Simple home-baked bread

Home-made Bread

I’m still getting my feet wet with home-made bread making, but am quickly falling in love. After experimenting with a couple ways of preparation, I think I’ve gotten down the method I like the most. Due to my affinity to a lot of Jamie Oliver’s cooking methods/recipes, it may be no surprise that it’s from …

Things Done Well: On The Anatomy Of Thrift

The following three videos are a series put together by Farmrun, a creative studio that is working to capture the “burgeoning agrarian renaissance by producing beautiful media for agricultural enterprises and organizations.” Teamed up with Farmstead Meatsmith, a traditional animal processor, they’ve produced On the Anatomy of Thrift.

If you are squeamish about an animal being butchered for food, you may not want to watch. If you eat meat and are not able to watch (let alone do) this, it may be worth considering the more philosophical side of the modern disconnect between our food and the place it comes from. Not judging, just saying. The videos are fun, informative and done well.

On The Anatomy Of Thrift: Side Butchery

(more vids after the jump)

Overnight Zucchini Pickles

Much like my prior post on preparing home-made sauerkraut, this is another “I can’t believe how simple it is” recipe. It’s also another no-cooking recipe for the Home Cooked category. Chinese supermarkets are no stranger to pickles. In fact, it was only after moving to China that I really examined the term “pickle” and realized …

Home Cooked – Sauerkraut

I’m not sure the wisdom of starting a new category on the blog with a misnomer in the title, but, well, here we are. For years I’ve enjoyed cooking, but it’s really only been the last few months that I’ve started developing it from an abstract interest into a full-on hobby. As I’ve really only …

36 hours in Guangzhou

Tuesday morning Maggie, Casey and I crawled out of bed at the ungodly hour of 4:15am to head to the airport and catch a flight to Guangzhou. The quick two-day trip was a necessity so that we could apply for Casey’s Canadian passport and Maggie’s visa for a visit to the TNS&F in May. The …

If you eat food, you should watch this movie

I just finished watching Food, Inc. — a sobering, yet hopeful, documentary about the modern industrial food machine. It’s an incredible film and I don’t think anyone should take another bite before they watch it. It makes me appreciate that a lot of my food happens to come from small “farmers/wet” markets. Cheers to Ben …

On seabugs, mother-in-laws and holidays

As many of my friends pack up and head out to face the torrent of travel over the May Holiday, I’m just happy to finally have a moment to sit down and type randomness on here. My mother-in-law arrived from Dalian Thursday evening and while Maggie and her enter day three of non-stop-family-gossip, I’m hiding …

In Sanya – Final Thoughts

Alright, I could pretend like the week and a half since we returned from Sanya was used to properly reflect on the vacation before I post final thoughts about China’s only tropical destination. But that would be a lie. Every time I go on vacation I think to myself, “Hey, why the hell am I …

Food for thought

Having just finished smacking a god-like amount of meat into patties for a BBQ I’m hosting tomorrow, food isn’t exactly the topic I’m most excited to blog about. However, a little vodka’n’cranberry therapy at hand, it’s time I tackle a topic I’ve been meaning to address for a while now – the biggest bone of …

Pizza & Beer Wine

Yeah, so I’ve sort of become a tad dependent on Walmart pizza. I discovered it a couple weeks back nestled right next to the freshly steamed Bao Zi (steamed bread stuffed with meat) and it’s become nearly a daily thing. It’s a sad fact that I have absolutely no motivation to cook for just myself, …