Matt and I took a special trip to Trader Joe's upon hearing they were carrying a double magnum of tasty
Amarone for a steal of a deal. ($29.99 for a
Jeroboam??? You can't beat that with a stick! And my theory is that the larger bottles age better and since it's typically a bigger investment to purchase one, vineyards only bottle their better harvests/varietals in the double magnum+ sized bottles.)
While we were there, I also bought a couple dozen
scallions. They were unusually fresh by DC standards (probably because I bought them in Alexandria, VA) and paired well with the juicy hunk of
ginger root that I picked up at the neighboring grocery store. So the last 48 hours have been spent in a
ginger root-
scallion frenzy, from steamed
red snapper to pan-fried
chicken breast, I really
milked these ingredients to the best of my ability. I'm starting to appreciate why my dad loves those scallions. Bold and zippy, they can hold up to stronger-flavored foods, but light and zesty, they don't over-power milder fish or chicken.
Not to break up the Chinese bulb-root flavor trifecta, I made sure to add a little
garlic into each meal, by putting a side of
edamame flash-fried in
XO sauce, dried
scallops in a spicy
garlic sauce, on the
snapper and putting a side of garlicky
asparagus on the
chicken... mmm... Speakeasy Kitchen is coming in strong!