Month: May 2009

Kirk has his rotation, and Cathy has her favorites, but today, ed (from Yuma) wants to share info about his #1.

I guess I should begin this post by being completely honest.  Yummy Yummy is my favorite restaurant on earth.  Don't misunderstand me.  It is far from the best restaurant I've been to or even the best that I have eaten at recently.  It is far from unique.  I suspect that there is a similar restaurant in many cities with a Cantonese community.

It also is not my favorite restaurant because of  its sticky tables, minimal decor, or downscale location nearly hidden in a corner of Palm Plaza on Avenue A: Instead, it is the food that brings me back to this place again and again.  So I want to share with all of you a guide to my favorite spot - so that you can enjoy the place almost as much as I do. Warning, this post is LONG.

 To take one example, the kitchen shows itself to be excellent at deep frying.  These two fried chicken entrées are among our favorites. In neither case is the chicken breaded because the chicken is fried so well that its exterior becomes fully crunchy: The yummy yummy chicken, the top picture, is chunks of boneless fried chicken topped with vegetables and crushed peanuts.  I actually prefer the second of these dishes, simply called fried chicken and vegetables. Here the back half of a chicken is chopped into pieces, deep-fried on the bone, and topped with vegetables and a standard Chinese sauce. Like fried chicken and gravy — only better.

The frying technique even enlivens old standards.  For years, I resisted ordering such an "ordinary" dish as sweet and sour pork, but when a friend wanted it, I got to taste it — and enjoyed it thoroughly.  While the sauce breaks no new ground, the pork chunks are perfectly cooked — crispy crisp with no residual grease, each bite beginning with a crunch: This skill at the deep fryer also shows up in the tofu dishes, which will always be served fried unless you specify steamed tofu: I still remember dragging a colleague in here one evening and ordering a tofu dish to share as he was moaning and complaining that he hated tofu.  Two bites only and his attitude shifted 180°. Why? The fried tofu has a perfect combination of creamy soft interior and thin skin with just the right bite to it.

Of course, discussing the find tofu dishes here brings up another aspect of the food at Yummy Yummy that makes the place a winner — they know how to use spicy chilies.  Look at these two tofu dishes: The plate at the top is tofu and beef, cooked spicy, and the bottom one is tofu and vegetables, also prepared spicy. The family that owns the restaurant was born in Guangdong, but lived for several years in Mexicali, where Mary, the owner/manager/waitstaff, had an uncle who owned a Chinese restaurant.  There the family learned Spanish and how to cook with dried red chilies.

The kitchen will also prepare spicy steamed tofu dishes. Recently, I ordered spicy steamed tofu with bbqed pork and received this: Wonderful spicy sauce and creamy tofu. Adding to the textural contrasts of the tofu, shiitakes, and chewy pork was the crunch of strips of pickled veggie (huh? never had that here before). But the slight sour tangy crunch was perfect in this item. Not as good as Kirk's mapo tofu, but about the best spicy soft tofu dish I've ever had at a restaurant.

In fact, most of the dishes on the menu, such as those spicy tofu dishes, can be prepared picante, even if that option is not listed as  on the menu.  I prefer the seafood combination plate made spicy: While the sliced fish balls and squid pieces are always perfect, sometimes the small shrimp and fish pieces need the added flavor of the chili peppers.  I also think the krab here, the type that tends to be pasty rather than stringy, tastes better spiced as well.

The kung pao squid (also known as squid in spicy sauce) is almost always excellent, the tender chewy squid contrasting nicely with the crunch of onion and celery, the mild seafood flavor lit up by the picante chilies: Another favorite is the Kung pao chicken.  Usually the tender chicken is highlighted by crunchy celery, water chestnut, baby corn, carrot, and onions: This dish is always a winner and shows off the deep intensity of the chili flavor that the restaurant is capable of.

Another of my favorite items is pork ribs in black bean sauce. On the old menu, it was listed as pork ribs with chilies in black bean sauce, and that is how I always order it. This entree brings together chunks of pork ribs, fresh yellow chilies, and outstanding black beans: Until Kirk provided me with a detailed description of which black beans to purchase at the Ranch 99 market, I was never aware that there was a wide variation from one type to another.  Now I understand why the dishes at Yummy Yummy that feature black beans are always so good.  Their beans are deeply flavored, soft in texture, and rich with dark chocolate flavor notes.

