The Pandemic Pantry: Cooking Covid-19 Style, Days 48 - 61

Day 48: Fri May 1
Japanese curry, jasmine rice, George Forman-grilled chicken.
At  this point, my meals were getting more repetitive, and I was working through my frozen leftover portions.  Here is my Japanese curry revitalized with more vegetables that I cooked, served on top of jasmine rice since I ran out of Japanese shorter-grained rice, and some grilled chicken.  My little George Forman grill is still going strong after decades.

Day 49: Sat May 2

Peanut butter and jelly sandwich on toasted bread ends served with coffee. 

Gotta appreciate the butts of the loaf when you are running out of bread and don't always get the bread you ordered in your delivery.  I wound up getting gifted a friend's breadmaker later on, and I'm never really going to run out of bread again. 

Day 50: Sun May 3

Paella-style rice with sausage (I know, not authentic), chicken, black olives, and chickpeas.

I'm now writing these notes months later and things have faded in my memory, but I think this was quite tasty. 

Day 51: Mon May 4

Roast beef, gravy, roasted vegetables and new potatoes served with a hefty California pinot noir. Strawberries and whipped cream for dessert. 

This was the height of my pandemic cooking, I think. Maybe only my second time making a roast beef even though it's one of my all time favourite dishes.  It turned out spectacularly well. It was tender and juicy and perfectly medium rare.  In my research, I actually found Jamie Oliver's video extremely helpful.  There was more gravy in the pitcher.  And this roast fed me (plus treats for my cat) for days (probably froze some as well).

 

Day 52: Tue May 5

Toasted hot cross bun with black forest ham for breakfast. 

I loved those Save-On Foods hot cross buns.  Such a good deal - I bought the big pack and separated them and froze them so that I could toast them up in the oven anytime.

Day 52 and 53: Tue May 5 and Wed May 6

Sandwich of leftover roast beef on toasted rye with roasted veg on the side.  Some sort of whipped cream topped dessert...probably a makeshift version of banana cream pie or maybe tapioca pudding.

Sharpened my knife and shaved some of my roast for some excellent sandwiches. Probably put some horseradish mixed with mayo in there. 

Day 54: Thu May 7

Avocado, ham, and Japanese Mayo on Rye. 

Hey, I was doing avocado toast before some of you were born.  It's a great breakfast. Roast beef tacos later that day. 

Day 55: Fri May 8

No photo.  I assume I was still happily eating leftover roast beef. 

Day 56: Sat May 9

Nachos; pickled daikon - an unsuccessful attempt at  "chicken mu"; open-faced egg salad sandwiches.

Day 57: Sun May 10

Full egg breakfast with sausage, pan-fried grape tomatoes, rye toast, cucumber, and mandarin.

I did tend to buy a sausage because it keeps in the fridge well and its easy to toss into different dishes.

  

Day 57 and 58: Sun May 10 and Mon May 11

Dark roast Jif creamy peanut butter.  I'm guessing I had it on toast but also had some spoonfuls straight.

The old  dark roasted coffee trend has reached peanut butter.  I feel the same way about this peanut butter as I do the coffee and the previous French press coffee. Yes, it's a stronger, roasted flavour but it's not really better than the smoother flavour of the lighter roast, just different.  I went back to original roast after this jar.  But it was fun to have some Jif as I was using other brands before this.  I also had some jars of more "natural" peanut butters and I've got to say, I really like the over-processed, high sugar, high salt creamy smooth ones.  I even wound up "fixing" a jar of natural peanut butter by adding salt and sugar. 

Day 59: Tue May 12

Mac 'n Cheese with sausage and peas, raw veggies on the side, maybe potato salad.

As I look back on my cooking, I know that my lockdown cooking was very comfort food-oriented and let's face it, childish.  This particular photo of my meal on a pink divided plate really says it all. 

Day 60: Wed May 13

Happy face chef's salad.

I made a lot of big salads and it was easier to get in a lot of fibre and veggies when cooking all the time in the summer season with good produce, instead of going out to eat.  I think I lost a little tiny bit of weight over those months. 

Day 61: Thu May 14

Cabbage (sui chow) and sausage soup with potatoes, and carrots.  Topped with greek yoghurt and parsley and served with crackers and tortilla chips. 

This mostly veggie soup was very buttery.  I discovered how long sui choy lasts in the fridge, so it's a good pandemic vegetable for minimizing number of grocery trips or deliveries. 

Straight and Marrow on Powell St.: The Whole Package in Vancouver!

I can't remember the last time I've been this excited about a non-Asian restaurant in Vancouver (although it kinda is somewhat Asian because of the chef, some influences on the dishes, and the comfort level of serving and with working with offal). It was the whole package for me - tasty, creative/interesting, satisfying food, take-you-on-a-journey cocktails (taste-wise so much happening, but also love geeking out on drink techniques, ingredients, and history. Plus, you can just trust that you're going to get a well-balanced drink which honestly is not always the case in town), stellar service, comfortable vibe.  They've only been open for a few months, too.  

Here are some icing on the cake thoughts: I might suggest trying some candles on the tables to show off the plated food better or tiny overhead warm lighting (in a fantasy world, I'd add a fireplace) which might also add to a cosy feeling in the room.  Maybe a very tiny comp bar snack (couple of olives or popcorn/chips/nuts kind of thing) or an amuse bouche?  An occasional option of a tasting menu paired with a variety of tasting size cocktails/sake/wine would be killer.  I know it's a casual vibe kind of place, but I always appreciate when someone's thought about pairings for me and a tasting menu sometimes means getting to try more dishes.  Enjoyed everything, but the texture of the gnocchi (rabbit gnocchi dish), the creamy garlic purée in the sweetbread dish,  the cheek stew in Tongue in Cheek (but not the tongue as much), and the complexity of the Fat Panda and Turboso Flip cocktails were standouts.  

Every dish on their food menu sounds intriguing which is also relatively rare in town in my opinion.  I love seeing a creative menu. I felt like it was fairly priced too.  It's almost like a little izakaya with extra French and western influence instead of Japanese. I know they'll do well (but still hoping to be able to get a table or spot at the bar at the last minute).