Giant Hippo

Jun Jiu Kao (Pearl Balls)

brett — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:49:14 +0000

Some days are meant for sitting on the sofa and eating bon bons. While I admit bon bons are incredibly tasty (I had them just once and even made it a point to sit on the sofa while eating them), more often than not, I’ll make jun jiu kao when I’m in need of a [...]

Chicken Tofu Gumbo Ya Ya

brett — Thu, 03 May 2012 05:17:15 +0000

Yup, you read right — gumbo with tofu. Now before ya’ll get started with me, let me start off by saying that if you’re allergic to soy, if tofu isn’t your thing, or if you believe in all that crazy hype about soy being bad for you, please, by all means, leave out the tofu. [...]

Hippo Bread

brett — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 08:55:51 +0000

Every gluten-free cook has his or her signature bread recipe. This is mine. A derivation of Neat Bread, Hippo Bread is superior in terms of texture, taste, and appearance thanks to its key ingredient, plain, homemade soy milk. Homemade soy milk acts as a binder, tenderizes the loaf’s crumb, adds a creaminess to the flavor, and imparts [...]

Soy Milk

brett — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 03:26:25 +0000

Soy milk is a kitchen basic in our household. It’s good for drinking, but it’s also indispensable in the kitchen as an ingredient in many recipes. Soy milk is an excellent dairy substitute in cooking. It’s also a great egg substitute in recipes requiring the binding (though not rising) properties of eggs. My family enjoys [...]

“Catfish” Tofu

brett — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 05:31:53 +0000

Tasty, easy, and fast, “Catfish” Tofu — which contains no catfish — is my primary go-to dish on nights when I’m too tired to do anything but am having one of those gotta-get-dinner-on-the-table-NOW-or-else-hungry-toddler-is-gonna-have-a-meltdown nights. In a pinch, you could omit the cilantro, green onion, and black pepper, though the flavor will not be as nuanced. [...]

Ingredient Spotlight:Takara Sho Chiku Bai Classic Sake

brett — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 20:00:24 +0000

Whenever a recipe calls for sake, sherry, or shao hsing wine, I reach for Takara Sho Chiku Bai Classic Sake. Takara is a company with deep Japanese roots and has offices and a sake museum/tasting center in Berkeley, CA. My Takara sake is brewed in Northern California using the pristine mountain water there, according to [...]

Har Gow (Crystal Shrimp Dumplings)

brett — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 05:00:16 +0000

If you’ve been to a dim sum restaurant, you’ve probably had har gow (a.k.a. ha gow, crystal shrimp dumplings). When done right, har gow can be a revelation: shrimp, paired with bamboo and/or water chestnut/jicama, enveloped in a thin, chewy, yet luscious, translucent wrapper that teases and leaves a person craving more. Of course, [...]

Ingredient Spotlight: San-J Reduced Sodium Gluten-Free Tamari

brett — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 01:39:03 +0000

Today’s Ingredient Spotlight shines the light on my favorite gluten-free (not to mention dairy-, egg-, tree nut-, peanut-, and sesame-free) soy sauce substitute, San-J Reduced Sodium Gluten-Free Tamari. What It Is San-J Reduced Sodium Gluten-Free Tamari is a tasty and reliable gluten-free substitute for soy sauce. Both tamari and soy sauce are made by fermenting [...]

Hobo Joe Hash Browns

brett — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 18:40:47 +0000

I vividly remember the first time I had hash browns. My Aunt Rose had taken my mom, my brothers, and her daughter, my cousin Sabrina, to Hobo Joe’s, a chain eatery that no longer exists in Los Angeles. Aunt Rose ordered hash browns, and my, they were dee-lightful! The texture was light, ever so slightly [...]

Hom Sui Gok

brett — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 16:54:34 +0000

A popular dim sum dish, hom sui gok’s savory interior is enveloped in a wrapper that is at once chewy and luscious on the inside, yet every so slightly crisped on the outside. Hom sui gok’s paradoxical texture owes itself to glutinous rice flour. When fried, glutinous rice flour does not react the way [...]