China, Panjin Rice

This post is long overdue, my bad. Just imagine the ability to time shift, then we’re okay.

Back in the fall, one of the areas that The Cat’s brother wanted us to visit was Panjin. Besides the red reed-grass beach (previously posted), another of the area’s claim to fame is its rice.

Some food facts (unsubstantiated, but nevertheless, commonly known in China). The main starch in the southern regions of China is rice. The starch of the northern regions tends to be more wheat. Panjin is considered a northern region. Why this anomaly?

In the early 1930′s (my brother-in-law can quote the exact date down to the hour), Japan invaded China. One of the regions that was invaded included Panjin (for the oil resources). The Japanese brought over their rice technology and the tradition stuck. The variety of rice is more like the sticky rice used in sushi.

Panjin rice is known throughout the country as being one of the best rice in China. During the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the rice from Panjin was designated the official rice served in the Olympic village. The rice is one of the gifts usually presented to officials and dignitaries visiting the area.

Enough of the history and cultural discussion. My brother-in-law (Y) warned us that we would be getting a couple of bags of rice during our visit to Panjin. But he also added that the bags are small (about 1.5 pounds each bag). When we left, Y’s friend and business associate presented us with a box containing eight bags of rice (twelve pounds!). She was going to give each of us a box (total 24 pounds!) but we begged off the second box.

Eight Bags!, Twelve Pounds!

One Bag, 1.5 Pounds

At first, we were going to distribute the bags in our packed and carry-on bags and discard the box, but the box was kind of nice and sturdy. I thought the box could help protect the bags during travel. The Cat insisted on taking some of the bags, I gave her two. I packed the remaining six bags (with box) in my carry-on backpack.

Traveling in China is not always convenient. The trip from Panjin to Shanghai was an adventure in itself. Y decided to walk from where the airport shuttle dropped us off to our hotel in Shanghai, about 300 yards (the distance of about three football field lengths). The path included crossing a busy multi-lane street. About half-way, I began to wonder what Y did to p***-off his friend that she would give us eight bags of rice. Sigh. But then, I remembered that at one point in his life, my ancestor (great-great grandfather) was a rice merchant in Hawai’i (maybe he was trying to tell me something). My mantra to the hotel was “it’s all about the journey, it’s all about the journey, we will laugh about this when we’re old, it’s all about the journey.”

On our way back home, I was still packing the six bags of rice in by backpack. Our flight home took us through Seoul, Korea for a stop over. As we were boarding for the Seoul to Honolulu leg, we had to pass through a security check. The security officer that checked me at first couldn’t believe someone would pack rice as a souvenir. I offered to open the box to show her but she passed me through (she must have thought anyone crazy enough to pack rice was probably harmless). Plus, she was looking for liquids and flammables, not crazies.

We got a similar reaction going through customs back home. The customs officer asked if we thought there was no rice here that we had to bring it over.(I think she was trying to make a funny). Sigh.

The rice is very white and has a pearlized look to it.

Panjin Rice, Raw

Panjin Rice, Cooked

So, was it worth it? The Cat thinks so. She said the rice is one of the best she’s tasted. She can eat the rice plain, without condiments or other food. The rice has a grassy smell when it’s cooking and while it’s still hot. Since The Cat likes fresh cooked rice (as opposed to leftover rice), I cook only what she can eat in one sitting.

On this trip we hauled rice, tea, and silk back from China. I’m thinking of changing my name to Aladdin and buying a camel next time we visit China. I’m due for a career change anyway (silk road music playing in the background).

Looking for a good pair of walking shoes/boots. Enjoy.

The Mouse

Read Full Post »

China, Day 12, Shanghai – Seoul – Honolulu

Today, we are going back home. It’s was a very busy trip, not really a vacation, but enjoyable anyway.

Breakfast was at the hotel again (not complaining, just stating). You’ve seen it before, so no pictures.

We had leftover pastries from the previous night.

Chocolate Coffee Cake

Ichido Package

Chocolate Walnut Roll

85 Degree Cafe Package

We were planning to eat these while watching the closing ceremonies but we got sidetracked (in a very good way, see previous post).

I also bought another bottle of custard from Ichido (see previous trip). This is what the bottle looks like with the custard.

Custard from Ichido

Except for the custard (which I ate that night), we packed the pastries up (we might get hungry on our stop-over in Seoul).

Going off on a tangent (sort off). A few last pictures before leaving for the airport.

Roasted Sweet Potato and Corn Vendor

Park Near the Hotel

Okay, getting back to eating. We ate lunch at the airport after checking-in.

The Cat had pork rib noodles.

Pork Rib Noodles

The Cat’s brother had a beef set menu.

Set Menu

I had a shrimp and vegetable stir-fry.

