Eat First

Cooking at home with Sara Tong-Ngork

Sarinthra (Sara) Tong-Ngork has logged more than 20 years in local restaurants. Her resume includes stints at Lemon Grass, Bangkok Thai, Alfa Bar and Dining Room, the Century Club and Bellevue Country Club, among others.  Come fall, she will venture out on her own as one of eight merchants at Salt City Market, the food hall scheduled to open at 484 Salina St., across from the Marriott Syracuse Downtown. 

 

Sara's stand, Firecracker Thai Kitchen, will feature Bangkok-style "street food:" soups, curries, noodle dishes, salads and more. Her menu is in development and she has been going through the steps of writing a business plan.

 

Sara, 45, grew up in Syracuse and attended local schools, including SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. After college, she decided to pursue cooking as a profession. "I started in 1997 at Lemon Grass as a prep cook and never looked back,'' she says.  She has worked with and learned from some of the best chefs and cooks in Central New York, including chef Eamon Lee, her boss and mentor at The Century Club. "I leaned from him for over a decade. ... Better than any culinary school education I could have gotten.''

 

Sara's parents are from Thailand and she has spent much of her coronavirus-mandated stay home time cooking with them and for them.  She's looking forward to life resuming a sense of normalcy and to feeding CNY's "Thai tribe'' at Salt City Market.

 

How did you learn how to cook? I’ve been cooking since I was a little kid, maybe 7. My sisters and I would come home from school and I’d make us a snack while we waited for our parents to come home. Eventually I’d help my parents with dinner. They were both excellent cooks and I think that’s why I love food so much. 

 

How would you describe your style of cooking: I gravitate towards simplicity and letting the natural flavors shine. I like to highlight freshness and balance sweet, salty, sour and spicy, which is the key to Thai cooking. I don’t like to measure and I don’t like a dish with a million ingredients. It's pretty rare for me to spend more than an hour making something, unless it’s simmering or braising away.

Do you have a signature dish? My signature dish is Spicy Chicken and Thai Basil. It was a dish the cooks would make for family meal (the staff meal before service) at Lemon Grass. After almost four years of working there, it was the only dish I could still eat every day.  My version is different, not quite as bright, but equally crave worthy. I’ve run some version of it everywhere I’ve cooked.

Favorite cookbook or cooking show? My favorite cookbook is one that Eamon (Lee) introduced me to, "The Best Recipe" (America's Test Kitchen). I love how it incorporates food science and tells you the "why" of a recipe. TV show -- I was a huge fan of "Ready...Set...Cook!" back in the infant years of the Food Network. After school, other kids would be playing outside and I’d run downstairs to catch that and "Great Chefs." 

What have you been cooking during "stay at home life”? I’m quarantined with my parents. We’ve been cooking a lot of Thai comfort food --  noodles, soups and Thai-style congee are family favorites. We had to keep it pretty simple for a while because we couldn’t get Asian ingredients as most of the Asian grocers buy stock from New York City.
 
Favorite place to shop: My favorite place to shop is the Central New York Regional Market and I wish I could get there more often than I do.  That food has been taken care of. Someone took the time and energy to nurture those ingredients. You can taste that in the product. A misshapen, locally grown donut peach with a blemish, enjoyed mid-summer at peak ripeness, will always taste better than the biggest, most perfect looking one from the grocery store. With a lot of produce,  just because something is available year-round, doesn’t mean it’s good year-round.

 

Any advice for people who are new to cooking? Invest in proper tools - you don’t need to spend a lot. I use a sharp knife I got from Amazon for $20.

• Start simple: Make scrambled eggs and figure out how much salt and pepper to add to them to make them taste good. This will help you learn how to season food.

• Don’t give up. Even the most talented chefs have cooked something only to throw it right in the trash.

 

 

Thai Omelet

From Sara Tong-Ngork

 

Sara says: The omelet is often served alongside other Thai dishes, as Thai food is almost always family style. It’s also found at many food stalls and almost every restaurant. For me, it’s comfort food. This recipe serves two as an entrée and four as a side dish to quell any spicy dishes. The optional condiment adds a little extra salt, spice and brightness to the dish.

