Spices: Mc Cormick's Crushed Red Pepper and Cardamom seeds

Hello everyone!

I have been looking for two very specific spices. I have seen the old Mc Cormick's Red Pepper spice at my parent's place, my friend's family's home and pretty much every family's home I have been to.

It just so happens that Danny is running out of the Mc Cormick's Red Pepper spice and I have embarked on a journey to find a good source to replace it. 

I found this in a supermarket, I believe close to Bay station.

Yikes, $5.29 + tax.

I found the Amazon.com website 13-Ounce container of crushed red peppers for $8.42 in American Dollars which will be taxed once it crosses the borders. It's about $0.65 / oz but this is in American dollars and will have to pay for shopping if you are ordering under $35.  Mc Cormick is definitely the taste that I trust. 

I had no idea a small jar of Cardamom seeds would be $6.99 + tax. These seeds are great in hot beverages. I was studying at my colleague's place and she made me plain red rose tea seeped in hot milk, sugar and some cardamom seeds. It was a fragrant, fantastic delight! 

Chinese Culture+Pork+ Awkward Moments

Hello everyone!

I haven't wrote in my "I'm Hungry" blog where I post up random thoughts about food.

I have been dating a Chinese guy for over a year and have learned how Pork is deeply embedded in the Chinese Culture.

You can easily say that most of the Chinese population are not vegetarian and are meat lover and they worship pork.

When I told Danny's parent's, "I don't eat Pork by choice." His Father and Mother freaked out and they started bursting out with the "Why Not?" ," Why can't you eat Pork?" So I informed them due to religious reasons and the way I was raised, I don't eat pork by choice. 

I have eaten pork accidentally a few times and to be polite. I don't want to make a scene at times. You have no idea how much attention it draws when you reject a dish. All eyes on you! Then comes the questions!

I think I may have even offended Danny's parent to some level. They are always trying to encourage me to consume pork. Sometimes, their methods of trying to get me to eat pork can be sneaky.

I know whenever we visit the Very Fair Chinese Restaurant, usually, the appetizer soup is this Pork Bone Soup.

They always pour me a bowl but I gently decline.

I have a cousin who married a Polish guy and she shared stories of how she visited his parents place and they really wished my cousin to taste the mother's home-cooked meals. My cousin felt really awful to push away what was offered to her and she ate it despite of her values, beliefs and religion.

Have you guys were ever placed in the spot light to eat something you didn't want to eat but you didn't want to offend anyone? It could have been due to religious reason like me or you just didn't want to eat whatever that was offered to you? 

When your health starts to deteriorate....

To all of the oinkers out there who loves to eat,

Imagine you suddenly received the news that you can't eat the way how you usually do. 

If you do, it would catalyse the trajectory of chronic illness(es) developing.

The doctor has given me a wake up call and I need to make serious changes in my lifestyle.

No more large portions meaning no more sushi buffets or buffets in general...

Decrease my intake of processed and take-out foods...

Eat more healthly....

Well, I was blown away like the seniors did in that scene in Gangnam Style Music Video at 1:06.

here is the link if you're unsure and fast forward to 1:06:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bZkp7q19f0

I thought I was being careful but this wasn't good enough.

Now I have to take extra precautions and take better care of myself from now on. 

I have already taken the first step to acknowledge that this is a problem.

But the next step is researching and planning how I am going to take better care of myself in a realistic perspective.

It would be indeed challenging restraining myself from all of those desserts patient's family members leave on the unit as a thank you gift and I love Pizza. I would do anything for Pizza! :D

A Flexi... What?

Hello Food lovers,

I read an article from a food magazine called Food Service World in the THAI restaurant on St. Clair West.

I found the article on-line on their website.

