Prepping and cooking the pork was almost a three-day process, but SO worth the time and effort.

Best of all? I got to share it with Ludo, his wife Krissy and a small group of friends, who gathered at the Lefebvre’s home for the premiere. If you haven’t seen The Taste yet, you can view it online here.

I purchased the pork belly at Lindy & Grundy. Erte was kind enough to score the skin for me!

The first step is to make a brine and refrigerate for 24 hours. Chef Ludo’s recipe is on page 228 of his book, LudoBites.

Remove the pork from the brine, then confit in lard in the oven on a low temperature. The lard was also purchased from Lindy & Grundy.

After it’s cooked low and slow, the belly must be cold-pressed in the refrigerator overnight. I used two glass casserole pans and foil-covered bricks to compress the pork.

After cold-pressing the pork belly, gently cut pieces, transfer to a new pan and cook until golden brown and heated through.

Make the Glaze
Ingredients:
1/3 cup of honey
1/3 cup of red wine vinegar
1/3 cup of reduced sodium soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch, mixed with 2 teaspoons water

Instructions:
Combine the honey, vinegar, soy sauce and five-spice powder in a heavy small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Whisk the cornstarch mixture, then whisk into the glaze to blend and return the glaze to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and set aside. Cover to keep warm.

I finished the pork belly at Ludo’s home and was thrilled that he (and all the guests) enjoyed it!

My Pork Belly Confit finished.

The recipe is from LudoBites, available on Amazon or iTunes. I’ve cooked several recipes from the book, and have loved every bite!

Follow Ludo on Twitter

All about The Taste on FaceBook

Follow The Taste on Twitter

Go #TeamLudo!

Four culinary masters get down to what really matters, The Taste! Anthony Bourdain, Nigella Lawson, Ludo Lefebvre & Brian Malarkey will each coach a team of 4 cooks, consisting of professional chefs and home cooks whom they will hand pick based on a blind taste challenge. Throughout the season, their mentors will prepare them for challenges in creating dishes that will ultimately be judged by the superstar chefs in blind taste tests. One cook will be left standing to take home The Taste trophy along with a new Ford C-Max and $100,000! 

Premieres Tuesday, January 22 at 8|7c on ABC!

LudoBitches will be live-tweeting during each episode. Follow us at @LudoBitches!

The Taste on FaceBook

Follow The Taste on Twitter

Follow Ludo on Twitter

Follow Bourdain on Twitter

Follow Nigella on Twitter

Follow Brian on Twitter

Photos via The Taste

My photos with Ludo

Recent trips to Thailand, England and Scotland have kept me busy editing thousands of (mostly food) photos. Hopefully I’ll be back to regular blogging at the beginning of the year, but until then I’m still posting daily on Instagram and Pinterest.

Thanks so much for your ongoing support! Cheers, Jo

In early September I was invited to the “Hot & Hip Honolulu” press trip on Oahu, which included tickets to the 2nd Annual Hawaii Food & Wine Festival. It wasn’t my first visit to the islands, but it was definitely the most interesting by far.

In the past, my Hawaii visits consisted mostly of lazy beach-time with my nephews, or Mai Tai sunsets with Peter. This time around I got to spend five days not only tasting the best of Oahu’s cuisine, but also experiencing the beautiful art and culture of the island. I didn’t even KNOW Honolulu had an art museum!

Since I have so many photos to share, I’ve decided to write several blog posts about the tour. This first post includes photos of my island arrival, food porn from the welcome party, and a day exploring Honolulu’s lively art scene. Please check back soon for much more!

Checking into the Waikiki Parc Hotel. PARADISE. I didn’t want to leave the room!

Room 1503, Waikiki Parc Hotel.

I didn’t eat on the plane, so was thrilled to see a plate of fruit & cheese in my hotel room. Thanks again Rebecca, Darlene, Nathan and Kelley!

Waikiki Park’s poolside gym. NEEDED it!

Of course I brought “Travel Maxie”. He makes me miss Maxie just a little bit less when I’m away from home.

View of Diamond Head from Rum Fire, Sheraton Waikiki. A beautiful first evening meeting event hosts and fellow writer/photographers.

