Dear Harry,
Let me start out by saying that Hyphen Magazine isn’t what I’d expected to be. I expected the magazine to contain about far away east side stuff like China or Japan, but to my surprise it was about Asian’s here in America, Asian Americans. After purchasing two issues of Hyphen, and reading/looking through the content I was happy to admit that most of the articles are pretty interesting. One of my favorite articles I have to say is in the Transit issue, about Bobby Lee. Bobby Lee in my opinion is a pretty interesting Asian American, and quite funny when it comes to his shows and acting. The answers Bobby Lee gave during the interview were quite interesting, and something you would expect from an Asian. Stereotypical people always think that Asians are always quiet and passive, but Bobby Lee and a couple of other stars, such as Jackie Chan or Jet Li prove them wrong. I have to agree with what Bobby Lee said about multimedia and Asian’s today, most Asians now are becoming more active, that you wouldn’t see in the past. I believe that as time passes by we will be seeing more Asian stars in the US.
From,
Benson Lee
Monday, October 6, 2008
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Home Food to me is...
food cooked with tender love and care! If anyone ever cooked, it was my Grandma since the men in my family can hardly boil an egg. It's a shame her culinary skills never rubbed off on me, my father, or any of my uncles.
I never understood why, but if she needed to feed two three or four people, she would cook enough for twelve. Food in mass quantities was certainly her special and we never left her house hungry.
And of course it tasted good! She could cook dishes from all around the world especially from our home country--the Philippines. Perhaps to a stranger, the food may not have tasted any better than a meal he or she could order at a restaurant. But my grandma cooked for us because she unconditionally loved us and food was her way of showing it. This made a regular steak taste like filet mignon and spaghetti into pasta straight from the heart of Italy!
That's home food to me. I miss my grandma's cooking :[
- Ernest
I never understood why, but if she needed to feed two three or four people, she would cook enough for twelve. Food in mass quantities was certainly her special and we never left her house hungry.
And of course it tasted good! She could cook dishes from all around the world especially from our home country--the Philippines. Perhaps to a stranger, the food may not have tasted any better than a meal he or she could order at a restaurant. But my grandma cooked for us because she unconditionally loved us and food was her way of showing it. This made a regular steak taste like filet mignon and spaghetti into pasta straight from the heart of Italy!
That's home food to me. I miss my grandma's cooking :[
- Ernest
Letter to the editor @ Hyphen Magazine
I thought Commercial Success was a very fascinating feature. I have also noticed the recent surge of Asian Americans in TV, radio, internet commercials and wondered about the implications of this phenomenon. As an Asian American, I don't think these advertisements are threatening or offensive at all. The majority of the commercials I've seen, including the one for Home Depot, have been very tasteful. In spite of this, I'm sure the next time one of these commercials come on during halftime, one of my overly analytical ethnocentric Asian friends will be up in arms. And to him I will say, "seriously man, chill out!"
- Ernest
- Ernest
Team Kamikaze's 'Recipe Story'
McGyoza! The name alone sounds delicious in our opinion! Here's a little background about the dish.
McGyoza is the product of several group brainstorms. It is a Japanese American hybrid between gyoza and a hamburger. The ingredients used to make the dish are split almost exactly between Japanese American. Therefore, it is best served with opposing sauces such as: ketchup and tonkatsu, soy sauce and tabasco. This gives those served the option to choose between a more Japanese or more American tasting dish!The ingredients are: extra lean beef, American cheese, onions, scallions, garlic, salt, and pepper prepared inside of round wraps. After the wraps are filled with the beef, the gyoza are fried in vegetable oil for about five minutes. And your done! Easy, right?
McGyoza is a great dish to feed and entertain guests with. Try it yourself!
- Ernest
McGyoza is a great dish to feed and entertain guests with. Try it yourself!
- Ernest
Friday, October 3, 2008
Home Food Defined
Before I begin, a little note that I'm making. The reason I'm publishing back-to-back is because I'm at this awesome American cafe (operated by a Chinese family) and I literally have nothing better to do. Heh
In general, I believe home food has to possibly taste good because if it didn’t, you probably wouldn’t prepare it in the first place. The main attributes of home food should be affordability, simplicity and durability. Home food should be affordable because you don’t necessarily want to spend more money than you would if you ate outside your home. Simplicity because home food is prepared fast as in within an hour and there would be no use for it to be appealing because you would have nobody to really impress unless you have guests over. Durability is the second most important next to affordability because given that if you absolutely cannot finish it, there would be room in your fridge for leftovers. Honestly, leftovers are awesome especially when you are as lazy as I am. You can bring it with you as your lunch for the next day like my dad does or just re-heat it the next night or the night after and it will still be good.
From my own home, my mom prepares the dishes. Aside from rice, she usually makes three dishes. A mandatory one being vegetables because it’s good for digestion. Here’s the unique thing about my family; I’m a picky eater and my dad prefers to eat something out of the ordinary. My mom would create a simple meat/vegetable or all meat dish for me such as a fillet, stir fried beef/chicken or something with eggs. My dad’s dish would be something more traditional like pork stomach or lamb. Occasionally, my mom would just go to Chinatown and buy an already prepared chicken or piece of pork (you know, the hanging ones). Either way, I love home food and it’s what brings my family together even with all our differences.
