Category Archives: Asian Recipes

Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries and An Asian Spin

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Pretty in deep red -- cranberries with Brussels sprouts.

I think of fresh cranberries as nature’s own holiday ornaments.

With their striking deep red hue, you can’t help but notice them no matter where they pop up.

Including in this dish of “Asian Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries” from the October 2011 issue of Coastal Living magazine.

The original recipe calls for dried cranberries. But when fresh are abundant at this time of year, why not use those instead, right?

That’s just what I did in this easy dish that’s great served warm or at room temperature.

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Chef Sachin Chopra of All Spice Talks About Celebrating Diwali

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Chef Sachin Chopra, all dressed up for the holiday, puts the finishing touches on a dessert for Diwali.

For Chef-Proprietor Sachin Chopra of All Spice in San Mateo, the celebration of Diwali always has had a special place in his heart.

After all, the joyous Festival of Lights, which starts on Oct. 26, is not only one of the most important Hindu holidays, but also marks the New Year.

It’s a time for gathering with family and friends. It’s a time to illuminate the house with candles. It’s also a major time for sweets.

As champagne is poured to signify important celebrations, sweets play a similar role in Sachin’s native India. They are readily offered to visitors in a warm gesture of welcome.

Candles are lit to commemorate the Festival of Lights.

The chef, who specializes in California cuisine with Indian and global influences, likes to create modern takes on Indian desserts at his year-old restaurant.

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Macy’s Cooking Demo: The Food Gal Makes Joong with Chef Alexander Ong

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Chef Alex Ong of Betelnut teaching me how to fold a joong rice tamale at Macy's. (Photo by Ben Seto)

Last Saturday afternoon at Macy’s Union Square in San Francisco, I wrapped my first Chinese rice tamale ever — before a standing room-only crowd.

I couldn’t have done it without the good cheer and great instruction from Executive Chef Alexander Ong of the popular Betelnut restaurant in San Francisco.

Though I’d grown up eating these glutinous rice tamales stuffed with pork belly, mung beans and salted duck egg yolks, I’d never made one myself.

But what better time to try my hand at it than last weekend, when the San Francisco International Dragon Boat Festival took place off the waters of Treasure Island.

The rice tamales (known as joong in Cantonese or zongzi in Mandarin) are the food most associated with the sport of dragon boating, which originated more than 2,000 years ago in Southern China.

All wrapped up and ready to be boiled for two hours. (Photo by Ben Seto)

The hidden filling of Chinese sausage and portobellos. (Photo by Carolyn Jung)

According to legend, a popular poet and statesman was wrongly accused of treason. So despondent was he that he committed suicide by jumping into a river. Local fishermen, who admired the statesman, paddled out in their boats to try to rescue him to no avail. They beat drums and threw rice dumplings into the water to try to scare away fish and sea dragons from his body.

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Steven Raichlen’s Chinatown Ribs

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Ribs to make you go "wow.''

These are the ribs of my Chinese-American childhood — only way better.

You’ll recognize them by their deep, shiny red color of candied apples. They’re the sweet, sticky ribs so often enjoyed on appetizer platters at Chinese restaurants. I remember them as the ribs my late-Dad would pick up by the pound at a Chinatown deli, wrapped still warm in a foil-lined bag, which he toted home to enjoy for our weeknight family dinners with plenty of fluffy steamed rice alongside.

Barbecue-meister Steven Raichlen one-ups those with this recipe for “Chinatown Ribs” from scratch in his “Raichlen on Ribs, Ribs, Outrageous Ribs” (Workman). Their flavor, reminiscent of char siu or Chinese barbecued pork, is so much more vibrant than the ribs you can buy in Asian delis. There’s a far deeper complexity, what with the notes of ginger, garlic and star anise, plus the bite of fresh scallions strewn over the top. They’re also far juicier.

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Food Gal’s Second Video: Extras From My Debut Cooking Demo at Macy’s Union Square

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For those who enjoyed my first video — which recapped my cooking demo debut at Macy’s Union Square San Francisco on June 11, 2011 — here’s an “extras” reel to kick back with.

In this second video, you’ll get to know me a little better, as I tell you about my family, how I got my start in food writing, and how I became known as the Food Gal.

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