Chinese Take Out: Yum Yum Hunan (Pac Heights)

Prawns with Veggies

Found a yummy yet healthy Chinese take out spot that could possibly be added to my take-out speed dial list.  I actually yelp'd "healthy chinese food" and Yum Yum Hunan popped up.  It had 4 star reviews so I checked out their menu.  They had tons of options for vegetarians and seafood options if you eat fish.


I ordered the Prawns with veggies which came with a nice mix of broccoli, snap peas, corn, zucchini, carrots and tomato (a few added veggies that aren't typically in this dish) The prawns were sauteed and it didn't feel too greasy or unhealthy.  I also ordered a spinach and tofu soup which also had button mushrooms and egg.  It tasted like a wonton soup and was also really good.  Last, I ordered veggie dumplings- 5 came in an order for $4.50 and they were just OK. It had too much dough and could have been filled with more veggies.


Definitely recommend this place if you're looking for a go-to Chinese delivery/take-out spot.

Recipe: T.P.E (Tuna, Potato, Egg Salad)

Sundays are my cooking day.  I usually do my food shop then cook up my meals for the week.  Today I made my T.P.E (Tuna, Potato, Egg Salad).  This salad is a take on the salad I found at the deli counter at Real Food Daily in the Marina.  It was such an interesting trio and I love that it's packed with protein and blends three of my favorite salads.  These types of salads usually use mayo but since I despise mayo, this is topped off with my usual olive oil, sea salt and lemon pepper.  The egg yolk adds a little creaminess so it's not too dry.

T.P.E (Tuna, potato, egg salad)

Ingredients:

3 cans of canned albacore white tuna (in water or olive oil)

3 hard boiled eggs

Handful of small boiled potatoes

Grilled asparagus spears

diced green onions

diced red onions

lemon pepper

sea salt 

Olive oil

Toss tuna in a large bowl then egg and potatoes.  Drizzle olive oil, sea salt and lemon pepper.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix together.  

Pack them up in individual containers and you're all set for lunch for the week.

Dinner: Spork Restaurant Mission District

Had dinner tonight at Spork in the Mission right on the corner of Valencia and Hill (near 22nd St.)  They are known for their "inside-out" burger so I wasn't sure what to expect from the menu from a vegetarian/pescatarian point of view.  They had two vegetarian dishes available under the pastas and grains section: La Pasta Melanzane, which is fresh made pappardelle with breaded eggplant fritters and tomato sauce or the Rustic Farro Risotto, which was a slow cooked farro with lentils, wild mushrooms, kale, cauliflower, and butternut squash.  I asked our server (who took a really long time to finally greet our table) which of the two he preferred and he said they were different in that the Pappardelle pasta was pretty heavy with the hearty tomato sauce, and the risotto was a lighter option so it depended on what I was in the mood for.


I chose the risotto and although it was pretty tasty, it felt more like a rice pilaf than a typical creamy risotto. (Side note: I was just watching an episode of Top Chef earlier in the day and they were discussing how risotto should be properly cooked which is to let the rice be the "star" of the dish and not to let the garnishes over power it.  The rice should also spread out when you plate it on a dish instead of holding itself up.  Spork's risotto definitely was not your typical risotto dish since it was made with farro) The flavoring was really mild with just a light parmesan cheese, olive oil and lemon juice.  I felt like it could use a little something like truffle oil which would have made it amazing.  I also thought it was something I could easily make at home, and add as another salad recipe.


Overall, I wasn't blow away by this dish and Spork has a very limited vegetarian offering.  If you are pescatarian, they do have quite a few seafood dishes that looked really good.  Although, I was disappointed that my dish wasn't served with a spork! Only one of their dishes on the menu actually comes with one!


We didn't order dessert but they're dessert menu looked amazing and the reason why I would go back and try this place again.  They also say they do brunch so would be curious to see what that menu looks like.


Here's Spork's menu to see for yourself!

Recipe: Salmon Bruschetta

I'm a vegetarian but still eat seafood so technically I'm a pescatarian.  I love making grilled salmon and I usually season it with a little lemon pepper and sea salt and grill it on my grill pan.  Sometimes the salmon could use a little kick so I tried putting a little bit of this Trader Joe's Bruschetta Sauce on top to act like a relish.  It was quite tasty and the best part is that 2 tablespoons of it is only 20 calories!  Such an easy way to fancy up some salmon!