nanamoose

A Franco-Japanese War (involving pastries)

I have a serious, serious problem with breads in Hong Kong. Correction, I have a serious problem with “baked goods” in Hong Kong. There are all these lovely pretty cake shops selling cakes that look more like jewelry than food and above all, are less than meets the eye, but no proper boulangeries or patisseries that actually serve good bread, pastries, and cakes with a substance.

Especially pastries. I think pastries are gravely overlooked in Hong Kong. People are obsessed with pretty, crafty cakes so that cake shops and cake schools alike are overflowed with Hong Kong “OL”s who have no knowledge whatsoever in relation to cakes and probably have never cooked, and will never cook again, in their lives. There is first of all Zoe with their HK$30 odd-a-tiny-piece-cakes and freezing cold air conditioning, then there’s Teresa Festival with their inexperienced staff and minimal drinks selection, Antique Patisserie with their HK$50-a-piece-of-Happy-Birthday-sign-policy and Mandarin Oriental’s jewel-like cakes. Recently there is even a bakery which specializes in cupcakes that opened at Elements in Kowloon. There is nothing honestly wrong with these beautiful cakes except they lack the heart and soul that makes them interesting. Perhaps like the perfect man who, for me, requires that little deficiency in order to be “perfect”, so do food and especially baked goods precisely since its “prettiness” means so much.

Now you can imagine what pain this phenomenon brings to a self-confessed palmier lover like myself, and what a refreshing experience it was for her when she found the best palmier-like pastry ever at the new Tokyo Midtown. The Sacristain at “BE”, or Boulangepicier, in the basement of Tokyo Midtown is a long, stick-like pastry covered in molten sugar that tastes almost like caramel yet lacks the overpowering sweetness. In Hong Kong, pastries are often relegated to a mere breakfast snack at shops like Delifrance and Maxim’s and stuffed with all kinds of funny fillings like pork floss and curry chicken, yet at BE pastries and breads are given prime attention. Choose from a selection of savoury and sweet pastries and enough fine breads to make your mouth water. If that’s not enough for you, perhaps the fact that BE is part of the Alain Ducasse group and a quadruple chain, two branches of which are in Tokyo and the rest in Paris, will be enough for BE to redeem itself.

Just when I was reminiscing over the demise of Japanese ingenuity in the baking world, I was given a brief insight into the Parisien bakery scene and stumbled upon Patisserie Sadaharu Aoki and its variations on the macha theme. I guess the Japanese are still going strong after all.

Lanna Kingdom on a Plate

I am very proud of my top three cuisines list. I think it’s the best list in the world - Chinese, Thai and Italian. You might wonder, where is French? Foodies alike from all over the world seem to go weak at the knees for French. This I never quite understood. True the French have taken its cuisine to unprecedented heights by making the simple act of eating an art form. However, how many people can really eat French every single day? Can you sit through a seven course and at least 3 hour dinner with a sommelier better groomed than your boyfriend explaining the 100-page wine list with a heavy French-accent say, once every week? If not for all the fanfare, then can you really eat mediocre bistro French on a regular basis? I certainly cannot (though I have to admit, “Ratatouille”, not French Laundry, has changed my perspective slightly). And so my list includes all foods which can be eaten, if you like, as comfort foods.

To justify my love for Thai food I embarked on a cooking course with the Four Seasons in Chiang Mai. I have never realized what an intricate matter Thai gastronomy is. From the variety of the original ingredients down to the very cooking, everything is a journey in itself if not an ordeal - but to those who love cooking, the ordeal is a pleasurable one. At the first break of dawn and after having finished breakfast with freshly toasted bread from our very own private toaster on our very own private verandah, we met up with Por the cooking assistant for our local market tour.

It was my first experience in a fresh food market in Thailand. Everything is organized in perfect harmony, even the chilies and salty fish are arranged in little piles and plates according to price and category...

Where Art Thou Lovely Mixer?

I have loved you at first sight since that fateful day five years ago whilst shopping at the basement of Selfridges.

I could still remember the way you looked that day, decked out in an arresting red and grabbing the attention of all passersby with your stunning good looks. How could I be so foolish as to let you leave? How could I be so foolish as to not take you home with me that very day? How could I then be so foolish as to have time slipped by, one year, two years, three… till eventually today, it has been five years. It took me five whole years to finally hold you in my arms. And what bountiful arms you have!

