Off of University Av ...

My most restaurant review for the school blog ...

People sometimes ask me for restaurant recommendations, and recently it’s been for ‘date’ venues. Supposedly, the challenge is that the restaurant needs to be a little bit off the beaten path … ‘preferably North of Menlo Park or South of Mountain View … and definitely not on University Avenue. (The chances of ‘getting spotted’ are too high).’

So with this in mind, I wanted to showcase a favorite restaurant with quality food, reasonable prices, and a casual yet intimate feel that is appropriate for a date. More importantly, it’s close enough to be easily accessible but far enough such that I have not run into classmates there … yet.

Restaurant: Sumika
Cuisine: Japanese (Yakitori focus)
Must Trys: Uni jelly, oyako-don, yakitori, roasted tea panna cotta

There are so many reasons why I love Sumika … the ambiance (classy but home-y), the view into the kitchen grill, the small / intimate size, and most importantly, the food. It’s fantastic and also new. There are some interesting items for the more adventurous diner, including ‘ume shiso’ (sour plum mixed with shark cartilage), jellyfish sashimi, and more.

Some ‘must try’s that I love include:

• Uni jelly: For anyone who loves uni (sea urchin), this will be a treat. Two slices of fresh uni on top of a delicate bonito-flavored jelly. It’s a wonderful complement, since the jelly is a refreshing balance with the richness of the uni.
• ‘Yakitori’ (skewered chicken): Given that its web address is ‘sumikagrill,’ it makes sense that its yakitori selection is a highlight of the menu. There are a variety of chicken skewers with interesting sauces, along with other specialty items such as kobe beef and scallops. My favorite was actually the liver!
• Oyako-don: This is a very casual Japanese dish that consists of stewed egg, chicken, and a bit of sweet onion over rice, but it’s done extremely well here. The chicken is extremely tender, the moisture of the egg perfect, and the rice wonderfully dressed with a bit of sweet teriyaki.
• Roasted tea panna cotta: The best panna cotta that I’ve had hands-down. Extremely light with a hint of roasted tea flavor (which matches the barley tea that accompanies your meal). It’s presented beautifully in a small wooden box and decorated with a sesame tuile, a little bit of red bean and small mochi.

In summary, the food is wonderful, and the cost is reasonable (Most dishes in the $10 range, with skewers ranging from $3 to $5 each). For any Japanese cuisine fans, adventurous foodies, or GSB guy/girl looking for a new restaurant (e.g. date venue), Sumika is definitely worth a try.

Sumika
236 Central Plz
Los Altos, CA 94022
(650) 917-1822
http://www.sumikagrill.com/

Four hours of driving; One hour of eating

From the source ...

I recently went on my first oyster shucking trek with a few classmates, and it was quite the experience - what we all agreed 'business school is all about.'

Four hours of driving along the coast of California for one hour of eating the freshest oysters I could have imagined. It was quite incredible sitting there knife in one hand, heavy glove in the other (to prevent me from stabbing myself I suppose), shucking my first oysters and slurping them up one by one ...

There was nothing particulary 'glamorous' about the event. No white linen. No oysters in their half shell on ice. No mimoellete sauce ready for dipping. Just a brown tray with dozens of oysters dressed with only the taste of the salty sea water it was just pulled out of ... accompanied by a baguette, some potato chips, and wine drank out of red pastic cups. There we sat on a wooden picnic table and looking out on the California coast. Simplicity at its best.

A must visit for anyone who is remotely interested in oysters, a scenic coastal ride (car or bike!), or just a new experience.

Hog Island Oyster Company
20215, Highway 1
Marshall, CA
http://www.hogislandoysters.com/

Who knew the bell pepper could be so versatile?

I participated in my first 'Iron Chef' competition today. Organized by the EAT club, teams of four, two hours to cook, four dishes to prepare (drink, appetizer, main, dessert), six judges total (one of which was one of my professors!)

My team and I tried to guess the secret ingredient and categorized into one of four possible categories: (1) Fruit, (2) Nut (unlikely due to allergies), (3) Vegetable (probably carrot or tomato most versatile with dessert), (4) Root vegetable (sweet potato?)

