Just a couple of things first:

• Please take a second to glance at our banner up there ^. I hope this will put to rest the confusion over the pronunciation of our website’s name. It’s goo r-meyd.
• A poll regarding the step-by-step photos. We need your feedback!
  

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Here is a vegetable that goes by several name variations: kai-lan, gai-lan, Chinese broccoli, Chinese kale. This is the same leafy greens that I had kept asking my friend Alice for its name about but she didn’t know what it was in English. It’s kind of sad that I only found out about it when I went to the Chinese supermarket. I’m so good at this food-thing, you know? [grins]

According to Wikipedia, Gai-lan (English) is a “slightly bitter leaf vegetable featuring thick, flat, glossy blue-green leaves with thick stems and a small number of tiny, almost vestigial flower heads similar to those of broccoli”, as seen here in Exhibit A:

It is of the same species as broccoli and kale, hence it’s either Chinese broccoli OR kale. Its flavor is very similar to that of broccoli, but a bit sweeter. Gai-lan is widely eaten in Chinese cuisine — stir-fried with ginger and garlic or boiled served with oyster sauce, both of which I’ve tried. Unlike broccoli, where only the flowering parts are normally eaten,  the leaves and stems of the Chinese broccoli are eaten. For us Asians, the lesser the amount that needs to be thrown away, the better. We are, after all, from a culture where parents are bound to finish their kids leftovers because it would be such a waste not to.

When I cooked Gai-lan, I opted to experiment as usual, instead. Around the time that I made this, I felt like I was on the Iron Chef (for Dummies, mind you) with the “secret ingredient”: shiitake mushrooms. I bought a big bag of it and they ended up being cooked with : soy bean sprouts, chow mein (a concoction which will never make it to this site because if recipes were comedies, this would be the really bad slaptstick version), and with gai-lan and ground beef:

A la cuisine! Haha…sorry. I get carried away.

I really loved how this last-minute concoction turned out. The slight bitterness of the Chinese broccoli was counteracted by the ginger-y ground beef and soft mushrooms. Rice topped with this is perfection. Here is a simple balanced meal that is tasty and offers a lot of different textures, without an overpowering taste.

I’m not one to advocate deprivation, only moderation: a little meat, some veggies, and rice. That’s my eating logic, and I’m sticking to it. :)

If you’d like to try this, here is the recipe with step-by-step photo slideshow. Nom, nom,nom… Continue Reading

A friend and I recently had a chat about kitchen appliances and tools, what our essentials are and which are “nice to have” but would just end up in the dark corners of the drawers, and what we still “wish” for. As we grow older, it’s not just the clothes and shoes we couldn’t get enough of — domesticity has intruded our shopping domain for sure.

We both agreed that there are two things we keep thinking of needing and buying: a mandolin and a timer. I know what you’re thinking: What, you don’t have a timer?! Isn’t it silly? I rely on the stove timer. We have a toaster oven, a digital thermometer, digital scale, ice cream maker, but no, not a timer. Have I lost you already? Please don’t shut me out. Haha.

As our conversation progressed into a more elaborate list of things that are more for wants than needs, I suddenly remembered one of the thing that we’ve kept putting off to buy: the (big) food processor [I love that the site explains the difference between a blender and a food processor]. Sigh. Always more stuff, isn’t it?

Just curious — What’s currently on your kitchen appliance/gadget/tool wishlist?

You’re more than free to tell me you don’t have a timer, too. :-D

I’m up so late because I have too much excess energy today, plus I can’t wait for Obama’s inauguration. I’m not American [Dan is, so we have a healthy dose of jokes between us about our countries], but I still share the excitement, hope, and pride in this moment — as I’m sure a lot of my fellow Canadians do. Today marks a day that inspires the rest of the world, as we all witness and celebrate a momentous occasion.

Back to the food…”Bistek” is a Filipino bastardized word of a concoction for “Beef Steak”. I’m not kidding, even though it sounds so silly. It’s made from thin and flat beef strips that’s cooked in soy sauce, calamansi (or lemon) and onions. It is another favorite of mine. It conjures up such good memories.

I still remember the first time I cooked this after watching and bugging our household help on how to cook it. I’m serious, it was memorable. It was a magical moment because I know this oh so well, I can taste it right now.

As with all simple dishes from childhood, it holds a special place in my heart. *sniff, sniff*

As an option, you can also add fried potato slices or chunks, or other veggies. I cooked mung bean sprouts in the same pan so you get the flavor without needing more salt or pepper.

Every little addition of healthy counts, right?
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If you want to give this dish a try, here’s the recipe with step-by-step photos. Let us know how it goes. Enjoy!

