Food of Peru Pt. 1 -- Breakfast

So it's been about a week and a half since I returned from my Peru trip, and I still find myself thinking/dreaming about the food I had there.  You guys, it was awesome.  Meat, rice, corn, potatoes - so many potatoes - fruit, and such huge quantities.  But we walked a lot, and over so many steps, that luckily my clothes still fit alright...kind of.

We had so many delicious meals at so many different places, that I've decided to make this a series, instead of trying to cram everything into one post.  Plus, me and my cousins were lucky enough to get a reservation at the number 4 restaurant in the world, Central (http://www.theworlds50best.com/list/1-50-winners), and it definitely needs it's own post (prepare for a lot of adoration and fawning over..).

So there are some foods that I wasn't crazy about before, but Peru changed that.  Like quinoa.  I wouldn't say I hated quinoa, but it was definitely something I avoided when I saw it on menus.  Not my favorite.  UNTIL! We had the world's greatest quinoa soup at a little mountain village, and my stomach was forever changed.  At some restaurant, there was like a quinoa pudding?  Some didn't like it, but I thought it tasted like the world's greatest, healthiest marshmallow.  I'm not sure if that's the most appetizing description, but I dig marshmallows.

And cheese.  I didn't love cheese before.  Unless you pair it with meat and wine and crackers.  But I ate so much cheese in Peru.  Every hotel breakfast had at least three different cheeses.  I think the queso fresco was my favorite. But mostly everything at the breakfasts were my favorite...

The breakfast beverage options were pretty awesome.  I always had to have a cup of cafe con leche -- partly due to the early morning wake up calls, but mostly due to it being absolutely delicious.  And then always a glass of water or coca tea to try and alleviate any altitude sickness....followed up by a glass of fresh fruit juice (pineapple and papaya were my favorites).

The food generally remained the same at the hotels we stayed at -- different bread and pastry options, an omelette station, hot foods, fruits, etc., but some places had some items that definitely stood out.

One location had french toast, which was standard, but one of the condiments was CONDENSED MILK.  My sister found this awesome little combination (where has this been all my life?!) and it was life-changing.  Other places had french toast, but we didn't find any condensed milk, which may have been for the better.  My health conscience tells me this should be a special occasion kind of meal...

I believe the same location had something called chifa rice with chicken stew.  The night we landed in Lima, I remember being in the car and going past so many placed with "Chifa" in the name.  These are Chinese-Peruvian restaurants, which I imagine are so good.

Side note: I LOVE THE RICE IN PERU. It's the best texture....it's a little sticky, and it's awesome for sauces and stirfry -- it just sucks all the great flavor up.  Part of the reason the lomo saltado is so amazing.  Also why I think Chinese-Peruvian must be the jam.

So back to this chifa rice -- essentially it's their version of fried rice, which covered in this amazing yellow chicken stew with potatoes....my type of breakfast. (I don't usually prefer breakfast foods).

So that's breakfast. It's funny, I thought that after eating large breakfasts every day in Peru, I'd be needing it back home, but I haven't really.  Perhaps if there was some condensed milk french toast or chifa rice up in here....

We were able to get some really great coffee -- my sister went to Ecuador before Peru and picked up a nice bag, and then my sister-in-law got another bag in Peru.  Have you ever heard of poop coffee? I'd seen something about it on probably an Andrew Zimmern show, but didn't realize they had it in Peru.  Basically there's this animal that eats coffee berries and then poops out the coffee beans.  It's then made into one of the most expensive coffees in the world.  We had been told that it was called Tunki coffee, but I think that may just be the farm that makes it.  So non-poop coffee was accidentally purchased, but we tried an espresso shot of the poop coffee later, and I think we're all pretty happy about the purchase.  It wasn't BAD, it was just pretty unique.  And I definitely preferred the non-poop coffee.

I'm sure there's a better term than poop coffee...but that's the best I can come up with, at the moment. Appetizing, I know.

So that's part 1! Stick around for lunches, dinners, more beverages, and CENTRAL :)

Food Trippin' -- Disney/Harry Potter Treats and Sweets

Recently, I had one of the most magical of weekends.  My sister and I planned a somewhat impromptu Orlando trip to visit Disney World and the Harry Potter parks (my first time!).  We planned one day for Disney, and, though we've done the four parks per day before -- I don't recommend it -- we decided to do three parks this time, Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Hollywood Studios.

As many times as we've been to Epcot, we've never really taken the time to eat around the World Showcase.  We usually just ride some of the rides and eat some curry rice in Japan or churros in Mexico.  This time, I really wanted to try some of the treats, particularly after doing some research online.  REALLY what I wanted to do was get a reservation at Be Our Guest in Magic Kingdom, but apparently you need to do that months in advance.  If you want to do lunch, that's probably very possible, but I was advised that you have to get there when it first opens, and we didn't want to have to schedule our whole day around it. 

