Queens Night Market 2019 – Czech Style Langosh

Posted on by

Instagram Post 9/20/2019

Just a reminder that the Queens International Night Market is still going strong in its 2019 Fall Season, and tomorrow brings another chance to visit! You’ll savor delicious international food and experience incredible musical performances in an exciting night market atmosphere; admission is free.

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)

Notes from my last visit: The banner over the vendor’s booth proclaimed “Czech Style Langosh” but if you take one etymological step back, you’ll find langoš, the Czech rendition of the (one more step) Hungarian snack pastry lángos. However you spell it, they’re a soft, puffy, almost doughnutty flatbread, accommodating any number of toppings from savory to sweet, and they’re delicious.

Savory toppings when I visited their booth included classic (garlic sauce & cheese) and bacon (classic plus bacon); sweet versions comprised a sugar & cinnamon base with a number of syrups, as well as the beauty you see here, black currant jam with sour cream.

To see when they’ll (hopefully) be back, check out QNM’s vendors and performers list at www.queensnightmarket.com. Lots more good eats in the meantime, so head out to the Queens Night Market outside the New York Hall of Science in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. You’ll find them every Saturday from 5pm until midnight through October 26.

See you there soon!
 
 

National Humanitarian Fundraising for Myanmar Food Fair – 2019

Posted on by

Instagram Post 9/19/2019

If I’m not mistaken, last Sunday’s National Humanitarian Fundraising for Myanmar Food Fair was the second in an annual series; proceeds were earmarked for flood relief and recovery objectives. It’s held in the Parish House of St. James Episcopal Church at 84-07 Broadway in Elmhurst, Queens and, like last year’s event, the food was authentic and delightful. Burmese cuisine is one of my favorites and this always wonderfully overwhelming event featured a multiplicity of dishes, but lacking any English signage, I was left to my own devices, hence:

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)

Laphet Thoke – pickled tea leaf salad. Laphet (you might see laphat, lahpet, lephet, leppet, letpet, latphat, or others) is the Burmese word for pickled or fermented tea leaves; thoke (you might see thohk) means salad. (Hey, it’s a tricky language to transliterate.) The dish is as much about the crunchy toppings as it is about the laphet along with the customary addition of some raw veggies. Recipes vary wildly and widely.


Shan Htamin Chin (you might see jin or gyin which means fermented or sour; htamin means rice). The Shan people are a Tai ethnic group of Southeast Asia who live primarily in the Shan State of Myanmar. This is their traditional mashed rice, potato and fish cake; just in case it wasn’t garlicky enough, cloves of fresh garlic were provided for nibbling.


Mandalay Mee Shay – Mandalay style rice noodles with pork. Excellent.


Tofu Thoke – Shan tofu has little to do with familiar soybean tofu; it’s made from chickpea flour and is soft and supple in this contrastingly spicy Burmese salad. (Count on Burmese salads to be topped with crunchies!)
 
 

SUMAQ Peruvian Food Festival

Posted on by

There’s a lot to report about the magnificent SUMAQ Peruvian Food Festival held annually in Garden City, Long Island. For starters, you’ll be immersed in Peruvian tradition, from song and dance to costumes, crafts, and cooking demos. Even better, it’s held on the grounds of The Cradle of Aviation Museum which, even if you’re not into the history of flight is pretty cool. Devour mass quantities of food, take a breather and check out the museum, and gird your loins for round two.

But my interest was in the cuisine, of course. I know that I’ve professed my passion for Peruvian food on this platform previously, but almost every dish I tasted was a cut above. Sumaq translates as “delicious” in Quechua, the language of the indigenous people of Peru, and I can’t think of a more appropriate adjective for this delightful event. Regional specialties were showcased and the masterful recipes plus the quality of the ingredients afforded an outstanding experience.

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)

Case in point, quite literally, is this Caja China (Chinese Box) from La Caja China de Juan Talledo representing Lima, anticipating its payload.


Pork in the roasting box…


…and pork on the plate.


In addition to their Chancho a la Caja China, they offered one other specialty: Chancho al Palo, pork that’s grilled in a contrivance that rotates to keep the pig crispy and moist…


…90° rotation…


…and completing the 180° spin. Sort of like a propeller on an antique airplane. Or not.


Picarones, presented by numerous vendors. Peru’s answer to the doughnut, only better because the dominant ingredients are sweet potato and squash, deep fried and drizzled with chancaca (dark brown sugar or molasses) syrup or honey, and always prodded and retrieved with a long wooden stick.


Among the offerings from La Matarina Restaurante Turístico was fried cuy; their rendition of spicy stewed cuy was also available. Cuy is guinea pig. Yes, guinea pig, and it’s tasty. The flavor depends on which piece you’re eating, just like the flavor of chicken depends upon whether it’s dark meat or white meat or wing meat. And no, cuy does not taste like chicken. (These days, even chicken doesn’t taste like chicken, but that’s another story.)


