Recipe: Easy Tomato Soup

JUMP TO RECIPE >>

As much as I wish it did, soup season does not correspond with tomato season. But it turns out, that’s okay! Because my favorite recipe for tomato soup—one that tastes rich and velvety without any cream and is full of tomato flavor—uses canned tomatoes! Reliable and super-duper easy to make at any time of year, all you need is good canned tomatoes, a blender, and a few other basic ingredients to make that classic tomato soup that goes oh-so-well with a good grilled cheese sandwich (or topped with grilled cheese sandwich croutons)!

Blender soups are obviously my favorite soups to make because they are just so damn easy. And for this recipe, there is something about the onions and butter getting blended together that gives this tomato soup a great creamy texture without pushing the soup into bisque territory. And with a touch of my secret ingredient—fish sauce—to bring some extra umami, it will taste like this soup simmered in a grandma’s kitchen all day when it really takes hardly any time at all to make.

Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make my recipe for this easy tomato soup:

• canned tomatoes: I’ve made this with various brands of canned tomatoes and I am always happy with the results but I will usually go for the San Marzano or San Marzano style tomatoes because they are more dense and have a better tomato flesh to seed ratio. Also note that tomatoes that are packed in puree or a thick puree-like tomato juice will obviously render a thicker, more flavorful soup that the ones where the tomatoes are packed in water. This means you will have to adjust the water-to-tomato ratio a bit as you make the soup, to get the consistency that is to your liking. (After watching this in-depth review of canned tomato brands by Ethan Chlebowski, I typically get the brand Cento.)

• butter: Salted or unsalted is fine. Since canned tomatoes typically come with a considerable amount of salt, there’s not need to fuss over whether your butter has salt in it or not either. This is a recipe where you are going to want to taste for seasoning while you go.

• onion: If I’m lucky enough to find sweet onions at the grocery store, I like to use them when making this soup. But I’ve also made this with regular red onions or yellow onions; any of these will do perfectly well here.

• garlic: Gotta have a little garlic in tomato soup! I usually do about 6 cloves because I love garlic.

• fish sauce: The (not so) secret ingredient! I add fish sauce to any tomato-based soup or sauce I make because I think it really adds an extra depth of flavor and brings out the tomato-y flavors. It will not taste fishy but it will taste delicious.

This soup may be amazingly easy to make but it’s also quite presentable with the help of some little finishing touches. Look at what a glorious blank, vibrant red canvas awaits you below! Some leaves of fresh basil, a drizzle of good olive oil, some cracks of black pepper, or even a little swirl of crème fraîche would make this soup as a much a treat for the eyes as the taste buds.

If you wanna get really crazy, make your favorite version of a grilled cheese and cut it up into little cubes to top your tomato soup with grilled cheese croutons. For the image at the top of this recipe, I made mine with sourdough, white cheddar, gruyere, and a drizzle of sriracha, and used herbed butter to toast/fry it up in the pan.

Note: This recipe makes 2 generous portions that are enough for meals in my household when paired with grilled cheese sandwiches.

How to Make Easy Tomato Soup

Ingredients

4 tbsp (1/2 stick) butter
1 medium onion, peeled and cut into rough wedges
4–6 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
28 oz can of whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes
water
1/2–2 tsp fish sauce (or to taste)

Optional Garnish Ideas

fresh basil leaves
cracked black pepper
chives
crème fraîche
extra virgin olive oil
parmesan cheese
grilled cheese croutons

Special Equipment

blender

Procedure

In a Dutch oven or study medium-sized pot, gently melt butter on medium-low heat. Add onions and sweat them until they start to become translucent. Add garlic and turn heat down to low, stirring regularly until it becomes fragrant and loses its raw bite but doesn’t brown. Transfer to a blender.

Add the can of tomatoes, including the liquid/puree. Fill the can a quarter of the way with water (about 7–8 ounces) and slosh around to incorporate any remaining tomato residue from the can; add this to the blender as well.

Set the blender to liquify all the ingredients together then return everything to the pot on low heat. If the soup seems too thick, add a small amount of water at a time to get the desired consistency.

Stir in 1/2 teaspoon of fish sauce and then taste for seasoning. There’s a possibility that if you had a lot of salt in your canned tomatoes and/or you used salted butter so you won’t need to season any further. If needed, continue to add fish sauce, a little bit at a time, until the seasoning is to your liking. You won’t need to cook down this soup much after it comes out of the blender, so be sure to taste it at that point and add seasoning to your preference.

Keep the soup on low heat, stirring occasionally, until it’s hot all the way through and starting to bubble or simmer. At this point, it’s ready to serve. Top with your desired toppings and enjoy!

