Finding My Noodles

I've been keeping myself as busy as I can in the kitchen lately - the reason being that it is officially blueberry season and we are trying to use up as much as we can. However this post is not about my blueberries, as yummy as they are.

No, I'm excited to tell you about my latest find at an asian grocery store. No matter which asian grocery store I turn to, in the States and out, they always feel the same. Oh sure, they have their differences but it is the subtle similarities that make me smile. From their overpacked shelves and aisles to the way they bag the groceries by tying the handles in a knot for you, it amazes me that there is so much continuity when it comes to customer care. When I was very young, my mom or grandma would take us kids to a Chinese grocery store called Chao's (not chaos as my baba would say) and the owner was (in my opinion) an old man who loved, and I mean loved, to pinch my cheeks and say, "Oh pretty girl!" I got pretty scared of him for a while there and would hide in my mom's overcoat whenever we'd go in just to avoid the pinchers. Later in life I would shop there on my own and the old owner would give me the same sly look and say the same sly thing but without the pinching (that would have been ackward). If ever I brought a guy in with me he would shout out, "Who's the lucky man?!?!" Well I'm glad to say that since then I've been able to bring in my husband to show who the "lucky man" is and have already exposed my child to the cheek pinching experience.

There is an asian/korean grocery store we go to every now and then when we are in St Louis . We used to go solely for their blueberry marshmallows but they no longer carry them and believe me when I say that it took great effort on my part to continue shopping there after our favorite treats were taken from us. However I am very glad we continued to go there as the lady who owns the store is very darling and she is always ready to share with me something new, and it turns out, something that's always delicious. This brings me to my finds...

Citrus Seasoned Soy Sauce and Brown Rice Vermicelli

The lady at the store was so excited to tell me about her salad recipe involving these items. While soy sauce and vermicelli are not new to me, I have never even heard of citrus flavored soy sauce and was very excited about the brown rice option for rice noodles. She quickly told me what to throw in the salad, and as most good asian cooks will do she never had specific measurements to give me. Oh well. I don't suppose I could get away with doing that to you... If you have trouble finding the above items, you can do this with plain soy sauce and rice vermicelli.

Chicken and Brown Rice Vermicelli Salad with Citrus Soy Sauce Dressing

Salad:

1 chicken breast

1/2 package Brown Rice Vermicelli

1 bunch Romaine lettuce heart, chopped into bitesize pieces

1 small carrot, julliened

3-4 mushrooms, sliced (I prefer baby bella)

raw cashew pieces, toasted

toasted sesame seeds

Dressing:

1/2 cup Citrus Seasoned Soy Sauce

1/2 cup Sesame Oil

1) Grill or sautee chicken breast until cooked through. Slice into bitesize strips and set aside.

2) Soak vermicelli in hot water and let sit until noodles have softened through. Drain the noodles. Using kitchen shears, cut the noodles into smaller, more managable pieces (noodles in salad is strange enough without having to twirl it onto your fork so I just cut it smaller, less hassle).

3) Mix together the dressing - may need to put it in a shakeable container to ensure better mixing.

4) Lightly flavor the noodles with some of the dressing mix.

5) To assemble salad, place lettuce on the bottom, then the noodles, then chicken/carrots/mushrooms, then sprinkle cashews and sesame seeds on top. Pour dressing over salad and serve.

Serves 2 big salads. (noodles should be cool)

Mangoes On My Mind

I have had a really bad craving for mangoes today. I think it is because the weather has been warming up and I am ready for the tropical flavors now. On Neal's mission for our church in Bolivia, they called the mango a "trash fruit" as it was available in an overabundance. When I was younger I thought they tasted like rotten fruit but for some reason, it has really grown on me and I can't get enough of it now. It seems to be a very popular flavor in many Asian countries and I am amazed at the many different ways in which it is used. Perhaps, La Fuji Mama has already done a post about mangoes (sounds like something she would do and she sure is in a better position to do so) but I figure this will help stave off my cravings just a bit until tomorrow.

First off, I am amazed at how many people don't know how to cut a mango. Come on people, this is what makes eating mangoes fun!

I love dried mangoes but there is a difference in quality depending on where you get them (at the flea market at Aloha Stadium = good, in a bulk bin of your grocery store = bad). Mango Dofu (basically a gelatin/pudding mix) is very yummy, especially with diced mango in it. My Hong Kong family introduced us to this and it is a family favorite.

We loaded up on these mango gummies at the Aji Ichiban stores we saw all over in Hong Kong and at the Tokyo airport. These little treasures didn't last very long at our house. I have yet to introduce the mango jelly cups to my family but they are a fun slurpy treat - like mango jello in a tiny cup with a chunk of mango in it. These we can find at any asian grocery store, the gummies we have not found nearby. :(

The first picture is a variety of smoothies (incl mango) with black tapioca mixed in. We first had these in the Chicago area China town. If you have issues with texture, this one might not be for you but I promise, it is very good. Mango Calpico drinks are yummy (non-carbonated) and gotta love a good Mango Lassi. My taste buds tell me it is wrong to have Indian food without a Lassi.

I first had mango ice cream on Andros Island, Bahamas, from an old man who ran an ice cream shack. The second picture is mango mochi ice cream and I first had those in Hawaii but I am excited to find them at our local Asian grocery store. It is a ball of mango ice cream within a layer of mochi so you get this chewy outside with a chilly inside. I think we weird people out when we offer these babies but wow are they good.

The Fujis introduced us to some excellent Thai mango dishes when we were in Thailand a few years back - the first being Thai Sticky Rice with Mango and the second was something we ordered by chance and it turned out to be very good, the Thai Green Mango Salad. This dessert has become a standard for any fancy Thai dinner we host and it has been a while since I've made the salad as I don't often find green enough mangoes here. I rarely find an excellent ripe one too, they are mostly in between blahs.

Hopefully this has opened a whole new world for you or just made you share my cravings! Now get out there and tango with a mango!