It's usually vegetable-based. By that, I mean the vegetables that are crying out to be used need my attention.
Tonight, we ate purslane salad with slivers of red onion, and cubes of cucumber and Roma tomatoes, with Angelo Pietro ume dressing. And miso steelhead with Sun Noodle soba. The marinade was thinned with water and heated in the pan the fish was cooked in. All simple, but good. And there are enough leftovers for lunch tomorrow.
Now, if only the asparagus, zucchini and kabocha would stop talking to me!
Monday, November 12, 2012
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Dinner at Prima Kailua
WARNING: the following photos (all by Mike) show plates with bites taken out of them or worse, plates with only a sad bite left. This is both a reflection of how tasty the food was AND how hungry we were!
We were there a week or two before they celebrated their first anniversary. We were so happy to be greeted at the door by smiling Blaine. I wouldn't know where to start talking about him, so for now I'll just say he's welcoming and capable - between him as host, and our waiter, Keenan, we were in good hands.
It had been a while since we'd had dinner there, so we'd asked Mike, who lives in Kailua, if he wanted to join us. We got to eat more things with three of us. We started with some liquid libations: Ted had the Bamberger lager, which he enjoyed. Mike and I had the aperitif of St. Germain with I think - prosecco - and soda - refreshing and delicious!
We heard the specials, and quickly ordered 3 of them. We enjoyed the opah, Samoan crab ravioli and grilled tako.
You're talking about three hungry people, so photos of food were secondary to tasting and eating! At right, the last bite of the local opah belly gravlax with cucumber, egg, creme fraiche. Yum!
Next photo below left is the grilled tako with lima beans. Confession: I hate lima beans! These were yum! The octopus was caught nearby, expertly grilled, beans wonderfully tasty. Mike said even his grandmother would eat this, it was so tender. This was the favorite of both guys.
After the tako, see the Samoan crab ravioli with chorizo, potato and crab sauce. Two orders, because I'm greedy! So good.
The pasta dish is onolicious Spaghetti Amatriciana - with tomato, guanciale. Am I the only one who wants to pronounce guanciale with a soft "c"? There were no prisoners!
We were ready for dessert from the creative mind of Aker, Alejandro Briceno. We had the gelato sampler, and the flavors were banana, fig, almond cake and Mike's favorite, milk.We demolished the anise fritters - like very light and tiny andagi - they are gone in the photo.
On the left is chocolate juniper cake with brulee shards, a crumble and grapefruit sorbetto, and on the right is mango gelato with pistachio crunch, and - I think - tuiles and panna cotta. Please, someone correct me if I'm wrong on any of these! Basically, we just ate 'em because they were delicious.
Above, see the hardworking crew of Prima Kailua, who looked like this most of the night. They had a full house! Lindsey, in the background, was kind enough to say hello, and thank us for trekking over the mountains. We'll be back, as there are still things we haven't tried: the fennel panna cotta, brussels sprouts and grilled baby romaine, chicken-fried sweetbreads, more. What else should you eat there? The papardelle with curried bolognese, asparagus risotto, the crudo of the day!
Congratulations to Prima - not only for their first anniversary, but for their 'Ilima Critics' Choice Award for Best New Restaurant 2012-2013! They are open 7 days a week from 5 pm to 10 pm, located at Kailua Town Center, next to Foodland. Ph. 888-8933.
By the way, Mike, I want to eat with your grandmother: she's a champ!
We were there a week or two before they celebrated their first anniversary. We were so happy to be greeted at the door by smiling Blaine. I wouldn't know where to start talking about him, so for now I'll just say he's welcoming and capable - between him as host, and our waiter, Keenan, we were in good hands.
It had been a while since we'd had dinner there, so we'd asked Mike, who lives in Kailua, if he wanted to join us. We got to eat more things with three of us. We started with some liquid libations: Ted had the Bamberger lager, which he enjoyed. Mike and I had the aperitif of St. Germain with I think - prosecco - and soda - refreshing and delicious!We heard the specials, and quickly ordered 3 of them. We enjoyed the opah, Samoan crab ravioli and grilled tako.
Next photo below left is the grilled tako with lima beans. Confession: I hate lima beans! These were yum! The octopus was caught nearby, expertly grilled, beans wonderfully tasty. Mike said even his grandmother would eat this, it was so tender. This was the favorite of both guys.
The pasta dish is onolicious Spaghetti Amatriciana - with tomato, guanciale. Am I the only one who wants to pronounce guanciale with a soft "c"? There were no prisoners!
