Char siu literally means “fork roasted” – this name comes the two-pronged skewer that the pork is traditionally roasted on. The sweet and savoury roasted pork is succulent that leaves fingers craved to be sucked on and lips to be smacked (yes, I’m still talking about char siu). There’s a classic Chinese saying that states, “The versatility of char siu and its appearance in 80% of chinese dishes is comparable to the vast array of film character portrayed by Kevin Spacey.” Well, no; Chinese people don’t actually say that, I just made that up… but you know what I mean.
Maintaining this temple of a body takes hard work. Recently I’ve been trying to be more conscious of what I eat and begun to take credit for working out, when in reality, the “consciousness” I’m keeping is in fact trying to stay awake after my meal and my pre-meal work out entails walking back towards the car so that I can double beep the remote to make sure my doors are locked.
Ahuntsic / CartiervilleChinatownCote-des-NeigesListMile-end/Plateau Mont-RoyalMontreal westParc ExtensionRosemontSaint MichelSaint-ÉdouardVille MarieVille St. LaurentVillerayWest-island
Montreal Asian Grocery Store Round Up
by Jason
written by Jason
A friend of mine once asked me for a fried rice recipe and I gave them my trusty chicken fried rice with gai lan recipe. I followed up with them the next day to see how it went and they said it was good, but something was different. They asked me what “gai lan” was and I explained to them that it was Chinese broccoli. They said that they weren’t able to find it at their local grocery store and used regular fleurette broccoli and that by using soy sauce, would rationalize it as being “Chinese“. After I stopped pounding my head against the wall, I tried to figure out if the problem was my friends or the fact that I didn’t specify where to get the ingredients… especially after I found out that their pantry soy sauce was the kosher-gluten-free variety.
I would love to say that this recipe for mapo tofu is a secret family recipe, passed on from generation to generation… but it’s not. My mom has a version of this dish that she makes for her grandkids that is more mild, less spicy and child friendly that she has adopted as her own signature recipe. “Mapo” translates to a name you call your grandmother. I grew up eating this dish and up until I was older and saw this dish listed on a restaurant menu, I thought this dish was something specific to our family; without an official name having calling it “grandma’s tofu” all this time. Adapting my mom’s recipe, I’ve developed this version that’s a spicier, a bit more authentic and true to a traditional typical szechuan dish.
Do you like dim sum? Of course you do, what kind of monster doesn’t like dim sum; the ritual of lining up on Sunday mornings at your favourite dim sum house, listening to aunties sing the contents of their steamers in a memorized song as their push their carts along a predetermined carpet-worn circuit. If waking up early on a Sunday morning isn’t your thing, but dumplings are, I’ve got a recipe for pork and shrimp shu mai that’s going to knock your groggy weekend socks off and scare the Sunday morning breath of out your mouth.
You’ve probably walked past this on numerous occasions the last time you were in Chinatown stocking up on your yearly quota of chocolate Pocky, or going for dim sum. To the uninitiated, the bbq stand might look intimidating with its glass window showcasing various roasted and barbecued meats glistening under the heat lamps and the lineup of old Asian aunties yelling, talking loudly, clambering to make sure they cop the right bird that looks plumpest or the perfect piece of char siu that is both fatty and lean. To help you navigate this uncharted delicious roasted terrain, here is my definitive guide to the Chinese bbq stand.
Do you like pork buns? Of course you do, they’re all the rage and are so hot right now. If you can’t make it out to your nearest momofuku to cop these really inexpensive porky treats at super inflated prices, I’ve got a solutions for you, make your own! My recipe for braised pork belly baos (buns) with ginger-scallion oil is super simple, a fraction of the price of what you would pay at a restaurant and a lot more authentic… somewhat.
You know that saying, “dress for the job you want, and not the job you have”? I’ve taken this adage and directed it towards food, “eat where you want to be, and not where you are.” Want to feel like you’re eating at an authentic “dai pai dong” in Hong Kong, hit up Sai Gwan in Chinatown, or a tiny little cevicheria on the beach of some sexy latin speaking country, try Ceviches. With the fucking weather we’ve had and going into our 8th month of winter, I needed something that would evoke feelings of being on a cobblestoned lined street kissed by an ocean breeze with smells of charcoal grills filling the air.
We are finally at that time of the year when the spring thaw releases the cold clutch of old man winter’s grip over the city and when we welcome the warm weather by abusing our pancreases into producing more insulin for the litres of maple syrup we ingest. Like clock work, hungry hoards of people rush to make their cabane à sucre reservations to indulge in a Quebecois tradition of jumping in their car, driving 45 mins outside the city, see some animals and fall into a catatonic, sugar induced baked bean and bacon lust coma. Classic sugar shacks are common, but uncommon are the ones located right in the city, especially the ones that offer a unique contemporary spin of this timely maple season tradition.
Every year Montreal hosts one of the world’s biggest winter festivals, Montreal en Lumiere, attracting close to a million people – visitors and locals alike – to bask in the winter wonders that Montreal has to offer. From inviting some of the world’s best chefs to take part in the gastronomy program of the festival, to highlighting the arts and music that acclimate to an all night bash in the Quartier des spectacles, for two whole weeks in the dead of winter, we Montrealers party with our snow pants on.