What we do for good health

Honestly, how many of us like lemon water, whole wheat bread, kale or brown rice? I heard lemon water is great for detox and digestive system; whole wheat bread and brown rice are healthier than white bread and white rice. Kale, high in fiber and vitamins, is a healthy food, (though I was told by a Safeway cashier kalr is out, water crest is in now). Most super foods are not tasty, but for the sake of health, we alter eating habits and compromise the tastes.

We also spend the little spare time we have to exercise, or sometime starve ourselves so we could keep our weights down. We drink lots of water because it's Important to stay hydrated, despite the annoyance of frequent bathroom visits. 

Living a healthy lifestyle is such a pain sometimes. 

What's for dinner?

Last night we wanted to go out for dinner, but couldn't decide where to go, so we kept asking each other: "What's for dinner?"

At Smart & Final when we talked about it, Jack said, "well, I don't want to have Cantonese food or Italian food. The choices can be Indian food or Sichuan."

I said "OK. Or Sushi."

Then we kept thinking while going for other errands.

At Petsmart, I said, "well, I don't really want to have Indian food nor Sichuan."

"Oh, now you are making it difficult." Jack said. I smiled.

When we were done with all the errands, we were both hungry. I told Jack we should go for dinner before I start eating snacks, and I suggested that we could go to Korean tofu house. Jack agreed. It was a good compromise to the expensive Sushi, and the cool weather was suitable for hot soup.

When we got to the restaurant it was only around 5 PM, though it was already dark and chilly. We saw a lot of people waiting at the door, so we were a little worried. Luckily the people who were waiting had big parties, and there were still empty tables in the restaurant. I put our name done for 2, and we waited. The staff were doing their best to prepare the tables for dinner rush. We didn't need to wait for long to be seated.

I really enjoyed my tofu soup with pork dumplings, as well as all the small dishes that accompanied the meal: kim chi, various marinated vegetables and seaweed. I also watched the waitresses dashing around from table to table. The patrons were mostly Asian families.

While enjoying dinner, I was marveling how lucky we were living in an area where there were so many choices of ethnic foods for our picky taste buds. "Is it not like this everywhere else?" Jack asked. Actually no. I recalled, the very first time I had Korean food, I was in Austin, so as Indian food to think of it. I guess Austin was an interesting diverse town. But elsewhere is not so much. For instance, one of my coworkers said there was no decent Indian food in Portland where he lived.

When we left the restaurant, it was a full house, and there were people waiting.

Developing a taste

Being raised in Southern China, I am not big with bread or any baked goods, or so I believe. Jack never believes me and always tease me of making this up. See we mainly eat steam rice as starch.

In truth, I didn't really know how to use the oven until 10 years ago.

This one time many years ago when I lived alone in a nice apartment, I tried to bake by reading a cookbook. That was before the Cooking Chanel. Unfortunately I got stuck at the very first step: "Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees." I turn the oven on "bake", then set the temperature to 350, and saw the light went on. I was puzzled when the light was turned off all by itself. I was like, what's wrong with this oven? So I gave up.

I found out, accidentally from Jack, that the oven light automatically turns off when it reaches the desired temperature. See I could have found a manual to read and learn, but I just didn't have the passion for baked goods nor desserts, which would have driven me to learn baking on my own. Even today, I leave baking to Jack. All the measuring and mixing are just too much trouble.

Lately I've realized that the key to good tasting bread was the freshness. (Isn't it true for all food?)

One day, I exclaimed: I am developing a taste for bread.
Jack said: Sounds like a bunch of bullshit.

Whenever I told people I didn't like dessert, Jack would remind me immediately how much I like fresh donuts with my coffee. Yes, I admit, fresh donuts are good, it's so dangerous that I stay away from them.

Frozen broccoli with cheese

For years I took pride in making tasty stir-fried vegetables and many different home-made Chinese dishes. I never understood the idea of frozen vegetables, and didn't have the slightest interest to try them.

Back in July when I prepared to go to South Carolina for a week-long silence retreat, I went to the grocery store to buy some food for Jack so he didn't have to spend too much time cooking yet could still eat something healthy. Granted he is a good cook for Holiday meals, during the year, he spends most of his time by the computer, reading or watching movies.

I picked up some frozen Brussels Sprouts, frozen spicy chicken wings and frozen broccoli with cheese thinking perhaps they were more nutritious than canned soup. And Jack is probably better acquainted with them than me, since he is an American boy growing up in Michigan.

The frozen foods were left in the freezer for the next few months untouched.

One night in October, I decided to eat the frozen broccoli. I opened the bag, put the content in the frying pan, and cooked it in medium heat for 20 minutes while stirring it patiently, just as it was mentioned in the instruction. I even spiced it up with salt and pepper. The efforts to cook this frozen broccoli was no less than cooking fresh vegetables.

At dinner, Jack took a bite of the broccoli, looked at me quizzically, and said: "This doesn't taste good." He had a couple of bites, then went to the kitchen to find something else more edible. I couldn't help but laughed. This is probably the only time when I wasn't saddened when someone criticized my "cooking".

