I Started My Blog...

I started my blog as a personal recipe bank, a food diary... something that chronicles my daily rituals around food with my kids, so that I can pass it along to them when they get older to cook out of it with their families- like a culinary legacy of grandma's recipes digital-style... I didn't know how long I would be doing it, but every time I see your comments and visits, and the opportunities it has brought me, it gives me more passion and excitement to keep cooking and blogging... I want to thank you so much for your support as I celebrate a wonderful milestone # of viewership and cheers to more good eats to come! Flashback eight months with my first ever post... In general, I think I did what I set out to do...

Blogging this day forward...

I want to express what's on my mind and not hold back in my words;
I want to show and tell the things that matter to me and not idle in procrastination;
I want to share my real life stories and not worry about imperfections;
I want to dare to dream big and not waddle in my insecurities;
I want to expand and form connections and not just write in isolation.

It's only the beginning. Life is good.... And I want to savour it!

                                       Thank you my sweet boys for inspiring mom everyday to savour life!

Pork and Cabbage Rice Rolls Stir-Fry...

I find I am easily seduced by ultra fresh rice rolls at Asian supermarkets. It doesn't matter what I plan to make for dinner that night, if I come across packages of soft and warm-to-the-touch rice rolls I'm sold. You can get this dim sum favourite plain or with dried shrimps and green onions in them, and both taste equally delicious steamed or stir-fried until hot and served with a little drizzled soy sauce. To make it a hearty dish for the family, cook it in a stir-fry by throwing in your favourite meats and vegetables or whatever you have on hand. Leftovers are perfect for this! Tonight, it's pork and cabbage, or try it with beef, broccoli and bean sprouts! Skies the limit!

Pork and Cabbage Rice Rolls Stir-Fry
Makes 6 servings

2 Tbsp. cooking oil, divided

1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 lb. lean ground pork or thinly sliced pork, marinated in 1 tsp. soy sauce for 15 minutes
1/4 small cabbage, thinly sliced

2 Tbsp. Chinese cooking wine
2 packages (550 g) fresh rice rolls (in or near the refrigerated section of an Asian supermarket- if super fresh you can find them on a table nearby)

2 green onions
1 Tbsp. dark mushroom soy sauce
2 Tbsp. soy sauce

Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in your skillet or wok on medium-high and sauté the pork in garlic (breaking up the pieces if using ground pork), until partially cooked through. Add the cabbage and stir-fry for one minute. Then add wine and continue to stir-fry until the wine has evaporated and the pork and cabbage are cooked. Remove onto plate.

Slice the rice noodles and green onions into 1-1/2 inches. Stir-fry with remaining 1 Tbsp. oil in same skillet for two minutes. Add 2 Tbsp. water to steam and soften the noodles. Stir, add another 2 Tbsp. water and cook until the noodles feel slightly soft to the touch. 

Return the meat mixture back and toss with both soy sauces until heated through; taste to adjust seasoning if required. Serve with hot sauce at the table.

A simple but satisfying noodle dish served with stir-fried Chinese yu choy greens with oyster sauce and a bowl of last night's nourishing winter melon soup. Comfort food for a cold cold night!

Chinese Winter Melon Soup

I remember fondly the myriad of Chinese soups my mom would make when I was growing up to accompany dinner. "Yum tong" (drink soup) was her favourite saying. All the family members would get half a bowl of soup in our empty rice bowls to drink before commencing the meal and a full bowl after we were done. Depending on the type of soup, it could be the highlight of a four or five course meal. The main star of this soup is winter melon, which imparts a soothingly mild flavour and the melon pieces could be served at the table as they are tasty to eat too. It is very versatile to use and you can pretty much add your favourite combination of ingredients. You can use chicken bones to create a cleaner broth, or my typical combo of chicken and pork in soups. Today, I only have pork on hand and I also plan to add dried shrimps and scallops for more "seen teem" (seafood sweet) savoury flavours. The Chinese believe that these kind of slow-fire soups are not just soups but more like tonics.  This is attributed to the concept of balance in one's body, that winter melon soup brings down heat in one's body and so is especially suitable in the hot weather. Although for me, this is an all-weather comfort and nourishing food. It is known to cool the internal heat, lowers blood pressure, promote yin and also helps to lose weight. Incredibly easy to put together, you just need to cook the soup base and add the winter melon during the last 30 minutes. 

Chinese Winter Melon Soup
Makes 8 to 10 servings (perfect for the same night and leftovers for the next)

1 lb. pork shank, or pork bones

1 to 2 slices ginger
4-6 dried shiitake mushrooms, rinsed and hydrated
1/4 cup dried shrimp, soaked in water (found in the Chinese dried good stores or refrigerated section in Asian supermarkets).

4-6 dried scallops, rinsed and soaked in water
2 lbs. winter melon
salt for seasoning

Bring two-and-a half quarts of water to a boil in a large soup pot, add the ginger and pork. Then add the mushrooms and seafood, and let simmer for one-and-a-half hours.

