use real butter

Sorry for the hiatus, but I was on travel visiting with my two favorite kids in the world. It’s always a shock for me to walk into the kitchen of non-cooks. One of my old supervisors had a kitchen that was spotless and pristine because he never cooked. He ate out for every meal! I don’t know if that is the norm or the exception, but the family I visited eats out a lot (or orders take out) and their pantry is full of processed junk and convenience foods. I usually feel pretty ill after eating fast food once a month let alone daily. It’s a different perspective on food, that is for sure.

At one point I did manage to visit a Super H Mart which was awesome! I just googled it and found that we have one in Denver. A one hour and twenty minute drive is definitely better than a 3 hour flight. Sweet. They had lovely produce too, like these pretty Indian bitter melons:

They had baskets of scuppernongs on sale at the entrance. I didn’t know what they were and neither did my mom. She popped one in her mouth, bit down, and made a face like she was about to cry. She spat it out into her hand and said it was *sour*. That very evening, Joyce emailed me about scuppernongs and how she loves them. I followed her link to the wikipedia entry and laughed aloud when I read how they are eaten – without the skin. Now I’m really curious to try one. I’ll have to tell my mom about it after she gets back home.

Sometimes I need to get my bearings straight after I travel and this trip was no exception. I felt tired, disoriented, and without appetite – until it was time to make a grocery list. Then I began looking up recipes for things I wanted to try this week and suddenly the food enthusiasm turned on again. It probably helps to be in my own kitchen, looking forward to preparing fresh and delicious things that we like.

Fall is coming and I am so ready!

Recipe: galbi (bbq korean short ribs)

I am a barbecue whore. I think it originates in part from my southern roots – growing up in southeastern Virginia you end up loving seafood, barbecue, white trash food, and good country ham among other heart-stopping delights. I also love Asian food because I grew up in a household run by Chinese immigrants (my parents and my grandma) who all three are fantabulous cooks. This summer has been my summer of bbq (and pastries, and whatever else I feel like trying to cook). When I declared the Summer of BBQ, I meant I wanted to get my bearings straight on the King of BBQ (pork – according to where I grew up) and its loyal subjects beef, and chicken. But… Sarah Gim piqued my interest in galbi (or galbee), that is, Korean bbq short ribs on one of her posts.

It sounded so good. I had to try it when my List of Recipes to Attempt and Master cleared out a bit. And so it was that earlier this week while grocery shopping in Boulder I met my first obstacle… that no one in Boulder knows what short ribs (according to the Korean style) are. Safeway’s “I don’t normally work this department” butcher led me to something that looked nothing like what I sought. In Whole Foods, I was pointed to beef back ribs which had a lot of bone and fat and not so much meat. Where the hell were all the beef rib racks? At least the butchers at Whole Foods are willing to do just about anything you ask. So I handed the fellow five pounds of the meatiest back ribs I could find in the case and asked him to please cut them across the bones. I got a funny look, but he obliged me. I should have asked him to cut each piece into 3 strips instead of 2, but I have issues with shouting to someone while they are operating a bone saw.

**Jump for more butter**

I felt like a new person (or rather, the old me) today! I got up, worked out on the rower and the bike, vacuumed, and then set to work in the kitchen. I had been feeling uninspired. We had a ton of fruits and vegetables threatening to go south if I didn’t cook or prep them right away, so that’s what I did – I attended to my produce. If you’re anything like me, you 1) love fresh food and 2) hate to waste it. Having our compost bucket in the kitchen takes some of the guilt away when I have to toss slimy green onions, molded strawberries, or shriveled lemons. But really, I just don’t want to throw my money (i.e. good produce) away.

* First I topped and washed 2 pounds of strawberries for freezing (to be puréed for buttercream frosting in winter).

* Then I simmered 6 organic chicken drums in a pot of water to begin making Brunswick Stew.

* Next I made soy sauce chicken by tossing 4 organic chicken drums in a medium saucepan with green onions, ginger root, star anise, soy sauce, sugar, and water. Simmer for 2 hours covered, then cool.

**Jump for more butter**