ethnic – Page 9 – morestomach

travel | bangkok, thailand 2014

Published on April 14, 2014April 30, 2014 by Lan | MoreStomach18 Comments

i’ve been trying to write this
for awhile
from many places
— while walking sidewalks brimming with food vendors
— crossing a busy street, clutching dw’s hand tight
— from cramped airplane seats, recycled air pressed down on me
— early morning thoughts while combating jetlag
— dreary late night musings, preparing for reality

there is a heat in bangkok
that seizes you
it gets caught mid-breath
and you’re left gasping
for some it’s oppressive
for me,
it’s joyous
i don’t mind the heat,
or the slick tendrils of hair at my temple
or the pit stains
i’m 16 again
wearing slippers, dusty toed
and ignoring hawkers as they
implore & vie for my attention

i’m caught up in the magic
of travelling
of wandering a foreign city with my love
never mind the blisters on
both feet
and
the stink i’m sure i’m emitting

all i know is
i am in love with everything:
dw
being lost
the dirt
the heavy air
dw
even the lack of soy milk for my coffee

and i am dreaming of our next adventure

bangkok information and resources:
i’m sorry, i won’t be able to highlight every place we went to, i don’t remember & most places were on a whim

accommodations: 1 bedroom condo we found on airbnb. we kept the place even when we went to chiang mai for a long weekend.
dining: no lie, i think we had khao man gai 7-8 times. i asked the landlord for recommendations and then i asked shesimmers, and if i saw a joint that had it, we’d stop for it. i’ll list just the two leela endorsed cus they were gooooood. Khao Man Gai Monkhon Wattana (ข้าวมันไก่มงคลวัฒนา) and Khao Man Gai Heng Heng (ข้าวมันไก่เฮงเฮง). if you really want to know more about those places, email me & i’ll send you the info.
urban kitchen: we met up with dw’s cousin and he took us to this great cafe. i’m now obsessed with bruised cucumber salad and drunken chicken. i will eventually recreate that meal
Methavalai Sorndaeng: dw’s parents visited thailand after their stint in india with the peace corps. they dined at this restaurant, so we did too!
shopping: we hit up most of the shopping malls, whole sale and retail, and bazaars. i could not tell you where i bought the cutest tea cup set, cus i don’t know, and cus it was by luck. i did hit up all these and the weekend market
sights: the grand palace, adhere to the dress code

next: our chiang mai leg, specifically, walking with the elephants!

other wanderings:
vietnam 2012
barçelona2010
rochester
pittsburgh

vietnamese bò kho – beef stew

Published on February 24, 2014February 21, 2014 by Lan | MoreStomach21 Comments

i finished a book last week
it took me awhile
i had to re-borrow
it from the library
because it was taking me so long
there was a time
oh, 20 years ago
when i could finish a book in a day
— A DAY!
now i take snatches of time
to read a few pages,
maybe a few paragraphs
there is always something else to do
stirring the pot
yarn stitches
washing dishes
kissing my husband
now
now i find that i actually
read all the words
i don’t gloss over the text
i formulate the words
in my head
until they string together
into coherent sentences
and if there’s a word i’m unfamiliar with
i ask dw what it means
(he’s always so good to me,
he always answers,
he always helps me)
i guess the best way to describe
my reading is:
i savor it,
i relish the story
(unless the book sucks,
and then i just move on)
it takes time to sink into a book
rushing through it
doesn’t do the story justice
anything worth reading
is worth reading slowly, yes?

as new year’s resolutions go,
i’m doing damn good
with this reading thing

what books have you been reading?

vietnamese bò kho – beef stew
adapted from secrets of the red lantern and wandering chopsticks
makes 4-6 servings

