This month's recipe and recipe notes are from acclaimed novelist, Lisa See. To find out more about Lisa See, please read The Participant Observer Interview with Lisa See and visit her website at: www.lisasee.com

Comments from Lisa See:

Food is memory, and many of my memories are linked to food. This recipe has grown and evolved over three generations in my family. My grandfather used to own a restaurant in Los Angeles Chinatown called Dragon's Den. It was only the seventh family-style Chinese restaurant in Los Angeles. Back in 1936, when Dragon's Den opened, this dish—minus the curry and the noodles—cost just twenty-five cents. The restaurant had closed by the time I was born, but I can remember my grandfather making a version of the Dragon's Den tomato beef at home.

My father first had curried tomato beef chow chow mein (with fried noodles) in a restaurant in San Francisco. He later found it in a café on San Pedro Street, close to Ninth Street, and opposite the wholesale produce market in Los Angeles. He's been perfecting his version ever since. You can use Chinese egg or rice noodles for this dish, but my dad uses angel hair pasta. If I'm not in the mood for noodles, then I just serve the curried tomato beef with rice. My other addition to the recipe is the marinade. It tenderizes the beef and adds a little extra flavor. What I love about this dish is the taste of the tomatoes and vinegar. It's a combination that takes me right back to my childhood. Best of all, this dish is fast, colorful, and combines all the food groups.

Tomato beef is a uniquely Chinese-American dish—symbolic in many ways of the "melting pot". "Mein" means noodles in Cantonese, but beef and tomatoes are not typical Chinese ingredients. But in the past, if you were Chinese and lucky enough to own your own restaurant, you put together ingredients you thought would please your American customers. That's how American tomatoes and beef came to be thrown together with Chinese noodles. For a time tomato beef Lo Mein and curried tomato beef Lo Mein could be found on every menu in Chinese-American restaurants and cafes, such as the Golden Dragon Cafe and Pearl's Coffee Shop in Shanghai Girls. Now you can't even find tomato beef in Chinese restaurants! No one asks for it, orders it, or remembers it. So this truly is a taste of the past, specifically 1950's Chinese America. There is no right or wrong way to make this dish. It's all about your personal taste and whether you like more vinegar or sugar.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound flank steak cut into ¼ inch strips against the grain
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon dry sherry
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 2-3 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 medium to large onion cut into 1 inch squares
• 1 green bell pepper chopped into 1 inch squares
• 4 Roma tomatoes quartered
• 1 tablespoon Madras curry powder
• 4-6 tablespoons white vinegar
• 1-3 teaspoons white sugar
• Handful of cilantro loosely chopped
• 1 pound pasta

Preparation:

1. Cook the noodles per package instructions and set aside
2. When done, drain the noodles and lay them out on a serving platter.
3. Mix ingredients for marinade (soy sauce, sherry, sesame oil, salt, pepper, and cornstarch) and add sliced beef.
4. Marinate for 20 minutes.
5. Heat oil in a wok (or frying pan) over high heat until oil just starts to smoke.
6. Add the beef and stir fry until browned but not fully cooked.
7. Add the onion and bell pepper and continue to stir fry for 2 minutes.
8. Add the curry powder, vinegar, and sugar.
9. Add tomatoes and cook until just heated through. (You don't want the vegetables to lose their shape. They should remain whole and crisp.)
10. Taste for flavor. The sauce should be strong, because it will be toned down by the noodles (or rice).
11. Pour the curried beef on top of noodles, sprinkle with chopped cilantro, and serve.

Additional notes from author Lisa See:

• For the more health conscious, you can substitute chicken for the beef. My dad fries boneless, skinless chicken thighs until they're done enough to cut them up easily. Then he adds them back to the wok after the onion and bell pepper to cook a bit more.

• Some people like to add the noodles to the wok and toss them with the other ingredients. Transfer to a platter and sprinkle with cilantro.

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Many readers may be used to eating Naan, Paratha and Panneer at Indian restaurants. These foods mostly belong to the Eastern and Northern part of India. Other parts of India have equally enticing specialties. One of the dishes that Southern India is famous for is Bisi Bele Bath which is often served with the yoghurt side dish, Raita.

Bisi Bele Bath is very popular in Karnataka, a region of Southeastern India. It is served in almost all wedding receptions, festivals, buffets and parties. If you may have ever eaten at a South Indian buffet, Bisi Bele Bath is almost always served. It is a wholesome meal that contains rice, lentils (Thuar Dal) and vegetables.

