Author Archives: David Dettmann

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About David Dettmann

Food obsessed and frequently nostalgic.

Turpan raisins in Chinatown

Posted on May 17, 2015 by David Dettmann

We have yet another import from the Uyghur homeland of Xinjiang available here in Philadelphia. These are raisins from Turpan, a city particularly well known for its sweet fruit (including grapes and melons). I found these at the newly reborn … Continue reading →

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, - Featured Markets, Central Asia/Uyghur food, Chinese food | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Oyster mushrooms and Lao style roasted mushroom dip

Posted on May 13, 2015 by David Dettmann

I’ve once again drawn on influences from my newly acquired Northern Lao cookbook with this dish, part of the genre of Lao/Thai dips called jaew ແຈ່ວ/แจ่ว. I’ve previously blogged on one such favorite, jaewbong. Today’s iteration is made from roasted … Continue reading →

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, - Recipes, Thai/Lao food | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Yanang leaves and Lao bamboo soup

Posted on April 25, 2015 by David Dettmann

Last year I mentioned an impressive blog and cookbook that I came across, Food from Northern Laos: The Boat Landing Cookbook, by Dorothy Culloty. The book itself is by far the most detailed introduction to Lao food that I am … Continue reading →

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, - Featured Markets, - Recipes, Thai/Lao food | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Cha plu leaves and a simple Thai chicken and mushroom curry

Posted on April 15, 2015 by David Dettmann

Cha plu leaves are another ingredient we are lucky to have available to us at Southeast Asian markets of North and South Philadelphia. It is a mild flavored leaf that is well-suited for making wraps, as it is generally enjoyed … Continue reading →

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, - Recipes, Thai/Lao food | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Map of Philly Wine and Beer

Posted on April 12, 2015 by David Dettmann

Moving to Philadelphia from Madison, WI came with a few adjustments to our usual patterns of living, and casual shopping for groceries and beer came with a steep learning curve. If you live in the area, you are likely familiar … Continue reading →

Posted in - Guides | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Cantonese clay pot rice

Posted on March 22, 2015 by David Dettmann

Rice cooked in earthenware pots is a specialty in various places throughout China, but the dish is particularly well known in Hong Kong and broader Guangdong, by the name baozai fan 煲仔飯 (also written 堡仔飯, and pronounced bozei faan in … Continue reading →

Posted in - Featured Markets, - Recipes, Chinese food | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Uyghur meat pies cooked under the broiler

Posted on March 8, 2015 by David Dettmann

This weekend I made an exciting discovery. I found that I can use my gas oven’s broiler to replicate tonur-style Uyghur meat pies (a.k.a. samsa سامسا). Uyghur samsa are delicious. The filling is simply fatty mutton, finely-chopped onions, salt, cumin, … Continue reading →

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, - Recipes, Central Asia/Uyghur food | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Four unique Asian dried chile peppers

Posted on March 5, 2015 by David Dettmann

Chile peppers have only been in Asia for several hundred years now, but they have gone a long, long way to become standard and staple ingredients in many of Asia’s great food cultures. Southeast Asia is of course full of … Continue reading →

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, - Featured Markets, - Recipes, Chinese food, Indian food | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Heng Fa Food Market in Chinatown

Posted on March 1, 2015 by David Dettmann

If you haven’t been to Chinatown in a few weeks, Heng Fa market has opened at a new location. This is the market that had purple signs “King Market” that was previously split across 10th St. just north of this … Continue reading →

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, Chinese food | 12 Comments

Nepal-style black lentil soup

Posted on February 28, 2015 by David Dettmann

In my previous home town of Madison, Wisconsin, we had a surprising number of Nepali restaurants per capita. That isn’t to say I understand “authentic” Nepali food better than anyone else, but at least there was some exposure to uniquely … Continue reading →

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, - Featured Markets, - Recipes, Nepali food | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments