Culture Shock -- Shiki Saves the Day

I really miss the sushi and other Japanese food in California. Hachi Ju Hachi's Suzuki-san and Yume-ya's Suga-san were really amazing, and definitely spoiled me rotten. Porter Exchange just doesn't quite do it for me anymore. While Sapporo does have delicious ramen, I find myself occasionally longing for a nice, elaborate, slow and leisurely Japanese dinner.

Enter Shiki. That is, we entered Shiki. This is a tiny restaurant in Brookline, with a fair showing of Asian customers. Their offerings were reasonably varied, and solidly decent or better. Certainly no Suzuki-san in the kitchens, but it did an acceptable job of meeting my desires.

Egri lunch, Budapest supper

Monday we decided to take a day-trip out to Eger, the home of the infamous Bull's Blood. After some annoying scheduling problems with the trains, we arrived just in time for lunch. Relying once again on the Rough Guide, we decided to go to Fehérszarvas Vadásztanya (unfortunately, only in Hungarian).

If you like stuffed animal heads and hides adorning your dining area, then this is the place for you. I thought it was super charming and lovely. They even had a table surrounded by chairs made from deer antlers and sheep hide. I'm personally a huge fan of using all the parts of an animal, so this practical and creative use of antlers made me really happy.

The food itself was also good. They did a fine goose liver trio, very tender and sweet, and very hearty portions for the entrées. (It's been a full 2 weeks since we ate there, so please forgive me for being sparse on the details!) Overall, lunch was a great experience.

After lunch, we walked out to the Valley of Beautiful Women to visit the numerous wine cellars and taste some wine. More details can be found here, but suffice it to say that I got thoroughly sozzled (some cellars failed to provide a spittoon, blargh). J had to steer me all the way back to the train station.

Because of my drunken state, we went back to Budapest rather earlier than we'd expected. On the train ride home, we looked up another restaurant, Alföldi. Being that it was a Monday, J reasoned that it ought to be slow enough that we wouldn't need a reservation. We were wrong again.

As we milled about outside this little restaurant, a couple stepped out and warned us off it. The food was hit-and-miss, they said, and the service was awful. Better to go to a place nearby called "For Sale."

After wandering for a good while, we finally found it. I was surprised to find that it was a rowdy, sawdust on the floor, basket of peanuts on bench tables sort of pub. We milled around uncertainly for a good few minutes before someone came to ask what we wanted. They tried to tell us they were full, but a couple was just finishing up, so we were spared this aggravating assertion.

Despite the questionable service, the food was decent. Their bean goulash was good and hearty, with wonderfully intense, rich meaty flavors and that ubiquitous Hungarian king of spices, paprika. The veal ragout was only passable. The weird Hungarian noodles were bland and dry, though their texture was interesting enough. The meat was also dry, and the sauce was not as intensely flavored. All in all, the ragout made for a rather poor follow-up to the goulash.

The portions were unbelievably huge, so we only got the 2 dishes... and even then, we didn't finish it all. Overall, it was a good cheap meal, but pubs aren't exactly my cup of tea.

Written 2010-05-31 13:15

Budapest, Hungary -- Day 3

Having failed to get dinner at Szent Jupát Étterem once before, we were determined that this time we'd get a reservation. Since we'd be in the area anyway, we figured we'd just drop by and tell them in person. When the time came, J and I looked at each other, and decided, oh what the hell. It's lunch time -- let's just eat here now.

The portions were ludicrously huge. J and I each ordered a soup, and we split an entrée of deer ragout. It was a fair meal, hot and filling, but the flavors were pretty standard and unremarkable. The deer meat was reasonably tender, leaning a bit toward the dry side, but not tough and chewy.

For dinner, we looked up a guidebook-recommended fish restaurant which served up some delicious soups and stews. We each had a fish soup, a "catfish cracklings" as a starter, and J had a pike-perch fillet while I had a catfish stew.

The cracklings were a bit under-salted, and they very quickly wilted and became soggy before we could actually enjoy them. I found the amount of catfish fat in the cracklings mildly nauseating. J thought they were "interesting" but not stupendous.

