Asian

Steamed Pork Buns (Bao Zi)

Last year, for Chinese Lunar New Year, I made…a Strawberries & Cream Pie. Super delicious, but not exactly culturally relevant/appropriate. This year, I was determined to be a Good Chinese Girl and actually cook something Chinese. After all, it’s my dad’s zodiac year, and I wanted to make something in honor of his special year. Steamed pork buns (bao zi) were the first thing that came to mind, because my dad loves them, and they’re one of my favorite things to eat when I go home to see my parents. Plus, I figured steamed buns couldn’t be all that much harder or different than dumplings, which I had tackled a few times before. As it turns out, they are totally different, and I am terrible...

Are you guys excited for football season? Dan is! And if my Facebook newsfeed is any indication, so is everyone else on the planet. Me? Not so much. But I am excited for all the snack foods that football watching entails. Like these Asian-inspired Coca Cola drumsticks, for example. They’re juicy, meaty, savory-sweet, and fall-off-the-bone tender. Best of all, they’re incredibly easy to make — just marinade, sear, and simmer. I’m definitely going to be adding these to my Superbowl recipe round up!

Like a lot of Chinese kids growing up in America, I hated eating Chinese food all the time. All I wanted to do was stuff my face with hamburgers, cheese pizzas, chicken nuggets, and all the other American goodies I saw on TV. It wasn’t until I was a little older, and had spent a month traveling around China that I developed a real appreciation for the cuisine of my people. But, even at the height of my Chinese food rebellion, the one thing I always loved (and still love), was the salt and pepper jumbo shrimp dish my parents typically ordered for me when we dined out. Crunchy, savory, salty, and a little spicy, they were so delicious even my Happy Meal-addicted taste...

If you ask me on any given day what Dan and I had for dinner the night before, the answer will probably be “fried rice.” It’s not that we’re fried rice fanatics…it’s just that the stuff is so easy to make, so delicious, and so versatile. You can cook it with any ingredients you want, any way you want, and it’ll be wonderful pretty much every time. Too tired/lazy to cook a full meal? Fridge packed with stale leftovers that you probably should eat but no longer find appetizing? No problem! Just throw everything into a hot skillet with oil and rice, stir, season, and boom — a yummy, hot meal in no time. That’s how I found myself standing over my wok last night, stirring...

Guys, studying for the bar sucks. I’ve been at it in earnest for about a week now, and not only do I have unbelievable neck/back cricks from hunching over my notes all day, I’m starting to have dreams about the law. It’s not a fun time. Nobody should wake up in a panic over the rules of civil procedure. With the 12-hours-a-day study regime I’ve put myself on, my eating habits have taken a serious dive. Rocky Road ice cream for breakfast, cold leftover Chinese for lunch, and cheese for dinner. Mmm, fats, carbs, and no vegetables. Brain food! After a few days of chronic stomach unhappiness, I finally gave in and carved out some time to cook a semi-nutritious lunch for myself. Thanks...

Dan and I have been eating a lot of cookies lately. Cookies for breakfast, cookies with lunch, cookies in between meals, and cookies for dinner. Who’s surprised? That’s just what happens when we buy jumbo cookies from BJ’s, and then I go on a baking spree. Not that we’re complaining, of course — neither of us has ever met a cookie we didn’t love. But, while cookies are delicious, they’re definitely not nutritious. And, if you eat too many in one sitting, you’re bound to get all kinds of stomach troubles. Dan’s been suffering from cookie belly all week, so I figured I owed him a real meal for dinner tonight. Omurice seemed like the way to go, since it’s not only yummy and satisfying,...

Aren’t these sausages the cutest things you’ve ever seen??? I see them packed into bentos all the time in the mangas I read, but I never thought they were actually possible to make. So, when I saw a step-by-step recipe for octopus sausages in my new favorite food-themed manga, I knew what my Halloween blog post would have to be. These Hallo-weenies (ha!) are not only super cute, but also ridiculously easy to make. All you have to do is slice the ends off of a couple hot dogs, make six slits in the bottom, and brown the suckers in hot oil. As they cook, the little “legs” naturally start to curl, and when you turn the sausages to brown all sides, the legs...

OK, so my original promise to my friend Peng was that I’d take the General Tso’s chicken I made a couple days ago, wrap it in a flour tortilla with some fried rice and kimchi, and create a “ChiPanda Burrito.” Despite my reservations about the deliciousness of such a thing, I was gonna make it. Really, I was! But you know what they say about the best laid plans… When I started rummaging in the fridge/pantry for burrito ingredients, I realized that I was out of both 12″ flour tortillas and kimchi. Oops. I did, however, have mini corn tortillas and all the stuff for plain ol’ vegetable fried rice. So, I made a quick game-time decision and decided to go with “ChiPanda” tacos...

My friend Peng has been bugging me to make General Tso’s chicken for several months now. He lives in California and is really into the Asian-Mexican fusion thing, so he’s fixated on the idea of a General Tso’s burrito with fried rice and kimchi. I don’t know how I feel about that, but I’m nothing if not accommodating, so here I am…making General Tso’s chicken. You’re welcome, Peng. I don’t usually order General-anything from Chinese restaurants, but Dan loves the stuff. He’s come a long way in his Chinese food-eating habits, but he’ll still pick General Tso/Gao’s chicken over “real” Chinese food any day. Can’t really blame him, though. Breaded, fried chicken bits tossed with garlic and hot chilis in a sticky, sweet and...

OK, if you want to get really technical, these “flowers” are pretty much just bastardized crab rangoons without crab meat. I didn’t think that was an appropriate or appetizing title, though, so I fancied up the name a little. But, just as a rose by any other name smells as sweet, a rangoon by any other name is just as delicious…especially when crispy bacon and sauteed onions are involved. Crispy, cheesy, gooey, bacon-y…these wonton flowers are amazingly delicious. They are the perfect appetizer, snack, and/or drunk food. And, if you eat eight in a row like I did…they make a pretty satisfying (if slightly unhealthy) dinner too. Crispy Bacon and Onion Wonton Flowers Ingredients: - 1/2 cup ricotta - 4 oz cream cheese -...

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Asian

Steamed Pork Buns (Bao Zi)

Coca Cola Drumsticks

Chili-Garlic Panko Fried Shrimp

Fried Rice, Revisited

Asian-Style Stir Fried Green Beans

Omurice (Japanese Omelette Rice)

Octopus Sausages

General Tso’s Tacos

General Tso’s Chicken

Crispy Bacon and Onion Wonton Flowers

Blogs I Love

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