More Traditions

Last night, I got invited to attend the annual banquet of the Lum Sai Ho Tong society. You can read more about them here: http://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/bitstream/handle/10125/8307/lum%20sai%20ho%20tong.pdf?sequence=1

It was their 123rd banquet. Long time ya? The dinner started out as with many official Chinese gathering, with speeches and recognition of politicians and other special guests. The officers also paid respects to a Chinese “saint” I’m not familiar with (it was too noisy, I couldn’t hear all of the information). How are the saint the the society connected? I dunno.

Paying Respects

Supposedly, the saint watches over water voyages, especially in the southern part of China.

Highlights of the dinner.

Cold Platter

My favorite? the boned pig feet (upper left corner). Chewy, crunchy, tasty.

Honey Walnut Shrimp

Deep-fry shrimp? I’m there. The candied walnuts added extra texture.

Braised Lettuce, Mushrooms, and Abalone

Super old school. I remember this small-kid time. Haven’t had this dish in a long time.  The price of abalone and dried mushrooms have sky-rocketed since then. The society must be doing okay financially.

Jin Dui

Deep-fried (there we go again with the deep-frying), mochi dough filled with sweet red bean.

These were just a sampling of the dishes we were served. I didn’t get to take pictures of some of the dishes before the other guests scarfed them. No worries, I think I got the gist of the dinner.

Thanks for the invite A & V. Grand time.

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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While The Cat is Away

Dropped The Cat off at the airport this morning. A day trip to the volcano area (to see a client). It was too early for anything to be open, except for breakfast. Wandered over to the Waimalu Shopping Center to hunt for food. Almost had saimin for breakfast but thought better of it.

On a whim, ended up at Ohana BBQ and Sushi (98-042 Kamehameha Highway, Aiea, Hawaii), and ordered the “Prada” Moco.

"Prada" Moco

Canned corned beef, onions (no potatoes), gravy, and two eggs (easy over), on a bed of rice. Why “Prada”? Dunno.

I have come to the conclusion I like “mocos” more than benedicts. Similar concepts but it’s all about the rice baby!

Anyway, this version was different, in a good way. One sock came off. The gravy could had a little more personality. Gave me inspiration though (fresh corned beef, caramelized onions, maybe red-eye gravy, you get the idea).

One more thing. One of the decorations in the bathroom.

Bathroom Decoration

A glass tray, mounted on a piece of wood. Pretty awesome. If I could’ve snuck it in my backpack … Nah, just thinking aloud. But then again … 🙂

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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Mouse Droppings: A Padawan

Big news!

But first, something my cousins picked-up for me (I’m guessing at a craft store or fair).

Om Nom Nom

Looks like someone re-purposed pages of books that might be slated for disposal and created something else. Cute ya? A pig with a chef’s hat with the “Om Nom Nom” caption. I wonder if that’s how they perceive me.

The package also contained two paper clips.

Paper Clips

You can be sure I’m not going to be using these anytime soon.

Now the news (which is somewhat related to the page above). (Drum roll please). One of our chef friends needs help in his kitchen, asked me if I’m willing to help. Hmm. let’s see, an opportunity to learn from a master chef. Of course! Chance of a lifetime. I must be one of the oldest padawans. Heh heh.

Start next week. Wow!

Enjoy. Eat well.

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Please Don’t Eat Yellow Snow

But green is okay. My first time trying “snow ice” . I think it’s ice that’s been flavored with mild powder, as compared with “shave ice” (plain ice that syrup is poured over. There’s a “Snow Factory” in our neighborhood (Windward City Shopping Center, Kaneohe, Hawaii). Here’s their website: http://www.snowfactoryhawaii.com/snowfactoryhawaii.com/Home.html.

Instead of trying to choose a flavor and toppings, I went with one of their “combos”.

Number 22

Green tea flavored snow ice, adzuki beans, mochi balls, and condensed milk.

I was expecting the “snow” to come out in “ribbons” like the picture, but I ended up with more of a lump.

Number 22, Actual

Interesting. The shave is much finer than “shave ice”. The texture is a lot smoother. Over all, not bad. The socks stayed firmly on (well, in this case, da slippahs). 😉

The shop has a variety of “sprinkles” on the counter that is help yourself (I remember Oreos, chocolate chip cookies, cereal, peanuts, almonds, and M&Ms), a definite plus. I tried a little of the Oreos.

One of the “combos” is a mocha “snow” and coffee jelly concoction that I want to try next time.

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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Potluck

This past weekend. Potluck with some friends. They’re big animal protein eaters (aka carnivores), so they prepared …

Grilled Tri-Tip Steak

Baked Salmon, Asian Flavor

The secret to the salmon is a coating of mayonnaise to seal the fish from drying out. I may try this one day.

We contributed a pot of vegetable stew (ratatouille-style).

Vegetable Stew

I know, it’s not pretty (didn’t have time to prepare it in layers like Julia Childs or Remy), just threw everything in a pot with a jar of pasta sauce and simmered. The Cat approved.

We also brought a box of dark chocolate matcha green tea and coffee chocolates from Chef Padovani.

Chocolates

I’ve posted about these before. The coffee bean shaped ones are coffee and the seven-sided ones are the matcha green tea. Did I mention that the matcha green tea chocolates were originally made for Iron Chef Morimoto? I think I did. The initial matcha green tea ingredient came from the Iron Chef himself. I don’t know where the current supply is from.

We ate, we laughed, and we teased. Good times.

Enjoy. Eat well.

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