Potato and Dried Seaweed Flakes Pancake 馬鈴薯海苔煎餅

One big whole serving of savory pancake has been a thing for me lately. Since I haven't make such food for years, I can't believe I forgot how easy and hassle free it is. Literally, I mean literally you just mix all the ingredients together, pour them to the pan and just sear till slightly browned on both sides. 

And it's hard to go wrong with all sorts of savory pancake. Well, only if you messed up the consistency of the batter, but even that it's usually kind of hard to go wrong. Give it a try once and you'll know what I mean.

Potato and dried seaweed flakes pancake 馬鈴薯海苔煎餅 - 

Ingredients?

• 2 medium potatoes
• 4 tablespoons dried seaweed flakes
• 1 1/2 tablespoons toasted white sesame seeds
• 4 tablespoons corn starch
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

How?

Peel and grate the potatoes into strips, I actually hand-cut it myself, quite some work there. Add the potato strips to a container filled with water, preferably drinking water. Let it soak for 10 minutes.

After some time, you'll start to see some starch being released to the water. Pour that out. Dry and maybe use a paper towel to future remove any moisture from the potato strips. Transfer to another clean and dry container.

From there, also add in 4 tablespoons of dried seaweed flakes, 1 1/2 tablespoons of toasted white sesame seeds, 4 tablespoons of corn starch, and 1 teaspoon of salt. Mix till evenly blended.

Bring out a round and flat pan, drizzle about 2 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil and switch to medium heat. Wait till warm then pour in the potato batter. Even the batter out to create consistent thickness throughout. 

Sear till the bottom turns slightly browned then flip and sear the other side till the same.

Once ready, invert the pancake to a serving plate. You can pre-slice them to triangular pieces if preferred. I simply like to tear and eat along the way.

The seasoning listed should be enough, especially if you're going to enjoy the potato pancake with some ketchup on the side. So keep that in mind if some sort of dipping sauce will be involved. That means don't over-season the batter in the beginning.

Bitter Gourd Cooked With Chinese Pickled Cucumber 壺底油瓜煮苦瓜

Westerners might not know about this dish, but it's one of the common food that will show up on Taiwanese's dining table. The basic idea is to cook the bitter gourd with some sort of Chinese canned pickled melon. However, I used pickled cucumber instead, which comes with denser taste plus a bit sweeter touch. 

The final flavor is somewhat similar doesn't matter you use pickled melon or pickled cucumber, just look for Chinese canned version, and you'll get the correct taste in the end.

Bitter gourd cooked with Chinese pickled cucumber 壺底油瓜煮苦瓜 - 

Ingredients?

• 1 white bitter gourd
• 4 medium pieces Chinese pickled cucumber 壺底油瓜
• 4 tablespoons juice of Chinese pickled cucumber
• 1 small bundle cilantro
• 3 tablespoons olive oil or other preferred cooking oil
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon rock sugar
• Some salt (optional)

How?

Cut the bitter gourd in half lengthwise them scrape off the seeds and membrane. Slice the bitter gourd to rectangular chunks. Chop the cilantro and set aside for later use.

Into the pan, add 3 tablespoons of olive oil or other preferred cooking oil. We are using a bit more oil to semi-sear and semi-fried the bitter gourd, so don't go too easy with the amount of oil used.

Switch to medium heat and wait till the oil gets hot. Add in the bitter gourd and sear till slightly golden on some sides.

Add in 4 medium pieces of Chinese pickled cucumber or pickled melon along with 4 tablespoons of that canned juice. Also add 1 tablespoon of soy sauce. 

Adjust the heat so the whole thing can keep at a medium bubbling stage. Cook till the sauce has been reduced a little. You can break the pickled cucumber to smaller pieces while cooking down the sauce. 

Add in 1/2 teaspoon of rock sugar. Cook till the sugar has been fully dissolved. Remember to flip the bitter gourd once a while to ensure even cooking. 

Taste and adjust if needed. In the case of not salty enough, add salt instead of soy sauce.

Plate and garnish with chopped cilantro.

I used white bitter gourd here because the vendor told me it's less bitter compared to the green varieties. However, it's up to you on the bitterness level. On top of that though, I think white bitter gourd looks better when cooked in dark sauce. That brownish color literally translate the taste as more flavorful in my head. 

Extended reading:

• Bitter gourd stir-fry with salted black beans

Lychee and Apple Black Tea 荔枝蘋果紅茶

Auntie gave us a bag of lychee, just the kind of take-home gift that I love! So besides enjoying the fresh and plump lychee as it is, we even got more to splurge on fruity black tea.

Lychee and apple black tea - 

Ingredients (about 3 to 4 servings)?