How To Make Perfect Jammy Eggs

I am pretty sure the term “jammy eggs” is a term that only exists on Instagram. It is used to describe when the yolk of a boiled egg still has a ways to go before becoming the dry, chalky grossness called for in old-school deviled egg recipes, but it holds together much better than a completely runny or raw yolk. There’s a supple, gooey, almost gelatinous look and consistency to the yolks in this in-between zone, and that’s why they end up getting called jammy eggs.

But there is more to the perfect jammy egg (I’ve also seen them sometimes referred to as soft-boiled egg) than getting the texture of the yolk just right. There’s also the look of the egg as a whole when you cut into it. Even if your timing is perfect for cooking the egg to get that jammy yolk consistency, there are still things that can prevent your egg from being picture-perfect, such as a yolk that is completely off to one side, a big air bubble causing the shape to look completely wonky, or a bunch of the egg white getting stuck to the shell when you try to peel it.

I’ve made a lot of eggs for the ‘gram over the past few years. A lot of this is largely thanks to my ongoing partnership with Pete & Gerry’s who have been a wonderful supporter and sponsor of my work. (This blog post is NOT sponsored but I can honestly say their eggs are delicious and gorgeous, and that very lovely people work at the company.) But making eggs for sponsored work or a client shoot means even more pressure to get them to look perfect, which can be stressful for shooting a food preparation where so much can go wrong. So after cooking probably several dozen eggs in this style, I can share all that I have learned to set all the rest of you up for success in your future egg-making ventures too!

Phase 1: Choosing What Eggs to Use for the Best Looking Jammy Eggs

• Use good-quality eggs that are fresh from the grocery store. (I have not used eggs directly from the body of a chicken before so can’t attest to the nuances of eggs that fresh.) There is info online about how the shells will be harder to peel off when the eggs are fresher, but I’ll address how to overcome this in Phase 3.

  • What happens if you skip this tip: You want fresher eggs because the air bubble inside of them will be smaller, resulting in a nicer boiled egg shape. Over time, due to moisture loss within the egg, the air bubble at the wider end of the egg gets bigger. Using an old egg will result in the boiled egg having a big crater in the bottom, because the big air bubble prevents the egg white from fully taking on the shape of the egg shell.

Phase 2: Boiling the eggs

• Step 1: Use a safety pin to poke a hole in the wider end of each egg. This allows airflow in and out of the egg and can also help mitigate the impact of the air bubble inside the egg on the shape of the final result. Keep the eggs out on the counter to bring them closer to room temp after this step.

  • What happens if you skip this tip: Pressure can build up as the contents of the egg get heated in the boiling water. This could cause the egg to crack and some of the white to leak out, ruining your perfect boiled egg shape.

• Step 2: Bring a pot of water to boil on high heat. Make sure there’s enough depth to fully submerge the eggs. While you’re waiting, you could also get an ice bath ready for the end.

• Step 3: Gently lower the eggs into the boiling water. Set your timer according to the guide below:

  • 6.5 minutes: Fully set whites and runny yolks. Perfect for ramen.

  • 7 minutes: Jammy yolk consistency on the outer parts of the yolk, liquid gold right in the middle

  • 7.5 minutes: Perfect jammy yolk consistency throughout

  • 8 minutes: Jammy yolks that aren’t going anywhere. Perfect for tamago sandos like the one shown above.

• Step 4: Keep the eggs moving! Use a slotted spoon to continuously spin the eggs around their own axes as well as occasionally lift them out of the water and immediately lower them back in. Do this for the entire cook time. The centrifugal motion will keep the yolk positioned nicely as the egg white cooks, and lifting the egg in and out might help with reducing the impact of that pesky air bubble (if the eggs are relatively fresh).

  • What happens if you skip this tip: The yolk will settle in the egg before the egg white has had a chance to cook/solidify. When you cut it open, you will find that the yolk is in a weird spot and you have an ugly cross-section.

  • Credit to Eat With Your Eyes Closed for teaching me about egg yolk centrifuge.

• Step 5: When the timer is up immediately transfer the eggs into an ice bath to stop the cooking. Move them around for a bit to really allow the heat to disperse and get the eggs to cool down.

Phase 3: Cooling and Peeling the Eggs

You could cook the eggs perfectly and still end up with ugly eggs if you don’t get this post-production phase right. If you followed Phase 1 correctly and used store-fresh eggs, they can be notoriously hard to peel, resulting in frustration and little bits of egg white (and all your hopes and dreams of a perfect-looking egg) being lost. Patience and cooling time are the keys to doing this phase right.

• After your eggs are cool to the touch from resting in the ice bath, gently knock them against each other or a countertop to make little hairline fractures in the shells. I like to grasp the egg and encircle it with my palm when I do this, to help support the egg structure.

• Especially concentrate on creating fracture lines at the wider bottom of the shell. Due to that air bubble, it will be easiest to start on this end anyway when you peel.

