Unless you know where you're headed, you might never find Hoo Hing (at least that's what it felt like to me!). Thank goodness for Katie my Irish voiced Tom-Tom girl!
Hoo Hing is a cash-and-carry oriental food specialist shop in a semi-industrial area of Mitcham. From the outside, it looks quite ordinary, but this mid-sized shop offers exceptional variety in its restaurant-grade cookware, produce, meats, shelf goods and frozen foods. Prices are competitive. Restaurant-size quantities are available.
Perhaps what impressed us most about Hoo Hing was the tiny cafe tucked into a corner next to the fresh vegetables. There you can order the most amazing dim sum, rice and noodle dishes, cooked fresh just for you. Char Siu buns and Pork and Prawn Siu Mai were fantastic (the best we've eaten in years), as was the roast pork rice. Fried wontons were decadent, but really satisfying.
If you like what you taste in the cafe, you can take it home with you. Hoo Hing stocks an excellent variety of ready to steam dumplings and dim sum in its frozen food section. Perfect for parties.
Definitely worth the trip!
Hoo Hing
Bond Road Off Western Road
Mitcham, Surrey CR4 3EB
During the recent Thames Valley Women's British American Bunco Night in Marlow, we were all treated to a fabulous Mexican feast by the mutli-talented Chef Alejandra Cerrillo. I was honored to lend a hand in the kitchen to prepare the meal, and to serve the incredible food to delighted guests.
During cooking time, to say that the aroma in the kitchen was staggeringly delicious is an understatement. With mounds of diced chorizo, bacon, chipotle, sweet peppers, onions and garlic waiting to be incorporated into slow-simmered tomatoes and seasoned ground meats, I knew the evening's meal was to be a culinary treat.
Alejandra, a native of Mexico City and a lifelong lover of fine food, brought her masterful skills to life in a dinner for 80 guests. After 10 years in the UK, she has learned to "Mexicanise" many traditional British dishes with distinctive Mexican flavors. While obtaining certain favored ingredients locally can be a challenge, Alejandra has also learned to appreciate the depth of Thai and Indian food flavors. She adds, "If I hadn't decided to create my silver jewelry business, I'd have studied to be a chef here in the UK." (FYI for those who don't know: Alejandra is both a jewelry designer and manufacturer for her Maidenhead-based business (You Are) More Precious Than Silver." Visitwww.morepreciousthansilver.co.ukfor more information.)
With plenty of good fun and laughter in the kitchen, the menu featured fresh tomato salsa with corn chips, creamy corn chowder and chili con carne. Though she's taken a few cooking lessons, Alejandra "learnt from my mum, my mother-in-law and everybody who cooks well. I love to observe people cooking and then to invent/create my own versions."
"I created the soup especially for Bunco night," she recalls, "At home we might add more peppers or spice to kick up the heat, but for such a large group I wanted the subtler flavors to come through." Using corn as a thickener for a vegetable stock base, Alejandra finished off the soup with a generous portion of single cream.
Perhaps the greatest gift to our palates was the complexity of flavor notes in the chili con carne - zesty at first, then seriously bold, then mellowing with a subtle spicy kick on the tongue as an aftertaste. The chili drew its inspiration from the traditional Mexican dish frijoles charros, in which boiled beans are mixed with bacon and pieces of pork (not minced), pork scratchings, cilantro, fresh tomatoes, avocado, onion and chilli peppers. "Mexican cuisine is regionalised, and every area has its own version," she explains, noting that the frijoles are often served as a side dish to steaks or barbecue - and even for breakfast. Served over white rice, the dish was a fantastic success. In fact - there wasn't a drop left!
Best of all, Alejandra generously shared her recipes for me to post here on the blog.
With all this chilly winter weather England seems to be handing us, why not find these fresh ingredients and make a pot of belly-warming chili or soup this weekend?
