Craving junky take-out? Make these!

I am cheap, and I love cooking at home. Also, I live in a restaurant wasteland (though I do enjoy checking out amazing restaurants in other towns), so I often end up getting whiny about my inability to go out for [fill-in-the-blank], and then I just do it myself.  Sometimes my recipes turn out to be wonderfully healthy and basically function as a DIY fountain of youth (well, I mean, almost always), and sometimes they reveal my darker, artery-clogged, junk-food loving side.  I realized that I have enough of these recipes to categorize them, starting with rip-offs of Asian yummies:

Black Pepper Tofu
Chinese Noodles with Egg and Tomato
Hot and Sour Sickie Soup
Mapo Tofu
Spicy Thai Eggplant Stir Fry
Szechuan Green Beans

This is a way of making Mapo Tofu, and you can find the ingredients at Safeway.

Look, how to make the "correct" mapo tofu is a sticky subject, but from my research, I have found that many different subsets of Chinese culture have their own idea about what it's supposed to taste like.  Then there's the Japanese version, which is its own thing and also the only correct recipe if you ask them.  It's kind of like organized religion.  

I am polyamorous when it comes to anything involving tofu and ground pork, so I'm not limited by your preconceptions. But I am cheap and too lazy to drive all over Denver looking for esoteric ingredients; I guess I really worship at the church of The Closest Grocery Store to My House.  So, I'm sorry if you don't like this, or maybe you want to call it something else, like Golden Delicious Ground Pork and Tofu.  But when you try my recipe, you'll be sold.  (PS--vegetarians can use shiitakes instead of pork and it's still really, really good!)

Mapo Tofu

Serves 4

1/2 cup water

1 teaspoon cornstarch

2 teaspoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon sugar

2 teaspoons minced ginger

4 green onions, sliced

1 tablespoon black bean paste will also work

2 teaspoons chili garlic sauce

6 ounces ground pork

1 block of silken tofu, drained and cut into 3/4” cubes

Hot rice for serving

Add the water, cornstarch, soy sauce and sugar to a small bowl and stir to combine.

Heat a large frying pan until hot. Add the pork, ginger and green onions and stir-fry with a spatula, to breaking it the pork into small grains, until pork is cooked through. Add the black beans paste and chili garlic sauce and continue stir-frying. Add the tofu, and toss to mix.

Give the cornstarch mixture a good stir to incorporate anything that may have settled, and then pour it over the pork and tofu. Toss to coat, then boil until the sauce thickens.

Serve with hot rice.

Black Pepper Tofu and other Genius Recipes

The good folks at Food52 have come out with an in-print book, Genius Recipes: 100 Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook. It's actually a compendium of other famous chefs' recipes throughout the ages (including Julia Child's lovely grated zucchini casserole and Marcella Hazan's weirdly boring tomato sauce with onions and butter). Notes from the editors at Food52 explain how and why the recipe works and include "kitchen hacks" like "you can cut the amount of butter if you want."  So really, they've done a great job of rounding up some excellent recipes and putting them in one place for us to use.  It's debatably ironic for a well-established food blog to be in the printed cookbook business at this point in the 21st Century, but I still enjoy the tactile sensation of flipping through it, at any rate. And the photos are very nice.

Two of my favorite recipes are pretty modern in origin, including one from fellow blogger Smitten Kitchen.  I have included my own substitutions (or "hacks", if we must). Buy the book if you want, or just subscribe to Food52's excellent blog. You really will learn new things.

Yotam Ottolenghi's delicious Black Pepper Tofu recipe

with these substitutions:

• just use 9 tablespoons of soy sauce, and add one more tablespoon of sugar
• I used four small serrano peppers because it's what I had
• I could not for the life of me crush my black pepper by hand--it just kept jumping out of the bowl. So I used a pepper grinder and did more like 3 tablespoons (to make up for the heat of the serranos)
• I used 6 green onions and about 2 cups of steamed broccoli

Another great recipe included is Debra Perlman's (Smitten Kitchen) Mushroom Bourguignon. I actually used a mix of white and shitake mushrooms, because it's what I had, and I definitely had to add some water to keep the gravy from being too pasty in the end.  I also added salt, because I apparently like it more than she does.  But it's a totally solid foundation for a recipe. 