Who knew it would be Sweet Bell Peppers? (small and large ... red, orange, and yellow). The whole event was incredibly fun ... from grocery shopping, walking down the aisles picking fun ingredients that we thought we *may* use (e.g. candied ginger) to tasting all the wonderful foods the following teams cooked after us. We didn't win (got beat out by the Exec Ed students!) but had fabulous time. Next year I want to be a judge. :)

Our menu below (no pictures, since we were in a mad dash to finish cooking)

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Four takes on Pepper

Puree
Bloody Red-Pepper Refresher

Deep-fry
Boursin, goat cheese, and bacon stuffed mini pepper
Paired with a gorgonzola sauce

Roast
Cous cous stuffed orange pepper bowl topped with a poached quail egg
Paired with slices of cumin-spiced ribeye with a spicy tomato, basil, red-pepper compote

Bake
Phyllo cups filled with sweet cream and yellow-pepper jelly
Topped with raspberries and dusted with powdered sugar

Chefs: The one-and-only Shake&Bake Team :)

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Potato Post #2

I found the perfect potato picture in my archives!

From a visit last fall to Ubuntu: A garden potato medly - fried, roasted, boiled, accompanied by a poached egg and edible garden flowers.

Happy Potato Day

Two inspirations for this post …

1. Today is May 4 – the lovely birthday of my loveliest little sister who also happens to be the biggest fan of potatoes (in every form). Happy birthday!
2. A recent dinner conversation I had with some friends over ‘super foods’ and the sad reputation that fad diets have given to wonderful starchy foods such as potatoes

So on May 4, a tribute to the wonderful food that is the potato, with some random here and there's on potatoes ...

• My fondest potato memory: The surprise potato potluck I threw my sister before she left overseas; friends brought potato salad, potato chips, roasted potato wedges, McD French fries, and more ... she thought it was ridiculous (I'm convinced that is sister language / code for fabulous ;))
• My favorite ‘potato’ varietal: Not really a potato varietal but a close family member. I love sweet potatoes in all forms – but the simplest preparation of just roasting the sweet potato is my favorite ... the natural sugars having oozed out to leave a sweet burnt skin, which is so loose that you can peel it off at one go. Mmm ... I have such fond memories of winter lunchtimes where I would leave the office factory (in Shanghai’s industrial zone) to see the nice sweet potato vendor on the side of the street for a hot steaming sweet potato. 2 RMB (~30 cents)!
• My simplest potato recipe: Roasted rosemary potato slices. Wash potato, slice, drizzle with olive oil and chopped rosemary, and roast in oven until crispy brown. So simple yet so fragrant!
• My all-time favorite potato dish: Delica’s wasabi potato salad – the famous potato salad found at the organic Japanese deli in SF’s Ferry Building and my daily lunch (literally) for about six months before I moved to China. 'Half of a half pint of the wasabi potato salad please ... and a salmon onigiri rice ball. Thank you!' The healthiest I think potato salad can get, with crispy snap peas, edamame, fresh lettuce, and a hint of wasabi.
• My random potato nutrition 101: I always tell my friends on ‘no carb’ diets that carbohydrates themselves are not evil. Carbohydrates in excess (a heavy restaurant serving of pasta) or carbohydrates laden with sugar and preservatives (white wonderbread) are not good for you. But everything in moderation in good, particularly if it is of the natural variety. And a potato is as natural as you can get. A medium potato has Vitamin C (45% of daily value), Potassium (18%), Vitamin B6 (10%), and other trace minerals. Moreover, the sweet potato, which is extremely high in fiber, beta carotene (Vitamin A equivalent), Vitamin C, and Vitamin B6, it is known as one of today’s ‘superfoods.’

Now all I’m missing is a great potato picture. Your pictures all welcome. :)

2 ingredients ++

Dark chocolate truffles

I coated with: Crushed pistachio, Shaved coconut, Crushed almonds

Chocolate + Cream. Done.

I’m going back to Shanghai!