And the Recipes:
Alejandra’s Mexican Feast
Tomato Salsa
Ingredients:
10 Roma tomatoes, washed and cored
3-5 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 ½ cups chopped onion
7 green chiles, seeded and chopped (adjust number to taste)
1 bunch fresh coriander, washed and minced
1 cup olive oil
Freshly ground salt and pepper to taste
Method of Preparation:
1.Add tomatoes to the pan and sauté until skin is lightly browned. Remove from heat and transfer tomatoes to the bowl of a food processor.
2.In skillet, sauté garlic, onions and chiles in half of the olive oil until golden, about 7 minutes.
3.In food processor, pulse coriander and tomatoes until chunky.
4.Remove garlic cloves from skins using a cocktail fork or the tip of a knife.
5.Add roasted garlic, onions and chiles and remaining olive oil. Pulse until desired consistency is reached.
6.Season to taste and serve with crispy corn chips.
Cook’s notes: You can prepare the salsa without roasting the vegetables. For a full-roasted flavor, toss the vegetables in the olive oil and roast on a large baking sheet in a 180 degree oven for about 30 minutes before blending.If you do not have a food processor, a blender or hand blender will work perfectly.
Corn Chowder with Avocado and Peppers
Ingredients:
8 medium sized white potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock
4 Tablespoons butter
1 Tablespoon chili powder (more or less, depending on personal taste)
1 onion, finely chopped
3 spring onions, finely chopped (whites and greens)
8-12 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 small jar capers, drained
1 large bag frozen corn kernels (defrosted)
1 bunch fresh flat leaf parsley, minced
2 cups (½ liter) single cream
Freshly ground salt and pepper to taste
2 red peppers, seeded and chopped
Avocado, peeled and diced (coat in lemon or lime juice to prevent browning)
Method of Preparation:
1.In large stockpot, add potatoes to stock and bring to a boil. Cook until tender, approximately 14-16 minutes.
2.In large skillet, melt butter over medium high heat and mix in chili powder. Saute onion, spring onion and garlic until golden and tender, approximately 7-10 minutes.
3.Add sautéed onions and garlic to stockpot and stir well to incorporate.
4.Add minced parsley and corn kernels. Blend well and simmer for at least 45 minutes.
5.Just before serving, add single cream and heat through.
6.Taste to correct seasonings.
7.Serve immediately with bowls of red peppers and avocados for toppings.
Cook’s notes: To make a creamy soup without using cream, substitute 2 cups pureed sweet corn. For a chunkier soup texture, stir in the red peppers when adding the cream. Beware when using chili powder too liberally – always taste for hotness before adding to a dish! For a smokier flavor, consider using ancho chili powder.
Chili Con Carne
Serves a crowd – at least 12 servings!
Ingredients:
2 1/2 pounds lean minced beef
1/2 pound chorizo sausage, diced
1/2 pound thick-sliced bacon, diced
1 ½ large jars passata
2 cans diced tomatoes in their liquid
4 Tablespoons butter
2 onions, chopped
1 head garlic, cloves peeled, separated and minced
2-3 chipotle peppers, chopped*
2 bunches fresh coriander, minced (also known as cilantro)
3 cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained (not chili seasoned)*
Freshly ground salt and pepper to taste
Cooked white rice
Method of Preparation:
1.In large skillet, brown beef over medium high heat and drain, if necessary. Add to 12-quart stockpot.
2.In same skillet, brown chorizo and bacon. Add to browned beef in stockpot.
3.In same skillet, melt butter over medium high heat and sauté onion and garlic until golden, approximately 7-10 minutes.
4.Add onion/garlic mixture, passata and diced tomatoes to stockpot and blend well.
5.Fold in chipotle peppers and minced coriander. Simmer over medium heat for 1-2 hours.
6.30 minutes before serving, fold in kidney beans and heat through. Serve over cooked white rice.
Cook’s notes:Passata is made from pureed , skinned and seeded tomatoes. If you can’t find passata, substitute canned tomato puree (not paste). Chili con carne may be served with shredded cheese and sour cream, if desired. Makes an excellent topping for nachos. This chili will also freeze quite well.
