Обо мне
I recently moved to San Jose, CA from Charlotte, NC and I absolutely love it -- particularly trying out all the wonderfully diverse cuisine available in the South Bay Area. Don't get me wrong, Charlotte has some fabulous restaurants (I highly recommend Upstream, Cuisine Malaya, Blue, and Providence Cafe for starters). However, it lacks somewhat in ethnic variety, certainly nothing like what's available here. Moreover, since I love few things more than sampling a food I've never had before, you can imagine I am in heaven! In fact I've been accused -- and rightly so -- of obtaining greater pleasure when traveling from my dining experiences than sightseeing.
Food preferences:
I'll try nearly anything at least once, as long as it meets a few crucial requirements. I draw the line at anything still alive or that was "young" when it was dispatched (i.e. veal or balut); I'll eat eggs only so long as they are unfertilized. I changed my meat preference about three years ago not so much for health reasons as for ethical and political reason, so now I no longer eat meat other than fish and shellfish. So I also draw the line at animals I feel were treated inhumanely (such as foi gras, which is indeed delicious but simply not right in how it is achieved IMO).
I love to experience new things and I've enjoyed tasting nearly everything I've ever tried, with the exception of raw sea urchin and fermented soybeans. And I love hot and spicy flavors and sensations. Some of my faves are French, seafood, anything Asian (especially sushi and other Japanese foods, Indian, Hong Kong style Chinese, and dim sum), mushrooms, and always any contemporary and innovative dishes of any influence. I also place a high value on food that is artfully presented as I feel the best meal are those which delight all the senses, not just taste.
A little more of the general information about me:
I'm an artist, writer, poet, and musician. I have a near-photographic memory with a 98% successful recall rate. I adore all forms of fantasy, sci-fi, comics, graphic novels, and manga. I'm also a huge science nonfiction enthusiast, in particular physics and chemistry. I have the great pleasure and honor to be the adoptive mom to two fabulous doggy fur babies named Dandy and Kody (whose unconditional love truly knows no bounds). I'm also a Buddhist who just happens to love watching wacky kids' shows, innovative sitcoms, foreign films, PBS, TLC, NatGeo, Discovery Channel, and the BBC; listening regularly to NPR (Wait, Wait... Don’t Tell Me!); music spanning from opera, metal, jazz, indie, punk, alternative and nearly everything else in between. I love to cook and eat great food with an emphasis on living a healthy lifestyle. And last yet certainly not least, I am loved and admired by the most incredible man in the entire universe, my boyfriend.
Check out my pics for examples of the meals I've cooked since got a digital camera and have been able to upload them to my pc. (I don't have a scanner so no pics of pre-digital meals... yet.) I'll post recipes for each of them as time permits. Oh, and you can also see more pics about other stuff related to me (i.e. my dogs, my art, some fave activities, etc.). Enjoy.
Кулинарное влияние
I did not grow up learning how to cook. In fact, I only started because I had to when I moved out of my parents' house LOL. My cooking was quite dismal in the beginning but I remembered with fondness the wonderful meals my father and extended older family members used to make (Southern/Soul food and all from scratch). So that and all the great chefs and cooks whose restaurants I've dined in over the years inspired me to try a hand at it myself. I found I have a flair for cooking and, even though I've become quite good at it I still love learning new techniques and trying new recipes. So thank you, guys! =)