• Place the unpeeled eggs in a bowl of cold water and put them in the fridge. Let them continue to chill for as long as you can, up to overnight! The cold temperature will cause things to shrink inside the shell and water will seep in between the cooked egg and the shell, creating separation.

• When it is time to peel, start from that wider end and go gently and slowly, continuing to fracture the shell into little pieces as you go, rather than trying to peel off a big chunk at once.

  • What happens if you skip these tips: The egg white may stick to the shell!

Phase 4: Enjoying the Eggs!

Now you are ready to take photos of your eggs if you so choose, but more importantly, you are ready to eat them! Below is some inspiration for how to incorporate jammy eggs into your meals. I hope you found this blog post helpful, and I wish you eggcellent jammy eggs in your future!

How I Make Crispy Smashed Potatoes

JUMP TO RECIPE >>

Smashed potatoes have become one of my favorite formats of potatoes in my life. And they are super easy to make, though—like all good things—they do take a little bit of time. First you have to boil the potatoes until they are completely soft, then you smash them to expose some fluffy creaminess from inside, and then you roast them until their the paper thin skins and the craggy surfaces created by smashing get browned and crispy. I didn’t realize until I started making these that even though I eat a lot of potatoes, I rarely eat them in a way where I can truly taste the pure flavor of the potato itself. In the photo above there are mini red skinned potatoes and purple ones. Spouse and I found that while we enjoyed every potato on the tray, there was something about the red skinned potatoes that had a little bit of extra something in their natural flavor that we preferred over the little purple ones. I encourage you to get whatever types of tiny potatoes you can find and try making this recipe with them, to see if you can taste a difference—for science.

Below is my recipe for how I make my smashed potatoes, which have become a go-to side or snack on many an occasion in my household. Some suggestions for how to enjoy them are:

• Top them with little dollops of my creamy garlicky whipped feta dip, crispy bacon, and fresh herbs like in the photo above

• Use them in place of croutons for an epic salad, like my BLT salad recipe

• Make them for a breakfast in place of homefries or tater tots; bonus points if you drizzle them with chili crisp

To season the potatoes shown here, I used Spice Tribe’s Haitian-inspired Mama Manje blend and this made the house smell SO GOOD while the potatoes were baking, so I definitely recommend this blend. (I received this product as part of a paid partnership with Spice Tribe but this recipe is not sponsored and I gladly use their products in my everyday cooking). This blend does not contain any salt, so I have control over how much salt I add to the potatoes. However, you can use whatever seasoning blend you want; just check to see if it has salt and avoid oversalting if it does. For herbs, I used chopped chives, oregano, and lemon thyme, but you can use whatever fresh herbs you love; potatoes are great with pretty much anything, after all! The flower petals are dianthus from my garden; they are safe to eat but really there for the aesthetics.

How to Make Crispy Smashed Potatoes

Ingredients

1 pound mini potatoes
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt, divided, plus more to taste
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
1/2 tsp low-sodium or salt-free spice blend*

*I like to use Spice Tribe’s Mama Manje blend or Fly by Jing’s Mala Spice Mix.

Procedure

Add cleaned potatoes to a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and add 1 teaspoon of salt.

In the meantime, preheat the oven to 450°F.

Continue boiling potatoes until very soft and a fork pokes through with no resistance, about 20–25 minutes. Drain and allow to cool slightly.

In a large mixing bowl, combine potatoes, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste), and the spice blend of your choice. Toss to coat the potatoes in the oil and spices.

Dump the potatoes and any excess oil/seasoning onto a large sheet pan. Use the back of a fork to gently press down and smash the potatoes. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil.

Bake for 25 minutes or until you notice some browning on the fluffy parts.

My Lazy Caesar Salad Dressing Recipe

JUMP TO RECIPE >>

Call me basic but I am a sucker for a good caesar salad. I know all about how the dramatic tableside-tossed caesar salad spectacle was invented in Mexico but to me, the best caesar salads are the ones that are served up at nice pizza spots—they have to be good so that people actually enjoy eating them instead of just ordering them out of obligation to have something leafy and green to go with their pizza. I love the ones where a nice, thick, anchovy-based dressing is evenly coating every lettuce leaf before being dusted in freshly grated parmesan cheese, and I actually look forward to them just as much as I look forward to the pizza!

The original caesar salad dressing allegedly wasn’t all that thick and didn’t even contain anchovies, but for once, I have to argue that time and adaptations have improved the recipe. So, the dressing I’m paying tribute to here is the modern version that most Americans are probably more familiar with nowadays.

The bottled caesar salad dressings from the grocery store just don’t cut it for me, though. They just don’t have the same special umami. So, I always make my own. But keep in mind that I am really quite lazy. Salads are a go-to for weekday lunches at my place but in those instances I am most definitely not busting out a mortar and pestle for pounding an anchovy paste nor any sort of food processor/immersion blender to make a thick emulsion, nor do I wish to clean any of those instruments thereafter. So, this is my lazy cheater version of a caesar salad dressing that I am willing to throw together on weekdays, and I finally really tried to get the measurements right so I could share it with you.