You will not be able to imagine my excitement when I saw you, this time in California, dressed in a dazzling white; less the feistiness but in place of that an innocence equally as bewildering. I knew instantly this time that I could not let you go once more. I had to have you. However, in the midst of all this excitement I had forgotten about how I am to take you home. I have only two pathetic arms, how could I carry you on the plane with me? I almost lost my mind when I contemplated the idea of losing you once more. Luckily for me a white knight came to the rescue & kindly agreed to carry you home, all the way from San Francisco to Hong Kong (thank you Mr. Lee).

So there you are, my dear KitchenAid mixer, resting on my kitchen table today and looking as handsome as ever. You never flinched or cringed, and in the whisk of a few seconds there comes a beautifully, thoroughly mixed cookie dough for my famous oatmeal and raisin cookies.

O ye KitchenAid mixer, I can no longer imagine life without!

Lamian Spree in China

There is a big misconception about the lamian. For some reason it is often perceived as having originated from anywhere but its real origin. We see it being made as part of a performance at Peking Garden back in the 80s (or perhaps the show is still going strong today? Sorry, have not been to Peking Garden for the longest time) and today at places like Haidilao, a Sichuanese hot pot restaurant in Beijing. So where does the lamian actually come from?

The answer is Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu Province with a major Muslim community. Anyone in their right minds will have heard of the Lanzhou Lamian 兰州拉面. It is easily the most popular noodle in China and you will be able to find a bowl in almost every corner of China, whether Shanghai or Shangri-la. A bit like the pho, these lamians come in a pre-cooked beef or mutton soup and with a few slices of the same meat on top.

I think the lamian is addictive. Once I have tasted the REAL lamian and gone through the REAL experience, nothing in Hong Kong quite does it for me anymore. The shabby-looking roadside Muslim restaurant, the mustached teen skillfully and efficiently stretching doughs out into long thin strips of lamian, the fragrant aroma of cooked mutton soup and the crooked old man sitting next to you picking his teeth after gulping down a RMB$4 bowl of lamian... this is the real way to eat Lanzhou lamian. I am ready for my next lamian spree in China.

Suzhou Reinterpreted

The last time I went to Suzhou was some ten years ago when I did not know any better but to follow my parents around with a Hong Kong tour group. All I could remember about the tour and Suzhou were the endless history lessons in various gardens that looked pretty much all the same to me and semi-forced shopping in sketchy-looking commercial buildings.

I realized on this scouting trip for Kylie that the image of Suzhou I had all along had been heavily misconceived. Suzhou, just over an hour away from Shanghai is in fact cultured, beautiful, and full of pleasant surprises. Suzhou is known as the “Venice of the East” for a reason. Crisscrossing the city are numerous canals and waterways along which stand grey and white houses built in traditional Suzhou style generally part of a well-preserved old town community with cobbled alleys and easygoing inhabitants.

The best place to sample Suzhou’s old world charm is Shantang Street 山塘街, a water village closely resembling that of outer Shanghai’s Zhouzhuang. The difference is here you can sample freshly made 海棠糕 and 梅花糕（which are made from real flowering crab apple and plum blossom petals） by the waterways and my favourite 玫瑰酒醸餅 from Cai Zhi Zhai 采芝斋.

XIAOLONGBAOS: Shanghainese vs Taiwanese vs Tibetan

“Wow these dumplings are absolutely amazing! So, these xiaolongbaos are a famous Shanghai delicacy?” asked Kylie while she devoured into the juicy Nanxiang xiaolongbaos which we had queued for about ten minutes to buy and paid a meager RMB$10 for a dozen.

“Well, to be exact, these dumplings originated about 100 years ago from a small town called Nanxiang near Jiading district, which is about an hour away from Shanghai, but they have since become so famous that the Shanghainese decided to adopt them as their trademark food. Their fame has also caused a lot of fake Nanxiang xialongbaos to emerge and hence the cultural officials in Jiading are now fighting to have the dumplings listed as part of their intangible cultural heritage. It is easy to tell the fakes from the authentic though. A real Nanxiang xiaolongbao has at least fourteen pinches gathered on top.” I answered casually as if the ambassador of Nanxiang xialongbao. I think I have succeeded in convincing the audience that I know everything there is to know about xiaolongbaos.

