Semiserious Chefs

This recipe calls for Asian Yam. This is not to be mistaken for what gets marketed as ‘yam’ in the US. Despite popular belief, both the yellowy sweet flavored potato that is labeled ‘sweet potato’ and the orange fleshed extra sweet flavored potatoes named ‘yam’ are both just that, sweet potatoes. The cousin of the good-ole reg’ya’la […]

I have been very excited to finally have an excuse to buy the beautiful king oyster mushrooms that are currently in season. Raw, these large mushrooms have a pleasant aroma similar to a good sourdough, but when simmered they bring incredible umami flavor to a dish. The other main ingredient, dried bean curd sticks, take […]

This super easy and very cheap salad can be served warm or cold. The recipe below makes for a mildly hot dressing. You can of-course add more chili as desired. The same goes for the sesame oil. I tend to only like a little bit in my dishes, but feel free to add more to […]

I’m not any kind of Chinese food chef – nor do I claim to really know a lot about the modern Americanized version of Chinese cuisine – but I do know a good meal when I see one. This dish isn’t anything fancy, but it has all the elements of a good meal thrown nicely […]

Let me start off by saying that this recipe is not a clone of what you’re going to find at a typical Chinese restaurant. I’ve never worked at a Chinese restaurant so I don’t exactly know all the details of what’s involved. However, I do have a couple of ideas. First, I’m pretty certain they […]

THAT’S RIGHT. HAVE YOUR CAKE AND EAT IT TOO! The great flavors of Sweet and Sour AND Teriyaki all rolled into one wonderful, full bodied, fragrant, and multi-purpose sauce! Around here we don’t waste our money on store bought teriyaki sauce. It isn’t that it’s expensive. There are, of course, plenty of really cheap and […]

I’m on a kick to try and bring more ‘garden’ to our table. Given that doesn’t always (or usually ever) mean our own garden, and I don’t want it to mean more salad. I would like to have self serve side dish options with our meals that include unique fruits and vegetables as well as […]

If you love Chinese food (I mean American style, not authentic) like I do, then you will probably find this recipe for sweet and sour chicken to be a pretty close match to what you’ll get in many Chinese takeout restaurants here in Alaska. And I assume in the lower 48 (47 if Texas secedes) […]