The secret ingredient in my cheater caesar dressing recipes is fish sauce. It’s my secret ingredient in a lot of recipes, really, but I don’t think it could be any more fitting than in this one. After all, caesar dressing gets its distinct umami undercurrent from salted anchovies getting turned into a paste—fish sauce is exactly that same flavor in convenient bottled liquid form! I thought I was pretty dang clever when I first came up with this hack.

Rather than having to worry about combining egg and oil just right to create a thick emulsion, my other cheat is to use yogurt to get a nice thick dressing. Some recipes use a jarred mayo, but yogurt is perhaps a bit healthier (and less off-putting for mayo haters like my spouse). I always have some Greek yogurt in my fridge, and including it in any dressing guarantees a nice creamy and thick consistency. The resulting dressing does not taste identical to the kind I love at nice pizza joints but rather like a good yogurty version of it. For quick weekday lunches, it does the trick and is plenty tasty!

To make the salad shown in the photos, I tossed baby gems lettuce leaves with enough dressing to thinly and evenly coat the leaves and then tossed the dressed leaves with lots and lots of freshly grated parm. I made crispy prosciutto by baking twisted up slices of prosciutto on a parchment-lined tray at 425°F for 10 minutes. Then, I made grilled cheese sandwich with a cheddar and gruyere blend and cut it up into 1-inch cubes to use as croutons. A sprinkle of chopped chives and more grated parm were the finishing touches.

How I Make My Lazy Caesar Salad Dressing

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic, pressed or microplaned
3 tbsp lemon juice (from about 1 lemon)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp fish sauce
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp Greek yogurt
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Procedure

Combine the garlic, lemon juice, vinegar, fish sauce, yogurt, and mustard in a bowl. Whisk thoroughly to combine. Add the olive oil and pepper and whisk again until homogenous. Finally, add the parmesan cheese and whisk thoroughly once again.

(This recipe makes enough dressing for 4–6 two-person meal salads. Add dressing to prepared lettuce leaves one tablespoon at a time and toss thoroughly after each addition until leaves are evenly and thinly coated. Then toss dressed leaves with extra freshly grated parmesan to taste. Serve with chunky croutons on top, or go crazy and add whatever you like!)

How I Make Roasted Tomatoes (in the Winter)

JUMP TO RECIPE >>

I miss tomato season. Seeing piles of heirloom tomatoes at the store and being able to pop down to my backyard to pull off ripe cherry tomatoes from the vine brings me unparalleled joy. But when we’re in the dregs of winter and the piles of (albeit pretty) citrus and root veg are just not cutting it for me, I get my tomato fix by roasting them to concentrate what flavors those crummy winter tomatoes grown who-knows-where have to offer. I go to Costco and get a few big containers of them so I can make a big batch; in past years they’ve been roma tomatoes but this year they had camparis, which looked surprisingly red and vibrant.

The purpose of this post is to share with you how I roast tomatoes in the winter. I am sure there are other ways to do it but I started doing this years and years ago and I have always been thrilled with the results so I haven’t bothered to experiment with other processes. My way—and here’s your warning—takes a bit of time and can get pretty messy. But think of it as a metamorphosis because this process will take your sad, bland, mealy off-season tomatoes and transform them into delicate morsels of concentrated tomato flavor, a little sweet and tangy like the best ripe tomato and with a silky, rich mouthfeel from mingling with all that good extra virgin olive oil. Their flavor is very similar to sun-dried tomatoes but of course they are soft and juicy instead of hard and wrinkly.

There are no measurements for this recipe because it’s the technique that’s important. Season things conservatively to your taste and let the concentrated tomato flavor be the star. Keep in mind that the tomatoes will really shrink down as they get rid of their excess moisture; about 4–6 pounds of tomatoes ends up being only one pint jar full of these glorious bursts of flavor.

The key to my method (and what makes it messy) is having the tomato slices spend some time on a hot griddle before they go into the oven. There will be oil splatter. But not only does this allow them to get a bit of sear right away but more critically, it causes the tomatoes to release their excess water, which you can then drain away (and use in pasta sauce) before placing the slices on a baking tray for roasting. Otherwise, you would end up with tomato slices poaching or simmering in their own juices instead of allowing their flavors to get concentrated by way of roasting.

I like to line my largest metal baking trays with foil for easy clean-up before I add the tomatoes. I’ve read that you are not supposed to cook tomatoes or other acidic things on aluminum foil but I have also read that the reaction is not enough to cause any concern. (I’m still alive!) You are welcomed to try your own large, flat baking vessel and an alternative form of protection like parchment paper, but I have not tried these methods and cannot guarantee the same results!

