My old friend Louis de la Chesnaye Audette, QC OC – who “ate like a bird” – frequently quipped, “The best sauce for any meal is an appetite!” Normally that dismissive adage is a predisposition difficult to challenge. But every so often, upon patting the white linen napkin to one’s lips and pushing back from table with a contented groan, the culinary stimulation is more inventively artistic and less uncompromisingly visceral. This evening was one such an event. And I have my partner Denis to thank for the accommodation.

The narrative began weeks ago when we were at loose ends and considering where to go for luncheon.  Vietnamese or Chinese “hot and sour” soup was my choice – a combination of soup broth, vegetarian option and tingling flavour. Tonight for dinner that is precisely what we had – all homemade from scratch.  Days ago Chef Denis went to a Chinese food market in Kanata where he purchased many of the ingredients to complete the recipe. I am presuming there is a recipe – but only because Denis often mocks me for never reading the instructions to anything. In this instance – dealing with the production of what is for most a largely foreign product – I readily acknowledge the value and necessity of a recipe.

The hot and sour soup we had for dinner this evening was superb!  It was certainly hot – that distinctive Asian heat. And it had all the characteristic ingredients, among them exotic mushrooms, bamboo shoots, egg noodle, chilli pepper, cornstarch, white pepper, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil and tofu.

But that was only the beginning of this evening’s magic! What followed was a slice of salmon “slow cooked”.  If you haven’t tried the method yet, I recommend it strongly.  I will never eat salmon prepared otherwise. From what little I know of cooking, the method is simply as stated; that is, slow cooking.  Cover the salmon with a bit of oil and salt. The slow cooking does the rest. And as simple as it sounds, the result is inexpressible!

Though we’re going up the ladder, we were still not at the top.  What followed was the purely novel creation of Chef Denis: dessert with fruit, yoghurt, ground flax seed, maple syrup.  I’m guessing.  I’m certain to have overlooked something of importance.  Oh! I know! The walnuts!

All in all it was a delightful meal, top to bottom! In response to Herr Audette’s assertion regarding appetite, I can only report that, prior to my first sip of the hot and sour soup, I hadn’t any noticeable appetite. But following that first sip, I couldn’t get enough. Indeed we each had another small bowl (a vulgarity when drinking soup I would normally have considered excessive). The subsequent small plate of juicy salmon completed the apparent urge for food. But not before the arrival of that signature dessert (I wish I had a name for it).