Sichuan Hot Pot at Home

Super H had a new product, a spicy Sichuan hot pot soup mix. Combine with water, add vegetables and meat, tofu or fish, and enjoy with a bowl of rice on the side.

Bok choy, fish balls, shrimp balls, sliced pork belly, button mushroom, bean sprouts, onion, enoki mushrooms, scallions, ginger. 

Chicken Pho for the Soul

With the changing temperatures, I managed to pick up a head cold that took over a week to recover from. One of the best things, other than rest and lots of water, is a hot brothy soup. We stopped by our local pho joint and I ordered the #17 with white meat chicken.

There's a lot of sliced chicken and scallions included with hot broth.

Topped with Thai basil, culantro, bean sprouts and a splash of lime, this is a fantastic bowl of soup to eat when you're feeling under the weather. 

Kimchi Nabe at Home

The temperatures have dropped down to 20F at night. A perfect dinner on cold nights is nabe made in an electric tabletop nabe pot. We had picked up a large bag of kimchi from Super H, plus a kimchi container for the refrigerator. This container is a must if you're going to buy kimchi in bulk. You can include many different vegetables and proteins in kimchi nabe, depending on what you have on hand. I used zucchini, maitake mushrooms, onion, red bell pepper, kimchi and soft tofu. With some Japanese rice, this is a fantastic meal. 

A little kochujang helps add a bit of robust flavor to the nabe. I put the electric nabe on the table with bowls, rice and a large ladle. Ready to enjoy.

Katsu Curry at Home

We don't have a deep fryer, so when we make fried Japanese and Korean dishes, it makes a mess. However, some times it's necessary when you're craving a Japanese classic, tonkatsu curry.

Dip pork cutlets in flour, egg wash and panko (bread crumbs).

Deep fry the breaded pork cutlets until golden brown.

Drain the deep fried pork cutlets on paper towel to remove some of the excess oil.

Place sliced tonkatsu on a bed of sliced cabbage next to rice. 

Served with a bowl of spicy vegetable curry with onion, red pepper and mushroom.

You can either dip the pork into the curry, or pour the curry over the rice and enjoy.

Hong Kong Seafood Pearl Dim Sum

My favorite dim sum joint is in Silver Spring, MD, but we live in Virginia and it's easier to head over to Seven Corners. We met up with a friend we haven't seen in ages at Hong Kong Seafood Pearl for dim sum. They have rolling carts, including one with congee, and a large, light-filled room. 

Chive and Shrimp Dumplings

These were a little greasy.

Shrimp with Rice Noodle

Singapore Noodle

This has a decidedly curry flavor.

Har Gao

These were oversteamed and the wrappers fell apart when I picked it up.

***

The quality of the dim sum left a little to be desired. I think next time it's worth to wait in line at Mark's Duck House instead. They have a wider variety of items on their carts. 

Snow Crab Nagasaki Ago Dashi Ramen

We had some frozen snow crab legs in the freezer. Craving some ramen but wanting something a little different, I made a kani-corn ago dashi ramen with a lovely ramen omiyage set from Nagasaki. 

snow crab simmering with corn, scallions and bok choy.

Ramen with ago dashi, snow crab, bok choy, menma, corn and scallions.

Fairmont Hotel Lunch Reception

The husband and I attended a luncheon reception this week at the Fairmont Hotel. This was the site of a wedding of one of my friends from college. While normally the group's luncheon meetings include an architectural salad and precious chicken entree, this new year's gathering included a higher-value lunch.

Crab terrine with fried quail egg.

Roasted fingerling potato, green beans, pan-seared cod.