Here is the first part of the article:

"Chefs are appealing to flexitarians, a new wave of vegetarians who eat meatOn The Big Bang Theory, one of TV’s successful sitcoms, Penny says, “I’m a vegetarian — except for steak. I loooove steak!” It draws a laugh, but Penny is not joking. She belongs to a new category of diners called flexitarians.These consumers intend to be healthy and socially conscious (it takes significantly more of the Earth’s resources to feed a meat eater), so they espouse vegetarian principles. But, like Penny, they love the occasional indulgence of juicy meat."

if you wish to read more, go to: http://www.foodserviceworld.com/home/features/food-file/4108-the-new-vegetarian.html

The rationale behind the concept of this post was at camp, a guy asked me if I was vegetarian.

I simply stated, "I am a vegetarian that cheats and consumes meat once in a while."

The guy, "If you eat meat, then you're not a vegetarian!"

I did not know how to defend myself and what uttered out of my mouth were, "I probably decrease the chances of getting a heart attack by avoiding meat but eat it about once per week to none per week so it can't hurt. I do consume meat products and fish but I have my weakness for shrimp." (I'm eating Nong Shim's Shin Ramen and I added frozen peas and frozen shrimp to make it heartier at the moment.)

But now I know what to say next time someone inquires in regards to my diet.

I would say, "I'm Flexiarian!" :D

My other meaty weaknesses other than Shrimp are:

1.  Yookgaejang (Korean Soup - Stewed beef brisket and vegetables in a hot spicy beef broth served with rice, Yum! )

2. Tang Soo Yook/Kan Poong Ki/Sweet Sour Chicken

3. Hamburgers (Mc Double Burger, O-Filet-Fish, Generally speaking Hero Burgers Beef and Fish burgers, Priest Burger)

4. Samgaetang (Another Korean soup- Stewed Cornish hen stuffed with garlic, cloves, ginseng, dates, green onions and sweet rice.) I haven't had this for over 1 year and a half. This is awesome when you're feeling ill or you're having a hangover. You will feel rejuvenated from all the good stuff.

5. AFC - Ajuker Fried Chicken (Goddammit, just thinking about AFC is making my mouth salivate! I also haven't had this for over a year. Love the chicken but it wasn't what it used to be. They had more flavor in the past. This stuff is expensive! )

6. Coconut Milk Soup with Mushrooms and Chicken

Pick your Poison

Hello everyone!

I was thinking about bringing bagels to work for the staff and an idea hit me.

What should I bring with bagels?

I initially thought, maybe 2 types of fresh cream cheese, butter.... or margarine or should I bring both butter and margarine?

Pick your poison.

They are both saturated animal fats...

Butter is "Natural" and yet has more saturated fats...

Margarine has more chemicals and less saturated fats...

Same goes for milk!

Milk from cows are pumped with hormones, has more saturate fats, can be fortified.

Alternative milk such as nut milk, rice milk are chemically extracted, very processed and has decreased saturated fats. 

And Meat Vs. Veggie Meat.. and the list goes on. 

So my question is, why do you choose to eat the types of food and why? Do you know how your food is processed and made? How much do you know about what you're eating? 

Acquired taste

Hello everyone,

It has been a while since I have scribbled in this section of my blog.
Today, I want to share my thoughts on acquired taste.

According to Wiki,
"An acquired taste often refers to an appreciation for a food or beverage that is unlikely to be enjoyed by a person who has not had substantial exposure to it, usually because of some unfamiliar aspect of the food or beverage, including a strong or strange odor (e.g. stinky tofu, durian, kimchi, haggis, hákarl, black salt, stinking toe, asafoetida, or certain types of cheese), taste (such as root beer, vegemite, bitter teas, salty liquorice or natto), or appearance. "

I would reccomend you to read the Acquired Taste encyclopedia entry. It's actually interesting.