Meanwhile, prepare the winter melon by scraping out all the seeds and white membrane from the centre, leaving only the hard white flesh. Use a knife to carve away the green skin. Then cut the melon flesh into 1-inch cubes. Add the melon to the soup. Reduce to a simmer and let cook until the melon becomes translucent, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and season with salt to taste. Serve warm.

For another tonic soup, try my Black Chicken Tonic Soup. According to TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine), you should never drink tonic soups when you are sick, as it could do more harm than good. The belief is that the deep nourishing effects will nourish the malady in you furthering the weakness in your condition and prevent you from getting better. 

#52New Foods... Avocado and Grapefruit with Onions...

Keep trying news food together!... A mantra I have been championing over the last three weeks on my collaboration with Jennifer Tyler Lee's launch of her book The 52 New Foods Challenge. It has been a fun, resourceful guide packed with savvy food advice and tips, and excellent solution-based strategies that got my family eating, cooking and trying new foods together! On my last contribution, but by no means an end to continuing the learnings and inspirations in my kitchen, is a simple refreshing dish of creamy avocado and tart grapefruit. I had talked about Lee's strategy on Gateway Foods where each child has their own set of favourite foods that act as tickets to some of the more challenging ones for your family. My mission today is to get my kids to eat sour grapefruit without having them pucker their face up in resistance. My kids enjoy sliced ripe avocado dressed with crunchy bits of red onion, lime juice, EVOO, and sprinkled with sea salt and ground black pepper. And I thought serving grapefruit this way along with avocados would be a perfect way to smooth out the sour notes of grapefruit. These are winter ingredients and together they make an incredibly beautiful and refreshing pair! Served side-by-side on a plate, grapefruit will be in familiar territory and its juice intermingled with lime over buttery avocado is too delicious.  

Lay one or two thinly sliced ripe avocados on one side of a plate.

To segment a citrus: Slice a thin piece of peel from both the top and bottom of the grapefruit so that the flesh of the fruit is exposed.

Follow the contour of the grapefruit and slice the peel and pith of the grapefruit, starting from the top and moving your knife to the bottom. Repeat until all the pith are removed.

Hold the grapefruit securely in one hand. Using a paring knife, cut along the insides of the membrane into the centre of the fruit to remove the V-shaped segments. 

Place the segments beside the avocados. Using the leftover grapefruit membranes, lightly squeeze some juice over the avocados. Discard membranes.

Finish by sprinkling finely chopped red onions all over avocado and grapefruit, a heavy drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil, generous splashes of lime juice, freshly ground pepper and pinches of coarse gourmet salt such as fleur de sel. So vibrant and gorgeous!

Simply delicious with a new spin on one of our favourite dishes with avocado. 

Lime and salt on grapefruit actually made it taste sweet, not more tart. Interesting!  My second son definitely approves, whereas my oldest and youngest were still hesitant, but I am not discouraged. In fact, I am more determined and I'll make it a personal challenge to find new ways in which they will eat it. I know it's all about persevering, exposing them to this citrus fruit often and being creative in finding different ways, formats and other combinations in which they will warm up to it. Game on!

The Core Principles in The 52 New Foods Challenge.

Here is a recap of the foods I have shared with you on my family's journey these few weeks with The 52 New Foods Challenge. I hope you've learned a lot as I have. Go pick up a copy of this book in the book stores or on Amazon (it is topping the "Hot New Release" chart!)  Here's to getting all our kids to eat the full spectrum of foods!

Sweet Potatoes, Persimmon: Chinese Sweet Potato and Persimmon Dessert Soup

Rainbow Carrots: Sweet and Sour Glazed Rainbow Carrots and Pickled Rainbow Carrots

Quinoa: Tabbouleh Salad with Quinoa

Edamame: Asian Edamole

Kale: Toasted Sesame Kale Stir-Fry

Avocado and Grapefruit with Onions

OMG! Eggplant Two Ways... Ode to Japanese Manga Oishinbo

Calling all eggplant aficionados... two must-try quick and straightforward preparations for Chinese eggplant anyone can do! Low on effort and supreme in taste! Who knew something prepared so simply can taste so sublime! I've made this twice for my family since reading this installment last week, and is it ever gooood!! Oishinbo (translates to "The Gourmet") is one of the best selling and most beloved Japanese manga of all time- a fascinating, addictive journey through the world of cooking and food culture! This is my second post inspired by one of their editions, this time Vegetables. Remember to read the frames from right to left!

TIP: Choose eggplants that are supple and have an elastic feel to them. Bad eggplants have no elasticity and they're light for their size. When cut, the skin of a good eggplant is thin with flesh that is moist, with a light brown tint and flesh evenly packed. Bad eggplants have thick skin, and vertical gaps around the centre and flesh tough and dry... Oishinbo

Oishinbo A La Carte: Vegetables by Tetsu Kariya pp. 137 to 140

OISHIII!! Now let's eat- Itadakimasu!

Some TIPS for recipe success:

* Use plenty of sesame oil in the first recipe in hot skillet/wok and coat well. Drip a Tbsp. of water and let eggplant cook and tenderize. Toss and add more water a Tbsp. at a time until eggplants are tender. 