• 10 to 12 lychee
• 1 to 2 apple (1 big one or 2 medium sized apples)
• 4 cups fruity scented black tea
• Some ice cubes 
• Some simple syrup (optional)
• Some honey (optional)

How?

Brew the black tea of your choice. I used wakoucha here, which is a type of Japanese black tea. Store the tea in the fridge till cold. You can prepare the tea a day before.

Peel and remove the seeds from the apple. Slice the apple to medium size chunks and add to a blender or food processor. Also pour in 1/2 cup of brewed tea. Blend till smooth.

Peel off the bumpy lychee skin and remove the seed in the center. Repeat for all the lychees and transfer the sweet flesh to a cup. Beat till the flesh break down to smaller bits, and lots of juice flows out.

Of course you can just use the food processor to do the job, especially if you're aiming for smaller pieces of fresh lychee when enjoying the tea.

Have your serving cup or glass ready, add 2 tablespoons of lychee juice along with 2 tablespoons of the lychee flesh. Also add 2 tablespoons of apple juice with plup. Fill 1/3 or up to half of the cup with ice cubes.

Pour the cold black tea all the way up. Stir and give it a quick taste. If sweeter taste is preferred, consider adding some simple syrup or second best choice honey to the tea.

To make the simple syrup, mix together equal amount of sugar and drinkable water. You need to use low heat to warm up the water so that the sugar will dissolve completely. Try to store the simple syrup in the fridge and wait till cold before use in drinks.

I didn't add any extra syrup or honey for my tea. The natural sweetness from the plump lychees I got was enough. Also when biting into the lychee flesh, you'll get a a sudden pop of sweetness from it, really enjoyable. 

Extended reading:

• Apple and honey black tea (the blender way)

Japanese Pickled Napa Cabbage with Shio Kombu 白菜漬け

Sometimes when you get a Japanese meal set, on top of the main dish, there are usually couple more side dishes plus a bowl of miso soup to go with it. And among many common side dishes, you'll often see a lighter colored pickled napa cabbage.

Usually lighter than the version I made here. However, the basic ingredients are the same, I'm guessing it's either the Japanese tsuyu used or the shio kombu, or even longer marinate time that caused the slightly darker version. Put the color aside though, the taste is equally good.

Japanese pickled napa cabbage with shio kombu 白菜漬け - 

Ingredients?

• 1/4 medium napa cabbage
• 1/2 medium carrot 
• 1 teaspoon salt

Marinade:

• 1 tablespoon double-condensed Japanese tsuyu
• 2 tablespoons shio kombu 塩昆布
• 2 grams dried bonito flakes 鰹節
• 1 dried red chili
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar

How?

Destem the napa cabbage and slice each big pieces of leaves in half lengthwise. Then slice to smaller rectangular chunks. Peel and julienne the carrot. Destem and slice the dried red chili to smaller rings.

Add the napa cabbage and carrot to a container. 

Mix in 1 teaspoon of salt. Give it a quick massage then put aside for 10 minutes. You'll start to see some liquid drawing out on the bottom.

After 10 minutes, squeeze out the liquid really hard and transfer the veggies to a big Ziploc bag. In that bag, also add 1 tablespoon of Japanese tsuyu, 2 tablespoons of shio kombu, 2 grams of dried bonito flakes (katsuobushi), dried red chilies, and 1 teaspoon of sugar. Use 2 teaspoons of sugar instead if a sweeter taste is preferred.

Mix till evenly blended. Flatten the area and store in the fridge overnight. Remember toss a few times or flip to the other side half way through.

Enjoy the pickled napa cabbage as it is the next day. 

You can move the rest of the pickles to a seal-tight container. Continue to store in the fridge and it'll still be good over the next few days.

The pickles are best when serving along side some heavy or stronger-tasting main dishes, such as fried pork cutlet or curry. That refreshing acidity will help cutting through the fat and sometimes remedy the spicy numbing sensation. 

Extended reading:

• Spicy Korean cucumber salad
• Japanese pickled daikon 大根漬け

Chinese Wood Ear Mushroom Salad / Cold Dressed Wood Ear

It's hard to translate Chinese dishes to English sometimes. So I was Googling the often used English name for this common Chinese cold dish, and "Chinese wood ear mushroom salad" was the one that popped out all the time.

Perhaps to westerners calling such dish salad makes sense? I was actually kind of in shock, because a "salad" to me should be something with more ingredients. At least not the simple looking wood ear dish I have here. Then I searched further, Din Tai Fung uses "cold dressed wood ear mushrooms," which sounds much more reasonable in my head. Unfortunately if I Google it using Din Tai Fung's version, basically nothing came up.

