Monday, January 31, 2011

Le joie de vivre

  " French Sips" (Bonnieux, Provence)
"French Sips" (Paris bistro)


This must be it.  
Look at these two charming men.  
This must be it.  
What is it about them?  
It must be "Le joie de vivre".  
The unhurried, relaxed pace that Europeans are known for and 
that we Americans are not known for. 
 I can hardly imagine such relaxation.  
Notice.  
They are alone.  
Notice.  
They are peaceful and content.  
This must be it.  
Le joie de vivre.

Quote of the Year Finalist

... I know it's still only January, but this has to be in the running for the quote of the year. Judge Roger Vinson has basically struck down the entire health care bill, saying this:
It is difficult to imagine that a nation which began, at least in part, as the result of opposition to a British mandate giving the East India Company a monopoly and imposing a nominal tax on all tea sold in America would have set out to create a government with the power to force people to buy tea in the first place.
Awesome.

Gamjatang (Korean Pork Bone Soup)



I thought it was almost spring season (well, at least according to the high street shops), but no, winter refuses to budge and it got really cold in London last weekend. What better than a warming bowl of slow-cooked broth, with that bit of spice and asian flavour to remind me of home? Gamjatang is a Korean spicy (adjustable) pork bone soup with fermented soybean paste, hot pepper flakes and lots of vegetables-- a one-pot meal, though Koreans will still have it with rice.

I adapted the recipe from Maangchi (the cutest cook on Youtube), because I'm guilty of seeking shortcuts (like not removing the chilli pepper and soaking the bones), and because I didn't have some of the ingredients. If you have, please use! Everyone on Maangchi's forums seem to love the flavour that perilla leaves added (like Japanese shiso but "better"), and perilla seeds (I used some sesame seeds because I just thought it would be nice, but it's not a replacement). I don't know if I'm missing out a lot, but even without those ingredients, the soup was sooo good and it made me feel warm and happy and Korean.

Gamjatang (Korean Pork Bone Soup)
serves 2-3
Ingredients
For soup base
1kg of pork (spine) bones
1 large onion, sliced
1" ginger, sliced into pieces
2 tbs soybean paste doenjang (like miso, but a stronger flavour, kind of like Chinese taucheo)
1 dried red chilli, seeds removed
3 dried shitake mushrooms
10 cups water
a bit more than 2l of water

For sauce
6 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsp of hot pepper flakes
1 tbsp Korean red chilli pepper powder (to replace the hot pepper paste)
3 tbsp Chinese cooking wine (shaoxing/huadiao)
3 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp of white sesame paste (to "replace" the 3tbsp of perilla seeds powder)

Vegtables
3 stalks of spring onions
1/4 Napa cabbage, chopped into bite-sized pieces.
1 big handful of beansprouts
3 small potatoes, peeled and halved

To serve
chopped spring onions
white pepper
(pretty black earthenware bowl if you have, which I don't)

Method
1. Blanch the pork bones in boiling water for 10 min, with half the ginger added. Drain and rinse the scum off.
2. Bring the pork bones and all the ingredients for the soup base to the boil in a large pot filled with about 2l water, then let it continue to simmer for 1.5h over medium high heat.
3. Add the sauce and vegetables to the pot and continue to cook for half an hour more.
4. Serve piping hot (รก la all the Korean dramas hehe) with chopped spring onions and a dash of white pepper.

I love soups, and this one's just rich with flavour (and nutrients). As with all good bone broths, it gels the next day when cooled:


This is fun, I think I should start doing this "gelatin" test for all the bone broths I cook.

This is part of Pennywise Platter Thursday at the Nourishing Gourmet.
This is part of Fightback Fridays by Food Renegade.

Editorial Control

... our Maximum Leader exercises it daily.

It Will Now Be Referred To As The C&W Words

Secular Apostate turns us on to a race spat at UC Irvine that is stereotypical* of the kind of fussing that goes on about race these days.
A California university says it was bad taste to serve chicken and waffles on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Officials at the University of California, Irvine, say the menu of stereotypical black food was served on Jan. 17 — the first day of the school’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. symposium.

The dining hall advertised the meal as an “MLK Holiday Special.”

The co-chairman of the school’s Black Student Union and another student lodged formal complaints.
Complaints about what? Last week I went to Bonnie Jean's Soul Food here in San Diego. One of my friends had their famous ... Chicken and Waffles. The food was great and the service friendly. They make all of their meals from scratch when you order, so it takes about half an hour to get your food. They've cleverly erected** a set of shelves containing family games for you to play while you wait. A couple at a table nearby played Uno*** while their food was prepared.

As for UC Irvine, I wonder if any of the diners listened to Niggaz Wit Attitudes music as they walked up to the dining hall.

Update: The editorial staff of The Scratching Post would like to apologize for showing insensitivity in the previous sentence. We used a term that should not be spoken in polite company and should be a referred to by it's initial. We acknowledge our mistake and beg your forgiveness. No one among the Clever-Americans should ever have to hear the word "wit." We fully support the efforts of sensitive academics everywhere to make our speech witless.

* - This will now be referred to as the "S" word in sensitivity to Abnormally-Normal-Americans.

** - This will now be referred to as the "E" word in sensitivity to Oversexed-Americans.

*** - This will now be referred to as the "U" word in sensitivity to Math-challenged-Americans.

Steamed Glutinous Rice and Coconut Milk Custard (Ketan Srikaya)

Steamed Glutinous Rice and Coconut Milk Custard (Ketan Srikaya)

Bottom layer :
300g glutinous rice, washed and soaked for 4 hours, drained
180ml santan (coconut milk) from 1/2 coconut
2 pandan leaves, knotted

Top layer :
4 eggs, beaten with 150g caster sugar until sugar dissolves
1 tbsp cornflour
250ml thick santan from 1 coconut
4 pandan leaves (screwpine leaves), pounded to extract juice
a little green food coloring, if desired
1/4 tsp salt

Bottom layer to process first: Put glutinous rice, santan (coconut milk) and pandan leaves (screwpine leaves) into a steaming tray. Steam over high heat for about 30 minutes till the rice is soft. Remove from heat and press with a piece of banana leaf or plastic till firm and level.

Mix all the ingredients for the top layer to get a nice green color. Strain mixture over the bottom layer, the glutinous rice layer. Steam over low heat till custard is cooked and firm (insert a knife to check whether custard is cooked).

Leave to cool completely before cutting into pieces.

Steamed Glutinous Rice and Coconut Milk Custard (Ketan Srikaya)

Steamed Glutinous Rice and Coconut Milk Custard (Ketan Srikaya)

Bottom layer :
300g glutinous rice, washed and soaked for 4 hours, drained
180ml santan (coconut milk) from 1/2 coconut
2 pandan leaves, knotted

Top layer :
4 eggs, beaten with 150g caster sugar until sugar dissolves
1 tbsp cornflour
250ml thick santan from 1 coconut
4 pandan leaves (screwpine leaves), pounded to extract juice
a little green food coloring, if desired
1/4 tsp salt

Bottom layer to process first: Put glutinous rice, santan (coconut milk) and pandan leaves (screwpine leaves) into a steaming tray. Steam over high heat for about 30 minutes till the rice is soft. Remove from heat and press with a piece of banana leaf or plastic till firm and level.

Mix all the ingredients for the top layer to get a nice green color. Strain mixture over the bottom layer, the glutinous rice layer. Steam over low heat till custard is cooked and firm (insert a knife to check whether custard is cooked).

Leave to cool completely before cutting into pieces.