A Big Food Weekend

This is a weekend for good food between the Lunar New Year and the Superbowl. It's a buffet of delicious food and celebrations. Celebrate one or the other or both,

Even if you'e not Asian you can still appreciate the holiday and it's food. Most Asian countries celebrate this Spring festival, whether it's Tet in Vietnam or Seollal in Korea. Fried Spring rolls are popular with any group and you cna easily order them or buy them. There's something about their crunchy , flaky wrapper filled with a tasty mix fo cabbage and carrots. If you;re craving Korean then think bukgoki or galbi .The first is thinly sliced steak marinated in a twelve (!) spice sauce that includes soy sauce , gochujang, brownssugar and fresh ginger to name a few. Galbi are beef short ribs marinated in a Korean plum sauce. You could alo celebrate wth tteokguk a rice cake soup, The rice cakes symbolize coins  and prosperity for the new year as they cook in a warm beef broth. Another way to celibrate The Year Of The Dragon is by having either steamed or fried dumplings. You can order out (along with getting some kind of sticky rice dice ) or buy them at your local grocery store.

Of coutse egg rolls would go well on either day. Many SuperBowl partieswilkl fearuew some variation of this Chinese classic. You can have them stuffed with shrimp or the American version of Philly cheese steak. There are even hamburger and cheeseburger filled ones for a different game day nosh. Of course sliders are also good while watching the big game. These can have  the classic mini patty made of beef or you can try grilled chicken. Vegan or vegetarian guests can have homemade Beyond Beef ones. Again you cna make these from scratch or just buy White Castle sliders. Another must hav eis a crockpot full of chili. This is great to make. It's a self serve dish that everyone can enjoy. Put out a tray of cornbread and corn chips to put into the bowls. Chicken wings are another classic Super Bowl Dish. Again you can order a variety from Wing Zone or make your own. . A mix of fiery hot and mild is always a good choice. Guests can pick out their favorites  and what works for them. 

If there was ever a weekend for food and partying this is the weekend. Celebrate the Lunar New Year and theh Superbowl with a variety of good food. Enjoy everything from Spring rolls to  chicken wings!

A Cozy New Year Dinner

 The Lunar New Year starts this Sunday. You can celebrate the Year Of The Rabbit in a fancy restaurant but a smaller homemade meal is perfect too. There are many easy dishes  that both Asian and non Asian home chefs can try. It's just a fun day to experiment,

You could try Genvieve's Ko's wontons if you're adventurous. Ms. KO gave the recipe for them and wonton soup in wednesday's New York Times Food section. She gave them the traditional Hong Kong filling of shrimp and pork. They can also be filled with crab or chicken too. Keep in mind that making the wontons are easy (it's a basic pasta recipe) but then cutting them and filling them is another story. They have to be filled and sealed assembly line style and that involves another set of hands.Chow mein is an easier cook and you can have fun adding the ingredients you want.It's usually made with rice but you can add crispy noodles for crunch.It's just frying them up in canola oil until they're golden and crispy. These are set aside after cooking. It's then adding mushrooms and bok choy  and cooking until the bok choy is wilted. Add a sauce comprised of oyster and soy sauces, spiked with ginger and sriracha sauce (you can omit the sriracha if it's too fiery). Everything is then mixed together and  served. 

A truly delcious meal and one that's a snap to create is the Szechuan ants climbing a tree or ma yi shang shu. This is cooked glass noodles (which resemble vermicelli) ar e first boiled and then cooked with any kind of meat. I usually use Gardeins crumbles mixed with chopped or sliced scallions and soy sauce for flavoring. These are cooked first until the crumbles are crispy . The noodles are then added .The original recipe calls for ground pork but you could add ground beef or chicken.It's first cooking minced ginger and oil and then adding a fermented bean paste for heat. The chicken or pork is  added and fried until done. There's also a  sauce of chicken stock, mixed with light and dark soy sauce. The scallions and noodles are added to this and it's mixed with the meat. I find this to be too saucy and a bit too fiery. The soy sauce works for me and it doesn't overpower the crumbles and scallions flavors. What to serve for dessert? The Chinese usually have a plate of oranges since the Chinese word for orange is the same for gold. You also could try an easy almond gelatin which is just gelatin cooked with almond flavoring and sugar.

Celebrate the Year of The Rabbit with a simple home cooked meal. It's a nice way to bring in the New Year with good food. These are meals easy to make  but complex with flavors.