At Rum Fire, Grilled Kona Lobster w Anchovy & Marrow Butter from Azure Chef de Cuisine Jon Matsubara.

At Rum Fire, Twice Cooked Australian Wagyu, Mung Bean Puree, Hamakua Tomato, Waipoli Fern Shoot Salad by Kai Market’s Chef Darren Demaya.

At Rum Fire, Hamakua Vine Ripened Tomatoes, Roast Baby Beets by Sheraton Waikiki’s Executive Chef Daniel Delbrel.

At Rum Fire, Hawaii Food & Wine Festival co-founder Chef Roy Yamaguchi greets the crowd.

Spicy Rim Cocktail!

Party time! With the fabulous Lee Anne Wong at Rum Fire.

Day two began with Spam Fried Rice at Waikiki Parc’s Breakfast Buffet (made me so happy!)

We started the morning with a private tour of philanthropist and heiress Doris Duke’s beachfront home. The 14,000 square foot estate was built in 1937 and is officially called “Shangri La, the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Arts”. For nearly 60 years, Duke collected artifacts for Shangri La, ultimately forming a collection of about 2,500 objects, the majority of which were made in the Islamic world. Read Doris Duke’s biography here. (Above, our guide Carol Khewhok standing in the entry courtyard).

Shangri La has a remarkable collection of Islamic art and is considered one of Hawaii’s most architecturally significant homes. I loved this tile entry into the garden. We weren’t allowed to photograph the interior so I’ve added links below.

Looking into the living room through the spectacular, glass WALL elevator which was installed in 1938. Yes, it still works!

Ocean-front garden seating. I stood there fantasizing about throwing the perfect cocktail party! The living room is behind the tree at right.

View of the ocean and Diamond Head from living room.

Pool  (with view of Diamond Head) and Playhouse, which served as Doris Duke’s guesthouse. The Playhouse was modeled on the Chihil Sutun, a royal pavilion built in 1647 in Isfahan, Iran. It consists of three rooms: two guest bedrooms and a large living room with a small kitchenette.

Photos of the interior are available on the official website. You can tour the entire property here.

Some of my favorite rooms:
The Syrian Room is Doris Duke’s interpretation of the qa’a (Arabic: hall), a reception room found in Syrian homes of the late Ottoman period (in Syria: 1516-1918).

The Damascus Room is a highlight of the Islamic art collection assembled by Doris Duke and one of two Syrian interiors preserved at Shangri La. Its acquisition dates to September 1953, when she placed an order for “1 Old Damascus Room made of old painted panels of wood” with Asfar & Sarkis, an antiquities firm based in both Damascus and Beirut.

The Dining Room/Lanai originally had a Hawaiian theme, but in 1960′s Doris Duke completely remodeled the room adding a large mosaic tile panel, Egyptian cloth panels and an Ottoman-style fireplace.

View of Shangri La from the ocean.

NOTE: If you’re planning to be in New York before mid-February, the Museum of Arts and Design is presenting “Doris Duke’s Shangri La: Architecture, Landscape, and Islamic Art” through February 17th, 2013.

I learned so much about Islamic art, tiles and textiles during just this one visit. If you love history, art or architecture, a visit to Shangri La is a MUST.

We spent the rest of the afternoon at the Honolulu Museum of Art. Exhibitions featuring Tattoos and Boardshorts? Only in Hawaii!

About “Tattoo Honolulu” (from the website)

Tattooing is art. After decades of being viewed as a mark of the marginal, tattoos have gone mainstream and are winning over the art establishment—including the Honolulu Museum of Art. The lines between ink on skin and paint on canvas or pencil on paper have been blurred with tattoo artists reaching the skill level of other artists. Now the Honolulu Museum of Art breaks new ground with an exhibition focusing on Hawai‘i’s high quality of tattoo art—and how it sprouted from the islands’ mix of cultures rich with tattoo traditions.

The museum is in the unique position to draw upon its world-class collection to place contemporary tattooing within an art historical context. By linking the past—through works such as 19th-century prints by Jacques Arago depicting tattooed Hawaiians—with the present, the museum hopes to expand cultural awareness not only about the art of the tattoo, but also the rich cultural traditions it is based on.