Confirmed for the summer and excited. I will be spending eight glorious (and swelteringly hot) weeks in Shanghai on a hotel pre-opening! No idea what to expect, except that it will be refreshingly different from all my previous experiences … and *hopefully* as fabulous as I’m imagining. And in honor of my excitement, a post about the arguably, most famous / must try dish of the city ...

'Shanghai Soup Dumplings'

上海小笼包

These dumplings are coveted for their extremely thin skin and savory soup inside. The best ones have a paper-thin skin that you bite so delicately to make a small hole so that you can suck the steaming broth inside. The filling is usually pork but there are various seafood, meat, and vegetable combinations. (And for those of you who are wondering how you make soup inside the dumpling, the process involves wrapping “meat gelatin” (e.g. lard) within the wrapper; the steaming causes it to melt into the rich soup that we love.)

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Thank you to Justin Fung (great friend, brilliant colleague, world traveler, and Master Photographer) for all the gorgeous photos.

Procrastinating … my favorite food websites

I don’t understand how it is almost 3 am and how I have done nothing but skim through one case for the past five hours since I’ve come home? What am I doing … listening to Pandora, reading restaurant reviews for an event I’m planning, procrastinating reading my favorite food websites, and of course now - writing in my blog.

*Sigh* How is it that I have such an appetite for all things food? I can flip through different restaurant menus and not get bored … read through cookbooks in my bed and tag the ones I want to make … and (probably my favorite) read through people’s food stories and adventures on their blogs until the sun comes up!

So a tribute to all my favorite sites that keep me up and prevent me from doing what I ‘should’ be doing (e.g. work – or better yet – sleep!)

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Hias Gourmet
http://www.hiasgourmet.com/

I love this site because it is an entrepreneurial venture (and success) of a good friend of mine, Adlyn Teoh. Know Gourmet on Tour? Same concept – just focused on exposing the world to gourmet Chinese cuisine. She’s started a fabulous business with customized culinary vacations, food tours, dining etiquette classes, and more. For anyone who loves food and planning a trip to Beijing, it’s a must do.

Chubby Hubby
http://www.chubbyhubby.net/blog/
One of the first food blogs that I got hooked on. He’s a famous Singaporean food blogger named Aun Koh, but probably what I love most about his site is the name and concept. ‘Chubby Hubby: Whining, Dining, and Marriage.’ He always references his wife ‘S’ and talks about making a homemade chirashi one day in an entry called ‘Scattered rice for a tattered wife.’ How can a girl not love that? Food, love, life. (Plus, he has a post about making a hazelnut mousse chocolate torte with pop rock candies!)

Nordljus
http://www.nordljus.co.uk/
By Keiko Oikawa and available in both Japanese and English. I can’t help but flip through every entry in her blog because her pictures are absolutely stunning. I have downloaded several of them as screensavers for my own desktop, so I can be inspired. Her website is the epitome of why I love food and am obsessed with Japanese food culture. The attention to detail and celebration food as an art. Exquisite.

RasaMalaysia
http://rasamalaysia.com/
I love this site because it’s so useful and it’s such a great shout out to the diversity and delicious-ness of Asian cuisine. It has a good repertoire of recipes spanning Chinese, Malaysian, Thai, Japanese, Indian, Vietnamese, Filipino, Indonesian, and Baking (Because really, how can you not include baking as a key building block in your cooking skill set?)

Friends’ blogs
http://bloomingiris.blogspot.com/
http://frutchman.wordpress.com/
http://www.eating-sf.com/
And of course, potentially my favorite by far – friends who also casually blog on the side … I love reading your blogs because they provide a little bit of insight into your creative endeavors and culinary adventures. I feel like I get a little personal glimpse into your lives!

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Awesome Friend ... and the best winning bet ever

(Clockwise from top left: Pulao, Aloo Gobi Palya, Mutter Paneer, Kosumbri)

I don’t normally make bets but for fun, but I recently got pulled into one with an old high school friend whom I refer most of the time to as ‘Awesome Friend’. The bet I won (yay!) and my winning prize was probably one of the most fantastic displays of culinary warmth and effort I have ever seen!