 

Ingredients:

4 eggs

1/4 cup onion, 1⁄4-inch slices or diced

2 tablespoons scallion, rough chop

1 tablespoon cilantro, rough chop (optional)

1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic (garlic powder)

1 1/4 teaspoon fish sauce or 1 teaspoon soy sauce (to keep it vegetarian)

Freshly cracked white or black pepper (3 to 4 twists of the pepper mill)

2 tablespoons rice bran or grapeseed oil (high smoke point)

Cooked jasmine rice (2 to 4 servings)

For the optional condiment:

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 teaspoon fresh lime juice

1 garlic clove, minced

1 Thai chili pepper, minced

 

In a bowl, beat eggs, onion, scallions, cilantro, garlic powder, fish sauce/soy sauce and pepper  together until mixed. Heat up a non-stick skillet on medium- high heat. Wait until the pan is hot, then add the oil. Gently pour egg mixture into pan and

reduce heat to medium. As the egg cooks, pull the sides of the omelet towards the center and allow the uncooked egg to run underneath it. Do this all around the omelet until there’s no more runny liquid (the top will still be uncooked). Check underneath the omelet for a golden brown color, then carefully flip it, using plates if necessary. Continue cooking until the bottom is golden brown as well. You may need to add a few more drops of oil if it becomes too dry or it will burn.

 

Serve the omelet immediately with hot jasmine rice and optional condiment. Makes 2 to 4 servings.

 

Optional condiment: Combine all ingredients and serve with omelet.

 

 

 

Avoiding grocery stores? Here are some alternative options in Central New York

Does the thought of grocery shopping in the time of coronavirus stress you out? If you answered yes, you're not alone. Lots of folks are making as few trips to supermarkets as possible -- and using shopping services like Instacart to avoid stores entirely.

Some local stores, farms, restaurants and other businesses have stepped up to make it possible for you to leave the shopping -- or some of the shopping -- to someone else.  By ordering a local produce box, for example, you can limit trips to the store for cooking essentials like onions, carrots and potatoes and at the same time eat your beets and enjoy in-season items like ramps. Several options are available and with some you can add on items like meat, cheese, eggs and bread. Best of all, you are supporting people in the community who could really use our help right now.

Following are some ideas for easy pickup and/or delivery of provisions. If you know of others, feel free to leave a note in the comments.

NYS Farmers Boxes: Mark Pawliw of Farm to Fork 101 and chef Rich Strub of Eden, a wood-fired restaurant in Hanover Square, have teamed up to offer farm-fresh food for curbside pickup (or delivered to your door). Produce and proteins, including meat, cheese and eggs, are sourced from farms in Central New York. We ordered the basic box for $30 and added on a baguette from Scratch Bakehouse ($2.25). The box included onions, carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, parsnips, beets, lemons, apples and a daikon radish. Offerings change each week, depending on available produce and add-ons. Boxes are now being offered for Tuesday or Friday pickup. Orders must be received by 5 p.m. Sunday for Tuesday pickup/delivery or 5 p.m. Wednesday for Friday pickup/delivery. Delivery is available in Onondaga County only. MORE INFORMATION 

Off the Muck Farm: Off the Muck offers fresh, local fruits, vegetables, and other locally produced items, delivered to your doorstep. Some of the items included are: Onions, potatoes, sweet corn, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, radishes, beets, green beans, summer squash, cucumbers and winter squash. Box contents can be customized to suit your needs and wants and you can add on items from local businesses (like coffee, eggs, bread, meats and cheeses). "I love the small portions,'' says a friend who ordered a custom box (part of which is shown here). “The idea of a huge pile of parsnips terrifies me. And even if I eat two apples a day, I often don't finish a grocery store bag before some go soft.'' MORE INFORMATION 

Grindstone Farm: The de Graff family, pioneers in organic growing in Central New York, offer several ways to order: create-your-own boxes, with produce grown by Grindstone and partner farms, and specialty boxes like a microbox (for one- or two- person households), a healthy box with a mix of produce that changes weekly, a fruit box, a keto box and more. The website lists multiple drop-off points in Central New York, Oswego County and the North Country and home delivery is available. Order by noon on Monday for delivery on Thursday in Central New York and Friday in Northern New York.

