Choochoo-ca-Chew

08/23/2026

Cooking Asian food doesn’t always mean exotic ingredients— you can cook with local farmers market ingredients. It doesn’t need complicated techniques. You can get everything at a regular supermarket, and the basic idea is really just: make aromatic oil, cook your eggs, cook your vegetables, put everything back together.

Asian food can sometimes feel intimidating because people assume there are a million special ingredients or complicated steps.

But a lot of Taiwanese home cooking is just whatever you have in the kitchen, cooked in a slightly different way.

And that’s what I love about tomato egg stir-fry.

Cooking demo, full recipe and more:

A recording from Tiffany | 's live video

08/21/2026

A throw back article but still relevant today:
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2022/09/09/cooks-say-outdated-regulations-hold-back-ethnic-food-vendors?utm_id=97757_v0_s00_e0_tv2_a1deek3tdkg9cy&fbclid=IwY2xjawT1f6BwZG9mBWV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkEDIyMjAzOTE3ODgyMDA4OTIAAR6EJTs82tNwJxOgYc1PRgj5Ze7IdEFlEYwnKWbch-0ARJzUHw43fsvY3D2X5A_aem_f3txUp9uHBf16Xxap9t7xg

In Rochester, the Night Market focuses on promoting ethnic food vendors and it gets more and more popular by the year. But behind the scenes, the annual event underscores how food production regulations for up-and-coming cooks can hamper their ability to build a business.

08/20/2026

FULL Tomato Egg Stir-fry recipe/ cooking demo video:
https://choochoocachew.substack.com/p/tomato-egg-stir-fry

08/20/2026

All of the businesses I helped and put my soul into were businesses that cared about building a community, supporting arts and culture, local food and sustainable living.

Now they’re all dead(or dying). What does that say about Rochester?

FULL ARTICLE:

bitterness is my medicine, cleansing and saving me right now. Easy chicken soup that is a warm hug.

08/18/2026

Thought I'd practice photo dumping and bring the old IG back. ➡️ For best things I ate this week + cute kitty pics

LIVE cooking demo on Substack on Sunday, we made ➡️➡️➡️
(Replay will be available this Thursday with a detailed recipe, subscribe to substack to get the email)

We made Tomato Egg Stir-fry! Taiwanese classic 番茄炒蛋 so homey and cozy. 🥺 I've been thinking about this dish for two weeks.

(Like I said: replay will be available this Thursday with a detailed recipe, subscribe to substack to get the email 🎉)

🌟🌟🌟 The best thing I ate this week: branzino with crispy red curry and sauces from Soul Lao 🥺 make your own wrap with all the veggies, herb and noodle. We added sticky rice.

The fish was perfectly cooked, crispy on the outside and super juicy and tender inside.

Red curry crisp is full of lemongrass flavor, I was mopping it all up with my sticky rice at the end. Enjoy the meal at Wandering Leaf Brewing Company with a beverage!

Pan de budin is it パン de 布丁？！ If I lost you, I'm sorry. But if you get it, we are meant to be friends. 🥺

Sean and I tried "Fowling" for the first time at Fowling Warehouse Minneapolis . Football bowling. My shoulder is not as sore as I thought it would be.

India fest at the MN state capitol in the rain. The best chai I've had in the US- warm, thick, a little savory. I've missed it so much. 😭

Pictured: mysore masala dosa

Ah. Another great dinner. Girl dinner? Sean ate it too tho.
Pickles, pickled herring, smoked salmon, smoked white fish at Waldmann Brewery PLUS...

The giant pretzel with three kinds of mustards and cheese sauce. 🤤 Love Waldmann Brewery

Cute cat. Not mine. Just cat sitting. 💖

08/17/2026

Whenever people ask me what I'm up to, I feel like I don't have a real answer, ever. But I've been busy everyday. Now I'm realizing that I spend a lot of time writing my Substack, like A LOT. Sean wouldn't approve of the amount of time I spend on it if I told him.

Opening up my main feed today, I'm proud of what I've produced. It's the most consistent thing I've done in a long time, one article/recipe a week. Working on online projects just always seem like I'm throwing things into a void thus feels like I'm not doing anything.

If you like food, recipes, little glimpses into my life in MN or back in Taiwan, give it a read(or listen if you have the app!)

You can also support my life's work by becoming a paid subscriber for the price of a fancy latte(less than a cocktail!) each month. 💖💖

Love you!

https://choochoocachew.substack.com/

📸: Tomato egg stir-fry linguini LIVE demo. Replay and recipe will be released to paid subscribers this Thursday.