Am I full?

Let’s start this out with what I had to eat last night. Drunken fried ramen noodles with bok choy. Drunken is a term they used for food that is “thrown together”, like what a drunk would do when he’s hungry. Throw whatever he has into a skillet, cook and eat. I wasn’t drunk what this happened though. Very tasty!

We had my daughter birthday held at my in-law today. There’s nothing better than the food at any Laotian party. I had the chance to take home PLENTY of left over. Here’s what I had.

Shrimp Paste with Sticky Rice

This is just shrimp that has been pounded with a mortar and pestle. Once it’s at the consistency that the chef likes spices and fresh herbs are added. The taste (and smell) is something that is acquired. BTW the shrimp is raw. This dish is served best with sticky rice. Some may prefer jasmine rice.

(That white blob in the middle is a piece of sticky rice!)

Fish Salad

This isn’t the usual salad that we find today at the salad bar or our local supermarket. This starts with finely chopped fish (this dish uses tilapia). Once chopped the fish is soaked in lime juices. The lime juices are then squeezed from the fish. It leaves you with fish clumps. Add spices and herbs and you’re done. A nice addition to this dish was the introduction of julienne young mangos (very tartly). This can be served on top of fresh green lettuce, but I prefer sticky rice! The fish is also raw in this dish. The lime also does a great part of masking the “icky-ness” of the fish (for those who dislike sushi). I’m a sushi lover, so there’s no such thing as “icky-ness”!

Coconut Milk with Tapioca and Palm Nuts

This is a simple dish of coconut milk, different types of tapioca, and palm nuts (packed in syrup). There are many renditions of dish. This was the simpler version. Enjoy.

Pierogie topped with Onions and Shimp in Butter

I'm a very big fan of "fast" food, especially when it comes off a stovetop. Good food doesn't have to mean you’re in the kitchen all day. I got the pierogie from Wal-Mart (Poppy's Polish Style Pierogie BITES, Potatoes & Cheddar). The ingredients are pretty simple too. Everyone should have everything but the shrimp and pierogies in their fridge/cabinet. This serves two or one hungry person.

Ingredients:
1 Pack (15oz) Pierogies (normal size or bite size, you pick the filling)
1 Large Sweet Onion (you can cut these any way you like)
8-10 pieces of Shrimp (more if you like)
Pinch of Salt
Pinch of Pepper
1 Teaspoon Dry Oregano
1 Teaspoon Dry Basil
2 Cloves of minced garlic
Butter
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Direction:
Boil a pot of water. At the same time start the EVOO on a skillet pan (med-high) once hot add garlic. When the garlic is browned (doesn’t that smell wonderful?) add the onions. Add the salt and stir. Once onions are done sweating add the Shrimp, Oregano, Basil, then stir. Put the pierogies in the boiling water while waiting for the shrimp to cook. The direction on my pierogie package is to just boil them for approximately three minutes and not to overcook. Drain the pierogies and plate them. Remove the onions and shrimp from the heat, add the butter and stir until all the butter had melted. Top the pierogies with the onions and shrimp. Salt and pepper to taste!

I would of added cream but the carton in my fridge expired. You could add a little spice by adding cayenne pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Not another FOOD blog!

Food can be considered so many things to many different people. When it comes to food some are picky while other would eat anything (sometime only when intoxicated). To some food may pay a serious part of their lifestyle or their religion. Even as sometimes being overlooked and under appreciated, food has now been as popular as ever. With our increase interest in taste and flavor, we've gone in search for something our taste buds are not familiar with. My goal is to document my journey as I taste the different types of food available.

I cook too! Hehe...