Chinese Heat

Shichuan Pavilion "Diced Chicken with Pepper"

Heat, to me, is Comfort. Growing up in Thailand, Chinese food was always considered as bland and fatty. China is a grand country. From Peking duck of the north to Mongolia, Cantonese, Sichuan and Hong Kong, there is such a variety. With its thousands of years of food history, to succumb to a stereotyping and General Tso chicken, seems rather naive. Plus, is it really true that Chinese cannot handle spices? I soon discovered after meeting one of my Chinese friends who was from the Sichuan province that I have gotten it all wrong.
There are Chinese who are addicted to spicy heat as much as the Thais...

In Southwestern region of China, the Sichuan pepper is the key ingredient of any Sichuan dish.  Grown from shrub of the citrus family, the seeds are held by pods similar to cardamom. The flavor however is lemony and peppery. You will see them cooked together with whole red chili in a typical Sichuan dish.

In the DC area, I discovered 2 places for Sichuan cuisine--Hong Kong Palace (7 Corners, Falls Church) and Sichuan Pavilion (between Farragut North and West metro stations in DC). Once you make a visit, you must order the following dishes: diced chicken with pepper, cumin lamb, Dan Dan noodles and tea smoked duck. After a visit, you will realize that you have entered another realm of Chinese cuisine.

C&T Wok "Cumin Lamb"

I crave for the Sichuan heat and almost lost hope until I tried a couple of places in the Triangle area (Morrisville and Cary, NC)--C&T Wok and Super Wok. Not all restaurants are created equal.  Thank goodness!  I find the C&T Wok cumin lamb closest to what I had in the DC area. Tender lamb, stir fried with cumin, onion and pepper. The white board is covered in both Chinese and English of the day special...beef, shrimp, Grouper, scallop and Chinese vegetable.

Super Wok "Chili Crabs"

If you crave for dice chicken with peppercorn, no one else can do it better than Super Wok, in the triangle area. Though the specialty dish is Chili Crab. I cannot get it in the DC area...not this good. The crab was battered and deep fired before stir-frying in the spicy chili concoction. Every morsel was covered in a pile high of chili, lemony goodness. With an order of steamed rice and chopstick, you are good to go.

Specials @ C&T Wok

You will hardly see anyone else, but Asians in these two joints, a great sign of authenticity. Neither will you see anyone ordering egg rolls or fried rice. I suppose you can go to a local Chinese express for that.
Next time you have a craving for Chinese food, ask yourselves which regional flavor of China do you want to try and skip the Kung pao chicken. Sichuan will not disappoint your spicy taste buds. Just like the difference in regions in China there are differences in the US, I sure don't want foreigners to think that a Hawaiian luau is the same as a North Carolina pig pickin'. Southern comfort has a lot more than Mac and cheese and collard greens but the definition of comforts needs to change. Heat and spices fit the southern climate like a glove.

Cheers!
Teera

Beating the Heat Part II: Tropical Crunch

King Narai's Summer Palace

Imagine sitting under a shade of a Charmjuree tree (another name for Kampoo or Rain tree) with a light summer breeze passing through. The white plastered, tall wall of King Narai's summer palace seems to not only keep the hustling and bustling of the city center away, but entice one to step back in time, to walk and to talk softly with a respectful gesture to the spirit and the past. Old and new, everything one touches has a spirit that lives in it. You may hear a whisper or simply a deep silence as one passes by.

Khmer Ruin Near the Summer Palace

In the mid 17th century King Narai spent most of his days in this palace, north of the city of Ayutthaya (Thailand) where he reign. He befriended the French who helped him plan the city layout. Before King Narai's time, the city of the summer palace (Lavo) was the center of the Khmer (Cambodian) and Thai civilization, dating back to the 6th century. You cannot help but feel its history in the air, walking through the palace and the city.
The summer palace is now a museum with a couple restaurants servicing small crowds. It was a place that I escaped to, to hang out with my friends. There was no Internet cafe back then, but you could always find papaya salad, sticky rice, or some sort of grilled meat to hang out with. More importantly, the place was peaceful and had shade.

Papaya Salad with Grilled Honey Chicken

Eating papaya is as tropical as you can get. It can be eaten as salad, curry, and when ripe, dessert. During raining season, you can see them ripen and practically fall of its tree daily. A midnight snack can easily be had. My aunt caught me one night after I had picked a young papaya from the garden, carved, and pounded it and was mixing a salad. Fruit of the craving was well worth the commotion that night.

Below is a simple recipe for the salad:

In a large clay mortar, pound:

1/3 cup of dried shrimp, 2 cloves of garlic and 3 Thai chili
Add 3 cups of julienne young papaya, ½ cup of cherry tomatoes, ½ of green beans.  Pound and mix lightly.

Add the flavoring: Fish Sauce, Palm sugar, and Tamarind, lime.

Sprinkle with ½ cup of ground peanut.

Lotus Stem Salad at Pho Far East, Raleigh, NC

If the spicy papaya salad is not your thing, I invite you to try the lotus stem salad at a local Vietnamese restaurant in Raleigh--Pho Far East. The fresh, crunchy lotus stem is quite refreshing. It was dressed lightly with fish sauce, lime, onion, shrimp, pork and fried shallots. Vietnamese food is mild, in comparison to Thai food, but gives your taste buds of the tropical palate that will help you cool down.

I hope you sink back through time when the sun is blazing outside and find yourselves a shady spot. Sweat it out with a tropical salad and feel the breeze. At least that's how I am planning to cope with the heat...