I guess for easy-searching purpose, I'll still have to put the title Chinese wood ear mushroom salad up there for now.

Chinese wood ear mushroom salad / cold dressed wood ear - 

Ingredients?

• 2 handful fresh wood ear
• 1 tablespoon goji berries
• 1 red chili
• Some cilantro
• Some young ginger
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce paste
• 1 tablespoon black vinegar
• 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

How?

Use small fresh wood ear if you can find it, it's called 雲耳 in Chinese. I used the dried version from China's Heilongjiang province instead. Just soak them in lukewarm water and the wood ear will puff up soon after.

Remember to rinse the wood ear a few times before the actual cooking process.

Fill a small pot with some water and add two slices of young ginger. Bring to a boil then add in wood ear. Bring to a boil again and cook for one minute. Drain and soak the wood ear in icy cold water. 

Once temperature completely drops, drain well and shake-off any remaining water. Also pick-out the ginger slices. Set the wood ear aside or store in the fridge while prepping the sauce.

To make the sauce, mix together 1 tablespoon of soy sauce paste, 1 tablespoon of black vinegar, 1 teaspoon of rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon of soy sauce, 1 teaspoon of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil, a pinch of scraped and julienned young ginger, and 1 tablespoon of goji berries.

Stir the sauce till evenly blended and almost all the sugar has been dissolved. Add in cold wood ear and mix till evenly blended again. Plate and garnish with some cilantro leaves.

The cilantro leaves here not just for decoration, we actually do that pop of aroma to brighten up this wood ear dish.

You can always adjust the seasonings according to your preference. Some like it sour and some prefer a sweeter taste. Some even add lemon juice for a light fruity acidity touch. 

Other recipes using wood ear:

• Vietnamese steamed egg meatloaf
• Pork strips wood ear and cilantro stir-fry

Eye-Caring and Vitamins Booster Juice

I guess that age has finally come. Some friends started to ask me if I have been experiencing symptoms of presbyopia. Perhaps yes, but I'm not quite sure the focusing issue and tiredness are because of that, or I just over-worked my eyes. 

For sure I need to cut back on phone time, stop checking Instagram and Facebook that often. Need to try to get some quality sleeping hours. Also start taking eye-care tablets. What else can I do, perhaps putting up an eye-caring combo while making juice at home?

Eye-caring and vitamins booster juice -

Ingredients (about 2 to 3 servings)?

• 1 1/2 loosely packed cups papaya
• 1 loosely packed cup carrot
• 1 loosely paced cup spinach
• 1 orange
• 1 green kiwi
• 3 cups cold water
• Some honey (optional)
• 2 walnuts (optional)

How?  

Only using the meaty part for the papaya, that means not the skin and not the seeds. Cut into chunks. Peel and slice the carrot to smaller pieces, destem and section the spinach, peel and separate the orange segments, scoop out the kiwi flesh and not using the skin. 

Add all the prepped ingredients to the blender. 

Along pour in 3 cups of cold water. For a sweeter taste, pour in some honey too. I actually added one tablespoon of honey here. Toss in couple walnuts if available.

Blend, pour, and serve. Use more water for a thinner consistency. However, I'd like to see heavy pulps when having homemade juice, feel much healthier that way.

By the way, for the orange, if you can't find seedless version, use other citrus instead. Just try to get the seedless variety to save up some works in the kitchen. 

Extended reading:

• Mixed fruit and vegetable juice using kale, carrot, blueberry, pear, and apple
• Cucumber and pineapple juice with a touch of mint leaves

A Quick Afternoon Snack - Seared Corn and Seaweed Fritters

Even though I'm not using any sugar in this recipe, but the natural sweetness from the corn kernels really shined through. That sweet note was even more noticeable after I dusted the hot fritters with salt flakes. Enjoy the fritters while they're still hot, that way you can truly feel the salt flakes melting on your tongue and a burst of umami from the seaweed comes through soon after.

Seared corn and seaweed fritters - 

Ingredients (about 8 pieces)?

• 1 small can/160 grams corn kernels
• 1 tablespoon dried seaweed flakes
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons corn starch
• 1 1/2 tablespoons drinking water
• 6 tablespoons light-tasting oil (I used rice bran oil)
• Some salt flakes

How?

Use a medium size bowl, add in drained corn kernels along with 2 tablespoons of flour, 1 1/2 tablespoons of corn starch, 1 1/2 tablespoons of drinking water, and 1 tablespoon of dried seaweed flakes. Mix till evenly distributed.

Bring out a non-stick pan and drizzle about 6 tablespoons of oil, basically use double or triple the amount of oil you often used while making a stir-fry dish.