The best recipe for your extra green beans

Oh man, I love this super-fast and simple recipe.  It's as junky as whatever your favorite greasy take-out is, and it's a great way to to use green beans that are slightly (ahem) past their prime. It makes a total mess out of your stove, though. Sorry.  It's worth it. 

Szechuan-Style Charred Green Beans

Serves 4

Salt

1 pound green beans, trimmed

4 teaspoons fresh grated ginger

4 teaspoons chili-garlic sauce

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

2 teaspoons packed brown sugar

3 tablespoons peanut oil

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook beans until bright green and crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and dry well with a kitchen towel.

Whisk together the ingredients for the sauce: ginger, chili-garlic sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, and brown sugar. 

Heat the peanut oil in a large, deep skillet over high heat. Cook the green beans, stirring occasionally, until they begin to blister and develop some charred spots. Remove from heat and allow to sit for a minute or two to avoid an explosive mess, and then stir in the sauce.  Serve as a side or with rice and black tea and pepper tofu!

Recipe review: making General Tso's Chickpeas

I came across this recipe on good ol' Pinterest, of all the places, and I thought it sounded genius.  We like General Tso's sauce in this household, but pouring it over a vat of fried chicken and the requisite three pieces of broccoli does tend to turn it into a gut bomb, in my humble opinion. I was most interested in the sauce, because I figured if I liked it, I could just add it to my rotation of veggie stir-fry sauces (which is all this recipe basically is, anyway).

It is a tasty sauce, though if you compare my version, below, to the original, you'll see I made mine a whole lot spicier and a bit less sweet.  For a milder version, you might want to try following the directions like a good kid at Yep, It's Vegan and test that one first.

General Tso's Chickpeas (based on Yep, It's Vegan's recipe)

Serves 4


For marinating the chickpeas:
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon mirin (I used sweet vermouth)
1 and 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas (equal to 1 15-oz. can), rinsed and drained

For the sauce:
1/4 cup + 2  tablespoon water

1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon ketchup
1/2 tablespoon peanut butter
1  tablespoon soy sauce
1  tablespoon rice vinegar
1  tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons sriracha or other chili sauce
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon prepared mustard
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon. freshly ground black pepper 

For the General Tso's chickpeas stir-fry:
1  tablespoon neutral oil (I used canola)

1/4 of a large onion, thinly sliced
1 large broccoli crown, cut into florets

4 oz. mushrooms, thickly sliced
1 carrot, cut into thin slices on the bias
1 tablespoon minced ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
General Tso's sauce (above)
marinated chickpeas (above)
green onions and sesame seeds for serving
1 cup cooked rice, for serving


Stir together the soy sauce and mirin in a bowl and add the chickpeas. Let sit for at least 10 minutes.

Whisk together all of the sauce ingredients and set aside.

Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion, stirring continuously. Continuing to stir, add the broccoli, carrots, mushrooms, ginger, and garlic.

Stir in the General Tso's sauce. Drain the chickpeas and stir them in too. Cook for 1-2 more minutes, continuing to stir frequently, or until the mixture is hot throughout and the sauce has coated the chickpeas and vegetables. Add more soy sauce or chili sauce to taste.

Serve over rice and garnish as desired with green onions and sesame seeds.

Eating Dim Sum at Star Kitchen in Denver

Cantonese food can be kind of bland, but I love the adventure of eating it as dim sum for an early lunch. There are a few places in Denver that serve it--I've already reviewed Empress here--but I think Star Kitchen has the best variety, and the freshest fish, in Little Saigon (which seems to be as close as we come to a Chinatown here).

Dim sum is served here from 10:30am to 3pm.  If you go close to 3pm, it's still pretty tasty, but not so fresh, and the servers don't get to eat their's until you've gotten to try from all of the carts, so they tend to sort of rush you through and quit early in order to have their own meal.  It's best to go from opening til about 1pm, but if you can handle eating your sim sum as an early lunch before noon, it will be as hot and fresh as it's going to get. Traditionally, dim sum is enjoyed mid-morning over some mahjongg, I'm told, so you're just keeping it authentic.  Ish. 

Star Kitchen is the real deal, and the cavernous room feeds mostly Chinese and other Asian locals. I always take this as a good endorsement. The fish is well-prepared and seasoned, and there's a much bigger variety on the menu than other places in the area. Vegetables are not terribly popular as dim sum, but the Chinese broccoli here is beautifully steamed and served with a generous drizzle of homemade, super-salty oyster sauce; it's actually one of my favorite things here. 