“Intangible cultural heritage! This just goes to say how much the Chinese love their foods!.....”

Nanxiang xiaolongbaos are an icon in Shanghai, and xiaolongbaos have pretty much become synonymous with Shanghainese food. The queues outside Nanxiang and the hustle and bustle created by people frantically elbowing each other for the freshly steamed xiaolongbaos are a landmark in itself. However, personally I prefer the xiaolongbaos from Din Tai Feng in Taiwan, or even the momos in Tibet. As Hau Ba Ba rightly pointed out, Taiwan has pretty much perfected regional Shanghainese delicacies like the xiaolongbao or soy milk and fried dough and made them into something better and healthier. The Taiwanese xialongbaos for instance are more refined. The skin is much thinner and the filling, though soft and juicy, contain a lot less fat.

As for Tibetan momo’s, you will absolutely worship them if you are a lamb or yak meat lover. Momos are pretty much the yak meat version of xiaolongbaos and with a thicker and denser skin. For the best momos, head to A Fang’s Karma Cafe in Shangri-la (66 Jinlong Street, Old Town, Shangri-la Tel: +86 887 8224768). She even does a lovely yak cheese salad!

Wok Hijack in Shanghai

My wok-fingers are getting restless. Let me try to hijack this wok here from this young man.

“Hello mister, can you please let me use your wok for a second?” Man shakes his head profusely and refuses to hand me his wok. I try a second and third time to no avail. Ah… I know, money will do the trick. I stick an RMB100 bill down his short and he gladly stood aside.

What do we have here, some shredded pork, some green veggies, dried chilies, salt, sugar, soy sauce and some Chinese wine – Great! I can make my caramelized pork dish! I start cooking but a crowd is starting to gather around me. They must have come to see if I can actually cook. Of course I can! And I am going to let everyone taste for themselves. Oh and the wok owner too. Crowd seems to like it. Phew!

Good, job done. Time to meet my foodie friend at the Yu Gardens for some Nanxiang Xiaolongbaos!

臺灣三明治的美 Breakfast at Mei Er Mei

Taiwan foods mosaic
Originally uploaded by nanamoose.

現在的人那麼會吃，但不住臺灣卻又認識美而美的人是少之又少。譬如跟香港人說起臺灣他們的第一反映總是牛肉面啦，鴨舌啦，夜市裏的小吃啦，很少人會跟你說起臺灣的三明治。

如果有人問我最好吃的三明治在那裏我會毫不遲疑的告訴你: 在臺灣!

我個人覺得，如果連越南的三明治都可以闖出名堂的話那麼臺灣的美而美簡直可以說是天堂美食了！我從小就愛美而美， 愛它熱騰騰的感覺，愛它裏面的肉鬆，愛它的煎蛋，還愛它的奶茶 （雖然茶味淡得更像糖水）。美而美對我而言就像是陪伴我多年的老朋友，對它的喜好是參了感情的。 但感情以外，美而美的好吃是無可置疑的。雖然在國外生活了多年, 我卻一直無法對外國的三明治產生興趣。可能是我天生比較喜歡熱食的緣故吧，冷冰冰的三明治，就算是Pret A Manger 所謂新鮮的我都還是看不順眼。跟我一樣喜愛熱食的朋友， 尤其如果你喜歡香港茶餐廳裏的腿蛋治，那你一定會更喜歡美而美。這裏的三明治全是現做的，隨你的喜好可以加煎蛋，培根（即煙肉），青瓜，cheese, 還有美而美獨有的beef patty（裏面有胡蘿蔔及蔥絲）。

現在臺灣“美而美型”的早餐店很多，我所謂的美而美也就不是每家都叫美而美了，不過因為美而美是老字型，大家叫習慣罷了。要找美而美型的早餐店很簡單，隨便鑚個巷就找到了。它們的標誌大多是紅色橙色條紋的， 名字也多是“X”而美，而且家家都好吃。不過注意哦，美而美是只有早上營業的。

這次拜訪的其他臺北最愛 （全為連鎖店，請查清最靠近你的分店）：

1.50嵐的紅茶拿鐵 （林鳳營）（在你喝不到Nana 奶茶時的唯一替代品）
2.君悅排骨
3.鬍鬚張的魯肉飯

Funnily enough, despite how everyone in Hong Kong raves about food in Taiwan, no one has ever mentioned the lovely sandwiches there before.

