Chubby Bunny

Kitchen Counter

Since it’s Dad’s birthday today, I spent a lot of time in the kitchen. For dinner, I spent time at the kitchen counter with Mom who had a lot going on. Naturally, I helped and could not resist taking pictures along the way.

FIrst, there were crispy, fresh string beans in the cast-iron pan. This is not a frying pan. Rather, this is shaped more like a dome, the way a wok would be shaped, but obviously with a material much denser than what would be used to make a wok.

I seasoned these with a dash of salt and maybe 1/4 teaspoon of chili powder for kick. Then I worked on a vegetable dish. After plating, I watched my mom work on the seafood.

There were shrimp with their heads still on. My mom didn’t know why they were so dark in color, but as long as they’re not red or orange, they were still good. She trimmed the shrimp by cutting off the tails and their heads.

These were cooked with a lot of garlic, salt and ginger. The shells are edible (mm, added calcium…) the taste is, as one might imagine, salty and spicy. No fancy sauces needed.

I also watched my mom clean the fish. The scales were still on, because she doesn’t like the way our fishmonger does it.

Look at that knife action. Blurry = speeeeeeed.

Mom stopped to pose with a set of scales she managed to cut off. And she told me that in some places they fry these babies up like potato chips, because they’re rich in calcium.

I like the irridescent look and also just the fact that Mom stopped to pose with it. How could I not want to take a picture?

The final product was made by Dad. He’s favorite way to have fish is by steaming it with thinly julienned ginger. He finishes it off by adding a soy sauce mixture and cut tofu.

I haven’t a clue what kind of fish it is, but we seem to eat it a lot, because Dad enjoys it. It’s very soft, not flaky. The tenderness of it is like an undercooked scallop and the flavor is very mild in sweetness and definitely distinct.