In general, I believe home food has to possibly taste good because if it didn’t, you probably wouldn’t prepare it in the first place. The main attributes of home food should be affordability, simplicity and durability. Home food should be affordable because you don’t necessarily want to spend more money than you would if you ate outside your home. Simplicity because home food is prepared fast as in within an hour and there would be no use for it to be appealing because you would have nobody to really impress unless you have guests over. Durability is the second most important next to affordability because given that if you absolutely cannot finish it, there would be room in your fridge for leftovers. Honestly, leftovers are awesome especially when you are as lazy as I am. You can bring it with you as your lunch for the next day like my dad does or just re-heat it the next night or the night after and it will still be good.
From my own home, my mom prepares the dishes. Aside from rice, she usually makes three dishes. A mandatory one being vegetables because it’s good for digestion. Here’s the unique thing about my family; I’m a picky eater and my dad prefers to eat something out of the ordinary. My mom would create a simple meat/vegetable or all meat dish for me such as a fillet, stir fried beef/chicken or something with eggs. My dad’s dish would be something more traditional like pork stomach or lamb. Occasionally, my mom would just go to Chinatown and buy an already prepared chicken or piece of pork (you know, the hanging ones). Either way, I love home food and it’s what brings my family together even with all our differences.
Letter to the Editor - Global Cuisine
Hi Harry,
I just finished up on reading Global Cuisine from the “Road Trip” issue of Hyphen Magazine and I was very surprised to see that the “Greatest Chinese restaurant outside of China” is not located on the California west coast. I wouldn’t be surprised to know that San Francisco does not have one because I’ve basically been to almost every fancy Chinese restaurant, in addition to the less decent-looking ones. I thought it was pretty interesting to know that places like Peru has Chinese restaurants. I can totally agree with the belief that Chinese food is no longer exotic due to the emergence of other Asian cuisines. But then again, exotic can be defined in many different ways. Personally, I don’t see Vietnamese and Chinese food as ever being exotic because they lack the thrill of experiencing different food due to their basic ingredients. Indian food, Thai food and maybe even Filipino food seem to retain this exotic feel because they put many herbs and spices into their food compared to Chinese, Vietnamese and Japanese. In fact, the sweetness that some main courses of these food can be seen as exotic to me because most main courses are salty in any genre of food. I think it would be awesome if Hyphen did an article on Asian food that may seem strange to American appetites.
I just finished up on reading Global Cuisine from the “Road Trip” issue of Hyphen Magazine and I was very surprised to see that the “Greatest Chinese restaurant outside of China” is not located on the California west coast. I wouldn’t be surprised to know that San Francisco does not have one because I’ve basically been to almost every fancy Chinese restaurant, in addition to the less decent-looking ones. I thought it was pretty interesting to know that places like Peru has Chinese restaurants. I can totally agree with the belief that Chinese food is no longer exotic due to the emergence of other Asian cuisines. But then again, exotic can be defined in many different ways. Personally, I don’t see Vietnamese and Chinese food as ever being exotic because they lack the thrill of experiencing different food due to their basic ingredients. Indian food, Thai food and maybe even Filipino food seem to retain this exotic feel because they put many herbs and spices into their food compared to Chinese, Vietnamese and Japanese. In fact, the sweetness that some main courses of these food can be seen as exotic to me because most main courses are salty in any genre of food. I think it would be awesome if Hyphen did an article on Asian food that may seem strange to American appetites.
- Terence Nip
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Letters To The Editor - Hyphen Mag
Dear Harry,
I want to thank you and your team for coming down to our class and presenting us with an informative magazine about local and national Asian American culture. As i continued to read the magazines, I was impressed in the amount of value and effort put into them. Specifically, the featured story on public transportation here in the states and around the world. I have heard of many stories that point out how the Japanese public transport systems are heavily flooded with patrons on a day to day basis. but when you read word for word how close people in trains are to one another, it makes you think about how we take for granted our transit systems and how much of a phobia we have here when it comes to contact with other people. It was also very interesting to hear the story of the Muni rider that heard nothing but the drunken slurs of a fellow rider and how it may be uncomfortable to ride the trains and buses as well.
I have always been very interested in the Asian and Asian American culture, and i am very happy that there is another source out there that I can use to follow up on current events and lifestyles. who know maybe after some time I will consider becoming apart of your team and putting my touch on how I see the world, cultures and how I best fit into the whole picture. thanks, and keep on writing.
-Rafael De La Torre
I want to thank you and your team for coming down to our class and presenting us with an informative magazine about local and national Asian American culture. As i continued to read the magazines, I was impressed in the amount of value and effort put into them. Specifically, the featured story on public transportation here in the states and around the world. I have heard of many stories that point out how the Japanese public transport systems are heavily flooded with patrons on a day to day basis. but when you read word for word how close people in trains are to one another, it makes you think about how we take for granted our transit systems and how much of a phobia we have here when it comes to contact with other people. It was also very interesting to hear the story of the Muni rider that heard nothing but the drunken slurs of a fellow rider and how it may be uncomfortable to ride the trains and buses as well.
I have always been very interested in the Asian and Asian American culture, and i am very happy that there is another source out there that I can use to follow up on current events and lifestyles. who know maybe after some time I will consider becoming apart of your team and putting my touch on how I see the world, cultures and how I best fit into the whole picture. thanks, and keep on writing.
-Rafael De La Torre
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