*last spring dw & i traveled with some friends to nashville to run a half marathon. we found a random hole in the wall viet joint outside of the city and they had the best bò kho i have ever had. we went there 2x. this is my attempt at recreating that dish. i have failed. however, this version is still pretty good and perfect for the vicious winter we’re dealing with. it takes time for the flavors to meld. i made it one day and didn’t eat it until the next, because like all good stews, it’s always better as a leftover.
**i used two recipes for reference, though on the day of cooking, i winged it completely, in regards to measurements and method. the links i’ve referred have the exact details you might need.
***Luke Nguyen’s recipe intrigued me because it uses beef pho broth as its base. i love me some pho and the spices used in the stock really does add a layer of flavor. for cheater’s version of pho stock, heat up some homemade beef/veggie/chicken stock (store bought is fine too, though shoot for organic and low-sodium) with a stick of cinnamon, a few cloves and anise pods. let it simmer for an hour or so, allow the spices to infuse the stock. BAM! if you’re too lazy or time pressured, regular stock is fine, even water is fine, though the depth of flavor might be lacking.

2lb beef brisket, rump, stew meat, grassfed & cut into bigger than bite size pieces
olive oil or veg oil
1 TBL annatto seeds
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 QT pho stock*** note above
1/2 lb carrots, skinned and chunked
2 stalks lemongrass, bruised
1 cinnamon stick
1 onion, studded with cloves and charred
knob of ginger, also charred
2 cloves of garlic, charred
2 bay leaves
basil, for garnish
rice noodles, cooked, to serve

beef marinade
6 hot bap, which i researched is the seed within a cardamom pod
3 star anise
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves
2 tsp rice wine

start off with the marinade – dry fry/roast the hot bap, star anise, cinnamon stick and cloves until fragrant. grind them up in a spice grinder. add the ground up spices and rice wine in a bowl. add the beef pieces and mix well. you can marinate it overnight, i let it sit for the time it took me to assemble the other ingredients and heat up the pho stock, which was about an hour.

in large pot, heat up the oil along with the annatto seeds. this is for color, i’ll be honest, i don’t think it imparts much flavor to the over all dish, so if you want to skip this, i won’t judge you. when the oil reaches desired redness, discard seeds.

pan fry the beef pieces until brown. do this in batches.

add in the lemongrass, ginger, clove studded onion, garlic, ginger, cinnamon stick, bay leaves and prepared pho stock. mix in the tomato paste, stir well to incorporate. bring pot to a boil and the lower the heat and simmer on low for anywhere from 90 minutes to 2 hours. during the last 30 minutes, add in the carrot chunks. this should sufficiently soften them, but they will retain their shape and not get mushy. season with salt to taste, though i will say i didn’t add anything and it came out so lovely & perfectly seasoned.

to serve, pour over white rice noodles (cooked according to package instructions). steamed rice is fine, as is baguette to dip is appropriate too. garnish with green scallions, thinly sliced onions, chopped cilantro, or basil.

best the next day, and then the next.

calamansi olive oil bread

Published on November 4, 2013February 5, 2015 by Lan | MoreStomach20 Comments

some weekends ago,
maybe it was two ago,
i had brunch with some of dw’s friends
i remember it was a blustery day
warm in the sunlight
cold in the shade
the kind of weather you felt
silly for toting a jacket
but foolish without a scarf

these friends of dw’s
had just returned from a jaunt out west
where they picked calamansi fruit
from their father’s tree
and shared with me
just the smell of these tiny citrus fruits
took me back to the time
i lived in manila
when my nanny made fresh calamansi juice everyday
a drink that wasn’t quite like lemonade
but had all the components to quench a thirst
that only childhood and tropical heat can produce

because our home now is nothing like
the heat the Philippines is known for
i like to utilize the oven much more often
than is necessary in the cooler months
there is always something to bake,
you know?
a cake
bread
roasting veggies
any reason at all to turn that knob
and so with that in mind
after a whirlwind 2 days in Charlotte
last weekend,
before the calamansi could go bad,
i used them in some breakfast cakes
to add a touch of sour and sweet
and all good things reminiscent of
the tropics
these cakes were born.

edit to add: felicia of dish by dish adapted this recipe, found here.

