Food shopping, leftovers for breakfast, a diabetic's nightmare

Sahara-brand Clementines are on sale for $4.99 at ShopRite in Paramus, but as the name suggests, the 5-pound boxes are from Morocco, not Spain.

The Paramus ShopRite also has 1-pound packages of Sunset's incomparable Campari Tomatoes for $3.99, compared to 2-pound packages of the same tomato for $4.99 or less at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack.

Editor's note: Food shopping is hard work and stores take a lot of short cuts on signs and other aids. Today, I also discuss assembling a quick, nutritious breakfast from leftovers, and a Trader Joe's holiday sales flier that contains so much sugar my teeth ache just reading it. 

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

The food we buy in our local supermarkets and warehouse stores comes from all over the world, meaning there is no substitute for reading labels.

That may look like a good price for clementines, but are they from Spain or Morocco? I prefer the Spanish ones.

Australia is known for low prices on grass-fed beef, but one of the producers, Clayton's, follows organic practices and another, Nature's Reserve, doesn't.

I've been buying Campari Tomatoes for years, but for some reason, the ones that come in Costco Wholesale's 2-pound packages taste better than those in the 1-pound packages sold by competitors.

ShopRite confused two Australian producers on the sign at left that I saw on Thursday. Three 1-pound packages of Nature's Reserve Grass-fed Ground Beef were $14.97. Clayton's Organic Ground Beef was $5.99, right.

Six enormous California Pomegranates are $14.99 at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack. Each one yields 2 cups of pomegranate seeds. The seeds from ShopRite's smaller and cheaper pomegranates weren't as good.

Going clockwise, a breakfast of leftovers includes sauteed Chinese broccoli with lots of chopped garlic, sweet potatoes mashed with extra-virgin olive oil; and two items purchased from H Mart in Englewood, stewed-tofu and japchae, translucent noodles with vegetables. I often use gochujang, a vinegared red-pepper paste, on tofu.

On leftover patrol

My personal record at breakfast is clearing five containers of leftovers from our crowded refrigerator.

You won't ever catch me skipping breakfast or stopping for one of those artery clogging breakfast sandwiches at a fast-food place.

But you will find me leaving enough time in the morning to reheat a plate of healthy, simply prepared food, often supplemented by an egg-white omelet with reduced fat cheese or organic whole eggs fried sunny side up.

Most of my breakfasts include leftovers that used ingredients from Costco Wholesale, Whole Foods Market and H Mart.

H Mart, a small Korean supermarket chain, is known for its prepared tofu and other side dishes, and fresh produce and fish, such as the whole king whiting my wife bought on Friday for $4.99 a pound, dusted with cornmeal and fried for dinner.

Chinese broccoli, mashed sweet potatoes and tofu make way for a Jamaican specialty, ackee and salt fish, accented with Valentina Mexican Hot Sauce (Black Label).

An egg-white omelet with a slice of reduced-fat Swiss cheese, Aleppo pepper and za'atar thyme mixture joins more tofu and organic brown rice with organic lentils. 

Organic 100% whole-wheat pasta shells, prepared with bottled sauce, anchovies and sardines, joins japchae and two organic eggs fried sunny side up with grated Pecorino Romano Cheese.

Trader Joe's sugar fixation

The latest edition of Trader Joe's Fearless Flyer is labeled, "Holiday Guide 2014."

The 24-page sales flier, which I receive in the mail, is filled with promotions on so many sugary treats and full-fat cheeses I had to resist the urge to schedule a physical after reading it.

Caramels, fondue, chevre with truffles, scallops wrapped in bacon, egg nog ice cream, chocolate, cupcakes, shortcake, marzipan and cookies pose a real minefield for diabetics and even people who are just watching their weight and cholesterol.

I'm someone who doesn't add sugar to coffee, doesn't eat dessert and hates the taste of bottled pasta sauces with added sugar.

There is not much that interests me in this flier.

