I consider myself a very open-minded individual when it comes to cuisine from around the world. I am open to trying anything once (ok, ok except balut, which I was offered in the Philippines... If you are curious as to why, just click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXucin9iIaE) and this open-mindedness has led me to discover some really tasty food. Here in San Antonio that has led me to try the culinary offerings of places that I might have otherwise just passed by.
One such example is a place called Pho Ha Long. (6424 NW Loop 410 --- (210) 521-4507 ) A very simple sign over the doorway advertises their main offering, Vietnamese Noodle Soup. Known as Pho, it is a delightful broth whose origins are in Vietnam, rich in flavor served with noodles and in many cases slices of beef, pork or even vegetables. Its fiery tone controlled by you the diner and its depth decided also by the amount of bean sprouts, basil, lime or jalapeno you add. Chili paste and fish sauce are more offerings to consider when constructing YOUR perfect bowl.
Now I should explain that while I had seen the tiny restaurant on my drives to and from work quite often, it took going to the Philippines and having pho there to get me to to go to Pho Ha Long when I returned. I was surprised at how comparably delicious it was here as it was halfway around the world.
The dining area is small, but service is quick. The ingredients are fresh and inviting. This is also a great place to practice your chopstick skills as this is truly a two-handed meal. Chopsticks for the noodles and meat, spoon for the broth is the way to go. Other offerings on their menu include delicious spring rolls and bubble teas. While I have tried other menu items, I have to admit that I am drawn over and over again to the pho. It really is that good. I recommend it, and you can count it as an opportunity to expand your culinary horizons!
Until next week, as always eat with a passion, cook with your heart and remember...
Food is love...
Friday, August 29, 2008
Thursday, August 21, 2008
San Antonio Represents!
Having been born and raised in the great city of San Antonio, I am proud of my roots. No prouder though when I see attention given to our great city for any of its major accomplishments, be it sports-related or other.
Lately though we are starting to get the kind of attention that really makes me proud to be a San Antonio native. Food Network has taken a distinct liking to our town and nowhere is it more evident than in the last few episodes of "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" hosted by Guy Fieri, winner of the second "Next Food Network Star" (And in my opinion the only one to really have "it" when it comes to hanging with the heavyweights on the network.
Recent episodes have profiled DeWese's Tip Top Cafe, Texas Pride Bar-B-Q (which is every bit as good as the show states, I went with my family the week after the broadcast) and more recently The Cove. It's this kind of attention to the city's culinary offerings that San Antonio needs more of. Yes, we have some gems in this city and next week I plan to post an article on one such place. Explore your town's food offerings, not just in the area of chain restaurants but more in the homegrown local joints that will have you coming back for more!
I think you will be delightfully surprised at what you might find... Share with me some of your favorite places, and I will share your thoughts here! Until next week, as always eat with a passion, cook with your heart and remember...
Food is love...
Lately though we are starting to get the kind of attention that really makes me proud to be a San Antonio native. Food Network has taken a distinct liking to our town and nowhere is it more evident than in the last few episodes of "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" hosted by Guy Fieri, winner of the second "Next Food Network Star" (And in my opinion the only one to really have "it" when it comes to hanging with the heavyweights on the network.
Recent episodes have profiled DeWese's Tip Top Cafe, Texas Pride Bar-B-Q (which is every bit as good as the show states, I went with my family the week after the broadcast) and more recently The Cove. It's this kind of attention to the city's culinary offerings that San Antonio needs more of. Yes, we have some gems in this city and next week I plan to post an article on one such place. Explore your town's food offerings, not just in the area of chain restaurants but more in the homegrown local joints that will have you coming back for more!
I think you will be delightfully surprised at what you might find... Share with me some of your favorite places, and I will share your thoughts here! Until next week, as always eat with a passion, cook with your heart and remember...
Food is love...
Saturday, August 16, 2008
A Recipe for Relaxation...