calamansi olive oil bread
adapted from gourmet traveller, Sept 2011 issue

makes 12 mini loaves

300 g sugar
3 eggs
1 cup almond milk (any milk, animal or otherwise)
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
juice 11 calamansi (that’s how many i had… alternatively, you can use juice of 3 lemons)
2 cups plain flour
1 tbsp baking powder

preheat oven to 350F

in kitchen aid mixer, beat sugar, eggs and pinch of salt until thickened

combine the almond milk, olive oil and calamansi juice, mix. slowly add to egg mixture. add in the dried ingredients

divide among greased tins (i used my mini loaf pans, though i think cupcake/muffin tins would be fine, or just one loaf pan, but the baking time would be different).

bake for 13 minutes

allow to cool before removing from tins

serve warm or at room temp

best eaten day of, with coffee or tea, or if you can’t possibly eat them all in one sitting, wrap well in plastic wrap, will keep for the week in fridge

chicken masala

Published on September 12, 2013September 11, 2013 by Lan | MoreStomach10 Comments

it’s not yet autumn
but i suppose it’s unofficially fall,
what with school already started,
the daily commute with the added 10 minutes
due to kids ambling with textbook laden backpacks
and yellow school buses dotting the neighborhoods
the ac has been turned off at night
as the temperatures dip into the delicious 60s,
our windows flung open to cool the abode
only to be shut the moment i open my eyes from slumber
as i haul ass to shower in the morning,
shivering and silently lamenting the passing of summer
already the trees are shedding their leaves
the morning is darker still when i rise

these are dw’s months
autumn is his favorite season
you can tell a lot about a person
by what their favorite season is
i like the summer months
hot and heady and sweaty and messy
golden days with humidity to exhaust even the staunchest
and healthiest of beasts
(i’ll leave it to you to figure out what kind of person
i am with that description!)
but man, when september hits,
leading into october
the air has a crunch of apples
and cinnamon breezes,
cool to the skin but warming to the core
fall makes me feel drowsy
but frantic all the same
i am holding out for an indian summer
desperate for july & august
whilst trying to bask in what the coming days could bring

and what is coming in these days
are stews and soups
and hearty one pot dishes
that require ingredients thrown into a pot
set on low
and simmered all the long day

if you can’t tell
i’ve been on an indian kick lately
(truth be told, i’d make afghani food if i could
find a reputable cookbook or blogger,
that cuisine is so underrated)

for this dish,
amrita says you must have this recipe in your life
i completely and wholeheartedly agree
i started the process saturday night
cooked it on sunday
and as i’m typing this, wednesday,
i have one portion left for lunch

chicken masala
adapted from the subjectivist

*note: we (i mean, dw) chopped an entire bird. we get our poultry from a local farm every two weeks and i will tell you, this past summer with this csa has been an exercise in coming up with interesting chicken recipes. i wanted to make use of every part of the chicken, with bones. i can’t imagine not having bone-in. i’m just saying.
**note: i completely and utterly forgot to add chili. i know. so there was no heat but it was still incredibly good. also, i like my chicken to fall off the bone tender so i cooked it on low for longer than amrita’s version.

1 whole, organic grass fed chicken, about 3-4lbs, chopped with bone in

for the marinade:
1 black cardamom pod
half cinnamon stick
1 tsp nutmeg (i don’t have whole pieces of the stuff)
2 tsp of fennel seeds
3-4 cloves
3 TBL of white vinegar
1 tsp of ground turmeric

2 large tomatoes
2 TBL vegetable oil
2 large cloves of garlic
1 large red onion, sliced thinly
1/4 cup of coconut creamer (i use So Delicious)
Salt

in a frying pan, dry toast the black cardamom pod, cinnamon stick, nutmeg, fennel seeds, and cloves. don’t get crazy and burn it. add mixture to a spice grinder, again don’t get crazy, you’re not going for a powder, just a slighlty coarse-fine mix is good (i know, it’s confusing, go for in btwn the two textures.) add to big bowl with vinegar and turmeric. then add in the chicken pieces, you want to coat the pieces well. cover with plastic wrap and leave in fridge overnight.

next day: take the chicken out of the fridge an hour before starting the whole cooking thing. you want the chill to be off the meat/bones prior to adding it to the hot pan.

