Wulan Ramen House

You know I had to review this place.  Apparently its been all the buzz between all my Oceanside heads.  Ramen is something that it deeply ingrained in my heart so hearing that there is a decent place in my former hometown of Oceanside really caught my attention.  When rating ramen my criterium has always been the essentails of the ramen itself, the noodles, the toppings, and the broth.  Well lets just get into it then because lets be serious no one wants to hear me rant on so lets look at the food!

Pork Bao Bun

Not authentic at all.  It was braised pork shoulder with romaine and some sort of dressing.  To me it was screaming bahn mi flavors but I would say it is worth a try but I probably wouldn't be ordering this again.

Takoyaki (Octopus)

Pretty good.  I love the chewy texture of the rice batter here.  The order came with plenty of them and the flavor was really good.  You get them piping hot, so hot that the bonito on the top looks like it is still alive and moving.  The octopus wasnt too chewy and the subtle hints of ginger and sauce ont the top complimented it well.  Solid starter

Tsukemen

This is what mel ordered.  The broth (not pictured) wasn't served to us hot enough but I think the flavor was really good.  The greens and bamboo shoots give it a good balance to the dish.   The noodles seemed pretty authentic,  they had a nice chew and a yellow hue so you could tell they had kansui which most japanese ramen noodles have.

The Mega Pig

This was their most expensive ramen because of the size.  I would say it is a moderate portion but I do eat like a monster.  I love how they give you 2 different types of cooked eggs although I am a big fan of a soft poached and would have preferred that.  I am always happy with egg yolk in general though.  They give you 2 types of pork belly a traditional sliced and smoked and a chasu or rolled marinated style and both were very good.  The broth has that 2 soup broth or double dip and David Chang likes to call it and had very good flavor.  I understand that you have to over season because the noodles will pull a lot of the salt flavor out but mine was really way too salty.  I did try this bowl of ramen twice and both time I had to dilute the borth with water.  But I do say I really did enjoy it both times.  I hope I dont hype it up too much because there really isnt anything comparable to it in the area besides underbelly in downtown SD which I havent had the pleasure of trying.  But I am confident in saying that this is a solid ramen spot.

Pastry Chef Attempt

 Sweet is always something I have great inner struggle with.  Do I not finish my delicious 10oz char grilled porterhouse so I can fit some sugar in my belly?  Usually the answer is no but when you have a wife who is pregnant and has super enhanced taste buds you have to start liking the sugar.  This dish was from a little event at work for a meet and greet with a man named Richard Lederer?  Apparently he was hot stuff in his time and he is pretty picky with his food.  Anywho this was the dessert course I made for his menu and it was pretty well received.  Check the recipe below

 



Hibiscus Poached De Anjou Pear

serves 1

 

De Anjou pear Fresh 1/2 each

Blood Orange Sorbet

Orange Peel from 1 Orange

Granulated Sugar 3 Cups

Water 3 Cups

Hibiscus Tea 1 Package

 

Bring a pot of 2 cups of water to a boil and add 2 Cups of Sugar to make a simple syrup.  Add the packet of hibiscus tea and steep until it picks up color.  Peel and Half the pear making sure to remove the seeds and place in the poaching liquid along with orange peel.  Lower heat and poach until soft about 12-15 Minutes.  Remove and cool down.  Take the orange peel and quickly fry until it picks up color and immediately coat in granulated sugar  Scoop a coronel of blood orange sorbet and place on top of poached pear.  Place candied orange peel on top as garnish.

 

 

Hibiscus Poached De Anjou Pear with Blood Orange Sorbet and Candied Orange Peel 

 

The tangy sorbet was perfect to cut through the sweetness of the pear and orange peel.  Its a lighter refreshing type of dessert and it was pretty well received.  Give it a try friends.

Happy Birthday Daddio

 

Happy Birthday Daddio!

 

     To tell you the truth my dad and I had an interesting relationship growing up.  He was a very strict man who thought of the world in a very black and white approach.  His way was always the right way and for his son who was pretty much thought of the world in the same way (after all I am his offspring) didn't exactly see eye to eye.  I know his father was the same way if not worse with him and I took me many years to finally appreciate that.  Through all those layers of manliness is just a man trying to do the best for his family.  He is a selfless man that sacrifices so much for his family. Now at my ripe age of 30 can get along with this man that I spent resenting because he was so hard on me for 20+ years I feel like I have this new best friend that has always been there that I never knew I had.

 

     Which bring me to my Dads Bday.  Perks of having a chef for a son is you get to tell him hey I want some good steak.  I told my rent that I would take care of everything and headed to the store.  Unfortunately there wasn't a very good selection of steak at the store we went to so I had to settle on a nice fillet.  Trimmed and portioned it into some nice 6oz steaks just some salt and pepper and an open fire was all this steak needed.  In Filipino tradition you always eat  a long noodle of sort which represent long life,  I just listen to my mom so I made a spinach linguine with a tomato buerre blanc sauce.  I have to say I was impressed with myself and made a pretty good dish for my pops.

 

Spinach Linguine

 

AP Flour 2 Cups

Eggs 3

Olive Oil 1Tsp

Pinch of Salt

Fresh Spinach Blanched 1 Cup

 

Tomato Buerre Blanc

 

Tomato Sauce 1 Cup

White Wine 1 Bottle

Garlic 1 Head Peeled

Shallots 2 each

Whole Pepper Corns 1Tbs

Bay Leaves 5 Each

Thyme Fresh 1 Sprig

Cream 2 Cups

Butter Unsalted 1 Lb

 

Start with the pasta as it needs time to rest.  Blanch the spinach and blend with a bit of the blanching water.  On a cutting board place a pile of the flour and make a well with your hands.  Add the rest of the pasta ingredients and kneed to incorporate.  Cover and let rest for 30 minutes minimum.  Roll out your pasta gradually making it thinner.  I used a #3 setting on my pasta roller for the linguine.

 

For the reduction sauce Take the peeled garlic shallots peppercorns thyme and bayleaves and sautee in a small sauce pot with a little bit of oil.  Once you see some color add a bottle of white wine (I used Chardonnay) and reduce until almost all the water has evaporated and you get close to a syrup.  Strain the reduction and add back into the sauce pot and bring to a boil.  Add the heavy cream and reduce again by about 70%.   Then add the tomato sauce and reduce again by half to really get those flavors layered into the sauce.

 

I start with a boiling pot of salt water and strainer for my pasta and a big sauté pan to toss the pasta.  I like to cook my past a bit in the sauce so you really pick up all those flavors.  I start with some minced garlic and shallot. and a bit of olive oil,  once I see a bit of color on the garlic immediately put in the spinach and give it a couple tosses and deglaze with the reduction sauce.  At the same time I am cooking the pasta so by the time the pasta is close to being done I can go straight from the boiling water to the pan with the sautéed vegetables and sauce.  What you are doing when using this technique is you are naturally thickening the sauce with the pasta starches and really getting the sauce to stick to the pasta.  Add a cold pad of unsalted butter and toss to finish.

 

Not the easiest dish to make but so worth it if you put in the effort.  Happy Birthday Dad!  Love you man!

 

 



Char Grileld Fillet over Spinach Linguine with burst tomatoes

 

The whole dinner 

 

$1.25 garlic Bread don't hate