Shrimp and Vegetable Stir-Fry

The food was good for airport food. The problem was it was kind of pricey. The cost of traveling I guess.

The meal on the flight from Shanghai to Seoul was less than two hours. Only one meal choice.

In-Flight Meal

Beef or pork with fried rice. This was pretty good. Especially the fried rice with gravy. Yum.

One of the distractions during the layover in Seoul was the procession of a royal court (enacted) through the terminal.

Make Way for the Royal Court

The Monarch Approaches

The Monarch and His Women

The Monarch's Posse

Ladies in Waiting

Eating pastries, watching a parade, window shopping, a pretty good layover.

For dinner, our choice was Bi Bim Bap (same as from Honolulu to Seoul). Yum.

Bi Bim Bap

If the caterers can only find a way to add a fried egg, then it would be perfect (that’s ok, still good).

For breakfast, we had a choice of zhou (aka jook) or croissant. You probably can guess The Cat’s Choice.

Zhou

Just to be different, I chose the croissant.

Croissant Breakfast

This is the end of this journey. I think this is one of the few that we moved so often. Not my favorite way to travel but at least we got to travel, and I got real Beijing duck (worth it). Met old friends and new connections, ate great food, and got surprised more than once (in a good way). Plus I got to know my brother-in-law better (I think vice-versa too).

More journeys await. Bring it on!

I have one more post about this trip coming soon. Panjin rice and the effort it took to get it.

If I don’t get another post up by tomorrow, happy turkey day, or football day, or whatever.

Enjoy.

The Mouse

Read Full Post »

We Now Return to Our Regularly Scheduled Programming. China, Day 0

As hinted in previous posts, The Cat and I took a quick trip to China. All flights were full or very very expensive. At the last minute, a Korean Air flight opened up leaving on Tuesday at 1:30 a.m. The situation meant we would not get much sleep for that night (The Cat and I usually don’t sleep too well, if at all, on airplanes). Our route took us from Honolulu to Seoul to Shanghai.

The first meal served was a choice between beef and what the attendant called “mixed rice.” Both The Cat and I chose “mixed rice.” “Mixed rice” turned out to be bibimbap, a nice surprise. I’m not sure if this was dinner or something else, my mind was a bit foggy at 2:00 a.m. in the morning.

 

Bibimbap

 

The rice (bottom right) and other ingredients (bottom left) came separately to let us mix it up by ourselves. The other ingredients included bits of ground beef and vegetables. The only thing missing was the fried egg, but I wouldn’t expect on an airplane anyway (reheating issues).

 

"Mixed Rice"

 

Sorry, the picture is a bit out of focus, it was hard to take pictures in a plane. I liked that the dish was interactive. The bibimbap was very good. One of the best airline meals I’ve had. There was even a tube of hot paste to add.

 

Korean Hot Pepper Paste

 

Wouldn’t it be interesting if toothpaste were flavored this way (just thinking aloud).

Breakfast was a choice between an omelet or “rice porridge.” I chose the omelet, The Cat chose the “rice porridge.”

 

Omelet Breakfast

 

 

"Rice Porridge" Breakfast

 

Again, the dishes were very well done. My omelet was a little dry, but considering it was reheated in an airplane, very respectable. The Cat was very happy with her breakfast. She said the zhou was very well done, without even considering it was “airline” food.

Even after all that food, The Cat wanted to eat something during our layover in Seoul. At one of the airport restaurants, I ordered the steamed dumplings and The Cat ordered udon noodles with shrimp tempura.

 

Steamed Dumplings

 

 

Udon with Shrimp Tempura

 

My dumplings were decent enough (I think they were pre-made and frozen). The Cat said the shrimp was stale. Overall, the food was better on the airplane (sigh).

Although the meal was nothing to write home about, the cups they served water in was nice and interesting.

Ceramic Cup in Seoul Airport

To me, the cup seemed a nice vessel to serve tea in. I was almost tempted to ask if they would sell me one, but the thought of packing and hauling it throughout our trip dissuaded me.

On the Seoul to Shanghai flight, there was only one choice for the meal (the flight was less than two hours), spicy shrimp with rice.

 

Spicy Shrimp with Fried Rice

 

Again, the dish was done very respectively, not what we expected for “airline food.” If the food on the airplane wasn’t so good, I probably wouldn’t have posted about it. But surprisingly, all the food was memorable.

On a related topic, the service on Korean Air was excellent, very professional and courteous. Korean Air will certainly be on our radar the next time we travel.

This post is the first of many to come about our latest trip to China. this adventure lasted almost two weeks.

Here’s the Wikipedia article about bibimbap.

Stay tuned.

The Mouse

Read Full Post »