heard of it? no? well let me tell you - this is one of the most interesting and delicious fruits i've ever had. i had one other experience with it, many years ago - and it went bad..... but, i decided to give it another try. the outside looks a little bit like a smooth artichoke. some pictures on the internet show a spiked type of fruit, but the only cherimoya's i've seen around look like this. slicing one open, you can see the large seeds in the fruit. there are PLENTY of these seeds..... i imagine you can dry them, and make them into some sort of musical instrument, but if you dont, feel free to toss them. the seeds are about the size of dimes. eating one is easy. just slice open, and scoop out the fruit, spitting out any seeds you come across. the flavor is like a mix of strawberry / lychee / kiwi. basically, its like nothing you've ever had before, and its delicious.
this is also way more popular than i thought! the store i found them at, at the time, had lots of them. i returned a couple of days later to get more.... and they were sold out! i guess you have to grab them when you see them! happy fruit hunting! :D
0 Comments
this is so easy, its almost ridiculous. there is a long way to do this, and a short way. i present to you the short way. the short, crazy-easy way to do this consists of only 2 ingredients. 1 (32 oz) bag of pre-made, homestyle meatballs (do not get the "italian" kind.... it will taste all weird), and 1 (24 oz) bottle of pre-made teriyaki sauce. now, under normal circumstances, i would use HOME-MADE TERIYAKI SAUCE, however, if you're short for time, or just lazy, you can use this bottled stuff. just add fresh minced garlic, some sesame seed oil, and sesame seeds.... and you're good to go. get a pot that will fit the entire bag of meatballs. put them in the pot, frozen, and dump in the entire bottle of teriyaki sauce. add in fresh garlic, sesame seed oil and sesame seeds, and simmer on medium-low for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. after meatballs are heated through, remove them with a slotted spoon, and set aside. cook down the teriyaki sauce for another hour on medium-high, until thickened, then pour this sauce over the meatballs. the sooner you serve them, the better. this stuff is great for a quick-ish dinner, pupu's, snack, or whatever. its awesome party food. EAT UP! :D
yeah, you heard me. "BROWN-DRESSING" is what i said. i'm sure at this point, you're saying something like, "uh.... that doesn't sound appetizing." and you're right. it sounds kind of gross. but i really do not have any idea what to call this. i make this dressing pretty frequently, and use it on salads, with veggie sticks, on sandwiches, all kinds of stuff. in short, its good. i also say "Japanese-ish" b/c the ingredients are Japanese. so, yeah. Japanese-ish Brown Dressing. Yum and Ugh at the same time. whatevers - just try it! i've been making this so long, i have no idea what the measurements are for it. i simply make it by look and taste. explaining this might be hard.... #1 - grab some Kewpie (QP) Japanese mayonnaise. NO SUBSTITUTIONS. if you use regular mayo, it will taste like ka-ka. #2 - grab a tube of S&B Wasabi. i don't know what other wasabi's taste like, so lets not chance it, OK? #3 - grab a bottle of Kikkoman Ponzu. it's what i use, so you might as well use it to. #4 - get a cheapo squeezey bottle #5 - squirt the mayo into the squeezey bottle, until the mayo fills the bottle half-way (i did not say this recipe was healthy) #6 - pour in the ponzu up to 1/4 of the bottle (you should be at 75% of the bottles capacity right now) #7 - squeeze in about 1 inch worth of wasabi paste (2 inches if you like more) #8 - cap the bottle and SHAKE, SHAKE, SHAKE, until you can't shake no more #9 - look at it. does the consistency look like a roux? if yes, then.... #10 - taste it. does it appeal to your taste buds in a delightful way? too much wasabi? too much mayo? this is where you adjust as needed. ok... so, i held out on you a little. there is 1 more ingredient i add (sometimes) to make it taste awesome. ok ok - here it is..... yes. SESAME OIL is the "secret" ingredient. after you have shaken up the first 3 ingredients, add about 1/2 Tablespoon to 1 Tablespoon of sesame oil, and shake again.
