Someone wrote me recently saying that she loves Ling Ling Dipping Sauce, yet it’s no longer being sold by the bottle. She asked if I or readers could recommend another similar dipping sauce?

I said fine, I know what it’s like to have a favorite item be discontinued (I’m still upset with you, Sephora!) so let me pick up a bag of dumplings and bottle of dumpling sauce, eat a dozen of the dumplings with the sauce, tell everyone what I thought of the two things, and ask for dumpling sauce recommendations.

This is what I came up with, a bag of Vegetable, Pork, and Leek Dumplings.

And a bottle of Taiwanese dumpling sauce.

Continue reading »

I’m going to make this post short and sweet because I think it’s going to be a green tea, Vietnamese instant coffee, and Thai energy drink kind of Monday morning.

Continue reading »

Happy Friday. I’d say can I get a woot woot that it’s the end of a work week, but I’m not that corny.

Can I get a woot woot?

And now, kids, have I got a puzzle for you.

Continue reading »

I apologize for what I’m about to show you. Because it may scare you a little like it did me.

You may be thinking, “What’s the big deal, Cindy? It’s just a plastic bottle of mayonnaise.” Oh yeah?

What about this Kewpie doll image? If the doll could talk, can’t you imagine it saying something like, “Ma-ma, I want a hug. Hug me, ma-ma.”?

Once the packaging with the kind-of-creepy doll image is removed, you get a bottle that’s convenient to grip and squeeze. Out comes a thin strand of tangy, creamy, and rich mayonnaise quite different in taste than American-style ones.

Or you can unscrew the cap to reveal the star-shaped inner opening, and have fun squirting the mayonnaise into different shapes, much like you would with a pastry bag and frosting.

Like this shape.

And this one.

Since it was only my second time trying this condiment, the first being on sandwich bread, I wanted to use it with something familiar again.

Continue reading »