Continue Reading

Going to the Chinese supermarket is like invading an assorted box of chocolates — you never know what you’re going to get. When I go to the regular grocery store, I know what to expect. That’s not the case when I go to T & T. My trip there is almost like a trip to a mall, I not only go there to get what I need but also to find something new — whether it be a snack in those attractive packages, a cute cake, a home gadget that I never thought of before, or a new vegetable (to me). Years ago I had kept asking my friend, who cooks a lot of veggies, the name of the dark green vegetable with garlic and oyster sauce and she kept saying the Chinese name because she doesn’t know the English name. I finally found it at the store — it’s called gai lan. Whew. Things like this hurt my head sometimes. Haha.

I like bean sprouts because they are a part of the Filipino cuisine. What I haven’t tried before were soy bean sprouts.  I know it sounds surprising given that I have gone all the way to a North American country to discover a really Asian ingredient.

At T & T, they put mung bean sprouts and soy bean sprouts side by side in the vegetable section that it confused me at first. After a quick look the former is twice the size as the latter but half the price and with a more attractive color — yellow and bright yellow green. I’m easily distracted and persuaded like that. I bought an equivalent of 4 generous handfuls of them and cooked it the other day with fresh shiitake mushrooms.

I like shiitake mushrooms but I detest the rubbery texture and extra pungent smell and taste of it when it’s cooked from the dried variety. However, I found fresh ones from the Chinese place and tried it. Oh, it was so good! Soft and meaty, but not too overpowering for the soy bean sprouts. It’s quite perfect with subtle bean flavor. I love the extra crunchiness of the sprouts with the bigger beans compared to the mung bean sprouts. Very good buys. Did I mention that this is such a cheap dish to make and very healthy, too?** I never considered buying groceries on a regular basis from the Chinese supermarket before, but I just might. I only spent around $50 for a week’s grocery including meats and fish. In this economy (and I really notice it with the empty malls!), it doesn’t hurt to save where you can. I love that they have a huge variety of seafood and meats, too, including all the ones that I miss about Filipino dishes.

I’ll be going back there to see what’s in store for the Chinese New Year that’s coming up in a week. We’re kind of like that here — those that are not really Chinese start to celebrate it as if it’s our own. Don’t laugh now. :p

[** I've read somewhere that shiitake mushrooms are expensive. I really didn't notice or it would have jumped out at me at the checkout counter. I think the big bag that I had was less than $3.]

Alright, if you made it till here, here’s the recipe:

Soy Bean Sprouts with Shiitake Mushrooms

Ingredients:

• soy bean sprouts (or mung bean sprouts if you can’t find them); I’d say do a 4:1 ratio of sprouts and mushrooms
• 6 shiitake mushrooms, sliced about 1/4″ in thickness (about 1.5 packed cups when sliced)
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup yellow onion
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1/2 tsp ground pepper
• salt to taste
• olive oil

Preparation:

1. Saute onion with ground pepper and a pinch of salt in a medium pot (big enough for the sprouts) with oil heated in medium-low heat. Do that for about 2 minutes. Then add the garlic and saute for another minute.
2. Add oyster sauce and sliced mushrooms, saute for a minute then add water. Turn heat up to medium and wait to boil, and allow it to do so for 2 minutes to let the mushrooms cook.
3. Once it boils, pour in the washed soy bean sprouts. Mix it with the rest of the boiling ingredients. Toss it regularly and cook until the stems start to become translucent. You can grab a sprout and taste it for your desired crunchiness. Add salt to taste.
4. Serve on its on or with rice.

So what do you do after the holidays and you’re left with more ham than you can stomach eating for dinner?

Don’t throw it. Think of the hungry children of Somalia! At least that’s what my parents used to say. But really, it’s good food and yes, the taste could get a bit tiring, right?

In the Philippines, I just love having Pineapple Ham for Christmas or New Year. The one that I got from the store here was Brown Sugar Glazed. I find it too salty and made me miss what I grew up with. I was going to prepare the whole thing with pineapple for New Year but I just didn’t have time. To make up for it, I did that to the leftovers instead. I used crushed pineapple for the hint of pineapple without the big chunks of flavor from the usual sliced pineapple, ala Hawaiian style, although you can certainly use whatever pineapple you prefer or have available.

I just put olive oil and 1/4 cup of pineapple in the pan in medium heat:

Added 1 tablespoon of brown sugar:

Heat for a couple of minutes until the sugar starts to dissolve:

Then add ham slices either one big slice at a time:

Or if you have the ‘scraps’ of ham near the bone, you can put them all in the pan….nothing glamorous about it:

And enjoy your juicy, tasty, “revived” ham:

It’s special the second time around. :) It’s so yummy eating with plain or fried rice!

Here are other things you can do with leftover ham:

• cut/diced to flavor chow mein
• fried to flavor veggies such as green beans
• diced to flavor soups
• cut in strips to wrap cubes of cheese for appetizer
• sandwiches, of course
• shredded to use as a topping for congee

What else can you suggest?

What do you do with your leftover meats from the holidays?

Back to reality for most of us this week…I hope 2009 is going great so far for all of you!

Dan and I wish you a very happy new year! It’s going to be fun, I just know it! :-)