Journal #6

A while ago, I had some homemade Vietnamese dessert called Che Ba Mau, which translates to 3 Colored Pudding. This sweet dessert is a mixture of textures as well as flavors and colors. As I was eating this scrumptious dessert, I was thinking, maybe I don't like anything that have a texture similar to shrimp, either that or I have a bias against shrimp . . . so lets find out what my revelation was:

This is Che Ba Mau (above: before its mixed, below: after mixed)

This is some green jelly strips, they are supposed to be soft and kind of chewy, but since they were homemade, it was a little tough and stiff.

This is called Red Thai Rubies, but is is just water chestnuts with a tapioca starch covering. The texture was kind of squishy as soft on the outside, but on the inside it was very crunchy . . .

This is some sweet coconut milk.

This is sweetened mung bean paste, and since it was homemade it was a little bit chunkier than any regular paste.

This is sweetened red beans. These have been boiled in water and sugar which creates a soft and light texture to the beans, but at the same time the outsides of the beans prevent the beans from having an overcooked pea texture.

This is how you assemble some Che Ba Mau:

First add some crushed ice to a glass cup.

Then add as much green jelly strips as you like.

After that, add some red thai rubies (as much as you like).

Then on top of the red rubies, add as layer of sweetened mung bean paste.

After adding the sweetened mung bean paste, add about one or two or three tablespoons of coconut milk.

And finally, add the sweetened red beans last, mix it up, and enjoy!

So the revelation I had was that I am just biased to the texture of shrimp! 

Journal #5

Hey guys! Sorry for not posting for a very long time. These last few weeks of my junior year has just been hectic!! So I apologize for not posting in a long time, but this will be a continuation of Journal #3!
So here are the pictures for Journal #3:
Main Dish = Vit Nau Chao (Duck and Fermented Bean Curd Hot Pot)

This is Chao, fermented bean curds, and this is what goes into the stew to make it more aromatic and savory!

This is also Chao, but it is made into a dipping sauce with consists of Chao, sugar, and lime juice! Yum lol! :)

The vegetable above is called On Choy. This is vegetable that is usually eating with this dish. You can also eat this vegetable boiled or saute with rice.

This vegetable here is Chrysanthemum leaves, which is not usually eaten with this dish, but we made an exception for my daddy :) This vegetable is usually eating in soups or other kinds of hot pots!  

The 3 pictures above are all picture of the stew :)

The dinner table

And the noodles!! :D

Journal #4: Double-Standards?!

I know I haven't posted journals in a while, but truth is, I've been feeling kind of lazy lately. Though today I thought of something that might now be directly related to my dislike for shrimp, but it does take an interesting perspective. The thought is that, maybe this "adventure" of mine could shed some light on the effects of "double-standards" on society. This came up because, it is not like I am allergic to shrimp, and its not like I can't eat it, its just that I'll only eat shrimp when it is cooked a certain way . . . like fried . . .anything besides that won't go down my throat! So when situations come up I use the excuse, "I can't eat shrimp," even though I can eat fried shrimp just fine!! Double-standard? Maybe this "adventure" could open some doors that may possibly shed some light on the effects of "double-standards" on society.

Operation Shrimp Day 2 and 3/ Journal #3

So, on Friday, one of my sisters got sick. She then spread it amongst the family and so now everyone in our family is sick. It sucks. Therefore I'm afraid that I will have to pause my Shrimp Adventures until I am well enough to start eating shrimp again. :) But for now, today's meal was "Vit Nau Chao" or Duck and Fermented Bean Curb soup; served hot pot style :) Yummmm! I was going to post up the pictures but I couldn't find the chord to connect the camera to my computer so the pictures will be posted up later this week some time.

Operation Shrimp Day 1/ Journal #2

So I started my week of eating shrimp today and I'll probably extend it a little bit longer than a week but we'll see. Today for dinner I had:

Appetizer:

                                  Quail :)

                            A Type of Asian Spinach Soup with bits of Shrimp

  
      Combination of braised (caramelized) shrimp, pork and fried Vietnamese meatloaf

             My bowl of rice with soup and braised (caramelized) shrimp

That was my dinner, the taste was overall okay. I couldn't stand the texture of the shrimp in my mouth D: I had to practically eat huge chunks of rice just to get the chewy texture of shrimp out of my mouth. The texture of minced shrimp in soups is the WORST!!! Also the flavor just stuck in my mouth like a super bad after taste. The flavor of plain, fresh, unseasoned shrimp is something that people are crazy about but I am not. ):

Rating of meal for day 1: average . . . hopefully I can get through this . . . what is so good about shrimp anyway? (feel free to comment :])

Operation Shrimp Details.

During 4th period last week, Mr. Walker decided that for the APLAC's final project all of us will be doing a research project about something that we find distasteful, irritating, or uncomfortable doing. So after many hours of pondering to the point of no return, I decided to do my research on shrimp. I hate shrimp . . . well that was a little harsh . . . I STRONGLY DISLIKE shrimp in general. But for this project, what I will be doing is eating shrimp in whatever (edible) form it may come. Most of you will probably think I crazy for not liking (LOVING!!!) shrimp, but that why I will be sacrificing my scrumptious carnivorous ways to eat shrimp . . . for a week. Along the way, I will be posting updates, stories, and journal entries about this "exciting" new adventure. :P Therefore, if anyone has any recipes for shrimp, please feel free to post it! :) 
I shall now start writing my proposal . . . DX

My Shrimp Mission for APLAC/ Journal #1

Greetings,
This blog will contain the various adventures that will occur in my shrimp mission for APLAC (my English class). First off, I DO NOT like shrimp. Yes I really did say "DO NOT". Unless the shrimp is fried or broiled or grilled I will not eat it!! I can't stand the chewy sensation nor the original, fresh, juicy, sweet flavors of shrimp. But for the sake of my English assignment, I will become a shrimp lover for a week, eating it everyday for dinner and maybe lunch. So if anyone has any shrimp recipes that they would like to share, please feel free to do so. :) 
Oh and a huge shout out to Rachel, thanks for posting about your bean project, it really helped me to come up with what I wanted to do! :]