Getting ready for winter?
Not sure what's going on but I've been in the mood to pickle all week. It seems that most people only get this way when they visit a farmer's market (and see irresistible produce) or with the approach of winter (to stock up on vegetables for times of need).
Me, I think I'm just in a bit of a domestic/homemaking kick.
On Tuesday, I first made Chinese pickled (napa) cabbage (sometimes called "Sour Cabbage" on restaurant menus). It's a Northeastern Chinese delicacy that can be enjoyed many ways - straight, in pork and lamb hot pots, dumplings, or stir-fried with various meats. Not one for waiting, I'm using a recipe that requires only 3 days of fermentation. Since I reduced the recipe by quite a bit (the original called for 2 large heads of cabbage), C thinks that my batch is under salted/seasoned but I'm hopeful that it will turn out well. It's now day 2 so we will see how it tastes tomorrow night. (Hopefully C will be willing to have the first bite...but I will be nice and cook it first before having him taste it. LOL~) If successful, I'll probably proceed with the next step and make some lamb hot pot this weekend.
Today, I made Korean yul mul (water) kimchi or "pickled white radish (daikon)." Again, the fermentation process will be short, only 2 days this time. C isn't a big fan of this dish but I love how it tastes with Naeng Myeon (Korean cold noodle). Again, something to be had this weekend.
Later tonight, I'm going to try a Japanese* recipe for homemade ginger ale. Supposedly, cafes and bars in Japan often serve a ginger ale cocktail with something made by Asahi called "Wilkinson Ginger Ale" but since the syrup is hard to obtain (even in Japan), people try to make their own versions at home. As with the other two recipes, this one won't take too much time - only one night (mainly for the syrup to chill).
All this plus C's homemade Magarita pizza for brunch on Saturday...I guess you can say it's going to be another food-filled weekend. Which means that spring time is here in our household. Yay! Let the food play begin!
*Notice the use of CJK recipes? I'm such a freak.
[Photo credit: Metroblogging/Tokyo]
Labels: cooking
posted by 20-30-40 @ 4:10 PM
2 Comments:
Update: tasted the pickled napa cabbage tonight (made a spicy lamb stir-fry with it). The pickling came out better than I expected but the light sourness might be better for soup (not strong enough for dry dishes to go with rice). Next time, I will definitely need to add more salt.
C's comment about my pickling craze: "Finally! This is what I was expecting months ago...It's as if you've just discovered that you're now a homemaker."
What can I say? I'm slow?
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