Wok Star Eleanor Hoh

Be a Wok Star!

cast iron wok

Easy Holiday Cooking (Updated)

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5 spice pork, wok fried veggies & soba noodles

When it’s busy Holiday season and I’m juggling with sending out Christmas orders, organizing new venues and schedules for my cooking classes, I need to make it EASY on myself…

I roast a pork joint so there’s enough for several meals. It’s so simple, helps save time and most important, it’s delicious! Also helps with cooking a batch of soba noodles, so all that’s left to do is a side of stir fried veggies.I serve the pork in different ways so it’s not boring. On the first day, slice and eat, fresh out of the oven. Stir fried the veggies, tossed a little juice from pork joint on the soba noodles to give them some oompf! DONE.

I always cook more veggies, so there was enough of the whole meal for my husband’s lunch box for the next day!

Only 3 seasonings for marinade paste:
Huy Fong Chili Garlic Sauce: 3 tblsp,
San-J Intl. tamari: 3 tblsp,
MySpiceSage Chinese 5 Spice powder: 3 tblsp
Pork butt was about 2 1/2 lbs.

Take out joint from the fridge an hour prior to roasting, use a fork and stab all over so marinade will infiltrate into joint. Slather marinade all over joint(that’s why you want the marinade to be thick like a paste. If it’s too watery, it just falls off) and let sit for 15 minutes. I didn’t have 15 mins. to spare so I just threw it in the oven and still came out beautiful. While pork joint is roasting, I had plenty of time to prep my veg stir fry…

I found in my fridge: bok choy, yu choy, asparagus, zucchini and red bell peppers leftover from a cooking class. Added pumpkin, scallions. See how I lay them all out on my chopping board? Saves cleanup, go from board to wok. Also had my handy caddy with my Asian seasonings, everything I need to make my dinner go FAST!
Started off with heating my cast iron wok, add oil (started using Tea Seed Oil from Earthy Delight), add garlic and ginger, add firm veggies in one batch. When veggies are nearly done, add dash of tamari and sherry, squeeze of lime, EASY!

Plate the firm veggies.Fry leafy veg on its own.
Recombine firm and leafy veg in wok.

On the following day, I’ll serve up pork cold with an interesting salad and red quinoa. Another day, I’ll warm up the pork in my wok and eat with whole wheat pasta and different veggies to change it up. Add a side dish like my Easy Kimchi which is crunchy, light, refreshing and gives your dinner a little kick. My mom always says pickles ‘open up your appetite’ and helps you to digest your food. In Asia, some restaurants serve this as an appetizer, I always look forward to these, restaurants make their own so they’re different.

Here are lots more ideas for your Holiday meals, all cooked in my cast iron wok…

Stir Fry without recipes

Wok Up your Own Creations

One Dish Wok Meals

Organic and Farmers’ Market
It’s lovely to visit farmer’s markets because you never know from one week to another what produce or new ingredients they have to offer. I keep updating this growing list. I added many new links, here are 4 new ones:
Take a look at Hong Kong Market where people like to shop right before they cook their dinner!
A new virtual friend, Carolyn who’s starting a ‘Wok Garden’ with seeds I sent her for Asian veggies! Very exciting to see their progress, scroll to bottom of page.

Peter’s (Jungle Walls) new hydroponic, stand-alone plant towers enables ANYONE to grow fresh herbs or veggies! Even if you don’t have a garden or green thumb, cause it’s got all the nutrients and timer to water and feed them at the bottom.

Lastly, a new South Miami Green Market just launched last weekend offering up some wonderful produce.
Go check it out.

Happy Holidays, how do you save time when cooking for your holidays?

Italian in a Wok!

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Italian in a Wok!
THREE INGREDIENTS: chicken sausages, rapini, pasta.

This is such a simple, quick, easy dinner that I’m surprised I don’t make it more often! Italian in a Wok. YES, you heard right. It’s perfect for a hot summer night.

I know I’m constantly trying to encourage you to use your wok to cook everything, not just an Asian stir fry but really, it works so well because of its shape and wide opening so food don’t fall out.

So, here’s my Italian dinner:
Just THREE INGREDIENTS: chicken sausages, rapini and pasta.
Well, you can’t count garlic, ginger, chili flakes, dried tomatoes. Those are ingredients you always have, right? I prefer chicken sausage (Aidell’s or similar) which are not so fatty but so tasty, no MSG or tons of preservatives.

I use my cast iron wok and portable gas stove which sits on top of my electric coil stove. This is the BEST setup and works like MAGIC!

Start with boiling pasta in pot. Drain and keep some of the juice.

In your wok, boil water with drop of oil. Add your washed rapini with pinch of salt. It doesn’t take long, so give a taste and when it’s just tender, it’s done. Drain but keep some of the juice.

Yes, it’s fine to use liquid in your wok, once you start frying with oil, your patina will build back up immediately, don’t worry.

Dry your wok. Heat your wok on medium high, add little oil, add diced garlic and ginger, add chopped sausages.

Plate your pasta, add rapini with juice from rapini and pasta. Top with sausages, chopped dried tomatoes and sprinkles of chili flakes, dinner is ready!

