Noo, not harflings, halflings. They say don’t shop for food on an empty stomach, but when it turns into something like pumpkin soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, and a massive shepherd’s pie, who’s gonna complain? Not the harflings (dammit), that’s for sure.
Usual regular burger post? This time a little bit different, double smash cheeseburgers with spicy miso cole slaw and crispy bacon. The first one looks prettier, but the cole slaw was too sour. Second one hit the spot. Looks aren’t everything, you know.
There, I done did it. I was just making an offhanded comment about Hiroshima style okonomiyaki, next thing I was wondering how DO you actually make that darn thing that seems to just be ingredients stacked sky high on a pancake and somehow not falling apart? A lot of research, a couple of tries and almost a whole head of cabbage later I think I’m getting the hang of it. Had to replace crispy tempura bits with Backerbsen and no idea if it’s anything like the authentic dish but it’s good stuff, so no complaints.
Every day we stray further from the light. Curiosity got the better of me and I had to test this idea out that was floating in the collective and twisted creative consciousness of the party. Instant noodles cooked and fried to a slight crisp, dressed with demi-glace and kewpie mayo, sprinkled with the powder from the instant soup packet. I tried to be fancy and put a sesame jalapeno cabbage salad and a fried egg underneath, and some bonito flakes on top – like some fever dream future reconstruction of Hiroshima style Okonomiyaki – but the result was middling. I’m afraid to say the part that worked shockingly well was just the noodles with the sauce (because honestly the demi-glace is crazy good). Charles Dixon you fucking madman, you’re on to something.
This time in the form of vegan demi-glace. Take a baking tray full of veggie scraps that otherwise would have ended up in the bin, roast until golden brown, deglaze with water and cook for over 3 hours to make a stock, season and reduce the bejeezus out of it until it concentrates into a thick, super flavorful sauce. Then wonder what to do with it. No, I will not put them on instant noodles. Maybe.
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Hear me out, this one’s a bit different. Kinda like Katmer or Paratha, a much drier dough that is stretched as thin as possible, then folded into a nice pocket with an egg and cheese filling before frying. The thin dough is what makes it really nice, even if my stretching technique is inversely bad.
With leftover dough and the intention to only be harf as messy (*glug*) I gave it another go. Shaping went much better, especially with letting the dough relax before the final roll, the results were still sublime. Some egg yolk from fried eggs is just the cherry on top.
Rolling those out was a glorious mess, but what do you expect when you’re trying to spread a mix of sheep’s cheese, scallions and oil between the thinnest possible dough layers? The result was worth it though.
The difference in water content. One’s a somewhat shapeable dough, the other is essentially a big wet blob that you coax into a baking tray with a generous amount of olive oil and wonder how it won’t turn into a casserole in the oven.
