KITCHEN QUARANTINE -STUCK AT HOME DUE TO COVID-19.
When you can’t go out into the world to travel, food can bring the world home to you.-Belinda Joy
STAY AT HOME ORDER 2020
As one day melted into the next, we spent a lot of time trying to come up with ways to make our STAY AT HOME Order a little more fun. The last year has taught us a lot about going with the flow and trying new things. We decided if we can’t travel the world, then we will bring it home to us. So that’s just what we did. We have been cooking nonstop. It’s been hard to keep 2 growing always hungry teen boys at home and occupied day after day. Before this quarantine, we would not have attempted many of these dishes. Each of these is new for us, just like a new adventure when we go to another country. Trying these new dishes at home has made each of us so proud of the end result. This is a wonderful time to make memories with my boys. Our old way of life was so hectic and crazy, we would have never had time for this before. Together, we have attempted and made so many different dishes. These boys are going to be Great chefs when this is all over. It has been fun experiencing other countries, their tastes, music, the language, all from home. Famous chefs and not some famous chefs making online cooking a thing. We followed some on Masterclass, Netflix, Instagram, and more. The first stop was Laos.
Laos
Imagine the smells of coconut milk, deep spicy red curry, fresh lime leaves, garlic, Thai basil, slowly cooking together. Add in some rice noodles and pork belly. All melded together to create a comfort food you never knew you needed. We had a real treat! Being that we are from NC, I’ve always wanted to go eat at Bida Manda, a Restaurant in Raleigh NC. It’s a famous Laotian restaurant with a cool brewery attached Brewery Bhavana It’s been on my list for some time now, but for some reason, I have never gotten there. All that busyness that we lived before Covid 19. So when @Joekwon80 of the Avett Brothers posted that he was going to be doing an Instagram Live, learning how to make Crispy Pork Belly Soup with @bidamanda and @vanisa I HAD to tune in. They posted the ingredient list beforehand and I purchased and had everything ready to go. My usually boring Monday afternoon got much better. I got to spend it on Instagram watching these really cool folks, that I don’t know but felt like I did, as I looked into their kitchens and heard the story of how they became friends. Simple gestures of kindness lead to friendships and connections that will make life so much more rich and meaningful. Connections that will last a lifetime. We all have something to give and share and when we do it makes life richer. It was so much fun to cook along with someone. All I can say, I wish you could have been at my house so you could smell the amazing mouth-watering aroma. I’m so happy that I had this opportunity to see how this soup was made. It added value to my day, my recipe book, and a memory. If you remember from our Dallas post, one of our favorite meals while there was at a Laotion restaurant, Khao Noodle Shop. Due to Covid, they have had to change to ONLINE orders only but it is totally worth the order if you are visiting Dallas. Take a look at some of the mouth-watering dishes they make in this post. This was our first taste of Laotian food that made us fall in love.
INDIA
Being that Saj is Indian, I usually don’t attempt to make Indian food. He is pretty good at it and I figured I would never be able to get the just-right flavors. We had a trip planned to India this past summer but due to COVID has been put on hold. We were so disappointed. But 2 of my favorite appetizers are the Green Chicken and Beef Patties. So we decided we were going to attempt them. My sister-in-law helped me with her recipe. Though they were also a lot of work, they turned out delicious. The beef patties took all day. Many steps and layers of cooking. The Green chicken pretty easy. It’s a delicious mix of cilantro, mint, garlic, etc. Is your mouth watering yet? It did turn out delicious! I attached some similar recipe links above if you want to try them out. Green chicken. Beef Cutlet.
ITALY
We tracked down a recipe for an authentic Tuscan Stew. This is the link to the delicious recipe if you want to look it up here on our blog remembering our friends in Italy. Italy is one of our favorites and I hope it is one of the first European Countries we hope to travel to when the lockdown is over.
Alexia played Italian music in the background. We started with Antipasto of some Bruschetta made with some fresh mozzarella and basil. We added in some other Cheese and fruit. We even washed it down with some wine from Tuscany. Before our Italian experience was over, my kids were in the kitchen making homemade pasta and pizza dough, singing “That’s Amore!” We ate very well during our Italian week. We started off strong.
England.
My 14 year old enjoys good food and cooking. He really ENJOYS eating the food. He can have a bite of something and break down the flavors and describe what makes up the dish. It’s really amazing. Gordon Ramsey is one of his favorite chefs. We had reservations to go to his restaurant, Hell’s Kitchen over Spring Break of last year. How many 14-year-olds do you know that want a restaurant experience as his gift? But with the Stay at Home Order, we had to cancel our trip. He was so disappointed. I was trying to think of some way to perk him up so I asked if he would like to try to make one himself at home? He was very excited. It was a lot of work but we ate every crumb of it! He watched Ramsay’s Master Class video several times. He needed a Sous Chef so I stepped up at the plate. He even mouthed a couple of expletives at me keeping with Ramsay’s tone. I laughed (a little) at that. So we counted this as our food stop in England since Beef Wellington is a specialty there.
GERMANY
Our next food stop was a quick stop-off in Germany! My oldest was having a craving for Pretzels. So we learned how to make pretzels. We were in a rush so we are going to come back to learn how to make pork schnitzel, and cream puffs. Who knows maybe we will add in some Polka music. Our pretzels weren’t the prettiest but boy were they good!
KOREA
Then we headed back to ASIA. Korean Egg Rolls, Kimchi, and Sticky Rice were calling our names. My sister has a Korean friend who taught her how to make Korean egg rolls. I always remembered this was an all-day process so I honestly was dreading it just a little bit. But it wasn’t as bad as I had imagined. We didn’t make our own Kimchi but wish we could have tried that too. Although we didn’t make our own Kimchi we watched Vivian Howard’s new show called Somewhere South. Season 1 Episode 4 What a Pickle to learn just how kimchi is made. The egg rolls were delightful and I was hoping to have some extras to freeze but they all disappeared. Even though it’s a lot of work I’m ready to make more. They were SO GOOD.
HOME-BACK TO USA
As with any trip, it’s always good to come back home. Even though I grew up in the south my whole life, I’ve never mastered making Fried Chicken. It’s a dish my mother always made. I always had this idea that you must have to have some sort of magic touch to make it turn out. But I was stuck at home with no place to go…so why not! It turned out pretty good. Not as good as my mom’s. You can’t have a good southern meal without dessert. Sour Cream Pound Cake is a typical dessert to have with fried chicken and biscuits and gravy. Think of all the POUNDS we probably gained while eating all of this food. Fruit pizza was thrown in as a family favorite bonus.
Thanks for joining us on this journey around the world from our kitchen. We made some wonderful memories and food together. These are days we will always remember. Though this past year has brought so much heartache and sadness, we know that it also brought many unique opportunities. We tried to make the best of our Stay at Home Order and in return, we have stories to hold us until we can safely travel again.
Until next time…..Joys On A Journey.