Fried cuy plated with quinoa risotto. Do try to keep an open mind about cuy; don’t think of it as a pet. If you’re a carnivore, then you accept that some animals are food and some are pets but where that line is drawn can be fungible. Personally, like so many people from Peru, Ecuador, and Columbia, I don’t see cuy as a pet any more than a farmer sees their chickens as pets. On the other hand, Mary had a little lamb.


Ceviche! (To take your mind off the cuy.) From El Gol Marino.


Anticuchos. I’ve sung the praises of these skewers of tender, marinated beef heart on these digital pages before. The name has its roots in Quechua, the indigenous language of the Peruvian Andes: “anti” refers to the Eastern region of the Andes, “kuchu” means cut.


Don’t be faint of heart 🙄 about trying this: it’s just another cut of beef, and a particularly delicious one at that. If you like grilled meat, even if you’re not a fan of organ meats, these will win you over. Peruvian street food at its finest.


Rocoto relleno con pastel de papa from El Pregón. Cheesy stuffed rocoto pepper with a cheesy potato on the side. ¡Delicioso!


Kankachos Tinajani (kankacho means “roasted” in Quechua) featured their special Cordero al Horno, roast lamb seasoned with panca pepper, garlic, cumin, allspice, and dark beer served with potatoes for ballast. I can still taste it!
 
 
This was my maiden voyage to SUMAQ and I recommend it highly; go with a group – the more people, the more you can try. Mark your calendars now for next year’s event and I will too. Hope to see you there!

The 2019 SUMAQ Peruvian Food Festival was held on August 24th and 25th.
 
 

Great Taste Dumpling

Posted on by

Instagram Post 9/14/2019

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)

The sign read “Streaky Pork Old Bamboo Shoots Steamed Bun”. Kinda makes ya just wanna drop everything and rush out there and grab some, don’t it? Not me. Kinda made me just wanna drop everything and translate the Chinese characters.

See for yourself:

Here’s what I got:

手工切 = hand cut
五花肉 = pork belly
與筍 = with bamboo shoots
小籠包 = xiao long bao

Well, not quite the xiao long bao soup dumplings most of us associate with those characters, these are steamed buns filled with the aforementioned ingredients and Great Taste Dumpling at 4317 8th Ave in Sunset Park, Brooklyn’s got ’em. $2.75 for 6. And please, don’t ever change that glorious sign!

A quick snack for someone who was just passing through in search of Mid-Autumn Festival Mooncakes. (You did read my detailed “Chinese Mooncakes Demystified” post about that, didn’tcha?)
 
 

Queens Night Market 2019 Fall Season

Posted on by

Instagram Post 9/12/2019

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)

They’re ba-a-a-ack!
🎆 💥 🎆 💥 🎆
The Queens International Night Market kicks off its 2019 Fall Season on Saturday, September 14, and you don’t want to miss it! You’ll savor delicious international food and experience incredible musical performances in an exciting night market atmosphere; admission is free.

One of my favorite tastes from this past season was Fish Amok, a classic dish from Cambodia; it’s a custardy mousse of tilapia in coconut milk seasoned with galangal, herbs and spices, steamed in banana leaves and served with rice on this side. You’ll find it at the Cambodian Cuisine booth and it’s an absolute winner. (Not to mention the fact that Cambodian food needs to be better represented in NYC!)

So head out to the Queens Night Market outside the New York Hall of Science in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. You’ll find them every Saturday from 5pm until midnight through October 26. Stay current and check out their vendors and performers list at www.queensnightmarket.com.

See you there soon!
 
 

Dining for Justice Benefit for Immigrant Families

Posted on by

Sometimes we’re granted an opportunity to take part in an event that joyously fills the heart. And sometimes we’re granted an opportunity to take part in an event that joyously fills the tummy. But rarely are they the same event. Until now.

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)
On September 22, Don Rodrigo Duarte, “The King of Hams”, will roast a prize-winning Portuguese Alentejano hog and showcase other pata negra charcuterie at a Dining for Justice benefit for immigrant families seeking asylum. The proceeds go directly to Immigrant Families Together, an organization committed to the reunification of families separated at the US/Mexico border.

The event will take place along the waterfront at Anable Basin Sailing Bar & Grill, 4-40 44th Drive in Long Island City, Queens from noon to 3pm. Farmstand sides will be provided by Chef’s Consortium and Brooklyn’s Betty Bakery will whip up desserts. A cash bar will be made available by the venue, Anable Basin.

Tickets are $40 (children under 12 are admitted free with parent or guardian) and may be purchased at www.eventbrite.com/e/pig-roast-on-the-queens-riviera-tickets-69239464101\

Links:
Dining for Justice: https://www.diningforjustice.com/
Immigrant Families Together: https://immigrantfamiliestogether.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diningforjustice/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/diningforjustice/
 
 
A couple of bonus photos from my recent visit to Don Rodrigo Duarte’s Gourmet House, Caseiro E Bom, at 70 Pacific St, Newark, NJ:

Nine year old Pata Negra!

Charcuterie stalactites.
 
 
(Promotional consideration tickets provided by Dining for Justice.)
 