“Chinese Dragon on Megan Wong” by Billy Whitney. Photographed by Shuzo Uemoto. Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art. Did you spot Hello Kitty?

“Full Back on Anthony Alameda” Tattoo by Lucky Olelo. Photographed by Shuzo Uemoto. Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

Tattoo designs by Joe Leiber. Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

Part of the Tattoo Gun collection. Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

Lucky Olelo, one of the talented tattoo artists joined us for lunch at the Museum of Art Cafe.

About “Boardshorts: A Perfect Fit” (from the website)

Hawai‘i’s unofficial uniform is the boardshort—a perfect fit for the birthplace of surfing. Boardshorts in Hawai‘i were initially created as custom-made surf trunks by tailors at popular venues such as the H. Miura Store in Hale‘iwa, Take’s in Waikīkī, or M. Nii’s in Mākaha during the 1950s. These early boardshorts were first designed for fit and comfort, maximized for the ultimate wave-riding experience. Boardshorts: A Perfect Fit, chronicles the fascinating evolution of a single, simple garment that today is a symbol of extreme sports and a counterculture lifestyle.

Boardshorts: A Perfect Fit. Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

I would have bought ten pairs of these SPAM shorts! Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

Note: Both the Tattoo and Boardshorts exhibits run through January 13, 2013.

A few favorites from the 19th Century Collection.

Kamehameha III (left) and Nahi’ena’ena (Sister of Kamehameha III). Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

Whistler’s Arrangement in Black, No. 5 (Lady Meux). Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

Below from the Asian Art Collection:

Seated Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara (Guanyin). 11th century Chinese Northern Song dynasty (960–1127) Shanxi province.  Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

For scale.  Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle. I LOVE tiny bottles.
Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

Snuff Bottles close-up. Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.

Shibata Zeshin, traveler’s writing case with landscape and plovers. Photographed with permission from Honolulu Museum of Art.  Many thanks to Museum Director, Stephan F. Jost and Deputy Director, Allison Wong.Please visit the museum website for current and upcoming exhibitions.

More photos from Honolulu’s Art Scene

All photos from Oahu 2012

Waikiki Parc Hotel

Rum Fire

Roy Yamaguchi (follow him on twitter)

Shangri La / More about Carol Khewhok

Honolulu Museum of Art

This trip was generously provided by the Oahu Visitor’s Bureau  / Hawai‘i Visitors and Convention Bureau.  Many thanks to Rebecca Pang (Account Supervisor, Travel & Tourism, McNeil Wilson Communications), Nathan Kam, Stephanie Killion, Darlene Morikawa, Lindsay Chambers and their staff members!

Current and upcoming Hawaii events:
Kona Coffee Cultural Festival (Hawaii, the Big Island) – Nov. 3-11, 2012 - http://www.konacoffeefest.com/

Wailea Wine & Food Festival (Maui) – Dec. 6-9, 2012 - http://waileawineandfoodfestival.com/

From the online book description:

The cookbook chronicles of the visionary, charismatic chef Ludo Lefebvre and his cult hit pop-up restaurant, LudoBites, worshiped by critics and foodies alike.

Ludo Lefebvre is a culinary prodigy who worked at his first three-star Michelin restaurant at age fourteen. By twenty-five he was running his own kitchen in Los Angeles—winning accolades for serving the most imaginative, forward-thinking food the city had ever seen. In 2007, he traded fine dining—with its endless pomp and bottomless resources—for the freedom to cook outside the box, even if it meant sacrificing his skilled kitchen brigade and drafting an eight-year-old to clean green beans and separate eggs. (Amazon)

Note: Ludo (and his wife Krissy) are dear friends. But that doesn’t stop me from being a HUGE fan of Ludo’s cooking or LudoBites the cookbook! I’ll continue to try out recipes and share the photos on twitter.

A few recipes I’ve tried so far:

Vietnamese Vinaigrette (page 261). I spooned it over pan-fried tilapia and rice.

Brocamole (page 22). Broccoli instead of avocado. We ate it with pita chips.

