Matsu - Sooooooo Good!

18035 Beach Blvd, Huntington Beach, CA

Instead of posting a recipe, for this blog I'd like to tell you all about a very special Japanese Restaurant.    Located in Huntington Beach, Matsu has been in business for more than 30 years and is the place my hubby and I have satisfied our sushi cravings for over 20 of those years. 

The sushi at Matsu is remarkable. You can always count on the freshness of the fish, the use of real crab (not Krab) and they offer a wide range of imaginative dishes that not only taste delicious, they look like works of art.  If you aren't in the mood for sushi, in addition to the 12 person sushi bar, Matsu also has an expansive dining room serving authentic Japanese cuisine such as teriyaki or misoyaki style steak, chicken and seafood, tempura, bento and udon.  For a big "Wow" factor consider ordering a Matsu Boat Dinner -- beautiful wooden gondolas filled with lobster, beef teriyaki, salmon, sesame chicken, shrimp tempura, California roll and fresh fruit.  Matsu also has several Teppanyaki tables, excellent for those special events.  If you do have a special occasion let them know in advance and you'll receive a free dessert plus a group photo...and if it's your birthday you'll be serenaded with the catchiest Japanese version of the birthday song you've ever heard! :) 

Besides the mouth watering food, it's the staff at Matsu that completes the experience.  For decades, Matsu's owner Yugi-san was the head sushi chef before he bought the place out a few years ago.  Although we miss him rolling sushi he makes a wonderful host, always greeting us by name when we visit.  Hatsu is the main server in the sushi bar and when I say she is a treasure that's an understatement.  She's worked at Matsu since its inception and she is so sweet and attentive, in my opinion she is the heart of Matsu. Yuki-san is the current sushi chef and he's brought several new dishes to the table so be sure to ask for his special sushi bar menu which may inspire you to try something new.

The bar is also worth mentioning because it's very dark and romantic, making it the perfect place to share a drink with your significant other.  Try the Japanese Kimono, a melon and vodka frozen concoction served with a dainty umbrella on the rim.  It tastes like a fresh honeydew melon!  On the weekends you might have a little wait for the sushi bar but I promise it's very worth it...as the guests have said so often it's become their  catchphrase, Matsu is "Soooooo good!"

The following is a sampling of what we chowed down on during our last visit.  I apologize in advance for the sushi craving you're about to have!  

Salmon and Albacore Sushi

I usually start my sushi experience with albacore but I'm very picky about salmon sushi and at Matsu, the salmon is always melt in your mouth buttery.  Here both are topped with vibrant green onion and a bright, citrus-y ponzu sauce.

Crabby Tuna

My absolute favorite thing at Matsu is the Crabby Tuna.  This creative dish is tuna (maguro) wrapped around fresh crab mixed with the tiniest amount of mayonnaise.  Then it's finished with smelt eggs, green onion and a bit of garlic chili sauce to make it sing!  And sing it does, I typically have 2 orders!

Tuna Boat

The advanced version of the crabby tuna is the tuna boat which is the same as the crabby tuna but topped with two quail eggs.  The bright yellow quail eggs give this dish a creamy pop.

Spicy Scallop Sushi

The spicy scallop sushi is not to be missed. Tender scallops are combined with a bit of spicy mayo and smelt eggs, piled atop a little paddy of rice wrapped in seaweed (nori). You may have had spicy scallop sushi before but the difference is most sushi bars add Sriracha sauce to achieve the telltale heat but at Matsu they use garlic chili sauce (aka sambal) which makes it really unique.

Cucumber Special

The Cucumber Special is by far our favorite roll. Looking like a colorful fish lollipop, it's made by utilizing a sheet of paper thin cucumber instead of the usual seaweed wrapper and is filled with crab, tuna, shrimp and avocado.  A dipping sauce of ponzu, green onion and chili sauce provides a perfect accent for the refreshing flavor of this creative masterpiece.  And watching the chef slice a whole cucumber into the flat sheet required to make this roll is a like sitting in on a knife skills master class.

Baked Clam and Scallop

The baked clam and scallop is actually a hot appetizer but we like to end our meal with this very rich dish as a sort of savory dessert.  It's made with giant clam, scallops, onion, mushroom, zucchini all baked in a creamy sauce topped with green onion and dried bonito flakes.  It's a a definite indulgence but if you split it with a friend I've been told the calories don't count! :)

Until next time, thanks for reading!

Ice Cream Making with The Fletchers

Last week I went on a field trip to my dear friend Laura's house.  She recently told me she's had an ice cream maker stashed in a cabinet for years so naturally my wheels started spinning.  The Gravy seemed like a terrific excuse to break it out and attempt to make ice cream from scratch.  I've never made ice cream before but I remember from childhood it seemed to take hours...first blending a custard over the stove then massive amounts of churning.  Would we need rock salt?  Or to crank until our arms gave out?  Luckily things have changed in ice cream technology since I was a kid.  Instead, we used this nifty contraption by Cuisinart:

Because it had two, one quart bowls it was double the fun...we could make twice the flavors!  I chose my favorite, Dulce de Leche (recipe to follow) and Laura chose chocolate chip.  No hand mixing required, no salt needed.  In fact the only preparation was the day before...Laura popped the ice cream maker's tubs in the freezer and I made the Dulce de Leche.

We used the easiest recipe we could find (only four ingredients for exactly two quarts!) from Cuisinart's own website, appropriately titled: Simple Vanilla Ice Cream.  No eggs were called for so we got to skip the stove. The beauty here was we would use the same base mixture for both flavors, adding in the caramel and chocolate chips at the end for two kinds of scream! 

