Nine out of every ten people I know would define Pad Thai noodles as a spicy noodle dish made with shrimp, mung bean sprouts, and ground peanuts. But shrimps, mung bean sprouts, and peanuts are not the ingredients that define the Pad Thai noodle dish. The sauce makes the dish and it is called Pad…
Westerners roast their meat bones and vegetables in the oven before dumping them in a pot of water to make broth. Asians don’t do the roasting bit. Except, perhaps, for the South Asian tandoor, traditionally, there are no ovens in Asia. Ovens in Asian kitchens are modern additions during the last couple of decades. But…
My younger daughter, Alex, had been hankering for pasta for weeks so when she suddenly sent a text message yesterday saying she was arriving home in three hours or so, I decided I would cook some spaghetti for her. For those of you who are new here, my daughters are in college and they are…
Why kids love pasta, I have no idea. But they do. Place of bowl of pasta in front of them and most kids will react as though they’re being presented with a special treat. Even adults are not immune from the charms of a beguiling pasta dish. Perhaps, it’s the excitement of twirling the noodles…
My first recipe for spaghetti with meatballs was published on May 10, 2005, after dinner at a pub called The Oarhouse in Malate, a hang-out for photographers, journalists, writers, and expats. We ordered spaghetti with meatballs there, I liked it and did a home-cooked version a few days later. That recipe is on page two…
A modification of Nigella’s cold soba noodles, this version has three kinds of fresh mushrooms shiitake, Korean bunashimeji, and enoki. It was the fastest dish I could make for lunch because Speedy and I spent the morning in court (a drunk driver hit our pick-up) but couldn’t eat out because we passed by the supermarket…
Add a new depth to your usual cup of green tea by infusing it with fresh herbs and fruits. No, not by using flavored tea in teabags don’t you taste the paper? If you watch NCIS: Los Angeles, there was an episode when G. was making a cup of tea for himself and Hetty smirked…
Margarita may refer to an island in the Caribbean, a controversial doctor who dispenses advice on sex and sexuality, or it can be the name of one of my favorite cocktail drinks. Triple Sec, and citrus juice. It can be served on the rocks, blended, or straight. In making a margarita drink, the most common…
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Despite the name, there is no marijuana in this drink. It is green because it contains a green-colored ingredient Midori, a Mexican melon-flavored cordial, in the original recipe. Speedy had to substitute though after getting a shock at the price of Midori P1,200 a bottle. So, he bought and used Orchid melon liqueur instead. We…
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When I first saw a recipe for Black Forest coffee and it was described as almost drinking a black forest cake, I wondered why the beverage recipe contained no liquor at all. Although American versions of the Black Forest cake are almost always alcohol-free, in traditional German recipes, Ergo, when I made two cups of…
