#103 - Comfort food

Not your stereotypical chicken noodle soup
There's something about comfort food when it's cold and dark outside or when you're not feeling your best...or sometimes, just because.  In this case, it was a combination of nostalgia, laziness and a photo on Facebook.  A classmate of mine had made chicken long rice for her sick husband.  Chicken long rice is basically chicken stock, some seasoning (ginger, garlic and onion) and bean thread noodles - they say just enough stock to make the noodles float.  I didn't have bean thread noodles but I had everything else.


It's hard to get motivated when you're cooking just for yourself.  I have no problem making things for other people but somehow I often can't be bothered to do the same for myself - probably because it's always more impressive when someone else does it so it's hard to impress yourself.  Anyway - this is easy, tastes good and has a fast clean up!  No shiitake mushrooms so not quite as delicious looking as the one my high school classmate made, but good enough to inspire several rounds of the same over the next week or so.

Eating with family and friends
And then of course there's the obligatory cooking for family and friends because sometimes you just feel like it.  Or they request it.  Or someone knows how to make something you've always wanted to learn.  Or you go out somewhere and everyone has favorites they want to have...lucky for me, we happen to know who's quite good at documenting our foodie forays - when she manages to get the photos before people all dig, anyway!  A sample of a Friday night out with the girls (and B).  I think the pesto pasta was a bit of a disappointment because we had all expected there to be more pesto (can you see it in the photo?  I can't) - we were kind of looking for the pesto in the midst of all the cream.

For instance, the same friend who is so good at the food documentation also happens to be an excellent cook.  She made things which I never learned (sometimes you just have to learn these things from your Mom and this isn't what mine makes, although my Mom makes excellent roasts).  So we actually had a Sunday night in which we both contributed - some more (her) than others (me).  The result was very satisfactory though and we were all very, very full at the end of the meal.  I'd like to say it was an "elegant sufficiency" as my Mom and grandmother say, but there was nothing elegant about how we felt at the end of this dinner.

By request...
Despite having studied French cooking, the most requested item when I come home is beef chili.  I got the recipe from a cooking classmate - see the link below for her recipe - http://thefeastingfoodie.com/2012/11/07/let-it-snow/.

My parents are gluten free so instead of beer I use red wine (about 1//3 bottle or 250ml per 4 lbs / 2 kgs of beef) and no beans.  My sister and I don't like beans so we just make up the difference in weight with more meat, although I suggest 1 small can of tomato paste per 4 lbs / 2 kgs of beef.  We have yet to take a photo of the chili in its many incarnations as it always gets eaten before anyone manages to run for a camera.

The rest of the time we tend to do easy things for family meals because when you're cooking for kids and they have a bedtime, you can't fuss around too much.  We needed something a little more substantial than chicken noodle soup but the flavoring is very similar to the Chinese cold ginger chicken so I just did a quick stir fry instead.  Broccoli with the same flavorings and of course, evidence of some snacking also made their way onto this plate.  I didn't happen to have the bread or the cheese because I had been cooking at the time but I am told it was very good.  French bread from a bakery run by Japanese people - might sound weird but it's some of the best bread I've had outside of France.  And any time babies and little children like the chicken and broccoli is a cause for celebration since they can be such picky little eaters.

They say better a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith.  We had a very happy and contented dinner, complete with laughter and finishing with hugs and kisses.  So until next time, happy eating with family and friends.

#101 - Cooking for more than 1...

The day after the Fish Markets - you have to use all the fresh seafood as soon as you can.  There was a request for garlic butter with the fresh crab but I was craving it with chili, garlic and spaghetti - luckily it was well received.  The good thing about making it at home is that you can have seconds if you want and even better, there's more of the good stuff.  Needless to say there were a couple of trips back for a bit more, although it could have used a bit more salt and chili.  Much better once we added a bit more sea salt but I was afraid to overdo the chili.

Dinner was scallops - we had a lot to use and unfortunately I was lazy so didn't cook them in batches as I probably should have.  Not overcooked and they were warm in the middle, but didn't have the really yummy crust you get when you put them in a screeching hot pan.

Some fancy eating

A quick walk along Bondi to Tamarama beaches, then lunch at a French cafe whose name I can't remember.

French cafe food

First time for coconut juice - it tasted coconutty and woody - kind of weird.  Dim sum at one of my favorite places in Sydney - service is always good and I tried tripe - can't handle the texture, yech.  At least I can say I tried it and now never have to eat it again.

Then a few other adventures in Sydney - dinner at Guillaume at Bennelong:  started really strong (the basil infused tuna is amazing) but ended a little less impressively (massively overcooked Wagyu beef when I asked for medium well, knowing the French penchant for giving you bloody meat when it's "medium") and rubbery duck (skin was not crispy, fat not rendered - might have benefited from the waiter telling us the skin had not been prepared with a view to eating - I didn't eat it, being picky but GY was not so lucky and had to avail himself of a tissue to spit out the offending piece of skin).  Souffle was rather impressive if you like souffles.

The other end of the spectrum:

Chinatown and Pho Pasteur - yummy pho for me.  GY didn't like his - the "Special" pho had a few pieces which had a lot of fat on it and it was too hard to eat around the fat.  Spelling mistakes amusing.  Had a Korean hot pot for an early lunch one day - it was unexpectedly cold and I was felled either by allergies or a cold - hard to tell which.  Spicy soup was enough to chase away the stuffy nose, but luckily we were headed home where I homed in on the toothpaste and toothbrush the moment I got inside.