Here is some visual inspiration for how to use the literal fruits of your labor:

How I Make Roasted Tomatoes

Ingredients

4 lbs (or more!) of firm, off-season tomatoes
extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt
a few garlic cloves, thinly sliced
fresh thyme, rosemary, and/or oregano

Procedure

Cut tomatoes lengthwise into 1/2-inch pieces. Drain off any excess juices and seeds.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line large rimmed baking trays with foil for easier clean-up.

Heat a large, flat, non-stick griddle pan on high heat. Drizzle some olive oil across the cooking surface, then add as many tomato slices as will fit in a single layer. Drizzle more olive oil over the tomatoes, and season with a light, even sprinkle of kosher salt. (Note: There will be splatter as the tomatoes release juices that get incorporated with the hot oil.)

After 1–2 minutes, regularly check the tomato slices that are on the hottest part of the pan. When some searing is visible, start carefully flipping the tomato slices. When the other sides begin to sear, transfer tomatoes to lined baking trays. Pour away any excess oil and tomato juices/seeds (but save all this to incorporate into a future pasta dish!). Repeat the griddle process as needed until all the tomato slices have been seared.

Lightly drizzle more olive oil over the tomatoes. Place trays of tomato slices in the preheated oven. Set the oven temperature down to 325°F. Bake for 20 minutes.

Remove the trays from the oven and scatter garlic slices and herbs over the tomatoes. Return trays to the oven for another 30 minutes of baking.

Allow roasted tomato slices to cool and set before transferring to a jar. I like to cover them in olive oil before storing them in the fridge.

My Basic Brined Party Wings Recipe

JUMP TO RECIPE >>

I am now a wing brining covert.

I have been making wings for a long time now, especially getting into it when I noticed that Costco sells these packs of “party wings”. Party wings are the drumnette and flat parts of the chicken wings served as individual segments. It is super convenient for everything to already come as these snackable pieces and not have to deal with the wing tips that most people aren’t that into. In the spirit of these already convenient party wing packs, my past approach had been to keep the whole wing making process as simple as possible, and I thought that surely brining was not worth the hassle.

Recently though, my friend Taleen and I had a crazy impulse-buy moment where we decided to take on the Hot Ones challenge. “Hot Ones” is an interview webseries by First We Feast where celebrities are asked questions while eating progressively spicier wings. Every season involves a different hot sauce lineup for the wings and we bought one of these collections of hot sauces to challenge our spice tolerance. I volunteered to cook the wings, and then our plan was to follow the Covid Era format of the show where everyone participating would dip the wings into the sauce or pour it on to their discretion as we moved down the gauntlet. I really wanted the wings to taste good on their own since I wouldn’t have control over how much sauce everyone at the party would be adding, so I decided to try brining…and wow! I was amazed at how good the wings tasted even without any added sauce or seasoning. I immediately became convinced that the brining made a big difference.

I had looked at a bunch of brining recipes online before trying out the process and they all seemed to involve a horrific amount of salt. I know it becomes totally diluted, but I had had a bad experience with a dry brining recipe before in the past, so I was operating with an abundance of caution. I trusted my instincts and used an amount of salt that did not make me feel uncomfortable, and the wings turned out plenty moist, savory, and flavorful. You can (and probably will) add seasoning or sauce after the wings are cooked, and keep in mind those will add salt to the equation too! Having tested this recipe more since my initial brining revelation, I really am not sure why other recipes need so much salt.

So am I going to be brining my wings from now on? Truthfully, no. If I am planning to immediately coat the wings in something really strong in flavor like a bottled bbq sauce or buffalo wings sauce, these tend to be high in sodium already and my laziness will outweigh the benefits of brining on the juicy interior texture of the wings. But if I’m going to be using a lighter dry seasoning blend or am planning to serve the wings relatively plain with dipping sauces, I’ll definitely be using this brining recipe!

The wings in the photo are salt and pepper wings—inspired by a combination of the Taiwanese popcorn chicken that you get at boba shops and salt and pepper tofu or squid that is found at Cantonese restaurants. After following the steps in the recipe below, I tossed the wings in a seasoning combination of ground Sichuan peppercorns, white pepper, salt, and Chinese five spice (to taste). I then combined the seasoned wings with jalapeño slices, scallions, and fried Thai basil and served them with gochujang crema.

What’s your favorite way to season or sauce up your party wings? Let me know in the comments below!

How I Make Brined Fried Party Wings

Ingredients

~2.5 lbs wing segments, cleaned
2 cups water, room temp
1/4 cup sugar
scant 1/4 cup kosher salt
2 cups water, cold
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
~1 cup cornstarch
3+ cups frying oil (e.g. canola or vegetable)

Procedure

In a small sauce pan, combine 2 cups regular water, sugar, and salt and begin to heat on low. Stir gently until the sugar and salt are completely resolved. Remove from heat. And pour into a very large non-reactive bowl. Add cold water and—if needed—allow to rest until cool to the touch.

