Category Archives: – Featured Food Discoveries

Three essential Cambodian flavors and sour beef soup

Lately I’ve been exploring prepared food containers of the refrigerator section at a my favorite Asian markets as well as expanding my understanding of Cambodian food. The nearest Asian market to my house is Seng Hong Oriental Market, over on … Continue reading

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, - Featured Markets, - Recipes, Cambodian food, Thai/Lao food | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

Kaffir lime leaves and kaffir limes

Our kaffir lime (มะกรูด makrut in Thai) tree is starting to produce fruit! The leaves and fruit of the kaffir lime tree (citrus hystrix) are intensely fragrant.  The leaves provide a key flavor in Thai curries, soups, and stir-frys.  You … Continue reading

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Xinjiang(?) Hami melons in Chinatown

With the bulk of my food experiences in China being more than ten years ago already, and with the continually changing norms of food import/export and larger Chinese consumer markets in the US, I constantly come across things that were … Continue reading

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

A brief visit to Montreal and Thai green peppercorn

This past week La and I journeyed to Montreal for a long weekend.  It was rainy all weekend, but we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, eating and drinking our way around the city.  Everyone knows the European influence on Montreal is strong, … Continue reading

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“Sichuan pepper” and some of its relatives

Last week I wrote about the growing trend of Northwestern Chinese food in Philadelphia and New York.  Another trend that I’ve noticed over the years, especially clear in places like Madison, Wisconsin, is the continually growing popularity of specialty Sichuan … Continue reading

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, Chinese food, Nepali food, Thai/Lao food | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Bike trip to Turkish Delran, NJ

Today I decided on a whim (and sadly, without sunscreen) to ride my bicycle to Delran, New Jersey.  I already knew of the well-stocked Turkish shops and restaurants that exist there.  I had a craving for lahmacun and it was … Continue reading

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On the growing popularity of “Xi’an” and “Northwestern Chinese” cuisine

I picked up the new “Metro Chinese Weekly” today while in Chinatown.  For those who are unfamiliar, this is a thick (eat your heart out, Village Voice), free, and weekly Chinese language newspaper, printed for Chinese communities in the Philly … Continue reading

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Fermented tea leaf salad

I started to notice fermented tea salad packs from Myanmar about 2 years ago in Wisconsin.  In Philadelphia, these packages can be found at markets that cater to Southeast Asian tastes.  The best selection will be from South 7th St’s … Continue reading

Posted in - Featured Food Discoveries, - Featured Markets, - Recipes, Myanmar/Burmese food | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Follow up on “Big plate chicken”

For those of you who were maybe curious about that unusual “Old Yang family shop Big plate chicken” spice packet I bought several weeks ago, I finally decided to give it a try.  Above is my a less than photogenic … Continue reading

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