FoodScenes: Photography X Food=The Perfect Combo

Being a Chinese-Canadian, many people expect me to eat Chinese food regularly at home.  However, I am very different compared to the majority of the Canadian Chinese population. I don't enjoy Chinese food a lot. In fact, contrary to the stereotypical CBC (Canadian Born Chinese), I don't eat rice at all at home. However, what I do like about Chinese food is that it often contains a lot of flavour; some are recognizable, but most are a combination of different spices and sauces mixed together to create a single, delicious sauce, ready to be mixed or poured on top of your favourite grains. Inspired by my culture, this week I decided to make a Chinese style Yaki-Udon that also speaks to my love for Japanese food. Like many Chinese style cooking, I used trial and error to get the right concoction for my sauce to suit my tastes. In this week's recipe, I will only present the ingredients I used for the sauce with their ratios. You, as a home chef, can mix and match the ingredien...

With spring here and summer on the way, this time of the year is the perfect time to go outside and enjoy some sweet treats as you enjoy the sun. This week I am featuring a chocolatey drink from Mango Yummy called Oreo Cookie Smoothie. As the drink suggests, the Oreo Cookie Smoothie is made of a combination of milk, ice, a bit of syrup and  LOTS of Oreos. However, despite it being a dessert drink, this drink is not too sweet at all. Their Oreo Cookie Smoothie is unlike ordinary milkshakes and smoothies. Mango Yummy combines the sweetness and ingredients of American style milkshakes with the texture and taste of Taiwanese bubble tea slush, creating a smooth and delicious dessert that can certainly make you go back for more. Check out their drinks and other dessert items today!

I've always loved Zaru Soba, a cold buckwheat noodle dish from Japan. In fact, when I was younger, I was called the 'Soba Queen' by many local Japanese restaurants here in Richmond, BC, Canada. I was given this nickname not just because I always ordered Zaru Soba, but also because I was the only person to have ordered, and finished 10 portions of Zaru Soba at an All-You-Can-Eat restaurant! Keep in mind, I was only 7 when that happened! Nowadays, I don't eat as much anymore. :) This week, I was inspired by my childhood and created a Zaru Soba dish that made use of fresh vegetables and Kani, or imitation crab meat. Traditionally, Zaru Soba is eaten as-is, with no toppings except for seaweed, with a side of a light soy based Soba sauce. To enjoy your cold buckwheat noodles, simply use your chopsticks to pick up a bite of noodles and dip it in the sauce before indulging it.  In the health-conscious society we live in today, I decided to incorporate vegetables and prot...

A Hong-Kong Style lunch that embraces two elements of cooking most of us desire for: fast and simple. For people who don't like to wash dishes, like myself, this dish is the perfect dish for you. There is only one pot for you to wash by hand...and a bowl with chopsticks that you can stick in the dishwasher. Ingredients:  A handful of any leafy greens 1 pack of instant noodles or udon 2-3 table spoons of chicken stock (or the seasonings included in the instant noodles) 5-6 slices of luncheon meat 6-7 frozen dumplings or gyoza Instructions: 1. I n a bowl, empty seasoning packets or chicken stock. 2. In a pot, bring water to boil and scoop 2 spoonfuls of boiling water in a bowl using a ladle. Cook noodles  according  to packaged directions. Set noodles aside in the bowl once cooked. Add dumplings and luncheon meat to pot and boil for approximately 5 minutes. Add leafy greens to pot and boil for another 2 minutes. Remove pot from heat and use chopsti...