Back from Beijing!

Dear Reader, I am finally back from a long trip to Beijing. I have over a hundred pics and a couple videos from my culinary journey that I cannot wait to share with you. For starters, here are some pictures taken from the Wangfujing Night market. As you can see, some pretty crazy stuff there that I was not brave enough to try.

On another note, Blogger has locked me out of my account so I am posting using my best friend's account. If you see Carrie, that's me until I can sort it out. More soon. Promise!

Back from Beijing!

Vietnamese Shrimp Summer Rolls

When people travel, they typically like to shop. Maybe they'll buy some souvenirs to remember their trip by, some toys for the kids or perhaps they'll take advantage of department stores and local designer storefronts. Well, I'm not your typical traveler. When I get home, I unpack a suitcase filled with food products.

While we were in Chicago, my brother informed me that Lettuce Entertain You started bottling its Spicy Peanut Sauce from my favorite spot, Big Bowl. To give you some context, this is like telling a 12 year old girl that the Jonas Brothers are on her doorstep. I absolutely FREAKED out, hopped a cab to Big Bowl and bought 4 bottles to take home, (I also made a to-go order for my plane ride).

Big Bowl is one of my favorite LEYE concepts that blends Chinese and Thai flavors and is down-right delicious. I worked there for a summer in college and have continued to eat there for over 10 years. The dish that keeps bringing me back is the fresh and light summer rolls they serve with their Spicy Peanut Sauce and now that they are bottling the stuff (prayers answered!) I can recreate the dish in my San Francisco kitchen. And that's just what I did last night.

A little side note: I marinaded my shrimp in a mixture of grated lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic and fresh ginger which added acidity and brightness.

Vietnamese Shrimp Summer Rolls
(Not the official Big Bowl recipe)

• 1 cup thinly sliced Bibb lettuce
• 1/2 cup bean sprouts
• 1/2 cup cooked bean threads (cellophane noodles, about 1 ounce uncooked)
• 1/2 cup shredded carrot
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions (about 2)
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced cilantro
• 1/4 cup chopped mint
• 6 ounces cooked peeled and deveined shrimp, coarsely chopped
• 8 (8-inch) round sheets rice paper

1. To prepare the rolls, combine the first 8 ingredients.

2. Add hot water to a large, shallow dish to a depth of 1 inch. Place 1 rice paper sheet in dish; let stand 30 seconds or just until soft. Place sheet on a flat surface. Arrange 1/3 cup shrimp mixture over half of sheet, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Folding sides of sheet over filling and starting with filled side, roll up jelly-roll fashion. Gently press seam to seal. Place roll, seam side down, on a serving platter (cover to keep from drying). Repeat procedure with remaining shrimp mixture and rice paper sheets.

Serve with Big Bowl Spicy Peanut Sauce

Vietnamese Shrimp Summer Rolls

Soft-Cooked Eggs with Onion Soubise, Caviar, and Potato Chips

This recipe is a little hard core but you can sub some stuff to make it a little more approachable. If you're looking for a challenge, here you go.

Let's start off with talking about David Chang. For those of you that have not been to Momofuku Noddle Bar, Momofuku Ssäm Bar or Momofuko Ko in NYC, I suggest you make it a priority. I remember waiting in line on a rainy Thursday night when Momofuku Noddle Bar had just opened, sharing an umbrella with two friends waiting to see what all the hype was about. (Remember Friedman?) Once we had our first bite of Chang's famous pork buns, we all looked at each other and thought 'who is this guy'?

David Chang is a decorated chef with Michelin stars, James Beard awards, F&W Best New Chef titles and more. After positions at hot spots in NYC and cooking and living in Tokyo, Chang developed a concept that is true to his Korean roots and quickly grew an empire.

To cut some corners in this recipe, you can use store bought potato chips and skip the liquid smoke. To save you some serious cash, sub for store-bought whitefish caviar or fresh salmon roe.

Soft-Cooked Eggs with Onion Soubise, Caviar, and Potato Chips

Recipe by Momofuku Ko

ONION SOUBISE

* 12 ounces onions (about 2 medium), halved, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
* 1/2 cup water
* 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes, room temperature
* 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt

SMOKED EGGS

* 8 large eggs, room temperature
* 3 cups water
* 1/8 teaspoon liquid smoke*

CHIPS AND SALAD

* 4 3x3/4-inch fingerling potatoes (about 4 ounces), scrubbed
* Grapeseed oil (for frying)
* Coarse kosher salt
* 1/2 cup mixed herb leaves (such as 1/4 cup chervil or tarragon, 2 tablespoons parsley, and 2 tablespoons 1-inch pieces fresh chives)
* 2 ounces American hackleback caviar or paddlefish caviar
* Smoked salt or Maldon sea salt
* 4 teaspoons purple sweet potato vinegar (see Ingredient Tip) or Sherry wine vinegar

*A smoke-flavored liquid seasoning; available at many supermarkets and at specialty foods stores.

