mmm-yoso – Page 502 – As in, yoso-silly, yoso-hungry, yoso-full, or best of all; mmm-delici-yoso!!!!! A San Diego based food and travel blog. An Ex-Pat Kama'aina and Friends explore food, restaurants, and travel from San Diego and points beyond.

Ozoni (That only kinda sucks….)

January 6, 2008 mmm-yoso Recipes

"You’re not going to make me eat ozoni again, are you….’cause your ozoni sucks…"

So sayeth the Missus, when I told Her of my plans for New Years breakfast. And I wouldn’t blame Her for feeling that way, my previous attempts at Ozoni did indeed "suck". Though I did have ozoni every New Years breakfast growing up, it was one of those things that I never really tried making until I moved to the mainland. My previous attempts at what I thought my Mom made were pathetic, and after searching out recipes, became even more confused and pathetic over the years. For it seems, there as many different ways for making ozoni as there are stars in the heaven….chicken stock, dashi, ginger, no chicken stock, no dashi, no ginger, bamboo shoots, kamaboko, shoyu(soy sauce), no bamboo shoots, no kamaboko, no shoyu….the only common thread is mochi! So after being spun around, and confused, I stopped making it all together. Until I received an email from a FOY(friend of yoso), AlanN who inquired as to why I’ve never posted on Ozoni…it being such an important New Year’s dish….to which I had to reply, tail between my legs, "because, ahem, my Ozoni sucks…."

At which time I became obsessed with making ozoni "that only kinda sucks." Driving my 2 existing braincells into overdrive, I worked trying to remember the flavors of Mom’s. The only thing I really remembered was chicken broth, well at least I thought it was chicken broth…..but I also remembered the broth being very clear…..which the canned stuff is surely not. So a few days before New Years, I made a nice clear chicken stock from some carcasses I had in the freezer…..and I was off. While putting everything together, it hit me…this wasn’t one of those Chicken stock OR dashi versions….it was a chicken stock AND dashi version. Which is what I made. When the Missus tasted the Ozoni She told me, "not bad, this only kinda sucks……." After so many really terrible versions, I’ll take what I can get!

Ozoni(That only kinda sucks…)

8 Cups Clear Chicken Stock
1 Tsp Kosher Salt
1 Tsp Soy Sauce
1 Tsp Dashi no Moto
6 Mochi
Slices of Kamaboko (fish cake)
Mizuna, Shungiku, or Horenso(spinach)
Thinly Sliced Daikon and Carrots (optional)

1-Combine first 3 ingredients and bring to a boil, remove from heat, add dashi no moto, combine well, and strain.If you really want to be like my Mom strain through a coffee filter – I didn’t do this.
2-Bring broth back to a simmer and add daikon and carrots(do not boil).
3-Broil Mochi.
4-Place mochi in a bowl, and poke holes into mochi to allow for saturation.
5-Add kamaboko, and greens to bowl, and pour soup over ingredients.

This past New Years eve was a bit different for us, for the first time in eons, we actually went to a party. And after stuffing ourselves silly, we decided to keep our New Years days meal, "light(er)".

So for once, nothing fried, and no rice on New Years…that’s a first!

Soup Weather! A revisit to Palomino’s-yes, soup but not pho.

January 5, 2008 Cathy Mexican Restaurants, Taco Shops, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog. The bloggers are friends. The bloggings vary and are mildly interesting, informative and sometimes bizarre. Today, its Cathy, with her blogger-ish perspective of mildly interesting food.

Hi again. We are having lots of rain storms this weekend. If you are daring to venture out of the house and driving about and maybe want soup, but *not* pho…well, there are options, you know. Here are a few choices. Really. If you are going to any taco shop, you may have noticed (and ignored) the “soup” part of the menu. This weekend (and any time, actually) would be the perfect time to try some.

You may recall I did a post about non-pho soup abou this time last year, but that restaurant (Los Michoacaños) is in Santee and so this time I am doing a more central location, and showing more of the variety Palominos has to offer, just on the “Soups” (or “Caldos”) side of the menu.