The details of the bet I will not go into, but his ‘losing task’ was to prepare a multi-coursed dinner party with the guests and time of his choosing. The end result was spectacular! The occasion – the birthday of Awesome Friend himself. The setting – his family’s beautiful home in Saratoga hills. The people – over 25 of his friends. The food – six courses of his favorite Indian home-cooked foods.

I have prepared dinner parties for 8 but six different courses for a party of 25 is a whole different story. But in addition to the food being delicious, I think I was just in awe of the effort and warmth of the entire setting. There I was, dressed up for my first time in a traditional Indian outfit (we played the part) eating home-cooked Indian food made by my awesome friend whose private equity schedule rarely lets him leave the office, let alone cook! It was really such a treat. Happy belated birthday Awesome Friend; a huge thank you from all your friends for a wonderful birthday treat.

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Awesome Friend's birthday dinner party menu

Bhel puri
bhel mix, garbanzo beans, tamarind chutney, potato, onion, coriander, salt, chili powder

Pulao
basmati rice, swiss chard, bell peppers, cashews, almonds, raisins, spices

Eggplant curry
eggplant, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, spices

Aloo Gobi Palya
potato, cauliflower, bell peppers, onions, coriander, tomato, spices

Kosumbri
carrot, cucumber, dhal (lentils), coriander, coconut, mustard seeds

Mutter Paneer
paneer (cheese), peas, onions, tomatoes, tomato paste, spices

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Tea with the Bedouins

My Bedouin Tea Afternoon
(Clockwise) Traditional teapot; Bedouin tent made of goats hair (to keep cool in the desert);
Fresh cup of Bedouin tea (green West Africa tea with sugar and cardamon); Our Bedouin host

I just got back from a class trip to the Middle East, which was more fabulous than I could ever have expected … in large part due to a day where we camped out in Wadi Rum – a sandstone / granite rock valley in southwest Jordan – and home of the Bedouins, an Arab nomadic tribe that lives out in the desert.

I’m a creature of comforts. Those who know me can attest to the fact that I am unfortunately not the nature-loving, outdoors, camping type. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever really truly 'camped’ before (at least as my friends describe how 'real' camping should be experienced). But this was one of those life experiences that I’ll never forget …

Sitting in the back of an old, rickety pickup truck, driving up and down the sand dunes in the Jordanian desert, stopping by a traditional Bedouin tent made out of goat hair, taking off my sandy and dirty shoes to have an oh-so-delicious cup of Bedouin tea (Green tea from West Africa spiced with cardamom and sweetened with sugar). Not blissful (that denotes some level of comfort which was completely lacking in the situation) – but truly magical.

A tribute to the wonderful food that is the banana

I procrastinated on my studies BUT was productive with my rooommate’s overripe bananas. I love the smell of my room right now … :)

A Health Note:
I love making desserts with bananas because I tell myself that they are healthy. :) Granted, cakes and muffins in general aren’t – BUT the banana version is still relatively healthier. Bananas are a great source of vitamin B6, vitamin C, and potassium … and a wonderful natural sweetener and flavor for baking (allows you to cut down on the fat and sugar content). Plus, they’re so versatile (banana breads, frozen bananas dipped in chocolate, banana/nutella sandwiches …) and pair so well with chocolate!

Banana chocolate chunk muffins
(adapted from Epicurious)

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar (1/2 of the original recipe)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

~ 2 large mashed ripe bananas - makes about 1 cup
1/3 cup butter melted (1/2 of the original recipe)
1 large egg
1/4 cup milk
3/4 cup chocolate chunks (I used bittersweet)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line your muffin pan with muffin cups. Mix dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in bowl. Mix wet ingredients: mashed bananas, egg, melted butter, vanilla extract, and milk in bowl. Stir banana mixture into dry ingredients just until blended (do not overmix). Stir in chocolate.

Divide batter among prepared muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake muffins until tops are pale golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes.

St. Patrick's Day brain food

One of the great things about being back in school is getting into a cramped study room with good friends and having an unexpectedly good time …

Today was one of those days. Lots of papers … lots of white-board action … lots of confusion (still not sure that I get this marketable-securities accounting speak) … And … thanks to the ‘goodwill’ (forgive the bad pun; I’m in the middle of finals week) of a fabulous study mate, the perfect brain food – Sprinkles cupcakes! (One decorated in honor of St. Patrick’s Day.)

