Taste of Sydney

What a weekend it was! It seems we are blessed with our

beautiful weather which gives us room to hold fantastic outdoor food festivals like Taste Sydney. Within the fourhourly sessions, there were loads to see including the numerous cooking demos by well-known pastry chefs like Vincent Gadan, numerous signature dishes of some well-known restaurants including Peter Kuruvita's Flying Fish, Miguel Maestro's Aperitif, etc.



I couldn't resist the opportunity to check out Vincent

Gadan's demo of his version of an Apple Tartin at the Patisse stand. I just love checking out the different versions of apple tarts made by different chefs. In my mind, I was expecting the classic apple flan but he surprised us

all with his hemisphere-like puff pastry acting as a shell to the apple and caramel. It was interesting to see how he adds caramel to the diced apples, plus the geletin and vanilla bean. It gave a beautiful sweet, buttery smell that floated around the room. The cooking utensils like the silicon baking moulds also raised my attention since most of us use those made out of metal. I should note that tip down for next time I do baking. Oui chef!

Since I never eat Spanish food too often, I couldn't resist the opportunity to taste Miguel's Regal King Salmon Curado with Chilli and Star Anise. As soon as I tasted it, it just melted in my mouth. Never have I tasted salmon that good. The dill and caviar go beautifully and hand-in-hand with the steak salmon. One of the highlights of that day was Miguel showing me around and talking through his cuisine which I thought was very generous and kind of him. I also loved his churros con chocolate which tasted very crispy and crunchy. I liked it because the plain pastry itself wasn't dipped in cinnamon sugar which also wasn't necessary. The crunchiness of the churros without the cinnamon sugar does enough justice. Whilst eating, I couldn't help noticing Manu Feidel dancing around and singing.

Other dishes which I also savoured my appetite for and

tastebuds included Peter Kuruvita's barbecued prawns on a stick flavoured with black pepper, citrus and curry leaves. I also loved the peaches cooked as a sweet/savoury dish with chopped bacon and rocket. What a unique way to combine fruit and savoury ingredients.

Some sweets like Sweetness the Patiserrie appear so beautiful. I couldn't help admiring the marble-like textures of their sweets plus the heart-shapes. Other things I savoured included the sweet wines and fruity cocktails. By the end of the day, my stomach became alcoholic.

More pics from the event can be seen here

Sydney Cellar Door

Hey guys! Just finished the weekend of wine tasting at Hyde Park, Sydney. As a non-expert in wine tasting, I found it difficult to pick which wine brand or flavouring I was going to taste. There were a range of tastes, including the typical dry taste, fruity flavours and of course, the sweet wines which matches my sweet tooth.



As someone who is curious about the world of wine appreciation, I thought this

event was a great way to introduce people right in front of their doorstep unfamiliar with the wine world into wine appreciation, particularly when one doesn't have to travel all the way to the Hunter. I also couldn't help myself noticing the range of foods available for passbyers even though this is primarily a wine tasting event, including Thai dishes cooked on a paella pan and the famous Lebanese baklavas. Like most outdoor food events, I couldn't resist the aroma.

I must say that there were a few wines which caught my taste. This included

Windowrie's Verdelhol which had a tropical aftertaste alongside with its dry taste. I also loved Logan's Moscato which is a dessert wine that upholds the beautiful combination of sweetness and fizz. I have to admit that some wines had a rose aftertaste. Interesting combination.

More pics from last weekend's event can be seen here

South American festival at Bondi

Hey guys!

I know it's been a while since I did an update but now that I've got a laptop, I can write away on how awesome was that South American festival

was. I couldn't help not resisting those mouthwaterig churros, the long sugary donuts flavoured with chocolate or caramel. I can't help tasting the beautiful blend of cinnamon and sugar which melts in my mouth.



One of the food highlights was the Cuban salad. It has this beautiful

tangy combination of salt, black pepper and vinegar. I loved how the chickpeas and red capsicum go so well together. I have to say how this was a refreshing change to the usual green salads I have during the week.

Besides the food, the performances were eye catching, especially the brilliant combination of martial arts and acrobatics, known as capoeira.

Everytime I head to a Latin-American festival, I always tell myself that I have to watch it. I loved the beats playing as the performers make impressive moves.

Tea Zensations

Since no one has done a blog entry on tea sampling, I thought I'd be the first one to add a tea twist to it given that Chinese New Year celebrations are still going on at the moment. As sweltering as it was today, I couldn't resist the opportunity to get in touch with my culture I was brought up in. Since this was an indoor thing, I much preferred to do something like this where I'd be surrounded by tea fans and foodies, as opposed to dancing in the heat at an outdoor music festival. As I stepped in, I was awed and impressed by the range of clay and porcelein teapots displayed. Immediately, I knew that I was in the right place.


I couldn't wait to sample the different teas. I was surprised that there

were cold teas like the Hibiscus Blossom Tea which was a perfect summer thirst quencher. I couldn't help admiring the ruby red colour which could have been mistaken as a juice. What was even more perfect was the fact that we drank the tea in combination with eating steamed lightly-salted fresh soya beans. Gee, this is really healthy I thought.



Next came along the green tea Long Ching (Dragon Well) tea which comes

from Hangzhou. This is considered to be the most premnium green tea all around. The tea leaves are shaped like a flat sword which gives a cleansing nutty flavour and bitter aftertaste. I could always recall Raymond always smelling the teas and chewing the tea. This went beautifully when eating when buckwheat soup noodles.




Thirdly, there was the Milky Oolong which came from Taiwan. I tried to

emulate and learn how Raymond poured the tea in a cute little cylinder-shaped cup and placed the small bowl-shaped cup on top of the cylinder. He then places his thumb and 2nd finger and turns it upside town and rolls the cylinder in both palms while smelling it at the same time. I could smell and taste the sweet vanilla aroma.

