I survived, with one minor battle scar where I stupidly grabbed the end of the thermometer that had been hanging out in 350 degree oil, another round of deep frying---this time for chicken dumplings, a mix of dark chicken meat and aromatics enveloped in wonton wrappers, which are then coated in egg, then panko. They were quite tasty with the sweet-and-sour sauce, which had that nice light red, almost translucent look just like the little cup they put in your Chinese takeout. It was very easy to make (red pepper, garlic, red wine vinegar, honey, sugar, red pepper flakes, etc.)
The tuna was very good, though I next time I would salt the meat before cooking, and save a couple of the ingredients (namely cilantro and scallions) to add off heat after the sauce is done, so that their flavor is more vibrant. Shiitakes are offically my favorite mushroom. Slicing them was a bit like slicing marshmallows, but needless to say they tasted much better. Unfortunately the color scheme was unpleasantly monochromatic.
And finally, the poached pear dessert: I could have just eaten the marvelous ginger pastry cream and been happy, but all together the flavors were exotic and interesting. Not something I'd want every day, but that's okay because this would be prohibitively labor-intensive. I was very pleased with how the spicy shortbread "chopsticks" came out, and relieved at how easy the dough was to roll out. These would probably be great with any Asian-themed ice cream or sorbet. The pears mysteriously firmed up quite a bit while they rested in the fridge, though they had been pretty tender before, so that was a little sad. But it was a success all in all.
I love star anise.
