There was a time in my life that I made fried rice very often. I was in love with it. It was the best comfort food for me. I started making the “traditional” fried rice such as Yeung Chow fried rice and salted fish and chicken fried rice, then gradually, I created my own.

This is one of the fried rice dishes that I created. Some of the ingredients used are not what you would expect to find in Chinese fried rice. This dish has a little fusion component, and I love this aspect of the dish.

What I love more is that recently I found out my little brother also likes to cook. Like me, he also created his own version of fried rice. What makes me smile is that although we have never cooked together, nor tried out each other’s fried rice, we cook very similarly. He likes to put a lot of ingredients into his fried rice, to the point that you no longer see any white speck. He likes to fry minced garlic with the rice and never fry the garlic alone, to prevent it from getting burned. We are very similar in these ways.

This is for you, my LB.

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This recipe makes a lot of fried rice. I figure since I have to go through all the preparation of cutting, chopping, mincing, dicing, then why not make more of it?

I have cooked almost 2 cups of rice. It’s important to choose the right rice to fry. Rice that are too startchy, such as arborio rice, are not good for frying as they will stick together and you will end up with rice balls. I always use jamine rice and I cook the rice before hand. I let the rice cool down complete so that the rice is dry and easy to fry.

Take one pound of ground pork and put in:
- 1 tbsp of onion powder
- 1 tbsp of brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp of salt
- 2 tbsp of Japanese cooking wine
- fresh groud pepper
- A few drops of sesame oil
Mix all seasoning into the pork and set aside.

The key ingredient in this dish is the portobella mushroom ragout. To make the ragout, you will need a lot of garlic. In case you haven’t gotten the hint, I’m a garlic freak.

Mince 8 big cloves of garlic. After they have been minced, separate them into two piles.

Wash 4 big portobella mushrooms. I know how the pros all tell you not to wash any mushroom and only clean them with a soft brush. Since I haven’t reached the pro level yet and I’m germ/dirt conscious, I always give my mushrooms a good rinse.

Cut the mushrooms into thin slices.

Cut the slices and turn the mushrooms into a mince.

In a non-stick pan, put in 2 tbsp of butter.
Put in 1 tbsp of olive oil.
Put in the minced mushrooms.
Put in one pile of minced garlic.

As soon as the muchrooms reache the pan, they will suck up all the oli.
Grind in fresh black pepper.
Put in 1 tsp of salt.
To cook a very good mushroom ragout, you have to let all the mushroom juice reduced. The mushrooms give off a lot of juice during cooking and once all the juice have evaporated, the muchroom flavour becomes super-concentrated.

When all the juice is gone, put in 2 tsp of balsamic vinegar.

This is the portobella mushroom ragout. It is aromatic, flavourful and it carries a hint of butter. You can serve it as a side dish with chicken or fish.

Once the mushrooms have been cooked, their size become much smaller.

Finely slice 4 stalks of green onion.

In a non-stick pan, put in the minced pork. Sautee it until it is fully cooked. Sautee it with a spatula to make sure the meat is broekn apart.

In a non-stick pan, put in 1tbsp of olive oil.
Put in half of the rice.
Once the rice is hot, put in half of the left-over minced garlic.
Mix the garlic into the rice.
Put in a few drops of sesame oil.
Put in 1 tbsp of soy sauce.
Turn the heat to medium, fry the rice until there is no big lump of rice stuck together.

Turn the heat to high.
Pour in half of the ingredients.
Thoroughly incorporate the ingredients into the rice.

When all ingredients have been incorporated, put in half of the green onion.
Mix the green onion into the rice and now you are done.
Pour the rice into a large bowl.

Now repeat with the second batch.

The portobella mushroom is the star ingredient; it adds a very deep richness to the rice.

It was such a nice break from work. There are the four of us from work who like to explore new restaurants during our lunch break. Needless to say, all of us are foodies. We usually pick a day that fits our schedule, then we will wait with anticipation. When the day finally comes, we will talk about food the whole way – before, during and endlessly after we eat. I have to tell you, lunches with these foodies is the best part of my work day

Hakkasan was recommended to us by another coworker. I heard the name and immediately I assumed it to be a Japanese restaurant. The worse is, I still didn’t clue in after seeing menu items such as “foie gras spring rolls”. Yes, sometimes I can be so clueless even when it’s about food! I have to also admit, Hakkasan is one of the very few Chinese fusion restaurants that I’ve tried.

The restaurant’s ambience was excellent. It was clean, neat and casually comfortable. When I hear fusion I immediately thought of small serving sizes, pretentious servers and a smoky club-like setting. The food at Hakkasan was down to earth. Some dishes, like the preserved veggie pork patty burger, gave me a good surprise. All in all, some dishes at Hakkasan were innovative and they are worth a try.

Okay, in case you don’t realize by now, I’m kind of a foie gras freak. When I see the word “foie gras” on the menu, 90% of the time I would order it. This one was foie gras wrapped and deep fried in a spring roll. What surprised me even more was instead of minced meat, there were small bits of Chinese dried sausage inside. Although the foie gras taste was not strong, I could still taste it. The taste of the sausage came out much stronger. I think the sausage overpowered the foie gras. Despite this, I really like this spring roll. I think I can have 2 or 3 in one shot.