Home cooked dinners were a big hit.  Made sukiyaki with home made dashi, courtesy of an Asian grocery store under Town Hall train station.  Then Ma Po tofu with the spicy Chinese bean paste - the package directions leave the mixture needing something, but luckily I learned the recipe from a girlfriend ages ago so the missing ingredients went in.  Eaten with great gusto and until we couldn't eat anymore.  There were some leftovers, as usual - which ended up being breakfast (not mine) one morning.  I find that with a boy in the house, nothing goes to waste.

As GY's trip ends...

Biennale is on.  Lots of art in various places, one of whom was Giuseppe who seems to be going for a world record.  We checked - it's canvas.  It's outside the Museum of Contemporary Art - and has little things like finding Waldo and a few other items to look for on a little sheet for those who care to look.

Then...a tour of Sydney by food...The Rocks Market had wagyu burgers which I saw a while ago.  I guess they're not there on Sundays because they weren't there when I went last week, but perfect for an early lunch.  Didn't even need ketchup or mustard and did not taste like a Big Mac.  Would have been even more delicious if the bread had been a nice hamburger bun instead of a pretty hard ciabatta roll.

Some afternoon jazzy stuff by a couple of people I dubbed "the Cool Cats".  And some troubling spelling, written large and proud on our way to check out the local arts and crafts.

It was such a nice day that we grabbed a seat outside at a cafe.  Chai latte (second encounter for GY - and still a happy one) then a Belgian waffle with fresh fruit, praline ice cream and dipping chocolate.  I think I would have liked it even more except that allergies have stuffed up my nose enough to interfere with smell and taste.

GY leaves Sydney tomorrow, so I decided it was a night for all Australian food.  The Wallabies were getting walloped during the Bledisloe Cup and we had to head up to the pub for dinner.  Dinner in the Garden Restaurant of the Lord Dudley - and they had bangers and mash (aka pork and fennel sausage, mash potato and onion gravy).  I had the steak, potato and rocket/arugula, onion and something salad with peppercorn sauce.  Onion chips were a bit too salty but the garlicky parmesan from the salad went really well with the steamed broccoli.  And of course to end, a sticky date pudding.  Arguable as an Aussie classic - some like meringues and Pavlovas - but this was delicious.

Lord Dudley has gone through a few tweaks and the food has also been revamped just a tad - much more like a gastropub.  I think the steak was better than what we had at Guillaume at Bennelong (whose Wagyu medium well was more like shoe leather, whereas the medium well from the Dudley was still pink and juicy but not bloody.

So until next time, happy eating!

#100 - Total indulgence

What I make for dinner when I'm alone:  leftover rice, sauteed Brussels sprouts and heated tuna/potato patty from a deli downstairs.  Haven't figured out how to keep the Brussels sprouts from going dark-ish green while they cook - bright green and they're still a bit too raw and bitter.  Wondering if that's the reason some of the slightly fancier restaurants sometimes serve their brussels sprouts as individual leaves... 

Today's experiment - how many oysters are enough?
2 dozen.

But first - a day with lots of cute and furry animals
In all fairness, the unmitigated pigginess was inspired by the fact that when we got to Taronga Zoo yesterday morning, most of the animals were having their breakfasts and when we left, they were eating lunch.

The koala is Darwin - just finished his breakfast so he was feeling happy and mellow.  The Tasmanian devil was looking for breakfast.  Mava (?) the California sea lion (complete with massive bark) was jumping for treats and the snow leopard was having lunch when we left.

Starving and tired, quick dinner near Chinatown - one of the few places open all day for food, instead of 5pm (or later) for dinner.  Dinner was rice and veggies in a hot pot, plus BS's favorite man doo.  Early dinner, then asleep in time to qualify as senior citizens.  I think our dinner was too early for an early-bird special...


Total Indulgence

Today was Darling Harbour and indulgence day - a dozen Coffin Bay oysters and a dozen Sydney rock oysters for a taste test...the Coffin Bay ones are yummier - so another 2 dozen to bring home for dinner.

GY started with a meatloaf sandwich - my first meatloaf, with onion gravy which I actually made for dinner a few nights ago.  He didn't like the amount of alcohol in the gravy, but it was much better once we put it on the meatloaf.  Then coffee in the city, before the walk around Darling Harbour and towards the Sydney Fish Markets.  We took a wrong turn, but eventually got there.

2 hours of grazing - a massive lunch rush and we got there just in time to get our starters, then he went in to get something else because the table we found were for Peter's customers only.  Deep fried snapper and fries to follow the 2 dozen oysters.  There was a discussion as to whether that would be too many oysters, except that we shared a dozen before the symphony the other night and we could have had more.  The snapper was deep fried whole, so we had to take it apart.  Luckily, one of us knew how to debone the fish.

A few laps around the Sydney Fish Market later, some mussels, then shopping for tonight.  No point in shopping when you're hungry, you end up buying lots of crap.  We bought fresh scallops, crab meat and more oysters - because a dozen each wasn't enough.  Of course that much food means that a massive nap is in order before we even attempted to do a little bit of grocery shopping.

A much better effort today - woke up some time after 5:30, but in time to make it to the shops to pick up the remaining ingredients for dinner:  a variation of oysters Kilpatrick (no Worstershire sauce, but very crunchy bacon bits) and home made California rolls.  The whole fake crab thing doesn't work for me so we got real crab for the California rolls.

GY made super crispy bacon bits and baked some of the oysters - close tie to see what we preferred.  I think we'll have to repeat the experiment, but probably not for a while.  He doesn't want to seem to see another oyster for at least a few months and I have to admit that I'm ready for a change.

So until next time...oink, oink.