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Pleased To Meet You. Perhaps You Know My Name.
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Published: March 12, 2008
Boy, is this ever awkward. I just wrote a Dear John letter to Tampa's Creative Loafing, and I'm here at your doorstep already. Breakups are never easy, so I simply told the truth: I'm leaving for someone who's more sophisticated, older and has a larger masthead.
So what do I say to begin our relationship? Nice to meet you? Hope you like me? I don't do ironing, but I sure fry up a mean Pad Thai?
You're stuck with me for a while, as I'm not the kind of gal who goes begging back to an old boyfriend. I'd rather be flogged with a snappy octopus tentacle than have to endure the shame of saying, "I'm sorry. Take me back. Masthead size doesn't really matter."
Well, here we go. My name is Jaden. I'm the author of the dee-luscious SteamyKitchen
.com food blog and an absolute raving lunatic, aka mother of two boys above the age of diapers but under the age of reasonable negotiation. I teach hands-on Asian cooking classes at Rolling Pin Kitchen Emporium in Brandon, Chef's Table/MT's in Sarasota and the Epicurean School of Culinary Arts in Los Angeles.
You might have seen me in the Trib last summer, in a two-page spread in the food section. Or perhaps you heard me on Jeff Houck's podcast, where for some reason, my voice was warped insanely low. While Jeff sounded like the manly lumberjack in the Brawny paper towel commercial, I ended up rasping like one of Marge Simpson's chain-smoking sisters. That's hot.
So, you can definitely say that I'm not your traditional food writer or chef, and terms like "foodie" and "gourmand of refined taste" make me want to turn around and fake barf on your shoes. Like, gag me with a chopstick; do you really mean that you like eating food that tastes good?
Every week in my column, I'll share with you a modern Asian recipe that's fast, fresh and simple enough for tonight's supper. Of course, you also get a drool-worthy photo of the dish because what good is writing a recipe if I can't make you want to immediately drop that soggy cheeseburger and lick the ink off the newspaper or the pixels off the screen?
Oh, yes, masthead size does matter.
Eggs aren't just for breakfast!
Asians use eggs in all sorts of savory dishes served for lunch or supper, and this is a perfect side dish that you can make in 10 minutes. If you're not a big hot chili fan, substitute with thinly sliced red bell pepper, cilantro, bean sprouts or chives.
Oyster sauce, though made from dried oysters, does not taste like oysters. I swear. It's sweet, salty, rich and thick. Ever try Chinese Broccoli Beef? The main sauce in that dish is oyster sauce. Try to find the Lee Kum Kee brand and make sure you refrigerate after opening.
For the oyster-shy, there is also a vegetarian version made of dried Chinese mushrooms but tastes similar to the real thing. Since the sauce is pretty thick and salty, I like diluting it with just a bit of water. Try it over steamed broccoli, too!
FRIED EGG WITH OYSTER SAUCE & CHILI
4 large eggs
3 tablespoons cooking oil
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 tablespoon water
Ground pepper
1 to 2 chilies, finely sliced
1/2 cup finely chopped scallions
Carefully crack eggs into a bowl. Heat oil in wok on high heat until surface seems to shimmer slightly. Pour eggs into hot oil. After 1 minute, reduce heat to medium, allowing the underside of the egg to become firm and crisp. The yolks should still be runny at this point. Cook 1 more minute. Tilt pan and spoon the excess hot oil over the tops of the eggs several times. Gently slide eggs off plate, trying to keep excess oil in wok. Mix oyster sauce and water, then drizzle eggs with mixture. Season with ground pepper. Garnish with chilies and scallions. Serve immediately.
Serves 4 as a side dish.
Source: adapted from "Simple Chinese Cooking," by Kylie Kwong
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