There are 11 caldos listed on the menu on the wall above the cash register and I will only show you five, however know the “basics” of pozole and menudo have been extensively enjoyed by The Mister and myself, are plentiful and really good.

These first two photographs are of Caldo Talapeño ($5.99)..Yes, chicken soup…but there are three “chicken soup” choices listed on the menu board-the bottom one that is simply called “chicken soup” for $5.99 is just the “American” menu listing of Caldo de Pollo-the third soup I will be telling you about-below.

This soup was made with all chicken breast meat and had hominy as the starch.

As you can see, a LOT of chicken breast meat. There was no “add in” plate to top this soup. There was a chipotle pepper in it and that added enough spice. The usual vegetables- carrot, and celery as well as zucchini are in large chunks and barely cooked (i.e, not mushy). Also, there were a smattering of garbanzo beans, same size as the hominy at the bottom of the bowl. All in all, a good, home made chicken soup stock base topped with sliced fresh avocado.

The Caldo de Camaron(Shrimp Soup)($8.50) is an absolute delight! There are more than 15 of these large, juicy plump, flavorful shrimp in the bowl and the broth, tomato based, was a deeply rich and flavorful seafood stock and quite filling. The vegetables in the soup were carrots and celery. A simple and wonderful meal.

This side plate of cilantro, onions, limes, pepper and dried herbs(a mix or marjoram, thyme and some oregano) as well as a choice of corn or flour tortillas accompanied this soup. You can mix in at the start, or after you are eating. I usually enjoy the initial soup “plain” and then do add ins, to give myself a whole new soup later in the meal.

This is the Caldo de Pollo ($5.99), yes, a different, more basic chicken soup which comes with the sides plate, above, as well as the tortillas and the cup of rice as the starch, although, as you can see, there are corn, carrot, zucchini and potatoes in the soup…as well as a *lot* of dark, flavorful thigh meat. I really kind of was hoping this soup would have had more broth, but am not complaining. It is the same base stock as the first chicken soup (caldo de talapeño) pictured above.

Caldo de Res (Beef Soup) ($6.25) By far, the deepest, richest broth of those shown here. Plenty of non-fatty stew beef, potatoes, carrots, zucchini, corn and cabbage, served with tortillas and rice. This broth will satisfy you even more than the chicken broth if you are losing your taste buds due to a cold or flu. There also was almost too much meat in the bowl. Again, not complaining.

I’ll just end this post with the traditional Albondigas Soup ($5.99). At least five of these large meatballs, made with rice, celery and onion as well as the dry spice mix(again, mostly oregano) and in the mix, corn, potato, zucchini, cabbage and carrots. The broth of the albondigas is the same as the pozole broth(not pictred and usually what I have for breakfast when I come here)…kind of what I call “hollow” and absolutely the only broths here that I feel I have to add in those side items to give it a deeper flavor- the lime automatically enriches the flavor and the onions, cilantro and pepper flakes give the depth needed, especially on cold, wet days such as are in our midst right now.

To summarize: there are five main broths for ten soups: chicken, beef, seafood, the pozole/albondigas broth and the menudo. All are used for homemade, flavorful and filling soups. So, don’t be afraid to enjoy the soup at any of your local taco shops – not at all your everyday “Taco Shop” meal. If you are on Clairmont Mesa near the Registrar of Voters office, stop in at Palominos. Parking is tight at lunchtime, but not in the morning or after 3 p.m.

Palomino’s #2 9353 Clairmont Mesa Blvd, suite I San Diego 92123 (858) 292-8470 Mon-Fri 6:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m., Sat 6-9, Sun 6-8

Soltan Banoo

January 3, 2008 mmm-yoso Persian Restaurants

**** Soltan Banoo has closed

Every few months, I'm able to break away, and have a nice lunch with the Missus. On most occasions, I'm still in a bit of a rush, so lunch will usually consist of soup from Mien Trung, or something similar. Still, there are those days….when the planets seemed aligned, which are too few and far between for my tastes, where the Missus and I are able to have a more leisurely meal. Over the last 6 months, we had the pleasure of having lunch at Soltan Banoo twice. Located on Park Avenue, Soltan Banoo, is a small, cozy, colorful restaurant which seems to embrace you as you enter.