*Alejandra adds “chipotles are very hot. 2-3 dried or oil-glazed chipotles gives a nice spicy flavor.” She also says, “I never use canned beans. I use fresh ones that I boil because I use the water for the dish as well – the flavor is much better!”
As a tourist, you probably won't be able to purchase many things at Athens' Central Market, but you'll go home with stories galore. The market is very large, with one section dedicated to meats and another to fish and seafood.
On the outskirts of the market, you'll find olive bars, and stores of nuts and dried fruits, and produce that will make you very hungry indeed. I bought salted pistachios, feta and olives to snack on in the hotel room, and a fruit vendor gave me two ripe pears to balance the flavors.
When you enter the meat market, the first thing you'll notice are the animals - yes, animals - hanging from their toes perfectly skinned. I had to ask - was it a goat or a lamb? Turns out, the neat little row of heads straight out of a scene from Jurassic Park were lamb's heads (eyeballs included). A few stalls down and I spotted whole piglet and more furred and feathered carcasses than I could identify. I definitely spotted chickens, rabbits and goose. It's eye-opening (no pun intended) to see what goes into the the favored dishes of different cultures. Sometimes you might not want to know! And yes, they still had their teeth.
A note about the vendors themselves. They are almost all men, notoriously charming and overtly flirtatious. They love American women, even though their English may not be so strong. Expect to be called upon, and know how to react. My advice? Smile, nod and move on!
Adjacent to the meat market is the fish market, where the vendors try to out-yell each other. Since I couldn't tell what they were saying, I could only guess they were advertising their best prices and trying to snag some of the thousands of shoppers for their stalls. Fresh this week? Octopus, eel and pretty little blue fish. And of course, plenty of gorgeous-looking prawn. Floors are wet and slippery. Wear shoes and be prepared with cash if you buy.
Next to the Central Market are plenty of independent stalls that sell olives, fresh produce and nuts. Take the time to notice what's in season, and you'll know what to order in the restaurants at night. These artichokes look particularly nice, as did the shop dedicated to feta cheese and other Greek dairy delicacies.Perhaps we 'll order both at dinner!
The Central Market is located on Athinas Street near Evripidou, Eolou and Sofokleous Streets.
Okay, so these books may not be "rare" in the truest sense of the word, but they are collectible to cooks who can never seem to have enough reference volumes in the library. Local charity shops - thrift stores as they might say in the US -- are a treasure trove for out of print books not readily available on the open market.
This week, I picked up a few gems to study and cook from at home:
-- Wild Harvest with Nick Nairn - Over 100 recipes from Scotland's hottest chef
-- Raymond Blanc - Recipes from Le Manoir Aux Quat' Saisons
-- Rick Stein's Guide to the Food Heroes of Britain
-- Soup Kitchen - The Ultimate Collection from the Ultimate Chefs including Nigella Lawson, Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay and Rick Stein
-- Death by Chocolate by Marcel Desaulniers
The best part of these culinary finds? None of them cost more than a pound. Though Death by Chocolate is one of my favorite cookbooks in my US home kitchen (and I'm thrilled to have it on hand again), I hadn't yet worked with any of the others.
I've done a little research and discovered that Wild Harvest was Michelin-starred Nick Nairn's first cookbook, and he's gone on to produce more than 20 books and multiple television series. His fame in the UK is legendary. Better yet, he now runs a Cook School in Port of Menteith, Stirling, Scotland to teach New Scottish Cookery.
Yesterday was our day to taste the authentic foods of China, courtesy of Shelagh Klein's Ginger Chocolate Pumpkin Fish cooking class for the American Women of Surrey.
On the menu was a broad range of tastes to tease the palate. Shelagh shared with us the classic Sichuan flavours of sweet, sour, salty, fragrant, bitter and nutty. As she demonstrated, each flavor can be enjoyed singly, or coupled together to create complex flavor notes.
Chinese dining custom dictates the enjoyment of one dish at a time. Unlike those cultures that combine foods on a plate, the Chinese approach to dining is geared toward savoring individual flavors.