No more big discounts on grass-fed Australian beef

Free-range, grass-fed Australian beef, left, and grain-fed American beef at ShopRite in Paramus. The American beef was probably raised on heavy doses of animal antibiotics and growth hormones, and confined to feeding pens.

The label of the vacuum-packed Australian Whole Beef Tenderloin for Filet Mignon that I purchased on Monday.

Editor's note: Today, I discuss Nature's Reserve beef from Australia, and wild-caught sockeye salmon fillets from Costco Wholesale.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

I've been checking the price of free-range, grass-fed Australian beef at ShopRite in Paramus in recent weeks, hoping the price would drop to the lows of the past.

But on Monday, I decided there was no chance ShopRite would be selling Nature's Reserve whole beef tenderloins for $4.99 a pound, as the supermarket chain did in 2010.

I bought a 6.35-pound tenderloin on sale for $7.99 a pound with a store card, a discount of $2 a pound.

My wife will trim and thinly slice the beef in three portions of about 2 pounds each, add Korean marinade, freeze it and, when the time comes, grill the beef on the stove top for lettuce-wrapped barbecue meals.

I once enjoyed those meals, because the quality of beef at Korean restaurants is questionable, but I no longer eat meat.

ShopRite in Paramus put Barilla pasta sauces on sale this week, but they contain added sugar, a turn-off, and I passed. Barilla is supposed to be the No 1 brand in Italy.

Instead, I bought 25-ounce jars of two so-called premium pasta sauces on sale, one labeled ShopRite Special Edition ($2.49), left, and the other from Silver Palate ($2.99). Neither has added sugar.

Just off the grill and still steaming, fresh, wild Canadian sockeye salmon with an organic diced tomato sauce and organic quinoa. Most of the ingredients are from Costco Wholesale in Hackensack.

Last weeks for wild salmon 

If past years are any guide, fresh wild salmon fillets won't be available for much longer at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack.

On Monday, I picked up a 1.92-pound fillet of sockeye salmon that yielded six portions. The price was $8.99 a pound.

I grilled them on the stove top, and served them with organic quinoa I prepared with chicken stock and small garlic cloves in an electric cooker.

I ended the meal with a salad of Earthbound Farm Organic Spring Mix from Costco (1 pound for $4.79), dressed simply with extra-virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

The serving pieces -- veined with heart-healthy fat -- are seasoned with Himalayan Pink Salt and fresh lime juice, grilled on the stove top for 10 minutes and turned once for medium rare. When the grill pan is taken off the heat, the fish will continue to cook.

A can of Kirkland Signature Organic Diced Tomatoes, chopped garlic cloves, red wine and fresh oregano are cooked separately from the fish. Cook the garlic in extra-virgin olive oil, add the other ingredients and bring the sauce to a boil to reduce and thicken it.

Jarlsberg Lite price hike

I was shocked to see the 2-pound package of Jarlsberg Lite Reduced Fat Swiss Cheese is now back up to $9.49 at my Hackensack Costco.

That's the second 50-cent price hike in recent months.

Also, Jarlsberg has been cutting the slices thicker than before, meaning I run out of the cheese faster and have to buy more at the higher price.

I use it for frittatas and omelets, and roll up a slice with smoked wild salmon for a snack.

A much-better buy is the 2-pound package of Adams Reserve New York State Extra Sharp Cheddar slices for only $6.99, but I bought it for family members who eat full-fat cheese.

  

Thai favorite needs a makeover

Image by scaredy_kat via Flickr
Spicy Panang curry is typical of Wondee's fare, though this dish was photographed elsewhere.

Editor's note: Today, I report on Wondee's, my favorite Thai restaurant; the inspirational story of a young food blogger who was born without a functioning digestive system; and continued confusion over whether growth hormones are used to raise grass-fed Australian beef.

Wondee's Fine Thai Food and Noodles in Hackensack is one of our fallback restaurants -- the place we go when the four of us can't decide where to eat or don't want to risk disappointment at a new venture. 


