I am mightily motivated

There are quite a number of Vietnamese main dishes that use caramel. The word “caramel” often put me off; I am not an enthusiast for sweetness in my main dishes. I tend to favour hot, hot and spicy dishes; not to set the tongue on fire though. But most Asians do have a sweet palate; the Chinese are famous for sweet and sour dishes, Japanese have their teriyaki sauce and the Vietnamese with their caramel dishes. Of course a little sweetness is nice and it is all about the right balance thermal tea cups.
Now, the brilliant thing about home-cooked food is that I can control the amount of sweetness. As Indochina is the theme this month, I have chosen to make a caramel main dish. After all, I am not cooking for myself only. I definitely need to increase my cooking repertoire to make more friends . Especially after my bò lúc lắc experience, I am mightily motivated Adon jewelry.

Caramelised pork spare ribs is another easy everyday recipe that you can cook at home. Make sure that the caramel colour is the right deep brown colour and you will get a nice glistening sheen at the end of the cooking. The sauce is also naturally thickened without any flour, cornflour or starch-like product.

Although the pork ribs are cut into bite-sized pieces, I cannot resist using my fingers. If you want to avoid the messiness, you can use pork belly. A leaner cut perhaps. I also doubled the amount of liquid because simmering for the time the original recipe suggested it tends to dry up much quicker. Plus, I wanted a bit of sauce to have with the rice Web Vulnerability Scan.

A well-balanced caramel dish, I will definitely make this again.

Lemon Fingerling

Coincidence, fate, or sheer luck – how do you know which one is why things fall into place so nicely? Could it be a combination? Perhaps it is certain events were destined to happen. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a big event. Even the smallest or things can line up and make your day. Such is the case with another Holiday Food Party. We are celebrating Bastille Day and all fell into place for me to make Meyer Lemon Fingerling Potato Salad.
It all began with a simple question: What holiday should we celebrate next? Suggestions rolled in and the group decided on the one that meant all things French. This was a challenge I could really sink my teeth into. I’m a big fan of French food however I don’t make it often enough. Oh what a great excuse indeed. So off to the internet I went for inspiration and got sidetracked. The internet has a way of doing that you know.

An email arrived in my inbox about a week or so later. It was from the kind folks at Frieda’s. Wouldn’t you know they have produce to celebrate Bastille Day. Oh what great luck for me! Soon a box filled with meyer lemons, fingerling potatoes, shallots, and a few other items arrived at my door. Now was the final decision on what to make. I headed straight for the bookcase and pulled out Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking (affiliate link to Amazon). I decided to do an adaption of the Pommes de terre à l’huile (French Potato Salad).
How is the Meyer Lemon Fingerling Potato Salad? The nutty flavor of the fingerlings is brightened with lemon’s citrus accent. Shallots mildness enhances a simple vinaigrette. A touch of white wine combined with chicken stock is soaked in by warm potatoes. Then the potatoes are gently tossed with the dressing and served. I suggest waiting about an hour before serving to let all those flavors come together and for the potatoes to soak up some of the dressing.