And the World Showcase goodies did not disappoint! First, we started off in Norway to try the School Bread -- which I read beforehand was a custard bun topped with coconut...so, naturally, it was a must-try.  It. Was. Awesome. I could eat this forever.  My sister and I were surprised while in the shop because when we asked to get the school bread, and the lady asked us if we wanted two.  But, now I get it.  This is not a bun you want to share. 

Next, we made a small stop at Japan.  I was so tempted to get a curry rice, but luckily we exercised some self-control.  The annual Flower and Garden Festival was going on while we were there, so they had special food stands.  We picked up two different "sushi" plates from Japan -- I ordered a pressed salmon sushi and my sister ordered what they called "Frushi"...a sushi roll made with coconut rice and filled with fruit.  I think I'd rather just eat fruit, but it was an interesting little bite.

We grabbed our lunch at London's Rose & Crown pub.  I had read a lot about their Scotch egg, which is a hard boiled egg, wrapped in ground meat and then deep fried (aka deliciousness). I also read about mushy peas.  Unfortunately since we ate in the pub area, they had a limited menu and we didn't get to try the mushy peas.  We did order the fish and chips, which were nice! I definitely enjoyed the experience; the bartenders are so friendly.  

AND THEN.  Hello, France.  How many sweets can one find in France?! It's good we didn't start at France, because we may not have had room for anything else.  Since, by then, we were a little full, we decided to stop only at the ice cream shop and skip the bakery (I'm coming for those napoleons next year!).  We did have to order two things -- the ice cream stuffed brioche and the ice cream macaron sandwich.  No regrets. So good.

Afterwards, we went to the other parks to get in some rides and shows. We did stop at the Writer's Stop in Hollywood Studios to get a carrot cake cookie.  I had read about a PB & J milkshake that you could add alcohol to, but we were running out on time and stomach space.  At dinnertime, we stopped at the Columbia Harbour House in Magic Kingdom for some clam chowder and chicken pot pie.  We were planning on grabbing a fried chicken waffle sandwich at Sleepy Hollow, but they stop selling them at 5PM :( And, OFC, we had to get a Dole whip pineapple float before leaving the park.  Because, you know, Dole-whip-pineapple-float. 

Universal doesn't seem to have as many popular eats as Disney, most likely because people will go to the City Walk to get a meal.  We just decided to eat whatever was available in the Harry Potter parks, which was a great idea.  We got a scotch egg, bangers and mash, and lamb, beef, and Guiness stew at the Leaky Cauldron in Diagon Alley. The scotch egg apparently is flash fried in order to be a little healthier, and it definitely was not as tasty as Disney's version. It came with a nice pickled beet salad, though.

Over in Hosgmeade, we grabbed a turkey leg and some fruit at the Three Broomsticks. The potato wedges that came with the turkey leg were great, but the turkey leg may have been a little ambitious. 

But to get to the really important part -- the BUTTERBEER.  Hello, favorite beverage. Buttery and sweet and wonderful. We tried three different varieties..the normal, frozen, and butterbeer ice cream.  I will say my favorite is the regular butterbeer, since I could only drink/eat so much of the frozen and the ice cream.  The regular butterbeer I could treat like water. Maybe there's a pinterest recipe out there somewhere.  Maybe it's best for my well-being that I do NOT look it up. 

We also tried an earl grey and lavender ice cream (yum) and a pumpkin fizz (YUM!).

It was a lot of food (WEATESOMUCH), but I feel better seeing we walked probably an average of 25,000 steps per day.  I can't wait for our next visit! 

Oh! I mentioned a lot of ice cream in this post. It reminded me of Jeni's ice cream, which, as some of you may know, temporarily shut down their locations after finding listeria in their product.  They're opening their locations back up tonight! 

Krog Street Market and Other Tidbits

Yes, I am the worst at consistently blogging.  Perhaps, because I am consistently eating? Maybe.

Anyway! My new obsession is Krog Street Market.  Mostly because it has one of my favorite newer restaurants, Craft Izakaya, but the rest of it isn't too shabby, either.  Many of you are aware that Gu's Bistro, Atlanta's favorite Szechuan joint has closed its' Buford Highway doors...But! They opened a stand called Gu's Dumplings at the new market.  And, I've always really enjoyed the ice cream from Jeni's!

Let's start with Gu's Dumplings.  I tried the Zhong-style dumplings, Dan Dan noodles, and crispy beef.  The dumplings and noodles are still as good as ever (crack sauce, I'm sure of it), and yum-and-yes-please-more to the crispy beef, which I'd never tried at the original restaurant.  I am hoping the new location for the full restaurant opens soon, since the stand, naturally, has a limited menu, and some of my favorite dishes -- that spicy boiled fish!!! -- are missing.  I'd say the dishes are smaller and more expensive, but with the change in location, it's to be expected.  I'll be back!

