Day 333

Tonkatsu Ramen: After a few weeks in a row of eating new things that I wasn't that excited about trying, I finally got to try something today that I'd been curious about for awhile: ramen. No, not the dried garbage that's notorious for keeping college students alive. I'm talking about the real thing, made from scratch in the authentic Japanese style. I didn't know any restaurants in Atlanta had it, but I recently heard about a place called Yakitori Jinbei out in Smyrna that supposedly served the best version.

Since I only have a few weeks left with this blog, I wanted to make sure I tried it before the end, so me and my fellow food blogger friend Dan made plans to meet for lunch today. If you haven't visited his website (www.atlfoodsnob.com), please do so. Once we got there, there was no need for me to look at the menu - I knew what I wanted. There were other selections (sushi, udon, etc.), but it was all about the ramen today.

Once our server brought the still-steaming bowl, I was immediately curious. This didn't look anything like any ramen I'd ever tried. In addition to the broth and noodles, the dish also included 2 slices of pork tenderloin on top, as well as some cabbage for garnish. The broth almost looked like it contained cream, but Dan informed me that it didn't - the creaminess comes solely from the lengthy cooking process of making the pork stock. It was studded with little globs of pork fat, and based on the appearance, I knew it would taste great.

I decided to try the broth first - wow. One of the best things I've tried in a long time, and I could have drank it out of a glass if necessary. The buttery, pork-y flavor was the perfect match for the ramen noodles, which had a firmness and crunch that the dried versions could never dream of achieving. The slices of pork on top were also amazing, and they were tender enough to cut with chopsticks. If you've only had the cheap, dried ramen, forget it. If you like pork or noodles at all, you need to try this dish. I knocked out the whole bowl quickly and could have easily eaten more.

I'll definitely return to Yakitori Jinbei for this dish alone, but I also want to try their yakitori, which is only served at dinner.

Day 332

MoonDish "Laing" with Tuna Flakes: Today is my second attempt with these MoonDish brand canned foods, imported from the Philippines. My experience with their gintaang ampalaya (bitter melon in coconut cream) wasn't that spectacular, so when I saw this can of laing (taro leaves in coconut cream) at the Great Wall market last week, I wasn't sure if I wanted to try it. However, it was only $0.50, and I was desperate for new foods that day, so I took one home. It looked interesting enough.

Since I was down to my last 2 items from my stockpile, it was either this or canned shark fin soup for today, so obviously, this won. According to the ingredients on the can, it consisted of coconut cream, taro leaves and stalks, tuna flakes (not sure what they mean by that), ginger, garlic, red chili pepper, and salt. The can also promised it to be "hot & spicy."

Once I got the can open, I heated the contents in the microwave for about 30 seconds. The results looked a lot like creamed spinach or baby food, but I suspected it wouldn't taste like either. Surprise - it actually did taste a lot of creamed spinach, but a spicier version with coconut cream instead of regular cream. The taro leaves were almost a pureed consistency, and while I didn't detect the "tuna flakes," it was still pretty tasty. Not bad. I've thrown away a lot of half-eaten blog food lately, but I may actually finish this one.

In case you were wondering, laing is a common Filipino dish, and can also contain shrimp paste, fish, or pork in addition to the base ingredients of taro leaves and coconut cream.

Day 331

Panchy Aloe Vera Dessert: When I saw this unusual dessert at the Assi Market in Duluth last week, I had no idea what to make of it. It looked more like a bag of colored liquid than dessert, and I didn't know that aloe vera was used for anything other than healing sunburns. However, you can apparently eat it, so I grabbed one and put it in my shopping basket.

Since I didn't have any other dessert options lined up tonight, I decided to give the aloe a try. According to the package, it was mango flavored, and the only listed ingredients were aloe vera, water, sugar, artificial mango flavor, and citric acid. The packaging suggested serving it chilled, so I put it in the fridge earlier today for maximum enjoyment. Well, hopefully maximum, anyway.

Once I opened the package, I was kind of confused. I didn't see any instructions regarding how to eat it, so I poured some in a bowl and grabbed a spoon. The liquid inside the package was clear, and the "dessert" consisted of square, translucent, almost invisible chunks of what I assumed was aloe. It looked like Jell -O, but I suspected it would taste a bit different than that.

Once I tried it, I was definitely surprised. The aloe cubes had a slightly firm, fruit-like texture, and they tasted a lot like lychee or longan, not mango. Funny that I can easily reference lychee and longan now, right? Anyway, I noticed that the watery liquid also had the same flavor, but due to its sweetness, I didn't have more than a couple spoonfuls. It was an extremely light, refreshing dessert, but I can't say I'd want to eat it often.

After doing some research, I found out that the little cubes were actual pieces of aloe taken from the plant. The leaves are skinned, then cut and rinsed before eating. They're usually flavored with some sort of fruit syrup before serving.

