Sunday was an indulgent day of flavors from home! Hope you’ll be inspired to visit Hong Kong one day because honestly, it is THE best place on earth for the finest foods and greatest shopping!!!
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Sunday East meets West Brunch
While I filed my taxes, the wonderful BF made brunch for the both of us. Here is a much deserved spotlight on the best dish ever: Chinese braised beef with daikon radish and eggs in a soy sauce & star anise broth. Everything is cooked overnight until the meat & radish melts in your mouth. Star anise is said to taste a little bit like licorice, but it works really well with soy sauce in this dish. YUMMY!! (We refilled the bowl twice!)
Pepperidge farm cinnamon raisin bread was on sale for $2, so we toasted some up with butter. It is SO darn good with the Cenutry egg & tofu dish – the sweet and salty combo I tell you…invincible!
We can’t seem to go one week without Chinese Century Egg and Soft tofu topped with spring onion and furikake. Nick & I are obsessed with the oyster sauce and dumpling sauce combo.
For dessert, we had homemade egg tarts I baked the night before. Sadly, they turned GREENish overnight for some reason!!! Maybe because I used more eggwhites than yolks than the recipe called for, but they still turned out tasting pretty authentic. I also had a camera-shy cherry yogurt on the side.
Because I only had 2 egg tart molds, I used muffin tins for the remaining tarts. Plus, we didn’t have evaporated milk, so I used water. muahahah I ain’t EVER making egg tarts again. I’ve failed TWICE already. This is what happened the 1st time, when I overbaked them. It eventually deflated, but the damage (to my pride) was already done.
Anyways, we ended up taking a giant nap after I finished my taxes, and I took a trip to my best imaginary friend Trader Joe’s to pick up the much talked about Sprouted Rye Bread (for $2.99) so I could create my first official tofu hummus sandwich (come back tomorrow)!!!
I’m so excited to try this breaaaaad!!
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Dinner in Chinatown
Who the heck drives to Chinatown in the snow on a Sunday night??? People who crave Chinese steamed fish. For a great bang for your buck, you can enjoy an authentic, delicious, and satisfying Cantonese dinner at Ken Kee Restaurant for under $50. (I HIGHLY recommend it!)
If you ever find yourself in an authentic Chinese restaurant, you will see a condiment tray resembling the picture above. You also won’t be served fortune cookies at the end of the meal. (BOOOO. I heart fortune cookies!!) Chinese people use white pepper instead of black and the default vinegar is red.
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Dish #1. Rice noodles with shredded pork and pickled cabbage
One of my most craved Chinese dishes! This was deliciously flavorful and served with lots of bean sprouts and sesame oil.
We had some leftovers here (mainly noodles and pork) so I brought it home to whip into another lunch feast. 🙂 Check back to see what it transforms into!
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Dish #2. Sweet, Spicy, & Sour marinated Cucumbers
Typically marinated in spicy oil, vinegar, and brown sugar
I polished this dish off completely. It is seriously, awesome. I mean, $2 for a slice of heaven from home. 🙂
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Dish #3. Beef and Chinese Broccoli Noodles
Nick’s favorite dish is a stir-fried beef with vegetable served on top of a bed of deep fried Chinese egg noodles. He likes to save them overnight so the crispy noodles soak up all the sauces from the stir-fry. This is a super popular Cantonese dish in Hong Kong.
We didn’t finish this dish intentionally so Nick could bring it to work for lunch.
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Dish #4. Seafood Congee
This is super-thick traditional Cantonese congee that is loaded with various types of sea creatures, including scallops, imitation crab meat (which is mainly made of fish), prawns, fish fillets, and squid.
I ended up demolishing this giant bowl. Nick had a small bowl of it and I had like…6? It was seriously yummy.
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Dish #5. Stir-fried Chinese Okra with Black Fungus & Onions
Though a little more oily and much saltier than I’d hoped, the Chinese okra had spot on flavors to the ones prepared in Hong Kong. The Chinese okra has a slightly bitter after-taste but is supposedly great nutritionally speaking. I heart the smooth yet crunchy texture of black fungus!
No leftovers here!
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Dish #6. Soy sauce Squid
Squid basted in soy sauce and sliced thin. The squid was chewy and crunchy all at the same time, but very salty and required some good old seafood congee to “diffuse” the strong flavors.
Yeah, no leftovers here either.
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Dish #7. Chinese steamed tilapia
THE DISH that Nick and I have been craving since January, this is one dish that my mom will make for me every night for dinner when I visit home. It is literally a fish steamed with ginger and spring onion in soy sauce, and right before it is served, the chef pours scalding hot oil over the top of the fish for boosting flavor and color.
Seriously SO good for less than $10. Obviously, no leftovers here either. Here are my takes on the restaurant:
Overall -4/5 (My favorite go-to Cantonese restaurant)
Taste -4 (A tad salty on most of the dishes, but authentic flavors!)
Originality – 3 (Served anything and everything you’d expect)
Plating – 3 (Average for a speedy Chinese restaurant)
Value -5 (You can’t get any better than this)
Service – 4 (FAST and decently polite waiters made this a pleasant experience)
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Dessert
Of course I went home to cook my lunches for the rest of the week while I enjoyed this awesome fella! A Red Bean bun from the roomie’s parents they’d gotten from the Chinese bakery in Argyle (the “little Chinatown” of Chicago).
I LOVE the glossy tops of these buns. They’re lightly sweetened thanks to a brush of milk on the top before the bakers pop them into the oven. The inside of the bun is fluffy but slightly more dry than I like them. (Must go to my favorite bakery in Chinatown for the best of the best!) But I’m not complaining!! I heart adzuki beans!!!
