Dinner in Carlingford Too

Susan and Boo Ann Yap do cook up a tasty storm and I just want to share some dishes they came up with one Sunday evening in August this year.

Fish curry, with reminiscences of the Malacca Straits.  Braced with okra, sourish tinged and with a kick of spices, chili and the pace of the sea.

Glass noodles with broccoli and bean curd squares in a salad mix tone.

Light and easy on the palate.

Crispy topped roast pork, Cantonese inspired.

Pickled radish soup brewed with pork hock, Fujian style.

Appetising potato side dish, Korean inspired.

Pork slices braised with bean paste, ginger, shallots and chili - Fujian based.

Mooncake Festival

Thoughts in the Silent Night 静夜思 by Li Bai (李白)

The moonlight is shining through the window (床 前 明 月 光)
And it makes me wonder if it is the frost on the ground (疑 是 地 上 霜)
Looking up to see the moon ... (举 头 望 明 月)
Looking down I miss so much about my hometown (低 头 思 故 乡).

Moon cakes, or yue bin in Mandarin, or the bánh trung thu in Vietnam, are round shaped, a strong symbol of family reunion in East Asian heritage. This pastry has a wheat flour or glutinous rice flour outer skin but what counts as important is the nature, taste and texture of the ingredients inside. They are very rich food high in cholesterol and hence eaten sparingly only once a year. The best mooncakes are home made, like made by my sister-in-law Sian Kin, back on Penang Island, but there has been excessive commercialisation of mooncakes in today's society, urged on by the business practice of gifting mooncakes to key clients and also by the ages old practice of providing mooncakes to those you respect and care for in your private live.

My top preference is not for the usual combinations of jujube or lotus pastes and sesame seeds for the ingredients, but those composed of a  mixture of appetising nuts and seeds, with a small portion of salted duck egg yolk. (Photo above)  The favoured five kernels that go into such a moon cake filling are almonds, watermelon seeds, pumpkin seeds, walnuts and peanuts. They are accompanied by small bits of Jinhua dried cured ham, rock sugar and dried winter melon.  Jinhua hails from a city in the Zhejiang province of eastern China not far from Shanghai.

Mooncakes require elaborate skills and a variety of ingredients to make.  They also require golden syrup, cooking wine, lye water, reliable moulds and a good oven - presentation and taste are everything.  Outside Australia, the fillings of moon cakes are getting upmarket and cosmopolitan, including those that need to be refrigerated and have to be eaten immediately. Do not be surprised to  find flavours of yogurt, taro, chocolate, coffee, pandan, green tea, chicken floss, mango pomelo sago, durian and pineapple also being used, especially in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.

The packaging design for mooncakes has leapt by bounds in this age of template manufacturing.  The mooncakes are not only gift wrapped in beautiful cardboard combinations but increasingly in wooden containers. Mooncakes sold in Australian cities usually come in four pieces and a box can cost anything from AUD 20 to 60.

They are easily seen for sale in Asian groceries, restaurants and cafes.  The latter tend to offer bite sized versions of the moon cakes.  There are imprints on the top of each mooncake, with symbolic writings indicating longevity and harmony or graphics of Chang E, the Goddess of the Moon in Chinese annals, or of the Rabbit that holds immortality implications and supposedly resides on the Moon in past Chinese legends.

The custom of officially recognising the beauty and significance of Earth's only Moon began in China during the Tang Dynasty (618 to 907 AD) and eating mooncakes was utilised as a significant communication tool to help over throw the Mongol Dynasty of Yuan (1271 to 1368).  Written messages of rising up in rebellions at a specified time across China were hidden inside mooncakes, which were widely distributed amongst the Han Chinese populace and therefore did not arouse the suspicions of the Mongol rulers, who accepted the eating of mooncakes at this time as a traditional practice.  What a brilliant idea, even emails and Twitter messages today are so easily detected.