Époisses (my favorite stinky cheese) Risotto w Egg Yolk (page 340). Ludo made this for dinner a few days before I had the cookbook. I’m happy to say that mine tasted just as good! We used leftovers for baked risotto balls the next day.

Ludo’s upcoming (Oct 2012) appearances

Watch Ludo on Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations: Burgundy (video recap). You get to see his charming side and meet his grandma!

Ludo Bites America on the Sundance Channel (available on iTunes)

Order the book on Amazon

Follow Ludo on Twitter

My photos of Ludo

Just his food!

Cooking from LudoBites

If you’d like to follow our adventure on twitter or instagram (I’ll be posting mostly food and scenic photos), just search for #SinghaHnS or follow @Singha_Beer, @MyLastBite, @ChrisCrary or @TomSopit! Khob-kun-Ka!

The Ramen Dog from Hank’s Haute Dogs in Honolulu is a skewered hot dog wrapped in sticky, cooked ramen then deep fried until crispy. Genius!

Even though I’ll be in Hawaii soon (for the Hawaii Food & Wine Festival), my schedule is so packed that I’m actually not sure I can make it to Hank’s. So last night I attempted to make the Ramen Dog at home. It was SUPER EASY and definitely a special (once-in-awhile ONLY) treat. Peter and my brother Greg loved it too!

My version of Hank’s Ramen Dog

Ingredients

4 hot dogs

4 skewers (soaked in water for at least 30 minutes to prevent burning). Note: I cut each skewer to fit in pan.

2 Packs of cooked ramen (no seasoning), drained and dried. You want LONG strands and it should be very sticky (and DRY).

Vegetable oil for deep frying.

Optional Garnishes: I cut up Nori and sprinkled each finished dog with Shichimi and Furikake.

Instructions

Skewer each hot dog with wet, wooden skewers.

Wrap each dog with various strands of sticky, cooked, DRY ramen. Set aside on plate.

Heat oil to 350 (make sure to prepare ramen dogs before eating oil).

Using tongs, gently lay ramen dog into hot oil, turn if needed.

Watch until the ramen strands are golden brown and drain on paper towels.

Garnish (optional).

Eat!

The Cooking Channel

Video of Hank’s Haute Dogs

Hank’s Haute Dogs
324 Coral Street
Honolulu, HI 96813
802-532-4265
Website
Facebook: Hank’s Haute Dogs
Twitter: @hankshautedogs

Next week I’ll be heading to Oahu for the 2nd Annual Hawaii Food & Wine Festival, as a guest of the Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau. Besides all the amazing food, I’m most excited to experience bits of Hawaii that I hadn’t on previous trips.

Some of my itinerary includes a visit to Doris Duke’s 1937 “Shangri La” estate,  Hawaiian Fire Surf School 
(taught by off-duty Honolulu firefighters!), and an afternoon at the Honolulu Museum of Art. My culinary schedule is packed with various food events and lectures, then winds down with a pop up dinner at Honolulu’s Miso and Ale.

The last time I travelled to Hawaii was a summer trip in 2004 with my two (then teenaged) nephews. We stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and spent most of our holiday surfing (them), eating and drinking (me) with a little bit of sightseeing along the way.

The previous year, Peter and I booked a room at the Ilikai Hotel on Waikiki Beach. I’ve always been a huge fan of the original “Hawaii Five-O”, and if you remember the opening credits with the cool, balcony shot of Jack Lord (aka the legendary Steve McGarrett!), then you’ll recognize the Ilikai Hotel.

We had such a fun time visiting random locations from the show, and definitely made an effort to eat like the locals. Our favorite dish back then was the Loco Moco. The traditional version is made with white rice, hamburger, fried eggs and brown gravy. We first ordered the burger version for breakfast at our hotel, and also tried a SPAM version (instead of beef) that we loved as well.

My ex-husband Perry (we married in 1987) was an airline pilot and surfer. With his free air travel (my tickets were gratis as well) he would trek to the world’s best surf spots, including Indonesia and South Africa.

