Dejah

Thai-influences Chicken Coconut soup would be perfect with a crispy baguette, or some of the lovely homemade bread that Anna and Ann_T bakes! huiray: You gogi soup. I know you used re-hydrated berries. Is the leaves for soup variety of the gogi plant available in your markets? We have to grow our own. When I was at our farm property this afternoon, I noticed a new gogi plant about 5 feet from the original, planted 30 some years ago from a shoot of my mother's plant. As we were out "at the farm" until past supper, we needed something quick: BBQ Beef ribs with Montreal steak spice while I stir-fried a package of rice noodles with beansprouts and green onions. Trying to clean out the fridge before we head off for a 3 week road trip.

Inspired / reminded by Anna N of a favourite breakfast combo from the musicians' digs while performing in England! It was the first time I had ever encountered canned tomatoes, and I loved them from the start, with anything, everything, and straight out of the can with a fork. . Scrambles a couple of eggs with chopped cilantro, fresh green peppercorns, and a sprinkle of Cajun spice. Added the canned tomatoes and fresh peashoots. Satisfying brunch!

Oh Anna N! Your dish has my two favourite foods: scrambled eggs and canned tomato! That'll be my bunch tomorrow! S-i-l made ribs - slow roasted in foil for 6 hours, then blasted for a few minutes after he slapped on the sauce he made. He mistakenly used tapioca starch instead of cornstarch for the sauce. It was very thick. The rub was an assortment of coriander, cumin, paprika, etc. and the sauce had one dried ghost pepper, Chinese wine, a bit of ketsup, etc. The ribs were sticky and spicy. Delicious! I boiled some baby taters, smashed them a bit then fried in butter.

Had beef short ribs in the freezer, so made Beef Rendang from Cradle of Flavour. It's been a long time since I've made this. I made a gravy at the end with some of the goop and oil. Thinned down the rue with a small can of coconut milk and another tbsp. of red curry paste. This was very rich, but went perfectly with cumin basmati rice and stir-fried Shanghai bok choy. Hey! That's 3 countries in one meal.

Thanks, liuzhou When you started the savory blueberry thread, I also thought - duck! I have pork ribs out thawing, maybe I'll try something with that tomorrow. Did you give the ingredients in the above experiment? Blueberries are abundant at the moment, so I'll have to try. My Mom called the Morning Glory as "hollow heart vegetable". I learned Morning Glory while we were on our trip to Indochina. I ordered it whenever possible as it is difficult to get this in good condition here. I was surprised that it kept well this time, for 5 days before I had the opportunity to cook it. Apparently, there are two ways to grow this vegetable: on land or in the water. Can you verify that? I would think "in water"?

Think my brains is on summer holidays mode! Been forgetting to take pics until the leftovers stage. Had some friends over for supper on the weekend. Requests were from our restaurant days The container has the leftovers - left to right: Kung Pao Chicken, Shanghai Noodles, Pepper Shrimp with Gai Lan, Crispy Ginger Beef, Shitaki Mushrooms in Oyster Sauce with Gai Lan leaves, Earlier, we had Summer rolls and Fresh Lily Bulb Soup. S-i-l and son came out from the city to do some chores. Made food that are their not-cooked-at-home favourites: Aromatic Lamb Shanks a la Nigella Lawson Had 2 leftover fresh shanks, so lunch was Scotch Broth Scored a BIG bunch of Morning Glory / Ong Choy / Water Spinach while in the city! Ong Choy cooked with garlic, ginger, and fish sauce The Ong Choy was eaten (mostly by me!) with Beef and Ho Fun (Rice noodles) It's been hot weather here, but once s-i-l fixed the A/C, cooking in the kitchen has not been a problem! Tonight, we'll be eating Beef Rendang with short ribs - another request / reward for cutting down trees, fixing fences, water hoses, doors, etc!

Exams are done, marked, and results are in. My holidays have begun! Work sure cuts into my eGullet reading time Love all the meals posted here, and it'd take me all night to "like" them all! But Ann_T - your pizzas always kill me...Gorgeous rims. That's all I'd want...just the rims. It's been hot here on the prairies, but s-i-l fixed the A/C, so no problem using the oven - so says he who wanted pie - both savory and sweet. To keep s-i-l happy as he fixes things and cuts down trees, I've been cooking his requests: Fish';n'Chips with fresh pickerel Steak 'n' Kidney pie Cherry pie with fresh cherries Saskatoon Pie with fresh berries and a big tray of Moroccan Spiced cigars for a friend's 60th bday party

