It's just the start of June, and it's already hot. The golden shower trees are blooming beautifully.
When the produce is so fantastically ripe and perfect, doing very little to it is a marvelous idea. It's the right thing!
I've been craving this salad, and even made a version with roast pork and cracklings previously, but the fruit for this is now optimum: sweet, juicy and ripe.
Combine about 2 cups of seedless watermelon cut into one-inch cubes with the same size cubes and amount of ripe tomatoes. I used a combination of beefsteak and Roma tomatoes from WOW Farms. (We picked out a premium beefsteak that cost $2.50. I know. BUT it weighed TWENTY ounces! And YUM!)
Add a cup of mint leaves - large leaves torn - and 2 tablespoonsful of diced red onion. Gently toss all with dressing made with juice of one large lime, 2 tablespoonsful extra virgin olive oil, about 1/2 teaspoonful honey and coarsely ground sea salt to taste. Our coworker shared his Sudachi limes with us! Top individual servings with a sprinkle of Naked Cow Dairy queso. If you're not so fortunate to have access to this delicious local cheese, use a moist feta instead.
This salad was the perfect contrast to The Pig & The Lady Viet Loco Moco we brought home from yesterday's farmers' market at Blaisdell Center. This was jasmine rice topped with a local beef patty, poached egg, curry leaves and curry gravy. So delicious!
Friday, June 8, 2012
Friday, June 1, 2012
It's better with cheese from Naked Cow Dairy
There are no photos here. You'll just have to imagine how good these salads were, and how much they elevated the leftovers we ate with them last week.
The first was a whole bunch of purslane snipped from their stems, tossed with chunks of WOW Farms tomatoes and bites of Naked Cow Dairy Herb 'n' Farmer cheese, all in a simple red wine vinaigrette. This was happily and greedily gobbled up by both of us.
The second consisted of road kill avocado. Just kidding! This was foraged from the neighborhood. No, we did not steal! It was SOOO windy last week - we were on our evening constitutional, when we heard a big THONK. We were on our way home, and in the vicinity, we found a nice-sized avocado in the grass next to the sidewalk. After a couple of days, one spot was brown, but the rest buttery and delicious! This was served with slivers of sweet red onion, shreds of mint, more chunks of WOW Farms tomatoes, dressed with balsamic vinaigrette, and generously sprinkled with Naked Queso.
Which Naked Cow Dairy cheese do I like best? This is like asking a mother which child is her favorite! Fuggedaboudit! But I can't wait to get my Big Cream Little Rind brie!
Here's my first post on the return of Naked Cow Dairy to the Honolulu Farmers Market at Neal Blaisdell Center.
The first was a whole bunch of purslane snipped from their stems, tossed with chunks of WOW Farms tomatoes and bites of Naked Cow Dairy Herb 'n' Farmer cheese, all in a simple red wine vinaigrette. This was happily and greedily gobbled up by both of us.
The second consisted of road kill avocado. Just kidding! This was foraged from the neighborhood. No, we did not steal! It was SOOO windy last week - we were on our evening constitutional, when we heard a big THONK. We were on our way home, and in the vicinity, we found a nice-sized avocado in the grass next to the sidewalk. After a couple of days, one spot was brown, but the rest buttery and delicious! This was served with slivers of sweet red onion, shreds of mint, more chunks of WOW Farms tomatoes, dressed with balsamic vinaigrette, and generously sprinkled with Naked Queso.
Which Naked Cow Dairy cheese do I like best? This is like asking a mother which child is her favorite! Fuggedaboudit! But I can't wait to get my Big Cream Little Rind brie!
Here's my first post on the return of Naked Cow Dairy to the Honolulu Farmers Market at Neal Blaisdell Center.
Monday, May 28, 2012
So happy Naked Cow Dairy is back
We had leftovers tonight, but dinner was made sooo much brighter with sliced Orange Blossom tomatoes from WOW Farms in Waimea on the island of Hawaii. I just added a pinch of sea salt, splash of extra virgin olive oil, basil chiffonade and a sprinkle of Naked Cow queso crumbles. UNBELIEVABLY good!
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
When Push Comes to Shove
What's your favorite pickle? DON'T tell me you don't like pickles, 'cause then I can't talk to you!
My favorite pickle is the large garlic dill served with the hot pastrami at Carnegie Deli in NYC. I haven't been there in years, but my tastebuds remember it.
Why pickles? Every culture has them. They serve as a contrast to rich food. An example is the lightly pickled cucumbers in the BBK - smoked pork with Carolina vin - at Whole Ox Deli. In homestyle Japanese food, tsukemono - which means "pickled things" is always an accompaniment to the meal, as necessary as rice. Pickles can be savory or sweet, anything from nasubi (eggplant) to daikon (radish).
I didn't realize until this past Christmas Eve dinner with family, that one cousin's memory of our grandmother was the takuan (sweet yellow radish pickles) she made. And that the takuan served to stretch out meals that were meager in meat. Grandma was very frugal, and guavas from her trees became jelly, jam and juice. Orange peels were saved, sugared and eaten as candy.
