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Gỏi Cuốn at the Taste of Saigon Restaurant in Yellowknife

Gỏi Cuốn in Yellowknife

Gỏi Cuốn at the Taste of Saigon Restaurant in Yellowknife

The appetizer you see pictured above is a Vietnamese Spring Roll known as Gỏi Cuốn. They will be available on the menu of just about any Vietnamese Restaurant you can find, but you also encounter them in other Asian and non-Asian Restaurants. Personally, when it comes to Spring Rolls in general, I tend to prefer the hot, deep-fried variety, and I am not always keen on the cold types. The variety served to me at the Taste of Saigon Restaurant in Yellowknife, however, was pretty good, even if the dipping sauce was a little unusual.

Yu Xiang Eggplant – 魚香茄子

In: Main Plates

Yu Xiang Eggplant – 魚香茄子 (with Zucchini)

I have previously introduced the interesting Sichuan ‘Yu Xiang’, or ‘Fish-fragrant’ style of dish in my recipe for Fish-fragrant Pork Belly with Pineapple. As I mentioned in that post, Fish-fragrant dishes have neither the aroma, nor the flavor of fish, but derive their unique flavor profile from a specific combination of aromatic ingredients. A very popular dish in Sichuan is 魚香茄子, or ‘Fish-fragrant Eggplant’, and I have extended that basic theme in the dish you see above with the inclusion of batons of Zucchini as well.

BBQ Pork at the Floata Seafood Restaurant in Vancouver

BBQ Pork at Floata

In: Dim Sum Gallery

BBQ Pork at the Floata Seafood Restaurant in Vancouver

I had been very much looking forward to visiting the Floata Seafood Restaurant after reading about in on-line and I made a special point of including it on list of places to dine on a visit to Vancouver’s Chinatown. Unfortunately, my experience was less than stellar, both in terms of food quality and service, with the Barbecue Pork appetizer shown above being one of the reasons for my disappointment.

Herbed Barbecued Ribs

In: Main Plates

Herbed Barbecued Ribs

You could probably call this barbecue treat ‘Scarborough Fair Ribs’ since the herb marinade uses Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme. If that reference escapes you, then I going to guess that you are under 50 years old.

Anyway, a lot of barbecued Ribs are cooked using the indirect heat method. This means the ribs are cooked very slowly away from the flame until they are ‘fall-off-the-bone’ tender. Woodchips are usually introduced to get some smoke flavor into the meat during the early stages. If you are interested, this technique is used and illustrated in recipe for Barbecued Pineapple Ginger Ribs posted previously.

The herb marinated Ribs in this recipe, and which you see pictured above, served with rice, are cooked over direct heat for a quicker, and chewier result, and they are finished with a tangy Mustard glaze with a little bit of Liquid Smoke.

Grilled Haloumi at the Efendy Restaurant in Halifax

Grilled Haloumi at Efendy

In: Notable Restaurant Dishes

Grilled Haloumi at the Efendy Restaurant in Halifax

The very pleasant Efendy Restaurant in downtown Halifax serves some exquisite dishes, one of which, being their Grilled Haloumi Cheese Appetizer, is pictured above. Now I love this dish, but the majority of restaurant versions I have had have tended to be quite complex, such as was the case with the Grilled Haloumi at Play, Food & Wine in Ottawa. At Efendy, their preparation and presentation was extremely simple and was, I think, the best I have ever had.

Instant Dashi Powder

In: Ingredients

Instant Dashi Powder

I have previously posted the recipe and instructions for preparing the traditional Japanese Sea stock known as Dashi . There, I explain how to make the broth from scratch using the base ingredients of Kombu and Katsuobushi.

Nowadays, many people, even in Japan, no longer go to the trouble of preparing this essential stock from scratch, but instead prefer to rely on Instant Dashi Powder as a matter of convenience. The result isn’t always exactly like a freshly made Dashi using proper ingredients, but it is certainly quicker and it is worthwhile having some on hand if you wish to prepare a quick Japanese meal.

Beef with Cumin and Scallion

In: Main Plates

Beef with Cumin and Scallion

This fairly simple dish is a type that might well get called ‘Mongolian Beef’ on many Chinese, or other Asian restaurant menus. Mongolia is far better known for Lamb than Beef, but the combination of flavors are often given the name ‘Mongolian’ in non-Mongolian establishments and cookery books. Here, Beef is pre-fried, then flash-fried with Scallion, Cumin, Garlic, Red Chili, and other aromatics.

Pork Belly Appetizer at the Press Gang Restaurant in Halifax

Pork Belly at the Press Gang

In: Notable Restaurant Dishes

Pork Belly Appetizer at the Press Gang Restaurant in Halifax

When I walked by the Press Gang Restaurant in Halifax late one afternoon, I was drawn by a sign outside offering an interesting daily selection of Oysters. I ended up returning for supper and, in addition to sampling two different sorts of Oysters from Nova Scotia, and an ‘imported’ kind from PEI, I enjoyed a number of other excellent dishes as well. I particularly enjoyed the Pork Belly Appetizer you see pictured above.

Beef Satay Skewers at the Taste of Saigon Restaurant in Yellowknife

Beef Satay Skewers in Yellowknife

In: Notable Restaurant Dishes

Beef Satay Skewers at the Taste of Saigon Restaurant in Yellowknife

I was travelling through Yellowknife for years before I cam across the Taste of Saigon Restaurant. It is a pity I didn’t discover it earlier as it is a very pleasant restaurant with some excellent food. The Beef Satay Skewers you see pictured above weren’t the best dish I ate there, but they were excellent nevertheless.

Moroccan Camel Meat

In: Ingredients

Moroccan Camel Meat

I have never ever seen Camel appearing on a restaurant menu anywhere. I even lived in Libya which is (somewhat) close to Morocco way (WAY) back in the day, and I didn’t get to experience it there either. I was accordingly quite excited to see it turning up in a local supermarket packaged by a Canadian Company, Blue Mountain Fine Foods. Now, it seems that the Company may have closed down now, as weblinks are broken, but, in any event, I found the product interesting but a bit disappointing.