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What I Ate: November 27, 2010

Posted 9 December, 2010 at 7:06pm by Michael Chu
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Dinner: Tina made rotini pasta with roasted broccoli and prosciutto.
Rotini pasta with roasted broccoli and prosciutto

What I Ate: November 26, 2010 (Costco)

Posted 9 December, 2010 at 2:14am by Michael Chu
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Lunch: Costco Carne Asada Bake. It's new, so I had to try it. It's better than the chicken bake, but still too doughy and too cheesy for me (by the time I got to the final few bites, I just couldn't eat anymore).
Costco - Carne Asada Bake

Dinner: Microwaved Pork Tamales
Microwaved Pork Tamales

What I Ate: November 25, 2010 (Thanksgiving)

Posted 7 December, 2010 at 11:00pm by Michael Chu
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Dinner: Since it was just the three of us (Tina, me and Tina's dad), I decided to just cook a couple of turkey thighs instead of a whole bird. (Truthfully, I wasn't even planning on doing a Thanksgiving dinner since I was too busy to even think about Thanksgiving until two days before. Definitely, no time to buy and thaw a turkey, so getting turkey thighs was the best option.) I brined the thighs in a salt solution of 1 gallon water with 1/3 cup salt and a few tablespoons of lime juice for about 10 hours (in the refrigerator). After rinsing, I vacuum sealed the thighs with salt, pepper, thyme, and a tablespoon of butter each. I then cooked them sous vide at 80°C (176#176;F) for five hours to break down as much connective tissue as I could. After that, I took them out of the bag to air dry and poured the resulting liquid into a pan to make into a gravy. The thighs were finished in the convection oven at 500°F (260°C) for about 10 minutes - enough to brown and crisp up the skins.
Sous Vide Turkey Thighs

In addition to the turkey thighs, we steamed the rest of the frozen Alaskan King crab legs we had in the deep freeze.
Steamed Alaskan King Crab legs

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What I Ate: November 25, 2010 (Thanksgiving)

What I Ate: November 24, 2010 (The Best Wurst)

Posted 7 December, 2010 at 12:02am by Michael Chu
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Lunch: Leftover lamb shank and roasted potatoes
Leftover Lamb Shank and Roasted Potatoes

Dinner: We had a craving for The Best Wurst and headed back downtown (this time much earlier in the evening). We shared a Smoked Italian Sausage sandwich and a Bratwurst sandwich. I have to say that it's not the same eating sausage sandwiches just before 10pm versus at 3am when everyone on the street is stumbling around and drunk.
The Best Wurst - Bratwurst Sandwich and Smoked Italian Sausage Sandwich

What I Ate: November 23, 2010 (Subway, Five Guys Burger)

Posted 5 December, 2010 at 11:31pm by Michael Chu
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Lunch: Subway Oven Roasted Chicken Sandwich
Subway - Oven Roasted Chicken Breast on Italian Herbs and Cheese

Dinner: Little Bacon Cheeseburger with the works and jalapeno peppers
Five Guys Burger - Little Bacon Cheeseburger with Jalapenos

What I Ate: November 22, 2010 (Taco Cabana, Schlotzsky's)

Posted 5 December, 2010 at 2:55am by Michael Chu
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Lunch: I ate leftover fried rice and drunken chicken from Pao's Mandarin House for lunch.
Leftover Pao's Mandarin House Food

Dinner: We needed a quick dinner before a movie, so we tried to get some food at Taco Cabana. I ordered their new street tacos (three small beef tacos) and Tina got a beef burrito. We disliked the food so much we left most of it and found another source of fast food.
Taco Cabana - Street Tacos with Chips and Queso

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What I Ate: November 22, 2010 (Taco Cabana, Schlotzsky's)

What I Ate: November 21, 2010 (Pao's Mandarin House)

Posted 3 December, 2010 at 5:47pm by Michael Chu
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Lunch: After church, we took my parents to eat at Pao's Mandarin House (2300 Lohmans Spur # 134, Lakeway, TX (512) 263-8869) in Lakeway.

First we were "greeted" by a waiter who clearly did not want to be there. What actually happened was that the waiter was doing something at the front counter with his back to us (not turning after hearing the door bell ring as we entered). Then he finished what he was doing and glanced at us briefly as he turned to walk back to the table he was handling. We then waited for him to do whatever it was he was doing (it would have been nice for him to say, "wait" or something to acknowledge we existed) before he came back and asked us brusquely in Chinese "How many?" then plopped us at a small four top (we had four in our party) which wouldn't be enough space for Chinese people to eat family style (it would be enough if everyone ordered one of those Americanized Chinese lunch combination plates, but not large enough to share food. There were only 3 placesettings (flatware placed directly on the oil streaked table surface) so he came back and practically slammed the extra fork and spoon on the table. My thought was - oh, our waiter was trained at Din Ho BBQ… anyway, we asked to be moved to a larger table and the waiter said he didn't want to earlier since there was a large party in the other room where the bigger tables were and thought the waitress wouldn't be able to handle it.

Yang Chow Fried Rice - came with stale ham. First of all, why is ham in there? Second, well - it was stale… gone bad… made the thing taste like crap. Sent it back; asked for it without the pork. They brought it back and said they remade it with fresh ham. It was edible, but not a good example of Yang Chow Fried Rice. They also brought us a pitiful tiny dish (2-in diameter) of dried bean curd and anchovies (a classic Chinese small plate) on the house as an apology - to bad it just made them look stingy and didn't taste good.
Pao's Mandarin House - Yang Chow Fried Rice
Pao's Mandarin House - Dried Bean Curd and Anchovies
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What I Ate: November 21, 2010 (Pao's Mandarin House)

What I Ate: November 20, 2010 (Fortune Seafood Chinese Restaurant)

Posted 3 December, 2010 at 1:08am by Michael Chu
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Dinner: My father cooked his specialty - mian ge da which is like a hand cut noodle soup where the noodles/dough is often compared to spaetzle.
Mian Ge Da

We also had zucchini…
Sauteed Zucchini

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What I Ate: November 20, 2010 (Fortune Seafood Chinese Restaurant)

What I Ate: November 19, 2010

Posted 1 December, 2010 at 10:29pm by Michael Chu
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Lunch: Nong Shim Seafood Ramyun with mushrooms and Napa cabbage. We also each had a 65°C egg with our ramen.
Nong Shim Seafood Ramyun with Napa Cabbage and Mushrooms

Dinner: Alaskan King Crab, baked sweet potato, sauteed turnip greens, and mashed potatoes.
Alaskan King Crab, baked sweet potato, sauteed turnip greens, and mashed potatoes

What I Ate: November 18, 2010 (Sous Vide Lamb Shanks)

Posted 30 November, 2010 at 10:32pm by Michael Chu
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Dinner: I made sous vide lamb shanks. The shanks were seasoned with salt, pepper, rosemary, and thyme then sealed in a vacuum bag and cooked sous vide at 74°C (165&176;F) for about 18 hours. I made a gravy by cooking carrots, onion, and celery with butter and chicken broth and thickening with a roux.
Sous Vide Lamb Shanks

We served it along with cornbread which Tina made.
Cornbread

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What I Ate: November 18, 2010 (Sous Vide Lamb Shanks)

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