Mix these ingredients in a large pitcher:

3 cups heavy cream

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1 1/8 cups granulated sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons pure vanilla

Blend with a hand mixer or immersion blender until all the sugar is dissolved.  Pour into ice cream maker!

After 25-30 minutes it starts to come together

Time to add the mix ins!  We added the chips to one tub...

and about 1/4 cup of the Dulce de Leche to the other. 

Churn for another 5-10 minutes to incorporate, then transfer ice cream to containers.  To create a ribbon of caramel throughout the Dulce De Leche flavor, simply drizzle spoonfuls of  sauce over the top and fold lightly making little railroads of sticky, golden goodness.  Freeze 1-2 hours for soft serve or overnight for a firmer set.  We weren't able to wait very long considering Laura's nearly four year old twins were clamoring for a taste!  

Now, we expected the ice cream to be delicious but the luscious texture of this frozen treat was marvelous!  Sweet but not cloyingly so, creamy but not overly rich with just the right amount of vanilla.  I hope you try it!

 Dulce De Leche Recipe

 

Dulce De Leche is a sweet caramel-like spread from South America, particularly from Argentina and Brazil.  The Spanish translation is literally "milk candy." Traditionally, the basic recipe is milk and sugar boiled down for several hours but you can easily make your own with this common pantry ingredient:  Sweetened Condensed Milk.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees, position rack in the middle.  Pour 1 can of sweetened condensed milk into a glass or metal pie tin, sprinkle with kosher salt.  Put inside a large roasting pan.

Cover pie tin with foil then pour enough water into the roasting pan until it comes halfway up the sides of the pie plate.  Bake for 2 - 2 1/2 hours, stirring halfway through and replacing the water bath if needed.  It's ready when it turns the color of peanut butter.

Whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes, cool, then transfer to a airtight container.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

Santa Barbara Getaway aka What I Ate on Summer Vacation

In honor of our 17th wedding anniversary, Bob and I headed to Santa Barbara for a weekend getaway.  We pulled into town around lunchtime and were surprised to discover the City was celebrating Old Spanish Fiesta Days!  This event is in it's 87th year and is a celebration of community and cultural diversity.  Featuring dancing, Mariachis, feats of strength as well as a rodeo, the colorful Viva La Fiesta! parade had the streets surrounding our hotel closed off so we ditched the car and headed toward the beach in search of our first meal.

Dungeness Crab Cocktail

Our first stop was Moby Dick's.  Located on the famous Stearn's Warf, Moby Dick's features fresh seafood and oyster bar set in an apropo nautical theme.  We managed to snag a table by the plate glass window and watched as pelicans divebombed the water for their lunch.  Since dinner was hours away, we decided to forgo a full meal and ordered appetizers and soup.  The crab cocktail was made with one of my favorite things in the world: Dungeness crab! 

Oyster's Rockefeller

We also ate cups of clam chowder and inhaled these Oyster's Rockefeller.  If you aren't familiar with this type of oyster, they're made with spinach and a rich hollandaise sauce.  The oysters are hidden underneath this creamy mixture...like little pillows under a spinach blanket. :)  Moby Dick's version also had bacon pieces in it which always makes everything taste better.

 Our Inn was within walking distance of a cluster of local wine rooms located in what's known as the Industrial part of downtown, also called Funk Zone by the locals.  We visited Santa Barbara Winery's production and tasting room which had a delicious Nebbiolo.  Oreana, which used to be an old tire shop but now doubles as a wine tasting room and art gallery, had a crisp Sauvingnon Blanc that Bob and I absolutely loved, it was clean and drier than what I expected.  The Cotton Wood tasting room specialized in Pinot Noir and we sampled a few including their estate version which tasted like Port...sweet, cinnamon-y and a little like raisins!  All and all we sampled over twenty different wines and had to take a pedicab back to the hotel! ;) 

For dinner we picked the Harbor Restaurant, known for the freshest seafood in the bay.  Hubby and I split a mouthwatering ten ounce lobster tail. The lobster was fluffy, decadent and disappeared in about 60 seconds!  The evening was spectacular, we overlooked the ocean while seals played, then watched as the sun set behind the Santa Ynez mountains. Beautiful.

Morning Tightener

Lobster Roll

Fried Ipswitch Clams

After a leisurely morning walk down the beach taking in the Arts & Craft show it was time for lunch again!  We decided on The Arch Rock Fish Company.  Tagged as the newest "neighborhood joint," Arch Rock is owned by Celebrity Chef Scott Leibfried...better known as Chef Ramsay's sous chef on Hell's Kitchen. His point of view takes regional and international seafood dishes and gives them more of a beach vibe.  Considering that the lobster roll and fried clams we ordered were the creme de la creme of these New England style favorites I think Chef Scott's definitely on to something!  The herbaceous Green Goddess dressing served with the field greens was especially notable.

Bacon Wrapped Prawns

Our last stop was Holdren's, a classic steak place with the dark clubby atmosphere I like in a chop house.  If I'm going to eat lamb I prefer to do so in the dark! ;) We looked at the menu back at our B&B and had already decided to order the bacon wrapped prawns as our appetizer.  The shrimps were stuffed with feta cheese and fresh jalapeno then encircled with rashers of applewood smoked bacon. Served with a hothouse cucumber/ginger salad and a sweet chili sauce, they were melty, spicy, smokey perfection on a plate!  For our entree, we shared the mesquite grilled lamb chops served with an ancho chile gravy.  My favorite thing about ordering lamb is watching my hubby nibble away on the bones, he has to get the last of that salty fat and it cracks me up, even after 23 years.  Everything here was finger licking good, the photos don't do this food justice...like I said it was dark in there!

Having to head home is always the worst part about vacation but getting to relive our getaway in words and pictures for this blog was really special.  Thanks for reading, I'll be back next week. :)