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Oaxaca: colour and heart
Since my trip to Oaxaca City (pronounced wa-ha-ka) last Spring, several friends have planned/are planning trips to this colourful city and have asked for recommendations. B and I were lucky to meet an American (J) who had been living there for some time on our second night in Oaxaca. He introduced us to all the best restaurants and hip bars in town. Most of the places we went to were featured in season 5 of Somebody Feed Phil, which aired a few months after our trip. It was so fun to watch that episode and see on-screen all the places that we’d been to, including the little street taco vendor…
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Wrapping up 2018 and wrapping up some Shanghainese wontons
This is my last post for 2018, and as I wrap up the year, I’m going to share a very traditional recipe that also requires some wrapping up. Today I’m sharing our family recipe for Shanghainese wontons. It takes a bit of effort, but homemade wontons are much yummier than store-bought frozen ones, definitely worth the time. We always make extra to put in the freezer for later as well. Leaving aside cantonese wontons for now, there’s usually two types of Shanghainese wontons: small ones or big ones. Literally that’s what they’re called in Chinese. Small wontons （小云吞）- usually filled with just meat and maybe some shrimps, these are “wrapped” as…
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Kopi & Kaya
Kaya toast, served with kopi and extremely soft boiled runny eggs is a uniquely Singaporean experience. I first tried it as a visitor to Singapore, when my Singaporean friend Kelvin demonstrated how to eat it properly. The toast and kopi can be consumed as served, but most Singaporean’s season the two runny eggs with soy sauce and white pepper, mix it all up, and slurp it up. Two classic places to try this are: Yakun and Killiney Kopitiam. Personally, I’m not a big fan of the runny eggs, but I love a kopi and if I want to treat myself, I’ll go for some kaya toast too. Kopi Kopi is…
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Melt in Your Mouth Braised Pork Belly
My Dad is a great chef and never follows a recipe. So, in putting together these recipes, it’s my best attempt to extract the details from his brain and document them. #DadsCooking It’s no secret that Chinese people eat a lot of pork and we are no different. Growing up though, I wasn’t (and still am not) a big meat eater. I prefer my veggies, I’m a self-confessed carbaholic, and have a big sweet-tooth. Days go by where I haven’t had any meat at all, and I’m not even consciously aware of it. My Grandma and Dad would make these dishes of soft, tender, braised pork chunks, and I’d be very…
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Las comidas de Colombia | Food of Colombia
For me, one of the best parts of travel is to taste the different foods of another culture. Colombia has not disappointed so far, and though I am not a fan of ALL the food here, I love observing and trying. Colombia is not the land of healthy green juices and salads (at least not yet, but it’s coming fast I’m sure). Tis the land of fried empanadas, platanos, french fries, fried chicken, fried dough balls, and more. If you like greasy fried food, you’ll be in heaven. Some classic Colombian food… Empanadas – corn flour “dumplings” filled with beans, cheese, and meat. Relatively easy to make! We made these…
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Where to eat & drink in Sydney
Sydney is a foodie’s paradise, full of great restaurants, cafes, and bars. I sampled quite a few of them in my years living there. Even on recent work trips back, I was lucky to check out a few new places and revisit some oldies but goodies. This list is by no means a list of the latest and hottest, but it’s a list of some of my favourites. Where to get a good drink: Palmer & Co – slightly hidden, behind Mr. Wong’s and the Establishment Hotel on George Street, Palmer and Co. is a prohibition style bar with yummy but expensive cocktails. Some nights, there’s a live band, the…
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For the love of dumplings
One of the my biggest regrets about living in Singapore is not finding out about this amazing hawker centre and the amazing dumpling stall until my VERY LAST WEEKEND in Singapore. Literally, on my last Friday on the little red dot, I met my friends C & B there. C & B were regulars here for ages and for a while had a regular Friday night dinner thing going here. C couldn’t believe I’d never been here so said to me earlier in the week “we have to go, I’ll take you there”. Naturally I couldn’t help thinking that I’d missed out on FOUR YEARS of dumplings from here!! It…
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Making Bak Kut Teh
Bak Kut Teh – which literally translates into meat bone tea, is a traditional Singaporean/Malaysian dish, popular in both countries. I’m actually not a massive fan, I prefer the Malaysian version over the Singaporean one, but even so, I can take it or leave it. There are plenty of other things I’d much rather eat in Singapore. However, I wanted to try to make it so that my family can try it. I bought a couple packets of the spice and tried the Malaysian one today. I followed the instructions on the back of the pack closely. It was easy to make and the results actually taste pretty good, for…
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Cooking classes abroad
I LOVE taking cooking classes whilst I’m travelling abroad. To-date, I’ve tried cooking classes in Thailand, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Bali, and Vietnam. So much fun, and if you’re a foodie like me, it’s fascinating to see how some of your favourite exotic foods are made. Next time you’re on vacation, try one out. For inspiration, here are some info and links to the ones that I’ve done in the past. Vietnam: I did the Hoi An Eco Cooking class (in you guessed it, Hoi An). It’s a super cute family run course and the bonus is you get to ride a little round bamboo boat to the facility where the…
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“We are against war, and tourist menus”
That was the slogan written on the chalk board outside a restaurant in Trastevere, a once working class but now trendy neighbourhood in Rome, West of the Tiber river. Oh how I can sympathise with that! It’s not something you think about when living in your own city — you go to restaurants you like for specific foods or try new ones based on reviews or recommendations from friends. In Sydney, I know where to go for the best laksa, I have my preferred coffee shops, and I have a long list of restaurants and bars I have yet to check out. It’s much the same for Vancouver. But when…