The Hodges' Family Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

It appeared to me on Thanksgiving day, while we were busy preparing for our meal, that it would be nice to make a menu for our guests. But there wasn't any extra time for us to do it then.

So here it is:

Appetizers:
Home-made salsa with chips
Spiced pumpkin seeds
Mixed nuts: cashew, almond, peanuts, etc

Main dish:
Roast turkey
Wild rice casseroleNoodle casserole
Garlic mashed potatoes with gravy
Cranberry sauce

Seasonal vegetables:
Garlic stir-fried asparagus
Brussels sprouts with mushroom and black bean sauce

Home-made Desserts:
Apricot up-side-down cakes
Sour cream cheese cakes
pumpkin pies
Cookie & Cream ice cream
Coffee & Heath bar ice cream

Drinks:
Martinelli's Apple soda
Reed's Ginger beer
Coffee
Various Teas

It's going to go somewhere

I have this theory that, since Thanksgiving is the first feasting holiday in our holiday season, we tend to pour our hearts and souls into cooking, baking, feasting, and gatherings. And we are so happy doing so. This might be a known fact, and I just got so excited about this year's Thanksgiving that it became my new discovery.

Isn't it great to discover something on your own even though it is a known fact?

I became so spoiled these few days. I would eat a piece of apricot up-side-down cake for breakfast with my coffee, a piece of delightful gulab jamun after my lunch, and some home-made cookies & cream ice cream for dessert after dinner. That doesn't even cover all of the desserts we made this Thanksgiving. We also have pumpkin pies and sour cream cheese cake in the refrigerator that were untouched for a few days now.

Along with the delicious and decadent desserts, we are still feasting the left over Thanksgiving meal. The wholesome turkey soup still takes up most of the precious refrigerator space even though we had been eating it for lunches and dinners. Up to today we still have a big box of turkey leftover.

Instead of drinking water or tea, we are drinking Martinelli's and ginger beers. Hmm, life is good. 

So where is all the food going to go? Of course, it will be months of hard working at the elliptical machine or in the pool trying to get rid of the Thanksgiving meal, or not, but the truth is, we do it happily every year.

Foolproof Indian Curry - tricks and tips that Rachel Ray can't teach you

I love cooking and I love to eat (OK, who doesn't, right?) I found it most satisfying if I could make my favorite dishes by myself. Indian and Thai curry are great examples.

Believe me, I had many heart-breaking failures over the years trying to make Indian curry. I read cookbooks, went to grocery shopping with my Indian co-workers and asked them many questions. Unfortunately, mainstream cooking shows don't teach you about ethnic foods like Indian or Thai. Finally, I found watching on-line videos were the most helpful, and fortunately, there were tons of them if you search.

Not that my co-workers were not trying to be helpful; cooking your native food is so much easier: a pinch of this and that, stir in the veggies and simmer for a while, done.

In this blog, I will unveil the secrets of making Indian curry from scratch.

To make a mean curry, make sure you have the following spices and ingredients available. I highly recommend that you shop at Indian grocery stores. There are small neighborhood stores called Cash and Carry around the Bay Area - don't forget to bring cash, because you may walk out with less than $10 of goods, and they only accept cash for under $10. A bigger store is called Nameste. You can buy all the spices and fresh vegetables you need with really good price.

The second choice after Indian stores is Chinese Grocery stores like Ranch 99 or Pacific Market. Your final defense is Safeway or any other American supermarkets.

Spices in your pantry:

• ground cumin
• ground turmeric - this is one of the super cancer fighting foods
• ground coriander
• cayenne pepper/chili pepper powder - cancer fighting food
• garam masala - you can make it yourself, or buy from the stores
• dried chili pepper or fresh green chili pepper

* coconut milk - I like the CHAOKOH brand from Thailand. I tried another one that I got on discount, but it ruined my food. Though this is a personal preference, so you should find out what you like. This is the only unhealthy ingredient in our curry, so use sparsely. You can experiment to dilute it with 1:1 water later.

Another note here, if the spices you bought were in bags or boxes, make sure to store them in cans, so that bugs won't get to them.

Fresh vegetables:

• tomatoes
• onions
• cilantro - most books call them coriander just to confuse you
• potatoes
• fresh ginger
• garlic
  

Prepare vegetables for a simple curry:
1-2 tomatoes, depending on the size, rinsed and chopped.
1 onion, finely chopped.
1/2 cup cilantro, quantity varied depending on your taste, rinsed well and chopped.
1 teaspoon of ginger, grated.
3 cloves of garlic, crushed.

Mix these spices together:
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

I learned that mixing the spices ahead of time then put the mixture into the food during cooking was much more effective than putting them in one at a time, especially for someone like me who couldn't tell the differences between these spices without reading the labels ... OK, I know ground turmeric is the bright yellow powder, but that's about it.

Now, some tips about pan fried or stir-fried coming straight from my mom's Chinese kitchen.