use on anything you like! it's a good salad dressing. i usually grab some lettuce, squirt this dressing on it, and then sprinkle some furikake on my salad. it sounds weird, but its sooooo goooood! enjoy :D i read the paper (yes, the actual dead trees printed paper) about 5 out of 7 days of the week. every Wednesday they have a food section - it talks about trends, recipes, restaurants and all kinds of stuff. so one day, i'm reading the paper, and they talk about this newish restaurant called Yakitori Yoshi. they've got grilled food on sticks (yakitori, hello), and other items in an izakaya style set up. i say: "grilled food on sticks?! i'm in!" heres some visual aids for your drooling pleasure.... my advance apologies for the blurry quality of the pictures. i'm no Lebowitz. SAKE: it comes in some really cute glass ware.... this place being Japanese, obviously has sake. they also have beer, wine and the regular soft drink stuff. SKIN: yes, they have skin.... and i'm pretty sure its chicken skin. (just kidding, of course its chicken skin.... right?) note, they also have chicken heart, gizzards, cartilage, and more. you might think, "you can eat all those things?!" - yes, you can. i'll try just about anything once, so i was pretty excited about eating here. SWEET POTATO CROQUETTE: this is not made with Okinawan sweet potatoes. i thought it would be, but alas.... its yams. that doesn't mean its not good - its good. just be warned, if you're expecting that purple sweetness to come, you'll be let down. but, try it anyhow, its still pretty good. BEEF TENDON: if you like the soft, squishy texture of tendon, you will love this. tendon is not for everyone. some people can't get around the texture thing. but, if you scoff at food textures, and will eat anything that is oozing flavor, than this is the dish for you. this came out hot, and had a delicious thick broth full of collagen. it also was accompanied by nishime ingredients like potato, carrot and konnyaku jelly. TAKOYAKI: yes, under all that bonito are takoyaki balls. I FRIGGIN LOVE TAKOYAKI. i can't fully explain why, but i can tell you the takoyaki at Yaki-Yoshi (yes, i'm resulting to shortened nicknames now) is good. they politely place the mayonnaise on the side, instead of on top, but i would have eaten it either way. its not takoyaki unless that delicious eggy Japanese mayonnaise is involved. mmmmmmmm i drool now. CHICKEN HEART: yes, i ate a heart. it was small, and meaty, and delicious. i've never actually seen a chicken heart, and they're both surprisingly, and unsurprisingly small. i say both b/c when it comes out, you revel at how small it is. you question, "is this really how big their hearts are?" and then you realize, "well, of course thats how big their hearts are, what was i expecting? a softball?" - yeah... it goes something like that. the flavor is slightly chickeny, but the texture is more beefy. its interesting. MIXED MUSHROOMS: if you've ever had the mushroom medley at Gyukagu, then this one simply does not compare. they have a similar mix of mushrooms here (enoki, shitake, button), but the flavor is just..... different. i think i'm used to the one at Gyukagu more. i really shouldn't compare (but i'm going to). you see, at Gyukaku, they put butter, or salt, or crack cocaine in their mushroom mix, so it is delicious and tasty. here at Yaki-Yoshi, i think they just let the mushrooms speak for themselves, and put little to no seasoning in there. yes, the mushroom flavors are there, but no seasonings are - i guess its just a matter of preference for this one. should you drown them in butter, or let the natural flavors take precedence? hm....... BEEF TONGUE: i love beef tongue. it's such an overlooked meat/dish. many people can't get around the fact that it is a tongue, but i'm like HEY, at least its better than eating things like kidneys or liver.... those are filters, and in my mind, kinda dirty. a tongue is just another muscle. here at Yaki-Yoshi, they don't slice it thin enough for my liking, so you end up chewing forever.... the flavor was good, but they should slice these thinner. i guess they think they're doing you a favor by making them thick? meh. SPICY MISO GRILLED MUSUBI: these would have been better, had they not been grilled for so long..... to me, there is a difference between CRISPY and HARD. the outside of these musubi were HARD :( the miso had a really great flavor, but i could not get around the hard texture of the musubi outsides. this dish has lots of potential, if they grill it less....... BEEF SKEWERS: garlic. ponzu. beef. sticks. yes - you must stop after saying each word to get the full effect. these things were some of the best food i've ever had on a stick. the garlic ponzu sauce is delicious, and the meat is so tender that it makes chewing a pleasure (unlike the musubis :P). you could probably get away with swallowing this thing whole, but then it would spend less time in your mouth..... BACON WRAPPED ENOKI MUSHROOMS: i love bacon, i love enoki mushrooms, but i'm not sure that i love them together. this dish represents mixed emotions for me. enoki mushrooms are usually served lightly cooked, or raw, so when you deep fry them too much, they become very chewy, and not entirely easy to eat. i understand that it was necessary to fry them for a length of time in order to cook the bacon properly, but, i think in this dish, they should have used a different type of mushroom. also, b/c the way enoki mushrooms are bunched together, they collected a lot of oil, so when you bite into it, you get a gush of oil.... not exactly the dish i'd like to enjoy. i wanted to like this, but found it difficult :(