This is such a tasty, easy, quick dish. It’s what being a Wok Star is all about…enjoy.

Cobaya Guinea Pigs Miami (Updated)

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Chef Jeremiah’s shiny Gastropod roams Miami.
It took a year to build out. Often you’ll see him
at Wynwood’s Art Walk, 2nd Saturdays of the month.
Wonderful to pick up a yummy snack after trekking
into all the art galleries.
I’m certainly no gourmand or foodie but enjoyed seeing how this Cobaya was produced and meeting other foodies. I’m just the opposite spectrum of gourmet cooking, I focus on teaching easy, one-dish dinners using a cast iron wok. Food for Thought organizes these Cobaya Gourmet Guinea Pig dinners and did a great job! He named this one, Podzilla, mix of Gastropod and Chadzilla, and it’s upscale ‘streetfood’. Cobaya is an underground supper club in a secret location that’s only revealed after you pay. You don’t know what you’re getting fed till you get there, hence “guinea pig”. Subscribing is the only way to get into these Cobaya events!

Here’s a bit about my own pursuit of good, reasonably priced Asian eats and cultural events in South Florida, I came up with Hoh Wok Club. I held a few gatherings but then good Asian restaurants dried up so I took a hiatus. I’m excited to work on a series of events with a few modern Asian eateries that have sprung up, so if you’re interested, subscribe to my blog or visit my site for latest updates.

Chef Jeremiah Bullfrog explains Podzilla! It was fun to hop
from one station to another to pick up your next dish.
Chefs: Mike, Kurtis Jantz and Chad Galiano
(Chefs at Neomi, Trump International Beach
Resort, Sunny Isles, Florida.) Trio worked
under dim lights, sweltering heat and did a
great job! It’s terrific they get a chance to
showcase their ‘offbeat’ side at this Podzilla
and we are eager Guinea Pigs!

Chowfather help set up!

DJ Kiko kept the energy UP! Enjoyed his music.
Lovely under the tent. It was quite humid. I slathered on Revlon’s Skin So Soft to put off mosquitoes and humans (oops.) I sat with this wonderful enthusiastic foodie couple (in photo above.) Wow, they really get into it. Nice seeing blogger Paula of mangoandlime, I always enjoy reading her blog, she’s written about other Cobaya dinners. Met another food blogger, tinkeringwithdinner. Take a look for his point of view!

I also sat next to a Korean/American attorney I met years ago at an APABA event. The real buzz is she’s going to help prep for the next Top Chef. Can’t reveal location. There was also a plastic surgeon, so you see, you just never know who you’ll meet!

The problem I have with western style rectangular tables is that you only ‘meet’ and have conversations with your immediate neighbors. In Asia, you mostly see square tables or big rounds so you have eye contact with everyone at your table and the conversation and food can also be shared easily, all about ‘community’.

It was really a lovely setting with the water and boats back
of the American Legions Park at 64th/Biscayne where
Harvey took over running the bar and restaurant. Thanks
to Harvey for hosting us. Never knew they had a view in the back.

Octo Salpicon was very tender and tasty, served with
Summer Spritzer of salted watermelon, tomato, tequilla.

Brine Fried Chicken, Big Mike’s potato salad,
buttermilk-chicharrone biscuits.
French Quarter Chicken Livers with hot pepper fluid gel,
evoo-sea salt crackers.
“Baha” Fish Taco Salad: Swordfish, cabbage, chipotle,
tortillas, pico de gallo.

Bahn Mi Tacos: pulled pork in trotter jus, nuoc cham,
pickled radishes & cilantro salad
Mississippi Delta Tamales:
cornmeal tamale, tomatillo, tomato ketchup
Eddie Bragin did some incredibly intricate designs on these
stainless steel bottles used to dispense cream/foam?
Do visit Eddie’s website to see his beautiful art and design.

Chefs assembling tamales.

Nice arrangement with floating candles and flower.

Steve, Blind Tastes chatting to Carla (Jeremiah’s wife)
and baby Sydney. It was nice getting to know J & his
family and hear about their Pod trips.
If you live in Asheville, Weaverville, the
GastroPod is visiting July 3 & 4. Check his site
for latest schedule and his creative events.

I missed out on the Crispy White Corn Cake
(everyone raved about this dish and kept
rubbing it in just cause I missed it.) and Double
Decker Slider Burgers because everyone was
eating way too fast! Well, I couldn’t fit in the
burger, I was stuffed. It got too dark to shoot
the two desserts: Root Beer & Bourbon Floats

and White Chocolate Cupcakes.

I would love to hear your personal take on an “undergro
und” dinner in your town but keep it light.

Here are 2 reviews of ‘underground’ dinners. One from a reporter:
Steve Dolinsky, Adventures in Urban Eating. 12-time national James Beard Award-winner, occasional judge on Iron Chef America, currently Food/Lifestyle reporter for ABC7

And one from a food blogger and empty-nester:
She’s Cookin

Here’s a great listing of ‘underground supper clubs” in other cities. Cobaya is listed.
https://www.saltshaker.net/underground-dining-scene