Steamed BBQ pork buns are solid, and the dense, football-like fried pork dumplings are weirdly sweet and satisfyingly salty at the same time.  I also love the pan-fried leek dumplings, shrimp & cilantro dumplings, steamed meatballs, and fried fish balls. The sticky rice in lotus leaf is generously filled with sausage and ground pork and well-seasoned, and the fried sesame balls are a nice, relatively light dessert item.  But my favorite dish, pictured below, is the fried calamari.  As you can see, it was a huge pile of the battered, fried little guys along with quite a lot of fried jalapeno slices.  The batter itself is nicely salty and actually has a good deal of minced onion in it, so it's kind of like eating really good onion rings with calamari meat in the middle. 

There's something luxuriously appropriate about getting dim sum in the summer.  It's cool and dark inside, you're not in a rush to get anywhere, people keeping dragging carts towards you with all kinds of crazy things on little plates.  And you eat a little too much and are amazed by it all.  Why not?  The world is your oyster. 

Star Kitchen 

2917 W Mississippi Ave #5, Denver, CO 80219

(303) 936-0089

Monday - Friday: 10:30 - Midnight

Saturday - Sunday: 10:00 - Midnight

Clockwise from left: fried calamari with jalapenos,
Chinese broccoli in oyster sauce, and fried pork dumpling. 

Baby Bok Choy in Mushroom Gravy

Oh, so much pork and potato and cookies and UNCLE!  It's time to clean up a little, don't you think?  I happen to have just the thing (pictured here with baked tofu, but you can leave that out if you want):

Baby Bok Choy in Mushroom Gravy

Serves 4

1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 pound baby bok choy, trimmed and cut in half lengthwise
8 oz. white button mushrooms, thickly sliced
8 oz. dried shitake mushrooms
2 small shallots, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon grated ginger
2 teaspoons Chinese black bean paste
1 tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar
1 tablespoon red miso paste
1 heaping tablespoon cornstarch
Toasted sesame seeds for garnish
Jasmine rice for serving

Place the dried shitakes in a medium sauce pan with 2 cups of salted water  Bring to a boil; lower heat and simmer 20 minutes, or until mushrooms are tender.  Remove the mushrooms and thinly slice them; reserve the cooking and set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat.  Add the shallots and cook until tender, about five minutes.  Add mushrooms and ginger and continue to cook until button mushrooms are tender and have given off their liquid, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, add the black bean paste, rice vinegar, and miso paste to the leftover mushroom cooking liquid and whisk to incorporate.  In a separate small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and 2 tablespoons cold water into a smooth liquid.  Add this to the sauce and whisk to incorporate thoroughly.

Add the sauce to the skillet with the mushrooms and stir constantly until it thickens.  If the sauce becomes too thick, add a little bit of water.  Reduce heat to low and stir in the baby bok choy.  Cover and gently steam until the bok choy begins to wilt but still retains a bright green color, about 10 minutes.

Serve over rice and garnish with toasted sesame seeds.

PS--Happy Boxing Day, UK!

Chinese noodles with egg and tomato

This was probably the most satisfying, comforting, and affordable meal I had at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas earlier this month.  It was also definitely the simplest, yet I keep craving it.  The dish I ate at Beijing Noodle No. 9 was made with homemade noodles, but one of the following suggestions works just fine.  Just make sure they're fat and sloppy!

Chinese noodles with egg and tomato

Serves 4

1 lb. fat, round spaghetti, like Longevity Noodles, bucatini, or wide Chinese egg noodles
2 rounded tablespoons miso paste
2 teaspoons grated ginger
2 garlic cloves, mashed or finely minced
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
Water
1 teaspoon peanut oil
3 eggs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 large tomatoes, cored and chopped
Bunch fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)
Handful crushed peanuts (optional)

Place enough water to cook the pasta in a medium saucepan with miso.  Cover and bring to a boil, then cook pasta according to directions on box.

Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, about 2 tablespoons of water, and salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.  In a small frying pan, heat the peanut oil over medium-high heat.  When it shimmers, add the egg and cook a scramble, allowing it to get a bit dried out.  Push the egg to one side in the pan and cook the tomatoes in the empty side a bit, just to release the juices and warm them up. Remove from heat and set aside.