on the stove bring a pot of water to boiling. criss cross cut the butt ends of the two tomatoes, add to the water and cook for about 5 minutes. you want the tomatoes to be just submerged in the water. remove the tomatoes and put into blender/vitamix. reserve 1/2 cup of the water, discarding the rest. blitz the tomatoes, skin included, into a puree.

meanwhile, in the same pot, add a bit of oil and saute the garlic and onion slices. season with salt & pepper, and cook until nice & brown. remove from heat and grab the mixture of onions & garlic to add to the blender/vitamix. blitz with the tomato puree.

using the same pot, that will have residual oil (add more if you need) brown the chicken pieces. you may have to do it in batches. don’t crowd the pot. when done, lower the heat, throw all the browned chicken pieces back into the pot, add the tomato/onion/garlic puree, along with the reserved 1/2 cup of water. simmer on low heat. add in the coconut creamer, mix, ignore for anywhere from 25 minutes to an hour. season to taste. per the original recipe, this is a slightly dryer dish. i will admit to missing the gravy.

serve with naan.
it’s great the day of, but even better the ensuing days.

other indian inspired dishes:
morestomach blog – coconut egg curry
morestomach blog – vegan indian feast
bon appetit hon – butter chicken
manger – butter chicken + peshawari naan

tofu gyoza

Published on August 29, 2013August 28, 2013 by Lan | MoreStomach18 Comments

you guys,
the time is drawing closer
so close i can almost
touch it

i will warn you:
in the coming weeks
this space will vomit
love stuff

no fear,
i’ll still have recipes,
a few crafty things,
hopefully pretty
pictures
but my stories
will be mainly
about the last two
years
to the culmination of
you know:
Ball & Chain Time y’all!

i guess i should start
with how we met
but before that,
i do want to acknowledge the
almost 1 year i was Single
i took deliberate time off
from serious dating
i fostered relationships
and god bless,
i confronted being alone
i also reveled in being
Cantankerous

from the moment i left home
i began dating in earnest
i’m what you would call a
Serial Monogamist
and so when i found myself
not being attached
it was daunting

fast forward to the moment i
decided that wading into
the dating pool was something
i wanted to do again
(i was in spain at the time)
it was like a new year’s resolution of sorts

and like how i conduct
the majority of my days,
how my everyday life is,
i met the love of my life
online

in the swimming pool of
Online Dating
i pretty much dove into the
deep end
i gave myself 3 months
and should nothing happen
i was going to take another
break
lo & behold
3 weeks in,
4 guys later,
dw emailed me
and that was that

Tofu Gyoza
*note: i purposefully made the filling bland. my favorite part of eating dumplings/dimsum/wontons/gyoza is the various dipping sauces i can choose from. drowning these little gems in sauce is fun. for this particular meal, i kept it simple with 1:1 of soy sauce & rice wine vinegar, a healthy pinch of sugar & a light drizzle of sesame oil. you can certainly dip in plum/hoisin sauce, peanut sauce, whatever.

1 packet round wonton wrappers
1 container of firm tofu
half an onion, diced
1 knob of ginger, minced
1 garlic glove, minced
1/4 cup of sliced wood ear mushrooms, reconstituted in warm water
2 oz somen noodles, cooked according to package instructions
2 tbl soy sauce
1 tbl rice vinegar
1 tbl sesame oil
1 tsp sugar

except for the wonton wrappers, in a bowl, mix everything together. you want the mixture to be clumpy, not a wet mess. the cooked somen noodles will act as a binder

with the wonton wrappers, put a small amount, about a tsp in the middle. wet the edges with water, fold over. and if you’re feeling fancy, pleat them. you want the gyoza to sit up so shape them to be able to sit up but make sure the seams stick

heat up a pan with a bit of sesame oil. put the gyoza in a fan-like pattern in the pan, fry them until the bottoms are nice and crispy. pour in 1/4 cup of water and cover, being careful of splatters. steam for about 5 minutes and remove lid, making sure all the water has evaporated

other dumplings/wontons/gyozas:
angry asian creations – wonton soup
angry asian creations – wonton noodle soup
delicious shots – vegetable potstickers
wandering chopsticks – a variety of dumpling recipes
the little kitchen – (who completely influenced me by via her instagram) chinese potstickers