Since we lived in California, Hawaii was of course a favorite. I went on one of his surfaris in 1991 and pretty much spent the long days watching his extra surfboards (so no one stole them) as he caught waves on the North Shore.

In exchange for being Perry’s “board watcher” I insisted we check out the “Al Harrington Show” at the Reef Towers Hotel. Al Harrington played the roll of “Detective Ben Kokua” on, you guessed it, “Hawaii Five-O”. The dinner show was a mix of stand-up comedy, singing and Hawaiian dancing. Perry cringed throughout the entire evening, but I was thrilled at being one step closer to Steve McGarrett. I never got to meet my favorite TV cop, and when Jack Lord died in 1998, a good friend of mine sent ME a condolence card. I still watch H5O repeats to this day.

During the upcoming trip I’ll be tweeting (of course) and posting photos on instagram. Both user names are MyLastBite in case you’d like to follow along. If you plan on attending the event, feel free to drop me a tweet! Please do check back for a full blog post upon my return.

Aloha & Mahalo!

About The Festival:
The Hawai‘i Food & Wine Festival is the premier epicurean destination event in the Pacific. Set in the lush island paradise of O‘ahu, our four-day Festival features a roster of over 50 internationally-renowned master chefs, culinary personalities, and wine and spirit producers. Co-founded by two of Hawai‘i’s own James Beard Award-winning chefs, Roy Yamaguchi and Alan Wong, the Festival in Honolulu and Ko Olina Resort will showcase wine tastings, cooking demonstrations, one-of-a-kind excursions, and exclusive dining opportunities with dishes highlighting the state’s bounty of local produce, seafood, beef and poultry.

The Festival is a benefit for the Hawaii Agricultural Foundation and UH Culinary Institute of the Pacific, with the inaugural Festival raising $250,000 for the community.

Dates: September 06, 2012 to September 09, 2012 6:00pm, Daily
The Festival will be held on Oahu at The MODERN Honolulu, Halekulani, Hilton Hawaiian Village Resort and Spa, and Ko Olina Resort.

Complete Schedule here

Download the FREE Hawaii Food & Wine App

Many thanks to:
Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau, Oahu Visitors Bureau: Go Hawaii Website  Follow @GoHawaii on Twitter

Hawaii Food & Wine: www.hawaiifoodandwinefestival.com
Follow Hawaii Food & Wine on Twitter on FaceBook

Rebecca Pang. Account Supervisor, Travel & Tourism, McNeil Wilson Communications

More of my older Hawaii photos on Flickr

Our upstairs apartment had a large kitchen (Perry did most of the cooking back then), and just one other room with floor-to-ceiling glass windows overlooking the island.

Mr Wayman, our landlord built a ramp near the back door so our dog Warhol (who moved with us from the mainland) could run up the side of the mountain. We loved our tiny bit of paradise.

Always a photo buff, I spent most of my time photographing and getting to know the island. I loved pretending to be a “local” for those few months, and on Perry’s days off we would rent a small boat and head to the nearby British Virgin Islands.

Our favorite spot was Sidney’s Peace and Love in Jost Van Dyke Island’s Little Harbor, just 7 miles northeast of St. Thomas. Once docked, I would pick out a live lobster from a trap near the shore and the cook would grill it on the spot. Perry always ordered barbecue chicken (he didn’t like seafood) and we BOTH drank heaps of rum at the attached open-air bar. It was “serve yourself” at Sidney’s, and also “total the bill” yourself if you weren’t too drunk. An honor system that you just didn’t mess with in the Caribbean.

My favorite shop on St. Thomas was called Sunny Caribbee, where I picked up island spices, oils and trinkets for the kitchen. There was an elementary school nearby and I loved listening to the students pounding on steel drums in the afternoons.

We left the Caribbean when Perry was offered a job with United Express, the commuter division of United Airlines. He now lives with his wife and kids near San Diego. (More about Perry here)

Walking into Roy Choi’s Sunny Spot for the first time made me smile from ear to ear. I flashed back to 1986 and was suddenly transported to my carefree, twenty-two year old, vagabond self.

After several visits (including dinner and brunch) I still get that happy feeling when I walk in the door. It’s a mini-holiday, a few hours of vacation. A delicious and less expensive trip to the sunny Caribbean, that’s for sure.

