Petite Bunny

Did anyone seen a color cauliflower???

This sacred food of Native Americans is technically not rice at all, but an aquatic cereal grass, Zizania, producing slender hard black grains. It is now commercially produced in California and several Midwest US states, although it is native to the Great Lakes area. The cooked grain has a chewy texture, and with its nutty taste makes a robust base for salads, stuffings, pilafs.

Wild rice is prepared like rice, and benefits from a thorough cleaning in a bowl of water to remove any debrits. It takes about 30 minutes to cook, which allows the hard, dense grains to reveal their starchy white interior. It is high in protein and fiber and a good source of minerals and vitamins.

Wild rice was once an important grain in ancient China gathered from the wild. It is expensive, but combines well with white rice, brown rice, or bulgur wheat.

July 10^th , Calvin, Elaine and I went out for dinner and decided to have Ramen. Believe it or not, we went at 9pm and realized we don’t have cash which the restaurant only accept cash. So, all of us dig our wallet and give what we got and we have enough for the late dinner. Yay!!!!! It made me feel like high school again.

In Japan, ramen borders on religion. This noodle soup has inspired everything from the universally loved instant noodles to the Japanese cult film Tampopo, an entertaining story about a truck driver who helps a young widow revive her struggling ramen house.

While the instant variety, introduced to the US in 1970, has hijacked the name, authentic ramen is an epicurean delight. Ramen are based on Chinese wheat noodle – lamian is the word for stretched noodles, while lo-mein translates as boiled noodles. This rich broth falls into four basic catagories: shio (clear chicken); tonkatsu (cloudy pork); shoyu (seasoned with soy sauce); and miso (flavored with fermented soybean paste).

Not only does ramen vary from region to region in Japan, it can change from district to district within a city. For example, the legendary ramen from the Hataka ward of Fukuoka is a tonkatsu-style soup garnished with sliced pork, picked ginger, scallions, and sesame seeds.

Whether it’s from a packet, a street vendor, or a bustling noodle joint, most dining etiquette goes out the window when eating ramen. After all, noodle soup can only truly be enjoyed with a cacophonous medley of sipping and slurping.