On the few occasions I do write, I usually like talking about some food experience, experiment, reading, health fact, or encounter that is new, unique, or inspiring in some way. There is none of that in this case … but somehow right at this moment as I upload the photos, I feel like today’s cupcake study break was – in the most simple and ordinary way – extra special. Nothing beats hanging out in a stuffy room with good friends to indulge in plainly decorated but oh-so-delicious cupcakes with disposable forks on makeshift plates made out of Kleenex tissues.

Ah, sometimes, I’m such the health nut ... and the presentation/design nazi … but today, the plain old chocolate cupcake with pure buttercream icing (literally chocolate-flavored butter) topped with chocolate sprinkles was the absolute perfect brain food and St. Patrick’s Day celebration.

Sprinkles Cupcakes

393 Stanford Shopping Center

Palo Alto, CA 94304

(650) 323-9300

Simply beautiful

One of my favorites from a recent triple-date Valentines dinner at Ubuntu in Napa Valley:

Carrot gnocchetti with mimolette & roast oxheart carrot

Carrot pulp 'crumble' with almond, warm spices, and tarragon

I love this picture not because the food was delicious and not because it encapsulates a great memory but because it's so effortlessly beautiful. The ingredient - so simple: carrots. The dish - so basic: pasta. The presentation - so natural: baby carrot sticks and garden flowers. And somehow it culminates into a vibrant orange garden laid so simply on a spotless white plate, accentuated only by a few greens.

It seems silly to say that food of all things (or a picture) can make me sit back and revel in the beauty of life - its sweetness and simplicity ... and can also make me wistful that life can't also be that simple. Why does it seem like life's happiness can be so easy yet so hard, so intense yet so fleeting? Food is consistent.

Happy belated Chinese 'Niu' Year

Happy year of the Ox!

And in honor of the holiday, my first Chinese dessert attempt: Portugese Egg Tarts (蛋挞). :)

New Year Resolutions

We are three weeks into 2009, which makes this an overdue ‘New Years’ post but better late than never! New Years resolutions this year include many of the usual suspects but among them, I want to highlight my:

• Ongoing aspiration for living a healthier life (both eating and exercise) and
• Desire to take advantage of my time as a student to indulge in hobbies important to me

Specifically for this blog, this means that I want to cook more and write more often. So to start off the New Year, here are two of my favorite homemade healthy foods – to serve as my inspiration for a healthy (and happy) 2009.

My breakfast of champions

I know the Atkins diet has made ‘carbs,’ especially anything ‘white’ completely taboo and unhealthy. However, I think quite the opposite, particularly when it comes to rice. To me, rice is comforting, filling, and always delicious (since it is incredibly versatile and can be prepared in so many ways). Moreover, it satisfies me such that my appetite is far more controlled for later meals. Above all, I challenge the notion that it is unhealthy simply because it is ‘white.’ By virtue of simply being natural, it is more wholesome for your body compared to any processed grain – particularly bread, even if it is of the ‘whole wheat’ sandwich variety (which is all marketing, since I guarantee on the ingredient list you will find sugar /corn syrup (lots of it), preservatives (likely calcium propionate to prevent mold), oil / fat, and many other complex chemical names that we don’t quite comprehend). Thus, I eat my rice happily and without guilt; it is for me a wonderful start that gives me energy and satisfaction to carry me through my day.

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Onigiri (Salmon and sesame): Japanese rice balls
Japanese rice seasoned with a little bit of sushi vinegar pressed into balls and stuffed with any filling you desire. The flexibility in this dish is one of the reasons it makes it so wonderful! Common fillings include umeboshi (Japanese dried plum), ground pork, or salted fish. I used salted salmon flakes and sesame seeds here.

Chazuke: Japanese rice porridge
Similar to Chinese ‘congee’ except that the rice is not cooked as long, and the soup is usually a dashi/tea broth. Top with anything you desire (typical: pickled vegetables, salted fish, seaweed). I used salted salmon flakes, wakame furikake, and toasted sesame seeds. Eat hot.

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