This week has been quite a busy week and already the weekend has begun to blaze by. Life is like that sometimes. You can almost hear the sound of wind as the day flashes by. That's why todays post is about taking time out to smell the roses. Culinarily that can be done by preparing a dish that takes a leisurely approach. A dish where every step must be done completely and accurately for the dish to turn out just right. That dish is paella.
Paella is a Spanish rice, meat and seafood dish that originated in Valencia, Spain. It is cooked in layers and all the flavors meld together to make an intoxicating dish. My first experience with the dish was only about 4 years ago and I have been enchanted by it ever since. While it is time consuming, it is very therapeutic as the cook slowly coaxes out the flavors in this one of a kind dish.
I encourage you to try it, as it will really allow you to flex your culinary muscles. Don't let the ingredients intimidate you, and don't shortcut any of them either. A good rich paella is so because of the quality of the ingredients. Remember to look for Spanish chorizo (cooked, unlike Mexican chorizo) or for a decidely Portuguese twist, perhaps a linguica.
Best wishes! Let me know how it goes! Until next time, as always, be good to one another, eat with a passion, cook with your heart and remember...
Food is love...
******************************
Paella
2 chicken thighs
2 chicken legs
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons sweet paprika
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 Spanish chorizo sausage
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 Spanish onion, diced
1 (16-ounce) can whole tomatoes, drained and hand-crushed
1 cup Spanish rice, short to medium grain
1 teaspoon saffron threads
3 cups water, warm
4 jumbo shrimp, peeled with heads and tails on
2 lobster tails, split
6 littleneck clams, scrubbed
1/2 cup sweet peas, frozen and thawed
Fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, for garnish
Lemon wedges, for serving
Rinse the chicken pieces and pat them dry. Mix the oregano and paprika with some salt and pepper in a small bowl. Rub the spice mixture all over the pieces of chicken; marinate for 30 minutes so the flavor can sink in a bit.
Heat the olive oil in a paella pan or wide shallow skillet over medium-high heat. Place the chicken in the pan, skin-side down and brown on all sides, turning with tongs. Add the chorizo and continue to cook until the oil is a vibrant red color. Remove the chicken and sausage to a platter lined with paper towels.
Return the pan to the stove and lower the heat to medium. Make a sofrito by sauteing the garlic, onion, and tomatoes; cook until the mixture caramelizes a bit and the flavors meld; season with salt and pepper.
Fold in the rice, stirring to coat the grains. Stir the saffron into the rice. Pour in the water and simmer for 10 minutes, gently moving the pan around so the rice cooks evenly and absorbs the liquid. Do not cover or constantly stir like risotto.
Add the shrimp, lobster, clams, the reserved chicken, and the chorizo. Give the paella a couple of good stirs to tuck in all the pieces and just let it simmer, without stirring, until the rice is al dente, about 15 minutes. Scatter the peas on top and continue to cook for 5 minutes, until the paella looks fluffy and moist. The ideal paella has a toasted rice bottom called socarrat. Allow to rest, off the heat for 5 minutes, and garnish with parsley. Serve with lemon wedges.
Paella is a Spanish rice, meat and seafood dish that originated in Valencia, Spain. It is cooked in layers and all the flavors meld together to make an intoxicating dish. My first experience with the dish was only about 4 years ago and I have been enchanted by it ever since. While it is time consuming, it is very therapeutic as the cook slowly coaxes out the flavors in this one of a kind dish.
I encourage you to try it, as it will really allow you to flex your culinary muscles. Don't let the ingredients intimidate you, and don't shortcut any of them either. A good rich paella is so because of the quality of the ingredients. Remember to look for Spanish chorizo (cooked, unlike Mexican chorizo) or for a decidely Portuguese twist, perhaps a linguica.
Best wishes! Let me know how it goes! Until next time, as always, be good to one another, eat with a passion, cook with your heart and remember...
Food is love...