The lessons to be learned:
--take small portions of each offered dish to save room for the ones yet to be served
--never smack chopsticks together (it's rude!)
--never stab or pierce food with a chopstick (definitely not polite!)
--fine Chinese egg noodles do not have to be boiled - simply pour boiling water over the noodles and allow to soften for several minutes On the menu:
Chinese mixed vegetables
Pan-fried baby bok choy
Steamed Fish Chinese style
Steamed Chicken Chinese style
Chili prawns
Ma Pos bean curd
Singapore fried noodles
Angel food cake with homemade fudge sauce
At home last night, I tackled the Ma Pos Bean Curd with great success, and adapted the Singapore Fried Noodles to include pork mince. The family loved it!
Another great timesaver tip about cooking Chinese - shake the sauce ingredients in a jar as far in advance as is convenient for you. The flavors will blend and intensify.
I can spend hours combing the shelves in kitchen shops (and frequently do!). Yesterday I visited The Art of Living in Cobham, Surrey. Offering a wide range of top-quality crystal ware and cast iron cookware, the shop is colorful and well organized.
Count on discovering artistic items to enhance your home's kitchen space and functional gadgets to make cooking easier.
My finds for the day: two sizes of white porcelain lidded terrines ready to be filled with my herb butter and country pate.
Farms with more than a hundred years of history are worth visiting, and Garsons is one such Surrey farm. Growing since 1871 in the sand-dusted fields near the River Mole, Garsons supplies the London wholesale market with fresh produce.
At the site, a well-appointed garden centre offers outdoor clothing and wellies, kitchenware and furnishings as well as a wide range of indoor and outdoor plants. The Farm Shop is a testament to local produce and international goodies. Though the meat section is small, the selection is first class. An impressive cheese and deli counter represents tastes from all over Europe.
In Spring through early Autumn, Garsons offers pick-your-own fields of strawberries, raspberries, asparagus, runner beans and sunflowers.
Who doesn't love being surrounded by the freshest-of-fresh food, visitors from all over the world, and food vendors who absolutely love what they do? Borough Market 'neath the London Bridge is always a fascinating gourmet destination with plenty of surprises in store.
When we stepped inside the bustling Green Market, our good buddy Luke enjoyed a tiny pretzel (that we all ended up sharing!), while we picked up Dutch cheeses, handmade French rabbit terrine and cheval with local venison (pigs trotters, roasted fennel and smoked garlic). Delicious!
Over in the Jubilee Market, Roger of Villanova carved us slim layers of Prosciutto Sardo di Desulo, and in the Middle Market butchers at the Ginger Pig sliced made-to-order veal chops just for our dinner. A glass of mulled wine, a study of ready-to-be-plucked-and-cooked birds, and a quick run to the Utobeer shop and Flour Station Bakery and we were on our way to cook and savor all night. What a wonderful feast to share with friends!
Here's my thought on the matter. Why settle for second best at the dinner table when Borough Market is just a train ride and a tasty afternoon away?
Borough Market - open Thursday, Friday and Saturday
- By tube to London Bridge or Borough underground stations
- By train to London Bridge mainline station
- By bus to London Bridge, Borough High Street or Southwark Street
- By foot along the Thames Path on the Southbank or over London Bridge from the City
Ever the foodie, I of course loved studying the dining style in Warwick Castle. Social history and the everyday details of life in other time periods fascinate me.
Because feasting was such an important event, artisans captured the images in stained glass. This tiny window was tucked into a peak of the chapel's anteroom, but I was struck by its level of fine detail. Notice the high spirits of the guests and the lavishness of the feast on the table, from the wild game to the abundance of fruits and wine. In one of the castle's interior rooms, a depiction of King Henry VIII with his wives is arranged around another indulgent feast.
In the grand dining room, the table was set with crystal and exquisite china. The classic table setting for formal occasions was as appropriate in centuries past as it is now - elegance defined. And it seems that every era craves sweets.