Ohhhhkayyyy, and now, let me attempt to not drool all over my laptop just thinking about Craft Izakaya.  This. place. is. awesome. I chose it for my birthday dinner this year, and it did not disappoint.  I will say, they've spoiled me for uni.  It tastes so fresh and clean and....uni-licious (is there a better adjective for it?  I think not).  Chef Jey Oh does some pretty neat things -- so you know your girl loves salmon...I remember pretty vividly this dish we ordered that had raw salmon and fish eggs over rice, with warm tomato.  And I don't what what sorcery they are using, but this kicked my taste buds into overdrive.  The first time I went, we ordered a sashimi plate that included some raw shrimp and a fish skeleton that some of the sashimi had been cut from.  The chef took our plate when we were done with fish, and fried the fish bones YUM and used the shrimp heads in some miso soup DOUBLEYUM.  I've seen some magical pictures on Instagram of uni shooters/shots.  Do I know what they are?  No.  Do I want them right meow?  Yes.

They've started a lunch service, which we noticed last time we were there to get Gu's.  It looks like a pretty standard bento box, from the menu we peeked at, but knowing this place, it's got to be something pretty special.  OH hey, did I mention they have alcoholic boba drinks?  This is the place to be, people.

I'll have to try out some of the other stands -- The Little Tart Bake Shop, Hop City (beer with my dumplings? Sounds like a terrific idea), Spotted Trotter Charcuterie (chicken liver pate, I'm coming for ya) -- but from most sources, I hear everything's pretty darn tasty.

So that's that.  I love this place.  So much that I'll go up against the limited parking.  Valet is my friend.

Also, don't forget, Buckhead Restaurant Week starts up this week!  There are tons of options and menus, but personally I think the Capital Grille is the best deal.  Get in your reservations while you can!

In case any sweet-tooths have been left out of the loop, Georgetown Cupcake opened.  Yes, they're pretty freaking good.  No, they have not stolen my stomach from Sprinkles -- my personal motto is why pick when you can have both?  But so, the big Buckhead cupcake battle begins...who's got your vote?

And lastly -- all my fellow Korean drama fans -- guess what's back!

Let's Eat 2! I'm ready for the Korean food cravings.  I've only watched two episodes, and already I want oyster feasts, raw squid, clam noodle soup....

KUO KITCHEN: What the Duck??

Ohhh, duck breast.  Why are you so difficult to find when the holidays roll around?  It's such a pity, because duck breast is literally the simplest, tastiest piece of meat I know how to cook.  Just make some criss-crosses in the skin, lightly season it with some salt and pepper, cook it skin down on a cast iron skillet to render out the fat, and finish it off in the oven -- BAM! Crispy skin, delicious meat, and the some nice duck fat to cook some potatoes or brussels in.

But noooo.  For the past few Thanksgiving, all the grocery stores and farmers markets have presented me with whole ducks.  I've responded differently each time...I've cut the breasts off the whole duck and given the remains to my mom (okay, let's be real, she handled the removal of the breasts. Handling whole animals give me the heeby-jeebies sometimes).  Most of the times, I just last-minute change the menu.  But not this Christmas.  NOT THIS CHRISTMAS!

But before I go all into that, let me start with Thanksgiving.  My family has gotten into the tradition of doing one night of hot pot and one night of more traditional fare for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Hot Pot was delicious as always.  Taro was a new addition this time, and while very tasty, we found that if it stays too long in the pot, it thickens the soup and makes it not a great match to add the thin bean noodles we add at the end.

For our other meal, I went specifically to the Decatur Farmers Market to try and find this elusive duck breast, since I've gotten it there before, but no such luck.  Still, the craziness of that place is worth the variety of vegetables and meat (EXCEPT DUCK) and though I went in with a set list, there were some additions to my shopping cart.  I made broccolini, soy marinated salmon, shrimp salad, ribeye over roasted potatoes (REPLACEMENT FOR THE DUCK), mustard garlic brussel sprouts, and some pumpkin spice cookies (tip: hershey's pumpkin kisses and pumpkin M&M's aren't wonderful).  My sister contributed an amazing egg custard pie that I will need to get the recipe to. 

Christmas' meals had a few adjustments, mainly because we added three more people to the mix.  Hot Pot again took us on an adventure to the Buford Hwy Farmer's Market, which may be my favorite place to shop -- though I will never go when the sun starts to set.  It's dangerous if you go hungry.  Those samples, the Korean prepared food section with all those dumplings and sushi sets just calling out your name, the frozen goodies....I digress.  We got some baby octopus to add to the hot pot, tons of watercress and Taiwanese napa, and even had the brilliant idea to cook the taro in a separate pot. 