When noodles are done, drain (you can catch the cooking liquid for future use in soups) until just slightly soupy, then stir in the garlic, ginger, and vinegar.  Place equal amounts of noodles in four large pasta bowls, then top with equal amounts of egg, chopped tomato, peanuts, and cilantro. Serve with more vinegar and soy sauce on the side.

Review: Lingering in Denver

The Highlands neighborhood in Denver has that newly gentrified, post-industrial gleam to it that causes people to roll their eyes. (Well, me.  It causes me to roll my eyes.)  But there is something to be said for repurposed warehouses serving chic small plates and offering up hipster haircuts.  When you need a little break from Lo-Do but don't want to stray too far, it makes for a pleasant half-day of strolling.

On a recent visit to the 'hood, I dined on an artist's rendition of Asian street food at Linger, then headed over to their sister restaurant, Root Down (more on that later).

Linger's menus offer up creative cocktails and small plates of an almost haute cuisine version of traditional street food from around the world (but really focusing on Asia and the Middle East).  Bland, comforting Chinese pork buns become racy, fusion-esque chicken buns with kimchi and maple syrup.  A simple tamale gets stuffed with goat cheese and Swiss chard.

We stuck with water--that's right, I declined to drink in the middle of the day.  What can I say, I'm maturing. You have your choice of a large bottle of still or sparkling water on the house, which is a nice touch.  We started with some small plates to share: the aforementioned chicken bun, chili paneer, and the seasonal ceviche, which was  Hawaiin-style white fish with fresh corn and tomato in lime juice.  That ceviche was really amazing, as was the chicken bun; the fried white meat was extra-crispy and drizzled with a celery root ranch, a tiny bit of maple syrup, and a lovely little clump of tart, spicy kimchi on top.  The bun itself was the usual slightly sweet white bread with a nice glaze on the outside and some sesame seeds sprinkled on the edge, but it was served more like a puffy flatbread folded in half over the fillings, rather than the usual pale dome with hidden treats inside.  I have dreamed of these chicken buns since leaving Linger, I really have.

chicken bun

For me, the chili paneer was so close to being a star, but the sauce just wasn't interesting enough.  There was a generous portion of paneer, but the sauce was sweet and not much else.  More salt, more spice, and a lot more tang were needed.

Dessert was a trio: a corn "puff" (a sweet pate a choux with a sweet corn cream filling and a tender, moist corn-based dough), a chocolate-peanut butter bar (fine, but not adventurous--it was merely a rich little bar of almost-cheesecake, without the extra tang), and a butterscotch pudding.  I was not excited about the butterscotch pudding, but I was certainly going to eat it once it was placed in front  of me.  But here's the thing, and it's a glimmer of the creativity that could be happening all the time in the kitchen: it was the most interesting dessert on the table.  It was a cold, soft, mild blob of pudding, but topped with sugared sesame seeds, a ginger cream, and a house-made lemongrass cotton candy.  The flavors worked perfectly, the textures created a wonderful layering effect, and I loved every bite.  I still don't know how the three desserts fit together, and that's a minor sticking point, but it was certainly fun to eat.

The inside of the restaurant is absolutely beautiful--stunning, minimalist-industrialist decor with small touches of wry humor and a scenic rooftop patio.  Our server, Katherine (I hope I'm spelling your name right if you're out there), was personable, mellow, and very knowledgeable about the menu.  She also really seemed proud of the kitchen and happy to be working there, which is always nice to see.

Expect to pay for your little plates--we left $54 poorer, and that was with no booze.  But the kitchen is generally making true art come alive on the plate, and the adventure of these diverse bites, shared with friends, is a special occasion.  The atmosphere is painfully hip while being totally inviting to an under-dressed 38-year-old with dirty hair (was that too much information?), and that's a pretty good test of their friendliness.

I would have stayed longer, but I was stuffed. I really was.

I went to Las Vegas, and all I got was...broke.

Travelling back in time to Ancient Rome would have been way cheaper.

Eleven years ago, when I last visited Vegas, there were cheap rooms, free entertainment walking along the strip, and breakfast buffets that cost $3.99.  When I went to Vegas last week, there were discounted rooms in overpriced hotels who nickeled and dimed you for everything, 20-minute walks just to cross the street, and $14 breakfasts of scrambled eggs and coffee.  It's not totally fair for me to say this: I was staying at in-love-with-itself Caesar's Palace.  I suspect that, on the outskirts of The Strip, things are still more reasonable.  I have also heard that the downtown area (Fremont Street was recommended, but I never made it that far) yields some great restaurants at much better prices.  I cannot speak to this experience because I was dutifully trying to attend the convention I was supposed to be dutifully attending; all I can say is, if you stay on the strip, expect to get gouged (or at least inconvenienced if you search for alternatives).