We were ready for dessert from the creative mind of Aker, Alejandro Briceno. We had the gelato sampler, and the flavors were banana, fig, almond cake and Mike's favorite, milk.We demolished the anise fritters - like very light and tiny andagi - they are gone in the photo.
On the left is chocolate juniper cake with brulee shards, a crumble and grapefruit sorbetto, and on the right is mango gelato with pistachio crunch, and - I think - tuiles and panna cotta. Please, someone correct me if I'm wrong on any of these! Basically, we just ate 'em because they were delicious.
Above, see the hardworking crew of Prima Kailua, who looked like this most of the night. They had a full house! Lindsey, in the background, was kind enough to say hello, and thank us for trekking over the mountains. We'll be back, as there are still things we haven't tried: the fennel panna cotta, brussels sprouts and grilled baby romaine, chicken-fried sweetbreads, more. What else should you eat there? The papardelle with curried bolognese, asparagus risotto, the crudo of the day!
Congratulations to Prima - not only for their first anniversary, but for their 'Ilima Critics' Choice Award for Best New Restaurant 2012-2013! They are open 7 days a week from 5 pm to 10 pm, located at Kailua Town Center, next to Foodland. Ph. 888-8933.
By the way, Mike, I want to eat with your grandmother: she's a champ!
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Second Dinner at Whole Ox Deli
Even before we finished our first dinner at Whole Ox Deli, we started making plans for our second! We were full of good food and wine, but we needed to eat the Pork Shank for 4! We weren't sure what to expect, but pork and shank said "beer" to me. Mike & Laurie said to leave the beer to them, and we picked a date for two weeks in the future.Well, none of us could stop thinking about it, and every time we bumped into each other - Honolulu is such a small town - we were just reminded of our dinner date.
When I emailed Mike to remind him of the date and time, he replied asking if he could bring his friend, Vinh. I asked, Vinh ____ ? Then I said, "NO!"
I was just kidding - I'd worked with Vinh about 3 years ago, but we hadn't been in touch for maybe 2 years. So with the DH, that made 5 eaters for this dinner!
When we got to the Whole Ox, we found we weren't the first of the group to get there. Vinh had staked out an inside table, but we convinced him to sit outside. We quickly caught up on our families, and Mike arrived from parking his car. Laurie joined us, and this is the beer they brought.
It went very well with the vegetable pakoras of lightly battered and fried kale and alii mushrooms served with a harissa sauce. We also had another appetizer because we spoke to Chef Bob so longingly about it. That is all.
There are no photos of those items because we ate it all. All. Gone.
By this time, we were ready to take a deep breath before the main event. And here it is in all its glory. Deep-fried. Pork. Shank. With Ma'O greens and fried potatoes. For just a moment, all of us just stared. Then we tried to figure out how to dissect it.
Well, all we needed to do was pull out the bone, and it literally fell apart. And we fell in. So delicious. Indescribable. Add the sides of pickles, mustard and lime-chili vinaigrette - heaven. And the beer - perfect!
Our only reference point of comparison would be the German pork shank, schweinhaxe. But that is roasted and served with sauerkraut. This is gloriously better. Don't let us get started on the skin!
Did we have room for dessert? Of course! Especially when they're from the inventive mind of Aker, Alejandro Briceno. These are not in order, but, here's the Smoked Brownie with Lay's BBQ potato chips, and the Jasmine Rice Panna Cotta. Both ono! So much that Mike got a panna cotta for himself! And just about licked it clean.
I've included our desserts from the previous dinner. The beef and pork fat cookies with chocolate ganache and cacao nibs and dulce de leche with shaved coconut, respectively. And the caramelized white chocolate cake that looks like bacon.
The Whole Ox Deli Dinner Fan Club needs to return. We have to eat the tasso, the New Orleans-style ham. We don't know how many of the group will assemble, or when. And there's always lunch!
See you there Thursday, after 8 pm. I'll need a burger by then. Our group agreed that Chef Bob's burger has spoiled us for any other!
When I emailed Mike to remind him of the date and time, he replied asking if he could bring his friend, Vinh. I asked, Vinh ____ ? Then I said, "NO!"
I was just kidding - I'd worked with Vinh about 3 years ago, but we hadn't been in touch for maybe 2 years. So with the DH, that made 5 eaters for this dinner!
