Mixed Plate Friday

If you follow Jalna’s blog, you might remember this post about the cured pork strips they got. I remember eating this as a kid, it wasn’t an everyday dish. It’s pricey and also a bit of an indulgence since it’s got a lot of pork fat. It was such a coincidence that I had also bought a pack from Chinatown and it was sitting in my fridge waiting to be made.

I never made it before but remember the elements of it from my memory. I knew I wanted to make it with green beans but only with these flat ones. I don’t know why I had to be so specific with it. I didn’t have a real recipe to go off of, maybe what I had was more of a family dish. I blanched the beans fast kine and then stir fried the pork and beans together. I didn’t want to add too much seasoning because the pork is super flavorful (aka salty) so I added a dash of soy, oyster sauce and sugar. Oh I also started the stirfry with minced garlic. Look. It was damn delicious. I was trying to hold the dish on to last a few days. I ate it in one day. It was just that good. But it could be an acquired taste.

Another family dish I have been making on my own. Ong Choy! Crucial ingredient? Harm Haw. Gotta have that. I just fried up garlic and red chili pepper, add the shrimp paste and then add the stems first….cook for like 2 minutes and then add the leaves and cook down. I must have added some water to this too. I’m sure folks usually do a cornstarch slurry to make the gravy thick. I was lazy. Another vegetable dish I love.

Smoked Chicken Pasta | $18.50
with onions, roasted tomatoes, garlic and fresh herbs, in a white wine and chicken stock, tossed over linguini

I got this dish the other week at Murphy’s, it was one of their specials. Eh. Was alright, I mean, I keep comparing the food to the price because how can I not? The chicken breast was good, super moist and there was a smoky taste so I enjoyed it. Wish there was a bit more pasta. I don’t get why restaurants like grinch out on the cheaper stuff. I think customers are easily fooled if they see more pasta haha. And I am adjusting to a new contact power and it’s hard to see up close now…if not, I would have noticed it said chicken stock. Yeah, it’s sitting in a chicken stock. I wasn’t expecting that. Yeah, I wouldn’t get this again.

Apple Crisp a la mode | $8.00

It’s okay, their apple crisp always comes to save the day. It saved the day. I loved it. Warmed apple crisp ala mode. You can’t go wrong. Have a great weekend everyone!

10 responses to “Mixed Plate Friday

  1. vickinags

    I love ong choy and your pork and beans dish looks so yummy too. I would also be good with eggplant .
    hmmm, tempted to buy some of that pork now but I got too many things in my freezer already that I’m trying to go through.

    • Jenny

      Oh yes, I bet the eggplant with the pork dish would be amazing. It should totally suck up all the sauce like a sponge. I wish I was more into eggplant but I don’t like the texture and if I eat it, it has to be super super cooked because I don’t like it “aldente.”

      I’m in the same boat, my fridge and freezing is busting at the seams!

  2. Man, you sure go out and try all kinds – and, you cook, too! Very awesome.

  3. kat

    everything but the expensive chicken pasta sounded ono:)

  4. Alan

    I love pork with harm har and ong choi, but I cannot get ong choi here in AZ since it is outlawed by the AZ Dept of Health. Unfortunately, I am the only one that eats that and even our last trip back to HNL last week, I didn’t get to eat it.

    • Jenny

      Oh yeah! I read about that before and found that so funny, or was it you that told me about it? Like it’s banned because it can grow like weeds or something? Invasive? I think that’s crazy, can’t they just let you folks eat it imported? I guess it doesn’t matter, gonna have folks who plant it yeah? Outlawed seems so extreme!

      Shucks, sorry to hear you couldn’t eat it even during your return home trip! You gotta sneak it in next time, late night snack with one big bowl of white rice. YUM!

  5. jalna

    Uuuuuu, gotta show Wendell ’cause our pork thing came in a two-pack.

    • Jenny

      Yeah! give it one last try before saying no forever! Although I wonder if the brand matters too, I got a different brand from you folks.

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