Caesar's Palace, by the way, has given up trying to keep customers happy.  There is no uniform policy on anything--check-in time, what's included in the hotel room price, and even the hotel room price itself is all negotiable, depending on who you talk to and how good your social skills are.  I happened to have hitched my wagon to a very sociable star while I was there, but otherwise, I would have been screwed, as I possess no amount of social finesse whatsoever.

So, blah blah blah, the food was too expensive.  But I did manage to find a couple of little gems in the midst of the cigarette smoke and sad gambling people who didn't know what day of the week it was or whether it was night or day.

I think this guy made my noodles!

Beijing Noodle No. 9 

You can pay a lot to eat to eat some pretty mundane Chinese food, of you can stick to the first page of the menu and have one of their noodle dishes with homemade, hand stretched, traditional noodles.  I paid $12 for a big bowl of carb-o-riffic magic that got me through the night and allowed me to skip breakfast the next morning.

Warnings: the service is slow and bitchy.  Bitchy as hell, actually.  The restaurant is loud and all a blindingly bright white, so just go ahead and wear your sunglasses indoors.  It's not the weirdest looking thing they'll see.

payard PÂTISSERIE & BISTRO

This place is a bit more expensive but also offers a much more varied menu in terms of consistent acceptability.  Execution is fine, the bread they bring to the table is actually amazing, and the wine list is quite good.  At dinner (but be forewarned, not at lunch), the lobster bisque suffices as a fine meal, and the quiche and side salad is a satisfying, safe choice.  Portions are large.


Warnings: the service is just as shitty as Beijing Noodle No. 9.  I asked if they could split the check for lunch, and I was actually told, "well, you shouldn't do that if you're not planning on paying separately" with quite a bit of attitude.  So, shitty and incredibly stupid is a more accurate way to describe the service that day.

Rao's
I occasionally buy their jarred sauce as a jump start for a quickie lasagne at home.  The prices were too steep to justify a plate of pasta and tomatoes, but their wine list was not any more expensive than the cheaper in-house restaurants, and they had some real gems.  The cheapest red on the menu, the Primitivo, was quite good--full-bodied yet fruity--and the Prosecco was just right.

Warnings: no complaints about service--they were perfectly lovely.

Flamingo Pizza

When you get sick of the terrible service and overpriced food, it's time to get some carry-out.  Be forewarned, you will have to walk out to the far lane of shuttles and taxi service and meet some sketchy dude in an unmarked, 1990 red Honda Civic and sneak it back up to your room while no one is looking, but it will be worth it.  The pasta with garlic butter and mushrooms is ridiculously simple and good.

Warnings: I think they might be getting stoned at work here.  You will wait a loooong time to get your food, and then it will not come with utensils.  Ask ahead for forks or whatever the obvious choice for eating is, because it will not be obvious to them.

Now that I've recovered from the cigarette smoke and low self-esteem I developed in these restaurants, I've come up with some pretty convincing replications of these dishes (which are all pretty basic, anyway); stay tuned in my next posts for recipes for Chinese noodles with eggs and tomato, Lobster-like bisque, and fettuccine with garlic, butter, and mushrooms.

Prepared foods that are worth the purchase

I generally try to make everything I can from scratch, but there are times when the perfectly spicy, garlicky bottle sauce (I'm talking to you, Sriracha) is the only thing I can imagine adding to a dish to make it right (like these vegetarian chorizo tacos).  Here are some of my favorite prepared foods. Sorry, out of town folks, shopping info is only local.  But I think you can order anything on Amazon these days...