INGREDIENT TIP
Chef Chang uses Benímosu, a purple sweet potato vinegar, in this dish. The potatoes have deep-purple flesh, but the vinegar is a stunning strawberry red color. The vinegar has an aroma similar to that of Sherry wine vinegar, which makes a good substitute.

Preparation
ONION SOUBISE

Place all ingredients in small saucepan. Simmer uncovered over lowest possible heat until onions are very tender, and butter and water are reduced to silky sauce, stirring often, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. DO AHEAD Can be made 2 days ahead. Cool, cover, and chill. Rewarm before serving.

SMOKED EGGS

Bring large saucepan of water to boil over high heat. Add eggs to water gently to prevent cracking. Cook 5 minutes. Transfer eggs to large bowl of ice water. When cool enough to handle, crack eggs gently all over on flat surface. Return to ice water and peel carefully. (Do not break eggs; yolks will be runny.)

Mix 3 cups water and 1/8 teaspoon liquid smoke in large saucepan. Add peeled eggs to water. Cover and chill overnight.

CHIPS AND SALAD

Using V-slicer or mandoline, thinly slice potatoes crosswise. Rinse potato slices in small bowl of water. Drain. Rinse until water runs clear, 1 or 2 times more. Drain well. Place on kitchen towel; pat dry.

Pour enough oil into large deep saucepan to measure depth of 1 inch. Attach deep-fry thermometer to side of pan. Heat oil to 360°F. Working in 3 batches, fry potatoes until beginning to brown and crisp, stirring frequently to prevent slices from sticking together, about 1 minute per batch. Using slotted spoon, transfer to paper towel-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with coarse salt. Cool. Transfer to clean paper towels.

Using slotted spoon, gently transfer eggs to medium bowl. Bring smoked water to gentle simmer over medium heat. Carefully slide eggs from bowl into water. Cook until heated through, about 4 minutes. Rewarm soubise. Mix herbs together in small bowl.

Spoon generous 2 tablespoons soubise onto each plate, using back of spoon to create small indentation for egg. Divide potato chips among plates, creating small mound alongside soubise. Spoon small pile of herb salad alongside chips and soubise. Place 1 egg atop soubise on each plate. Using small sharp knife, cut 1-inch-long slit in each egg (yolk will spill out). Spoon small dollop of caviar atop yolks, dividing equally. Sprinkle with small pinch smoked salt. Drizzle 1/2 teaspoon vinegar alongside soubise.

Soft-Cooked Eggs with Onion Soubise, Caviar, and Potato Chips

Shanghai Fried Noodles

We went to San Francisco for the day to apartment search and stayed with my sister and her husband at their new house in the Haight. As much as I have loved living in Napa this summer, there really isn't a lot of ethnic food at your finger tips (with the exclusion of Mexican, of course). So when my sister asked me what I was in the mood for I didn't hesitate to say Asian. Turns out that she has a fantastic spot around the corner where dishes run in single digits called Citrus Club. This place really hit the spot and portions ran very large so you get a huge bang for your buck. I ordered the Shanghai Noodles with Flank Steak so I did a quick search and pulled this recipe from Food Network so I can try to make it at home. I heart udon noodles.

Shanghai Fried Noodles
Ingredients
1 pound fresh Shanghai noodles, or Japanese udon noodles
2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon cornstarch
12 ounces flank steak, sliced into 1/4-inch strips
3 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon minced ginger
1/2 teaspoon minced green onions, plus 1 cup cut-on-a-bias green onions
3 cups julienned Napa cabbage
1/2 teaspoon minced jalapeno

Directions
In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the noodles until al dente, about 8 minutes. Rinse under cold running water and drain well. Set aside. In a small bowl, combine the rice wine, hoisin, and cornstarch. Add the beef, toss to coat, and marinate for 15 minutes. In another bowl, combine the dark soy, soy sauce and sugar, and stir well to dissolve the sugar. Place a wok over a high heat and add 1 tablespoon of the peanut oil, swirling to coat. When hot, add the garlic, ginger, and minced green onions, and cook, stirring quickly, for 10 seconds. Add the beef and stir-fry for 3 minutes. Add the cabbage and stir-fry for 3 minutes.

Transfer to a platter and return the wok to a high heat. Swirl the remaining tablespoon of peanut oil in the wok and once hot, add the noodles to the pan and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the sliced
green onions and jalapeno and sauce and toss all for 1 minute. Add the beef and stir to heat
through. Serve immediately.

Shanghai Fried Noodles