I discovered the recipe for this cake in an ‘older’ (that is, early nineties) all-purpose cookbook. It uses a combination of semolina and almond meal instead of flour, and orange rind and juice for the flavouring. The cake itself comes out rather dry and crumbly, however when soaked with orange syrup in becomes luscious and more-ish. Whipped cream is a must.
And now for something a little more unusual. Takoyaki is a little Japanese snack of little balls made up of little octopus pieces with ginger and spring onions in a white sauce, fried in a purpose-built cast iron pan. They are actually very yummy, especially when served with salty dried bonito flakes, and Japanese barbecue sauce and mayonnaise. Really.
I didn’t always like risotto. Risotto in a restaurant is often stodgy, too creamy, or too large in portion size that I rarely get through half. Meanwhile, my attempts at cooking risotto is often disastrous – I end up with a bowl of solid stodge instead of the fluid, creamy rice that I see on the TV cooking shows.
Now, this isn’t my risotto (it’s one from a seaside pub, and it’s seafood), but after many, many attempts, I think I may have mastered the risotto (mushroom in particular): use good arborio rice (preferably from a deli), stir rice gently, cook accompanying ingredients beforehand and stir in at last minute, don’t go overboard with the parmesan cheese, and eat straight away.
A 2km walk from Tsumago takes me to my accommodation, a minshuku (or traditional inn) called Hanaya.
It’s an old inn that’s been in business for more than 150 years, with a few extensions. It’s run traditionally, with futons on tatami-floored rooms (that’s the woven matting), with a share bath made of hardwood, and serves breakfasts and wonderful dinners. Unfortunately I didn’t take a picture of my meals here, but I remember that the dinners were enormous, with sashimi entrees, followed by a noodle hotpot, and other things besides. And the hosts were wonderfully kind. We chatted in broken English/Japanese, and when I left we even exchanged presents (so Japanese).
Well, with such a wonderful place to rest and eat, no wonder their pet St Bernard was always sound asleep.
I don’t know why I haven’t posted about chicken satay, or sate ayam in Indonesian, before. It’s definitely one of my favourite dishes. Who doesn’t love succulent chicken smothered in beautiful peanut sauce? Chicken satay is a mainstay in much of South East Asia, particularly in Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia.
Mind you, each region seems have their own version of it. In Malaysia the chicken is marinated in tumeric, and the sauce has coconut milk with the ground peanuts. The chicken in this version from Satay Inn, is deep-fried, and the sauce is undoubtedly a Malaysian style one.
While this is very tasty, I still prefer the Indonesian version, which is a lot simpler. The chicken is marinated in kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) and then char-grilled over coals to give it a smokey flavour. The sauce is also simple – ground peanuts, garlic, kecap manis and chilli. But even though it sounds easy to make, making it is actually an art, and to this day I still judge an Indonesian restaurant by how good its sate is.
The temperature has really dropped this week, and I’m thinking about getting an electric blanket for my bed. It’s time to make some more soup, particularly one of my favourites, pumpkin. This version I made last year had a little apple (from the batch I picked in Bilpin) to balance out the sweetness of the pumpkin. I think I might do the same this year.
Blueberry muffins are staples of cafes, bakeries and take-away joints all around Australia, but often they’re stodgy and way too big. Hence my favourite blueberry muffins are homemade by me from a recipe I cut out of SMH years and years ago. It’s got the right muffin consistency but is light, moist, full of blueberry goodness, and cupcake size. The secret ingredient is natural yoghurt, which I think is better than buttermilk when making muffins.
Remember the time when sushi wasn’t sold at every corner, when eating raw fish was out of the question for the average Aussie? I remember tasting my first sushi and sashimi in the early Nineties while in Japan on a short exchange program. While I liked my first taste of sushi, I didn’t really think sashimi was anything to write home about at the time. It was just simply texture with not much taste, I thought.
How times have changed. I wouldn’t say that I’m a sushi/sashimi fanatic, but I do appreciate the good stuff. I don’t eat it often either, because to be honest good sushi and sashimi is a rarity in Sydney. A good sushi should be freshly made, with the freshest fish, and served at room temperature. A good sashimi is even rarer because it requires not only the freshest fish, but also the skill of the chef to slice it so that the flesh melts in your mouth. Add a little wasabi/soy sauce and pickled ginger, and it instantly becomes a feast.
The bottom line is, good sushi/sashimi doesn’t come cheap, but it’s worth every penny when you’re presented with a platter like this.
Lots of cultures make dumplings, in various forms, but no matter where you are, dumplings represent comfort food. Today I’m introducing dumplings from Shanghai and Northern China.
I was first introduced to these dumplings by a Beijing-born friend in my uni days. My first taste were of dumplings we had made with our own hands. They were minced pork with Chinese chive dumplings which we boiled and ate with her family. Dipped in a little black vinegar and chilli sauce, they are juicy and moreish.
I hooked from that day on. Luckily I studied at UTS at the time, and next door in China Town there were a few good dumpling restaurants. Later on, I discovered a whole load of places in Ashfield, which is where I took this photo.
Because my friend doesn’t eat pork we ordered fish dumplings instead. They are pan-fried instead of boiled, and are lighter than the pork versions, but no less delicious.
It had been several months since I last visited Satay Inn, my local Malaysian restaurant. But although the best dishes here (in my opinion) are the Malaysian ones, the menu also encompasses Chinese and Thai. During my latest visit, my dining companions ordered from the Chinese side of the menu, while I ordered from the Malaysian side.
Malaysian first. I really should have taken a photo of the satay chicken because it was fab. But as always, my stomach ruled my head and the portion was demolished before I’d even thought of my camera.
The mains were a mixed bag. I’d ordered kapitan chicken the first time I came here and remembered it to be a flavoursome, fiery dish. This version was a whole lot milder, though the flavours were still good.
But the star of the night was kangkung belacan (or kangkung cha terasi, as the Indonesians call it. It’s simply water spinach stir fried with shrimp paste, garlic, and lots of chilli. It’s tasty and very addictive. Not a boring vege dish, that’s for sure.
Tomorrow, the Chinese dishes.
Static and Silence 