Restaurant Review: Seoul Sausage

This week on pandagrub we are going to do a restaurant review on Seoul Sausage. Seoul Sausage won the Great Food Truck Race on Food Network. You may remember Seoul Sausage from my 626 Night Market post.

 Seoul Sausage's address is 11313 Mississippi Ave. Los Angeles,CA 90025.

 The panda in the picture above is named Boba. Boba is sitting with my meal. I ordered one flaming fried ball and one Lil 'Osaka fried ball. The Lil 'Osaka fried balls consist of curry and rice. The flaming fried balls contain kimchi fried rice and cheese. 

 This is the inside of the Lil 'Osaka ball. I enjoyed fried ball this very much because of its bold flavors and perfect seasoning. My favorite part of this ball was the curry.

Although both fried balls were good, Boba and I enjoyed the Kimchi ball more because it was spicy. The cheese was a very nice touch. My favorite part of this fried ball was the kimchi.

 Now Boba is sitting with what my dad and brother ordered. They both ordered the same thing: galbi sausage sandwiches. They thought that the sausage was juicy,moist,and very flavorful.

Boba,my dad,my brother,and I all shared this dish. We got one of the specials called Da KFC (Korean Fried Chicken). It was kimchi cornbread and spicy chicken. We all enjoyed the kimchi cornbread more than the chicken because the chicken was a little bit hard.(I think my mom's recipe of this dish is much better.) However,seasoning of both components of the dish was impeccable.

That kimchi cornbread and fried chicken were the perfect way to end lunch. We will definitely come back to Seoul Sausage. Next time Boba and I will try the Spicy Pork sandwich with apple cabbage slaw. For the full information about Seoul Sausage click here.

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

This week on pandagrub we are going to be making ice cream. My brother is studying thermodynamics in science. This was his lab experiment for the week. This was a really fun and delicious experiment!

 The panda in the picture above is named Bao Bao. Bao Bao is sitting with the ingredients that we are going to use in the ice cream. He is sitting with salt, two trays worth of ice cubes,vanilla extract,and half and half.

 First Bao Bao doubled bagged two sandwich bags. In the sandwich bags, he put in 1/2 of a cup of half and half,1 tablespoon of sugar, and 1/4 of a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Then - he sealed the sandwich bags tightly.  Then in a larger sized freezer bag, Bao Bao added 6 tablespoons of salt to the ice. Bao Bao put the sandwich bag into the freezer bag and then he shook the bag for nine minutes.(Remember to close both bags before shaking!) Make sure to shake the bag in three minute intervals. After the first interval the mixture in the sandwich bag should be the consistency of milk. After the second interval the mixture should be the consistency of melted marshmallows. After the third and final interval the mixture should be ICE CREAM!!!!  It was an amazing transformation.

 Bao Bao thought that this was the best ice cream that he ever has had. He said it was perfectly creamy and smooth.

See you next time!!!!!

Pandagrub:Halloween Edition

This week on pandagrub we are going to be celebrating Halloween! The panda that we are using is a new panda. He is from China. We are going to show him how to celebrate Halloween.

 The panda in the picture above is named Professor Zhang. We named him this because of his professorial clothing. Professor Zhang is sitting with the ingredients that we are using to make caramel candies. The ingredients are vanilla, light corn syrup, heavy cream, and unsalted butter.

 Professor Zhang is melting the butter in a saucepan.  After the butter melts, just add the remaining ingredients while stirring continuously on medium heat.  (Sorry -- I forgot to take pictures of this step!)

 Now that we have finished making the caramel we are going to let it cool. Professor Zhang is pouring the caramel into a nine-inch pan.  And that's basically it!  It's so easy!  (And sooooo gooooood!)

 Now that the caramel has cooled,we are going to cut it into pieces. Make sure not to cool the caramel for too long or it will become too hard and impossible to cut. If you cool the caramel too long, you can melt it a little by putting in the oven. Don't put the caramel in the oven for too long or the caramel will melt.