The food served at our last few meals there has been as good as ever -- crunchy, green-papaya salad; Thai fried rice, and whole, fried fish or jumbo shrimp in a sweet chili sauce -- and prices are reasonable, even after a recent increase. 


But when I looked around at the plain decor and worn carpeting, I was let down, even though I'm one of those people who feel you can't eat the wallpaper, so what difference does it make what the place looks like? 


I thought, Here's a great, reasonably priced restaurant that is in need of a makeover to showcase the talents of the chef-owner, Wandee Suwangbutra, who was hired to open several Thai restaurants in Manhattan before venturing out on her own.


On Saturday, we used the rear parking lot, across Camden Street from the public library, and sent our 14-year-old son in to get a table, while I parked.


We usually sit near the big plate-glass window on Main Street, but found our son at a  table next to the kitchen doors, opposite a serving station. The back of my seat was near an uneven, sloping part of the floor covered in worn carpeting.


When you use the rear entrance, you have to step up, something I don't always remember. To get to the small, plain restrooms, you have to step down. The walls are painted or covered in mirrors, with just the bare minimum of Thai-themed decoration.


It was between 5:30 and 6. We could hear a noisy group in a section of the L-shaped dining room we couldn't see, and tables were arranged for a party of eight, or so it seemed.


The only place for my car coat was the back of my chair and it dragged on the floor. My wife put my wool baseball cap in her lap after it fell to the floor twice. 


In view of my son's insistence on ordering won ton soup with pork and complaining that I order whole fish "all the time," we shared salads and a jumbo-shrimp entree, but I could eat only a little of the fried rice with vegetables, avoiding the pork, because I'm not eating meat.


I felt uncomfortable in my seat, but got through the meal and didn't kill myself on the uneven floor surfaces getting up to use the bathroom.


I brought one bottle of beer to the BYO. Service was good, as usual, but for the first time, we had to send back our entree, because the big shrimp were under-cooked.


Wandee herself came out of the kitchen, mopped up a puddle of sauce on the table and placed the replacement dish in front of us, explaining some customers ask for their shrimp just barely cooked. 


Not far away on Main Street is Bangkok Garden, a relatively expensive Thai place with a liquor license. I recall from a visit more than five years ago that it is nicely decorated.


Whole fish at Wondee's is $18; at Bangkok Garden, it is listed at $24.95 on the online menu.


Wondee's could do with a renovation. 


It's no kitchen nightmare, but wouldn't it be nice if Chef Gordon Ramsay stumbled in, embraced the warm and welcoming Suwangbutra family, and gave it a free makeover?


Wondee's, 296 Main St., Hackensack; 201-883-1700.


Kitchen artist


Her parents named her Matisse, but she was born without a functioning digestive system, according to today's Parade magazine.


Then, in December 2010, the Reid family moved to the United States from New Zealand so Matisse could receive a new small and large intestine. Her first meal? Squid.


Now, the 10-year-old seafood lover is writing a cooking blog, Matisse's Kitchen, which I have added to my Blog List at the right.


Beef confusion


I relied on information from Meat and Livestock Australia Ltd. (MLA)  in writing a recent post about Nature's Reserve grass-fed beef, which is sold at ShopRite.


After I published the post, O say can you taste the grass?, I was contacted and told MLA had given me the wrong information: growth hormones are used in raising the cattle in Australia.


Last week, I received an e-mail from MLA, saying the Nature's Reserve Web site has been re-launched. I took a look and it says, "Raised without added hormones."


Well, at least Nature's Reserve beef is 100% grass fed from start to finish, and doesn't contain antibiotics or animal by-products -- kitchen scraps and bits of dead animals fed to cattle raised on feed lots in the U.S.


ShopRite is having a sale through Dec. 17 on Nature's Reserve Whole Beef Tenderloin for Filet Mignon at $8.99 a pound or $6.99 a pound with a store card.


Here is a link to the Nature's Reserve Web site: 


Nature's Reserve Beef from Australia