In a former incarnation, Soltan Banoo was the Cafe Caspian, the tiny hole-in-the wall across the street next to El Zarape. Mahin, the warm and welcoming Owner of Soltan Banoo, has always been on hand when we've had our meals there, and is quick to explain the various dishes on the menu. You can tell that there is a great deal of pride in the food that Soltan Banoo serves.

The menu is small but diverse, with an interesting sampling of dishes, ranging from the usual(hummus) to more fusion fare(Salmon and tofu dishes). But to us, Soltan Banoo excels in the various stews on the menu. Like the Friday lunch special, Gourmeh Sabzi(with lamb – lunch $8.95):

This wonderful savory stew of greens, scallions, kidney beans, and preserved lemon, was nicely flavored without being overpowering. The quite generous potion of lamb was very tender. The basmati rice with saffron-rice drizzled on it was cooked to perfection. The stew was not salty, but still full of flavor. We noticed right away that the fare at Soltan Banoo was on the lighter side. The Missus had picked a winner, that fared better than my Koubideh Kabob(lunch – $8.95):

Though this was a good amount of food for the price, especially for lunch, I found the Koubideh, while moist, to be under seasoned, and a bit on the bland side. Not wanting to salt the meat, I ended up hitting it with a good amount of Sumac. The shirazi salad (cucumber-tomato salad), was nice, though again, a bit under salted. The roasted tomato was not ripe, and thus very bland. Overall, this was a pretty large amount of food for lunch.

And that Gourmeh Sabzi was enough to draw us back for another lunch several months later. This time I had my eye on a few other items. I started with a cup of the Ash Anar, Pomegranate Soup ($2.95):

The sweet-tangy-sour soup initially shocked my tastebuds, but the more I ate…the more I enjoyed it. It went well with the slices of pita provided. The soup was both hearty and delicate at the same time…very nice, I'd have it again! The Missus's Chinese-based tastebuds also suffered from the same shock, but didn't recover…….

I had the Baghali Polo (stewed lamb with dill-fava bean rice – lunch – $8.95):

How good was it? Well, once the Missus saw my plate, She grabbed the lamb shank, and sucked the meat off it like it was a chicken drumstick….the only point of reference I have is Fred Flintstone…… Did I mention that the Missus loves Fava Beans? It was gone…totally gone….

The Missus had ordered the Zereshk Polo with Lamb Shank($9.95):

The sweet combination of dried cranberries, barberries(aka berberis), orange zest, and carrots proved a bit too much for the Missus. The lamb was very soft and tender, but lost in all the strong sweet-sour flavors. I didn't mind it too much, though I did think that the dish went a bit far over to the sweet side, but that is probably based on my taste preferences.

I've found the fare at Soltan Banoo to be lighter, and less salty than what I've previously experienced. The service was very warm and friendly, though it is not a place for a quick lunch. We adore the Owner, Mahin; on our first visit, she came over and chatted about the food, and knowing we weren't from the neighborhood, asked us if we'd be back….our answer was a definite "yes". When we returned a few weeks later, She greeted us with a warm smile, and said, "you know, everyone says they will come back, but you really returned……" And we will return……when the planets are in alignment again!

Soltan Banoo
4645 Park Boulevard
San Diego, CA 92116

Ba Ren Seasonal Menu

January 2, 2008 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants

**** Ba Ren has closed

I think it's been about nine months since I even mentioned Ba Ren. So hopefully it's safe to just do a quick post on a few items on the seasonal menu. Ba Ren usually has a few items in Chinese on the placard at each table. Most items are seasonal, or just "experiments" that the Chef and Owners decided to try out. Some, like the Dry Cooked Short Ribs and Twice Cooked Fish become regular menu items…others like the Bamboo Pith Fungus and Egg have (thankfully) disappeared.

