Korean Eggplant and Tofu Hot Pot

With the weather attempting to cool down, TheBloke and I are looking forward to busting out the slow cooker again. Last year it became something of an idol for our household, the sort that, on account of its neverending procession of deliciousness, beat the pants off the gilt framed pictures sold by the Greeks outside the church down the road.

The only problem with the slow cooker is that it's just not that impressive a serving vessel. Which is where the All Clad tagine that my parents bought us for Christmas comes in. Not only is it stylish in looks, it's also rapidly becoming my go-to saute pan. The heavy base conducts heat as well as our Essteele saucepans and the height of the walls is perfect for dry and wet dishes alike.

A hungover craving for bahn mi made with goods acquired from Mr Chao's BBQ Bar on Saturday morning saw me returning with not only BBQ pork, but also half a duck and some roast pork too. Whoops. But happy day, it enabled another layer of flavour to be added to this hot pot. Of course, if you're veganically inclined, you may choose to omit said swine and congratulate yourself for having far more restraint than I.

Korean Eggplant and Tofu Hot Pot

Ingredients

1 tsp peanut oil
1 onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, sliced
1 tbsp Szechuan peppercorns, toasted and crushed in a mortar and pestle
2 tbsp crushed dried chilli
2 tbsp soy sauce1 tbsp Chinese rice wine
150g kimchi
1 tsp chilli bean paste
1 tsp red miso paste
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 cup straw mushrooms
1/4 cup bamboo shoots
1/3 cup dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in enough boiling water to cover until soft (reserve water)
1/3 cup dried wood fungus, soaked in enough boiling water to cover until soft, then drained and chopped
150g Chinese roast pork (or you could use uncooked pork belly), cubed
1 eggplant, sliced, salted and then rinsed and cut into large chunks
300g firm silken tofu, cut into large chunks
500mL chicken (or vegetable) stock

Method

1. Heat the peanut oil in a large pan. Add onion and pork and saute until onion begins to colour. Add garlic, peppercorns, dried chilli, chilli bean paste, miso paste and soy sauce and saute until fragrant.
2. Increase heat and add Chinese rice wine, then the eggplant. Stir fry until eggplant begins to caramelise.
3. Turn down the heat and add kimchi, shiitake mushrooms and the water they soaked in, sesame oil and chicken stock. Reduce heat to minimum, cover and allow to cook for half an hour, or until eggplant is very soft.
4. Stir, then add tofu cubes, bamboo shoots, wood fungus and straw mushrooms. Taste for heat and salt, add more dried chilli and soy sauce if desired. Recover and cook for another fifteen minutes.
5. Just before serving, sprinkle with spring onions. Serve with rice and stir fried mixed greens.

Bairro Petersham Portuguese Food and Wine Festival

On Sunday, TheBloke and I made our second pilgrimage up the road to the annual Bairro Petersham Portuguese Food and Wine Festival.


The festival has been running since time began (or for nearly a decade), and brings the amazing food and culture of the local enclave to the streets. Last year it rained. This year, despite some ominous looking clouds, it was mostly fine all day, which made the event much more conducive to indulgence in cheap and cheerful Portuguese cask red and Sagres beer.


Audley and Fisher Streets were closed off and instead of cars parking to get to the train station, the bitumen was filled with happy masses and food stalls.

I set my sights high when I woke up on Sunday morning. All I wanted to achieve for the day was a barbecued sardine and a chorizo in my tummy. Luckily there was plenty of both available, although I did have to contend with a dimwitted security guard commenting that my plate "looks good... if you're a cat" whilst waiting for TheBloke to buy us some drinks. Speaking of which, his sights were set on eating the chunks of meat on sticks pictured on the back grill above. Deliciously rustic!

Most of the stalls were selling variations on grilled meatstuffs, cornbread, bolinos de bacalhau (cod cakes) and feijoada (dried beef stew). We eschewed the huge line in front of the prawn and chilli sauce grill joint that seems to be at every food and wine festival we attend; and hit up a smaller stall for our chorizo fix. It turned out to be a good move, because instead of a stock standard commercial sausage, we ended up with a handmade work of snag art, filled with chunks of pork belly.

Unfortunately, our late arrival time (2pm) meant that we missed out on churros. First come, first served! We pacified ourselves with a plate of malasadas for the road.


An impromptu round of singing, clapping and dancing broke out as we were leaving. Accompanied by an accordian, nonetheless. Saúde!