Bisi Bele Bath is literally translated as “hot lentil rice mixture.” All the ingredients needed for this dish are available at any Indian grocery store, like the one in the “Little India" mall on Black Mountain Road.
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\r\nYou can use a wide range of vegetables such as carrots, peas, beans, bell pepper, onion, tomato along with Indian Pumpkin and Indian beans (Frozen Papdi Liva available in Indian stores), it really depends on the tastes that you enjoy and which ingredients you can find.

Ingredients:

Rice

• 3 cups of white rice.
• 6 cups of water

Dal:

• 3 cups yellow Thuar Dal (a type of lentil)
• 6 cups of water
• 2 teaspoons of cooking oil
• 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric

Sauce:

• 5-6 teaspoons of Bisi Bele Bath powder
• 3 chopped Roma tomatoes
• 3 teaspoons of fresh Coconut

Vegetables:

• 5 carrots peeled and chopped.
• 8-10 green beans cut 2 inches long
• 3/4 cup of peas
• 2 Bell peppers (green or red) chopped small
• 1/4 of an Indian white pumpkin, chopped small
• 3/4 cup of Papdi Liva (Indian beans) about 25
• 2 medium sized yellow onions, chopped

Additional Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons of tamarind paste Tamcon
• 1 teaspoon of black mustard seeds
• 3 dry Indian red chilies. Chopped very fine
• 7-8 curry leaves
• 1 tablespoon of ghee (clarified butter)
• Chopped cilantro as garnish

Sauce Preparation

1. Blend the Bisi Bele Bath powder or paste with a few pieces of tomatoes and chopped coconut. The tomato gives a nice red color to the dish.
2. When everything is cooked and prepared according to the above instructions, gently mix all of the ingredients together in one pot or a very large skillet and heat well.
3. Add salt and tamarind paste which will add a nice sour taste to the dish. Stir the pot or skillet constantly so that the dish does not burn.
4. In a small pan heat 2 tablespoons of cooking oil to the smoke point and add the black mustard seed and chilies, and cover quickly. Shortly thereafter you will hear a popping sound which is the sound of the seeds hitting the pan lid. In India we call this phenomena [text missing]

Raitha Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup of plain yogurt.
• 1 grated carrot
• 2 medium sized chopped tomatoes
• 1 finely chopped cucumber
• I/4 medium sized onion, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon of cumin seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon of mustard seeds
• 4 teaspoon of cooking oil
• 2 chopped Jalapenos peppers
• Several stems of chopped cilantro (as garnish)
• 4-5 curry leaves (garnish)

Raitha Preparation:

1. Add grated carrots, chopped cucumbers, onions and tomatoes to 1 1/2 cup of plain yogurt.
2. In the same method as described above, “splatter” in hot oil the jalapenos, black mustard seeds and whole cumin seeds removing the pan from the heat when you hear the popping sound.
Mix all the ingredients together, adding salt to taste.
3. Garnish with cilantro and serve.

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The recipe below is one of our favorites. It is easy to prepare but is wonderfully delicious and very good for entertaining guests. The curry can be cooked in either a wok or a large saucepan. All of the ingredients for this dish can be purchased at the 99 Ranch Market.. It's a good idea to read through the entire recipe to get a sense of the variations possible.

Ingredients:

• 2 chicken breasts sliced 1/4 in thin in medium sized pieces.
• 2 tablespoons peanut or corn oil
• 2 (14 ounce) cans coconut milk or cream
• 1 stalk of lemongrass
• 4 kaffir lime leaves
• 1-4 tablespoons of Aroy-D curry paste (Green or Panang)
• 2 tablespoons of grated fresh ginger
• 1 tablespoons of fish sauce (optional)
• 1 (8 ounce) can of bamboo shoots
• 1 (14 ounce) can of baby corn
• 1 (14 ounce) can of straw mushrooms
• 1/3 pound frozen peas
• 1/2 pound sliced green beans
• 1/3 pound sliced carrots
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Tender sprigs of cilantro
• 2 cups jasmine rice
• 3 cups water

Preparation:

1. Start cooking the rice first in a rice cooker or in a pot. Jasmine rice requires slightly less water than American long-grain rice.
2. Sauté the chicken in the oil on medium-high heat for 2 minutes.
3. Add the ginger and the optional fish sauce. Uncooked fish sauce is very aromatic (fishy) before it is fully cooked, don't worry about this as it tempers down during cooking.
4. Cook the chicken until it is fully cooked, but only very lightly browned.
Add the curry paste (adjusting for your tolerance for chilies), mix well and cook for another minute or so. Both green curry paste (hotter) and Panang curry paste (sweeter) work well with chicken. Try both (but not in the same dish!) You can also substitute firm white fish (like cod) or shrimp for the chicken.
5. The lemongrass and lime leaves are optional but they really do impart wonderful flavors to the dish. Cut off or peel the dried out parts of the lemongrass stalk and then mutilate it with a kitchen hammer or the back side of a cleaver. Break the lemongrass in one or more places so that the flavors infuse the curry. Please note that the lemongrass and the kaffir lime leaves are for flavoring the curry; it is not recommended that you eat them!
6. Add the coconut milk or cream to the sauce pan or wok. Coconut milk yields a thinner sauce; many restaurants use coconut cream to create a very thick sauce.
7. Add all of the remaining ingredients except the cilantro and simmer softly until all the carrots are tender, but not over-cooked. I often use frozen French-cut green bean instead of fresh. Asian eggplants and potatoes also work well in this recipe, but if you use them you must be very careful not to overcook them.

Serve over rice, garnished with small tender sprigs of cilantro.

Thai Cucumber Salad Ingredients:

• 1 cucumber, either diced small or sliced thin
• 1-4 hot Thai chilies, sliced very thin
• 1/4 of a medium onion, or 4-5 scallions sliced very thin
• 1 cup rice or white vinegar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoon salt

Preparation:

1. Heat vinegar, sugar and salt in a saucepan and stir until sugar and salt are dissolved.
2. Let liquid cool to room temperature or cool in refrigerator.
3. Mix the sliced cucumbers, chilies and onions in a medium sized bowl.
4. Pour vinegar into the bowl until it is half the depth of the ingredients.
5. Add water to the point that the ingredients are just covered.
6. Add sugar and salt and mix well. This salad gets hotter (be careful!) the longer it sits and the cucumbers get increasingly tender as they "pickle". The acidity, saltiness and sweetness of this salad really balances the "thickness" of the curry recipe above.

Recipe by T. Johnston-O'Neill
Photo by Shari K. Johnston-O'Neill

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Schnitzel Ingredients:

• 1 pound pork cutlets
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs
• Cooking oil

Preparation:

1. Pound cutlets until they are thin.
2. Sprinkle cutlets with salt and pepper.
3. Set out three plates, the first with the flour, the second with the beaten egg and the third with the bread crumbs.
4. Coat each cutlet first with flour, then cover both sides with egg, then coat with bread crumbs until completely covered.
5. Heat a 1/4 inch of oil in a skillet over medium high heat.
6. Add breaded cutlets.
7. Cook until dark golden brown.
8. Drain on paper towel and serve.

Spaetzle

Literally translated from German as "little sparrow," spaetzle are small irregularly shaped noodles made with flour, eggs, water or milk, salt and sometimes nutmeg. There are two main ways to make spaetzle, the more traditional way by slicing small slivers off of a flattened piece of firm dough or by forcing batter through a sieve or colander that has large holes. There are also spaetzle-making machines. The recipe below uses the force-through-a-colander method.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of flour
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup of milk
• 1 tablespoon of salt
• 2 tablespoon of finely chopped parsley (optional)
• 2 tablespoons of butter (to taste)

Preparation:

1. Fill a large wide pot 3/4 full of salted water and bring to a rolling boil.
2. Mix the flour, salt, eggs and parsley in a mixing bowl.
3. Stir in milk slowly until a thick batter forms.
4. Let batter sit for 5 minutes.
5. The batter should be thick, just before it reaches the thickness that it will no longer pour from the mixing bowl.
6. This part is a bit tricky; it requires more hands than most people have and you will be working over a boiling pot of water.
7. Hold the large-holed colander over the pot and pour about a cup of batter into the colander.
8. Using a spoon or the bottom of a glass, force the batter through the holes.
9. The batter will float to the top of the pot, stop adding more batter when the top of the water is covered.
10. Boil for 5-8 minutes.
11. Remove Spaetzle with a large slotted spoon and then drain further through a stainer.
12. Repeat the cooking process until all the batter is used.
13. Mix with butter and serve.

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