Honey + Miso chicken...

I think my obsession with leeks has overtaken my obsession with brussel sprouts. >.<

Didn't wanna let the giant leek stalks go to waste so I thought I'd make some chicken out of it since I still had a ton of miso leftover (and tomatoes as u can tell). I made the same thing in CA for that giant post-xmas dinner w/ the famiglia except I used a honey miso soy sauce marinade/glaze. Ran out of soy sauce (incredible fail as an asian, I know!) but I still had my fish sauce HEHE!! Didn't do too much with the fish sauce tho except to season the leeks b/f i dropped in the chicken.

we also had some salad--the dressing was sesame whatever mixed with the juices from when i sauteed my spinach in garlic with some tomatoes and fish sauce (not shown). YUMMAAAAY!

Again, I don't...really...measure much when I cook. It's just straight eyeballin' and in my head so..here it is!:

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Honey-miso marinaded chicken!...

1. cube chicken breasts (big chunks--1-2 inches?)
2. drizzle honey over it--just enough to splatter most of the chicken but not cover EVERY inch. drizzle like u would olive oil cruet.
3. 1 tablespoon-ish for every couple pieces of chicken breast...granted i kind of add as i go along, but i always mean to start with a generous tablespoon (heaping really).
4. massage that sh*t in! i like using my hands when i have to marinade with oils and meats--always feels really productive and visceral and connected to ur foods i feel...
5. saute garlic and leeks (and i threw an a$$load of leeks cut thin in there!) olive oil or butter (or if u will a combo of both to get the taste and...unsaturated goodness--btw i've been meaning to switch out of using olive oil b/c it's a heavy/flavored oil and the italians only dress with it and not actually cook anything in it and use sunflower seed oil insead but i haven't found the right alternative =/)
6. pour in the marinaded chicken (it doesn't need to sit too long to season the chicken bits) and let it cook on med high heat w/o turning it for about 1-2 min? then toss all around. throw in some tomatoes just towards the end so that it wrinkls and maybe chars the peel a little--then put a lid on the whole thing to let steam it thru--maybe 2 min like that?
   

Vietnamese food = LOVE...

I broke my canon. Again. But I got these in before I broke it. again. :)

This is a soup-y thing that's not really soup. It's not stew either. It's called "canh cua rau day vuoi muop". This, apparently, when translated into English is soup with crab, jute/salyot leaves, and luffa squash. *shrug*. Alls I know is, it's kind of like spinach and zucchini--except in the broth, it ends up being a little viscous when cooked. The crab is just lump meat more or less nothing exciting. Either way, delicious--and apparently Jute leaves/saluyot is also eaten in Egypt/West Africa. *Shrug*.

Beats me. Either way, the nice thing about "canh" is you can eat it alone, or depending on which region of Vietnam, u can also eat it with your rice and rest of the meal allllllll mixed in together. I was eating it with my all time fave--ca phao mam tom. Ca = eggplant--but in this case it's usually pickled baby eggplanst, hence them being so round and poifect! It's occasionally picked in regular ol' brine type stuffs, or in this case, with a little shrimp paste and chili. Shrimp paste: if only you bastards knew how freakin' AWESOME it is--just never mind the initial...aroma. *shakes fist!* :) This is a "northern" vietnam kinda meal...YAAAAAY. Comfort food like u don't even KNOOOOW. [for me it's also canh chua ca thi la-- sweet & sour soup with steamed tilapia and thyme/dill, trung duc (which is a little like a frittata), and I dunno. banh cuon (crepes type thing)].

and then there are the fruits: this one is a rambutan--kinda like a lychee, and kinda not.

It comes completely covered in that red/tentacled little casing-- my mom tends to do this whole cut it in half make it look pretty on a plate kinda thing. *ah* l'amour. This was dinner for Xmas eve. Shame no place in NYC or a lot of vietnamese ventures don't get down home like this and dilutes the menu, or rather, cater to the masses by doing solely pho or whatever french influenced (cubed beef) crap that overshadows the fantastic freshness and flavors that is Vietnamese food. One day...wocka wocka wocka!