5. Por Kwan Vietnamese Pho Paste: The intriguing mix of beef flavoring, Chinese Five Spice, onion, and garlic makes up a great instant bowl of Pho, the Vietnamese beef soup that is suddenly insanely popular.  It also spices up any other kind of soup or stew; use it in place of regular beef stock for a more interesting flavor.  Order it online from Amazon or pick it up at Bangkok Asian Market in Fort Collins.
4. SWAD Coriander Chutney: This spicy, slightly sour chutney with cilantro and cumin flavors is great on crackers or tortilla chips, and it even makes a great sandwich spread.  A friend introduced me to it at an Indian potluck and I can't stop eating it.  Find it at Rice 'N Spice in Fort Collins.
3. Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce: The iconic sweat-inducing, garlicy sauce is a great substitute for kethcup on your fries and an easy addition to sauces, soups, or chili that needs a kick.  No need to mince garlic or empty your jar of cayenne pepper--the little bottle with the rooster on it does it all!  Find it in most grocery stores in the Asian section; I get mine at Safeway.
2. Ras-Ka Ethiopian Sauce: Homemade in a Fort Collins kitchen, this spicy tomato-based sauce is perfectly seasoned--no doctoring required (and I hardly ever say that).  Stir it into steamed vegetables, sauteed meat, or cooked lentils and serve with rice for an authenitcally Ethiopian experience. Available at the Fort Collins Food Co-Op or online at www.ras-ka.com.

1. Thai Kitchen Sweet Red Chili Sauce: It starts sweet (think sweet and sour sauce), finishes spicy, and is surprisingly addictive.  I dip anything and everything in it--french fries, tortilla chips, pretzels, egg rolls...come to think of it, I may have a problem.  Available at any grocery store that sells Thai Kitchen brand; I get mine at Sprout's.  

Get some dim sum in Denver!

I belatedly decided to take someone's advice and visit Empress Seafood Restaurant on West Alameda in Denver.  They have the standard Chinese meal menu, heavy on the seafood, but they also have dim sum, which I enjoy for the food and for the circus.

Now, I have heard that the dim sum carts do not always come around in this place (though there is always a dim sum menu, presented much like a sushi menu, from which you can order), so the best time to enjoy the circus is Saturday and Sunday, mid-morning to mid-afternoon.  Dim sum is traditionally eaten at the time we Americans designate as brunch, so I suppose this makes sense.  I went to Empress at 11:30am on Saturday, and most of the diners were Chinese (and elderly).  Yesssss.

The other thing about dim sum is that is traditionally form the Canton region, which favors mild and slightly sweet dishes.  Many reviewers have raved about their BBQ pork buns, but to me they were a very large dessert item--sweet bread wrapped around a small amount of sweetly sauced shredded pork.  I think they were good, don't get me wrong, but being the size of softballs, I wish I hadn't wasted all that room in my stomach when I could have had another vegetable bean curd roll.

Speaking of which, did I mention the vegetable bean curd roll?  It was a very thin egg pancake filled with bean threads and bok choy swimming in a brown gravy.  In texture and flavor, it was divine.  I was surprised I loved it so much.  I also really enjoyed the sticky rice in lotus leaf, but be forewarned: this is not a sweet treat.  It's described that way, and I suppose the sticky rice itself is similar to sushi rice, but it's loaded with little bits of tender duck, pork, diced eggplant, and water chestnuts with a savory seasoning.  I had been told about this before--it's actually eaten around New Year's in the Canton region.  One wrapped package is huge and oh-so-filling--good for sharing with another.

We also tried their famous shrimp crepes, which were OK but a bit on the sweet side for me (it's a steamed egg crepe filled with sweet shrimp), and the steamed shrimp and pork (two separate fillings) dumplings were quite tasty.

For dessert, we tried sesame dumplings, which were perfectly fried and sweet, like the Chinese version of a doughnut...but, er, sprinkled in sesame seeds?  Whatever, they were good.  I love the Chinese dessert aesthetic of eating sweet fried breads--not too sweet and very chewy.  We also got something that sounded scary to me but ended up being my favorite dessert: egg custard dumplings.  They were basically flattened little patties of fried sweet dough with what looked like hard-cooked egg yolk in the middle.  Please try them. They are amazing.  Finally, we asked for a coconut pudding before seeing it.  It had a very mild coconut flavor, but I just couldn't get past the blobbiness and rubbery texture.  It was basically an opaque, white block of Jello-O.  It creeped me out, but I think that I am overly picky about these things.

The dim sum menu is vast, and covers common, parent-friendly items as well as some authentic specialties for the brave, like chicken feet and duck with squid.  Prices for each item hover around $2.25, and there's enough on each little plate to share.  My husband and I walked out so stuffed we thought we might pass out, all for the price of $22.65.  And if you're clueless about the process like I was, we found that the dim sum carts came around fast and furious for about 15 minutes when we and another family first showed up, and then we didn't see them again for a long time.  But they leave a menu with you at the table (which is how they keep track of what you buy), and you can always flag down a waiter and order things without having to wait for the cart again.  If you know what you want, you can just say so from the start.

