pea vines with XO sauce

Working on the last two recipe headers–today is my hard deadline for the cookbook! One of the editors is going to send me some minor edits tonight, and my deadline to turn those in is Monday at noon. But first, here’s part of my lunch today–pea vines with XO sauce. XO sauce is a dried scallop-based sauce that typically contains garlic, chilis, dried shrimp, and dried fish. It was invented in the 1980s in Hong Kong, some say by Iron Chef Ken Kenichi’s father. Its popularity has grown tremendously since then, especially in Cantonese cuisine. We were gifted two bottles from a family friend when we visited Taiwan last year, and this is the best quality XO sauce I’ve ever tasted. It is extremely rich in dried scallops, the priciest ingredient in an already pricey condiment. The bottles came elaborated mounted in a gilt box, and came from a high-end restaurant in Taiwan.

This weekend, I’m going to a BBQ on Saturday, and an island Pig Party on Sunday. We are bringing Asian-style marinated flank steak to throw on the grill tomorrow, and this sandwich, by request, on Sunday! Lots of pictures to come.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend in the sunshine!