Mak's Noodles

Simple, cheap, delicious, efficient.

That's all there is to it, everything is made fresh, prepared quickly.Well recognized by the city so always expect a high turnout. Need not worry, they have such a high turnover rate you'll get seated quickly no matter what the crowd size, just be open to a new neighbor every time. It's a small shop like any other place in the city so expect communal seating. 

Wonton Noodle Soup: Thin, chewy noodles in a simple broth, perfection. Wontons  are stuffed with seasoned pork, savory and fulfilling, dip with a little red vinegar on the side. Note that bowls here are small, the mindset is slurp and go. Ideal for such a fast paced city. If one does feel like they need more there's a bunch of sides to choose from.  

There are a few more options on the menu, notables being the Brisket and the bitter veggies, but I'm stuck on the wontons.  It's my first love of this city, and I still can't get over them.

• G/F, 77 Wellington Street
  Central, Hong Kong Island

Hong Kong: 7,000 & some change

I once consider myself a "sheltered" Southern Californian, sheltered in the sense that up until two years ago my idea of travel was a 32 hour drive down to Mexico every year to see my grandparents (Ixtlan del Rio, Nayarit & Villa Hidalgo, San Luis Potosi; respectively). Granted anyone else see's that trip as notable, it really loses it spark when you do it once or twice a year, every year since you where born. Lately the more and more I reflect upon my time there, the more my opinion has began to change. A sentiment I'll save for later.

What else was there, Vegas? That was only a stones throw down the highway. Phoenix? I spent my most of my 3 days indoors because it was so friggin hot, I hardly remembered outside. I pretty much was in my own little box.

But, it was two years ago where my friend and I simply said "screw it" and bought a pair of tickets to Chicago. Since, the urge to see out what else was out there led me across the country, until finally, a catalyst was lit that would send me across the Pacific for the first time!

After a year saving, a ton of hype and anticipation, my butt finally boarded on to what was one of the most brutal 18 hour treks of my life, but hey, at least there was plenty of leg space. Southwest/Delta fliers you feel me??? Although, not exactly enjoyable by any stretch of the word, it got me to point B. Soon enough though, I arrived. Finally.

Kimchi Tofu Stew

  Somewhere deep inside me I know I was Korean in my past life because I have unquestionable similarities in their passion for variety in one sitting, appreciation for the social aspect, and just the straight-up voraciousness when it comes to knocking out large portions. But among the seemingly endless varieties of banchan, kimchi has always held a small corner in my heart.
 
  Back when I was going meatless for a month, this alone kept me happy for at week. The tofu + soft-boiled egg did well enough in keeping me satiated. So any vegetarian seekin something more hardy, look no further.

  Salty, sour, spicy. Practically an awkward, if not intimidating description to any westerner, but one should always hone the spirit of Andrew Zimmern, everything is worth a taste.

Ingredients:

• 16oz Silken Tofu
• 1tspn Vegetable Oil 
• 4 cups Kimchi (gently squeezed) + 1 cup of liquid 
• 2 tbsp Gochujang 
• 8 scallions cut in 1in. pieces 
• 2 tbsps Reduced-Sodium Soy Sauce  
• 1 tbsps toasted Sesame Oil

  Garnishes

• Black pepper
• Egg Yolk 
• Toasted Sesame Seeds 

  -Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Reduce heat, carefully add tofu, and simmer gently until slightly puffed & firmed up. 4 min. Use slotted spoons to transfer to a bowl.
  - Heat vegetable oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add kimchi, and gochujang, stir often until it begins to brown. 5-8 min.
  - Add kimchi liquid and 6-7 cups of water . Bring to a boil, then reduce. Simmer heat until kimchi has softened. 35-40 min.
  - Add scallions, soy sauce, & tofu; Simmer 20-25min.
  - Add sesame oil; season with salt & pepper. Laddle into bowl; top with egg yolk and sesame seeds.

  I may not be Korean, but my stomach sure is.

Photo credit to Jamie K.

Sake-Blossom (Super Sake Post)

A fantastic little drink that was haphazardly made on spot, there's a little bit of story behind it and mainly it's counterpart.

A couple month's back I did a bar-tending gig for a wedding, only to be given list of two "signature cocktails" consisting of a handful of ingredients chosen by the bride and groom. Now, I don't mind mixing up some fancy new drinks for a crowd, but I was given just a list and no set instruction of how to prepare or measurement of said ingredients.

Sake Blossom: Vodka, Elderflower Liqueur, Sake, Lime Juice, Lime

Abocado: Avocado, Lime juice, Sake

Now I'm placed on the spot with an hour to set up my bar and whip up something the crowd could enjoy. The Sake Blossom itself was easy enough, stuck to the vodka being the base, and a little bit of everything else to add characterAbocado", how they came up with the name or the list of ingredients I don't know, what resulted after many trials was a chunky mess that I prayed didn't send me packing. The end product was 1oz each of the Sake & St. Germain, a decent squirt avocado puree (that the kitchen luckily helped me out with), and big splash of Sprite, no garnish. Taste wise, it passed, aesthetically...ehh.
. But this "

Luckily for me both drinks where a hit, and to this day I still don't know how or why the Abocado made out it alive, but I guess alcohol is alcohol to most. Go ahead and try to make it, I dare you.