It's been very hot, humid, and smoky (forest fires out west) here for the last 3 weeks...Dare not turn on the oven, so it's been the "smoker" and slow cooker (outside) S-i-l is here and using the old BBQ as a smoker. I picked up lamb chops, and he rubbed them with pineapple sage, Thai basil, fresh green peppercorns ( all mushed in the pestle and mortor). The chops were smoked with applewood chips. They were delicious! Picked up new taters at farmer's market - boiled, smashed up a bit, and add loads of butter and fresh sage... Today, we had an airshow here in the city. Hubby is a volunteer with the British Commonwealth Air Training Museum, and he was the MC for the show featuring the Commemorative Air Force from Mesa, Arizona. I was his water girl. S-i-l loves lamb,as do we, so I cut up a lamb shoulder roast, threw in a bunch of vegetables, lemongrass, Kaffir lime leaves, red Thai curry, coconut milk, into the slow cooker to simmer away for the afternoon. Half hour before supper, I added Thai pea-eggplant, fresh mushrooms, and fresh green peppercorns. Had supper with Nasi Lemak and "salad" fixings. I DID cave and turned the oven on a couple of nights ago. Had some Not-sweet-enough cherries to use up, so I made pie at 11 PM!

rotus: Don't have to be really really old to know The Man Who Never Returned... 1959 ... Ham yeu: Salted fish. Cut up chunks of salted fish, lay them on top of seasoned ground pork, top with loads of fresh ginger. Eaten with loads of steamed rice. The salted dish is also wonderful in fried rice! Yeah...there's always leftover prime rib at our house 'cos I always cook BIG roasts...The rest went home with the kids, along with one leftover (of 24)Yorkshire pudding. The main reason really, was because 16-year-old grandson was absent;.

While we were trying to eat up the leftover prime rib roast from the night before, my daughter requested rice and her favourite dish - ham yeu - for brunch. As she will be living in a studio apartment in Boston for a year, there will be little chance for her to cook it as the pungent aroma may offend other residents Yeah...my 3 kids, hubby, and son-i-l all love this, and they all want their own piece! That took most of a large salted Yellow Croaker! Then they all fought for the juice at the bottom of the pan for their "burnt rice":from the bottom of the rice pot. Needless to say, there was roast beef left over yet again...

We were at a celebratory banquet in Chinatown last weekend - all Chinese guests except for my hubby. The "dessert" end-of -the-meal course was red bean / lotus seed soup with orange peel. It was a lovely way to finish the meal. Other times, we've had a sweet soup with a few long noodles - for longevity. Maybe the dessert course is served at the request of the host...

First greens from an auntie's "Chinese garden": goji greens soup - the spring tonic next to rhubarb pie... This variety of goji is grown for its leaves. The stalks are cut when in leave, strip off the leaves then they can be replanted to multiply just by sticking it back in the garden! I don't have a sunny spot for vegetables ( only for flowers), but I get bundles from the "aunties". Soup is made by simmering pork bones. The leaves are added just for a quick boil, and a couple of salted duck eggs are swirled in. This is the way my maternal grandma and mom used to make it for me, and I'm sticking to it! Had a store-bought rotisserie to use up. Made a quick curry with Glico curry cubes, lots of onions, and added the mojos that came with the chicken. Added the fresh green peppercorns for more bite.

Been too busy to post but not too busy to read other's posts and EAT! Finally got back to the Big Easy: Boneless leg of lamb, marinated in red wine, whole grain mustard, and stuffed with rosemary First time doing lobster tails on the BBQ - previously frozen @ 4.00 each - about 5 oz...split, Montreal steak spice, butter, lemon juice S-i-l's BBQ ribeye steaks with charcoal and applewood chips a la Alton Brown's "reverse sear" Perfectly cooked...same all the way through! New recipe for me tonight: Burmese Curry Pork Ribs, and some of the smoked chicken wings by s-i-l...Absolutely delicious wings! And some pan-fried tofu to go with the ribs and wings

Prepared a couple of chicken dishes last night... Drumsticks slathered with whole grain mustard and marmalade. Baked at 400F...Ate that last night topped with green peppercorns. I had to pickle the last couple of packages as we were going away for a month. Had some brine left from a jar of commercial pickles, the kind that is not too vinegary. The peppercorns are much better than the commercial jars...closer to the natural taste. Also put together a pot of Thai curry chicken as I was planning to do lots of garden work today after work... Memories of Thailand...Pretty tasty but missing the essence of the Mekong River;-) The version we were served on the slow boat while travelling down the river somehow tasted better!

Love this! Now I know what to do with the fillets I've got in the freezer...

No whole pickerel to be had, so tilapia filled the bill... Steamed with loads of ginger, scallions, cilantro, and splashes of soy sauce and cooking wine.

And now, I'm salivating for all of the above, in particular, baguette and pizza...Ann_T, your hands are the most magical with breads! Smithy: We didn't get snow in the city, but it came down all around us. It was a chilly dreary day though and it dipped down to -4C last night! So for supper, I wanted something warm and comforting: Steamed tilapia with loads of ginger, green onion, cilantro, white pepper, a dash of Chinese cooking wine and soy sauce.