Each of us prefers pickles of different kinds. For me, takuan needs the zip that comes from either a pinch of dried chili flakes or bit of fresh bird chili provide. Pickles can be as fiery as South Asian lime chile, or as soft as our family friends' cabbage tsukemono.
But, I was jonesing for that wonderful pickled mustard cabbage that's served with Mama Le of The Pig & The Lady's coconut water braised pork shoulder "Thit Kho Trung". I could eat it EVERY DAY, it is THAT GOOD. And I don't even like mustard cabbge! The pickles are a bit salty, a little tangy, with the edge of the mustard cabbage, but provide a zip in contrast to the rich pork and fragrant jasmine rice.
I looked online, and one version had 4 ingredients, another 8! Here's my recipe:
Wash well and chop into 2-in. pieces 2 lbs. mustard cabbage and 1/2 sweet onion sliced and immerse in boiling water for 20 seconds. Remove and drain. Measure 4 to 5 cups of the water and add 1-1/2 to 2 teaspoons sugar, 3-1/2 to 4 tablespoons salt, an inch of ginger, peeled and chopped and combine all until dissolved. Put all of this in a non-reactive container (I used a plastic bowl with cover) with a plate on top of the greens as a weight before you cover it. Leave it out (don't refrigerate) overnight. In the morning, taste for saltiness. If too salty, you can pour off the salty water, boil an equal amount and add to the greens. Transfer to jars and refrigerate.
My favorite pickle is the large garlic dill served with the hot pastrami at Carnegie Deli in NYC. I haven't been there in years, but my tastebuds remember it.
Why pickles? Every culture has them. They serve as a contrast to rich food. An example is the lightly pickled cucumbers in the BBK - smoked pork with Carolina vin - at Whole Ox Deli. In homestyle Japanese food, tsukemono - which means "pickled things" is always an accompaniment to the meal, as necessary as rice. Pickles can be savory or sweet, anything from nasubi (eggplant) to daikon (radish).
I didn't realize until this past Christmas Eve dinner with family, that one cousin's memory of our grandmother was the takuan (sweet yellow radish pickles) she made. And that the takuan served to stretch out meals that were meager in meat. Grandma was very frugal, and guavas from her trees became jelly, jam and juice. Orange peels were saved, sugared and eaten as candy.
Each of us prefers pickles of different kinds. For me, takuan needs the zip that comes from either a pinch of dried chili flakes or bit of fresh bird chili provide. Pickles can be as fiery as South Asian lime chile, or as soft as our family friends' cabbage tsukemono.
But, I was jonesing for that wonderful pickled mustard cabbage that's served with Mama Le of The Pig & The Lady's coconut water braised pork shoulder "Thit Kho Trung". I could eat it EVERY DAY, it is THAT GOOD. And I don't even like mustard cabbge! The pickles are a bit salty, a little tangy, with the edge of the mustard cabbage, but provide a zip in contrast to the rich pork and fragrant jasmine rice.
I looked online, and one version had 4 ingredients, another 8! Here's my recipe:
Wash well and chop into 2-in. pieces 2 lbs. mustard cabbage and 1/2 sweet onion sliced and immerse in boiling water for 20 seconds. Remove and drain. Measure 4 to 5 cups of the water and add 1-1/2 to 2 teaspoons sugar, 3-1/2 to 4 tablespoons salt, an inch of ginger, peeled and chopped and combine all until dissolved. Put all of this in a non-reactive container (I used a plastic bowl with cover) with a plate on top of the greens as a weight before you cover it. Leave it out (don't refrigerate) overnight. In the morning, taste for saltiness. If too salty, you can pour off the salty water, boil an equal amount and add to the greens. Transfer to jars and refrigerate.
She Has Not Been Cooking
More like assembling. She made:
Salsa topping for salmon, consisting of local vine-ripe tomatoes, a black plum, red onion, garlic, cilantro, local Mandarin orange and Sudachi lemon. The last two from a kind coworker who shared the bounty. The orange was a bit fibrous and the lemon very tiny, more like a lime.
The salmon was cut into serving pieces, sprinkled with one of those ubiquitous local seasoning blends of coarse salt, garlic and spices, and sauteed.
This was served with baby bok choy zapped in the microwave and sesame oil, shoyu, oyster sauce and sesame seeds stirred in. And quinoa.
The DH liked all of this very much, even though he was made to help by stirring salsa and cooking the salmon. And we have enough leftovers for another dinner!
Salsa topping for salmon, consisting of local vine-ripe tomatoes, a black plum, red onion, garlic, cilantro, local Mandarin orange and Sudachi lemon. The last two from a kind coworker who shared the bounty. The orange was a bit fibrous and the lemon very tiny, more like a lime.
The salmon was cut into serving pieces, sprinkled with one of those ubiquitous local seasoning blends of coarse salt, garlic and spices, and sauteed.