The Missus and I have quite a few dishes that we enjoy, sort of a rotation within our rotation, so it is often difficult for us to make room for new dishes. But since there were a few items that looked interesting, we went ahead and spoke to Wendy, one of the Owners about them.

The first item on the placard, is a sizzling short rib dish($12.99), but Wendy told us to try it with lamb, which is what we did:

The lamb was prepared well, very soft and tender, if a bit on the "mild" side with regard to gaminess. The peppers were super spicy, but the brown sauce, with lots of black pepper, was more on the sweet side. This dish, a bit heavy on the oil, was just okay by Ba Ren standards.

The third item on the placard was a revelation, and by far the best of the items we had. It was a slight riff on the Beijing style Sweet Corn with Pine Nuts($9.99):

Instead of stir frying corn kernels and pine nuts, this version had the kernels enveloped in a light batter that seemed to enhance the sweetness of the corn. Toasted pungent and buttery pine nuts were sprinkled on the top, an excellent foil to the sweet corn. One thing interesting about this dish, as light as the batter seemed to be, it was very rich, and not only from the pine nuts. We felt stuffed after 4-5 bites! The Missus mentioned this to Wendy, who told us that 5 boiled duck egg yolks, and 2 boiled chicken egg yolks are whipped into the batter to give it "body" and richness. So filling we could barely finish half of it….funny thing , it was still pretty good after spending a night in the frig, something that you really can't say about most fried foods. This one is a keeper…..

I found the inclusion of Kwai Fei Chicken(6th item on the placard – $10.99) to be fascinating. Kwai Fei Chicken in my previous experience has been a cold chicken dish, served with a ginger-scallion dipping sauce. This version was totally different:

This version was a stir fry in a black pepper-brown sauce. I thought the flavor was fairly good, the chicken, though the bones made eating somewhat ponderous was fine. I really enjoyed the large slices of garlic, which tasted very sweet. This was not a spicy dish in the least.

And finally, as a follow-up to this post, the duck tongue. The dish listed on the placard(the last item), is duck tongue with ginger, but Wendy told the Missus to try it with Red Peppers($16.99). And so enter the tongue…..

The dish, prepared much in the manner of Chongqing Chili dishes had a good bit of heat. The duck tongue on the other hand, was ummm…..interesting. First off there's a very hard cartilage in the middle of each small tongue, so be careful or you might break your teeth, or otherwise injure yourself. You wouldn't want to make a visit to your local ER, with a duck tongue stuck through your tongue….it might make for an interesting story though. The flavor is a bit kidney like, dark, oily, and gamey…a bit too gamey even for me. Another item off the I'll try anything once list.

There are a few other items on the placard, like Beef Tendon with Tomato Sauce, so if those items interest you….. We have so many favorites at Ba Ren, sometimes it's hard to break away and try something new, but you never know……

Ba Ren
4957 Diane Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

The Very Last Day of 2007-and a preview of 2008! Behind the scenes at the Tournament of Roses! Oh, food, too.

December 31, 2007 Cathy Festivals & Events, Los Angeles County, Road Trip, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog about food..and what some of us do to get to eat said food. Cathy is having her annual adventure North of San Diego and you get to vicariously enjoy!

Hi. It is the 31st of December and here we are. We made it through 2007, relatively unscathed and 2008 is right there staring at us. We have to learn a little different way to type or write the date; new calendars are out on the walls and on the desk, filled with so many blank pages, papers can be filed and gotten ready to start inputting into the new Tax Program on your computer, or in a folder to hand to your Tax Guy or Tax Gal…and still, there is time to relax, because the the first day of the year is a holiday! A lot of people have breakfast at home with family or friends and watch the Rose Parade on television. A spectacular event, planned almost a year in advance, yet assembled only a few weeks before it actually can happen, because every visible portion of each float must be covered with something that is, or was alive…thousands of volunteers have been working on the float decorations, sleeping overnight in Pasadena, waking to sticky, glue covered hands and clothing and going at it the next day…and yet, nobody will see these lovely pieces of art and architecture until tomorrow on television…except for you, dear readers!

