… at this point, after seven test meals, I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m eating better here than even at home. Quality-wise, it’s about the same, but the sheer variety is amazing. Even amongst Chinese foods, you see, family preferences sometimes preclude you trying out the whole spectrum. I never really had eggplant before at home. And now I’ve also had avocado .. plus there are plans for artichoke! You have people coming in with expertise in soup, or in vegetables, or in pasta, or in Korean vs. Chinese vs. Taiwanese vs. Japanese vs. Italian food (and soon to be Indian food, too!), or in fish. Some people love the stove, some love the oven, some love the microwave, some leave it raw.
Another interesting thing is considering dietary restrictions and preferences: we have an even split between those who prefer low-salt and high-salt foods, and we have a Seventh-Day Adventist and a vegetarian to take care of, too; and one person dislikes onion and carrot. So this means learning to be creative with recipes, and also making differently-flavored ones for different people, further forcing us to be flexible cooks.
This past week’s food; * = I cooked it; each separate dish has a separate number – we try to go for 3-4 dishes per day:
Sunday: (1) Tomato and scrambled eggs, (2) Si gua “soup”, (3) Sparerib soup with fishball, (4) Ginger tilapia
Monday: (1) Korean soba (Nang myun) – cold buckwheat noodles, fresh avocado, dried seaweed, pine-nut kimchi, hard-boiled egg with sesame oil + sesame seeds. (2) Kimchi pancakes!
Tuesday: (1) Green beans with garlic*, (2) bamboo shoot chicken with spiced dougan, (3) chicken curry, (4) ginger cod
Wednesday: (1) Honey pan-fried chicken, (2) steamed broccoli, (3) pan fried-steamed cabbage (really awesome combo technique)
Thursday: chicken dumplings with napa cabbage (also, tofu + chive vegetarian option)
Friday: (1) shrimp pasta or mushroom pasta, (2) Chinese soy sauce-sesame oil-pepper fresh pickles*, (3) pineapple teriyaki salmon*, (4) eggplant in spicy garlic chili sauce
Sunday: (1) beef and broccoli (oyster sauce)*, (2) chicken & cabbage fried rice, (3) corn egg-drop soup
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