When we got to the Whole Ox, we found we weren't the first of the group to get there. Vinh had staked out an inside table, but we convinced him to sit outside. We quickly caught up on our families, and Mike arrived from parking his car. Laurie joined us, and this is the beer they brought.It went very well with the vegetable pakoras of lightly battered and fried kale and alii mushrooms served with a harissa sauce. We also had another appetizer because we spoke to Chef Bob so longingly about it. That is all.
There are no photos of those items because we ate it all. All. Gone.
Well, all we needed to do was pull out the bone, and it literally fell apart. And we fell in. So delicious. Indescribable. Add the sides of pickles, mustard and lime-chili vinaigrette - heaven. And the beer - perfect!
Our only reference point of comparison would be the German pork shank, schweinhaxe. But that is roasted and served with sauerkraut. This is gloriously better. Don't let us get started on the skin!
I've included our desserts from the previous dinner. The beef and pork fat cookies with chocolate ganache and cacao nibs and dulce de leche with shaved coconut, respectively. And the caramelized white chocolate cake that looks like bacon.
The Whole Ox Deli Dinner Fan Club needs to return. We have to eat the tasso, the New Orleans-style ham. We don't know how many of the group will assemble, or when. And there's always lunch!See you there Thursday, after 8 pm. I'll need a burger by then. Our group agreed that Chef Bob's burger has spoiled us for any other!
Please note: all the lovely food porn photos are from Laurie, @konaish
Dinner at Whole Ox Deli, 327 Keawe St. in Kaka'ako around the corner from Auahi St. - across from the former COMPUSA - is served Tuesday through Saturday, 5:30 pm to 10 pm. Last order in by 9:30, please. BYOB
Monday, September 3, 2012
Adobo Eggplant
Or how to use it up. This is a made-up recipe; this isn't fancy, it is home cooking. I did look up the ingredients for the seasonings in order to get the proportions right.
Trim and cut 4 to five small to medium long eggplants in diagonal pieces. Lightly saute these in canola oil just until slightly soft. You will probably need to do this in 3 batches; set them aside on a plate as they finish cooking. I had a small piece of pork - about 1/3 lb. - that I sliced into 1/2 x 2-in. strips. I cooked the pork along with half a medium size onion, sliced;
Combine 1/4 cup shoyu, 1/4 cup + 1 T. rice vinegar, about 1-1/2 tsp. sugar (I'm sure I used less; I don't care for sweet food) and a grinding of fresh black pepper. Put this sauce mixture in the pan and heat until slightly bubbling. Add the eggplant back to the pan, along with 1/2 cup hot water. Heat all of the ingredients through, then turn off the heat.
Take a package of Sun Noodles Yakisoba, gently break up the noodles into a microwave-safe bowl, add a couple of tablespoons of water, and nuke this for a minute or two.
Note: this yakisoba does not come with sauce. Costco carries a multi-pack - more economical plus you can freeze it.
Drain the water, plate the noodles and top with eggplant mixture and, of course, some sauce. If you have cilantro and sliced green onions, garnish heavily with those, but I had neither on hand.
The DH took the leftovers to school for lunch, the pinay office staff all tasted and declared they loved it, "cause it's not strong like adobo usually is". Must be the Japanese rice vinegar and light hand with the pepper.
I've written about making adobo-style eggplant before here, but the seasoning and the noodles made this a winner.
There is another eggplant recipe with goat cheese and balsamic vinegar I make over and over because it's delicious. I thought I'd written about the banchan-style vegetable recipe I made up because I don't want to eat Korean takeout just to eat that. But I haven't done so yet, so that will be posted here soon.
But I think you might want to know about the second meeting of the Whole Ox Deli Dinner Fan Club before that? Coming sooner!
Trim and cut 4 to five small to medium long eggplants in diagonal pieces. Lightly saute these in canola oil just until slightly soft. You will probably need to do this in 3 batches; set them aside on a plate as they finish cooking. I had a small piece of pork - about 1/3 lb. - that I sliced into 1/2 x 2-in. strips. I cooked the pork along with half a medium size onion, sliced;
Combine 1/4 cup shoyu, 1/4 cup + 1 T. rice vinegar, about 1-1/2 tsp. sugar (I'm sure I used less; I don't care for sweet food) and a grinding of fresh black pepper. Put this sauce mixture in the pan and heat until slightly bubbling. Add the eggplant back to the pan, along with 1/2 cup hot water. Heat all of the ingredients through, then turn off the heat.
Take a package of Sun Noodles Yakisoba, gently break up the noodles into a microwave-safe bowl, add a couple of tablespoons of water, and nuke this for a minute or two.