For the other meal, I made asparagus, swiss chard, apple pie, salmon salad with some of those extra apple slices, garlic and wine cast iron shrimp, San Marzano tomato pasta, "loaded" mashed potatoes with bacon, garlic, and green onions, and, yes, that whole duck.  I went to Whole Foods this time, and was glad to have found those San Marzano canned tomatoes.  So much yum.

The duck was definitely a process, most of it being frantically thawing the bird and Googling "easy whole duck crispy skin".  Most of the recipes required 4+ hours and different sauces that I didn't have and didn't want to make.  I finally just went with the instructions on the package and adding a soy/hoisin sauce at the end, but I didn't have a meat thermometer, so I'd say the bird was slightly overcooked.  Lesson learned.  The skin did not get quite the crispiness I wanted, but it seems it would need to cook longer at a lower temp to achieve that.  Maybe next time.

Regardless, I'd say the dinner was a success, and I got plenty of duck fat to add to the rest of the dishes!  Just thinking about the amount of butter used makes me want to go dive into a salad.  Next year?  I'm still going to be on the hunt for those individually packed duck breasts.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 2014 Recap

Happy 2015!!! Hope everyone had a wonderful time ushering in the new year.  I thought I'd start out covering some of my favorite and most memorable meals/dishes of 2014.  No sort of order, because I'm just not that organized....(New Year's Resolution???)

1. Chirashi -- I'm just going to group all the amazing chirashi I've eaten this year in one category, since it would take a whole separate blog post to go into depth.  I'll just call chirashi my life dish, but I really had some good ones this year.  Some of my favorites were those at Circle Sushi, Sushi House Hayakawa, Taka, and Kintaro (in DC).

2. Kang Nam's Hwe Dup Bap -- I've always loved this Korean mix of sashimi bits, salad, rice, and red pepper paste sauce, but I found possibly my favorite deal at Kang Nam off Buford Hwy.  If you go before 6PM, it's under their "lunch specials".  The dish it comes in is big enough to fit a pretty large baby, and it comes with a really good spicy fish soup.

  

3. Sukiyaki in Japan -- I had so many delicious meals in Japan and Taiwan on my 2014 Asia trip, but the one that continues to stand out to me is the sukiyaki we had at a marine amusement park.  Like, what?  I never had that style of hot pot before; basically the broth is super condensed in flavor so that you don't drink it and you don't need additional sauce for the meat and veggies.  But, you do dip it in fresh egg and eat it with rice.  It was. SO. good. 

4.  BuccoLupo's Squid Ink Pasta -- I'd had a delicious squid ink pasta in San Francisco that was served with clams and pork belly and garlic, and had been thinking about it for so long afterwards.  THEN, I saw an instagram friend posting pictures of a squid ink pasta from BoccaLupo, and I knew I had to go.  My sister and I went, and it didn't disappoint.  No pictures, since it was super dark inside (and super full of couples....)

5. Ah-Ma's Beef Noodle Soup -- The first time I tried this, I was so happy.  A true taste of Taiwan and one of my favorite dishes!  The noodles are so chewy, and the perfect thickness for me.  The broth is super flavorful.  Not every Taiwanese I know loves this place (my mom...), but I do. 

6. Jang Su Jang's Ke Jang -- I'm not going to say this was one of my favorite dishes; I like it, but it is a little salty and requires a LOT of rice.  It falls under one of my most memorable, though, because I don't know that I've eaten raw crab before, and my favorite K-drama "Let's Eat" drove me to try it.

7. Paris Baguette Cronut + Almond Velvet Tea -- This was the year of Paris Baguette for me.  While I've calmed down a bit on eating cronuts at every available opportunity, it was the piece of deliciousness and sugar coma that introduced me to my now favorite bakery.

8. Makan's Black Sesame Gelato -- Do you like black sesame? Because I DO and this stuff is like crack in gelato form.  YUM.  

9. Miso Izakaya's Ramen Burger -- My sister and I were fortunate enough to score a place at Miso Izakaya's first brunch service (not too sure if they decided to continue doing it), and I was finally able to try a ramen burger! Really tasty.  I think I like burgers much better when the buns are made of noodles or rice (Mos Burger, I'm looking at you.)

10. Kung Fu Tea -- though my love for So Kang Dong Tofu House has diminished a little, I find myself still in that little crowded parking lot just as much due to the opening of Kung Fu Tea.  Another taste of Taiwan!  Love the yogurt green tea.  

11. Deep Fried Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich at the Texas State Fair -- no description needed.  I'm going back.  NEED to go back.  

There it is.  My 2014 List.  Here's to more eats and fun and deliciousness in 2015!!!