Don’t Worry… Be Happy!

Sugar Cane Fried Pig’s Feet

Roy Choi’s take on Mofongo! Muh-F*K*N Mofongo: Plantains, Bacon, Garlic, Black Pepper

LET’S PARTY!
Left: Fleur-De-Lis: Gin, Hibiscus, Honey, Chartreuse, Lemon
Middle: Death in the D.R.: Dominican Rum, Lime, Honey, Absinthe, Champagne
Right: Dry Harbour: Pot Still Rum, Lime, Absinthe, Habanero Pineapple Shrub

Cuban Torta: Pork Terrine, Prosciutto, Provolone, Pickled Jalapeño, Mustard

“What A Jerk” Wings: Double coated, double fried

Bridgetown Swizzle: Barbados Ru, Averna, Falernum, Lime, Angostura

Diablo Prawns w Rum Glaze, Garlic Butter & Herbs

Yucca Fries w Banana Thai Basil Ketchup

Jamaican Roasted Lamb w Lettuce Wedges & Pickled Mango

Whole Roasted Red Snapper w Ginger Oil, Cilantro, Chili Vinegar

The Silver Goblet: Coconut Ginger Sorbet

House-Made Caramels w Maldon Sea Salt, Toasted Cashews

The “bird cage” table in the back dining room

Dinner in the bird cage: Me, Peter, Evelina & Greg

Brunch Menu Festival Bread w Goat Butter, Guava Jam & Rum Honey

Brunch Menu Bloody Mary: Vodka, Dirty Sue, Tomato, Jamaican Jerk Spice

Brunch Menu Banana French Toast: Rum Coconut Whipped Cream, Caribbean Spiced Maple Syrup

Brunch Menu Sunny Spot Egg Plate: Korean Style Baked Eggs, Jerk Seasoned Potatoes, Mo Jo Glazed Grilled Pork Belly

Brunch Menu Eggs, Sausage & Grits: Fried Eggs, Jerk Sausage Patty, Anson Mills Grits, Maple Syrup

Take a seat!

Sunny Spot

More photos at Sunny Spot

More photos of the Caribbean

Sunny Spot
Website
822 Washington Blvd
Marina Del Rey, CA 90292
(310) 448-8884

Jonathan Gold wrote:
But like everybody else who visits Mexicali Taco & Co., I am obsessed with the vampiros, rather larger flour tortillas folded over chorizo, chicken or carne asada, maybe all three, as well as a squirt or two of garlic sauce and what can technically be described as a boatload of gooey, stretchy melted Mexican cheese. (A vampiro is supposedly a creature of Sinaloa, although I’ve seen them in Guadalajara and they are apparently endemic in northern Baja at the moment. I refuse to take sides.) Think of a  CPK-size pizza folded in half, only a million times better. A folded pizza you can have with giant grilled guero chiles — chiles dusted with dried chiles! — if such is your pleasure. Or really, about a pint of that taqueria guacamole. ~ Read more at L.A. Times

Carne Asada Vampiro. GET EXTRA GARLIC SAUCE!

Cachetada: The classic tostada reinvented with choice of meat and melted Mexican cheese, topped with a savory aioli chipotle sauce.

Cachetada con Huevo. HANGOVER HELPER.

Dinner is great with a group of friends (and family). My brother Greg’s favorite is the MEATY Zuperman: A gigantic portion of all three meats & cheese sandwiched between two tasty haring tortillas.

Chorizo Nachos w special Salsa Raja. Ridiculously GOOD! I shared, but didn’t want to.

Gueros: Cantonese-Baja Style Peppers. At $1.50, a MUST ORDER every time.

All about Mexicali Taco & Co (they cater too!).

Follow Mexicali on Twitter

Mexicali on FaceBook

Make sure you wave hello to founders Esdras Ochoa & Javier Fregoso!

Mexicali Taco & Co.
Website
702 N. Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Phone: (213) 613-0416
Located one block north of Sunset Blvd/Cesar Chavez Blvd, just north of downtown and west of Chinatown.
Map