Foray Into the North - Potatoes!

Potato straws?  Shredded potatoes?  How about...Potatoes Julienne?  (When saying that last one out loud, pretend you are announcing the next dinner course to European old money or royalty at a black tie event.)  Or per Google Translate: "Potatoes wire."  This is Tudou Si (土豆丝).

Typically, I prefer Southern Chinese food, and I think there may be more to it than me being from the Chinese South.  In America, when many think about Chinese food, common regional names come into play, like who-naaaaaan and seh-chew-on and shaaang-hiiii  (Note: I am mimicking common verbal butcher jobs).  Most probably do not know that Hunan (湖南) and Sichuan (四川) and Shanghai (上海) are Southern Chinese provinces and/or municipalities.  Even Chinese buffet and Chinese takeout represent a cuisine descended and evolved from a very specific style, possibly that of a single ethnic minority, originating from Canton China (广东)--also the South.  Whether it is because of historical ethnic migration patterns into America (more likely) or because the number of mind-blowing Southern Chinese canon foods is truly more numerous than the number of Northern counterparts (less likely, but I will insert my personal bias anyway), I do not know.

And so it is with great joy that I present to you a favorite Northern style dish called Tudou Si (土豆丝), probably something like vinegar potatoes julienne.  This dish is super simple to make because you toss it in a little oil with similarly cut green onions on high heat for no more than two to three minutes.  However, where the impact of this dish is truly decided is in the preparation.  Slicing potatoes to amazingly thin widths takes careful effort, and it is not a quick job.  Even most kitchen devices out there today cannot achieve the ultra-thin cuts that are needed by this dish (there are some German-engineered devices that can get close).  Using five small golden yellow potatoes, it took me ten times more time to prep the potatoes than to cook them.

This iteration, I soaked the potato straws in vinegar water that was too heavy on the vinegar, so the final result turned out slightly more sour than expected though not bad when consumed with rice.  Next time I might try adding some julienned red chili peppers to literally spice up the dish and make it visually more appealing.

Key Lime Pound Cake

In search of inspiration for a seasonal dessert to pair with late spring, I came across this key lime pound cake recipe.  Using both the zest and fresh squeezed juice from key limes, this cake combines the sinful delights of an American Southern dessert with a distinct and refreshing key lime flavor.

Key limes, as I learned, are a tiny hybrid from the Florida keys, containing higher acid content and tasting more bitter than regular limes.  After working with key limes, I like to think of them as the regular lime's evil younger cousin, containing the same amount of flavor in one quarter the size.  Because these limes are so small, it was much more difficult to juice them.  And the key lime scent is so concentrated, zesting them was a religious cleansing experience for my sinuses.

The end result was tasty for a first attempt at pound cake, although I thought the cake became too dry after cooling down.  In addition, the zest and lime juice that went into the cake made no impact at all, and only the lime glaze that I painted on the cake afterward brought any key lime kick to it.

I am not sure when I will make this cake again (seriously, equal portions butter, sugar, egg, and flour scare me), but I will definitely need to think of ways to improve the moisture and the key lime flavor impact.  Also, a more decorative key lime glaze, like the stuff you drizzle over cinnamon rolls, might be worth a try.

A Huang Family Weekend

This past weekend, I took a mildly impromptu roadtrip back to visit my parents for two reasons:

1. To return a dining table they gifted me when I graduated college
2. To be an embarrassment factor at one of my brothers' prom photo session.

Fortunately, the Huang parents are pretty into food like I am.  So you might imagine that this weekend was stacked with copious amounts of delicious food, and that I gained a few unnecessary pounds.  On both counts, you would be correct.

When I got back Friday evening, I was surprised to see Peking duck being prepared complete with roast duck skins, julienned green onion and cucumber, homemade spring pancake wraps (春餅), and the sauce that goes with the wraps.  I have no idea what the sauce is typically called, but it is a bean-based product and an absolute must for any Peking duck meal.

For lunch on Saturday, my mother made ramen from scratch, making her own noodles based on an online recipe and adapting a Japanese acquaintance's recommendation for seafood ramen.  The broth was a duck-based stock (leftovers and bones from Friday night's Peking duck) enhanced with standard Japanese dashi and a little white miso.  Toppings included nori, shrimp, two-layered fish cake, some blanched mustard spinach, and a failed soft-boiled egg.

After sending my brother off to prom, my family came back for a cookout in the backyard.  A year ago, my father took some discarded cinder blocks and put together a really nice makeshift wood-fire grill.  As my father has an affinity for preparing meats, he went ahead and fired up some chicken wings, lamb chops, and steaks for us--far more than we could finish.  Summer is really nice at my parents' house because it is up North and we have a lot of trees on the property, so we enjoyed some beers, red wine, and a nice breeze in the comfort of home.  The vegetables pictured on the red picnic table is Chinese water spinach (空心菜), which is my favorite vegetable OF ALL TIME.

Later that night, my mother showed me how she makes Chinese red braised pork, as a follow-up to my attempt at making the same dish last month.  I thought I did a nice job with my pork, but comparing both dishes, it is clear my mother is far, far ahead of me in skill.  The flavor was much better, bringing out the best in the pork and helping it complement the flavors of caramel and dark beer.  Red braised pork is definitely an easy dish to learn, but without a doubt it will take more practice for me to make it anywhere near what a seasoned cook is capable of doing.

Finally, it turns out that my parents have gotten into homemade yogurt recently.  So I tried some, and it was tasty, as yogurt should be.  For the yogurt, whole milk was used with a dash of honey to take the edge off the acidity.  In true "fruit-on-the-bottom" fashion, a fruit jam was prepared in parallel to combine with the yogurt white.  Apparently, mango jam turns out the best, but I settled for strawberry-peach jam since we did not have any mangoes handy.  To complete the snack, I sprinkled some crushed cashews for enhanced texture and morsels of nutty flavor.

I also baked a new dessert while I was at home, which I will save for my next post.  This baked item was a new type of cake that I have not tried to make before, so I am excited to share it next time.