I used to be terrified of avocados and coconuts. A child of the early nineties, I was raised during the peak of the “all-fat-is-bad-fat” phase epitomized by low-fat Snackwell’s cookies. It was only in the past few years, truly, that I’ve
5-Element Kitchen: Chopping into Spring
In the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) 5-element system, spring corresponds to the Wood element. If you think of Wood as bamboo, and not an oak tree, it’s a bit easier to see how wood’s correspondences make sense: the wood element exhibits characteristics
Slow Cooker Congee: To Cook Jook
Living in Queens, there are ample opportunities for culinary inspiration, and dim sum brunch yesterday was merely one of those times. Heading out for dim sum means that there are many steamed buns, dumplings, and fried meat morsels in your future. However,
Pickles. Old school style.
As many of you know, I am a pickle-lover. But there are pickles, and there are PICKLES. Over the past few years I have been learning about the benefits of fermented pickles which differ from hot-packed and boiling-water-processed pickles which
Cool Down Cucumber Seaweed Salad
I’ve been making this salad since I fell in love with a similar one at Souen, a macrobiotic restaurant in Greenwich village during college. Now, 13 (gasp!) years later, knowing more about Chinese medicine and the 5-elements, this salad remains