is fierce in these parts and we have now become quite jaded. Highlights were the String Beans and Green Onion Pancakes. Here’s what we had..

Hot and Sour Soup- Good flavor a bit on the starchy side

String Beans- our favorite, garlicky, salty, dried shrimpy goodness

Green Onion Pancake- Excellent, crispy, chewy, not too oily

Fish Dumplings-very good but we prefer Kingburgs Sole Dumplings

Juicy Pork Dumplings- very good, thicker skin we prefer Din Tai Fungs

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Dumplingholics – Luscious Dumplings

Canela — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 22:27:45 +0000

I have recently been enjoying an unabashed love affair with the San Gabriel Valley, an area rich in all thing Asian and yummy. My current fixation DUMPLINGS! My enthusiasm luckily is now shared equally by my sister and we have instituted a weekly lunch exploration we call Dumpling Wednesdays (aka Dump Day)! The beauty of the SG Valley is that we could literally do this for years and never repeat ourselves. So with that, expect to see a weekly update on our survey. Dumpling Joint DuJour…. Luscious Dumplings

Pork Fried Dumplings- My Favorite! Crispy Goodness with a sweet caramelized crust

XLB’s thicker skin, less soupy than Din Tai Fungs

Small Bok Choy with Oyster Sauce

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