Switch to medium heat and wait till the oil gets warm. Use a spoon to scoop some corn mixture. Push one spoonful of mixture into the pan and slightly press it down but not breaking up the shape. Repeat for the rest.

Once the bottom seems to set, you can test it out by gently moving around the patties. If the patties don't stick and movable without breaking apart, it should be ready. 

Flip and continue to sear/semi-fry the other side till set and slightly golden. 

Prepare a big plate and top with paper towel. Transfer the corn fritters over and let them sit for about a minute.

Once ready, transfer to serving dish and sprinkle some salt flakes while the fritters are still hot.

The heat combined with slightly crunchy coating, a sweet pop from the corn kernels, and salt flakes taste the best within the initial 15 minutes. So hurry and finish these goodies as soon as possible.

And I don't suppose these corn and seaweed fritters would last longer than that? Especially if you have a few hungry kids in the house?

Extended reading:

• Zucchini, corn kernels, and ground pork stir-fry

Mixed Fruit and Vegetable Juice Using Kale, Carrot, Blueberry, Pear, and Apple

I usually buy whole fruit instead of precut ones whenever possible. However, when making smaller portion juice, sometimes the already-prepped assorted fruits sold at the market can be a real helper. 

There's only peeled and cubed pears the time I went grocery shopping, so I got some of that. Along the way I've also picked up other ingredients which I think should pair with pears in a tasty and nutritious way.

Mixed fruit and vegetable juice using kale, carrot, blueberry, pear, and apple - 

Ingredients (about 2 to 3 glasses)?

• 2 loosely packed cups kale
• 1 loosely packed cup peeled and cubed carrot
• 1 loosely packed cup blueberries
• 2 1/2 loosely packed cups peeled and cubed pear
• 1 1/2 loosely packed cups peeled and cubed apple
• 2 cups icy cold water

How?

Prep all the fruits, such as peel the carrot, apple, and pear if needed then cube them for easier blending. 

Add all the listed ingredients to a blender. However, if the blender can't hold as much, simply split these ingredients in half and blend separately. You can combine the blended batches to a big pitcher in the end. 

Blend the juice till smooth while still seeing tiny bits throughout. Pour and serve right away. 

Because of oxidation, my super fresh juice started to turn brown soon after I pour it out from the blender. But the taste was still crisp and great. Use one more cup of icy cold water for a thinner consistency, or use one more cup of icy cold water plus one more apple for bigger servings. 

I would highly recommend not to strain the juice for its maximum benefit. It's a shame if all these nutritious bits are going to waste. 

Extended reading:

• Cucumber and pineapple juice with a touch of mint leaves

Scallion Oil Noodles for One 蔥油拌麵

Usually I would just mix together three simple Asian seasonings when putting up a quick noodles meal for myself. These three seasonings are soy sauce, sesame oil, and black vinegar, perhaps a bit chili sauce for an extra kick. But once in a blue moon I'm like why not step it up a notch! I want something fancier, something much more flavorful this time. So here it is, my single serving scallion oil noodles.

Scallion oil noodles -

Ingredients (for one serving)?

• 2 stalks scallion
• 150 grams thin Asian wheat based noodles
• 2 tablespoons neutral cooking oil
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons black vinegar
• 1 teaspoon chili sauce

How?

Destem the scallion and chop some green parts for garnish. As for the remaining section, slice into thin strips. It doesn't have to be very nicely sliced since we're going to sear them later.

Bring out a medium pot and drizzle 2 tablespoons of neutral oil. I used rice bran oil. Switch to medium heat and add in the scallion strips. Continue to sear the scallion till they start to turn dry on some parts.

Change to low heat to prevent oil splashing while we add the seasonings. So from here, let's add 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of dark soy sauce, 2 teaspoon of black vinegar, and 1 teaspoon of chili sauce. Mix till blended then switch off the heat.

Taste and adjust accordingly. The sauce should be on the saltier side since we're going to mix in the noodles soon after. Once the flavor is checked, pour that to serving bowl.

Have another medium pot filled with water. Wait till the water starts to boil then add in thin Asian noodles. The dried version can be easily found in Asian grocery stores. I can also get fresh kind here in Taiwan's traditional market. Cook till the noodles reach desired texture, drain then transfer to the serving bowl.

Mix till evenly blended, then garnish with chopped scallion on top. The noodles are fully coated with the flavorful scallion oil, not only making it a smooth slurp, but also filled with scallion aroma. 

There's not much extra stuff that I need to clean afterwards compared to my usual basic dry noodles meal, so that's one more point to this scallion oil noodles recipe. And the most important thing is that the upgraded single serving noodles truly delivered. Cravings satisfied and definitely left with a happy tummy. 

Extended reading:

• Chili garlic noodles for one