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We ordered a set lunch which came with an appetizer and entree. The foie gras was an add-on. The appetizer was a choice of salad and soup, with a beef and enoki mushroom wrap. I found the appetizers tasted ordinary.

A gf had a curry chicken with rice.

Another gf had Hakka salty chicken rice. We were expecting the chicken in this dish to be free range chicken. The chicken was really well seasoned but the meat was a little soft. It also lacked the intense chicken flavour which free range chicken has. My gf was happy with this dish though. She loved the rice as well.

The two of us had their innovative dish – burger with preserved veggie and pork patty.

The preserved veggie and pork patty when eaten alone, is a comfort dish that many Chinese people such as myself grew up with. Traditionally, the patty is steamed in a deep dish and the patty is eaten with rice. The preserved veggie takes away the oiliness of the pork and this aspect makes them the perfect combination.

I’m happy to see this dish being turned into a burger. Using “man dou”, or steamed rice bun, as the burger is another invention of its own. Kudos to this dish.

The only thing which all of us didn’t like was the shrimp chips. It tasted staled.

All of us were full after the appetizer and main, but we couldn’t resist ordering the lava cake when we saw it on the menu. This was served warm and the cake was light, with a runny center. It was a very good piece of cake to end the meal.

The creme brulee was different than what we are used to. The “creme” was watery and we guess water was used into making the “creme” instead of full fat milk or cream. Personally I like it a creamy creme brulee, but my gf liked it because it tasted very light.

Steamed milk custard. This was an excellent dessert. I was amazed by the smooth and silk texture of the custard. The best part is it was not overly sweet. Very well done.

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Located in one of the coolest Vancouver neigbourhoods, Gastropod has earned a reputation for being creative and innovative. Going into the restaurant with the expectation of seeing interesting dishes like those served at the French Laundry or El Bulli, I was slightly disappointed with the creativity aspect. We picked the Chef’s 5 course tasting menu. The food overall tasted not bad, with the seared Sablefish being the most exceptional. The tasting menu started off with a prosciutto amuse-bouche:

Then followed by an amazing melon-almond gazpacho:

There were two appetizers for each person. The half shell oysters (royal miyagi) with horseradish were very fresh, but ordinary. The seared scallops were cooked just right:

The sablefish was buttery; it was the best dish in the menu.

For the main course, my husband ordered the squab and it turned out to be a mistake. Cooked to medium rare, the squab was bland and gamey. A piece of cake with the texture of fish cake was served with the squab, and the cake didn’t have much taste either. I ordered the lamb for my main course which was beautifully served 4 ways: belly, shoulder, chop and leg. I couldn’t believe how salty the leg was! After taking a small bite, I was immediately reaching for the bread. I couldn’t afford to waste any time to break the chewy crust; I took out the white part and stuffed it into my mouth.

The lamb was also served with a small amount of spätzle. It’s my first time having these tiny irregular rice-size pasta and they blew me away with their texture and taste. I’ll be hunting for them at Bosa soon.

Because we were celebrating for our second wedding anniversary, the pastry chef congratulated us with the “Happy Anniversary” decoration on the sweet raspberry dessert with almond crackers.

Overall we are glad we tried out Gastropod. However, given the many fine dining choices available in Vancouver, it would be awhile before we go back.

Business travel is a mixed bag at best. While the notion of traveling to far flung places to ply one’s trade may seem exciting, reality is often a lot more mundane. Do it often enough, and the experiences blend into a long drawn out blur of airplanes, hotels, and boardrooms. Occasionally though, the monotony is broken up by something different…

Five days of consulting in Paris. That’s different. Finally, a client based in a city that I actually looked forward to visiting.

The AC flight over was unremarkable. Biz class food was unappetizing as usual (it takes some talent to make the food so consistently bad methinks), but at least I got the lie-flat bed. Got off the plane, spent the entire day with the client, and headed to my hotel in La Defense. As I was more interested in sleep than cuisine that evening, I chose to have a quick dinner at the hotel.

I usually avoid hotel restaurants on principle; often times, the quality of the food is never commensurate with the cost. Unremarkable quality for high prices seems to be the norm. But perhaps things are different at this hotel? This was France after all… I had foie gras to start, followed by a tenderloin of pork. The foie was beautiful. It was rich, sweet, and earthy with no veins or grit to spoil the texture. Maybe things *were* different at this hotel. With expectations raised by the foie, I dug into my main course with gusto. Very tough, very dry, very…bad. They should have called it the un-tenderloin of pork. My faith in hotel restaurants suitably restored, I skipped dessert and went off to bed.