The Mid-Autumn Festival in East Asia falls on the fifteenth night of the eighth moon in the Chinese Lunar Calendar (in 2012, it falls on the evening after the NRL Grand Finals in Australia September 30 and October 1).  The moon has always exerted a fascination in the hearts, minds and philosophy of the ruling courts in China as far back as the Shang Dynasty 3000 years ago, even before the country was united by the Qings.  Whether it is an excuse for adults to partake in tea or wine and poem recital, or for children to carry lit lanterns under the shining full moon, or just a timely celebration six months after the start of the Lunar New Year, it is amazing that the occasion is still marked by the drinking of good tea, groundnuts, dried pumpkin seeds, fresh pomelo fruits slices, taro bites and consumption of various types of so-called mooncakes.

So on that magical evening, make a traditional wish:
"Wish us a long life to share the beauty of this graceful moonlight, even if we are thousands of miles apart."
但愿人长久，千里共婵娟:

Home Cooking - Balgownie, NSW

 

 

Brewing, slow cooking or just getting the flavours from different ingredients to mix and match. The unmistakable aroma of soups is pleasant to wake up to in the early mornings, when the work is already done overnight. Above, groundnuts, dried red dates and wolf berry are used to enhance a soup. 

 

 

 

I fancy the combination of cut asparagus, fresh prawns, chicken strips and vermicelli - stir fry them in a wok and you get an easy snack which can be eaten anytime, anywhere, at home or for outdoor picnics.  Recently I have fallen in obsession with Kipfler potatoes, first encountered on a  trip to Orange, NSW.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's rewarding to emphasise on healthy and carefully chosen produce, cuts and variety. Above, the scene before the cooking at home - from upper left, clockwise, ocean prawns on the shell; chicken drum sticks; USA cherries; chicken strips; and lamb cubes.  Below, pluck able garnishing from growing pots.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Curries come in so many combinations, flavours and styles. I love a mid-strong curry, with not too much overwhelming coconut cream and with fluffy textured braised potato cuts. Colour is important and so is the texture of the gravy.  It is also important to carefully choose the right type of steamed rice.

 

 

 

 

 

Mado Cafe - Auburn, NSW

Turkish coffee is intense and aromatic, a manifestation of how the coffee beans were transformed  in the so called Old World. Those who are first initiated into this ritual expect something unknown.  There is not much interference by sugar nor dilution by milk.  One goes embracing the purity and integrity of what coffee drinking is actually like, and how it all began. The Ottoman Empire transversed both East and West, embraced cosmopolitan practices, was enriched by many demographics but had food traditions that are still unique.

To enter such a world, and sample a variety of the special cooking that was centred in the Middle East, my cousin Lin and her hubby Joe organised for a group of us to try the Mado Cafe. The cafe has a visible location along Auburn Road and was recommended by her close friend from Iran. So each of us had expectations, but also missing gaps in what we were going to experience.  We wanted more authenticity, less modification and true atmosphere. I have tried Lebanese cuisine but not totally Turkish. My stereotyping perspective of grains, beans, nuts and spices set my tone and mindset.  It was a bright Saturday in early spring (picture above) but I was also concerned how the pastes and ingredients in unique Anatolian cooking could agree with my stomach.

True to my expectations, Momma breads, pide and dips , along with flavourful steamed pilav rice, first welcomed us at our table.  Indian rotis and Turkish breads, they seem logically connected, via geography, trading routes and historical connections.  I find the dips lively and standing up in taste, with the colours reflecting the freshness of the ingredients. Baba ghanush has eggplants, cacik has dried cucumber and the rather well known humous provdes chickpea and tahini as its main inspiration.  Tahini paste is made from ground and hulled sesame seeds.

I am one who checks the dessert offerings at a restaurant before the mains, often furtively.  It may be a bad habit, or a strategic one, to help me choose just the right serving of the  main dish and allow room for the stuff to sweeten up the meal.  I saw the pomegranate seed laden with other stewed fruit concoction above on my way to the booked table. However, I was also captivated by the efforts of Mado to place representatives of their cultural heritage in various corners, like in the image below.  Fereidoun Hassan Zadeh directs the running of this rather spacious restaurant, with the help of attentive and eager staff.  For our lunchtime visit, we sat at the front, but there were several dimly lit corners of seating far back, with my imagination running wild and suggesting sessions of enjoying the Turkish water pipe, and more.