As for the storied cocktail, here ya go, salud!

-1oz Vodka, 1/2oz Sake, 1/2oz St. Germain, splash of lemonade (or lime juice if it's too sweet)

-Shake it with some ice, serve neat, with a lime wedge.

Aaaand for extra good measure I'd like to contribute one of my personal favorite sake-based drinks, just for the 'sake' of sticking with the theme. This recipe was adapted off an old cocktail book I had laying around the house, this is one is for those who love the taste of citrus in a very dry, crisp format. Treat as you would with any good martini and use nothing but of the finest ingredients you have. You'll taste the cheap quality if you cope out. As for sake preferences, I'm a fan of Tozai Nigori, although I'm not a connoisseur by any means, this happened to work the best with what I've managed to test out. Oh, and how can I forget, what is this name of this drink?? The book referred to this as the "Sake-tini", don't bother looking it up on the internet, there's about a dozen or so drinks that carry this name and they don't even come close. Haha

-1.5oz sake, 1/2oz Gin, 1/2oz Curacao
-Stir in a shaker with ice and strain into a martini glass with a orange twist.

Just to make it a one for two deal here's a neat one that was brought up to me just recently. Tokyo Milk. It's delightfully sweeter than expected, the egg yolk adds a subtle character that many are missing out on. I'm sure we can thank the Health Department on that part.

Afternoon stroll at Russian Hill

Recently I've been able to do a couple projects with Spottly, and just this week they opened up their new Submissions page with one my entries to kick it all off. Enjoy.

The V word

  Of all the random things I could have possibly done to, earlier this year I decided to try out the vegetarian lifestyle. That's right. I'm going to be the V word.

 Now what started off this crazy experiment was this dish (pictured above) in my attempt to continue a series of posts that never just came to light. Then later in succession, I just happened to follow up with another meatless dish and figured why not see how far I can take this?

And since I was on this crazy crusade of a protein cleanse, I might as well make things interesting, because salads hardly hold a novelty in my book. For the later set of weeks I wanted share my exploration of the worlds take on meatless cuisine. I'm actually surprised I didn't cave in to my cravings for Fried Chicken and In-N-Out at the time.

Dish #1 Shakshouka: Tunisian dish was brought to light to me by J. Kao during our last cooking sessions before she departed back to the motherland.

• 1/4 Olive Oil
• 1 Yellow Onion 
• 2 cups chopped Kale 
• 5 cloves Garlic
• 1 tsp Ground Cumin
• 1 tsp Ground Chipotle Powder
• 1 can Whole Peeled Tomatoes, Undrained  
• Sea Salt
• 4 Eggs
• 1/2 cup Goat Cheese 
• 1 tbsp Basil

- Heat oil in cast iron skillet over MEDIUM HIGH HEAT; add chopped Onions, Kale, Garlic and stir until soft.
- Add Cumin Chipotle Powder ad stir for another minute.
- Add Tomatoes and liquid to the skillet; reduce heat, simmer for 15 minutes.
- When Tomato mixture has thickened, stir slightly, add in salt.
- Make a hole in the sauce and crack in Eggs.
- Cover skillet and cook for 4-5 minutes, depending on how runny you like your eggs.
- Finish with Goat Cheese + Basil, serve with toasted bread, pita, etc.

Dish #2 Rustic Onion Tart: Preferably, I love this for breakfast but I can't exactly say I have the patience to cook for that when my stomach wants food now. Luckily this is just as awesome the following morning after a few minutes back in the oven.

• 1 pie crust
• 2 large Onions (Yellow/Spanish)
• 4 eggs
• 3/4 Cup of Half & Half
• 8-10 slices of Swiss Cheese
• 2 Tbsp of Flour
• 1/2 Tsp of Salt
• 1/4 Tsp of Black Pepper 

Preheat oven to 350F

1. Put the pie dough over a glass/ceramic (oven-proof) dish or pie pan. Press to the bottom and around the edges.
2. On the bottom of the dough, spread half the onions and half of the cheese. You don't need to cover the onions completely. 
3. Beat the eggs with the flour, half & half, salt and pepper. Pour half the mixture over the cheese you laid down.
4. Spread the other half of the onions and cheese, and cover with the rest of the egg mixture.
5. Bake for 50 minutes. 

International Knickknacks

I love giving giving gifts, but it's even more awesome when I receive. Am I right people??

Recently my best friend was lucky enough to study abroad in the UK, and traveled pretty much everywhere else near by during here free time.

After four long months I was finally greeted with big hug and elegant, pretty box filled to the brim with goodies from England, Scotland, and Amsterdam. Wonderful scotchs of all varieties (and sizes), spreadable's, smokable's, and some sweet readable's. I can't be thankful enough. ^^

Make friends that like to travel, and don't forget to do so yourself!