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Food52The only reason I went to Double Chin, a Hong Kong-style cafe in Boston's Chinatown, was to get an Instagram-worthy picture of their signature dessert. Yet by the time I left, it was another dish—a very un-photogenic one—that captured my heart, tummy, and soul. I don't even remember what entree I actually ordered for myself. (Thank you for letting me share your lunch, Alvin!) After one bite of this dish I knew I had to try to make it at home. The dish starts off with a layer of chicken fried rice, which is then topped with a mild coconut curry sauce and finished with a sprinkling of shredded cheese. Then everything goes under the broiler until it gets all bubbly and gooey. This is pure comfort food, my friends. I know it's kind of strange to have cheese on an otherwise Asian dish, but there's actually a pretty strong tradition of Western ingredients being assimilated into Eastern cuisine, long before the more recent spate of fusion restaurants began trending in the United States. Think of the ubiquitousness of mayonnaise in Japanese dishes, cheese on Korean ramyun and ddukbokki, sweetened condensed milk on Hong Kong-style French toast, or Spam in Hawaiian musubi. I thought it was interesting that when I was looking for recipes for this dish online, a lot of them just listed "shredded cheese" as the ingredient, without any reference to what kind of cheese. So I ended up referring to Lady and Pups' Macao's Portuguese Fried Rice Gratin recipe, because 1) I love everything else she does, and 2) it seemed the most similar to what I had at Double Chin. I used chicken instead of fish and marinated it beforehand. I used chicken breast because I prefer white meat, but feel free to use chicken thigh meat if you prefer dark meat. I also made a couple of other modifications to her recipe based on what I had on hand (fewer scallions, water instead of milk) and taste preferences (half the amount of shallots, provolone instead of Gruyere). Please note that this makes quite a bit of food. Mandy's original recipe said that it serves 2, but it would probably be more like 6 Joy-sized servings. And if you're wondering why it's called Portuguese chicken rice, I think it has to do with the fact that Macau was a Portuguese colony up until the end of the last century. Note: For a lazier version of this recipe, just use your local Chinese take-out fried rice and skip adding the chopped up chicken to the curry sauce. Because I totally understand if you just want to get this into your mouth as soon as possible.Food52This recipe is inspired by my favorite hole-in-the wall Cambodian restaurant in San Francisco, whose menu curiously has an entire section (following poultry, seafood, and vegetables) devoted to asparagus. I guess the owners have a thing for asparagus. They're not alone in this obsession-- asparagus is one of those foods which inspires passion and mania among its fans. People start looking for it in farmers’ markets and produce stalls with the first signs of Spring, and snatch it up greedily in neat bundles. There’s obsession, and then there’s obsession. My husband's obsession involves gaining entree to a restaurant's "secret menu." He is determined to get "authentic" food, the “real” food in any ethnic restaurant we go to, and he’s convinced that every restaurant has this food on a secret menu. You just have to be worthy of it. A classic example is this story. It was a month after I had given birth to my first baby, and I wasn’t getting out much. Cambodian food has a special place in our hearts, as it was the cuisine my husband and I had adopted as our favorite when we were in college. So I was excited when my husband called me from work to tell me that he would be picking up some Cambodian food on his way home. (At that point, I would have been happy with anything edible that I didn’t have to prepare; that it was Cambodian food was a bonus.) He came home with a large brown paper bag emanating the seductive fragrances of lemongrass, turmeric and coconut milk. But he looked agitated. Before I was able to dig in, he said, “There’s something I need to tell you.” I paused for a second, wondering about the anxiety in his voice. But my postpartum mind was too muddled, and my stomach too hungry, to wonder too much. I just wanted to eat. ”What?” “Well, you know how when we go to Chinese restaurants, and there are two menus, with the better and more authentic food on the menu written in Chinese?” “Yeah.” I said, opening takeout cartons in a rush. “So, well, the nice lady at the Cambodian restaurant was so happy to hear that we had a baby, and um, she thinks you are Cambodian.” This got my attention enough that I looked up from the food. “She asked me if you were Cambodian,” he continued, “and I said you were half, because I didn’t want to hurt her feelings.” “You didn’t want to hurt her feelings so you made up my heritage?” “I was hoping there was a secret menu.” “Was there?” “No. But, um, next time we go there, you might want to speak Khmer.” * * * Despite my love for Cambodian flavors, and with all due respect to our favorite restaurant, I find that the delicate taste of asparagus is overshadowed by heavy sauces. To preserve the elegant beauty of asparagus, I prefer it grilled, with aioli on the side. As an ode to Cambodian cuisine, I’m spiking the aioli with the flavors of lime, lemongrass and curry. This aioli would also make a great spread for Vietnamese banh mi or other sandwiches.Food.comSea Cucumbers ("beche de mer" in French) with its gelatinous texture is a delicacy in Chinese cuisines. The Sea Cucumber is flavorless, however it has the ability to soak up the flavors of foods and seasonings it is cooked in. What… do you expect me to try this dish, Sea Cucumbers… which would be the reaction from many people (other than Asians) when seeing this sea creature. However, if you have an open mind in trying different foods, then give this recipe a go.