Grindstone also hosts an on-farm organic market from 1 to 4 p.m. Fridays. One customer at a time is allowed in the store area.  MORE INFORMATION 

Farm Swarming: Farm Swarming provides delivery of goods from local farms and food producers to homes in Onondaga County and in Broome County. It’s like an online farmers market. Orders ($15 minimum) must be placed by 4 p.m. Tuesday for delivery on Friday.  Items available for purchase include meats, cheeses, butter, yogurt, eggs, honey, pancake mixes and more. Delivery in Onondaga County is on Fridays; Broome County deliveries are scheduled for Saturday. MORE INFORMATION

Syracuse Cooperative Market: The community-owned grocery store is offering personal shopping and curbside pickup to members and non-members from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Call the store with your order and arrange a pickup time (orders may be scheduled for the next day). There is a $5 order fee and five-item minimum per order. A staff member will shop and bag your order and call you if items are out of stock or a substitution is required. MORE INFORMATION

Trinity Valley Dairy: Trinity Valley, based in Truxton, has added a drive-thru window and home delivery to many locations in Central New York to its services. In addition to Trinity Valley’s creamline milks, cheese curds and other dairy products, the online store offers homemade baked goods, produce, meats, eggs, butter and pantry items like pancake mixes. 

There is a minimum order of $35. Place your order by 1 p.m. the day before delivery is scheduled in your area. MORE INFORMATION 

Wake Robin Farm and Bakery: Owners Meg and Bruce Schader have transitioned from dairy farming to full-fledged bread bakery. They recently started making deliveries in western Onondaga County (including Jordan, Elbridge, Skaneateles and Marcellus and areas in between). Some of their breads, including rustic sourdough, oat groat bread and sunflower flax bread, are made with Farmer Ground Flour from Trumansburg.  Orders of three items or more are delivered free of charge. Orders must be received by 5 p.m. Friday for delivery on Saturday.

Breads are also available for purchase at their farm store in Jordan (3 to 6 p.m. Fridays) and at the Central New York Regional Market from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays. MORE INFORMATION

Cafe Kubal: Lockdown is no time to run out of coffee. Local roaster Cafe Kubal is offering home delivery of coffee beans. Order by 11 a.m. Monday to Friday for same-day local delivery. Order after 11 a.m. for next-day delivery. MORE INFORMATION 

20/East: This boutique on Albany Street in Cazenovia (above) is small but pretty much has it all. Owner McKenzie Hughes Houseman has shifted gears to make 20/East more of a general store, offering everything from milk, eggs and artisan breads and baked goods to meats, local cheeses, produce, prepared meals, hand sanitizers and even toilet paper. Order online for curbside pickup or delivery or bring your mask and come inside. The store has room for just a few customers at a time. MORE INFORMATION


Epicuse: This specialty market and cafe in downtown Syracuse, operated by the owners of SKY Armory, has ramped up the grocery side of the business to cater to people during the Covid-19 crisis. The store offers produce, meats, cheeses, eggs, milk, yogurt and lots of interesting pantry items to help you cook at home -- plus gourmet prepared food items to reheat and eat at home. Online ordering and curbside pickup is available. MORE INFORMATION

Heritage Hill Brewery/Farm Store at Palladino Farms: Many of the made-in-New York items at the farm store in Pompey have been moved into the brewhouse/bar area, so customers can come in easily and make purchases. Grocery items include meats, cheeses, eggs, pasta and pasta sauces, pancake and waffle mixes, etc. You'll also find face masks and toilet paper. Heritage Hill crowlers and growlers are available to go, as are takeout meals (including a weekend griller special and a Sunday brunch box). Order online for curbside pickup; free delivery is available within five miles of the brewhouse. MORE INFORMATION

Good Nature Brewery: Add New York State's first farm brewery to the list of shutdown businesses that have pivoted to help keep the lights on. In addition to menu items to go, including family meals, Good Nature has added an online ordering platform and is offering local food items like meat, eggs, cheeses, breads and baked goods – along with its signature beers (and hard cider, wines and spirits). Curbside pickup is available and home delivery is an option in the Hamilton area. MORE INFORMATION  

Kriemhild Kupboard: The Kriemhild Kupboard, south of Hamilton, is open daily from dawn to dusk. In addition to several varieties of Kriemhild meadow butter, the stand is stocked with Stoltzfus milks and yogurt, East Hill Creamery cheeses, meats, Jones Family Farm gelato, snacks, jams and jellies and other fridge, freezer and pantry items.  It's a small, self-serve shop in the country; don’t forget your shopping bag(s). Payment is by the honor system, so bring cash or a check. Also bring a mask and practice social distancing: If someone is inside, wait until they are finished before you enter. MORE INFORMATION