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Noodle Guide 101

Are you ever overwhelmed by the different types of noodles that are available in aisles of a grocery market and don’t know which one to choose? Don’t worry about it cause we got you covered! We will make you become a more adventurous noodle eater! Since there are many types of Asian Noodles, I will focus on three of my favorites which are: Lo Mein Noodles, Udon and Rice Vermicelli.

Check our blog for the latest entry!

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How to Make Chinese Stir-Fried Tomatoes and Eggs

Ingredients

Scallion

Garlic

2-3 Tomatoes

4-5 Eggs

Oil

Salts

Sugar

Soy sauce

Check out our blog for directions! :)

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Jinya Ramen Bar vs.Sho Bu Ramen

Ramen (noun): A gourmet meal for college students and others oppressed by debt.

If you mix hot sauce into your ramen noodles, it tastes exactly like poverty. Young people who cannot afford to buy food, they eat instant ramen noodles.

I believe ramen is feeding many young people who can’t afford food, includes me. My first memories of eating ramen come from my childhood in Korea. Back then, I cooked instant ramen noodles for myself whenever my parents were not home. I still loved the taste of the instant ramen, but my mind was blown when I tasted the Japanese style ramen.

In this article, I will introduce you two ramen restaurants where you can experience the richness of Japanese ramen and compare two different ramen on price.

Read more at our Chopstix Website

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Giant Gyoza Challenge!

She finished the giant gyoza and even ordered a meat fried rice afterwards! Her metabolism is unreal.

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Dumplings vs. Gyoza

The first dumplings I ever ate were Chinese ones — wontons, potstickers, and boiled dumplings. But I've also ordered gyoza at Japanese restaurants, which seem similar enough to potstickers. Are all these Asian dumplings essentially the same? What are the difference between gyoza and potstickers?

Dumplings originally invented from China, known as “jiaozi”. Jiaozi starts with a wheat flour dough that is rolled out and stuffed with a meat or vegetable filling. These dumplings can be boiled, steamed, pan fried, or even deep fried. Pot stickers are first lightly browned in some oil, water is added to the pan, which is then covered to steam and cook the dumpling filling, then the pan is uncovered to let the water cook off and the dumplings pan fry until crispy on the outside.

Japanese borrowed this culinary idea from the Chinese. Japanese gyoza do have some general, subtle differences from potstickers. They are usually made from prefabricated wrappers that are thinner, smaller, and more delicate, and the filling is more finely textured.

Recommendations for Dumplings: Dinesty Dumpling House

Recommendations for Gyoza: Gyoza Bar

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Two Japanese Restaurants for those who are looking for Fresh Nigiri Sushi

If you are a sushi lover, this review is a perfect one for you!

I believe the overall food experience of a restaurant is determined by how fresh the ingredients are, especially when it comes to Japanese food.

Because raw food takes a large part of Japanese food culture, freshness is the most critical part that you would consider when you try out a Japanese sushi restaurant.

Try a dish of sashimi or few pieces of nigiri sushi before you get to order something else. If the fish is fresh and good, it means that the restaurant truly knows what they are doing!

Here are the reviews for two of the Japanese sushi restaurants that are serving fresh and fine quality sushi in Metro Vancouver.

Toshi Sushi / ☆☆☆☆

181 E16th Avenue, Vancouver, BC V5T 4R2                                                    [phone]

Hours

Mon, Sun: Closed  ||   Tue - Sat: 5 PM to 9:30 PM

Image from Foodology

It’s one of the restaurants that always has long line-up, but worth waiting for. Especially for their nigiri sushi. The fish is fresh and the overall experience is nice. The other menus are okay, but it is recommended to order sashimi or nigiri if you went there for authentic sushi experience.

One thing is that the restaurant is quite small and crowded, and sometimes when it gets too busy, the quality of the food is not consistent.

Recommended food

Spicy Agedashi Tofu and Chicken Karaage

Nigiri Sushi

Sushi by Yuji / ☆☆☆☆☆

2252 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5N 2T7                                                        [phone]

Hours

Mon: Closed                                                                                                       Tue - Sat: 5:30 PM to 9:30 PM                                                                           Thu - Sun: 5 PM to 9:30 PM

Image from Miss Vancouver Piggy’s Blog

Sushi by Yuji is definitely one of the most authentic sushi restaurant in Vancouver. They have extremely fresh fish and ingredients for sushi. People line up as soon as they open, so I recommend you to make reservation as this place is very small too, and can only seat less than 10 people at once.

They have such a good quality and special nigiri sushi that you don’t get to see from other sushi places and I can confidently say that it’s a must-try menu in there. For example, Ika-Mentaiko Gunkan and Ika-Natto Gunkan with quail eggs on top.

Ika-mentaiko Gunkan

What’s interesting about Sushi by Yuji is that there were only two staffs, a waitress and the chef. The chef seemed like he’s the owner of the restaurant and as soon as he gets the order, he starts to make piece by piece. So it takes for a while to get your food, but it’s much more fresh in that way.

Recommended food

Ikura with quail eggs and Scallop Gunkan

Negitoro Gunkan with quail eggs

Ika-Uni Gunkan and Alaska Roll

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The Chopsticks 101 Guide

Chopsticks is probably the most versatile utensil ever. They can be used for multiple things like cooking, serving food and of course eating. 

Chopsticks are not hard to use but for some who did not grow up using them can be a challenge for them. So here is a step by step guide:

Step 1. Rest one chopstick between the thumb and forefinger on your dominant hand. Keep it steady with the help of your ring finger.

Step 2. Hold the second chopsticks like you would hold a pencil and grip it firmly with your thumb, index and middle fingers.

Step 3. Bend your ring finger and pinky and tuck it underneath the lower chopstick.

Step 4. Put the middle finger under the upper chopstick.

Step 5. Move the top stick up and down to grip the food. 

Once you have a good grip, go ahead and start picking up to practice.

And that’s it.

Pretty simple, right? 

Check out our website to see the video!