Stir in apple cider vinegar and carefully add the wings to the bowl. Place bowl in the refrigerator and allow to brine for at least 3 hours or overnight.

Drain the brined wings and squeeze each one gently with a paper towel to remove excess liquid.

Place 1/2 cup cornstarch in a wide, shallow bowl and coat wings one at a time thoroughly in the cornstarch, making sure each is completely covered, including all the nooks and crannies. Dust off excess cornstarch and place on a dry tray. Continue to add cornstarch to the bowl as needed, and repeat process until all the wings are coated.

Turn on oven to 175°F (or warming setting).

In a Dutch oven, heat 2 inches of oil on high; oil is ready when a tiny pinch of cornstarch sizzles immediately when added. Add a small batch of wings to the hot oil and cook until golden brown, turning occasionally (about 8–10 minutes). Place cooked wings on a large tray in the oven to keep warm. Continue working in small batches to fry the wings.

Once wings are fried, they can be tossed in dry seasoning or sauced to your desire.

How I Make My Mala Chili Oil

JUMP TO RECIPE >>

Here’s my recipe for mala chili oil. Mala means “numbing spicy” and it is the flavor and sensation that is iconic to Sichuan/Szechuan cuisine. This is my go-to process for when I want to make my own chili oil at home!

The ma, or numbing part, comes from what is commonly called “Sichuan peppercorns” in the States, but it is actually the husks that are used in cooking these types of dishes. Sichuan pepper husks are super unique in that they contain a molecule that causes a tingling sensation on your tongue. It is not at all like the feeling of eating a spicy chili, where it burns like your tongue is on fire. Instead, it is a tingling, numbing sensation like when your foot “falls asleep”.

The la, or spicy part, of mala usually comes from adding spicy chili peppers to the dish. I really like the emphasis on the numbing quality in mala dishes, and prefer to get the chili flavors without having it be flaming spicy. So for my chili oil recipe, I use Korean red pepper flakes, or gochugaru. I think these have a nice robust chili flavor but they don’t add that much heat.

I make my chili oil by first combining the gochugaru, salt, and aromatics into a heat-safe bowl. Then I basically steep the sichuan pepper husks in the oil gradually, until they impart their numbing quality into the oil. (Remember to keep in mind that I like mine really numbing!) Then, I pour the hot oil over the chili flakes and aromatics to awaken all of their flavors. The hot oil splatters and bubbles when you pour it on the other ingredients, so be sure to proceed with caution!

This numbing spicy chili oil is great on dumplings, eggs, noodles, and more! Combining it with a little soy sauce and black vinegar turns it into an awesome easy sauce for my hand-torn noodles, or you can see it in use in my Dan Dan Dumplings recipe. I will probably add to this list of recipes in the future, because this chili oil is the foundation of so many ideas I have yet to write down. I hope you love it as much as I do!

How to Make My Special Recipe for Numbing Chili Oil

Ingredients

2 tbsp coarse Chinese or Korean chili flakes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 scallion, thinly sliced
4 tsp pink Sichuan pepper
2 star anise
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup high smoke point neutral oil

Procedure

In a heat-safe bowl, combine chili flakes, garlic, scallions, and salt.

In a small saucepot, combine oil, Sichuan pepper, and star anise. Heat on medium-low heat until the lighter interior parts of the peppercorn husks begin to turn brown, about 4 minutes. Turn off the heat and wait for the pepper to turn fully dark brown, about 1 more minute.

Carefully pour oil through a fine mesh strainer over the ingredients in the bowl. Stir everything in the bowl together and allow to sit for at least 10 minutes (more is recommended) to let the flavors integrate and the garlic cook through.

Recipe: Ginger Scallion Garlic Oil

JUMP TO RECIPE >>

Ginger scallion oil is something I remember my mom making to serve with her chicken rice. I don’t want to call it Hainanese chicken rice because her version was a lot more casual and homestyle and she did not follow the precise poaching method for Hainanese chicken rice. But she would basically boil the whole chicken and cleaver it into smaller pieces for serving with chicken rice and the broth on the side. Occasionally she would make a ginger scallion oil sauce as a condiment and that make the meal so much more exciting. The sharp bite of raw ginger was cooked away but what remained was its fresh spicy flavor; that plus the scallions added just enough flavor boost to the boiled chicken without taking away from the fact that the dish was a celebration of simple flavors.

I tried making my mom’s recipe for her ginger scallion paste, which I, at some point in college, wrote on a little grocery list notepad paper and tucked into my notebook of other handwritten recipes I collected from my mom’s cookbook collection. For some reason, when I made this recipe it didn’t turn out how I remembered. The recipe said to fry the ginger until it was dry, and the result ended up being a bunch of fibrous clumps.