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[rant on] What is it with French hotel bathroom design? Instead of a shower curtain or a full-enclosure, they have this little pane of glass atop the bathtub that doesn’t seem to serve any useful purpose. Keeping the bathroom floor dry while showering isn’t humanly possible. It wasn’t just this hotel (Renaissance Paris) – the Le Grand Intercontinental we stayed at on a previous trip had the exact same setup. Unbelievable. [rant off]

A subsequent evening saw good weather and found me making my way down the Champs Elysee to discover a place for dinner. Perhaps the food scene in the less-touristy 6eme would have been better, but it is difficult to resist the lure of walking down this famous boulevard. A quick shot of where I started my walk that evening.

Along the way, I popped into the MB showroom for a quick look. They had an interesting car on display – only 1000 of these Mercedes McLaren SLR convertibles will ever be made.

There were many restaurants along the Champs Elysee, all offering similar menu items and prices. So I used the time-tested trick of choosing the place with the most people in it. This led me to l’Alsace (http://www.restaurantalsace.com/en/index.htm). Most of the customers waiting for tables were tourists, so I knew to temper my expectations with respect to the “Frenchness” of the food.

My meal for the evening: onion soup and steak frites. I toyed with the idea of ordering the infamous French Andouillette, but better judgement prevailed. The best thing about the soup was the gruyere. Otherwise, my wife makes a better version. The steak was flavorful; a little chewy, but nothing like the un-tenderloin of pork. The double-fried frites were fantastic. For the price, they should be.

I enjoyed that evening’s wine very much. A 2001 Chateau Bel Orme. Full-bodied with lots of blackfruit, notes of chocolate, and well-controlled tannins. Great accompaniment for the beef. The ½ bottle I ordered disappeared all too quickly, and I was tempted to order another. But the thought of being inebriated in a city where (i) the lingua fraca is not my native language and (ii) I would have to make my own way back to the hotel gave pause to that idea. I did like it enough, however, to search it out and buy a couple of bottles when I got home.

Another evening saw me crossing the Seine to visit le Cathedrale Notre Dame. I got off the train at Les Halles and made my way towards the river. Over the years, Les Halles has had the dubious distinction of being Paris’ drug central, but I saw no evidence of such that evening. What I did see were hole-in-the-wall eateries selling crepes (which I happily enjoyed as a pre-dinner treat. Nutella & banana…mmmm…), donairs, falafels, and a variety of snack foods. As I walked towards the Seine, there came a sudden crack of thunder, and fat droplets of cold rain started to fall. Great. The rain started coming down in sheets, and I walked faster, hoping to find some shelter. As I rounded the corner of St. Eustache church, I happened upon the bright, blazing spotlights of… Au Pied de Cochon! What luck! Shelter and dinner!! Suffice it to say, I didn’t wait for an invitation…

It was a busy night, with the wait staff working at a pace that bordered on frenetic. There seemed to be a healthy number of tourists, but there were also many locals. The décor was bright and very porcine-oriented – how appropriate!

Dinner that evening started with osso bucco followed by a rib chop. The osso bucco was prepared and presented unlike any version that I’ve seen. The shank was split down the middle, seasoned, and cooked in the oven. I thought it was a honest way of serving the dish, almost as if to say, “hey, it’s all about the marrow and nothing but.” It was rich, with an unctuous mouthfeel, but not overpowering. The texture is a little like that of the fat in Chinese BBQ pork, except more buttery. Very satisfying!

The rib chop, a specialty of the restaurant, was equally good. It was amazingly tender, and chock full of flavour. The rind had just the right amount of give, a little firm but not overly chewy. I enjoyed it.

I finished with a crème brulee. It wasn’t anything special, but I’d expected as much. In keeping with the porcine theme, the dessert was served with two piggy-shaped macaroons.

I had a GD Beaujolais to go with the meal. For a budget wine, it was fresh, light, and fruity – an appropriate accompaniment for the dinner and a nice counterpoint to the nasty weather raging outside. (The rain finally let up after dinner, and I managed to complete my visit to Notre Dame after all.)

When eating out alone, one has plenty of time and opportunity to observe the surroundings. In no particular order, here are my observations on Paris:

In bistros and brasseries, bread is cut up before service. Why? Not sure, but the cynical side of me suspects that it is done to facilitate reuse. (See Anthony Bourdain’s “Kitchen Confidential” on the topic of bread reuse in restaurants)

Bread is never served with butter. There is, however, mustard on every table. The local patrons all partake of the bread – some with mustard, some without, most with their main courses. The tourists, on the other hand, generally don’t touch the bread.

French wait staff speak English. The key to getting them to do so is to attempt ordering in broken French…

Tips and service charges are included in the bill – very civilized. I like paying the amount that I see on the bill without having to do additional Math, especially after a few drinks *hic*.

Parisian eateries use wireless credit card machines that can be brought to your table to process payment. Your credit card never leaves your sight. What a great idea! When can we have these in North America?

[final rant on]When flying home on AC, my seat broke. My lie-flat seat wouldn’t recline, and I was given two choices: sit bolt upright or lie down for the 8.5 hr flight. What did AC offer this *G passenger for his inconvenience? 15,000 AP miles towards future personal use. What do they think I am? A masochist? [final rant off]