Homecooked Goodness

So after getting home from the culinary heaven that was our vacation, we landed ourselves back in the thick and thin of things, starting with leftovers in the fridge.

Thankfully, there wasn't very much leftovers in the fridge, so we made some congee from whatever rice that was leftover (note the cute monkey spoon I got in California).

And some honey mint tea with the homegrown mint:

Look at that floating loveliness...

And I have to say that even though the cocktails at the resort were nothing sort of amazing, it still pales in comparison to the simple taste of mint.

I also cooked up some breakfast with the chives in the backyard (hubby didn't like it but I insisted on some "vegetables" in the eggs). The pancakes are from a mix, and Hubby complained it was too thick (roll eyes).

I on the other hand settled from some cereal (I really missed the crunchy goodness of colorful flakes and cinnamon-ma-bobbers!)

 

Then for lunch I settled for some congee, homecooked burdock and a colorful plate of sweet bell peppers and bulgogi (store-bought marinated beef). The thing on the top right-hand side is spicy squid, which I also whipped up myself.

 



 

For dinner, I settled on some braised tofu and mushrooms. To get it right this time, I actually googled a recipe as well as yes, how to cut the tofu so it's perfect for this dish.

 



 

So apparently, you're supposed to half it then cut it again into four long blocks, then for each block make 4 cuts to create 10 pieces each. In the meantime, soak some mushrooms in water to expand the meat of the mushroom.

 



 

Once that's done, throw everything into a pan, along with some green onions. Cook on medium-high for about 3 minutes.

Then create a semi-glutinous mixture of soy sauce, corn starch, rice vinegar, salt and sugar (and a dash of spice if you'd like) and leave it there to cook on medium-high.

 

You want to cook until most of the juice has been absorbed by the tofu. This makes the tofu both firm and juicy, exactly how Hubby likes his tofu. I dropped some goji berries in to add some color and nutrients to this meat-like dish.

 



 

In fact, he liked it so much he ate the whole thing, leaving none for me to even try. And that's okay, as long as he does the dishes.

 

Breakfast in Paradise

I want you to take a moment and close your eyes...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

....what do you see?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you are happy (and tranquil) enough to see this, then call yourself lucky...



 

Well, I definitely considered myself lucky, because that's what I found myself waking up to every morning, along with a cup of...

...really creamy cappuccino, the ultimate way to start your day in this tropical paradise. The milk here is much more creamier than the water-flavor ones we have back home and carries a flagrant aroma similar to European milk.

We began our day at Aquamarina, one of the resort's three a-la-carte restaurant that's open for breakfast. The breakfast menu is as extensive as the dinner we had yesterday, if not even more so.

Our meal started with a pastry selection. On our first day in paradise I chose the ribbon pastry sprinkled with sugar. By yesterday's dinner I had already decided not to count the calories lest my heart stop from the shock of knowing how much I ate.

Thankfully, there are detox juices to prevent your heart from actually working. I got the Exotic Greens with spinach, cactus and a bunch of other goodies while hubby got the Tulum featuring fruits of the tropics like pineapple and guava. Both tasted really good, but the Exotic Greens had just the right balance of sweet and savory.

Mayan Eggs

For breakfast, I got the Mayan Eggs just because it sounded exotic. But I was pretty disappointed to find out it was actually just scrambled eggs with Chaya (kind of like Mexican spinach), plus a side of beans and avocado. I had to ask for a bottle of ketchup to down the flavorless eggs.

Mexican Crepe

 

Hubby got the Mexican crepe, stuffed with pumpkin flower and huitlacoche with pablano chips, which tasted a lot better than mine. It was at once creamy and tangy inside, with the flowers adding a touch of sweetness to the otherwise cheesy filling.

 

After our hearty breakfast, we decided to walk it off. Somewhere down the mile walk back to our room, we met this little guy.

Apparently there are also crocodiles in the area too, since the resort is built around a real cenote. We  walked a bit faster after seeing this sign.

When we got back, we found a little Muslin rag doll at the door handle. I had to take a picture of it because it was just so darn cute - the uniform is exactly the ones that the staff wears at the resort. I almost thought it was a joke but realized later that it's actually housekeeping telling you that they are inside.

 

So. Cute.



New Bang's Kitchen

In an effort to catch-up on the last five months, I’m going to try working backwards, starting with recent food adventures and traveling back in time.

It’s not the most conventional way to do things, but you’re going to have to put up with my time travels =)

Last week when the parents came for a visit, I was craving Korean food. So I Yelped my way thru NJ and found an home-cooking joint called New Bang Kitchen. It’s a funny name because in Korean Bang means room, so it’s like New Room Kitchen. Or maybe Bang is someone’s name. It also made me wonder if there was an Old Bang's Kitchen before it.

We arrived around 1pm on a Sunday, but there were hardly any guests. The front door sported a Satisfactory sign, which made it look a little sketchy. 

Nonetheless, we walked into an old school eatery that looks like someone’s kitchen. An ajumma greeted us and showed us the menu. I tried to ask her the special using my broken Korean, and she suggested us to order at least two orders of their famous black goat soup.

For four people, we ordered the seafood pancake, one order of black goat soup, and one samgyetang (ginseng chicken with stuffed sticky rice).

The panchan that came in a loaded circular tray was plentiful, including their own kimchi marinated with green onions. It was refreshingly flavorful, with a burst of spiciness that left a sweet aftertaste. The soy beans were light and fresh, while the radish provided a good kick of spice. The grass jelly was all-right, though I’m not a fan of it. 

Next came the seafood pancake. It was huge and thick and piping hot. The ajumma cut it for us and left the rest. It was just the right amount of gooey-ness, with an abundance of seafood. The squid was cooked soft and chewy, which made it much more enjoyable. 

I dipped mine in the spicy sauce, but it was too much laden with soy sauce that made it taste like a pancake drenched in soy sauce. 

The samgyetang came with a young hen stuffed with sticky rice. The soup itself wasn’t flavorful, but that’s alright because my dad can’t eat spicy food. It comes with a dipping sauce for people who need an extra kick. This soup is good for the summer and for people recovering from colds, providing a boost of yang to the yin.

The black goat soup that Yelpers were raving about actually tastes more Middle-Eastern than Korean. There’s a medley of spices that make it strong, the biggest being something that tasted like parsley. I would have liked it better if they could lessen the spices and added more pepper to make the taste simpler. Nonetheless, hubby loved this dish and devoured it. The black goat soup comes with a dipping sauce with black seeds on it. I used the sauce for the chicken that was a bit bland.

Though we only ordered 3 dishes, it was enough for 4 people and then some. Both the black goat and chicken soup tastes great with rice. The black goat sauce tastes great with rice because its tangy and sweet, kind of like a Korean sweet + sour sauce.

Overall, it was a pretty authentic meal. The ajummas kept on checking up on us (especially after hearing we weren’t Korean) to make sure we knew what we were doing. They refilled all the panchan that were empty, so we had a second helping of their delicious kimchee. The other patrons all seem to be regulars, as they greeted the ajummas pretty warmly. For 4 people, the tab came out to be $56 plus tips.

Hubby said that although he thought the place was sketchy at first, he enjoyed the meal, which is rare because he rarely likes Korean food. Now that's a pretty good accomplishment - 수고하세요!

$$

Parties, babies-friendly

New Bang’s Kitchen

1355 16th St

Fort Lee, NJ 07024