Click here :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acquired_taste


Foods I did not enjoy as a young child were:
1. Kimchi (I socially learned that this is not lunch friendly food at elementary school)
2. Cheese (I just didn't like it as a child)
3. Liquorice (I would avoid the Black Jelly Bean like the plague)
4. Sushi (I didn't like Sashimi or raw fish. It had a weird texture to it)

Foods I recently started enjoying are:
1. Cheese (Brie, Gouda and Asiago cheese is really good!)
2. White Wine (Red wine tastes exactly what it is Rotten Grape juice however white wine is a bit more fruitier. I have recently purchased a white wine from the St. Lawerance Market on Front St. I had randomly asked  the sale associate which wine she prefers. She pulled out Trius Sauvignon Blanc Vintage 2011. It features gooseberry and tropical notes on your palate which is quite nice! )
3. Olive Oil (I did not think it was tasty until this year)
4.  Parsley (I hated it as a child)

Acquired Taste Foods I have always enjoyed:

1. I actually like Korean Fermented Soy bean soup which is pretty much Natto soup. Once soy beans becomes fermented, they release this pungent odor. My mother had once attempted to ferment soy beans in the appartment and you can sell the rotten beans in the hallways of the appartment floor.

2. I also enjoyed Root Beer as a child because I thought it freshened up my breath, I liked the A&W bear and thought it stood out from the rest of the sodas.

Why do you take photos of food and blog about it?

Hello everyone!

It has been a while since I wrote in this section of my blog page.

Recently, my boyfriend sort of reminded me why I take photos of food and blog about it.

About 3 years ago or so, John asked me why I like to take photos of food all the time.

I told him, I want to remember what I ate. John laughed. Then I elaborated, that I want to remember all the good stuff I ate and maybe one day I would be able to cook some of these wonderful dishes.

I blog because I think knowledge and information about food should be shared. If you know a good bar or restaurant, why keep it a secret? If it's really that great, share it with the world! :D

There are people who are into pets, art and sports.

I'm into Food Porn!

According to Wiki, "Food porn is a glamourised spectacular visual presentation of cooking or eating in advertisements, infomercials, cooking shows or other visual media,[1] foods boasting a high fat and calorie content,[2]exotic dishes that arouse a desire to eat or the glorification of food as a substitute for sex.[3] Food porn often takes the form of food photography and styling that presents food provocatively, in a similar way to glamour photography or pornographic photography."

- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_porn

I grew up in an era where being exposed to mass media and being constantly being bombarded by advertisements and commercials probably also influenced me to like food so much. But I hate it also. I am a visual person so if there is a photo that makes me salivate like Pavlov's dogs, I can be easily be influenced to eat Take-Out/Fast-Foods/Commercially prepared foods. But I'm trying to be more aware of what I consume and eat more healthily.

I'm currently in a health/weight loss competition so I'm not blogging often in regards to restaurants which saddens me a bit but I know this is for my own good in the long-term run.

Thai Chicken Coconut milk soup Blog

Hello everyone,

It has been a while since I've scribbled in here.

I was researching online for recipes to the Magical Thai Chicken Coconut milk soup and stumbled across this website. I am planning to go to Chinatown to gather all the ingredients.

I thought the blog was well done! Photos were lovely!

http://www.shesimmers.com/2010/11/tom-kha-gai-recipe-tutorial-for.html

After reading several recipes, it appears these ingredients appeared somewhat to pretty consistently.

TOM KHA GAI:
Galangal

lemongrass

kaffir lime leaves

coriander/ cilantro

parsley

ginger

chilli peppers

Thai bird's eye chillies (or Serrano chillies

fish sauce

onions

lemon juice

kha root

fresh white mushrooms

chili paste (black chilli paste (nam prik pow)

Dry red chilies are left whole for extra spice

Garlic

I'm hungry...

I'm a small girl but I can eat a ton.

I love to eat!

I can't imagine my life if I was hit by a truck the next day and I ended up in the hospital with feeding tubes in me. I would rather die.

I'm a vegetarian who cheats meaning yes, I do eat meat occasionally. For sure I am not able to eat it everyday.

What initially made be start this blog was when I was looking for a specific Dim Sum Restaurant in Downtown Toronto. I was not able to find their online menu. So I decided, "Hey, why not start a blog about food, restaurants, recipes and other things related to food?"

I love taking photos of food and sharing my experience and recommendation of restaurants. So why not start now?