IT'S THE HEART OF CIVILIZATION!

What spells joy, and goes well with all the good things in life, such as ginger, grease, and, frequently, chili sauce? Or, more specifically, what tastes delicious but frightens people with very white bread ideas?
Clue: beloved in Reykjavik AND Stavanger.

Salt fish!


鹹魚蒸肉餅
Steamed pork patty with salted fish.
'Haam yü jing yiuk beng'
Some minced pork flattened, a few slices of salt fish thrown on top, and some ginger sliced into threads. Steamed for ten minutes.
Or twenty if you have made it thick.

鹹魚雞粒炒飯
Salt fish and chicken fried rice.
'Haam yü gai naap chaau faan'
Fried rice with one thing for substance, another for flavour. Available at every Hong Kong style chachanteng between here and Hotpot, Mongolia. Really, so widely available that you need never make it at home.
Just wander happily from one HK eatery to the next.
Avoid places that cater to Caucasians.

鹹魚頭豆腐湯
Salt fish head and tofu soup.
'Haam yü tau dau fu tong'
Precisely what it says, with optional other ingredients like roast meats and stalky mustard, in a chowder. You can even add chunks of tomato to cook along with the other ingredients.

梅香鹹魚蒸五花肉
Fermented salt fish steamed with fatty pork.
'Mui heung haam yü jing ng faa yiuk'
Nice rich chunks of pork made luscious by braising with whole cloves of garlic and "plum fragrance" fish.

鹹魚茄子
Salt fish eggplant.
'Haam yü ke ji'
A simple country dish. Delicious.

鹹魚蒸豬肉
Salt fish steamed pork chunks.
'Haam yü jeng chu yiuk'
Minced pork, salt fish.

柴魚花生粥
Salt fish ("firewood fish") and peanuts congee.
'Chai yü faa saang juk'
Cheap to make and wonderful to eat. Especially good if made with pork bone and chicken carcass broth.


There are any number of things you can do with salt fish, even make a broth out of toasted pieces. Which, if crumbled and moistened, can add a depth and saveur to whatever leafy or stalky vegetables you stirfry. When simmering meats, salt fish heightens the deliciousness.
Add the ginger to the pot.

Such dishes are great for breakfast.

Especially in a hot climate.

Or during summer.



Yeah, I'm heading off to work in Marin in a few hours. I'm just thinking about what I would far rather eat for lunch than what I will eat for lunch.
Other than an affection for mysterioso Eastern shit, Marin is very very white. And really, Eastern Spirituality is also very very white.

Real people don't eat bland muck.



AFTERWORD

Indeed, this IS blatant cultural appropriation. Something we Dutch people do very well, thank you. I am surrounded by carefully manicured minds everytime I cross the Golden Gate, and I hate the effing suburbs.
They disapprove of everything in Marin.
Except for yoga and Buddha.
Damned hippies.




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