The black bean chicken with chilies is also outstanding: Another dish that uses black beans here is their version of shrimp in lobster sauce:
Unlike the bland and goopy versions often served, this preparation focuses on the flavor of the shrimp and vegetables, lightly highlighted by the eggy black bean sauce. Note, this dish is found nowhere on the current menu.  When the menu was redesigned five years ago or so, shrimp and lobster sauce was left off.  But it is still available.

Which leads me to another point about Yummy Yummy. If possible, the kitchen will cook off menu, and the menu does not reflect all of the items that are usually available.  For example, the menu simply lists Chinese vegetables as an option.  Occasionally, they have none, but sometimes Chinese vegetables can be baby bok choy in a ginger and garlic sauce: Or baby bok choy with barbecued pork (or with Chinese sausage or with beef or with chicken — however you want): Or bitter melon prepared with beef and black beans:
Or Chinese greens (Mary usually calls them choi sum) in foo-yee sauce:
Or green beans (or long beans, when available) in foo yee: This was an especially great dish. So good that I had to take a picture after I had already eaten some of it. These veggie preparations are such a treat for me that I almost always ask what is available that day.

Mary is also willing to prepare vegetables that I bring from supermarkets, from San Diego, or from the Asian market in town.  In February and March, which is our local asparagus season, I will often bring in asparagus for the kitchen to prepare.  Once recently, I had brought in some special dried Chinese mushrooms, and I was served this: Although I have ordered many dishes from the kitchen using steamed tofu (remember that fried tofu is the default option here), I have usually asked for the steamed tofu in a spicy sauce as shown earlier.  This creation, however, focused on the silken smoothness of the tofu, which played against the chewiness of the mushrooms.  The delicate and woodsy flavor of the shrooms added a rich subtlety to the tofu. This was another dish that I had never eaten before.

I just want to end this long post with pictures of a few other standard dishes that most of us enjoy at Yummy Yummy.  For example, the garlic shrimp (this is at least a triple order)– marinated in garlic and Worcestershire sauce — make a good appetizer: While the chicken chow mein here is boring, the special chow mein is highlighted by a mixture of vegetables and meat:
Similarly, the chicken chop suey (one of the best choices on the $4.25 specials menu) is not as good as the fancier special chop suey:
 Wonderfully tasty sprouts, and I particularly like the anise flavored Chinese sausage in the "special" dishes.

If you like beef, the Mongolian beef (no scallions, oddly enough) and the sweeter pineapple beef (pictured here) are both good choices: Beef, chicken, and shrimp are all available with the standard vegetables (usually with alot of broccoli) and are good and reasonably healthy: While not a favorite of most of my friends, the chicken and abalone is one I like because of the subtle blending of the chicken flavor with that of the canned abalone strips: As with the sweet and sour pork, I had never tried egg foo yung here until friends at one of our Yummy Yummy feasts suggested it.  It is quite good also: Perhaps now, if you have read through this long post, you begin to understand why Yummy Yummy is my favorite restaurant. All the basic Cantonese standards are done well here. I get my Asian food Jones taken care of, my addiction assuaged. The kitchen is willing to work with customers and vary dishes on occasion. Virtually all items are less than $10, and the menu has specials for less than $5. Even though I have eaten at Yummy Yummy or taken food to go  around 400 times, I still look forward to eating there again. If anything  happened to this restaurant, my life would be impacted severely.  I would not eat nearly as well, nor party as hearty.

Which brings up one last point.  As I have become more familiar with the restaurant and Mary has become more familiar with me and my friends, she has been allowing us to bring wine and wine glasses for parties (in fact, my only previous YY post was about a meatless feast here back in 2007). I like to let Mary know in advance if a large group is coming and about any special requests we might have.  So now, about once a month, a varied group of us will get together and feast; this lets us all taste a range of interesting dishes (and wine and friendship are good things too).  Yummy Yummy is also about the cheapest wining and dining experience in town. And one of the best — at any price.

Yummy Yummy, 2241 S. Ave A, Ste 23, Palm Plaza, Yuma AZ 85364, 928-376-0419. Open 10:30-8:30 Daily