Beijing Bites

We ordered these one-bite gyozas to share and they ticked all the boxes. They're silky-soft of skin and stuffed with juicy minced pork filling. A spicy chili oil and curls of sharp spring onions added delicious heat. The dumplings rested on a bed of blanched cabbage dressed with some sesame cream dressing which made it more interesting than the ubiquitous shredded lettuce.

Saw this on the menu. Had to have it. Loved it. The tartness of the crispy pickles were counteracted by the crunchy battered coating in the best possible way. Even better creamed in that luscious dip.

The signature bowl at a certain corner eatery (sorry, I couldn't read the Chinese name) was as large as the shop was small. After slurping up the slippery noodles, stewed beef, lettuce, salted vegetable and roasted peanuts served in beef broth for lunch, I was left sated till late that night. Which says a lot considering how quickly I feel peckish in cold weather.

Protein prepared with a lot of lurrrrve, that's what this platter of mixed housemade meats named "The Enthusiast" meant to me.
It comprised of Home Plate Texas BBQ's "Original Sausages" (I liked them dipped in mustard), "Rib Tips" (these were a bit charred but definitely nibble-worthy), a pile of "Pulled Pork" (very juicy, well-marinated pork shoulder, the result of several hours of barbecue with apple wood) and my favourite - the Beef Brisket. Those slices of smoked red meat were exceedingly tender and stunning with flavour. The fat-laced ones were particularly appealing as they were more moist.
I tried mixing and matching everything with the squirt bottles of sauces on the table. Ranging from sweet to tangy with a lick of heat in a couple, they gave the meats varying accents, all of which were appetising.
Special mention must be made of our selected sides of potato salad and slaw served in jars - they're simply superb.

"Home Plate Texas BBQ" turned out to be such a raucous fun place with strong drinks and more importantly, authentic Texan style dishes that's comfort food to the nth degree. Even more so when one had just braved Beijing's sub-zero degree weather to get there.
I was really impressed with the items we had from the get-go. This starter of soft, slightly crumbly cornbread smothered in piping hot, spicy chilli and topped with cheddar plus a generous dollop of sour cream, totally hit the spot and then some. For the first few minutes when it arrived at our table, all I could focus on was to scoop-shovel heaped spoonfuls into my mouth, in between sips of a very lovely "Old Fashioned".

Meat set in jelly. Sounds awful, tastes so good.
These chilled, savoury and bouncy bites aren't the easiest thing in the world to pick up with chopsticks though. Either that or my coordination skill is seriously lacking 🙄

When I travel, I like exploring the little eateries that are hidden from plain sight. Those that are tucked away in back lanes with only local language signages are the kind I search for because their target audience is the workers in the area. Which means food is usually cheap, and authentic. Fortunately, my small group of acquaintances who were on a hunt for dinner last night, agreed to follow my suggestion.
The carb-loading that took place (see above photo) happened at such a type of joint. It was a random pick from a row of small similar-looking eateries, and managed by a young man who took our orders while his mum did the cooking in the kitchen situated above a steep flight of stairs. The dishes tasted homecooked - exactly as I'd hoped, and more importantly, were tasty.
What eventually found their way to our table were a bowl of hot & sour soup, one serving of pork and cabbage dumplings (yes, that plate heaving with them counted as a single portion!) and stirfried noodles. I had done the ordering by pointing to the photos on the walls flanking us.
The soup was the starchy sort and had lots of firm tofu which I like. Its high slurp-worthy factor was due to strong seasoning and plenty of coriander. As they came stuffed with a juicy filling, the dumplings were very well received by all of us too. My favourite dish though was the noodles. It didn't look all that great when it arrived but I enjoyed the al dente-ness of the noodles and the tangy-sweet gravy it was stirfried in.
I'm sure MSG made an appearance in the food but it didn't bother me too much on the whole as I felt only a bit thirsty later.

Spotted this lady along the street, all bundled up in the sub-zero degree cold, churning out piping hot crispy egg rolls like a well-oiled machine. When I stopped to watch (ok, gawk), she offered me a piece to sample. And it was the entire roll mind you, not just a piece broken off an end. I took a bite hesitantly at first but when its fragrant eggy flavour hit me, I chomped it down real quick. Then promptly bought a packet of ten (see inset photo) for just 10 yuan (about SG$2) to take back to my hotel.
The taste is a cross between the "love letters" we have during Chinese New Year and the crispy pancakes I came across in Vietnam a couple of months ago. In other words, it is an all-too-easy-to-crunch-on snack.

The very thin slices of fatty beef are poached in a light soya sauce with Sichuan peppers and fierce little chillies. Under the meat lies a neat pile of beansprouts and enoki mushrooms as well, so there's more to this dish than meets the eye. And as long as nobody bites into those innocent looking green peppers, all is calm... 😁

Grabbed a Korean meal of beef bibimbap and kimchi at Crystal Jade Kitchen tucked away in a corner of Terminal 3 of Beijing International Airport.
About the former, I liked that it came in a pot that kept everything very hot throughout my meal. However, apart from this fact, it was pedestrian at best. On hindsight, I should have gone for the roasted meats with rice or beef brisket noodles instead because quite a few customers seated around me had ordered those.
As for the a la carte order of kimchi, it was ordinary but big enough to be shared between 2 to 3 people.

Here's a pic of the first mutton bun I've ever eaten. The usual strong smell of this meat (which is the reason I tend to avoid it), was masked by the heavy use of cumin. There was a mix of fat and lean cuts of mutton in here which prevented it from being dry.
In conclusion, it was pretty palatable, especially with a few blobs of their bean paste chili sauce. I'm glad I gave it a shot.

Today's quick lunch was more than decently done. A one-dish "Business Meal" of lean pork strips stirfried wth bamboo shoot, black fungus and ginger in a tasty garlic and chili sauce, served with rice plus a bowl of seaweed and egg drop soup. All for about SG$10. Not too bad at all.