Sunday roasts are a time-honored English tradition carried out at family tables through the United Kingdom. The slow-cooked meats, sizzling in hot ovens and on open fire grills for hours and hours on a Sunday afternoon, take on the tenderest of textures as savory juices add unmatched flavor to the meal.
We tried the Sunday roast meal at The Warren, a lovely "country pub and eating house" tucked into the Berkshire countryside in Wokingham. The restaurant itself was at once elegant and warm, with modern touches nestled amongst historical farm artifacts. The menu offers just enough global complexity to appease the adventurous diner, but the restaurant's strength is the in the slow-cooked meats.
We began the meal with an antipasti platter - one to be surely reconstructed at home and enjoyed at The Warren again. With luscious sun-dried tomatoes and fresh anchovies, the flatbread-covered plate was the perfect balance of roasted garlic, spicy meats, olives, sweet peppers and crunchy watercress with just enough aged cheese to add a nice bite of salt. All in all, an excellent starter - or even a light main course.
The roasts, which imbued the restaurant with an indescribably tantalizing aroma, did not disappoint. Succulent and fork tender, the British beef, roast pork with apples and spit-fire cooked chicken were distinctive and memorable. My personal favorite on the plate were the ultimate comfort food - crispy balls of homemade stuffing.
The brown gravy was a revelation, made from the combined drippings of all roasted meats and served with each dish. Thick, rich and flavorful, the gravy offered a well-seasoned accent to each of the meats and their accompanying fluffy Yorkshire puddings and roast potatoes. Vegetables are served on the side, with tender-crisp cauliflour, tossed lightly in a warmed cream sauce.
Service was excellent and attentive (thank you Jayne!), and the overall ambience of our fireside table was comfortable and relaxed. Count on a crowd - so bookings are advised.
To find out more about The Warren and its sister pubs in Maidenhead and Reading, visit www.thewarrenwokingham.co.uk.
The Warren Forest Road, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG40 5SB
Call 01344 304 446 to make your table reservation.
Don't forget to enjoy a soothing cup of creamy capucinno to finish off the meal - it's very nice!
What a pleasure it is to walk into a shop dedicated to the finer things in the foodie's life - fresh farm-raised meat, homemade pies, and savory treats. Green's of Pangbourne is such a place.
Quality of ingredients means everything to the aspiring gourmet, and Green's is dedicated to providing nothing but the finest selection. In fact, the shop has been awarded a most prestigious accolade. Green's is South England's Butchers Shop of the Year for 2009. Impressive!
The staff is friendly and charming, and the service impeccable. While we visited the tiny shop, the aroma of slow-simmered beef and vegetables filled the space, triggering an amazing burst of hunger. Known for its meat pies, Green's makes a wide assortment of the delectable pastries and sells more than 1000 each week. Since most top-crust pies are similar in appearance, Green's uses a clever code to tell them apart- they label each pie with pastry initials to identify the contents.
Known for the quality of its meats, Green's turns out sausages by the hundreds, if not thousands each week. I'm intrigued by the variety - especially the venison and red wine sausage and the pork, chili and apricot. To satisfy our curiosity this first visit, we opted for the traditional pork sausage. And of course, we stocked up on Green's homemade mango chutney to use as an accompaniment.
But the pies are warm and ready to eat now, and my kitchen smells beyond good.
Don't worry. I won't disappoint, hungry readers! I promise an interview with the legendary chef Philip Cripps in the near future and we'll talk about his skills at turning out free-range scotch eggs, French quiches, and the comfort food of all comfort foods, cottage pie.
Okay, I must confess. This package caught my eye in the local grocery, and I snatched it up after having a good giggle. Simply had to share with all of you.
Somehow, though we both speak the same language, American slang has not infiltrated Great Britain's food packaging. :)
How many varieties of olives have you tasted lately? At Borough Market (and plenty of upscale food markets in the US), olive bars offer a range of flavors, from pleasantly mild with a salty essence, to fiery hot and garlicky.
Pitted or whole, olives make a fabulous snack any time of day.
Try a few new flavors today. You might surprise yourself by stepping outside your comfort zone.