Oh yes, The Mister and have this on our agenda every year…We just are skipping the sticky glue covered hands part this year. Yes. we merely woke up about 4 a.m. today and drove north to Pasadena, to have breakfast with the Pasadena Host Lions Club at the Historic Castle Green Hotel and then take a VIP tour of the final float preparations.

The Hotel is now mostly an apartment building and the eating area is still used for parties and such. We got some food from the buffet: Kind of standard stuff; scrambled eggs, potatoes, fruit, muffins, danish, ham and sausage. One trip only…coffee, cranberry and orange juice too. We didn’t care- we were here to take the VIP tour of the final decoration of the 2008 Rose Parade Floats! I am trying to give you views you will not see on television. This 25,000 pound Indian (Native American) float will be one you see on television, mid parade.

Remember, every square inch of every float has to be covered with something that is or was alive. The smells up close are wondrous…and also glue-like.

This is the back of the Lions Club International Float.. and this is what it looks like from the front. As I said, every square inch on every float must be filled in, and judging was about to happen in less than three hours. If you look close, you can see glue on the back of these Marguerite flower heads and the blank space they were being placed onto the float just behind. Other flowers had been cut and placed in water vials and were also ready to be used for ‘spot fills’. OK, here are some other floats…for a sneak peek! AND SO ANYHOW…It was lunch time and we were hungry, but the streets of Pasadena were starting to line up with people claiming a spot along the parade route and we wanted to stay away from those crowds, so jumped on the freeway, started heading East, and decided the"Covina" exit at Citrus Avenue sounded nice…and we saw this sign in a non-descript mall…and stopped The menu was simple- So. we ordered…The pastrami sandwich ($5.25).

Very large, lots of meat, juicy, nicely spicy(not too much pepper), good fresh bread. No jus to dip in, however, there was enough juice on the bread to make it wonderful as a last bite. I wanted the gyros sandwich special ($6.99) included fries and a medium drink…the gyros was wonderful, meat cut in thick slices from a spit and perfectly juicy and flavorful, topped with a tangy tzatziki sauce, chopped onions and chopped tomatoes. In my quest for wonderful onion rings and knowing they are pretty much always perfect from these Mediterranean places that have gyros, I ordered the SMALL size ($2.59). I was not disappointed in the size, nor the quality and spice of the breading and crispiness; I was merely disappointed in myself that I could not finish it all…

P&G Superburgers 1030 N. Citrus Avenue, Covina open 7 am-11 pm, seven days

We wish everyone out there a Very Happy 2008! (or "2000 ate" as ed so succinctly put it) Have a safe day!

Holiday Bowl 2007-a great tailgate, with 4 hours and 17 minutes of game interrupting it

December 30, 2007 Cathy Festivals & Events, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso is just a little blog about food and things related to food. Today, Cathy is sharing a small adventure.

Hi, again, everyone! Hope you are having a nice time during this time of many holidays and parties and anticipating the New Year. The Mister and I have one annual event we *must* attend – the Holiday Bowl- one of 31 college football Bowl Games which are played by chosen ranked teams almost daily starting on December 20 and culminating in #1 versus #2 in the nation playing each other for the title of "National Champion" on January 7, 2008.

Truth be told, we don’t really care about the game much; we go to attend a tailgate in the parking lot, with about 100 of our closest friends from around the world (retired and active military as well as Lions, Rotarians and Optimists) not many of whom remember our names; they just know we bring the Garlic Beef.

