Two Bees and a Cat

If you ask any Nepali what their favorite foods are, they will most likely say 1. dal-bhat-tarkari, or 2. Momo. If I decided what I could eat in my Last Supper, it would be momo. Why is it called "Momo"? I have no idea. But I always have said that once you have one, you want MO(re) MO(re) MO(re). This is a delicious fusion of Tibetan/Chinese Cuisine with the curries of South Asia. This was the first dish I made that A said she really loved . The secret lies in the sauce and the curry kick in the meat itself. A's coworkers love this as well, so I decided to make it for their Holiday Potluck. Here are the major ingredients that I gathered for momo. Making the sauce I always cooking the momo sauce first. This momo sauce is my mom's recipe, and I got it from her when she visited me last time. It's got the aromas that I grew up with, and every time I make it, it reminds me of eating momos at the Bakery Cafe in Nepal. I first start with sauteing onions and...

Ok the title is weird, but all I wanted to assert is that it's only six steps. Egg rolls are probably my favorite part of eating Chinese. Anything fried is always delicious. But I should definitely tell you that this is a delicacy that should be enjoyed once in a while--not a daily thing, because it is high in everything that's bad for you. Anyway--this recipe goes way back. I used to actually make these for my friends in Omaha when I was in high school. This, and the momo (which is another dish I will talk about when I make it, and I'm excited  to talk about!). Other than those, I really didn't know how to cook. Here's how the story goes: Back in 2008, I was dating A, and, in an effort to woo her, I decided to cook her some chicken curry. She perceived it as me trying to kill her. It wasn't because it was not good tasting , but more that it was ridiculously pink. In fact, it was 15 minutes undercooked, and undercooked chicken can cause baad consequenc...

Americanized Chinese food, like you find at restaurants like Rice Bowl , can be daunting to make for some. This recipe doesn't imitate the exact taste of a restaurant-style cashew chicken, but it's pretty good! Plus the breading isn't all that great for you anyway. The secret to the sweetness of this dish is the Teriyaki sauce. I know, I know, that's not a Chinese ingredient. But it gives a distinct sweetness to the food, making it pretty delicious. Fair warning: the sodium content is pretty high because of this. You can experiment with adding white wine vinegar to give it more of the tangy sweet sauce instead of the Teriyaki. An ingredient that is different in this is canola oil instead of vegetable oil, which is normally used in cooking Chinese cuisine. Canola oil consists of omega-3 fatty acids, versus vegetable oil that consists omega-6. There have been studies that suggest that the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio is very high in Western diets, and reducing the rati...

"Diet and exercise!" We've heard this phrase so many times, it may make our ears bleed. Yet according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) , 35.7% of Americans are obese. Americans spend $147 billion  dollars (in 2008 U.S. dollars) every year in obesity-related medical costs. Here is the prevalence data for obesity according to the  Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System , which is the world's largest ongoing telephone survey regarding health. The highest obesity rate is in Louisiana (34.7%) and lowest in Colorado (20.5%). Notice that these are self-reported, and the real numbers could be significantly higher. What are some causes of obesity? Genetics and environment are both in play here. Genetics may make people susceptible to obesity, and environment (Such as the car-culture, sedentary lifestyle, and lack of physical activity) contribute to this epidemic. What can we do about this? Of course, on a policy level, the government can imple...

Wow! It has been over two years since my last post. Let's see--since January 2011, I got married, I now live in Iowa, and I'm enjoying this lovely Fall weather! Marriage has a great perk--getting to share your food experiences with someone. I definitely enjoy experimenting with new ingredients, recipes, etc., because A can enjoy (or hate the stuff, depending on how the recipe turns out!) the recipes with me. This is a Minestrone Soup recipe from A's aunt. We got this part of a wedding-shower gift--a recipe book with lots of foods A's side of the family enjoys. This is a perfect recipe for a cold fall evening. A likes to "chew" her soup, so this is great, because it has lots of veggies! I'm a strong believer in the fact that just because you have a DSLR, it does not mean you're a photographer. But I figured I should learn how to do some food photography as well. I enjoy cooking very much, and this could be another additional fun thing to do...