It’s Refried Beans Friday!
I hear that some people sheltering in place due to COVID-19 are starting to lose track of which day it is. Well, friends, I can tell you that it is REFRIED BEANS Friday! And these beans are addictive, so you may want them every day… (Seriously, Mr. Flavorcollector has been asking me to make another batch, even though we still have a full tub in the freezer…) This is an Instant Pot recipe which doesn’t require pre-soaking the dried beans, so it’s ready to go within 2 hours. Makes about 8 cups — plenty to freeze for later! INGREDIENTS 1 lb dried pinto beans 6 cups of water with 4…
Friday Favorites: Vien Huong
I was born in upstate New York. While my parents were finishing up school, I lived with my grandparents in Taipei. In our neighborhood, there was a gwe-a diam, or “rice stick shop” in Taiwanese. These were common back in the early 80s, though sadly, I couldn’t find a single one on our recent trips to Taiwan. Gwe-a, similar to ho fun, but often roughly cut from a sheet of rice noodle, was my favorite food as a kid. I’ve always loved noodles, and rice noodles especially. I don’t know much about the Teochew diaspora, but a lot of Teochew / Chao Zhou / Chow Jew people ended up in…
Taiwanese Tea Eggs in the Instant Pot
These delicious boiled eggs are the perfect on-the-go snack, and they’re so popular, you’ll find them at every 7-Eleven in Taiwan. Now, I know, Internet, that you are obsessed with gooey soft-boiled eggs. There are lots of blogs trying to get tea eggs to be all runny in the middle. Sorry, not sorry, these are supposed to be hard boiled eggs. You’ll see student tourists shoving eggs into their backpacks by the half-dozen at Taiwanese hostels (HELLO free breakfast buffets!) so they can hike up Elephant Mountain, or spend the entire day shopping at the Wufenpu Garment District. These healthy little 70 calorie snacks are full of protein and will…
Grandma’s fan qie chao dan (番茄炒蛋) – stir-fried tomato and egg
If you give my Ama a few tomatoes from the garden, she’ll tell you how pretty they are (they are!) and how our tomatoes are THE BEST (I started them from seed, so I’m pretty biased too), and then she’ll stir-fry the tomatoes with eggs. Use the best tomatoes you can, whether homegrown or from a farmer’s market. You only need a few, but this simple dish is all about the fresh sweetness of tomato. Honestly, I’m not sure I’d even bother making this dish in the winter. Maybe try Ama’s garlic chive eggs instead… These are Purple Russian tomatoes, also known as Ukrainian Purple. Flavor-wise, these are definitely the…
C is for Chicken – How to Poach Frozen Chicken Breasts in the Instant Pot
I always wonder if a recipe is too simple to be worth posting, but I make this dish with frequency for my grandparents and still always double check the Instant Pot timings. Poaching chicken breasts in the Instant Pot is so easy, and the result is tender, healthy, and basic enough that you can dress it up however you like. I have to thank Amy + Jackie of pressurecookrecipes.com who do the legwork to figure out so many great Instant Pot recipes! You can check out their post for detailed instructions and an explanation of the deep poaching method. This recipe is for frozen chicken breasts. I get mine from…
Truffled Artichoke Dip
We were in St. Helena a couple years ago, tasting some fantastic olive oil and mustard at Olivier Napa Valley. They had a truffled artichoke condiment that I really liked, and I thought… hrm, maybe I can approximate these flavors. I came up with this super easy almost-not-a-recipe. It’s pretty healthy and works well as a dip for veg, or as a spread on sandwiches. I use Trader Joe’s canned artichokes, any nice olive oil, and a little drizzle of Urbani white truffle oil. It’s optional, not everyone likes truffle, but I think it gives this vegetable pate a bit of depth. Ingredients 1 14oz can of artichoke hearts 1…
Sad desk lunch no longer! Where to eat your SF takeout meals
This month my friend Lisa and I decided to try Mealpal–it seemed fitting, since we’re long-time mealpals… we’ve been eating lunch together since middle school! Takeout meals are a good way to get out of the office and explore some of San Francisco’s “public open spaces.” These are privately owned and maintained spaces that are open to the public. I’ll be sharing the best lunch spots, near delicious food, of course. For our first Mealpal pick-up, I suggested La Fromagerie–I KNOW, I just posted one of their sandwiches as a Friday Favorite. But, are you tired of cheese? I’m not! I’d never been to the 1st Street location, and honestly,…
Grilled Shrimp and Shishito Peppers
HEY GRILL-FRIENDS! It’s officially summer, which for me means marinades and dry rubs, and hanging out on the patio with a glass of wine while Mr. Flavorcollector mans the grill. It’s not a gender thing — I just like to play with spices, and he’s fussy about meat temperatures. Here’s a super easy recipe for marinated shrimp and grilled Shishito peppers with a quick soy and sesame oil sauce. INGREDIENTS 1 large lemon, cut in half. Place on grill cut-side down until charred.1 lb Shishito peppers1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined (I like Trader Joe’s Red Argentinian Shrimp, in the freezer section, just make sure to thaw in the…
Recipe: OMG mother, what were you thinking??
Sometimes when my mom visits, she’ll pick up groceries for my grandparents from the local Korean market. Ama mentioned that my mom had gotten them a bunch of spicy ramen, and she doesn’t have much tolerance for heat in her late 80s, so she cooked them without the spice packets and seasoned with other stuff. I was curious to see what my mom had purchased, because we love Nongshim Shin Ramyun and I would totally just boil tofu or veg in those packets — why waste amazing MSG-loaded flavor? So my grandma gives me a bag (Asians don’t throw away packets–you have a drawer or you stick them in your…
Friday Favorites: La Fromagerie
Friday Favorites! These are dishes and spots around the SF Bay Area that I feel are definitely worth checking out, for other locals and for visitors exploring San Francisco. When I travel, I plan my trips around food, so I’ll try include information that might be helpful if you’re a tourist. La Fromagerie 101 Montgomery St, San Francisco415-349-6092Area: FiDi (Financial District)Hours: Mon to Fri: 7:00 am – 7:00 pm (breakfast until 10:30am, happy hour from 4-7pm) Recommended menu items: Le Toulouse sandwich or La Mancha salad Le Toulouse sandwich – Local smoked duck breast, Ossau Iraty (sheep’s milk cheese from France), fig jam, dried figs, wild organic arugula, extra virgin…