This was served with baby bok choy zapped in the microwave and sesame oil, shoyu, oyster sauce and sesame seeds stirred in. And quinoa.
The DH liked all of this very much, even though he was made to help by stirring salsa and cooking the salmon. And we have enough leftovers for another dinner!
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Others Write About the Whole Ox Deli
Why? Because it's good! The meats and veggies are sourced locally. The peeps are great.
So, here's what more (real) food writers are saying:
Martha Cheng, in Biting Commentary for Honolulu Magazine ate, then went to the source.
Catherine Toth talked about Bob McGee's meat-centrism in HauteLiving.com
Nadine Kam on the Whole Ox idea of food sustainability (and yumminess) in the StarAdvertiser (sorry, there's a paywall)
So, here's what more (real) food writers are saying:
Martha Cheng, in Biting Commentary for Honolulu Magazine ate, then went to the source.
Catherine Toth talked about Bob McGee's meat-centrism in HauteLiving.com
Nadine Kam on the Whole Ox idea of food sustainability (and yumminess) in the StarAdvertiser (sorry, there's a paywall)
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
The Whole Ox Deli or My Neighborhood Butcher
I remember the days when my mother had her own butcher!
My dad needed to watch his cholesterol levels even back then, and once a week we made the trip to Kaimuki where mom bought lean cuts of meat like flank steak. She picked out pieces of round, had the butcher trim the fat, and ground them to order. That butcher shop doesn't exist any more.
Yes, there are butcher shops in Chinatown, but where does all the pork and beef come from now?
I remember, too, the pigs feet and oxtail soups my grandmother would make, how delicious they were. Much of it was the love and care she put into making them, but the meats were fresh and sourced locally. No such thing as frozen for grandma!
I saw my friendly neighborhood butcher (I wish!) yesterday when we went to The Whole Ox Deli. Folks were eating sandwiches as fast as they could dish them up, and drinking water like it was running out. So I had to go to the tap to fill my own cup - just like your hole-in-the-wall Chinese or Korean restaurant!
A voice called out and said, "Hi, darlin', I'd hug you but I'm all porky!" Huh? It was my favorite butcher, Bob McGee, the Whole Ox Deli proprietor. WOD has been open for less than a week, but I confess we've been there for three meals! Breakfast and lunch on opening Wednesday, and lunch yesterday (only because we're trying to practice moderation).
What did we eat? Opening day, we shared the steak and eggs and ordered the Medianoche (pork AND ham!) and roast beef - both delicious. Yesterday, DH had the Reuben, and I had the burger - beautiful AND tasty! Try the sides, too - the tomato and watermelon salad was yum!
Well, Bob WAS porky - up to his elbows in half a pig, cut into 4 pieces. This looked quite fresh and beautiful, and I'm going to guess it's from Shinsato farm or somewhere else local. I'm also sure the end products - porchetta, ham, whatever, will taste wonderful, too.
In the future, when the craziness settles down into routine, Bob and the Whole Ox want to be YOUR butcher and mine.
Take a look at Melissa Chang's reporting on Gayot and NonStopHonolulu.
My dad needed to watch his cholesterol levels even back then, and once a week we made the trip to Kaimuki where mom bought lean cuts of meat like flank steak. She picked out pieces of round, had the butcher trim the fat, and ground them to order. That butcher shop doesn't exist any more.
Yes, there are butcher shops in Chinatown, but where does all the pork and beef come from now?
I remember, too, the pigs feet and oxtail soups my grandmother would make, how delicious they were. Much of it was the love and care she put into making them, but the meats were fresh and sourced locally. No such thing as frozen for grandma!
I saw my friendly neighborhood butcher (I wish!) yesterday when we went to The Whole Ox Deli. Folks were eating sandwiches as fast as they could dish them up, and drinking water like it was running out. So I had to go to the tap to fill my own cup - just like your hole-in-the-wall Chinese or Korean restaurant!
A voice called out and said, "Hi, darlin', I'd hug you but I'm all porky!" Huh? It was my favorite butcher, Bob McGee, the Whole Ox Deli proprietor. WOD has been open for less than a week, but I confess we've been there for three meals! Breakfast and lunch on opening Wednesday, and lunch yesterday (only because we're trying to practice moderation).
What did we eat? Opening day, we shared the steak and eggs and ordered the Medianoche (pork AND ham!) and roast beef - both delicious. Yesterday, DH had the Reuben, and I had the burger - beautiful AND tasty! Try the sides, too - the tomato and watermelon salad was yum!
Well, Bob WAS porky - up to his elbows in half a pig, cut into 4 pieces. This looked quite fresh and beautiful, and I'm going to guess it's from Shinsato farm or somewhere else local. I'm also sure the end products - porchetta, ham, whatever, will taste wonderful, too.
In the future, when the craziness settles down into routine, Bob and the Whole Ox want to be YOUR butcher and mine.
Take a look at Melissa Chang's reporting on Gayot and NonStopHonolulu.
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