Fried Mahimahi

I guess summer is here.  The rain has tapered off, the termites come around, and I haven't had to turn on my electric blankie for over a week.

When the weather turns warm, I try to serve food that won't add much to the heat...more veggies...less rice...no "gravy" foods.  The warm weather is also perfect for outdoor eating and "build your own" foods like fish tacos.

For several years, I've been making breaded mahi (short for mahimahi).  Breaded mahi/fried mahi, is an okazuya staple.  Pieces of golden brown fillets line trays, waiting to be packed in a box lunch.  "Breaded" usually refers to the use of panko breadcrumbs.  The Ds and The Help enjoy mahi because it's easy to eat; no bones to pick out.  I like making fried mahi at home (maybe because The Help makes the absolute best tartar sauce).  I would post his recipe for tartar sauce, but I am certain he doesn't use a recipe.  Magically, it turns out delicious every time.

In spite of willingly consuming breaded mahi, The Help isn't normally much of a fish, rice, and Japanese pickles eater.  So it wasn't a huge surprise when he broke from the norm and used my breaded mahi in fish tacos.  I suppose the stars were all in the right place. . .we happened to have won bok, carrots, purple cabbage, tortillas, AND salsa, on hand.

Whether you have breaded mahi in a bento, with rice or in a taco, making it at home isn't too difficult.  The results are delicious and well worth the effort.

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Fried Mahimahi

     1 lb mahimahi, thinly sliced

     1 tbsp sugar

     2 tbsp cornstarch

     1 tsp salt

     1 tbsp sake

     1/2 tsp curry powder

     1 tbsp shoyu

     1 egg, beaten

     1 1/2 c panko

     oil for frying

Combine sugar, cornstarch, salt, sake, curry powder and shoyu.  Add mahimahi and marinate for 1 hour.  Heat oil in a skillet.   Dip fish into beaten egg then roll in panko.  Fry until golden brown.

    

It seems like it's been a while since I went anywhere.  But a few weeks ago, I went to Honolulu to "fix" my shoulder.  A trip to Honolulu would not have been complete without visiting the newest (for now) member of my family, Cody.  Big congratulations go out to his parents, LA and Stason, and his beaming grandpa Miles.  Cody will have many rich years of listening to Grandpa Miles' stories about his youth, the dangers of going into Waikiki, and how he didn't enjoy napping while he was younger.

And we will forgive Stason for his ugly shirt.






Although I was in town for only an evening, I managed to get my dim sum fix.  We tried a new place called Yum Cha.  I was excited to see xiao long bao on the menu.  It was actually just okay, although this was the first place in Hawaii where I've actually had xiao long bao.  My previous experience has been limited to Din Tai Fung, so perhaps it's not a fair comparison.  The shrimp look funn was delicious.  Yum Cha is one of those places on Oahu where you can get the cute animal buns (I think the other place is Panda Dim Sum, a place I have yet to try).

The animal buns are dessert buns.  The piggies are filled with custard, and the doggies (sorry, no pic) have a black bean filling.  If you know me, then you know why there is no doggie bun pic.  I'm not a big fan of black bean.

The Help had to have his steamed char siu bao, and we also had an order of lo bok gao.  I managed to eat just one of the piggie buns because I could not leave without having my favorite, mango pudding.

For our only dinner,  it was a no-brainer.  We ended up at Tonkatsu Tamafuji.  I was smarter this time and ordered the white rice.  But next time, I think I will try the oyster and shrimp combo.  I don't think I need to eat the pork loin katsu again...not because it wasn't good, but it was just too heavy.

Since returning home, I've been putting a lot of time into my recovery.  In addition to physical therapy, I've been trying to stretch and do more at home.  While I am not back to normal yet, I can tell that I have made progress.  I can actually put on my own deodorant and wash my own hair.

While all this was happening, Kilauea volcano continued producing lava.  It is rather difficult to grasp the magnitude of changes which have occurred in the lower Puna area in the past 5 weeks.  I know of several people who had to evacuate, as well as others who have actually lost their homes.  D1 called me last week Thursday to tell me her long-time friend no longer has a home in Kapoho.  This is not a stranger.  This is someone who has spent time with our family over the years.  It's difficult to find words.

