Hello everyone! It is time to get back to my newsletter with more new and exciting ideas, information, tips and recipes. We may be getting over the Christmas and New Year holidays, but my holiday celebration has only just begun. The holiday I am referring to is Chinese New Year. According to the lunar calendar, year 4706 (February 7, 2008, on the western calendar) marks the beginning of the year of the Rat. To learn more about the year of the Rat, check this website out: http://www.springsgreetingcards.com/catalogs/store.asp?pid=232024

Symbolism is very significant in celebrating the fifteen days of New Year. As food plays an important role in Chinese culture, it is not surprising that many foods have symbolic meaning. The symbolic significance of food may be based on its appearance or on how the Chinese word for it sounds. For example, tangerines are passed out freely during New Year. The word tangerine in Chinese means “gold”. Passing out tangerines to friends and family is to wish them lots of prosperity. Chicken is usually served whole (head and all) as it emphasizes family unity. It is also very common to serve fish whole. The Chinese word for fish is “yu” which sounds like the word for riches and abundance. It is believed that eating fish will help your wishes come true in the year to come. There are many more symbolic significance practiced during Chinese New Year. To find out more regarding the importance of symbolism during Chinese New Year, check these websites out: http://www.123chinesenewyear.com/symbols/ ;  http://www.c-c-c.org/chineseculture/festival/newyear/newyear.html ; http://chinesefood.about.com/od/foodfestivals/tp/foodsymbolism.htm

On the eve of New Year, relatives from near and far will gather to have a reunion dinner. The meals prepared are quite elaborate. I remember my early years growing up in Malaysia, watching and helping my mother prepare these elaborate dishes that usually consist of fish, chicken, seafood, herbal soup, vegetables and many others. Weeks prior to the New Year, the house goes through a thorough cleaning. New curtains were hung. The house was given a new coat of paint if required. The gardens and surrounding areas were swept clean and maintained. All broken items must be thrown and replaced with new ones.

My sister and I look forward to the New Year as we get to wear new clothing. I also remember receiving a pair of new pajamas every year from one of my aunts from Singapore to wear. For the next fifteen days of New Year, we go visit our relatives to pay our respects. Some days we stay home to receive visitors to our home and have people over for dinners. As I come from a big family, each of our families will take turns to cook dinners at their homes and have everyone over for a feast. On the eight day of New Year, which is everybody’s birthday, we will gather at a restaurant to eat a raw fish salad (yu sang), which again symbolizes abundance, prosperity and vigor. Those were truly very happy memories of Chinese New Year.

If you wish to participate in a Chinese New Year celebration, the Fayetteville Vietnamese Association will be celebrating “Tet” their Chinese New Year on February 2, 2008, at St. Patrick’s Church Social Hall. For more information, please call 867-2227.

Seasons Greetings with Three Kinds of Mushrooms

6 ounces Shitake mushrooms

6 ounces button mushrooms

6 ounces straw mushrooms or enoki mushrooms

Ingredients A

1 cup cauliflower

1 cup broccoli

*1 cup brocoflowers

1 small carrot

**1 cup canned baby corn

½ of a red bell pepper

Seasoning A

1 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tbsp light soy sauce

1/2 tsp sugar

1 tsp salt

A dash sesame oil

Pinch of white pepper powder

1 teaspoon cornstarch

2 tablespoon water

3 tablespoon oil

Seasoning B

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoon oil

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1 teaspoon chicken stock granules

Method

Wash and cut ingredients A. Heat oil in a wok or Dutch oven, and fry the mix vegetables and mushrooms. Add seasoning B. Arrange on a plate. Cook seasoning A and pour over the vegetables.

*Broccoflower is a hybrid of cauliflower and broccoli. If you cannot find broccoflower substitute by adding more cauliflower or broccoli or both.

** Can be found at the International section in most grocery stores. Serves 4

Valentines Day—a day for lovers, the romantic at heart, the young and the old. My interpretation of romance is a meal shared by two people in a romantic setting with the meal eaten in several courses, taking time in between to appreciate the meal and enjoy each others company. Creating meals using ingredients that are aphrodisiac-related such as asparagus, oysters, bananas, almonds, avocados, garlic, strawberries, or chocolate are said to enhance the romantic side in a person. How do these aphrodisiac foods affect your love life?  Well during the ancient times, aphrodisiac foods were consumed more for the purpose of increasing fertility than libido as lack of nutrition was the source of loss of libido hence lower fertility rate. To find out more regarding aphrodisiac foods and how it works, please check these website out: http://health.howstuffworks.com/aphrodisiac3.htm ; http://gourmetsleuth.com/aphrodis_foods.htm. To bring some spark to your love life, why not give the recipe below a try.