 

Nuan Xin Rice Roll

Posted on by

Instagram Post 9/10/2019

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)

While scouting Sunset Park’s Chinatown in search of more mooncake madness for my massive Chinese Mooncakes Demystified post (which if you haven’t read it, please do), I passed Nuan Xin Rice Roll at 5103 8th Ave, one of five locations in NYC. For some time, I’ve been curious about their purple rice fàn tuán (飯糰) so I grabbed one to go.

The décor is targeted to young folks, as is the heavy-handed use of mayonnaise, but I’m not complaining; I absolutely enjoyed it and wished I had purchased a few of the other 14 varieties. As it happened, I was in a rush so I let the phrase “Special Rice Roll” do the deciding for me. Deconstructing it at home, I tasted pork floss (rou song, 肉鬆), shredded lettuce, and tiny bits of pickled mustard greens within the nori wrapper. They also tout Sea Salt Beverages (next time) and an ocean of other tea-based beverages. Good stuff.
 
 

Piast Meats & Provisions

Posted on by

Instagram Post 9/5/2019

Serendipity took hold as I threaded my way from the bus stop on an isolated, sleepy, residential street to this year’s Peruvian Festival in Passaic, NJ. (Where would we be without our smart phones and Google Maps? Lost, I guess. But I digress.) As signs of commerce gradually began to emerge, I stumbled upon Piast Meats & Provisions at 1 Passaic Street in Garfield. One of a family-owned mini-chain of three stores, the atmosphere was old world Polish charm (in other words, the aroma of smoked pork and garlic permeated the air); storemade kielbasa, cold cuts, pierogi, and baked goods along with Polish specialty foods tempted me to purchase more than I should have since I’d be schlepping those treasures around all day. It was worth every achy muscle.

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)

Among many other items I bought, these two were particularly intriguing and utterly delicious. This Przysmak (delicacy) Piwny (relating to beer), translated as “beef jerky”, was incredible: soft, spicy, dried beef but not dry beef and not sausage. Sometimes “beef jerky” should be translated as shoe leather, but not this succulent stuff. On closer inspection it looks like marinated flank steak sliced into ½–¾ inch wide strips. Outstanding.

Another sign identified “pork meatloaf”, more of a cold cut really, that looked promising, but right next to it was the same item rolled together in porky matrimony with bacon, Boczek Faszerowany, translated as “stuffed bacon”. Indeed. So it’s sort of pork stuffed pork. Nothing succeeds like excess.
 
 

Mandato Fruit & Grocery Corp.

Posted on by

Instagram Post 8/13/2019

You’re going to hear more from me about Mandato, 7220 3rd Ave, Brooklyn, not only because it’s the only Mexican destination along my Bay Ridge food tour, but because I absolutely love the place.

For starters, it’s really three spots packed into one: a genuine panadería where they bake their own Mexican panes dulces; a market where, in addition to packaged goods, you’ll find authentic Mexican ingredients including quesillo, nopales, store-made barbacoa, carnitas, and an array of at least eight mind-blowing salsas; and a takeout restaurant serving tortas, cemitas, tamales, picaditas, tlacoyos, sopes, quesadillas, huaraches and more – the subject of today’s post. All of this is under the aegis of Pedro, a partner in the family business, who is probably the friendliest, most helpful person you’d ever want to meet and who customized these delicious wonders for me.

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)

This quesadilla is brimming with queso fresco, queso Oaxaca (aka quesillo), lettuce, crema, and huitlacoche, sometimes called Mexican truffle. Do you like mushrooms? Do you like corn? Then you should try huitlacoche.


Sliced in half to reveal its inner beauty.


Huaraches start with a double layer of masa enclosing a thin coating of mashed refried pinto beans, hand pressed into a thick oblong shape and fried (literally “sandals” because of the shape). This one is topped with chorizo and potatoes, onions, queso fresco and crema.


Cross section; look very closely at the bottom and you might see the layer of refritos.
 
 
Auténtico. That’s the word for it. More to come soon from Mandato: the panadería, the store-made goodies, and beyond!

(Note that this venue is officially Mandato Fruit & Grocery Corp, not the restaurant of the same name next door – there’s no connection.)

 
 

Indonesian Street Festival – 2019

Posted on by

Instagram Post 8/29/2019

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)

I always have high praise for the New York Indonesian Food Bazaar (IFB) not only for the innumerable menu possibilities, but for the quality of the cooking. The event happens monthly at the parish hall of St. James Episcopal Church, 84-07 Broadway in Elmhurst, but if you aren’t of a mind to head Queensward, here’s a chance to sample this superb cuisine in Manhattan at this year’s Indonesian Street Festival. It takes place this Saturday, August 31, outside the Consulate General of the Republic of Indonesia, 5 East 68th Street, from noon until 5pm.

The dish pictured here was prepared by my friend Fefe, owner of Taste of Surabaya, a regular at IFB. I had two new friends with me, both vegetarians, and since the array of options was overwhelming, I asked Fefe if she would put together a plate for us. A wise choice. Taste of Surabaya will be a participating vendor at the upcoming Indonesian Street Festival where you’ll enjoy excellent food along with cultural performances, fashion, and more. Definitely check it out.