The carapace of the amaebi shrimp contains their heads, antennae and their legs, is deep fried and served with their sweet tails.
This year’s amaebi festival was held at Momoya in Bloomfield, NJ. Chef Louis created all new sushi sculptures just for this occasion but didn’t forget the favorites. Newbies to this event found themselves crunching their way through the deep fried tempura head carapace of these sweet shrimp, after sucking the meat from the tail, sashimi style.
One of our intrepid diners chewing down on this crunchy morsel.
First timers had to wade through this seven course food fest in order to work themselves into a feeding frenzy when the amebi arrived.
It’s the Chinese New Year and this is the time that those tender sweet shrimp make their presence known to those who understand it’s time to order them. The small window of opportunity lasts from the end of January to the end of February and I usually go to Kiku in Paramus in order to dine on these tender crustaceans. Alas, they were out but after a couple of sushi rolls I felt better. Neil Nathanson joined me for this event. We started with some gyoza, worked out way into a spider roll and an eel roll and then took off.
I learned about Lada Cafe and it’s owner/Chef from a review in the NY Times and have been going there for years since. The Chef was also the Chef at the Russian Consulate in NY and his recipes reflect his experience. His versions of classic Russian cuisine, like Beef Straganoff, reflects his particular use of herbs and spices and the way his sauces enhace the flavor of all of his creations. I always order the eggplant sotte, which is the Russian version of the Turkish eggplant dish, Imam Biyaldi, but delivers a sweet and tangy varient to this delicious appetizer.
The Russian pancake appetizer consists of 6 warm crepes, lox, salmon eggs and sour cream. Three yums on that.
The vareniki are the Russian version of the Polish pierogi, sauteed in butter and onions and filled with potatoes, while the pelmini, the Russian version of the Italian tortelini, comes filled with meat and sauteed in butter with some dill sprinkled on top.
Another favorite, the O’Livie salad is actually a melange of cubed potatoes, hard boiled eggs and diced chicken, mixed together to make a wonderful and flavorful topping for the bread, served with your meal.
One of the main dishes they are famous for is the old Russian standard, Beef Stroganoff, which I became aware of when I was served a variation of while serving in the US Army. Naturally, the Army version (also called SOS) was a poor variation on this dish, but piqued my interest for finding out just what is the original Russian version.
My good friend and eating buddy, Dan Cohen joined me on this excursion where he ate and enjoyed his first blini as well as all of the other Russian cuisine consumed during our visit. Check out his reaction.
One of their best desserts in the fruit blintz or crepe, just like the one used in the Russian pancake appetizer. Call before you go.
Chew on This 