Be Afraid

Be very afraid.

I dunno why, but I picked this up at the market the other day.

Soy Chorizo

Maybe because it was cheap (like a little over a dollar). This morning, I cut it open for breakfast. The texture was not sausage-like, more like lumpy pudding. I couldn’t even fry it like sausage, it broke apart into a mass.

Steamed some brown rice, threw in an egg, and topped it off with the soy stuff.

Breakfast

The soy product looks “meatier” in the picture than the actual texture. The flavor was there but …

Maybe I’ll get some ground beef or pork and use the soy “stuff” to season  the meat. Which kind of defeats the whole purpose. Oh well, win some, lose some.

Still, interesting to try. Sigh.

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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Ginger

I was talking with Chef’s brother today. The subject of ginger came up. He said French cooking uses ginger more for desserts and candies. I told him Chinese cooking use a lot of ginger, not only for sweets but savory dishes as well (at least in Cantonese cooking). He agreed.

Just thought I’d share.

Eat well.

The Mouse

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A Staycation

We were in the mood for a little “staycation” for brunch today. Checked out Haleiwa Joe’s at Haiku Gardens (46-336 Haiku Road, Kaneohe, Hawaii). There’s a small garden, wedding chapel, and pond below the restaurant.

View from the Restaurant

More on that later.

A decent buffet selection.

The Cat’s Plate

The Cat thought the Egg Benedict was slightly over done with not enough Hollandaise Sauce. She’s become picky since eating Chef’s cooking.

I had

Omelet and Caesar Salad

Both the omelet and salad were made to order. Not bad.

Prime Rib

The restaurant prides itself for its prime rib (plus its high recommended by cousin P (this shot’s for you). Excellent, socks came off. Didn’t need any au jus or horseradish.

For me, the high point of the buffet line was deep-fried ahi with sun-dried tomato aioli.

Deep-Fried Ahi with Sun Dried Tomato Aioli

No I’m not normally a cooked ahi kind of mouse, raw is best (blackened ahi is about my limit), but this was well done. Still moist and tender with a crispy exterior. The aioli really enhanced the  dish. Socks flew off on this one. Raw is still the best, but this was a good change of pace.

A short exploration of the gardens to let the food settle.

Restaurant (as seen from the garden)

I could imagine walking into some movie settings.

The Hobbit?

Apocalypse Now?

Lord of the Rings?

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon?

Whatcha  think?

In closing, the restaurant had these wooden thingys hanging at the entrance.

Slippahs

Me want. Hee hee.

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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The Cat’s Donburi

I wasn’t going to post about this, it is after all, only leftovers. But The Cat wanted to take a picture  of it, so here it is.

The Cat’s dinner tonight: leftover rice, the remnants of some take-out nishime (Japanese vegetable stew), and a steamed egg.

The Cat’s Donburi

The remnants were a piece of tofu, a couple of bamboo shoots, asian taro, and a lotus root.

I also made a tomato and avocado salad with basil. I was trying to alternate between the tomato slices and avocado but my plating skills needs practice (a lot). In the end, I just fanned out the slices of avocado and piled on the tomato slices. The basil leaves were tossed on top with a drizzle of macadamia nut oil (infused with Italian herbs).

Tomato Avocado Salad

Here’s what The Cat’s try looked like in total.

The Cat’s Dinner

Along with the donburi and salad, there were boiled carrots and the water from cooking the carrots. The Cat seemed to have enjoyed the meal.

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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Lardon

Working in Chef’s kitchen not only gave me the opportunity  to acquire cooking techniques but also learn some of  the vocabulary. For instance lardon. Before, I would have said to cut bacon into small bits (I know, not too technical, but descriptive). Now I know it’s called lardon.

Anyway, tonight’s vegetable was sautéed green beans with bacon lardon (before, it would have been just  green beans and bacon). A slight difference.

Sauteed Green Beans with Bacon Lardons

I don’t think The Cat cares what it’s called, as long as it’s good.

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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