We are very lucky in Hong Kong as there are some great local options for gluten free noodles. This photo includes some of our favorites, all available from the local supermarkets in Hong Kong, such as Wellcome and Park N Shop. The top row are rice noodles - great for a variety of Asian style dishes, stir fries and soups. The three on the bottom row are all produced by the same company that only makes rice and buckwheat noodles - no wheat at all. The Brown Rice Vermicelli is a good 'spaghetti' substitute as well as eaten cold with some sesame oil and toppings. The Buckwheat Elbow Macaroni are a dish my kids insist on every week. The 100% Buckwheat Soba noodles are also a family favorite and one of the only 100% buckwheat noodles I have found in HK, most of the soba here have wheat in them. These Mung Bean / Green Bean Vermicelli, in the bottom photo, are readily available and super cheap. Do check the ingredients as some add potato or other flour, while some are just green bean. They are fast to cook and are usually served cold so can be made in advance. My kids love them cold with sesame oil, while adults like to add chili sauce. They are also great in fresh Vietnamese spring rolls! If you want other varieties, click here to find Gluten Free Pasta on iHerb. The Tinkyada Gluten Free Pasta is quite nice and has some fun shapes and colors for kids. |
We love salmon, because it is both a healthy fish with good oils and super yummy. In Hong Kong we are very lucky to get excellent salmon from WildC. They import sustainably sourced fish and sell through their website and deliver to your door in Hong Kong. Well, in our case because we live 'on the other side of beyond' in Hong Kong terms, they deliver to my husband's office and then he brings them home. We make them both very differently as wild salmon is much thinner and dryer than Atlantic salmon and therefore needs to be cooked differently. There are 1,000's of ways to make salmon, here are two simple recipes. Atlantic Norwegian Salmon Side (also works with fillets) Placed on a bed of lemongrass (from our garden), put some lemon juice, a bit of saffron, some pepper and mild herbs/spices on top. Wrapped air tight in foil, if you don't want the fish to touch the foil, you can wrap in parchment paper first and then foil to make it air tight (if you are like me and never mastered origami combined with the french art of fish en papillote). Placed in a baking pan and also filled baking pan with water for extra steam. Okay, theoretically this isn't necessary, but I am somehow convinced it helps, and at least if in worst case scenario the package leaks, the fish won't dry out. Bake at 200 for about 20 minutes - I did it much too long (I forgot about it for 45 minutes!!) and it came out perfectly - this is the beauty of foil/paper wrapped fish - even I can't mess it up! It comes out perfectly moist and tender and the lemongrass smell is fabulous. You can flavor with just about anything - don't have lemongrass? No problem, put on a bed of sliced onions, rub in some garlic and fresh basil, a dash of olive oil (really just 2 or 3 dots for flavor), a bit of crushed red pepper, and you have italian style! If you like moist fish, foil or paper wrapping is a very easy way to guarantee moistness, even when you leave it in the oven much too long!! Very moist and soft, totally fell apart when I tried to put it on a plate, but since we will eat it the next 2-3 days, it doesn't really matter. If I had made for guests I would make it look nicer! Wild Alaskan Sockeye Salmon Side This is so easy I don't really have a recipe! Rinse the salmon with fresh water Pat dry Rub on some mixed no salt rub (we like the one from Costco - Organic No Salt Rub) Grill/Broil in the oven until done - a few bits of the seasoning turn black, and it is done! This comes out super dry and flakey and packed full of wild salmon flavor. Often the skin will be crunchy, which is a major bonus as it tastes great. We usually eat about 2/3 for dinner and the remainder gets made into onigiri (Japanese rice balls - wrapped in seaweed is our preferred style) for the kids the next day and put into my salad for the next day. Without a doubt this is our favorite salmon dish. For some much more professional fish recipes, Mark Bittman is my go to: Mark Bittman, It's Wild Salmon Season Mark Bittman, Broiled, Sautéed, Roasted, Poached European/American 'Curly' Kale is crazy expensive in Hong Kong, and only available two days a week. In the land of plenty where everything is sold, this is highly unusual. We love homemade kale chips in the dehydrator, so about twice a year we treat ourselves to a huge batch... but Sassy inhales most of them by herself! Our tastes are simple. We prefer either plain kale chips - with absolutely nothing on them. Or just with a tiny amount of olive oil and a bit of nutritional yeast. The flavor of kale itself is so beautiful, no need to cover it up with strong flavors. I dehydrate at 105 degrees for about 12 hours and they are done to perfection, exact times will vary based on the humidity and temperature the day we do it. When I was in the USA this past summer, I had kale 2 times most days - in my smoothies, in my salads, and as chips... missing it now! Funny, because when I first heard of people eating and drinking kale, my reaction was 'but it is sooooo bitter!' Because in HK, we have a vegetable we call kale in English, but in Chinese is 芥兰 (芥蘭) pronounced jièlán (mandarin) or gaai3 laan4 (cantonese) A bit bitter, but super tasty when lightly fried with garlic! I enjoyed this New York Times article, and promptly sent it to all my friends in Paris suggesting this woman becomes their new BFF: Trendy Green Mystifies France. It's a Job for the Kale Crusader! Related post - how to make Frozen Kale Muffins for your morning green smoothie Where to get Curly Kale in Hong Kong: Green Queen's Guide to Kale in Hong Kong Green Vitamin (It's organic, grown in HK and they have kale chips too!) Just Green with locations around HK Spice Box Organics in Sai Ying Pun Great Supermarket in Pacific Place Corner Block on Stanley Street in Central Culture Organic Foods online shop Eat Fresh has kale sometimes |
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