Cheers,
Teera

 

Beating the Heat Part I--Chilling

Watermelon Margaritas

Heat is a strong word. Unbearable, especially when one is engulfed in it. The temperature reached 105 degrees Fahrenheit the other day. Global warming sure is showing its sign. The question is how do you take the heat and transform it into coolness or simply being content with smoldering.

In the tropics, water symbolizes coolness and calmness. Living in hot climate, one walks slowly, stays under the shade and eats food that requires little heating. However much I would like to sink in a body of water all day and chill, I prefer taking the Thai approach to cool down.
Here are a few steps:

1. Eat less meat, less dairy products and more often. I love grilled meat, but with this  kind of heat, my digestive system can take a little break. Eating 5 times per day in small portion will also help.
2. Drink a lot of liquid, especially water to keep your body hydrated.

3. Take the heat "outdoor" and avoid cooking with heat indoor at all cause.

Below are some starter recipes that will help cool you down and save some energy bill. They require no heat, no meat and no sweat just a food processor and a thirsty appetite.

Watermelon Margaritas (2 servings)
2 cups watermelon
Juice of 1 lime and its zest
1/2 cup Tequila
1/4 cup Cointreau
1/2 cup simple syrup (I infused vanilla in mine)
Salt for around the rim of the glass

In the food processor, blend until smooth. Serve with crushed ice.
Our children first fell in love with the watermelon drink at a Thailand street market. This is how the Thais make them: Omit the alcohol and add the crushed ice to blend.

Hummus with Smoked Paprika

Hummus
1-15 oz can chick peas, drained
1/2 cup Tahini or ground white sesame seeds (add a drop of sesame oil if Tahini is not being used)
Juice if 1 lime
1 garlic clove
1 tbspn smoked, sweet paprika

Blend all ingredients in a blender. Drizzle with olive oil and paprika. Serve with pita chips or bread.

Gazapacho

Gazpacho (4 servings)
6 very ripe plum tomatoes
1 English cucumber
1/2 red bell pepper
1 small Vidalia onion
1 cloves of garlic
3 tbspn of sherry vinegar
1/4 cups of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Blend all ingredients in a blender. Pour the mixture through a strainer. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Serve chilled with hard boil eggs and a drizzle of olive oil.

Summer Roll

  

Summer rolls
Vietnamese fresh spring roll sheets (rice flour)
Lettuce
Cooked Mung bean noodles
Julienned carrot and cucumber
Thai basil
Hoisin sauce and Thai peanut sauce (from your local supermarket)
Another alternative is to combine peanut butter, Thai Sriracha sauce, and Hoisin sauce together and you will have your dip.

Wet the spring roll sheet with warm water. Spread Lettuce leave and basil as the first layer. Add the rest of the ingredients and roll them up. Serve with peanut and Hoisin sauce.

If you can try this first cooling down step for a week, your body will feel lighter and cooler. Trust me. Wear your linen sarong, flip flop and sit in a cool place. With a drink in your hand, let's get the summer party started.

Cheers!
Teera

 

Toward Emerald Isle

Morning at the Isle

Walking outside is like walking through a warm oven. Humidity is low. The warm breeze gives one an instant surge of a migraine plus the heat index has topped the chart. So, what does one do when it gets so darn hot? One option...the beach and here we go!

Emerald Isle is a small strip of land along the east coast of North Carolina. The orientation of the island, however, is intriguing. The total length of the island is approximately 25 miles.  The beach is due south toward the Atlantic Ocean. The sun rotates around its beach from dusk till dawn. Its north harbors the water inlet that creates a separation from the mainland. Driving the Salter Path or Emerald Isle Drive through the live oaks that flank the street gives me an impression of an upscale beach town. The wide beach is sprinkled with seashells. The inlets are filled with fishing boats. One of the three North Carolina aquariums is located here. Nightlife is catching crabs and watching the stars over the horizon.

The Pebble Beach

There are plenty of restaurants along the strip, but you will have a better luck finding varieties in Atlantic Beach. A place like Elmo McGee Mosquito and California Roll won't disappoint you if you are looking for the local food done upscale. I prefer the local seafood joint, "The Crab Shack", in Salter Path.

View from The Crab Shack

The Crab Shack is located on the inlet side of Emerald Isle where fishing boats surrounds the dock. I had the special of the day, paper shell crabs. It was the first paper shell crab I had ever had. A bit crunchier than soft shell crabs. Growing up in Thailand I became accustomed to eating fish whole, so after the paper shell crabs were deep fried, eating them whole was no stranger to my tongue. My taste buds were buzzed with the sweet crunchy goodness. The hush puppies were normal, but the black-eyed peas stumbled me a bit. Hey... you are in the south after all. My family had the other specials of the day; fried flounder, popcorn and steamed shrimp. All the seafood came from the local waters. The flounder fillet looked like normal size to me. They call it baby out here. 

The Crab Shack Meal

Once you're done with the meal and want to take fresh local seafood home, walk outside. To the left and the right are 2 seafood markets. I opt to go just a little bit off the beaten path. After you cross over to the mainland, hang a left on Cedar Point Blvd and drive for a few miles until you reach a bridge that leads you to Swansboro. Well...stop in the middle of the bridge and you will find Clyde Phillips Seafood Market. The catch of the day was grouper. There is always shrimp. Though, you have to get there before lunch. The selections are what the local boat catches for the day. I grab half of a grouper to take home and it was simply delicious.

In the middle of the Bridge

Clyde Phillips Catch of the Day

Beaches in the tropics are no doubt beautiful, but driving 3 hours to get there beats the trip around the world and getting to different continents. Plus, there are no extra fees for baggage just strap it on the car roof and drive on.

Cheers!
Teera