Note: this yakisoba does not come with sauce. Costco carries a multi-pack - more economical plus you can freeze it.
Drain the water, plate the noodles and top with eggplant mixture and, of course, some sauce. If you have cilantro and sliced green onions, garnish heavily with those, but I had neither on hand.
The DH took the leftovers to school for lunch, the pinay office staff all tasted and declared they loved it, "cause it's not strong like adobo usually is". Must be the Japanese rice vinegar and light hand with the pepper.
I've written about making adobo-style eggplant before here, but the seasoning and the noodles made this a winner.
There is another eggplant recipe with goat cheese and balsamic vinegar I make over and over because it's delicious. I thought I'd written about the banchan-style vegetable recipe I made up because I don't want to eat Korean takeout just to eat that. But I haven't done so yet, so that will be posted here soon.
But I think you might want to know about the second meeting of the Whole Ox Deli Dinner Fan Club before that? Coming sooner!
Friday, August 31, 2012
Late Summer Dinner
The temptation to eat out is huge after a day of work, when my brain is fried. It helps me to do two things before I even leave work. First, I make a short list of the produce available at home. Then, I try to think of ways to combine those vegetables so they resemble something approximating dinner, and write them down.
Last night, I sauteed the few remaining asparagus spears and Hamakua alii mushrooms with sweet onions in a little bit of olive oil, then dumped in leftover whole wheat spaghetti. Please try the Garofalo brand whole wheat variety from Costco - it actually tastes good! I added four good glugs - you know what I mean! - of leftover dry white wine and a healthy grinding of black pepper. To all of this, I added about 3 tablespoons of the compound butter I made with stinky Red, White & Bleu cheese from Naked Cow Dairy. Yes, I figured out another use for the butter, other than bruschetta, or on some lean steak! Finally, I added about a cup of purslane sprigs and some fresh thyme.
I served the above topped with a few Gida Snyder oil-packed Roma tomatoes grown by Ho Farms and local over-easy eggs. And accompanied the pasta with thinly sliced, toasted Christopher Sy bread topped with Naked Cow Dairy cow's milk chevre. You must taste this chevre - to die for! We tried this at the Wednesday Blaisdell Honolulu Farmers Market, and HAD to buy some to take home - so, so good!
The DH asked if I'd dreamed up the above pasta. Yes! Who else would?
Please check with the above vendors to see if these tomatoes and cheeses are still available. If not, find the very best substitutes you can afford, as using fine ingredients truly makes a difference. Enjoy the bounty of summer; the produce is at its best.
More nights of summer dinners to come, including adobo eggplant and red pepper tortas. The eating is constant, especially the consumption of fresh vegetables; the writing is unfortunately more sporadic.
Last night, I sauteed the few remaining asparagus spears and Hamakua alii mushrooms with sweet onions in a little bit of olive oil, then dumped in leftover whole wheat spaghetti. Please try the Garofalo brand whole wheat variety from Costco - it actually tastes good! I added four good glugs - you know what I mean! - of leftover dry white wine and a healthy grinding of black pepper. To all of this, I added about 3 tablespoons of the compound butter I made with stinky Red, White & Bleu cheese from Naked Cow Dairy. Yes, I figured out another use for the butter, other than bruschetta, or on some lean steak! Finally, I added about a cup of purslane sprigs and some fresh thyme.
I served the above topped with a few Gida Snyder oil-packed Roma tomatoes grown by Ho Farms and local over-easy eggs. And accompanied the pasta with thinly sliced, toasted Christopher Sy bread topped with Naked Cow Dairy cow's milk chevre. You must taste this chevre - to die for! We tried this at the Wednesday Blaisdell Honolulu Farmers Market, and HAD to buy some to take home - so, so good!
The DH asked if I'd dreamed up the above pasta. Yes! Who else would?
Please check with the above vendors to see if these tomatoes and cheeses are still available. If not, find the very best substitutes you can afford, as using fine ingredients truly makes a difference. Enjoy the bounty of summer; the produce is at its best.
More nights of summer dinners to come, including adobo eggplant and red pepper tortas. The eating is constant, especially the consumption of fresh vegetables; the writing is unfortunately more sporadic.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Monday Night Dinner Party
We were invited to dinner at a cigar friend's home. It's ALWAYS last minute, and when there is nothing fantastic in the cupboards or refrigerator, I just grab or buy a couple bottles of wine.
