15 Sunday Sep 2013
Posted in American, Asian, beverages, bucket list, herbs and spices, Japanese
On October 21, 2013, Coca-Cola will start selling warm ginger ale in Japan. Once you activate the can, it heats up the ginger ale inside while preserving its effervescence. I can’t wait to try it!
15 Sunday Sep 2013
Pinch me. Am I dreaming? Nope. I have finally found a place that makes Taiwanese pineapple cake (fènglísū 鳳梨酥) that is as good as Chia Te or SunnyHills — and it’s right here in New York City! IRIS Bakery in Flushing specializes in Taiwanese pastries and breads, and their pineapple cakes are to die for. They currently have two varieties, one is plain pineapple and the other is pineapple with cranberry. They also serve delicious panna cotta and grapefruit gelatin.
IRIS Tea & Bakery
39-07 Prince Street
Flushing NY 11354
(718) 888-1633
06 Friday Sep 2013
Dog wood trees produce an edible drupe that tastes a lot like persimmon. I found a giant dog wood yesterday on Princeton’s campus and scooped up as much of the delicious fruit as I could.
27 Tuesday Aug 2013
Posted in allium, American, Asian, BBQ, Brooklyn, bucket list, celebrations, Japanese, meat, New York, noodles, ramen, snacks, Williamsburg
I finally got to try Keizo Shimamoto’s ramen burger on Saturday at Smorgasburg! My friends and I got there at about 10:00AM and then got the burger at about 11:30AM. There were about 60 people ahead of us in line.
While we were waiting, a group of Japanese reporters interviewed Lisa. She jokingly said she drove all the way from Utah just to try the ramen burger. I hope I can find her interview online.
You can only buy one ramen burger per person and each person must be present. I was number 67.
The hamburger wrappers are really unique. They have pleats and kind of reminded me of a shower cap from a hotel.
Here is chef Keizo Shimamoto (in the backwards cap).
The grill wasn’t level so here are some of the staff members trying to fix it. I’m pretty sure they reserve the fatty drippings from the hamburgers to make the brown sauce that goes on top of the burger (along with scallions). Notice the long, long line in the background.
The ramen “buns” cooking on the grill.
26 Monday Aug 2013
Paris Baguette in Korea Town is now making their own version of the cronut. They’re called croissant doughnuts and they are available daily at noon and 3PM. Only about 30 croissant doughnuts are made at each time and they sell out within 15 minutes.
Just like all the other pastries on the wooden shelves, you have to wait for an employee to put the tray of croissant doughnuts on the shelf and then you place them in a paper box with tongs. I made the mistake of waiting by the counter to order.
The batch I had had a little lemon zest on top. The lemon helped balance the richness of the fried dough and cream.
22 Thursday Aug 2013
I love chef Yuji! I caught him taking a photo of a cod head boiling in a pot of broth. ^_^
He’s serving a new seasonal mazemen at his ramen shop at Whole Foods Bowery now, summer corn!
21 Wednesday Aug 2013
Paris Baguette on 32nd Street in K-Town is selling this squid ink bread. They also have a “croissant donut” similar to the Dominique Ansel’s cronut.
31 Wednesday Jul 2013
Posted in Asian, bakeries, celebrations, fruit, herbs and spices, Japanese, lactose free, macarons, organic, snacks, sweets, tea, wagashi
The Minamoto Kitchoan shop near Rockefeller Center closed a few weeks ago and they have relocated to 509 Madison Ave.
Some of the seasonal wagashi available now are blueberry gelée and peach cakes.
27 Saturday Jul 2013
I’m at the Cantonese dim sum class at the China Institute in New York City right now! The egg tarts came out great and we’re about to fry up the turnip cakes!
24 Wednesday Jul 2013
Posted in American, Asian, bucket list, education, foraging, herbs and spices, insects, meat, snacks, Thai
Chapul, Inc. in Salt Lake City is now selling their cricket flour protein bars at Westerly Natural Market in New York City. The bars are about $3.50 each and are made from such organic ingredients as dates, agave nectar, and Jamaican crickets (Gryllus assimilis).
The name “Chapul” is derived from the Nahuatl word chapōlin via Mexican Spanish, chapulín.
Cricket protein is more environmentally friendly than beef or pork because crickets require much less water and can eat agricultural byproducts like corn cobs and banana peels.
The bars come in three flavors: “Chaco” is the peanut butter and chocolate bar; “Thai” has coconut, ginger, and lime in it; and “Aztec” includes coffee, cocoa, and cayenne pepper. Visit my Facebook page for more updates!
Chinook Olive 