Eventually I experimented with another technique that I had learned while researching how to make chili oil, and encountered again when learning how to make simple sauces for biang biang noodles. In both cases, spices or aromatics are piled up in a bowl and then almost-smoking hot oil is poured on top to bloom them and bring their flavors to life. I tried this approach with the ginger scallion oil idea (adding garlic along the way because damn do I love garlic) and it totally gave me the consistency I wanted. Something you could drizzle over jook, spoon over a plate of chicken rice, or toss with noodles.

In the photo above, my ginger scallion garlic oil is an accompaniment to duck tacos I made from a roast duck that I bought at Yung Kee Restaurant in Oakland Chinatown. Other accompaniments are Asian pear slices tossed in sushi rice seasoning and gochugaru, crispy fried rice noodles, scallions, and cilantro.

How to Make Ginger Scallion Garlic Oil

Ingredients

a big fat 4-inch finger of ginger, peeled and grated*
3 scallions, thinly sliced
3–4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 generous pinches coarse Kosher salt, or to taste
1/2 cup avocado oil, or some other neutral high smoke point oil

*Do not include the long fibers that get stuck to the grater. The texture of your grated ginger should look pulpy but not stringy.

Procedure

Place the ginger on a paper towel and gently squeeze out most of the liquid. You do not need to wring tightly, but squeeze until the ginger looks like a moist paste with no excess moisture.

Combine the ginger, scallions, garlic, and salt in a heat-safe bowl.

Heat the oil until it is almost smoking. (The oil is hot enough if you toss in a small piece of scallion and it sizzles up right away.) Carefully pour the hot oil over the aromatics (there will be some bubbling). When the sizzling stops, stir everything together. Make this at least 20 minutes in advance to allow time for the flavors to infuse into the oil. It keeps fine in the fridge for a few days.

How to Make Malaysian-Style Half-Boiled Eggs

JUMP TO RECIPE >>

Malaysian half-boiled eggs were the most iconic preparation of my childhood. American kids probably grew up more familiar with scrambled or hard boiled eggs, but I didn’t realize that half-boiled eggs were basically unheard of outside of Southeast Asia until much later in life.

What are half-boiled eggs? Poached inside their shells in a hot water bath, half-boiled eggs are like a more humble onsen or sous vide egg. This recipe will produce eggs where there is a thin layer of set whites that you can scoop out of the inside of the shells; some other softer, barely set whites; and an extremely runny yolk.

Pictured above are elements of a typical kopitiam/Malaysian coffeeshop breakfast: A couple of half-boiled eggs scooped into a bowl and topped with soy sauce and white pepper, and some kaya toast for dipping. When I was a kid, my parents and I used regular American sliced bread for dipping.

But now as an adult, I have been trying to spread the glory of Malaysian half-boiled eggs by sharing many ways in which they can be enjoyed. They are great for dipping toast soldiers if you put them on an egg holder and gently saber off the top, or they are lovely with noodles or jook or anywhere where you’d enjoy an onsen egg. They are basically the most forgiving and easiest way to make a nice runny egg!

How to Make Malaysian-Style Half-Boiled Eggs

Ingredients

1–2 eggs

Procedure

Bring a small pot of water to a rolling boil. Gently lower the egg(s) into the pot and shut off the heat. Let the egg(s) cook in the hot water for 8 minutes. Remove from the pot and place in an ice bath to stop the cooking.

Disclaimer: consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry, seafood, shellfish, or eggs may increase your risk of foodborne illness, especially if you have certain medical conditions. Eat at your own risk and don’t sue me, bro.

My Basic Jook Recipe

JUMP TO RECIPE >>

There are plenty of recipes out there for rice porridge, commonly known as congee, or what my Cantonese family calls jook. I am mostly recording this basic jook recipe down for myself, because I know how I like to make it but I sometimes forget things like: How much was the right amount for our 2-person household? How much water did I start off with? How far in advance of dinner do I need to start it, again…? Getting old sucks, and one of the worst things about it for me so far has been forgetting all the simple little things that used to be so easy for me to recall.

To me, a good basic jook has a silky feel to it. Something that goes down easy without a lot of chewing but isn’t a completely homogenous puree either. Some people like theirs as more like a soupy water with cooked rice floating in it, but that’s not for me. I also like making sure that there is a pleasant mild flavor to it when eating it all on its own, even though a variety of toppings is an absolute must for eating jook in my household. Pickled vegetables, white pepper, and soy sauce where the most common toppings from my childhood. But instead of those, I really went all-out in the photo above to lure you in— And it worked, right?

The jook in the photo features red braised pork belly that I made using Omnivore’s Cookbook/Maggie Zhu’s recipe here. There’s also a poached egg, radish shoots, pea shoots, chopped scallions, crushed chicharrones, and some slices of red Fresno chili. I also served it with a side of you char kueh/youtiao/Chinese donut, which I buy at the Asian supermarket and always keep stashed in my freezer. The best part of eating jook is tossing in a few slices of the fried dough, letting them get soggy, and then eating a big scoop of the soggy donut and jook all at once.