we also had some other items, which, in my rush to stuff my face, i forgot to take pictures of.... some of those items include fried cheese in eggroll style wrap, ramen, and probably a bunch of other stuff i forget eating. geez - we had a ton of food. now...... for the horror story: as we're just finishing dinner, my friend is talking to me, and i notice something moving....... i look up, and to my horror, there is a huge B-52 (for those of you who don't know what a B-52 is, it is local slang for BIG ASS ROACH) sauntering into our room. i calmly say...... *OHMYGODWHATTHEFUCK!* (sarcasm, yes), and point it out. we all are literally backed into a corner, and feebly yelling for our waiter to come and take care of it. yes. all 4 of us adults, that are a hundred times bigger than this roach, we all squirmed in the corner trying to get the hell away from it. i was considering putting a picture of a roach here, but my INTENSE ROACH PHOBIA just wouldn't let me. i tried, and nearly vomited. i hate roaches. now - it could have come from outside, accidentally. OR, it could be the result of a less than clean establishment. i cannot know for sure. what i can say is, the food here is just "ok", and not spectacular. you can try it, just to see what you think, but just pick wisely b/c the dishes here are hit or miss. also, if you're not paying attention, it could get expensive (per person, we paid about $40 each - YIKES). ******************* Yakitori Yoshi 1427 Makaloa St Honolulu, HI 96814 (808) 941-6891 did you know we have a Scottish festival every year? yeah - neither did i, until this year.... and apparently this was their 30th Annual.... :/ i went in hopes of finding HAGGIS, b/c that is what the website had promised... unfortunately there was no haggis to be found. they did have bangers (a type of sausage) at nearly every food vendor there. i've had bangers - i do not like bangers - i wanted to try some damn haggis. the website LIED to me :( however, while looking around the surprisingly small festival, i did come across some interesting things: MINI PINEAPPLES! these things were about half the size of regular pineapples, with the same size crown.... and have nothing to do with Scottish heritage, might i add. meh, they were still a cute find - and no, i did not buy one. WEAVING LOOMS: i have no idea why, but i found these looms interesting. seriously - you don't see looms everyday.... yeah, ok, nevermind. GLADIATORS: yes. Scottish? maybe. Polynesian? more likely. Awesome helmets? DEFINITELY YES. BAG-PIPES: crazy sounds. one of the more interesting musical instruments i had learned about that day. there was another interesting instrument i heard about there.... but i forget the name, and its bugging me to death :(
and no, i did not buy any food there. b/c like i said, the food there was mostly composed of bangers... or food that had nothing to do with Scottish heritage (shave ice, kalua pork sandwiches, etc.). i have to say, you'd think after 30 years of doing this festival it would have been better.... there were only a handful of vendors, a few "heritage" tents, and music. there were no program pamphlets to be found anywhere, so we didn't know what "events" would start when, and it doesn't say on the website either (don't even get me started about the website). while there were some amusing things, i finished this festival in about 30 minutes..... unfortunately, i think this is the first and last time i'll be going to the festival... unless it gets better - which i kind of doubt. its a bummer really :( a staple at any local hole-in-the-wall, a cheap and easy condiment, a little fire for your food.... CHILI PEPPER WATER, or verbally said as "chili peppah waddah" is the local equivalent of Tabasco. it adds a little kick, just when you need it. the best thing about chili pepper water is that its healthy! there are literally only 4 ingredients in this CPW. no salt, no sugar, no fat - ALL FLAVOR. i get my peppers cheap from the farmers market for $1 a bag. if you know anyone with a chili pepper plant, ask them if you can have some! this recipe is super easy, and makes a great gift for anyone who likes a little hot sauce. the smaller bottle on the left is what remains from my original batch made in January. look how potent it is! the bottle on the right is a new batch i'm waiting to use. mashing the peppers and garlic together takes a little time when you're doing it with a chopstick, but its all worth it! the finished products.... yes, i know the bottle on the left looks more potent - i CONTINUED mashing the bottle on the right until they looked the same.
CHILI PEPPER WATER (recipe adapted from "The Calabash Cookbook for Kidney Health") Ingredients: - 1/2 C. water, boiled and cooled (microwave is ok) - 1/4 C. garlic cloves, peeled and chopped in chunks (I use about 6-7 cloves depending on size) - 1/4 C. chili peppers, stems removed (I've used Hawaiian chili peppers, and hot red peppers - the Hawaiian peppers are more mild) - 1 C. white distilled vinegar (the original recipe calls for rice vinegar, but white works fine) Directions: 1. get a clean, empty Tabasco bottle (24 oz size) OR new see through squeeze bottle, cleaned 2. place garlic cloves and chili peppers in bottle 3. lightly crush garlic and peppers using a muddler, or a chop-stick (flat end works best) 4. add vinegar and water 5. let stand for 1 day on counter, and refrigerate for a few days before using 6. shake the bottle every once and a while; flavor gets stronger the longer it sits the time has come for me to switch my web-host. i'm sorry Blogger... but you just don't do it for me anymore.
if you'd like to see the old site, its still up: www.umami-quest.blogspot.com i'm working on moving my old data to the new site - actually, its more like i'm DEBATING on if i should move it, or just leave it, and have people relocate to this one... hm..... choices :P i will update soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! |