Quasi-sticky rice with Chinese sausage and mushroom

I love Chinese sticky rice, and I have had a craving for it ever since I stumbled upon this NYT recipe: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1014807-savory-sticky-rice-bowls-or-stir-fried-sticky-rice?smid=ck-recipe-iOS-share. Unfortunately, we don’t have sweet rice in our pantry, so we tried this recipe using jasmine rice. In addition to not using sweet rice, we made a few other modifications: first, we halved…… Continue reading Quasi-sticky rice with Chinese sausage and mushroom

Korean curry with minced chicken and vegetables

We make Japanese or Korean curry rice quite often, but this time decided to try some new techniques, including cutting the vegetables into large chunks. The results turned out well, so I wanted to document this while fresh in my mind. Our ingredients: 1 to 1.5 tsp unsalted butter; 1 medium onion, cut into 1”…… Continue reading Korean curry with minced chicken and vegetables

Filipino sauteed bean thread noodles with vegetables and smoked tofu (pancit)

I first had pancit during college, when a Filipina-American friend made a huge batch for a potluck. Today we had a craving for a plant-forward version, so we decided to try this recipe: https://www.lifesambrosia.com/grandmas-pancit-recipe/ Unfortunately, we found the seasoning (1 Tbsp soy sauce, salt and pepper) too one-note, so we also took some seasoning tips…… Continue reading Filipino sauteed bean thread noodles with vegetables and smoked tofu (pancit)

Peruvian-Chinese fried rice with asparagus and egg whites (arroz chaufa blanco)

We first encountered a dish called chaufa blanco at Pisco y Nazca Peruvian restaurant, and we were blown away. Also called arroz chaufa blanco, it refers to fried rice seasoned without soy sauce. The Pisco y Nazca version featured only asparagus and egg whites, and it was not heavily seasoned except for toasted sesame oil.…… Continue reading Peruvian-Chinese fried rice with asparagus and egg whites (arroz chaufa blanco)

Molasses cake with fresh ginger

For the past few days, I have dreamt of a molasses cake that I used to buy in the early aughts at Marvelous Market, a now-defunct local chain that served delicious baked goods. They sold their molasses cake in square-shaped slabs, similar to the freshly baked cornbread at Whole Foods. The cake had notes of…… Continue reading Molasses cake with fresh ginger

Simple pumpkin pie with a frozen crust

We misplaced our pie weights, so we weren’t able to blind-bake (prebake) a frozen pie crust. We decided to try this recipe, which calls for a frozen crust: https://startcooking.com/pumpkin-pie-for-beginners. Our modifications: first, we placed a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet in the oven before preheating to 425. Second, in lieu of 1 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice,…… Continue reading Simple pumpkin pie with a frozen crust

Split pea and ham soup, Instant Pot style

We had a craving for split pea soup and were intrigued by this recipe: https://www.recipetineats.com/pea-and-ham-soup/ As a child, I first had split pea soup with ham at a family friend’s house, and I remember being astonished that it took several hours of simmering on the stovetop. This recipe offers a great way to make this…… Continue reading Split pea and ham soup, Instant Pot style

Korean scallion and egg fried rice (bokkeum bap)

We had a craving for a mildly seasoned fried rice, so we tried this: https://www.koreanbapsang.com/egg-fried-rice-gyeran-bokkeumbap/ We found this recipe simple to make and delicious. It was reminiscent of chaufa blanco, a Chinese-Peruvian fried rice tossed with egg white, asparagus, and toasted sesame oil. Our only modification was to add 1/2 cup frozen peas. This was…… Continue reading Korean scallion and egg fried rice (bokkeum bap)