Day 330

Basil Seed Drink with Honey: As my readers know, I don't usually count beverages or condiments for this blog, but when I discovered today's new food at the Assi Market in Duluth last week, I knew I might have to make an exception. When I spotted this unusual looking bottle on the shelf, my curiosity level was high. It's not often that you see beverages with stuff floating in them, and based on the description, it sounded tasty. And hey, basil seeds are solid food, right? I had to have it, so I put one in my basket to take home.

After spotting it in my fridge today, I went ahead and popped the top so I could try it. The liquid inside was sort of a translucent yellow, with what I assumed to be basil seeds floating throughout. I shook it up, then poured a few ounces into a glass with ice. Bottoms up.

Despite having "honey" in the name, it wasn't nearly as sweet as I expected. It had a light honey flavor, with a bit of a fruity aftertaste, and the basil seeds provided a squeaky crunch that reminded me of the tapioca pearls in bubble tea. Remember that fruit-flavored "Orbitz" drink from the late 90's that had the gelatin balls floating in it? That's the closest thing I can think of to compare it to. Despite the strange texture of the basil seeds, I really liked this one, and I bet it'd be good in a summer cocktail.

Artisanal mixologists, here's your next hot ingredient.

Day 329

Mo'Pleez Rajasthan Indian Snack Mix: Even though I still haven't gotten around to going to a real Indian restaurant, I've really enjoyed trying the various Indian snacks I've found at different markets around town. In addition to some ever-present ingredients (lentils, curry, etc.), you can usually count on a good dose of spice, and that's exactly what this snack mix brought. My forehead is still sweating.

I found this bag of "Rajasthan" snack mix (made by the strangely named "Mo'Pleez" brand) at the Assi Market in Duluth last week. It reminded me of the "bhel puri" mix I ate a few months ago, but this one was just a dry mix, with no wet ingredients. It claimed to be a "mouth watering mix of fried Indian snacks," containing gram lentils, chickpea flour, rice flakes, green peas, peanuts, and a healthy dose of Indian spices. It seemed like it could be a more exotic Chex Mix, so I bought a bag to take home.

Once I gave it a try today, I was impressed. It really was like an Indian-style Chex Mix, with green peas, rice flour discs, and lentils taking place of the cereal and pretzels. The whole concoction was crunchy and super-spicy, and considering my low tolerance for heat, I was sweating in no time. Good, but hot. I'm apparently going to be in trouble if I ever make it to an authentic Indian restaurant.

Day 328

Dried Olive: Today's new food is actually the second unusual olive product I've found at the Great Wall Supermarket in Duluth. I wasn't too thrilled with the "preserved olives" I bought a few weeks ago, and from what I've read since then, I don't even think they were actually olives. Based on their appearance, I was pretty sure these were real olives, and they looked more like little stones than food.

Even though they were dried, I didn't want them to go to waste, so I decided to give them a try this afternoon. I took a bite - well, I attempted to take a bite, and my teeth couldn't even break through the outside on the first attempt. Wow. I knew these were dried, but I didn't know they were almost inedible. Once I finally got a bite dislodged, I was left with a super-chewy, salty version of what used to possibly be a green olive. In addition, there was a sizable pit that didn't leave much actual olive. Not good, and if these were intended as a snack, I could definitely think of better choices. I got through one bite before giving up - it didn't taste good enough to risk unhinging my jaw.

With only a little over a month left in this project, I'm gonna have to start working harder to find some new things I really enjoy. It's hard to fill 365 days with one new thing a day, and I knew going into this that they all wouldn't be good, but I really want to end on a positive (and tasty) note.

Day 327

Viet-Style Liquorice Plum: As I mentioned before, I found a lot of pretty cool new items at the Great Wall Supermarket in Duluth earlier this week. I had great success with their dried/preserved bulk food section, and that's exactly where today's new food post comes from.

I've figured out that I'm not exactly a fan of dried or preserved fruits, except for spreadable "preserves," which are a whole entirely different thing. However, I'll try almost anything once, so when I saw these tiny "liquorice plums," I figured it couldn't hurt to take some home. They almost looked like oversized raisins, with what appeared to be a sugary coating on the outside. They were also coated with something else that looked like dried grass - weird.

I finally got around to trying these today, and to be honest, I wasn't that impressed. The exterior of the dried plum was super-sugary, and after a couple of chews, that gave way to a sour interior that was hard to enjoy. I debated spitting it out, but I continued on and tried to enjoy. After a few seconds, the sourness subsided a bit, but I still didn't eat another one. And despite the name, I didn't taste any liquorice notes.

I think I'll stick to eating fresh fruit from now on. I'm apparently not equipped to enjoy the funky dried stuff.