asian bolognese, cooked and plated this time around

click below to see how asian bolognese is really made.

so, tonight i did something i thought i wouldn't be able to do for a long, long time again - get back in front of a camera and do a demo. in a small way, this is my attempt to redeem myself as a cook not in other people's eyes, but in my own eyes. in the past week since the show has aired, there has been a lot of "noise." for me, most of it has been good noise - i have received many wonderful emails with words of support, encouragement and praise. however, when you put yourself in the public spotlight, people feel that they have free reign to have an opinion on you and of course, not all of it is good. no matter how thick your skin is (and having been raised by a very chinese mother, i have pretty thick skin), you can't help but feel that initial sting. sadly, some of that bad "noise" has made me doubt myself and question whether i belong in a kitchen at all. when i dig deep down inside, i know the answer is, "shake it off, move on and get back in there" and that is just what i'm going to do.

i also thought i owed it to this dish - asian bolognese - to show you all a completed version of it. this is something you will never find in a restaurant. in fact, i have never found it anywhere besides my parent's kitchen. many delectable creations have come out of the dang kitchen, but i think this is one of the best. it's a little bit italian, a little bit chinese which is fitting of my culinary background. bolognese, because it is esentially a meat sauce. chinese, because it is served over silky tofu and uses soy sauce and rice vinegar as its foundation of flavor. the heartiness of the meat is complimented by the incredibly light taste of the fresh tomatoes and of course the delicate feel of the tofu. it is quick-and-easy, at least it is when there isn't a stage manager breathing down your neck and a selection committe scrutinizing you in the corner. i hope it makes it to your kitchen sometime soon.

a huge thanks goes to my camera man, director, editor, all around great friend james lin for staying up with me till 2 am to film and edit this demo. you rock.

i hope this is the first of many demoes i put up on the petite pig, and i hope each one gets better and better. send me your comments and feedback. and of course, if you do end up cooking this dish, let me know how it goes.

the following recipe for asian bolognese varies slightly different to the one submitted to the food network. use this one instead.

******************************************asian bolognese
serves 4
cooking time: 20 minutes1 lb ground meat
1 tsp salt & 1 tsp pepper
four tomatoes
2 tbs olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 onion, diced
2 tbs soy sauce
1 tsp rice or rice wine vinegar
2 tbs cold water
1 tbs corn starch
1/2 lb tofu
cooked jasmine rice (recipe below)
2 tbs parsley, mincedthere are three ways to prepare the tomotoes for recipe. one requires blanching and shocking the tomatoes to remove the skin. if you are short on time, i recommend that you just dice or cut the tomatoes into eighths and skip step two.season ground meat with salt and pepper in medium sized bowl. set aside.bring 2 quarts of water to boil. while waiting for water to boil, prepare an ice bath. carve the tops out of each tomato (the part that connects the tomato to its stem). when water boils, place tomatoes into boiling water for 45 seconds. remove and place immediately into ice bath. let sit in ice bath for two minutes. remove skin and cut into eighths.heat 1 tbs of olive oil over medium-high heat in wok. add half of minced garlic. when you start to smell the garlic, add ground meat. break up meat with wooden spoon. cook until meat begins to brown but is not fully cooked through. remove meat from wok and set aside in medium-sized bowl.return wok back to medium-high heat. put second tbs of olive oil into wok. add remaining garlic. when olive oil and garlic are ready, add diced onion. cook onion until it becomes translucent. add tomatoes. let tomatoes simmer and juice up, stirring occasionally. while tomatoes are cooking, prepare tofu. cut tofu into 1/4 to 1/2 inch cubes. place in microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 2 minutes on high. mix together soy sauce, vinegar, cold water and corn starch. when the tomatoes have softened and are juiced up, add ground meat back into tomato sauce and turn heat to high. clear an area in your wok for your flavoring base. when wok has reached high heat, pour in flavoring base. let it sit for ten seconds. sauce should begin boiling and thickening. lower heat to medium and stir. let cook for another thirty seconds.serve over tofu and rice. garnish with minced parsley.*******************************************************cooked jasmine rice
serves 4
cooking time 10 minutes 3 and 3/4 cups water
2 cups jasmine rice
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1/2 tablespoon saltbring water and jasmine rice to boil. add peanut oil and salt. stir and turn heat down to low. cover and let simmer until rice has absorbed all the liquid, about 10 minutes.

Comments

[Anderson]

Works like a charm. Cheers!

[harold]

yeah. that was very cool. what did you use to upload it to your blog?

[Gu Jair]

That looks delicious !

[Tracy]

It was interesting to see the whole recipe on your video here. I'm trying to imagine what it must taste like, but I can't imagine the taste of the tomatoes together with the soy sauce/rice vinegar with tofu and rice. I guess I will have to try it.

[Jimmy]

You Rock! I'm glad you did a videotape of yourself making the dish. I've thought about doing the same BUT you did it! hoo-ya!
I've just started blogging and have something "up my sleeve" so stay tuned. I'll be adding you to my "links" if you don't mind.

[Jess Liang]

Wow, I'm so glad you posted the recipe up here--it looks delicious!

We used to do something similar with soy sauce and tomatoes, though it was with chicken thighs. I haven't tried it with rice vinegar yet, though, if only because I really have it with sushi, but it's up on my "try-out" list for sure.

Thanks again for posting!

[CaliforiaStyle]

Wow, this looks delicious! I'm going to have to try this recipe, thanks!

[Jami]

Looks delish! Loved the video as well. My husband and I are always looking for new recipes to try and this is right up our alley! Thank you.

[jammarlibre]

Good morning
Thanks for your site.

[sveta]

Nice site... Cool guestbook...e

[Bill]

Cool guestbook, interesting information... Keep it UP. excellent site i really like your stuff.

[honda-radio]

Thx! :)

[Rosina]

Lucky to find you, keep on the good workk guys! Best of luck.