hodgepodge
Since summer started, we’ve also tried to cook more often and cut down on eating out. I’ve been trying a lot of new recipes like Lomo Saltado (in honor of our trip to Peru) and Japanese Curry (sauce mix pictured above — we’ll have to try extra hot next time because medium hot wasn’t hot at all) over Pork Katsu but a lot of times I fall back on some of my tried and true recipes. The husband and I both love noodle soups and it’s something we eat pretty frequently. It varies a bit depending on what we have in the fridge (it’s definitely a hodgepodge of things) but here’s what it looked like a few nights ago.
I like to start by frying up some sliced pork belly. Hmart always has a really fresh selection of pork belly. They also have black pork but it’s about $10 for a plate so I opt for the cheaper stuff. Once the pork belly fries up, your whole kitchen already smells delicious.
I put the pork belly slices in a bowl with some Tsa Tsai. I had a helluva time trying to find the English translation for it and finally found it on wikipedia. They said that common English names for it are “pickled mustard stem, Sichuan vegetable, Szechwan vegetable, or Chinese pickled vegetable” although using those terms may lead you to other varieties of pickled vegetables. I buy it canned and you can find it pretty much in any Chinese grocery store. It’s extremely salty and tasty and compliments food pretty well. It’s great in noodle soups, rice porridge, and any stir fry really. I grew up eating the stuff so it also is kind of a comfort add-on for me. Oh and I also love putting baby bok choy in noodle soups because they are the perfect size.
If we have kim chi on hand (we usually do) I like to throw that in the mix too. Then I usually douse it all with some soy sauce, Sriracha sauce, salt, pepper and sesame oil.
For bonus points, I like to put a fried egg on top, just for fun. Fried sunny side up eggs are always good over rice, over noodles, and in burgers/sandwiches!
Here’s the final thing before I pour the broth in. Sorry that wasn’t very instructional. Oh and the noodles are these fresh plain noodles we buy from Hmart as well. It really makes a difference when they are fresh! It’s much chewier — very Q if you know what I mean.
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(Marlo Stanfield shooting ‘em up on The Wire on HBO)
Totally off topic but did you guys know that Dooce named her new, sweet, adorable baby girl, Marlo?! I thought she was kidding when I read it. She obviously hasn’t seen The Wire.
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