The neighborhood is a little out of the way, but there's ample parking and the food is really worth the visit.  I highly recommend getting your dim sum on at Empress!

Hot (food)Spots in Fort Collins, CO

Fort Collins is a great place to visit--hiking and whitewater rafting on the edge of town, unique boutiques, some decent clubs with local bands, and great food and beer.  Here are my favorites, if you're looking for somewhere to start:


Lucille’s Creole Café: 400 South Meldrum

If you’ve been to New Orleans, you’ll get the same classic brunch experience from Lucille’s.  Each Lucille’s location (FoCo, Longmont, Boulder, Denver) has a slightly different menu.  The FoCo shop features more vegetables than other menus while keeping all the heavy, greasy stuff that makes Sunday morning feel so cozy.  Order up a plate of Beignets with your chicory coffee (costs a little extra) while you wait for fluffy biscuits and homemade marmalade with egg dishes chocked full of spicy sausage, shrimp, and flavorful sauces straight outta NoLa.  Be ready to wait, though--the line is always out the door on the weekends.

The Bean Cycle: 144 N. College

There are plenty of funky coffee shops in Fort Collins.  This one makes a mean brew and orders up the best pastries from local bakeries in the area, plus it’s run by a sweet family and shares space with a non-profit, lefty bookstore.  Why not give them your money when it’s time to perk up?

Rasta Pasta: 200 Walnut Street Suite A (corner of Walnut and College)

This place is pure college town: grungy little corner shop with old furniture and mismatched silverware, plastic cups, and cheesy Rasta nostalgia to boot.  If you have an allergy to Bob Marley worship, don’t go.  But if you want a huge plate of tasty pasta for cheap, embrace your hippie past and come on in. Sauces range from simple, elegant white wine and garlic (and be forewarned: they love garlic!) with fresh tomatoes to Jamaican jerk chicken, and you won’t need another meal for a looong time.  Great after a hike at Horsetooth.


Coopersmith’s Pub and Brewing: 5 Old Town Square

This gastro pub is definitely for grown-ups, though it welcomes a wide range of guests.  Try every home brew you can handle--they’re all well-crafted and balanced--or get a Scotch flight and learn why the stuff can be so expensive (and revered).  Typical pub grub gets some extra touches: the pub fries are lovingly breaded and seasoned, personal pizzas with hand-tossed crusts feature a wide array of fresh toppings, and the quesadillas are stuffed with smoked salmon and brie.  There are a lot of microbreweries in Fort Collins, but I think Coopersmith’s does it best.


Lulu Asian Bistro : 117 South College Ave

I stumbled upon this place after a Christmas day hike because I was peckish and nothing else was open.  What a pleasant surprise--the happy hour beers were a great deal, martinis were creative and tasty, and the food is very well-done Asian with a little modern flair.  Very capable preparation, and a great blend of cozy bistro and sleek bar.



Taj Mahal: 148 West Oak Street

If you like Indian food, you probably fall into one of two serious camps: fans of Taj Mahal or fans of…that other place.  I’ll tell you why I love Taj Mahal.  Each dish is amazing--meat is fresh and well-cooked, sauces are all distinctive and flavorful, appetizers are all carefully prepared and wonderfully balanced, and the kitchen wants nothing more than to tailor your dishes to your tastes.  The building is getting a make-over outside, but the inside is the same as it’s always been and open for business.  I know people who drive from Wyoming to eat here, and I know why. (I once ate so much there that I almost passed out.  No joke.)

Grill Extravaganza with weird sauces

If you have been following the tale of the inherited Asian foods, you are aware of our friends’ move to New Jersey and depositing of various sauces, pastes, and leaves in our refrigerator. I have been experimenting with a lot of raw ingredients I had never before used, like banana leaves, kaffir lime leaves, and ghee. This weekend I turned to the various pre-made sauces and marinades taking up a fair amount of space in the fridge door and had a big ol’ grilling extravaganza.


It is not my way to simply pour sauce out of bottle and call dinner done; at the very least, I usually doctor said sauce and make it into something fussier than it probably needs to be. But these jars and bottles promised a complete, and authentic, taste experience, so I followed the directions and simply marinated various meats in them without any other additives. Then, because it is still warm outside and there were cold beers in the fridge, we grilled everything on skewers and served with more of the sauces to dip on the side.