About 18 pounds this year. It is small end rib roast, which was on sale at Albertsons, coated with a paste made of chopped garlic (about 5 pounds), oregano and paprika, held together with olive oil, salt and pepper and flashed for about 20 minutes in a 500° oven, then turned down to 325° for about 20 minutes a pound. We made 6 pounds of rolls to go with, and served with several horseradishes and mustards. (This "Atomic" horseradish is more pickled, or Kim Chee-ish in flavor and low in heat. One of the ingredients is parsnips)

So, anyhow, this year, 120 people brought some sort of food-and drink- to share, and we caught up on the past year when we really did not see each other much.

This table had mostly desserts. That bowl was filled with chopped fresh fruit and sangria. The yellow sheet pan in front was the most wonderful Italian ricotta based cheesecake which had rum soaked raisins in it (I have the recipe)…there were a few "regifted" items also, like Kirkland (Costco) brand Belgian chocolate cups, which were wonderful, and many homemade cookies and fudges.

There were sandwiches and pizza from Filippi’s, turkey wraps from Costco.

As you can see, a variety of items to share… there were three different "seven layer dips" and chips also, as well as barbecued and fried chicken…shrimp, sweet potato casserole, pasta salad, cole slaw…raw veggies and dip…you know FOOD!

This year, Mr. T could "only" find a 24 pound turkey to smoke starting at 3 a.m. the night before (it was still steaming hot when he cut into it).

Mr. T’s turkey is always stuffed with his famous rice stuffing, which I crave on this annual basis.

I am so sorry; I cannot rotate this photo on my iBook or on the PC, so turn your head.

All in all, there were eight tables packed solid with food from our group,

Along with three portable grills…

So, at about 4 p.m., we had to pack up everything and go inside the stadium, looking back and the full parking lot then finding our seats and watching the opening ceremonies (the unfurling of the U.S. flag across the entire length of the playing field, by the U.S. Marines, the flyover of the four F/A-18 Hornets from the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar) Then the coin toss, the start of the game (when it was 53° inside the stadium…up until-finally- the end of the first quarter, when it was 40° inside the stadium) (there were a tremendous amount of game delays due to reviews by the officials), to sideline events (the photo of the awarding of the Weinerschnitzel Weiner National Championship Winner is one of those up there) to -finally- half time and the Marching bands, during which the Texas Band did a very nice routine in a traditional manner and the Arizona State Band did some unusual musical tributes, including Guns N Roses "Sweet Child of Mine" and Lynard Skynard "Freebird" done with marching band instrumentation..and finally the High School marching bands joining together in a tribute to the 70’s in a disco themed performance and ending in fireworks.

Usually the football game is close all the way, but this time, the University of Texas had the highest scoring (21 points) first quarter in 27 (of 30) Holiday Bowl games. So, anyhow, the game went *really* long (4 hours, 17 minutes) and a bunch of our group (as well as most of the stadium crowd) left before the game was over, but not all of us!

Yep; back out to the parking lot for leftovers…but since so many people had left, we "only" had three tables of leftover food to share.

and gallons of hot apple cider. Unfortunately, the people who usually bring the turkey chili could not make it this year, and the people who bring the hot water for the instant coffee (and Irish Whiskey additive), forgot the hot water thermoses at home.

We enjoyed our leftovers and hot beverages as we waited for the parking lot to empty.

I hope all of you have enjoyed your holidays also. One more to go!

Another Year

December 29, 2007 mmm-yoso yoso-silly

Is almost in the books. Looking back it’s been a pretty good one for new eats in San Diego. Here’s my fearsome foursome of new restaurants that opened this past year:

Early in the year Tsuruhashi opened up, and brought us some good yakiniku.

Tsuruhashi Japanese BBQ
3904 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

In April Latin Chef opened up, serving up tasty Peruvian from a tiny shop in Pacific Beach:

The tasty Cebiches and Tiradito provided a delish segue for our trip to Peru. It was nice to see that Latin Chef’s Owner, Freddy, has now acquired the shop next door, doubling the restaurant’s floor space.

Latin Chef
1142 Garnet Ave
San Diego, CA 92109

During the summer, San Diego’s first Vietnamese Crawfish restaurant, Crab Hut opened.