I grew up on sandwiches from Mei Er Mei (or its numerous other forms whether Mai Er Mei or something else) every morning when I lived in Hsinchu, so admittedly my love for these sandwiches contains a tinge of nostalgia. However, I assure you that nostalgia aside, these sandwiches are the BEST in the world, especially if you’re a lover for hot and freshly prepared foods and egg and spam sandwiches at Cha Chaan Tangs in Hong Kong.

Sandwiches and burgers from Mei Er Mei are made fresh when you order, with your choice of ingredients ranging from fried eggs, meat floss, cucumber, Kraft cheese to Taiwanese beef patties containing shreds of carrot and spring onions. Order your sandwich with a Mei Er Mei milk tea, quite watery and tastes more like sugar and water, yet just so good when you have them with Mei Er Mei sandwiches.

Like Starbucks in the States, there are Mei Er Meis round every street corner so you will have no excuse not to find one. Mei Er Mei-esque sandwich shops all have red and orange-lined shop signs and are open only for breakfast.

Other favourites in Taipei I went to (all chains, check for your nearest branch):

1.Ceylon Latte at “50 Lan” (the closest you can get to the authentic Nana Tea)
2.Spare Ribs Rice at Jun Yue
3.Braised Meat Rice at Beard Zhang

雲府的假西藏

DSC04844
Originally uploaded by nanamoose.

又是一家不准拍照自以為什麼新鮮蘿蔔皮的餐廳。

是否位於蘭桂芳的中國餐廳就難逃 "騙鬼老" 的宿命呢? 同樣是Aqua Group的梁山泊，水滸居和胡同都有一定的水準, 甚至它位於奧卑利街的泰菜館 O Sip Ha都相當不錯 (除了那不大陪襯的裝簧), 為什麼新開的雲府卻如此讓我失望呢?

我想這跟它門口那略像紅白藍膠帶的哈達（還是經幡呢？）跟菜單裏的藏肉，藏魚和一堆奇奇怪怪的菜名有關吧。跨入那扇掛滿假哈達的大門之後走下一道左右刻滿唐朝侍女的陰暗樓梯，樓梯的盡頭是一條紅通通的長廊，令人想起張藝謀的 "大紅燈籠高高掛"， 也令人想起倫敦的Hakkasan 餐廳– 同樣是陰暗的樓梯帶你進入藍得有點刺眼的接待處 – 長廊的盡頭是大廳，大廳的正中央是一尊佛像。 隨便翻開菜單，有烏魯木齊魯魯下（烤羊排），喇嘛餃 （素餃），玉龍雪山 （龍蝦）…不知怎的心中就湧起了一鼓厭惡的感覺。為什麼烏魯木齊會是一種藏肉呢？烏魯木齊可在新疆不在西藏啊！如此情況下菜好吃也就算了，可這裏的菜卻又偏鹹，水準也比不上Aqua Group的其他餐廳。

我想以後看到一家八成以上都是外國人的中餐廳還是最好走為上著吧！

雲府位於雲咸街43 – 55 號地庫

Beginner's Luck with Fish

Fish - before
Originally uploaded by nanamoose.

Is this a disturbing scene to you? Fish before and after it became a meal. And it died because some curious first time fisherman associated with the deer family decided to test out her fishing skills at San Pablo Reservoir just outside San Francisco.

Did not know that beginner’s luck was applicable to fishing as well, but I managed to catch three fish, the first catch (a small-ish fish), the biggest catch (which weighed six pounds and which got myself a spot on the wall of the biggest catches at San Pablo), and an even bigger fish which managed to get away. In the picture you see what happened to the six pound fish, sleeping on a bed of carrots, potatoes and onions with pieces of rosemary stuck vertically across its body. Oh dear, this sounds like sacrifice scenes from Apocalypto, but does it taste good! Especially when cooked in a bonfire in the freezing cold and sand blown all over your face on Ocean Beach.

Sometimes you just have to be a little bit brutal to enjoy the finer things in life.