This time, there were some goodies! He grilled ribeye steaks and sauteed onions to go with them. Other people brought noodles, giant wontons and roast pork. I took Christopher Sy artisan bread, sliced it thinly, had the DH toast it, and spread it thinly with compound butter made with Naked Cow Dairy stinky Red, White & Bleu cheese, topped with cucumber and Ho Farm mixed grape tomatoes. If only I hadn't forgotten the watermelon radishes!
After dinner, I put out a plate of Naked Cow Dairy Waianae Sunset cheese with a sliced French bread epi, Naked Cow Dairy cultured butter and sweet black seedless grapes. Spread bread with butter, top with cheese, eat with grapes - heaven!
I'd seen these Ines Rosales tortas in R. Field, but the price was prohibitive. When I found them on the bargain shelf at Foodland Beretania, they were marked down 70%! I bought half of them, and I should have bought them all, because there were none when I returned. I bough 3 flavors: plain, rosemary & thyme and orange. They're made in Seville, Spain and they're delicious! At the dinner party, I broke the orange flavor tortas - which are sprinkled with sugar with orange zest, and slightly caramelized - into wedges, and spread them with the last of the kaya. I topped this with slices of sweet white nectarine. When the nectarine ran out, that was it!
I later found out this went over very well with the cigar guys. They asked for more, the DH said, "No more!" They now call this the "Not Enough" dessert. Who knew? Guess they don't lose their sense of taste!
Are there photos of any of this? No, the food was in our tummies, and it was good!
This time, there were some goodies! He grilled ribeye steaks and sauteed onions to go with them. Other people brought noodles, giant wontons and roast pork. I took Christopher Sy artisan bread, sliced it thinly, had the DH toast it, and spread it thinly with compound butter made with Naked Cow Dairy stinky Red, White & Bleu cheese, topped with cucumber and Ho Farm mixed grape tomatoes. If only I hadn't forgotten the watermelon radishes!
After dinner, I put out a plate of Naked Cow Dairy Waianae Sunset cheese with a sliced French bread epi, Naked Cow Dairy cultured butter and sweet black seedless grapes. Spread bread with butter, top with cheese, eat with grapes - heaven!I'd seen these Ines Rosales tortas in R. Field, but the price was prohibitive. When I found them on the bargain shelf at Foodland Beretania, they were marked down 70%! I bought half of them, and I should have bought them all, because there were none when I returned. I bough 3 flavors: plain, rosemary & thyme and orange. They're made in Seville, Spain and they're delicious! At the dinner party, I broke the orange flavor tortas - which are sprinkled with sugar with orange zest, and slightly caramelized - into wedges, and spread them with the last of the kaya. I topped this with slices of sweet white nectarine. When the nectarine ran out, that was it!
I later found out this went over very well with the cigar guys. They asked for more, the DH said, "No more!" They now call this the "Not Enough" dessert. Who knew? Guess they don't lose their sense of taste!
Are there photos of any of this? No, the food was in our tummies, and it was good!
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Dinner at Whole Ox Deli
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| Whole Ox menu photo via @docrock |
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| Whole Ox Poutine with foie via @konaish |
Upon seeing Laurie's Instagram, @NonStopMari said: "Omg i wish i cd crawl thru my phone and eat that food!!" Here's the poutine, with that jaunty piece of foie gras on top, and stinky, delicious taleggio. I'm pretty sure Mari meant that about the lardo, too.
Bob explained that the lardo could only be made from piggies from Malama Farm on Maui. These Berkshires - or kurobuta - may have a better lifestyle than mine! They sure have a better view! Their diet and life make a difference in the way they taste. And the fact that it takes Bob weeks to cure the lardo, and weeks more to age it, means that it took almost 5 months to get to perfect. And a few minutes for us to eat it! Sooo delicious. The kielbasa with Ma'o kale, pierogi and kim chi cream was as good as it looks and sounds. The sirloin was lean and tasty, and all of us ate the baby carrots like they were candy.
Did we have dessert? Of course! We won't tell you what they were, except that they were made by @KIAWE_FIRE , Alejandro Briceno. It'll be a sweet surprise!
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| Whole Ox Lardo with Asian pear via @konaish |
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| Kielbasa with pierogi, kim chi cream via @konaish |
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| Whole Ox Sirloin with baby carrots, potatoes via @konaish |
When Whole Ox Deli & Butcher first opened, I wrote about the dream of having my own butcher, as my mother used to. Well, that dream is now possible. From time to time, Bob now offers lovely cuts of pork and beef - chops and steaks. Follow him on Twitter, @WholeOxDeli.
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