MAN! I can’t believe it’s Monday again. I’ve actually been SULKING all weekend because the instructor of my favorite gym class is leaving for good. I WILL NEVER have another Sexy Bodies class after this Thursday and I am seriously FREAKING OUT!!!! 😦 Without him, I won’t have a bootcamp to whip me into shape!! GAHHHHH!!!
I am now seriously thinking about starting to become a runner. OH how original, I know. Anyone want to offer some advice (ANY advice!!) to a PETRIFIED newbie who has no stamina whatsoever???
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Can you believe in more giveaways?
Check out One Frugal Foodie’s giveaway here!
Simply Fabulous has treats here!
Goodness, I don’t even know where to start … so much great looking food!!! I’ve never had a red bean bun but that one looks perefect!
I understand! One of the best class instructors left my gym in the beginning of Feb! It’s okay just try new classes 🙂 It will expand your horizons and maybe you’ll find something you enjoy better! Dont stress!!
woooooo…..so many traditional chinese dishes!! I love love the rice noodle with a lot of sprouts, the cantonese congee, steam tilapia and aduki bean bun! 😀
such a big feast! you and your bf are real foodies!
Yum, all your eats look SO GOOD! Love the cucumbers and okra, gotta try that some day!
I am a newbie at running myself but I would say start slow and build up. Walk and run, walk and run…Eventually, you’ll run longer and walk less! It seems overwhelming but you gotta start somewhere, right? And once you improve and notice yourself getting stronger, it feels awesome!
Stretching is crucial, especially post work out. I find that yoga helps a lot too!
All your eats look good . . . that is until I got the squid and steamed fish – I am still a bit of a picky eater!
That cucumber dish really intrigued me though – is it cold or hot??
Oh my gosh, you’re making me drool all over the keyboard! So delicious, and oh my goodness, homemade egg tarts! That is so hardcore! I’ve always wanted to try to make it, but hum, I think it is okay if they turned green. They are still edible right? Because I want some, now. Send one over please.
And oh my goodness, ahhhh cinnamon raisin bread!! Hands down, my favorite bread in the whole entire world. I think it’s because my mom always gets it, and I chow down the loaf soooo fast. hahaha, I’m greeedy. Anyways, love your eats!
Cinnamon raisin bread – drooooool! Let us know how you like the bread!! I love how when you go to authentic restaurants the food is AMAZING and cheap!
My only advice: take it slow no matter how you feel! Also, STRETCH!!!!!!!!!!!! As a future PT, I can’t emphasize that enough! Stretching = key!
You dinner there looks amazing. I love asian cuisine 🙂
yummy everything looks really good. especially the red bean buns! haha we’re such red bean lovers.
Your eats look so good!
I’m glad you liked the Q & A, too!
As for running, just start slow and small! Running gives me the best feeling in the world (yeah, endorphins), but I’m not super fast or anything. 🙂
Everything looks delicious, but I love the mini egg tartlets! 😀
I love egg tarts, I heart sriracha, and that tilapia looks and sounds amazing!! Yum! What an awesome day of eating!!
I started running for the first time ever about two years ago. I did walking and running intervals as mentioned above, and gradually increased the ratio of running to walking. When I started, I couldn’t run for a minute without sounding like I needed oxygen. It gets easier and more fun as time goes by. I recently did my fastest mile ever, and was very amazed that I could run a mile in under 10 minutes.
I’m sorry your instructor is leaving. I’d be sad if I lost mine. )-:
dinner in china town looks so good.
mmm cinnamon raisin bread 🙂
This post is chalk full of tasty looking food!! WOW! 🙂
The braised beef got our attention. Everything looks good. We love Chinese food!
My mouth is pretty much a waterfall right now. I love Chinese food!!!
I thought that homemade Chinese brunch was intense…until I saw the multi-course Chinese dinner!
In regards to running, I bought a handbook that had me start switch between running and walking, slowly building up to just running. I think there’s one on the Internet called “Couch to 5K”, though you might be too fit for that already!
…And I’m glad I could motivate your boyfriend to get “Running for Dummies”. It’s funny though because I don’t run nearly as much as all the other running bloggers!
ahhhh what an amazing combo of foods and flavors!!! i need to come eat with you 🙂
for running … i suggest starting out with running for fun. gather new music, wait for a nice day, and keep it short and sweet. leave yourself wanting more!
Oh YUM!!! This looks like an amazing line up of food. I also LOVE Hong Kong for its delicious food (and such a large variety). Impressed as well with your homemade egg tarts (one of my fave things). Cheers!
Fan-freaking-tastic foods! Of course, I haven’t tried even a third of what’s pictuered, but I’m game. Looks like a wonderful, wonderful weekend of eats. I have no work out advice, however. I say elliptical! Haha I’m not a runner, nor am I a class person, sorry 😦
Wow, what a feast! I hardly know where to begin, but everything looks and sounds delicious. Reading blogs like yours reminds me that I’ll never run out of interesting foods to try!
I don’t have any work-out advice, either. I do 5-mile power walks when I’m not feeling lazy (and it’s not too cold out), and play wiffle ball. The latter requires no special training whatsoever. 😉
Can’t believe you made those custards at home! Despite the different color I would still dig in!
#3 and #7 have my name written ALL over it!! 😀
I’ve never been to Chicago’s Chinatown but I’ll know where dine if and when I go.
As for running, I started slow – a mile a day on the treadmill 3x/wk, gradually pushing to about 3 miles after years. What really motivated me was doing a 5K in the Corporate Challenge. Outdoors running with a friend is the best. You get fresh air, it’s less boring, and you get good company.
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