A blog of food and life in Silicon Valley.
Over the weekend, we went for a quick lunch date at La Pizza & La Pasta in Eataly, Valley Fair Mall (Santa Clara/San Jose). Its brand spanking new and sparkly inside! The menu boasts authentic/traditional Italian cuisine reminiscent of my honeymoon to Florence, where I …
The end of summer is the time when tomatoes are at their finest and most abundant. Which means that all tomatoes are going to be on sale at grocery stores and farmer’s markets. This is the only time of year that I made Heirloom tomato …
Having a Matcha Latte has been a part of my afternoon routine for a couple of years. Before I got pregnant, I used to drink 3 cups of coffee to stay awake during night shift work at the hospital. However, for the sake of the babies, I wanted to cut my caffeine intake in half but still have energy.
Even though my kids are school age, I still keep up drinking matcha lattes because it’s healthy. The internet already boasts the benefits of this trendy drink. So I have only listed a few benefits.
Now every cafe in Silicon Valley offers matcha latte on their menu with every kind of alternative milk in the world. But it gets pricey! On average, a drink will cost between $5-6. This is super expensive considering you can make it at home for 75 cents/drink.
Ceremonial matcha is top-notch and can get very expensive (30 grams= $60). Ceremonial grade is most appropriate for drinking matcha straight up. However, since latte is mixed with milk, culinary matcha will do just fine.
Choosing the right matcha depends on how you plan to drink it. If you’re drinking matcha straight, get the best ceremonial matcha from Uji, Japan (the birthplace of Japanese matcha). However, if you’re drinking matcha as a latte, then I don’t stress about getting it from Uji. My matcha requirements are: from Japan, organic, good color, taste good, and cost (< $20).
I found Ummon rich Matcha from Ippodo Tea to be the best price performance ceremonial matcha. ~$30 for 20 grams, the color is vibrant green and has a pure Matcha flavor, no metallic after taste.
I am currently using Aiya Organic Culinary Matcha powder for lattes. I found it to be a banger and its got the matcha-y flavor that makes me reminscent of my trips to Tokyo. I got it at Whole Foods Market and with it on sale + Amazon prime discounts, I paid <$16. Amazon carries it at a similar price since it’s the parent company of Whole Foods Market.
If you can’t get Aiya, or just want to try something else, the tea company Ito-en is the #1 tea company in Japan. Can’t go wrong with Ito-en teas. Another good choice is Matcha Love.
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I use a chawan (matcha bowl) that I got at Mitsuwa Market for ~$8 but any flatter surface wider bowl will do. Put about 1/2 tsp of matcha through a fine mesh strainer and rub all the clumps out with the spoon. Then add hot (not boiling) water and rub a bamboo whisk (chasen) back and forth as fast as you can for 10-15 seconds to create a foam. A bamboo whisk makes foam light and airy. I tried using a stainless steel whisk before but my tea came out super clumpy.
I don’t add sweetener to my Matcha Latte to reduce my risk of diabetes and the oat milk already adds a natural sweetness.
I added mushroom powder strictly for health benefits as it’s supposed to promote good immune function and concentration (cuz we all know we got ADD these days). I don’t recommend it because it makes the latte clumpy and taste nasty as hell, mixing it in coffee is more tolerable.
Let me know any good matcha powders that you have tried!
August 2022 Las Vegas Trip This was my first trip to Las Vegas since my bachelorette trip and the hubs and I were finally able to go, sans kids! It ended up being the best weekend in Las Vegas that I had ever had! We …
#1 Customers at my Costco are AAs My Costco has a boba obsession! According to this Business Insider article, Costco does some quality research! Costco found that their #1 customers are 39-year old Asian-American females which pretty much sums up me! Costco is also known …
Right now my bitter melon (ku gua, 苦瓜) plant is bursting with flowers and slowly giving me fruits throughout the week. Time to make stir fried bitter melon! I don’t live on an acre of land or a farm, just a regular house in Silicon Valley so my garden is small hence why my ku guas are petite (how to grow bitter melon).
When I have such fresh produce I like to preserve the original taste and texture by cooking it in the least fancy way possible. I have seen recipes for bitter melon that include braising, making a soup, and blanching it in salt water before stir frying. But being the Type B person that I am and having such fresh ku guas, I decided to cook it in a simple way with scrambled eggs.
Although this dish comes off as simple and humble, it bursts in texture and taste. The scrambled eggs give the bitter melon a creamy and rich flavor, garlic and a dash a sugar balances the bitter taste, and the seasonings bring out the umami. My hubby only wants me to cook it in this way and he’s wishing our plant will produce 2 fruits a day! I think that’s a fat chance with only 1 plant but I’m hoping next year we will have more luck.
Ingredients
Cut the melons cross-wise and scoop out all the seeds. I want to do an experiment so next year so I’m drying and saving my seeds for next year!
Slice the melons like half-moons 🌙 and chop the garlic. You can pre-measure and put each seasoning in a dish or keep your sauces next to the stove and pour each ingredient as your cooking all chaotically like me.
You can beat your eggs in a bowl OR you can save washing a dish and crack the eggs in the wok.
Heat the oil on medium-high heat. I use avocado oil since it has a high smoke point and has a neutral taste. When the oil is glossy, throw in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
Add the bitter melon and stir fry for 1 min. Add 1/2 tsp sugar and mix. (TIP: Adding sugar before wet seasonings add a delicious caramelized flavor to stir-fry dishes).
Push melon to side of wok and add eggs. Scramble the eggs with the bitter melon and add soy sauce and Shio Koji (if using, or other substitutions). Stir-fry everything for 30 seconds.