Green papaya shrimp salad for lunch today: green papaya, carrot, tomato, beansprouts, cilantro, lime zest, lime-chili roasted peanuts, blanched green beans. Dressing: fish sauce, lime juice, rice vinegar, tamarind water,Truvia (daughter on sugar-free diet), little bit of broth from cooking the shrimp, Quite refreshing and a riff on the salad I made in the Vietnamese cooking class I took on our trip to Vietnam.

Thanks for the Crepes: The avocado rolls are a pain to make....but we all love them. I cut the avocado into thin slices(from end to end) and lay them overlapping on the moist rice paper wrapper. The dark strip is closest to the skin, and the "white"part is the centre of the avocado. A green lettuce leaf is then laid on top before adding the long strips of cucumber, carrot, and shredded lettuce. I don't make them very often as it is painstakingly slow to get down that first layer. The bamboo sushi mats are a must... Unfortunately, we live on the prairies, the middle of Canada, and frozen claws and legs are all we can get. One of the stores had a sale and new cases had come in - early warning from the fish clerk. Shoppers were allowed limit of 4 bags each trip @ 18.99 each instead of the $25.99...so I made a couple of trips that week. We enjoyed 9 bags and I hid 3 more in the depths of my freezer. I think each of the bags were about 900 grams each. It was the first time for our 3 year old granddaughter and she loved it.

Yesterday, we celebrated grandson's 17th birthday, and his little sister's 3rd birthday. Food requested by the families was Alaskan King Crab. We cleaned up every leg and claw, along with corn on the cob, taters, marinated vegetables, avocado vegetable rolls and a lb. of garlic butter! This was the first batch of crab while the second batch was steaming... For dessert, we had DQ Oreo Cookies ice cream cake AND the first rhubarb pie of the season. It's May in Manitoba, and the weather is miserable...windy with gusts up to 90 km/h! It started raining yesterday afternoon, and by this afternoon, we were getting ice pellets. Now, evening...snow is falling! Kids requested black bean garlic beef and bitter melon for supper - hard to believe my kids call this "comfort food". Eaten with lots of rice and fuzzy melon soup. Now, some hot chocolate and snuggling on the couch under blankets...

Pork rib roast, in brine with maple syrup and rosemary overnight, then roasted along with beets.

We've just returned from spending a month travelling in Thailand, Lao, Vietnam, and Cambodia. The food was incredible, and I REALLY want to replicate some of my favourite dishes. However, 4 days after our return, I was hit with major stomach issues that kept me off work and on the toilet for 4 days. I noticed Ramen made quite a few appearances on egullet and also on my table. It was the most comforting thing to eat! Most of the time, it was just with the seasoning packet and a head of Romaine lettuce. Today, I felt well enough to make a different noodle soup, a feeble attempt at something we had in Hu, Vietnam, at a school training kids off the street to make rice noodles and basic cooking skills. The school is called Oodles of Noodles. The students were very engaging and after the demos, they served us the most delicious bowl of soup. Not sure if it's pho, but that'll do! I had the flat rice noodles at home, some commercial pho seasoning cubes, and other ingredients. Nothing like Oodles of Noodles, but it hit the spot. My soup had quail eggs, baby shrimp, a pork rib from a roast, soybean sprouts, baby bok choy jr., cilantro. I couldn't find any Thai basil in town, so skipped the squeeze of lime and added sesame oil Hubby had a Denver / Western sandwich - basically an omelet with bacon, green peppers, mushrooms, cumin gouda squished between toasted French bread.

Snowed some on the prairies today...drat! The yard was nearly clear! So, instead of cooking outside, I cooked char siu ribs in the oven. The slabs have been marinating in Hoisin sauce, Chinese wine, 5-spice powder, honey, and red food colouring for a couple of days. They turned out well. Found fresh soybean spouts at one of the small Chinese grocers. Love these stiir-fried with green onion and ginger - a nice change from the ever-present mung beansprouts.

BKEats: Great idea using chopsticks for the salad! Last night, needed a quick supper, so we had Beef Curry a la Patak paste. Added fresh green peppercorns and fresh curry leaves. Onion chunks were barely cooked, just the way I like it. Tonight, baked chicken with New Orleans Seasoned Breading (packaged for seafood) with added New Orleans Cajun Seasoning. I also cooked okra for the first time! Bite-size pieces coated with a mix of cornmeal and panko, Montreal Steak Spice, pan-fried then finished in the oven. The coating was crispy and the okra tender. I've had them battered and deep-fried, but I enjoyed this way more.

huiray: My comment was an observation of most of the dishes you've posted. It's not a criticism. If anything, it's a compliment as you do complicated combinations, use more intense sauces that seem to work quite well for your dishes. Perhaps it's because you take the time to explore these variations whereas I fly by the seat of my pants and cook the way my Mom did. I've always wondered why garlic is used in your soups. I've never experienced that, so it's very different from my point of reference. I do use ginger and orange peel in some of the herbal soups.