* Pan-fry eggplants in second recipe until caramelized on both sides. Do not overcook or it will get too soft and flesh will separate.

* Use Japanese soy sauce to finish the dishes as it is lighter and sweeter than Chinese soy sauce and complements this style of eggplant beautifully.

For another fun post inspired by the comic pages of Oishinbo, check out Fried Oyster and Kimchi on Rice from their Izakaya and Pub Food edition.

#52New Foods... Toasted Sesame Kale Stir-Fry...

How many of you can relate to having kids eating the same limited scope of foods? I know I do! Breaking away from those favourites can be challenging at first. Lee in The 52 New Foods Challenge book has a clever strategy for this, what she calls Gateway Foods. Each child has their own set of Gateway Foods and these act as tickets to some of the more challenging new foods for your family. Kids like to know that the food they are eating is familiar and safe, and it gives them the security to be more adventurous at the table and try something new.

Some key tips in the book:

1. Identify three to six Gateway Foods for your family. These are your culinary keystones. Mine include but are not limited to: cauliflower, broccoli, apples, blueberries, avocado and corn.

2. Aim to prepare your Gateway Food along with a new food. The example for us: avocado and grapefruit salad (food idea to come this week) or roasted cauliflower and brussel sprouts.

3. If your kids resist combining the foods, start by serving them side by side. Taste the Gateway Food, then encourage a small taster of the new food. They could put a small amount on their tongue and if they don't want to swallow it, let them know it's okay to spit it out. Praise them for trying and keep up with exposing the foods frequently at the table. Once you see them warming up to it, gradually move towards mixing... It is naturally common at a young age to keep things separate but most grow out of it with time. Use the ingredient in their favourite dips, in a DIY meal, serve a small amount in their favourite dishes and you set the example by trying something new, but it's always better and fun trying together!

Another ticket to new foods is favourite and familiar seasoning and flavours. I've always known the pickiest of eaters to enjoy a sweet and sour profile, and so do my kids. But one that is hands-down our superstar flavouring is toasted sesame oil! They would take the bottle out of my hand and fight to be the one holding it to take long whiffs of the glorious nutty fragrance, and with gusto, eat it as a dip for grilled meats or as an accent in Asian noodle soups.  And this will be my gateway to get them to eat leafy green kale. Kale is a high-profile top-notch powerhouse in nutrition- a great source of Vitamins K, C and A and packed with antioxidants! They love kale no problem oven-baked with olive oil and salt into crispy crumbly roasted seaweed-like chips, but in it's natural leafy self is another story. So I'm going to experiment, stir-frying it simply with their beloved sesame oil and other familiar seasonings.

Toasted Sesame Kale Stir-Fry
Makes 4 servings

6 large kale leaves, hard stems removed and coarsely chopped
3 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. sugar
Toasted sesame seeds for garnish

Heat 2 Tbsp. sesame oil in a skillet/wok on medium heat. Stir-fry the kale for two minutes until wilted. Push the leaves to a side and add remaining 1 Tbsp. sesame oil and sauté garlic. Stir in the rice vinegar, soy sauce and sugar and continue to toss another minute. Cover for another minute, remove onto serving dish and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Nutty in aroma, tangy and slightly sweet, this was a winner at dinner!

Yummy! Kale was the first thing the kids put in their rice bowl and plenty of it too! Hurray mes gars!

What are your kids gateway foods and flavours? Let these pave the culinary path to your family's new food discoveries and dinner. It's a step in the right direction...

Fried Cauliflower "Rice"...

What?? Fried cauliflower rice... like Chinese fried rice? Yeah sort of! That was my initial reaction after coming across such a peculiar idea, but after realizing the simplistic beauty of it, I thought it was ingenious. What a smart way to eat more cheap and cheerful vegetables plus the huge bonus of reducing the carb intake. Simply take a cauliflower or in-season Romanesco broccoli (a cross between broccoli and cauliflower), remove the stalk, chop the amount you need and pulse it in a food processor until it resembles rice. Heat a skillet on medium-high with some olive oil and stir-fry until aromatic and "rice" is crisp-tender about five minutes adding salt to taste. That's it. That's all folks!

Grab a head to give it a try. It's only around for a limited time!

Add garlic, onions and other flavourings and seasoning as you wish! Great base for just about anything! Experiment!

Finish with a healthy drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil before serving.

Cauliflower "rice" was a fantastic accompaniment to leftover Slow Cooker Beef Short Ribs from last night. Tastes like oven-roasted cauliflower but slightly crunchier. Really tasty! It was a great alternative instead of yet another dinner of carb-heavy mashed potatoes. My kids who are cauliflower fanatics had no trouble helping themselves to the "rice". Is this something I can do to completely replace carbs at meals?... No, nor do I want to, but it is certainly feasible as an occasional substitute to give the body a break, and I know it will be a welcomed side dish at my family table.

"Yum mom. I love cauliflower in any way shape or form!"