• Always start with a clean and dry wok/pan.
• Put the oil in before the wok gets hot.
• Wait for the oil to heat up (1-2 minute?) before putting any other ingredients in. When it's ready, oil will have some mild texture.
• Always start the wok with ginger, garlic, or peppers, these ingredients will help flavoring the oil, which will coat the rest of the ingredients.
• Put the vegetable that takes the longest to cook into the wok first, and easiest to cook last. OK, this takes experience and depends on your preference. If you want veggies more crunchy, then don't cook it for too long. Green onion, cilantro and fresh basil are perfect for garnish, and you should put it in last.
• Try to cut up veggies and meat into the same size (you learn this from cooking school), so that they will have the same texture when cooked together.

For my prawn curry, I added 2 handfuls (1 lb) of shelled prawns.

Cooking steps:

1. Start the wok over medium heat, add oil (this may be taboo for some people, but I use olive oil).
2. Once the oil is ready, add garlic, ginger and onion. Stir until onion is soft and turn light yellow.
3. Add the spice mixture. Cook for 1 minute, until it's fragrant.
4. Add the prawns and tomatoes to the wok and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the prawns are cooked and liquid has reduced. Both tomatoes and Prawns take the same time to cook.
5. Stir in 1/3 cup of coconut milk.
6. Add the chili in a little at a time.
7. Season with salt to taste, and garnish with cilantro.
Later, you can try a different mixture of spices. If you want it more spicy, add more cayenne pepper or chili pepper. Use different kinds of veggies and meat/seafood based on your preference. Eat what you like and take the nutrition value into account.

Curry tastes better the next day, that is, if you have any leftover. :)

Cooking is an art, you have to be patient. Don't keep stirring the food too much, it won't help, just let the heat does its magic, let the food cook.

Let me know if it helps and if you like the curry.

Yum Yum Curry

I made curry lentil and shrimp curry for dinner last night. I followed the recipe from my Chili & Curry cookbook (got it from Borders for $2.99), and they both came out perfectly. It was a tasty and healthy dinner.

I called Jack 3 times over 1 hour, because I was missing some needed ingredients. The first time was for onion, the second time was for ground coriander, and the third time was plain yogurt. Luckily, Jack was stuck in traffic around Palo Alto on 101 northbound, so it was OK.

In the end, it was all worth it for Jack because the food was so delicious.

Follow the recipe

This is the phrase from one of our favorite animation Ratatouille. What happened to us this Monday night reminded me exactly this phrase.

Last Sunday, Jack bought a package of garbanzo beans from an Indian store next to our favorite Indian restaurant. The next day, he wanted to make hummus with it. Oh, Jack is eating hummus now in an effort to improve his diet, since hummus is this super healthy food.

We carefully reviewed the recipes from multiple cookbooks. Since we bought the dried garbanzo beans in bulk, we had to first soak them in water until they got soft. Jack decided to make a big bunch at once. My logical self told me, we should follow the recipe first and see how it turned out, then we could make a big bunch as we were more familiar with the steps. Jack reasoned with me: "Normally I would agree with you, but since it's a simple recipe, it's like making salsa, you can add ingredients to taste." It's true, this is really no big deal. I was very tired that day, because the Indian coffee kept me awake until 2 AM, so I didn't argue with him. I did my part to help.

Jack chopped up half of an onion, fighting his tears back in the process and dumped it into the food processor, along with Tahini (sesame seed paste with lemon), garbanzo beans and olive oil. I minced some garlic and put it in the food processor. We blended all the ingredients together and it was done. Amazingly, it looked exactly the same color as the Sabra hummus we bought from Costco, which was Jack's favorite. Easy! We quietly congratulated ourselves then did our taste test ...

It didn't taste right. There was too much onion taste and too garlicky, there was also a hint of bitterness. Ah, easy fix, we added more chickpeas in hope of balancing out the garlicky and onion taste. I seriously didn't know where the bitterness came from and how to get rid of it. We blended the mixture together again and tasted it. A little better, but still the onion and garlic tastes were overpowering.

Jack checked the recipe and screamed: Oh, I am supposed to cook the garlic and onion before blending it. O.K. that explains it.

The next day, here's our email exchange with subject line - Our hummus:

think that we put in too much garlic in this batch. I didn't think I'd ever hear myself say that.

I intend to use more olive oil in the next batch.

--
Jack

That's ok... we learn this way. I didn't give 2 bunches as the recipe called for.
I think cooking the onion and garlic would help too.

ying

Not bunches, cloves. Did you give me a bunch? That would explain a lot.

- Show quoted text -

oh! I put 2 bunches. whoa, that reminds me of when I first tried to make Indian curry and messed up between teaspoon and tablespoon. That was funny...

Ying

I was in the office, but I can't help to laugh out loud.

My breath tastes like garlic. It is all your fault :-)

We the smell of garlic and onion will follow us for the days to come, as we are consuming our homemade hummus. Giving us bad breath and coming out of our pores.

I told this story to my wise Indian coworker, she laughed and suggested: "no recipe will call for garlic in bunches. That's too much garlic. But at least your hummus is has a LOT of healthy ingredients." When I offered her some to taste, she declined politely.

For your reference, here is a hummus recipe found online.

The end