03 Sep, 2009
We are always so pleased and thrilled to receive food gifts from friends and family. There is just something so heartwarming about homemade dishes or delicacies, or special or unusual food items acquired from expert cooks, small artisanal producers, provincial sources, or even while on foreign trips. Often, it isn’t the cost that…
01 Sep, 2009
After rubbing the new wok with chinese chives, see Part I of the process here, the next step was to open up all the “pores” of the wok by heating it up and coating it with fat. Traditionally, pork lard was the fat of choice. And some chefs choose to slather on…
01 Sep, 2009
According to Grace Young, the author of “The Breath of a Wok,” a superb book/cookbook, there is much tradition and lore involved with seasoning a wok properly. While she tries to get to the possible scientific explanation for the customary manner in which woks are “seasoned,” she settles with a conclusion that…
31 Aug, 2009
For the past few years, I have wanted to acquire a “real” wok. But without a wok compatible burner or stove, that would be a silly exercise. I thought our own “kawali” was a good version of a wok, but with most versions apparently crafted out of thick-ish aluminum, it doesn’t seem…
30 Aug, 2009
You’d be forgiven if you thought we had gone on a surgical strike to France to acquire some pungent cheeses over the weekend… But these wonderful cheeses were just a few of the 8 or so varieties that a friend brought back from Davao. Yes, DAVAO! I read about the efforts of…
12 Aug, 2009
The inspiration was a bottle of stunningly smooth, appetizingly rust-orange hued jam from La Maison du Chocolat. I was really impressed by the quality of that particular guava jam, presumably made from African guavas (possibly from a former French colony). My sister sent a bottle of the same jam in a subsequent…
16 Jul, 2009
The tag line for Lotto in the United States used to be “A Dollar and a Dream.” Though this croissant was a bit more, say $2, it was THE dream. No losing here. Absolutely the best croissants in the world are in France. And this particular croissant is the best…
08 Jul, 2009
After our lunch at the Marche des Enfants Rouge, we took a leisurely stroll through the Marais towards the 4th arrondisement and the Place des Vosges, Mrs. MM’s favorite square in all of Paris. With identical red brick facades, the buildings face a very green park that is indeed one of the nicest…