We wrapped the caramel in wax paper squares. It took us a while to wrap them all but it was worth it because now they look like "real" candies. 

All of Professor Zhang's hard work has paid off! Now he gets to eat all of the caramels!  For Halloween, we are going to teach him how to trick or treat.  His costume will be...... you guessed it... a professorial panda!!!  For the full recipe for the caramels, click here.

I brought my candies to school and gymnastics and shared them with my friends and coaches.  Everyone said that they were delicious!

This year for Halloween, my best friend Maya and I are going to be peanut butter and jelly. Maya  is going to be peanut butter, and I am going to be jelly. We made our costumes together with things we found around the house.  We used cardboard, felt, aluminum foil, and lots and lots of glue.  What are you going to be for Halloween?  Are you making your costume?  Send us your photos!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!

Pandagrub: Pumpkin Painting Edition

This week on pandagrub we are going to be painting pumpkins!

I am going to show some ways to decorate your pumpkin without taking the guts out and making a mess.

Can you guess what I am going to do with my pumpkin? I am going to make a panda pumpkin!

 Can you tell Flatty and the pumpkin apart?

 Professor Shang painted pi on her pumpkin. So now it's pumpkin "pi"!

Here are some other ways to decorate your pumpkins. I made a Hello Kitty pumpkin,two glitter pumpkins,and I drew a design on the last one. I made all of these pumpkins without making a mess! For last year's Halloween edition I made twix bars and dressed up all the pandas. For the full information about last year's Halloween edition click here.Last year I dressed up as Cup of Noodles. Stay tuned for this year's Halloween edition! 

Restaurant Review:Umami Burger

This week on pandagrub we are going to be doing a restaurant review of Umami Burger. Umami Burger has locations in Anaheim, Laguna Beach, Los Angeles,Thousand Oaks,Costa Mesa, Hermosa Beach,Studio City, Santa Monica, Hollywood,La Brea,and Cahuenga.

I went to the Umami Burger in Hermosa Beach.

The panda in the picture above is named Oreo. Oreo is sitting with the burger that my dad ordered. My dad ordered the Ahi Tuna burger.He thought that the burger tasted like a healthy fish and chips. He especially enjoyed the sauce that was on the tuna. Inside his burger was ahi tuna,avocado,daikon sprouts,pickled ginger, and wasabi flakes.

 Oreo is now sitting with my brother's burger. My brother ordered the Umami Burger. He said that it was the best burger he ever had! He thought this because the meat was super juicy and tender and he also liked that the parmesan cheese was crispy. His burger contained shiitake mushrooms, caramelized onions,roasted tomatoes,parmesan crisp, and umami ketchup.

Now Oreo is sitting with my burger, the Cali Burger. I also thought that this was the best burger that I  ever have eaten. I loved this burger because it was juicy and the bun was toasted to perfection. My burger consisted of butter lettuce,roasted tomatoes, house spread,american cheese,and caramelized onions.

Umami Burger even brands their burgers! I  will definitely go to Umami Burger again, next time I will try the Umami Burger. For the full information about Umami Burger click here.

Pandagrub Birthday Edition

This week on pandagrub, we are going to be celebrating my older brother's birthday. For his birthday cake, we made a chocolate cake with whipped cream frosting, and we decorated his cake so it looks like a panda!

 To make his birthday cake look like a panda my mom and I used chocolate sprinkles to make the design of the pandas eyes,ears,nose,and mouth. For the panda's eyes we used some mini marshmallows.

Do you think that the cake looks like one of my pandas? Comment which panda he looks like to you!

My brother thought that this cake was very moist and had a delicious chocolatey flavor. He also thought that the frosting went perfectly with the chocolate cake.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JASON!