In spite of the rain we made our way from the museum to Borough Market today, the greatest single foodie paradise in all of Europe.
For those of you who haven't had the pleasure, imagine this. Acres and acres of gourmet food stands, produce stalls, flower markets, tiny jam and confection shops and open air cafes, tucked beneath the structures of London Bridge. For more than 250 years, Borough Market has brought together the best of the best of small European farms, bakeries, cheese producers, fishmongers, butchers and more. Heaven on earth!
My destination today was clear when we arrived at the market. To find Real France Fine Foods and purchase some of the best salt known to chefs: fleur de sel.
My bonus: discovering a delectable treat in Real France's unpasteurised butter with crispy sea salt. When biting into a piece of baguette spread with the butter, a first taste will reveal a creamy texture. Then, as the butter begins to melt, tiny salt crystals add a new dimension of flavor. It is spectacular!
I also indulged in thick wedges of their salted and unsalted butter, cut fresh from the block. Next visit I'll be certain to buy a Chabichou du Poitou, a creamy goat's milk cheese in a natural rind made in the Poitou-Charentes region of France.
For lunch this afternoon at Black and Blue Restaurant, I had a mixed green salad with pancetta-wrapped grilled goat cheese over sliced campari tomatoes. It seems to me that the Chabichou would be perfect served this way, accented by just a touch of balsamic and olive oil, and of course, fleur de sel.
But my true goal for today was the salt. Fleur de sel is delicate, melts easily and seasons to perfection. It is highly prized by chefs. To read an article about how Real France's Noirmoutier fleur de sel is harvested, visit my website, www.michellecooks.com.
As a passionate cook, I keep two bowls next to my stove at all times: a bowl of fleur de sel for finishing the flavors of my dishes, and my "proprietary" blend of seasonings that evoke the essence of herbes de Provence. Real France has taken my two standby seasonings and combined the two treats into one with an herbes de Provence sea salt. Can you see me smiling?
Like I said, Borough Market and its vendors - foodie heaven on earth!
Posts
Hoo Hing
During the recent Thames Valley Women's British American Bunco Night in Marlow, we were all treated to a fabulous Mexican feast by the mutli-talented Chef Alejandra Cerrillo. I was honored to lend a hand in the kitchen to prepare the meal, and to serve the incredible food to delighted guests.
At home last night, I tackled the Ma Pos Bean Curd with great success, and adapted the Singapore Fried Noodles to include pork mince. The family loved it!
My finds for the day: two sizes of white porcelain lidded terrines ready to be filled with my herb butter and country pate.
In Spring through early Autumn, Garsons offers pick-your-own fields of strawberries, raspberries, asparagus, runner beans and sunflowers. 
Over in the Jubilee Market, Roger of Villanova carved us slim layers of Prosciutto Sardo di Desulo, and in the Middle Market butchers at the Ginger Pig sliced made-to-order veal chops just for our dinner. A glass of mulled wine, a study of ready-to-be-plucked-and-cooked birds, and a quick run to the Utobeer shop and Flour Station Bakery and we were on our way to cook and savor all night. What a wonderful feast to share with friends!
In the grand dining room, the table was set with crystal and exquisite china. The classic table setting for formal occasions was as appropriate in centuries past as it is now - elegance defined. And it seems that every era craves sweets.
To find out more about The Warren and its sister pubs in Maidenhead and Reading, visit www.thewarrenwokingham.co.uk.
The staff is friendly and charming, and the service impeccable. While we visited the tiny shop, the aroma of slow-simmered beef and vegetables filled the space, triggering an amazing burst of hunger. Known for its meat pies, Green's makes a wide assortment of the delectable pastries and sells more than 1000 each week. Since most top-crust pies are similar in appearance, Green's uses a clever code to tell them apart- they label each pie with pastry initials to identify the contents.
But the pies are warm and ready to eat now, and my kitchen smells beyond good.
lt, tiny salt crystals add a new dimension of flavor. It is spectacular!
my website, www.michellecooks.com.