We used pre-cut pieces of “stew meat”, which you can get in the meat section of any grocery store. We got packages of pork and beef stew meat; they’re cheap, tougher cuts, but the marinade softened them up and we didn’t have to cook them long (about 10 min., turning after 5). We also got some chicken tenders and thread those through skewers like (very thick) satay sticks.

Sauce #1: Lee Kum Kee Korean Barbeque: We had this on pork, and it was delicious. There was just a little bit of sweetness to it (much less than American BBQ sauce), and a lot of salty, garlicky flavor coming through. It was really a great balance of flavors. The sauce is a bit thick, so you can afford to add some water to it if you choose to provide some dipping sauce on the side. This turned out to be our favorite sauce of the evening.

Sauce #2: Kikkoman Takumi Teriyaki Sauce: This is not the Kikkoman from the grocery store (Takumi is their premium line), and this is not the syrupy sweet crap you get in restaurants playing Madonna’s greatest hits and offering chop suey and American burgers on the menu. This stuff is actually quite salty and has a pretty strong sesame flavor (probably because it’s loaded with toasted sesame seeds). I thought it was really good, and if I hadn’t had the Korean BBQ sauce to compare it to, I would have loved it. It was just a bit more one-dimensional than the Korean BBQ, which had such an excellent balance of sweet, garlicky, and savory. This teriyaki sauce didn’t have any sweetness to it at all, so it was mostly just salty and nutty (but very good). It is thin enough to use as-is as a marinade or dipping sauce. We used it on beef and the flavor combination was great.

Sauce #3: Lee Kum Kee Satay Sauce: I was pretty excited about this one but it was actually our least favorite. It was a very thick paste, so you need to cut it with water just to marinade the chicken. And it hardens up like natural peanut butter in the fridge, so remember to take it out and let it warm up on the counter for 5 minutes or so before trying to work with it.

The sauce had peanut butter as its base, but it also had a strong shrimp flavor to it. (Shellfish allergy sufferers, beware! There is shrimp paste in this.) There was a moderate level of spiciness from the chilies in it, but it really needed a lot of salt, we all thought. So, even though it was peanutty (which I love) and a bit spicy, it seemed pretty flat in taste. Not only was it lacking salt, but I think it could have used some brightness, perhaps from vinegar or something. We have a lot of this sauce left, so I’m going to experiment with using it in a soup or something.

I also whipped up a batch of my usual tofu marinade and grilled some of that on the side. If you grill tofu alongside meat, just keep your eyes on it—the tofu is done within 5 minutes, and the meat takes about twice as long depending on the size of your chunks. On the side, I just served a cold rice salad with some of the tofu marinade and some fresh edamame, diced carrot, and broccoli.

Hot and Sour Sickie Soup

I hate getting colds. Now that I live in Colorado, I seem to get at least two every winter. Conventional wisdom prescribes chicken soup, but I always find myself craving Chinese Hot and Sour soup—the kind that makes you sweat and makes your nose run—it cures so many ills. I can breathe better, my throat feels better, and the happiness temporarily distracts me from my complaining. The problem is, when I am sick, I rarely want to leave the house, even just to go down the road and get this miracle cure at my favorite take-out Chinese place. And I don’t think my neighbors should be subjected to the sight of me in sweatpants and an oversized, cat fur-decorated sweatshirt from my undergraduate days. So I present to you (with some help on measurements from Rachel Ray,

Hot and Sour Sickie Soup

LIQUID:
8 cups water or broth of your choice (veggie, chicken, beef…)
3 Tablespoons of Sriracha or other garlic-chili sauce
2 Tablespoons dark brown sugar
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons grated ginger

ADD-INS:
Vegetables and tofu or meat of your choice
2 packages ramen or equivalent amount of other noodles (vermicelli, linguine…)


Sautee vegetables and tofu in 1 tablespoon of canola or peanut oil (I always start with onion, carrot, bok choy, and mushrooms). When veggies are soft and tofu is getting lightly browned, add all the broth ingredients, stir well, and bring to a boil. Add noodles and lower heat to medium, cooking according to package directions.

When the pasta is al dente or to your liking, turn off the heat and stir in 2 tablespoons of lime juice. Serve with Kleenex near.