Yes, I did mention desserts earlier and there is a very good reason.  If you do not take anything else, you must try the Mado cafe for its signature ice cream - the dondurma.  At this stage, I realise that there is  well known Mado Cafe in Istanbul itself.  (186 Istiklal Caddesi, Istanbul Beyoğlu, Turkey).  Pistacchio and mastik flavours are worth a sampling. I enjoyed a special experience in Mado in Auburn with the Maras inspired ice cream slice serving seen above - I had to use a knife and fork to cut through the hard texture, beautifully welcoming with yogurt and sahlep orchird tuber aromas.  I am told that the dondurma is sold by the metre back in Turkey!  The Mado chain back in its homeland is very popular, and there are many overseas outlets, including those in Malaysia, South Korea, Cyprus and Hong Kong.  Picture below provides a display of burnt rice pudding or the Kazandibi.

I could  not help pointing out the shoes hanging on the wall to my fellow lunchers Al and Lucy. (photo above) I enjoyed the simple but light salad mix of tasty tomato cuts and cucumber slices  mixed with Mado's special sauce. (picture below)  Two main dishes caught my eye - the Ali Nazik, lamb mince bathing in a a gravy of eggplant strips and yogurt, all garnished by parsley; and the Maras kebab, with sauteed Turkish bread cubes, more minced lamb with vegetables and yogurt. The province of Maras is located inland in south-eastern Turkey.  Oh yes, my stomach was most agreeable with what we had at the Mado.

LeVendi's - Wollongong Harbour, NSW

It is only a pavilion with an outdoor seating area. The queues are there, especially in the warmer months, whether by choice or just coming out from the woodwork at Belmore Basin at Wollongong Harbour. On first impressions, this could be the scene at any major surf beach in Australia, the need to have chips and seafood on paper. The customers at LeVendi's can be beach goers, tourists, families and locals. The harbour is not big but just right. You can see the lighthouses.  You can see Port Kembla with its steel works in the distance to the right.  Oh yes, and then there are the hills, or rather escarpment, looking down on the coastal plains where Wollongong has anchored in. And not to forget, those ever present container ships that park themselves on the ocean's horizon , apparently forever, but actually queuing to enter the Harbour at nearby Port Kembla. The sandy beaches of North Gong, Towradgi and Corrimal beckon as your eyes look towards Sydney side, but Sydney is far away, at least 90 minutes by car away to the north.  The Tasman Sea is blue, but so is the sky.

The seafood deep fried in batter is the main draw here, but served and eaten fresh, it becomes the experience. Squid, fish fillets, prawn, calamari, crab meat, you name it.   Beer batter. Barramundi pack. The wedges or chips. It is the quality of the takeaway, bristling warm as you hold your delivery in your hands.  Burgers if you prefer chicken.  If you have no time for anything else, just try the calamari, and you can have it with your own beer. Sauces are generously provided in little plastic containers.  Value food when you relate it to the prices asked.  I have not tried the gelatos or coffee at this stage.

The wind blows into my face and the sweat glistens on that of a mate. Sunshades are recommended.  We can smell the salty air. There are few tables, all outdoor, and these are quickly snapped up. Many customers just grab and run.  LeVendi is located at the ocean side end of Cliff Road, perhaps the street that has the most expensive properties in the CBD.  The clients at this lifestyle takeaway are down to earth, relishing some moments away from regime and responsibility, savouring in what matters after all in life - being with Nature, chatting with friends and family, having a hiatus and enjoying what they will remember best of all that day.  Mums with kiddos, teenager groups, Grand Dads with the grandkids, blue collar workers, students and singles.   The crunchiness of the crust makes me salivate. Then it is the bite into the tender fillings inside.  Then I acknowledge the freshness of the ingredients.

When the queues are long, the staff focus on their work. Some say to allow for some time after ordering to expect your food. I reckon that can be unavoidable, as the food is made to your order. Staff can still smile when they know more than just several people are waiting.  The domesticated sea gulls add to the colour and ambiance, but they could be after your open food. Chugging fishermen boats come into the relative safety of Wollongong Harbour  a stone's throw away.  There are cycling, walking and running trails.  I can see Bombara, another good grilled seafood place, not far away.  The Brit "chipper" has come far in time and geographical distance from Tommyfield in the UK. It is not so cold, the air is balmy and the waves much bigger.  Wollongong is  a working class city, and no fitter a tribute can LeVendi's pay to its residents than to do the right thing with fish and chips.