Charleston Oysters

Here is a recipe by Chef Cindy Wolf of Charleston, Baltimore, MD

12 oysters on the half-shell

Topping
4 Tablespoons Andouille Sausage, very small dice
1 Tablespoon shallot, minced
1 Tablespoon butter
1 Tablespoon celery, very small dice
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 Tablespoon fresh chives, finely chopped

Sauté the first 4 topping ingredients until celery is just soft. Remove from heat. Add the lemon juice and chives, mixing well. Divide topping mixture evenly among the oysters. Broil until hot. Serves 2

Favorite Gadget of the Month—Immersion hand blender. There are many varieties of immersion hand blenders out in the market, ranging from $29 to $120. Some of them come with attachments such as a chopper, whisk or a 2-cup container to whip up creams, egg whites, milk shakes and smoothies. I am always reaching for this blender instead of my bulky food processor when I need to chop a small to medium amount of onions or blending herbs and spices. I love the versatility of the hand blender as it enables me to puree soups in the pot without having to ladle hot soup into a blender or a food processor and pouring the hot liquid back into the soup pot. Another great feature of the immersion blender is that it only weighs around 3 pounds. When purchasing these hand blenders, keep in mind that all of them perform the same tasks no matter what the price range is. I personally own an old Braun model which surpassed the price I paid for it ($20 a few years ago). Before purchasing an immersion blender, do take time to do some research. More likely than not, you will find that they all have about the same wattage, the same capabilities, and the same weight. The only difference is that they are sold in different brands, colors, and variety of attachments. 

Good Food Viewing—Food has become so trendy that there is even a channel dedicated just for that purpose. I am sure most of you are familiar with the Food Network Channel. Food Network is one of the most popular food stations on television with star chefs such as Bobby Flay, Emeril Lagasse,  Paula Dean to name a few. Food Network has brought food to the forefront by elevating our perspective regarding our daily meals as part of a social and healthier lifestyle. There are a variety of cooking shows to satisfy the novice up to the aficionados.

Besides Food Network I also like to watch the Travel Channel. Two of my favorite shows on this channel are No Reservation with Anthony Bourdain and Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmerman. Both shows air every Monday starting at 9 p.m. These shows feature local food fare that is indigenous to that country along with the people and their culture. The difference between the two shows is that Andrew Zimmerman seeks out foods that are bizarre and sometimes unappetizing to us but are the local delicacy of that particular country. I guess it is true about the saying “One man’s meat is another man’s poison.

Another food show that has caught my interest is Gordon Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares which airs on the BBC America Channel on Thursday at 8 p.m. Unlike Hell’s Kitchen on Fox, which I am not a fan of, Kitchen Nightmares feature restaurants that are in trouble and are on the verge of closing. Gordon Ramsey comes in to lend his expertise with advice and hands changes to the chefs and owners. This three Michelin star chef is truly a brilliant chef and businessman. Of course there are numerous other food shows on television these days. Just check out your TV guide and surf the channels. Who knows, the shows may just inspire you to cook, travel, or lap in the luxury of a lifestyle that you have never before experienced.

Ingredient of the Month---Chicken. When you buy chicken do you know the difference between a broiler chicken to a stewing chicken? First off, broiler or fryer chickens are young-type chicken meat, often weighing between 2 ½ to 3 ½ pounds. These chickens are butchered when they are young, sometimes as early as 8 to 10 weeks of age. The meat on these young chickens is tender and good for broiling or frying. A roaster is a young meat-type chicken that can be cooked tender by roasting and usually weighs around 4 pounds or more. This is a perfect size for a great Sunday roast or making rotisserie chicken. A stewing chicken, hen, or fowl is a mature female chicken, often the by-product of egg production, with meat less tender than that of a roaster. They are great cooked for a longer period by using the stewing or braising technique to achieve tenderness. Hence when buying a chicken, figure out how you want to cook your chicken (roasting, broiling, stewing) and then go ahead and select the right type of chicken for the right cooking technique to get a perfectly moist chicken.

Kitchen Tips. Do you have a problem with dried out cookies or rolls when freezing? If so, why not try placing a moistened paper towel into a sandwich bag but do not close the top. Next tuck the moistened bagged paper towel in with the baked goods that are wrapped for the freezer. This will keep the cookies soft and bread wonderfully fresh.

Well I hope you enjoyed my first issue of my newsletter for the year. As the month progresses, there will be more informative and exciting ideas in upcoming issues. Until the next newsletter, eat well, stay healthy, and enjoy life to the fullest.

The belly rules the mind.  ~Spanish Proverb