******************************
Paella
2 chicken thighs
2 chicken legs
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons sweet paprika
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 Spanish chorizo sausage
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 Spanish onion, diced
1 (16-ounce) can whole tomatoes, drained and hand-crushed
1 cup Spanish rice, short to medium grain
1 teaspoon saffron threads
3 cups water, warm
4 jumbo shrimp, peeled with heads and tails on
2 lobster tails, split
6 littleneck clams, scrubbed
1/2 cup sweet peas, frozen and thawed
Fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, for garnish
Lemon wedges, for serving
Rinse the chicken pieces and pat them dry. Mix the oregano and paprika with some salt and pepper in a small bowl. Rub the spice mixture all over the pieces of chicken; marinate for 30 minutes so the flavor can sink in a bit.
Heat the olive oil in a paella pan or wide shallow skillet over medium-high heat. Place the chicken in the pan, skin-side down and brown on all sides, turning with tongs. Add the chorizo and continue to cook until the oil is a vibrant red color. Remove the chicken and sausage to a platter lined with paper towels.
Return the pan to the stove and lower the heat to medium. Make a sofrito by sauteing the garlic, onion, and tomatoes; cook until the mixture caramelizes a bit and the flavors meld; season with salt and pepper.
Fold in the rice, stirring to coat the grains. Stir the saffron into the rice. Pour in the water and simmer for 10 minutes, gently moving the pan around so the rice cooks evenly and absorbs the liquid. Do not cover or constantly stir like risotto.
Add the shrimp, lobster, clams, the reserved chicken, and the chorizo. Give the paella a couple of good stirs to tuck in all the pieces and just let it simmer, without stirring, until the rice is al dente, about 15 minutes. Scatter the peas on top and continue to cook for 5 minutes, until the paella looks fluffy and moist. The ideal paella has a toasted rice bottom called socarrat. Allow to rest, off the heat for 5 minutes, and garnish with parsley. Serve with lemon wedges.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
La Comida Es Amor...
I'll start with a confession... The phrase "food is love", which has become my mantra over the last two years is not an original thought... It is a phrase first shared with me by one Vickie Kirlick, my personal chef instructor at the Culinary Business Academy in New Mexico. I adopted it because of the sheer truth that it is.
Growing up, food defined moments of my life in very distinct ways. My mom's barbecue chicken, while not a meal served often in my childhood years, stood out as a sign of her special kind of love. On the weekends it was served, it was our opportunity to "feast" like never before. I remember the buttery mashed potatoes that were served alongside and the robust sauce that coated the chicken.
I have a distinct memory of my sister and her husband making stuffed zucchini, a Lebanese recipe if I remember correctly, and the distinct sense I had that there was more to food than what I had experienced to that point. Then there was the chicken mole. Oh my... To even attempt to describe it here would do it no justice whatsoever. My aunt Mimi's recipe, a rich, dark spicy sauce, complicated in construction, but simple in its goodness. My aunt's love evident in every bite, I remember the struggle to recreate the recipe after she left to go home to be with the Lord.
Time after time the recipe was attempted, and time after time it fell short. You see my aunt learned the recipe from her mom, my grandmother, and like most family recipes it was never written down, and if it was, there were no measurements for the variety of ingredients. My mom persisted, and one day, out of nowhere, the magic of cooking that lies within the fingertips of my precious mother, found its mark. We've had mole back in our lives ever since.
Years later when I asked her how she did it she gave me a very simple but profound answer, and one I believe in the deepest recesses of my heart. "I prayed" was her very simple but honest response. "I prayed".
Is there any doubt then that love is an essential ingredient in cooking? The hands that create food that sustains must be gentle, strong, loving. The hands that create food that entertains must be creative, innovative but tempered by the love of sharing something uniquely yours. Whatever your thoughts, the inescapable truth is this: When we cook we almost always cook with someone in mind. We strive to impress and bless with the dishes we create. Love is an essential spice to all things, particularly food.
What are your food memories? Share them with me in the comments section! In future posts I will post some of what you share. Next week, look for a recipe and some thoughts on one of my favorite dishes. As always, be good to one another, eat with a passion, cook with your heart and remember...
Food is love...
