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Yong tau foo is one of the most representative Hakka dishes. My parents never made it at home, so I only got to enjoy it when we visited their Hakka friends for dinner or ordered it at a restaurant.
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Claypot fuzzy melon with vermicelli was once a classic in traditional Cantonese restaurants back home, yet it’s a dish I rarely see on Bay Area Cantonese menus. At first, I assumed this was because ingredients like fuzzy melon or red fermented bean curd were hard to find. But over time, I noticed that this dish has also been quietly disappearing from restaurant menus back home, so that theory didn’t quite hold up.
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When I was growing up in Guangzhou, every now and then my mom and grandma would bring home Teochew (4hr drive from GZ) meat loaf from the market. These cylinder-shaped loaves would be sliced thin and pan-fried, or cut into strips and stir-fried with noodles or vermicelli. Simple, comforting, and very much a taste of home. The recipe turned out to be much easier than I expected and now I can recreate a beloved childhood delicacy anytime and share it with friends.
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It genuinely hurts me when my partner orders a $20.99 salt-and-pepper pork rib dish at a restaurant and the plate arrives with… eight tiny pieces of ribs. Eight. Altogether barely the size of two palms. That disappointment, combined with my love for anything fried, salty, and peppery (pork ribs, chicken wings, you name it), pushed me to recreate this classic Cantonese dish at home.
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In the cold winter months, I always find myself craving bossam at Korean restaurants. But in the Bay Area, this dish often starts at $40 or more, which usually nudges me toward ordering something more affordable instead. Turns out, bossam is much more straightforward to make at home than I expected.
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After taco de lengua and carnitas, I’m taking on birria—one of Charles and Rick’s favorites from Tacos El Patron in SF—in preparation for another upcoming taco fiesta. Rich, flavorful, and deeply satisfying, this dish is slow-cooked perfection wrapped in crispy, cheesy tortillas.
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Up until now, beef tongue tacos were the only taco I’d made—but with a taco party on the horizon, I knew I had to expand my repertoire. Hence, unlocking the classic, carnitas.
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Of all the tacos I’ve tried, my heart keeps going back to three classics: lengua, cabeza, and tripa. So when I spotted peeled beef tongue at Costco, I knew it was finally time to recreate my favorite taco — and truthfully, make tacos at home for the first time! Surprisingly, beef tongue tacos are quite straightforward to make and the process made me realize I lack most of the essential sauces and toppings in my well-stocked kitchen with Asian pantry lol Let’s try this juicy beef tongue nestled in a warm corn or flour tortilla, topped with zingy onions, cilantro, a hit of lime and salsa of your choice!
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Enoki mushrooms and fatty beef have always been a favorite from my parents’ home-cooked menu. It’s a simple dish, but the bold black pepper sauce enhances the delicate enoki, while the glossy, starchy coating locks in the beef’s rich flavor. Charles may think the photo doesn’t do it justice, but I’m sharing it anyway—for easy home cooking and my own future cravings!
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Word on the street is that my partner and friends actually prefer this puffy beef pancake over my layered beef pancake (link here)?! Personally, I love the soft, bready texture of a good scallion pancake, so when I stumbled upon this recipe for a fluffier beef-pancake version, I knew I had to try it. Who knows—maybe one day, I’ll even adapt it into a scallion pancake!