How I Make Basic Jook/Congee

(Makes 2 dinner portions)

Ingredients

1/2 cup jasmine rice
2 cups bone broth
2-4 cups water
2 inches ginger, peeled
2 tbsp shaoxing wine
2 tbsp fish sauce
salt

Procedure

Combine rice, bone broth, and 2 cups of water in a large pot and turn heat on high. Finely grate ginger directly into the pot so it catches all the juice. Add shaoxing wine and fish sauce. Stir everything together.

Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom. If jook looks too dry, add water 1/2 cup at a time along the way. Continue simmering until jook reaches desired consistency. Season to taste.

Serve with yummy accompaniments.

Need a faster recipe? Check out my shortcut Chicken Jook with Ginger-Scallion Oil recipe, using storebought cooked rice and rotisserie chicken (sponsored recipe).

Recipe: Biang Biang Noodles (Hand-Pulled Noodles)

JUMP TO RECIPE >>

If you are here, you probably already know something about biang biang mian—delicious hand-pulled, hand-torn wide noodles that are delightfully chewy and a wonderful blank canvas to capture spicy mala flavors. Legend has it that the Chinese character for biang is the most complicated to write, and that it will break any kind of Chinese input method if you try to type it.

To be honest I am not an expert on biang biang noodles; all I know is how I personally like them, and I wanted to figure out a way to go about making them that was easy for me. For example, I wanted to be able to use my stand mixer for the kneading, especially since the dough is a little tougher compared to, say, a simple bread dough. I also wanted to produce a method that allowed me to have fun actually stretching the noodles by hand and banging (or bianging?) them against the counter. So I tested and tested until I got something I was happy with.

My version is adapted from Woks of Life and Strictly Dumpling, so I want to make sure to give them credit. And the image above was inspired by this photo by My Homestyle Life.

If you are looking for a sauce to accompany these noodles, might I recommend something with loads of chili oil and fragrant ground lamb? You can find out how to make that here.

How to Make Biang Biang Noodles

This recipe makes 2 large servings.

Ingredients

1 3/4 cup bread flour*
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
3/4 cup hot water
neutral oil

* I tested various combinations of bread flour + AP flour for this and found these ratios to produce my ideal texture for the noodles. Can you do all AP flour? Probably! But the noodles will not have the same chew that I like.

Procedure

Whisk together flours and salt in your stand mixer bowl. Fit the stand mixer with the dough hook. Turn on to the lowest speed and slowly add the water.

Knead dough on medium-high for 10 minutes, then check the texture. If the dough is very sticky, add 1/2–1 teaspoon AP flour. Continue kneading on medium-high for 10 more minutes. At this point, the dough should feel firm and should not be sticky at all. Try to pinch and pull away a small amount (see photo above). Dough should not snap right away, but should not feel totally stretchy either.

Knead a few times by hand to form a smooth ball. Return to the mixing bowl and cover bowl with a damp cloth (no greasing necessary yet). Allow to rest for 30 minutes.

Divide dough into 6 portions. Avoid handling each portion too much but shape it into a small log, about 4 inches long. Place logs on your largest baking sheet and pour some neutral cooking oil over them. Make sure each log is thoroughly coated in oil. Cover with plastic wrap and rest for 1 hour or until the dough feels soft and pliable.

(After one hour, I place a large pot of water on the stove to bring to a boil while I am stretching the noodles. If there is other prep work I need to do for the sauce, I do it all in this time too, so everything is ready to go the moment the noodles are cooked. Click here for the sauce recipe that you see in the photos.)

Work one log at a time, and keep the others covered. On a lightly floured surface, roll the log into a rectangle that is about 3 inches tall and 2 inches longer than a chopstick. Use a chopstick to press two perforations into the rectangle, dividing it into 3 even sections (see photo above). Grab each end and gently stretch the dough, occasionally whacking it into compliance against the counter top. The perforations made by the chopstick will begin to form tears in the dough as you stretch. When the dough is thin enough or you feel you can’t stretch any further, tear along these lines to make one long noodle. Drape the noodle over the oiled baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap while you make the other noodles.

Lower the noodles carefully into the water and then immediately start agitating them with extra long chopsticks to avoid them clumping together. Keep them moving in the water for 90 seconds (2 minutes if they feel on the thicker side) and then immediately transfer them to the sauce, and toss to combine.

If you want to make the noodles in advance, I recommend keeping the rested dough in log form, coated in oil and tightly covered. Store in the fridge and bring up to room temp before stretching. Once the noodles are formed, you don’t want them to sit for long, and they need to be served immediately after boiling.