Growing up, food defined moments of my life in very distinct ways. My mom's barbecue chicken, while not a meal served often in my childhood years, stood out as a sign of her special kind of love. On the weekends it was served, it was our opportunity to "feast" like never before. I remember the buttery mashed potatoes that were served alongside and the robust sauce that coated the chicken.
I have a distinct memory of my sister and her husband making stuffed zucchini, a Lebanese recipe if I remember correctly, and the distinct sense I had that there was more to food than what I had experienced to that point. Then there was the chicken mole. Oh my... To even attempt to describe it here would do it no justice whatsoever. My aunt Mimi's recipe, a rich, dark spicy sauce, complicated in construction, but simple in its goodness. My aunt's love evident in every bite, I remember the struggle to recreate the recipe after she left to go home to be with the Lord.
Time after time the recipe was attempted, and time after time it fell short. You see my aunt learned the recipe from her mom, my grandmother, and like most family recipes it was never written down, and if it was, there were no measurements for the variety of ingredients. My mom persisted, and one day, out of nowhere, the magic of cooking that lies within the fingertips of my precious mother, found its mark. We've had mole back in our lives ever since.
Years later when I asked her how she did it she gave me a very simple but profound answer, and one I believe in the deepest recesses of my heart. "I prayed" was her very simple but honest response. "I prayed".
Is there any doubt then that love is an essential ingredient in cooking? The hands that create food that sustains must be gentle, strong, loving. The hands that create food that entertains must be creative, innovative but tempered by the love of sharing something uniquely yours. Whatever your thoughts, the inescapable truth is this: When we cook we almost always cook with someone in mind. We strive to impress and bless with the dishes we create. Love is an essential spice to all things, particularly food.
What are your food memories? Share them with me in the comments section! In future posts I will post some of what you share. Next week, look for a recipe and some thoughts on one of my favorite dishes. As always, be good to one another, eat with a passion, cook with your heart and remember...
Food is love...
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Food, Wonderful Food
I love food. To know me is to know that phrase is an exercise in understatement. My name is Sergio Barrera. I am a personal chef (amongst other things) here in San Antonio, Texas. Food is a passion for me. I love to eat food, I love to cook food, I love to cook for people, I love to cook for myself, I love to teach people how to cook. I love to write about food, talk about food, read about food. If its food or involves food in some way, I want to be in the thick of it.
I have given much thought to starting this blog and have finally found my way around to doing it. So what should you, the reader, expect? Well, definitely my thoughts on a wide range of topics, mainly food related. Sometimes I may go off the beaten path, but for the most part this blog will be dedicated to my thoughts on all things culinary. There will be restaurant reviews, recipes, cooking tips and maybe even a video cooking demo and podcasts now and then. You will even get to know me along the way. Maybe next time, I'll begin with why I am calling this blog "Food Is Love". It's a critical part of who I am and why this blog is so important to me.
Until then, I hope that you have a fabulous weekend and week. I will leave you with this culinary thought. There is a Cantonese saying that states "Anything that walks, swims, crawls, or flies with its back to heaven is edible." I have found that to be true. My heart is to share that with you here in the weeks, months and years to come. Til we meet here again, be good to one another, eat with a passion, cook with your heart and remember...
Food is love...
I have given much thought to starting this blog and have finally found my way around to doing it. So what should you, the reader, expect? Well, definitely my thoughts on a wide range of topics, mainly food related. Sometimes I may go off the beaten path, but for the most part this blog will be dedicated to my thoughts on all things culinary. There will be restaurant reviews, recipes, cooking tips and maybe even a video cooking demo and podcasts now and then. You will even get to know me along the way. Maybe next time, I'll begin with why I am calling this blog "Food Is Love". It's a critical part of who I am and why this blog is so important to me.
Until then, I hope that you have a fabulous weekend and week. I will leave you with this culinary thought. There is a Cantonese saying that states "Anything that walks, swims, crawls, or flies with its back to heaven is edible." I have found that to be true. My heart is to share that with you here in the weeks, months and years to come. Til we meet here again, be good to one another, eat with a passion, cook with your heart and remember...
Food is love...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
