Lunch 2026

[liuzhou]

No lunch on New Year's Day. I was raised mostly in Scotland where New Year is the most important celebration of the year. We stay up all night, then sleep until afternoon for breakfast. Then a bit later straight to dinner.

[liuzhou]

My first lunch of the year and boy, was I ready for it!

 

手撕鸡 (shǒu sī jī), Hand Torn Chicken in a spicy sauce. With rice.

 

 

Originally, a Cantonese dish it has been adopted China wide and modified to suit taste buds in other regions. Not many Cantonese people would want my spicy version. Their loss!

 

 

[Neely]

What else but dumpling soup at the start of the year for lunch. 
 

[patti]

Cheeseburger salad. Could’ve been improved with a little iceberg for more crunch.

 

[OlyveOyl]

Tagliatelle with sautéed mushrooms, garlic, chicken both and a little pasta water.

Freshly grated pecorino Romano and basil sprinkled on top.

Baci di ricotta with raspberry coulis.  Baci were made with orange scented rum and grated orange zest, adapted from Nigella.

[gulfporter]

Blackened salmon sandwich with tartar sauce and tomato on a toasted croissant. 

 

 

[Smithy]

Last night I put together my down-and-dirty version of Potatoes Anna. No recipe. I sliced 2 russet potatoes as thinly as possible, used a cup of butter left over from a lobster dish, some half-and-half, garlic powder and smoked paprika, and baked at 400F. As it all finished I topped it with the last of some roasted broccoli and tomatoes. Then I didn't eat it, because I already had too much food for dinner.

 

Some of it is lunch instead.

 

 

Okay, it looks overcooked (the vegetables definitely are) but it's delicious. If this were a rice dish, I'd be saying "look at that tahdig!"

 

[rotuts]

@Smithy

 

more of those potatoes , please.

[gulfporter]

Last night I seared 2 duck breasts; one we made into a 'proper' dinner meal (see post in Dinner 2026).  I saved the smaller 1 for today's lunch.  fyi, I buy these at the Tucson grocery chain, Frys Foods; they come frozen 2 to a pack with no separation between them.  Impossible to separate the breasts unless you thaw the entire pack.  

 

Lunch was the duck, fresh corn off the cob (surprisingly sweet for January), chopped green onions and cilantro.  I quickly browned the flour tortillas in a hot and dry non-stick pan, immediately wrapping in foil to keep them soft. 

 

To assemble I slathered the open tortilla with hoisin sauce (and a few dots of siracha) before adding the fillings and rolling them up.

 

We both agreed we liked this meal better than dinner last night.  

 

 

 

 

[Smithy]

3 hours ago, gulfporter said:

fyi, I buy these at the Tucson grocery chain, Frys Foods;

 

Thanks for that information. I expect to be out in the Yuma area in a few weeks. There are at least 2 Fry's there; maybe I can find duck breast at one of them!

 

Thanks also for the tortilla-management information.

[gulfporter]

28 minutes ago, Smithy said:

 

Thanks for that information. I expect to be out in the Yuma area in a few weeks. There are at least 2 Fry's there; maybe I can find duck breast at one of them!

 

Thanks also for the tortilla-management information.

 

I mentioned the dry pan method because we have a glass top electric stove here in AZ.  When in MX I throw the tortillas directly on my gas burners a quick off and on.  

 

On the duck, brand is Maple Leaf Farms.  I found it a tad tough the first few times I seared it (medium to med-high heat, 12 minutes).  After research and trial/error, I now sear at low for 20 minutes, starting in a cold pan.  I don't touch them during that time, other than to tilt the pan to spoon off (and reserve) the duck fat. 

 

Yesterday's result was the most tender with crispiest skin.  I turn them over at the 20 minute mark for 3 or 4 minutes.  Then I rest for another 7 minutes.  It's not fast, but happy with outcome.  

[C. sapidus]

9 minutes ago, gulfporter said:

 

I mentioned the dry pan method because we have a glass top electric stove here in AZ.  When in MX I throw the tortillas directly on my gas burners a quick off and on.  

 

 

Thanks for the clarification. I definitely prefer tortillas over the gas burner if available. Occasionally I will steam tortillas for a crowd.

[Steve Irby]

I went to the farmers market to buy turnip greens this morning and spotted this robiola in the cheese counter.  The cheese smelled great thru the paper and it had right kind of squishy feel.  I've decided to take a chance and brought a piece home. OMG it was perfect.  The producer is Boxcarr Handmade Cheese in Cedar Grove NC.  The price came out to be about $19/lb which is a bargain for artisanal cheese.  Served with a sourdough bread from Craft Bakery.  

 

[OlyveOyl]

Sliced chicken breast , tapenade, butter lettuce in pita bread.

Orange pistachio muffin, adapted from livingwithcarlee.com, 

muffin was very moist, I made a half batch which yielded six., rather than four. Orange zest and freshly squeezed Cara Cara orange provided the orange flavor hit. Although frosting was not included in recipe, I made a melange of various ingredients I had in fridge.