Tasty Tuesday: Local Cultures

Cerviche at Sabor

Living in Kansas lends itself to many misconceptions. One is that the landscape is pancake flat and consists only of wheat fields; Another is that we lack ethnic diversity.  Neither of these statements are true. For a city with a metro area of less than 700,000, Wichita is actually quite diverse. One place this can be seen is in some of our local eating establishments. I wonder how many Wichita natives have actually explored these places? They are not necessarily well known, but they offer a real taste of culture in our area. If you haven't already, give some of these local establishments a try.

Great Lebanese food can be found at N&J Middle Eastern Cuisine. The outside is nothing special...but the food is! Like many of the more authentic local places, if you want an upscale atmosphere, then head somewhere else. The food more than makes up for it! Enjoy the belly dancers too!

Delicious Vietnamese food can be found just north of downtown. Saigon is a personal favorite! Their Pho is wonderful!

My favorite for Korean is Ah-So. Though not all their food is Korean, they try their hand at some traditional Chinese dishes as well, Korean is what they do best.

Wichita offers a plethora of authentic Mexican...head north for the best! I am personally fond of Paleteria la Reyna. Great food and fabulous Mexican Ice Cream!!

Old Town is home to good Bavarian food at the Imbiss Grille and Latin fare at Sabor Latin Bar & Grille.

As I mentioned in an earlier blog; Authentic Tuscan cuisine is found at Luciano's in downtown Mulvane.

Though hamburger joints are on every corner, I just have to plug Jack's. If you have never been there...you simply must try it. Just don't order anything in a large size!!

And finally...Midwest BBQ is alive and well at B&C Creations. You wouldn't even know this was an eating establishment unless someone told you! Their BBQ buffet, housed in an old garage of sorts at Washington & 3rd Street, is divine!


Get out there and try something new! ~Marla 

Tasty Tuesday: Mexican Shrimp Bisque

I became quite adventurous last night and decided to make a meal taking pictures as I went. This is not as easy as it sounds. I was making two new dishes at once and trying to snap pictures at each recipe step. This gives me a whole new appreciation for the cooking bloggers out there! The food turned out delicious…..the pictures…..not so much! But the recipe that follows more than makes up for it. This is easily the most delicious bisque I have ever eaten! The recipe is from Taste of Home, and I have doubled their original recipe. This makes 6 cups of bisque.

Mexican Shrimp Bisque

1 cup chopped onion

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons all purpose flour

2 cups water

1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons chili powder

4 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 pound uncooked medium shrimp, peeled & deveined

1 cup sour cream

Fresh cilantro & cubed avocado

In a large saucepan, sauté the onion in oil until tender. Add garlic and cook 1 minute longer. Stir in flour until blended.

Stir in the water, heavy whipping cream, chili powder, bouillon, cumin and coriander; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

Cut the shrimp into bite-size pieces; add to the soup. Simmer 5 minutes longer or until the shrimp turn pink.

Cube avocado and rough chop parsley. Set aside.

Gradually stir 1 cup hot soup into sour cream. 

Return all to pan, stirring constantly. Heat through (do not boil).

Serve garnished with cilantro and avocado.

I hope you enjoy this recipe....it really tastes great and is a nice summer soup!

Bon appétit ~Marla