The broth portion of my catfish stew was incredibly rich and delicious, bursting with amazing fish flavor. The catfish in my stew was again somewhat nauseatingly fat, but well-flavored despite this and reasonably good to eat. J's pike-perch fillet was pretty tasty, tender, moist, and flaky. Unfortunately, it was also a bit oily.

Overall it was a nice meal that warmed our bones after the cold rain we'd been slogging through the entire day.

Written 2010-05-30 06:58

Budapest, Hungary -- Day 2

Saturday, we went to Etyek for a little wine festival they were having. It was miserable, cold, and pouring. By contrast, the food we had -- a plate of chicken and a plate of ham -- was hot, filling, and near perfection. The chicken plate was good and saucy, with bell peppers and other vegetables mixed in. The ham dish was incredibly yummy, with the skin fried with the meat. It was moist and tender, and so flavorful that, as J put it, even the onions were tasty.

For dinner, we thought maybe we'd go to Cafe Pierrot, based on the recommendation of our guidebook the Rough Guide to Hungary. Unfortunately, we again failed to make reservations, and showing up at their door got us the familiar "We're full" rejection. "Maybe you try 21 across the street?" they suggested helpfully. We tried.

Again they told us they were full, but we insisted and looked skeptical, and finally they seated us in a little corner by the window which was actually extremely pleasant. We started with a bowl each of their cream of wild garlic soup. It was milder than I expected, and was properly creamy and delicious. I love a good creamy soup, and it had been an awful, cold and wet day of trudging about, so it really hit the spot.

We followed this up with their foie gras concert. Goose liver was delivered to us on a platter as a pate, grilled, and one other way which I can no longer remember. It was fabulous. The grilled lobe was sweet and smooth, the skin bursting under the teeth with a gentle but satisfying pip to disgorge the tender liver inside. The liver was not overcooked at all, and was perfectly soft and melted across the tongue so nicely. ♥

For an entree, I opted for a goose risotto, with roasted goose leg, stuffed goose neck, and seared goose liver on top. The leg was the tiniest bit tough, but the skin was crisp, the fat sweet, and the meat well-flavored and quite delectable. The liver was again fabulously tender, smooth, and sweet. The neck was the only thing I was not entirely happy with. The stuffing was comparatively bland and uninteresting, and the skin of the neck was quite tough and fatty without a whole lot of flavor. The risotto underlying these goosy treats was a little crunchy. The rice seemed just a bit underdone. The flavor was mild but good, and the frequent chunks of goosy bits in the risotto made for a fun time.

Unfortunately, J has forgotten what he had at 21. Ah well. Such is the risk of blogging several days and many good meals after the event.

Written 2010-05-20 20:56

Edit -- J remembered what he got as an entrée at 21. :) The enormous slab of goose liver, delivered on a pile of caramelized apples, was an awesome sight to behold. It was, by all reports, incredibly delicious. The mildly tart sweetness of the apples blended and contrasted beautifully with the sweet richness of the liver for an amazing in-the-mouth experience.

Edited 2010-05-30 06:27

Budapest, Hungary -- Day 1

The first night in town, we were pointed to St Jupat's for supper by the locals who run the inn we are staying at. Unfortunately, showing up at 8pm meant that we got turned away with what was, as it turned out, a standard catch-all phrase -- "We're full."

After feeling bummed out for the duration of the walk home, we decided to look up the all you can eat, all you can drink Mongolian BBQ that J had visited on a previous trip to Budapest. I had an OJ and J had a sangria, which in retrospect were not the best choices. The BBQ itself was pretty darned good, though the service was rather spotty. The wait staff may have been overwhelmed by the 2 large parties taking up a good 2/3 of the restaurant at the time, but there was no excuse for the grill guys.

I thought the marinated horse was actually the best meat there. It was tender and moist, without being mushy and gross. Some of the meats, most notably their chicken, was dry and stringy. Others were so soft that they had almost no texture whatsoever, dissolving into mushy goo in your mouth without even giving you the opportunity to chew.

The mixed vegetables were good, but a bit sparse. Compared to some 20-30 bins for variously prepared meats, the singular bin for vegetables left me feeling very sad. The squash was superb hot off the grill though -- toothsome, juicy, and deliciously squash-y -- and I decimated their supply in short order.