We have a lot of summer and fall birthdays in my family. That is why you have seen so many cakes lately! It was also Hua Mei, the giant panda's birthday on August 21. Hua Mei turned 13 years old. Hua Mei used to live in the San Diego Zoo, but now she lives in China.

Pandagrub: Back to School

This week on pandagrub we are going back to school!

 In the picture above is my school lunch and my panda lunch bag.

 These are my sides: watermelon,grapes,and veggie sticks.

 My sandwich consists of cheddar cheese,lettuce,and turkey on sourdough bread.

I hope everyone had a great first school day, and I hope that everyone had a healthy lunch. If you want to see some great school lunches from all around the world check out this blog called Never Seconds.

Pandagrub Birthday Edition: Tres Leches Cake

This week on pandagrub we are going to be celebrating my dad's birthday. For his birthday cake we are going to be making a tres leches cake. Tres leches means three milks in Spanish.

   The panda in the picture above is named Owo. (Can you guess why I named him that? Look carefully at Owo's cute face!) Owo is sitting with the three milks that we are going to be using in the tres leches cake. He is sitting with 12 ounces of sweetened condensed milk, 14 ounces of evaporated milk, and 1 cup of half and half.

First, make the batter for a 13" x 9" yellow cake (see recipe below).  (Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of the cake making part!) While the cake is in the oven, make the glaze for the cake. Combine the condensed milk, evaporated milk, and half and half in a large mixing bowl. Whisk together until smooth. When you are finished whisking the glaze together it should look like the picture above.

After the cake is completely cooled down, poke holes in the cake with a toothpick (you can also use a fork but I used a toothpick so it would be neater.) Owo got a little carried away while poking all of the holes with his fancy toothpicks! Don't forget to poke the toothpick all the way through the cake so the glaze seeps in everywhere -- including down to the bottom of the cake.

When Owo and I finally finished poking the holes, we poured the condensed milk, evaporated milk,and half and half over the cake and the holes in the cake absorbed the liquid.

After the glazed seeped into the cake, Owo spread homemade whipped cream frosting over the cake as a finishing touch.

Owo was very excited to eat the tres leches cake. Owo thought that the cake was very delicious because it had the perfect amount of sweetness, lightness and creaminess. He especially enjoyed how moist the cake was because of the tres leches glaze. For the full tres leches cake recipe, click here.

626 Night Market

When my family and I went to the 626 Night Market a few weeks ago, we met some people who are going to be on Food Network's Next Great Food Truck Race. We met the Seoul Sausage Company. The Seoul Sausage Company is opening a restaurant in the L.A. neighborhood of Sawtelle, near UCLA. The guys at Seoul Sausage Company were kind enough to take a picture with me and my panda Tiny. Make sure to watch them on August 19 at 9 PM eastern time! For the full information about Seoul Sausage Company click here.

Restaurant Review: Bottega Louie

This week on pandagrub we are going to be doing a restaurant review of Bottega Louie. Bottega Louie is a bakery, restaurant and bar. 

 

The panda in the picture above named Louie. Louie is very excited to be going to Bottega Louie. Bottega Louie's address is 700 South Grand Los Angeles,CA 90017.

Louie and I went to Bottega Louie for breakfast. Louie ordered the freshly squeezed pineapple juice.

Breakfast is served! I ordered the New York style egg sandwich on a kaiser roll. Louie and I thought that the sandwich was very delicious because the bacon was cooked perfectly and also because the kaiser roll was soft on the inside and crispy on the outside.

My mom ordered the prosciutto and buratta over a potato pancake. My mom especially enjoyed the burrata because it went very well with the proscuitto and potato pancake.

After we finished our breakfast my mom and I went to the bakery. Look how many different kinds of macaroons there are!

Bottega Louie also has many different kinds of cakes.

As a special treat, my mom got me and Louie two macaroons. Louie and I picked the raspberry chocolate and the lemon macaroon. I will definitely come back and try the lunch menu. For the full information about Bottega Louie click here .