The Help allowed a friend to try out his Fuji, and he captured this amazing picture from his bedroom.   The foreground is bayfront (downtown Hilo).  The lava fountain (fissure 8) is about 20 miles away.

photo credit:  Nakaz42

And yesterday, I received an awesome gift from the valley of the sun. . .D1 returned! 😻

Beryl's Special Dressing for Doritos Salad

There are two stars of this post.

The first star is a creamy dressing which goes so well with nacho cheese Doritos.

I began making this dressing back in 2002.  I was prego and jonesing for something cool and crunchy.  My coworker at the time gave me this recipe and told me to eat this with lettuce and crushed nacho cheese Doritos.  Since I was on bedrest at the time, I had my mom prepare this for me.  I couldn't believe how good it was.  Since then, I've made this numerous times for lunch.  It's fast to pack and very simple to throw together.  And for whatever reason, I never thought to post it here.

A few months ago, while working at a volleyball game, I noticed that the concession was selling something called "Doritos salad".  Turns out, they were selling shredded lettuce, chopped tomato, and crushed nacho cheese Doritos with Beryl's Special Dressing!  The addition of tomatoes, I must admit, was really nice.  Of course, I wish they would've taken the time to remove all the tomato seeds and slime, but this is MY hang-up, not theirs.

Then at the last faculty meeting of the year, one of my current coworkers brought a taco salad.  It was served in a pan and consisted of the typical taco salad ingredients:  lettuce, tomato (with seeds!), taco meat, and cheese.  But topping the salad was a layer of crushed nacho cheese Doritos and a generous all-over drizzle of a dressing which tasted exactly like, you guessed it, Beryl's Special Dressing!  While the tomato addition at the concession was nice, the taco meat and cheese took it over the top.

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Beryl's Special Dressing

     1/3 c mayonnaise

     1 tbsp sugar

     1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Combine all ingredients with a whisk.  Chill until ready to serve.

If you don't have the time to prepare the taco meat and fixins, don't despair.  A simple salad made with just shredded lettuce, crushed chips and this dressing is awesome in it's own right.  It is good enough reason to always buy a gigantic bag of nacho cheese Doritos from Costco.

The second (but not lesser) star of this post is The Keeper.

I had the good fortune of befriending The Keeper many moons ago.  I'm not sure how we met, but we hit it off immediately and have been close ever since.  Over the years, he has listened to my bitching, shared some of his own, and provided me hours of entertainment and education with tales of his travels in the land of the rising sun.

This past week, The Keeper's arm of friendship and kindness, extended far beyond any expectation when he took me (and a few others) to Hokkaido for the trip of a lifetime.

We spent four-ish glorious days together, stuffing our faces with local seafood (mostly raw), savory ramen, decadent sweets, and, surprisingly, very little alcohol (for me, at least; my alcohol consumption was limited to a sip of something which tasted like grape juice in a can purchased by The Keeper from a vending machine at a train station).  Most of us bought amulets at a shrine, possibly to protect us from blowing our fortune$ at the shopping venues.

I learned so much about Hokkaido and Japan, as a whole.  Japan is such a beautiful country, and Hokkaido has it all. . .an upscale city (Sapporo) with a vibrant night life district (Susukino), as well as quaint towns (Otaru and Hakodate), not unlike Hilo.  At times, I felt like I was traveling with the Old Lord of Mito (Mito Komon) on his journey and wondering which character I was...Kaku-san (a retainer), Ogin (a ninja), or Hachibei (the jester). 

According to my fitbit, I walked over 100k steps in those four-ish days, which equals somewhere over 40 miles.  In spite of having to haul my ass around Hokkaido and worrying about chafing in the nether-regions, I could not possibly thank The Keeper enough for allowing me to interlope on his vacation.  An entire lifetime would not be enough time.  

To The Keeper:  私の心の底からとてもありがとう。 あなたの友情は常に大事にされます。

And my trip would not have been possible without The Help.  My air ticket was my birthday present, and he took care of my home and family (four-legged, finned, and feathered members) while I was away.  Much thanks. . .you are my rock, even if not everyone knows your name.