Overall, it was a fun place to visit, but it didn't quite leave me feeling like I'd want to come back for more. Oh -- the ostentations wank-fest about international politics being conducted at the table behind us by a bunch of kids who didn't seem to have any experience working for their own cash and paying their own taxes made the meal alternately more amusing and more irritating.

Hot Chocolate

Ingredients (serves 2):

• 125g 54% dark chocolate
• 450ml milk (whole)
• sugar
• vanilla extract
• whipped cream to taste
• (Optional) 2 1.5oz shots of brandy or other favored alcohol
  

Preparation (5 minutes):

1. Finely chop the chocolate into small slivers for easy melting.
   

Cooking (10 minutes):

1. Bring milk to a boil over low heat, stirring as necessary to prevent sticking.
   
2. Add chocolate slivers, stirring to keep mixture smooth.
   
3. When all the chocolate has been melted into the milk, heat to preferred drinking temperature.
4. Pour into two tall glasses or large mugs.
   
5. (Optional) Spike with brandy or other favored alcohol.
   
6. Top with whipped cream if desired. (To make the whipped cream, simply whisk the cream, and add sugar, vanilla extract, or other flavoring to taste.)

Hachi Ju Hachi

I had a hankering for sushi over the weekend, so we set out in search for some fine fish. What we found instead was a delicious traditional Japanese meal.

I was extremely amused to note that in the glass doorway of this restaurant, there was a hand-written sign to the effect of "This is not a sushi bar! I do not have sushi boats!" Despite my sushi craving, I was deeply intrigued. Could it be that this little restaurant actually served honest-to-god traditional Japanese food?

Yes, indeed!

When the waitress came by to inform us of the specials, she asked if she should proceed in English or Japanese. We chose Japanese with English descriptions, and she began.

"Shiokara," she told us. We jumped, startled and delighted. Another establishment that made this fine fishy food? Excellent, we must have some. Two types of roasted mackerel. A special sardine-seaweed dish, usually reserved for special occasions only, like New Years. These we ordered with gurgling bellies and watering mouths, accompanied by miso soup (of course) and a sake flight (which was fabulous).

The chef was extremely personable, chatting us up in between preparing box sushi and various tasty things for the other guests. When he saw that we had demolished our shiokara, he came and scooped out another spoonful for our continued enjoyment. He told us stories about the salt, the fish, the customers, and his outlook on food.

Overall, the food was quite good. The people were very friendly. The waitress did manage to forget our tea once, and our rice altogether, but she's very nice if you politely remind her about it.

Patio Garden Pasta

Last night was our first "harvest" from the patio garden. We thinned our radishes out, washed the plucked sprouts, and made a pasta salad.

Ingredients:

1. Penne, or small penne, or rotini, or whatever pasta pleases you
2. Dry Jack cheese, or whatever sharp cheese pleases you to have over pasta
3. Olive oil -- we used Tuscan-herb-infused olive oil
4. A bowl full of fresh radish sprouts
5. Sea salt to taste

Preparation (5 minutes):

1. Rinse the radish sprouts well to remove any clinging soil, bugs, etc.
2. Grate the cheese finely

Cooking (20 minutes):

1. Boil water.
2. Make pasta!
3. Rinse under cool water.
4. Toss with olive oil, sea salt, and radish sprouts.

Proportions may vary, depending on where you get your sprouts, how much pasta you like to eat, etc. Play around and have fun. :)

Saucy Stir-fried Choy

Ingredients (serves 2):

• 4 baby choy hearts (bok choy, or your favorite choy)
• 1/2 cup chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
• 2 tsp corn starch
• 1 tsp vegetable oil
• salt to taste
  
• a sprinkle of MSG (optional)

Preparation (5 minutes):

1. Rinse the choy, splitting the hearts into individual stems.
2. Chop coarsely. The pieces should be about 1/2 inch wide.
   


3. Mix the corn starch with the chicken stock, whisking to make sure it all dissolves.
4. (Optional) Sprinkle some MSG into the stock.
   

Cooking (5 minutes):

1. Pre-heat a wok with the vegetable oil.
2. Add chopped choy. Stir occasionally.
3. When the choy stems start to turn slightly translucent, add the chicken stock and corn starch mixture. Stir well.
   
