The YOLO feast

The time when we were still young, we eat all we want, drink all we can, and live our life to the fullest. YOU LIVE ONLY ONCE became the word for 2013. 5 Piggies became great friends, and of course who could just 'hang out' without food and drinks?

A spontaneous seafood craving ended with laughters and a satisfied stomach.
First there are oysters. Freshly bought and opened at home. Then there is lobster. Sashimi alive, dipped with soy sauce and wasabi. Store bought sashimi (for those who lives in Boston, Sakanaya in Allston is the best fish market you can find in Boston. They have fresh fish that are reasonably priced) and some white wine pasta top with seared scallops. Lastly a bottle of white wine from Loire Valley to pair all these seafood.

A great night with my piggies. Although the last night with them at my apartment, I'm sure we will all reunite once again very soon, with food and their company.

White wine linguine with seared scallops
Ingredients:
One pack of linguine pasta (DiGiorno recommended)
5 Carrots
1 Onion
1 garlic clove minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Chili flakes (optional)
1 tablespoon butter

10 scallops
1/2 tablespoon butter
2 teaspoon olive oil

First boil the pasta in salted water until al dente.
Meanwhile, in a nonstick skillet melt the butter over medium heat and add in the olive oil. Pat the scallops till dry and sprinkle salt and pepper. Place them on the pan and sear each side until golden brown. Do not over cook the scallops. Test them with a fork. It should still be a little spongy when pressed. Set them aside.

Now melt the butter over medium heat. Add in the garlic and chili flakes and cook until fragrant. Add in the onions and carrots. You can also add in other vegetables as well. Raise the heat to medium-high and then add wine. Cook until reduced by 1/4 about 1 minute. Remove the pan from heat and add in the pasta. Swirl in lemon juice and add scallops. Toss to combine.
You can pick out the scallops and place them on top when plating.

Enjoy! and remember YOLO~

Wonton Part 2

If you still remember my recipe for Shanghai wonton, to all vegan and vegetarians: THIS WILL BE YOUR FAVORITE POST

My roomate's boyfriend, a vegan, moved in and my roomate has turned vegan as well. Therefore, in order to let her try my delicious traditional homemade food, here is the tofu wonton.

At home, my mom add dried shrimps (蝦米仔) to this, but I am not a big fan of it and this will not fit into our healthy vegetarian wonton either. But if you want to add it, you are welcome to.

Ingredients:

1 block Firm tofu

7-10 dried mushrooms

Dried Radish

Salt

Soy Sauce

Seasame oil

First cut the tofu into big chunk and throw them into a cotton bag. (I used the ones for my fish soup, recipes for this will be up soon)
Squeeze out all of the water and make them into crumbs.
Soak the mushrooms till they are soft and cut them into tiny pieces.
Do not add in too many radishes and mushrooms, the strong flavors will cover up the soy flavor of the tofu.
Dice a piece of dried radish. It should be about the same amount as the mushrooms.
Add a pinch of salt and a little soy sauce. The most important, similar to the meat wonton, is sesame oil. This is the key for the juice of the wonton. Add a two tablespoons of sesame oil and mix all of the ingredients together. The good thing about the tofu wonton is that you can taste the ingredients before you cook them. Wrap the wontons in the store bought wrapper and cook till they float.

Put them in the freezer if you could not finish them. I will recommend you cook them all first then freeze them because the wrapper will not crack or stick to the pan. You can also pan fry them and dip them in chilli oil! (my personal favorite)

Now if you want wonton, there is a vegetarian option for you. ENJOY!

Guac, the all time favorite

Guacamole. A Mexican sauce made popular among Americans for chips and all kinds of things is a quick and delicious appetizers before meal or snack before drinks.
It is colorful and definitely easy to make.

Ingredients:
2 Avocados, pitted and mashed
2 Roma tomatoes
1 Red onions
Lemon
1 tspoon Cumin powder
Cayenne pepper powder

One raw corn for corn guacamole

First mash the avocados. You can mash it till it is all smooth or leave small chunks to add texture to your dip. Cut the roma tomatoes to bite size pieces. I am not a big fan of raw onions therefore I cooked it a little first and decrease the spiciness of raw onions. You can also substitute it with yellow onions or shallots if you want. Squeeze half a lemon and sprinkle around one teaspoon of cumin powder. Add a pinch of salt and add cayenne pepper to your liking.
You can use corn instead of tomatoes as well! It will add a sweetness and chewiness to this guacamole.
Definitely taste along the way!