Second last was the Pu-Erh (Vintage Black teas) which was presented as a cake form. I loved it how Raymond described the tea as being "deceptive because most people thought of it as being high in caffeine levels with its dark appearance than green tea leaves when it is actually milder than most green teas. This went perfectly with the assorted Dim Sims.





Then there was the bouquet tea which I could clearly describe it as having

a sea urchin and floral appearance. As I poured, it gave a lovely golden colour. During the numerous tea demos, I noticed how Raymond prepared one of the teas by cleansing the little cups and pouring the tea onto a clay teapot. He emphasised that a good clay teapot should have a lid that tightly seals the fitting. More shots from the session can be seen here.

Chinese New Year markets

I can't believe Chinese New Year has finally arrived! Here I was in Belmore Park across Eddy Ave. I was surrounded by traditional red lanterns hanging in the tree, numerous food and craft stalls, stage performances, cooking demos and more. Interstingly enough, some people were wearing red since red symbolises good luck and fortune especially at this time of the year. Besides the food, I couldn't help checking out the numerous performances happening throughout the day and the mainland Chinese art and craft stalls.



I loved noticing and tasting the variety of Chinese foods, including the

har gow (prawn dumplings), martarmek (Indonesian savoury pancakes filled with shallots, onion and chicken), satays, and Malaysian style sweetpancakes given the variety of stalls. Having tasted the martamek, I thought it was a refreshing change from the spring rolls which is typical of Chinese food. The outside felt like the crunchiness of spring rolls.

But there is more to the markets besides the food. Observing the folk art and the performances helped me to keep in touch with my culture. It raised my awareness of how rich in culture it is, artistically speaking. I personally reckon that these performances and folk art should be done at the Art Gallery of NSW if we are to promote and raise awareness on aspects of Chinese culture, especially for Chinese New Year. I admired the bamboo carvings which dictates scenes of ancient China, papercrafts, traditional Chinese paintings and woodblock printing, and the folk embroidery works on shoe soles. More pics from the markets can be seen here.

Oz day

Well wasn't it a day on our national day in Sydney with the sweltering heat, bbqs, pinicking, fireworks, outdoor gigs at The Rocks and djs playing at The Opera Bar? As much as I dreaded the heat, I couldn't help enjoying the company amongst friends at a cool and shady spot in The Domain along Macquarie St.

With the humidity, I entertained the idea of pinicking and sharing what we made to share. Besides my tomato and rocket bruschetta, there was also the finger sandwiches filled with lettuce and tuna, banana cake, crunchy vietnamese chicken salad and of course, the good old lamingtons from Thomas Dux Grocery.

Who could forget lamingtons on Oz day? What I loved about these lamingtons

is the denser texture of the sponge crowned with a thicker layer of chocolate icing and grated coconut unlike those found in other supermarkets.

With the djs and bands playing, I couldn't resist the opportunity to check out and shoot people having a ball dancing. I suppose if the music is great, people will dance no matter how hot it is. There were numerous

people tatooing themselves of the Aussie flag on their cheeks. I think its a celebration of our national pride and patriotic spirit. I get the thrill of photographing people dancing wildly with the music playing as it helps me get into it. I couldn't go pass without noticing people wrapping the Aussie flag round their shoulders.

As humid as it was, we couldn't resist the opportunity to watch the fireworks. While I would have loved to have moved closer to where the boats were sailing, I managed to catch some dreamy looking shots of the fireworks.

Since the banana cake and my tomato and rocket bruschetta were a hit, I thought I'd share the receipe.


Banana cake

This is the most rich and moist banana cake out there without the need of

an electric mixer.

Ingredients
4 ripe mashed bananas
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
1/2 butter melted
3/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs beaten
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
Pinch of salt

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
2. Combine mashed bananas with butter in mixing bowl.
4. Pour in sugar, baking soda, salt and mix.
5. Mix in the flour.
6. Pour mixture in the pan lined with baking paper.
7. Bake for an hour and let it cool prior to removing from pan.


Tomato and rocket bruschetta
A perfect salad on its own or of course, with bruschetta. This salad

can be made ahead of time if called for a pinic at short notice.

Ingredients
Grated mozzarella cheese
250g cherry tomatoes halved
4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 bruschetta or ciabatta loaf (toasted optional)
50g wild rocket
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Balsamic vinegar to serve

Directions
1. Pour the mozzarella and tomatoes in a large bowl.
2. Add olive oil and add plenty of salt and pepper. I use the grinder.
3. Cover and leave to marinate for 1-2 hours.
4. Serve with sliced bread and serve with balsamic vinegar.

Shanghai noon

Even in the midst of summer, nothing stops me from craving a solid shanghainese meal, consisting of meat wrapped in pastry. As I arrive in New Shanghai in Lemon Grove Shopping Centre, Chatswood, I observe through

the window the row of chefs busily moulding and rolling the pastry and slabs of meat. I could smell the distinct and undescribable Shanghai flavours.

I couldn't resist the pork buns and dumplings, since this is what most Shanghai food is famous for. Most Shanghai food is wheat-based. I also adore those pan fried buns and biting into them with a hint of fresh chilli. However, if you're someone who's weight conscious especially after the new year, then the steamed pork dumplings and soup dumplings (won ton soup) are the way to go.

Another dish I'm unable to resist is the vegetarian fried rice with fried pork. I also love the fried Shanghai noodles crowned with sliced meat and spring onions.

If you are feeling ravenous after a long swim or workout, this is the place to go which will leave you feeling satisfied.

There are two New Shanghai restaurants in Chatswood.

Chatswood Chase
345 Victoria Ave
Lower Ground Floor

Lemon Grove Shopping Centre
427-441 Victoria Ave
Shop 20