Monday, June 18, 2012

Tsuru Food Truck - Pop up event


Two Sydney food trucks have hit the streets in the last few weeks. But there is one food truck that I've been eyeing ever since the news of these mobile restaurants came out. The truck known as Tsuru Food Truck is soon to deliver Sydney with mouth watering modern Asian dishes.  They have Asian inspired dishes ranging from half-moon Chinese steamed buns filled with pork belly to delicious food in sticks like chicken satay skewers. The steamed buns are pillow like, sweet and very tasty.

Ellyn Tse
Ellyn Tse is the creative head chef/proprietor of Tsuru. She is also affiliated with a non-profit organisation called Eat.Drink.Give. It is an organisation that helps the less fortunate in the community. They both have collaborated in the past to host food events that raised proceeds to provide dining experiences to the disadvantaged in the community.



Tsuru and Eat.Drink.Give have once again joined forces and hosted a pop up event last Friday, 15 June 2012 held at Bocata Spanish Deli. Tsuru served an array of dishes that would definitely whet anyone’s appetite (ranges from $3.50 to $4.50):

Pork belly bun
The pork belly bun is their signature dish. A soft Chinese half-moon bun filled with pork belly and pickles. The pork belly is very tender with a light sweet caramelised taste followed by flavours from aromatic spices towards the end. The pickles and coriander adds a soft accent and balance to the dish.
Crispy fried chicken bun
My favourite dish of the night was the crispy fried chicken bun. The contrast of a crispy battered fried chicken fillet and soft Chinese bun works very well. The special mayo drizzled on the chicken gives a creamy texture and tangy taste to the dish. It is seriously awesome!

Barbecue beef with kimchi
Chicken satay skewers
The chicken satay skewer is amazing! It is an Indonesian style chicken satay barbecued over charcoal. It had a smoky and light peanut taste. It is very tender and flavourful.
Pandan and peanuts martabak
The pandan and peanuts martabak manis (sweet martabak) is absolutely mind blowing! It is a thick pancake-like sweet dish. In this version, the martabak is flavoured with pandan. The martabak has a peanut filling that leaves your mouth with a nice after taste almost like nutella.


I can’t wait until Tsuru’s truck is set in motion! I also look forward to try the onigiris and other dishes they have to offer. To find out the latest news on Tsuru Food Truck, follow them on twitter: @tsurufoodtruck and facebook page: www.facebook.com/TsuruFoodTruck

Also check out https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sydney-Food-Trucks/258166624256365 or follow @sydneyfoodtruck for updates on Tsuru and other Sydney food trucks.
 

Tsuru Food Truck
Sydney, NSW

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Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Paella Cooking Class at Extra Virgin Fine Foods


Paella perhaps is the most popular dish ordered in Spanish restaurants. It must be the various vibrant flavours, the different textures and vivid colours that can be experienced in this dish. It is one food that is very dear to me. Whilst growing up in the Philippines, our family gatherings would normally include Paella Valenciana and Lechon (suckling pig). Paella is also something I would cook nowadays on special occasions.

What may seem very grand and intimidating to cook can now be easily
re-created at home! Thanks to Extra Virgin Fine Foods Restaurant’s Paella Cooking Class, they have made paella cooking easier. They have formulated a method and recipe to make cooking paella almost fool proof but without compromising the great taste of excellent paella.



 Extra Virgin Fine Foods is an award-winning tapas restaurant in Crows Nest, Sydney. It is named after the Extra Virgin Fine Foods brand that sells a range of homemade sauces, sangria syrup and olive oils, which are all based on traditional family recipes. The managing director, Mauricio Moreno and Head Chef, Vincent Girardin are the two driving forces of this magnificent restaurant. The restaurant’s décor is very Mediterranean in style. The one thing I’ve noticed most is that they are very unpretentious considering they were crowned “Favourite Spanish Restaurant in NSW in the Lifestyle Channel’s I Love Food Awards 2012”.
 Back to the class, a few other fellow bloggers and I were privileged to participate in their paella cooking class and honored to have cooked in their kitchen. Chef Vincent started by welcoming us to the class and gave us a brief background on paella and the process involved in creating it. A recipe was provided before we started. We then entered the kitchen and were each provided with ingredients that were prepared beforehand and cooking utensils. Chef Vincent and his cook were there to guide and assist us through the whole process.


Flambé baby! 



We started infusing the flavours from the chorizo (house made), prawns, calamari, and mussels (with wine and covered to steam cook) into the pan by slightly cooking the ingredients.




 All the above ingredients are then set aside and in goes other sofrito (house made). The rice is later evenly poured into the pan. A warm saffron stock and veal stock (house made) also goes into the pan. The rice is pushed around side to side to let the stock penetrate the rice. Seasoning and paprika are added to intensify the flavour. All the ingredients that were set aside in the early stages of process are returned into the pan and rendered.
 At the end of the class, we enjoyed the fruits of our labour with some sangria, croquetas de queso and tortilla con boquerones y mojama.
Paella
The paella is very smoky and rich in flavour. The rice is very moist and almost sticky in consistency. The rice bottom is also toasted. This is probably one of the best paellas I’ve had in Sydney.
 The croquetas de queso is a three-cheese croqueta, crumbed then fried. The outer layer is has panko crumbs cooked to perfect crisp with flavourful mushy cheese innards.
The tortilla con boquerones y mojama (Potato tortilla, topped with white anchovy & shavings of cured tuna).
Complimentary sangria mix 
This class (worth $95pp) is suitable for cooks of any level. The techniques, ingredients and process are properly explained.  By the end of the class, you will be equipped with basic paella cooking skills and knowledge to make your own homemade paella. The class runs on a Saturday from 3pm – 5pm. For more information, visit http://www.extravirginfinefoods.com.au/classes.html.

 Ramen Raff participated in the Paella Cooking Class and dined as a guest courtesy of Extra Virgin Fine Foods and Helen Lear.

 Extra Virgin Fine Foods
17 Alexander Street,
Crows Nest, NSW 2065
(02) 9436 0733
Opening Hours:
Brunch – Saturday and Sunday, 9.30am – 3.30pm
Lunch – Friday to Sunday, 12pm – 3.30pm
Dinner – Tuesday to Sunday, 6pm – late


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