I’m guessing business must be good, since a few months back a second Crawfish boil opened close by.

Crab Hut
4646 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

And in early September, Mongolian Hot Pot finally made it’s way South, and Little Sheep opened up.

Little Sheep Mongolian Hot Pot & Grill
4718 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117

Sounds like a pretty good year to me! So tell us, what were your favorite new restaurants that opened this past year?

"All of my dreams are fading fast…."

"Another year."

"Each time I think it’s gonna last……"

"It disappears."

Another Year – Ian Gomm

Can you guess what this is?

December 27, 2007 mmm-yoso yoso-silly

*** And the answer is….. Duck Tongue!

Congrats to those with correct guesses as of 5pm today:

Kaire Rasu
Ed (not from Yuma)
Kim
Kimmy
Kelly

I can’t believe that many of the guesses came from the, "ahem" wrong end of the animal!

So where was this from? That’ll be coming up shortly!

Thanks for playing everyone!

I haven’t done one of these in a while. So let’s have at it, can you guess what is lying on the plate below?

Just as with previous "guess it" contests, first 5 Emails I receive that guess the correct item, I’ll send you a cup of Peet’s on me!

Make sure you email me your guess, at mmm-yoso@hotmail.com, and make sure your email address is a valid one.

As usual 1 winner per IP address. This one is easy, don’t give away the answer!

I’ll reveal the answer tomorrow.

Two Dishes at Shanghai City

December 26, 2007 ed fromyuma Chinese Restaurants, What Ed Eats -You too can be like Ed!

mmm-yoso!!! is Kirk's wonderful food blog, mostly centered on San Diego eating, but sometimes Kirk goes out of town. And sometimes he lets one of his friends contribute. Today it's ed from Yuma posting about a recent meal at Shanghai City in San Diego.

Soon after moving to Yuma in 2000, I began to develop cravings for seafood and for a variety of Asian cuisine that was simply not available in the southwest corner of Arizona. Having lived in San Diego previously, I knew that I could satisfy those cravings in America's finest city. Of course, this was in the days before Kirk's wonderful blog got started, so I was mostly on my own at trying to locate great food.

On one trip, I got real lucky. I wandered into Shanghai City, heard the friendly waitperson describe a fish fillet special and asked her to pair that with some sort of the vegetable oriented appetizer. While I have long forgotten the exact specifics of the meal, I remember it being a very positive experience. On a couple of subsequent visits to this restaurant over the years, I have always been pleased with the friendly and accommodating service, so unlike the rather brusque indifference that one sometimes encounters in other Chinese restaurants.

However, it has been a long time since my last visit because it seems like I always have new and exciting destinations and/or old reliables that I just have to eat at. But on my most recent visit, I was determined to go back to Shanghai City for some fish and something else interesting.

As before, I was very impressed by the friendly service. The young woman who took my order was smiling, personable, and kind of leaning up against the wall as we talked about my choices. I finally decided on dried tofu with wild malantou herb (whatever the heck that is) and also chose braised fish tail, a dish that had intrigued me on the menu at the Green Valley restaurant in San Gabriel.

The friendly young woman made sure that I knew that fish tails have bones in them, and I assured her that I had encountered fish bones before.

Soon the appetizer arrived. When I looked at it, the plate triggered a memory flashback: this was the same vegetarian appetizer that I had had six or seven years ago. It looks like this (please do not click to enlarge):

As I began to taste the dish in front of me, I realized why it was such a positive memory. Instantly, the aroma and taste of aromatic sesame oil filled my mouth. Even more impressive was the complex mouth feel of the dish. As you can see from this close-up, the appetizer contains finely diced dried tofu, and a chopped green herb, both leaves and stems: The diced tofu is wonderfully chewy in a good way. The crunchy green stems add a contrastive textual note to the dish. The flavor of the herb itself is pronounced, if not overwhelming. I would say that it resembled a strong parsley flavor, but I'm sure there is someone out there with a more skilled palate than mine who is thinking to her/himself, "no, it doesn't taste at all like parsley."