4. Salt to taste.
5. Choy is ready when the leaves are wilted and the stems are mostly translucent.
   
   

Black & White Stir-Fry

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 4 fresh bamboo shoots
• 6 oz. fresh wood-ear
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 Tbsp light soy sauce
• 1.5 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tsp sesame oil
  

Preparation (30-45 minutes):

1. Rinse, peel, and trim the bamboo shoots until no more stiff brown layers are left.
   
   
2. Cut the bamboo in half length-wise, then chop into thin slices.
   


3. Wash the wood-ear well, since it tends to be gritty.
4. Crush the garlic.
   

Cooking (15 minutes):

1. Pre-heat a medium wok with the vegetable oil.
2. Throw in the bamboo shoots. Let them fry for at least 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
3. Add the garlic and wood-ear. Mix well.
   
4. Fry for another 10 minutes or so, stirring occasionally.
5. Drizzle the sesame oil and soy sauce over the veggies. Mix well, and let cook for another minute or so.
   
6. Enjoy!
   
   

Chili Liver

Ingredients (serves 2):

• 1/2 lb fresh chicken livers
• 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 Tbsp Guilin chili sauce
• 2 Tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp black rice vinegar
• 4 Tbsp Shaoxing rice wine
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 Tbsp chicken stock
• 1 Tbsp ginger (grated)
  
• 2 cloves of garlic (crushed)
  
• 2 scallions (spring or green onions) (finely diced)
  

Preparation (15 minutes):

1. Mix the sauce. Combine the chili sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, rice wine, salt, sugar, and stock.
2. Grate the ginger.
   
3. Crush the cloves of garlic.
4. Finely dice the scallions.
5. Rinse the livers under gently running water, taking care not to burst the membrane holding the livers together.
   
6. Trim off the excess fat. If desired, cut the livers into smaller pieces. This will make cooking them a little messier in the pot.
7. Pat the livers dry with a paper towel. The livers will be going into a pan of hot oil, and you don't want to get hurt.
   

Cooking (10 minutes):

1. Pre-heat a medium wok with the vegetable oil.
2. Fry the ginger, garlic, and scallions until fragrant.
3. Toss in the livers, stirring gently so as not to rupture the membranes.
4. Fry over medium heat until the livers are close to done. (Done is internal temperature around 160 F).
5. Add the sauce. Stir well to coat all the livers evenly.
6. When the livers are done (internal temperature around 160 F), serve and enjoy!
   

Braised Belgian Endives

Ingredients (serves 2):

• 4 Belgian endives
• 1 can chicken stock (14oz) or vegetable stock
  
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
  
• 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
• 1/2 tsp marjoram, broken leaf
• salt to taste
  

Preparation (10 minutes):

1. Rinse the endives thoroughly. Trim off the base if dry, being careful not to cut off too much. The leaves should remain together instead of falling apart.
2. Cut the endives length-wise into quarters. Each quarter should be held together by 1/4 of the base.
3. Place the endives into a pan big enough to fit everything in one layer.
4. Pour the stock, wine, and olive oil over the endives.
5. Sprinkle marjoram and ground white pepper over everything.

Cooking (approx. 45 minutes):

1. Simmer over low heat until most of the liquid has cooked off.
2. Salt to taste, though it probably won't require any.

Dumpling Breakfast

This morning, J woke up, looked at me, and revealed a desire for dumplings. We decided to satisfy his cravings at Tong Dumpling Pot in San Jose.

If you're going to go here, you must speak Mandarin. The people who work here don't do well with English, and they are constantly busy and very full, so they can be a bit impatient. But if you go with a Chinese person, or a Mandarin speaker, and let him/her do the talking, it can be a very pleasant experience.

The dumplings are all freshly handmade. In fact, you can watch as they make them! The skin is thicker than the manufactured skins, but it's soft and smooth, and very tasty. I liked the pork and chive filling best, with its rich meaty flavor lightly accented by the sharpness of the chive. Dip in a little soy sauce and black rice vinegar, and have a little party in your mouth.

Toast to Moon and Shadow

The name is inspired by an old Chinese poem, in which a man comes upon a jug of wine, and drinks with the fine company of the Moon and his Shadow.

In that spirit of fleeting harmony, I will use this space to write about the joys of food and drink.