Then the main course swam over to my table and landed in front of me. So, I thought, this is what braised fish tail looks like, four large conjoined and elongated chunks with no actual finny tail:
I have to admit that I approached the dish with a certain degree of trepidation. I was afraid that all that dark sauce was there to mask some unpleasant flavor and would overpower the fish. However, as soon as my serving spoon encountered the flesh of that fish tail, all my reservations were gone: Obviously, I am no expert on braised fish tail, but after beginning to devour this dish, I wanted to become an expert. The flesh was meltingly tender and flaky. It had a clean and mild flavor. The smooth skin with a thin subcutaneous layer of fat was rich and succulent. The thick sauce, which looked so heavy, never overwhelmed the fish, the sauce tasting mostly of ginger, bits of which would crunch occasionally in my mouth, with a light sweet soy sauce flavor in the background.

All through my meal, various members of the waitstaff would come over and ask me if everything was okay and if I needed anything. I tried to discover what kind of fish it was, but all I learned was the name was too hard to say in English and that it was a large freshwater fish something like a carp, but not a carp.

As you can see by the remains of my meal, I liked it:

At the end of the meal, I received my final satisfaction, as one of the friendly waitpeople came over and asked again how I liked my dinner. I said I loved it. She said, "not too many Americans like that dish." (She meant, I think, that not too many Americans try the dish – I can't imagine anyone not liking it.) This allowed me to use one of my favorite lines. While moving my hand in front of my face, I said, "American face," and then moving my hand over my happy belly, I finished, "Chinese stomach."

Shanghai City, 3860 Convoy St, San Diego,CA 92111
619-278-5883

Yuan Style Pan Fried Duck Breasts & Other “Stuff”

December 24, 2007 mmm-yoso Cooking, Recipes

Due to some terrible scheduling, I’m going to have to work on Christmas Day…..bummer. So the Missus and I decided to have our Christmas lunch/dinner (lunner?? dinch??) today. One of the items I made was a real easy pan-glazed duck breast dish, Kamo no Yuan-yaki. Yuan-yaki, is normally a grilling technique used for chicken or fish briefly marinated in a soy sauce-mirin-sake-citrus(Yuzu) marinade. Why Yuan? From what I could gather "Yuan" was a Tea Ceremony Master from the Edo period, and this dish is named after him. This preparation is a bit different; I didn’t marinade the duck, opting for crisp duck skin, with a nice glaze.

Kamo no Yuan-Yaki

2 Boneless Duck Breasts with Skin
4 Tb Mirin
3 Tb Soy Sauce
2 Tb Sake
2-3 slices lemon rind(or even better Yuzu!)

1 – Place the duck breasts skin side up on a cutting board and score. This allows for excess fat to cook off during cooking process, and the sauce to be absorbed.
2 – Mix together the rest of the ingredients
3 – Heat a frying pan on medium high heat, and place duck breasts skin side down and fry for 4-8 minutes until the skin is crisp. Lower heat, turn duck breasts, and cook for another2-4 minutes.

4 – Pour sauce over duck, bring sauce to a boil, turning duck over several times to coat completely. Let sauce reduce, remove duck.
5 – Cut duck, and place over mizuna, watercress, arugula, or a similar greens. You may pour remaining glaze over the duck if desired.

Super easy!

We also had some Sukiyaki.

Like my meat presentation? I know you’re not supposed to play with your food, but….

I used that nice chunk of fat to help "oil" the sukiyaki nabe. I couldn’t find my trusty old cast iron Sukiyaki Nabe(sukiyaki pot), and had to buy a new one…..I couldn’t find an old-fashioned cast iron version, only the lightweight aluminum, alloy version. When I inquired about the availability of a cast iron nabe, the lady smiled and said, using her most refined Grandmotherly tone, "this is the 21st century…..people don’t want cast iron any more. And, all of us are getting old, cast iron is too heavy!" I couldn’t help but laugh.